"Anna, you don't have the right to say these things to her, it's my affair with her. You don't know what you're doing!" said Pat's voice, angry.

"Do you know exactly what you're doing? She's someone else's girlfriend, she doesn't like you, it's better for you to stay away from you!" Anna was also angry.

"I think I know what's better for me than anyone else!"

……

Lu Ling answered the phone as he walked towards his house. Pat and Anna's voices grew farther and farther away, and at last she couldn't hear anything but the silence on the other end of the phone.

She knew he was there, and he knew she was.

The snow was getting heavier and heavier, and she was supposed to feel cold, but the sense of touch disappeared in an instant. She opened her mouth and called his name.

"Nick. ”

He seemed to answer, barely audible.

After a while, he said, "Merry Christmas." ”

"Merry Christmas. Lu Ling patted the snow on the car and leaned on his car, "It's snowing here." ”

"I know. "Liverpool too." ”

Lu Ling felt that the hand holding the mobile phone was numb, maybe it was too cold, she didn't know, she changed her hand. Then she heard music and human voices on his end. And she suddenly realized that the voice had always been there, but she had ignored it before.

"Are you on the pie?" she asked.

"My parents and my brother and sister are here. He answered her.

Such. Lu Ling thought. Last year he spent Christmas and his own thirty-fourth birthday in Harrington alone. It seems that he will not be so lonely this year. He had told her about his family. But she hadn't seen any of them.

"Happy birthday. She tried to say the words in Spanish with a smile.

He didn't speak. She said it again, could it be that her pronunciation was so bad that he didn't understand?

"I hear you, thank you. The background sound on his side was gone, and he must have avoided the crowd.

He stopped talking, and she didn't know what else to say. A gust of wind blew, and his hands seemed to be numb again.

"So......" she was about to hang up, since there was nothing to say.

His voice came suddenly.

"I received a gift from you. ”

It was a pair of delicate cufflinks, which she had bought after consulting with Steve for a long time. The back of the cufflinks are engraved with two letters, C&N, Christine&Nick.

"Did you just get it today?"

"No, yesterday. ”

"Do you like it?"

"Very. ”

After a brief silence, she exclaimed, "Nick......"

“Babe.”

Lu Ling closed her eyes, and she felt the snowflakes hit her face.

"Do you miss me?" she asked softly.

He paused and said, "That's a stupid question." ”

Lu Ling's whole body began to tremble. She felt cold.

Oh my god, she put on a sweater and stood in the snow.

"I didn't receive my Christmas present. Although she said this in a joking, she somewhat minded.

"I want to give it to you personally. He said.

She snorted, a little expectant. But it was so cold that her upper and lower lips were shivering, "Nick, I'm going to have to hang up, it's so cold, I think I'm going to be a snowman." ”

"Good. Hurry up and warm up. His voice became concerned and anxious.

And she said, "I'll call you later, if you have time." Maybe we can FaceTime."

"I'll wait for you. ”

She heard the smile in his voice, as if she could see the corners of his lips and dark eyes. This Christmas, she missed him so much.

"And ...... I love you. Never forget this. ”

His voice came again, and she felt as cold as it was, and warm as if it were by the fireplace.

****

When Lu Ling ran back to Patrick's house, Anna was no longer in the doorway, and Pat was sitting on the steps.

When he saw her coming, he quickly stood up, and before she could speak, he said, "Anna is wrong, she doesn't understand anything at all." He said as he noticed the smile on Tina's face and her trembling body.

He wanted to hug her, but he didn't.

He opened the door, "Let's go inside." ”

She nodded and slipped in.

Lu Ling finally felt warm, and his whole body was warm. Even though his head was already frozen and dizzy.

As soon as she entered, she saw Jack and Lucy preparing to go back, and Anna was also wearing her coat.

She paused for a moment, then looked at Patrick.

"It's late. He said.

They hugged and said goodbye.

When Lu Ling hugged Anna, Anna stopped talking. Eventually, she whispered in her ear, "Christine, I'm sorry. I'm not accusing you. Pat is right, it's your business. I don't have the right to say those things. ”

Lu Ling lowered his eyes, "But what you said is right." In fact...... I've tried to do that, but it's too hard. ”

Patrick couldn't hear what they were talking about, and he was afraid that Anna would talk nonsense again, so he hurried a few words.

Lu Ling let go of Anna and followed her to the door, and when she closed the door, Pat's hand grabbed the door, and she smiled at him, "Don't worry, I'll be in soon." ”

He hesitated and let go.

Jack and Lucy had already driven away first.

Anna looked at Lu Ling and sighed, "Maybe you don't know what you're thinking." ”

"I don't understand what you mean. She frowned.

"You said you didn't like Pat, I believe it. But have you ever wondered what would happen if he fell in love with another woman?"

She smiled slightly, "Of course I'll be happy for him." ”

"Really? Are you sure you will? If Pat falls in love with another woman, it means you're no longer his first choice. When you are happy, when you are sad, he will not be by your side like he is now. And on a holiday like this, he'll be with that woman, not you. Have you thought about this? Do you think you're going to get used to it?" Anna looked at the smile on her face and froze little by little, and sighed again.

Finally, Anna hugged her, "I'm sorry, maybe I said something I shouldn't have said." Good night, Christine. ”

"Good night, Anna. Lu Ling felt that he was smiling very reluctantly.

"Oh yes, I'm moving back to London. Pate's real estate agent recommended me a nice job. ”

"That's great, congratulations!"

"I want to congratulate you too, manager. Anna laughed, Christine had worked hard for this day for a long time, a dream that was once out of reach, and she really came true.

They hugged again.

The door opened.

"Anna, it's time for you to go back. Patrick urged impatiently.

"Alright, alright, I'm getting ready to go. Anna grunted as she walked to her car.

Lu Ling waved at her. Before Anna could drive out, she was sent into the house.

"What did you say?"

Lu Ling glanced at the living room, and Zoe fell asleep on the sofa.

"Nothing special. She said.

"Lying. ”

Lu Ling turned his head, "I think I should go back too." ”

"Are you okay with him?" Patrick stood in front of her.

"I don't know, I guess. I shouldn't have talked to you about that. She said trying to get around him.

He grabbed her arm, probably too hard, and he quickly let go, "Don't listen to Anna." ”

She stared at him and pursed her lower lip, "Okay." But, Pat, you have to promise ......"

Patrick interrupted her, "I can't promise it. ”

"You have to ......"

"I said I can't guarantee it. ”

"As the head coach, I order you not to touch me in the future!" Lu Ling said solemnly.

Patrick's tense face instantly relaxed, and in fact, he laughed out loud.

"Really? Tina. Do you think this works?"

She frowned, a little angry, and looked really angry.

He likes to see her all kinds of expressions, but he doesn't want her to be unhappy. This is contradictory a lot of the time.

"I try. But I can't really guarantee it. He said, "I'll take you home." ”

"No need, it's on the other side. Lu Ling said and put on his coat and walked out.

"I want to do it. Patrick followed.

"You like to work against me. ”

"If that's the case, I won't let you go. He laughed self-deprecatingly.

"Is the snow not stopping, what will happen to tomorrow's game......" she digressed.

"Maybe tomorrow it will stop. Patrick remembered something, "Tina, I've never seen you smoke. Why today?"

“…… I do not know. Lu Ling diverted the topic again, "By the way, do you have time to take care of Zoe?"

"Probably not so much after the stoppage. ”

"What then?" she hurriedly turned around.

"I can hire someone, Tina. Patrick was a little helpless.

"Oh, yes. ”

"When are you going to see your foal?"

"You can do it, but when I'm free. ”

"You're always busy. ”

"Don't worry, I'm sure I can spare an hour to see my foal. ”

"An hour?"

"I'm home, Pat. ”

"Good night, Tina. ”

"Good night. ”

****

Lu Ling finished FaceTime with Nick, she was a little tired, but she knew she could get a good night's sleep tonight.

There are still a lot of problems between them, Nick hasn't let go of Pat's affair, Sofia will move to Liverpool later, and Nick's control and possessiveness that she doesn't know what to do......

Still, at least, this Christmas night, it's all sweetness between them.

She saw Pat's latest updated Instagram photo before going to bed. It's a photo of him and Zoe. The boy was wearing a Christmas sweater - oh Tony would love him, and a lot of people would buy the same Christmas sweater as him, even though it was already Christmas.

The accompanying text is:

Zoe slept while we were eating, and now she won't let me sleep!

Zoesleptwhenwehaddinner.Nowshewon’tletmesleep!

She clicked a thumbs up and put her phone down.

I fell asleep almost as soon as I closed my eyes.

****

London is sunny on Boxing Day.

But in Queens Park Rangers' match against Swansea, the home team's head coach was suspended. The camera pans over her several times before the game starts, as well as the beautiful boy next to her.

Two of the team's most eye-catching figures sat in the stands for this game, both due to suspensions.

It was an interesting scene for the fans and the media.

Lu Ling held his face and glanced at Pater beside him, he seemed to be in a good mood, and said a word or two to her from time to time.

Before the game, she trained on set-pieces and some simple routines. During the frequent Christmas schedule, she did not arrange too much training. She fielded a 442 formation this time, with Conor Washington and Vargas partnering up front.

The game was still a stalemate, and it wasn't until the end of the first half that QPR had their first chance on target. But it was this chance that the goal was scored - from Matt Phillips from distance.

In the second half of the game, Swansea gradually took the lead. George is directing and making substitutions according to Lu Ling's pre-match arrangement. Ian came off the bench in the 68th minute.

The Scottish boy who returned from injury looked energetic, but his midfield partner Marco van Ginkel looked a little tired. Lu Ling thought to himself, if it was him, he should replace the Dutch at this time.

However, George's reaction was a little slower, Van Ginkel slipped directly at the back and was cut off by Andre Ayew, and then Ecuadorian winger Montero cut in and punched Robert Green's ten fingers.

Lu Ling bowed his head, and the patter beside him seemed to be more angry than her. She tilted her head to look at him again. This guy has always been like this, no matter what kind of game it is, he wants to play, he wants to win. Any competition.

In the end, the team failed to get three points. They drew 1:1 with the visiting Swan Legion. George shook hands with Swansea boss Guidolin and walked into the hallway.

QPR remain in 10th place after the draw, but their next game, on New Year's Eve on 31 December, will take on Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium in north London. Patrick Amber will remain unavailable.

****

Four days later, QPR lost the game against Arsenal. It was their first defeat since the defeat to Antonio Conte's Chelsea in October. And before that, they were unbeaten in nine games.

After Lu Ling shook hands with the Frenchman, he did not rush to the players' tunnel.

Mr Wenger was delighted. Arsenal have struggled in the first half of the season and although they are not far from the top four or even the top in terms of points, the Premier League is highly competitive and it is not easy to keep up with an opposition. Perhaps she gave him the life-saving three points – a game ahead of which many Arsenal fans said Arsene Wenger should resign himself if they lose at home to QPR.

The lights are so bright. She thought. Today is the last day of 2016. The year went by so fast.

Someone tapped him on the shoulder.

"Tina, we should go in. ”

Hearing his voice, she looked back, oh, and the good news is that Pat's suspension is finally over.

****

There were Premier League matches on 2, 3 and 4 January 2017.

This is the first round of the Premier League in the new year. The QPR match was on the evening of the 2nd. They host Burnley.

The suspense lasted just a dozen minutes, before Patrick and Ian scored a goal in the space of five minutes. In the 83rd minute of the second half, Vargas put the icing on the cake as they beat their opponents 3-0.

This time, Sean didn't refuse to shake hands, even though his face was extremely bad. Lu Ling knew that his attention was no longer on his team or on himself. Burnley are in the bottom two of the table and are under huge pressure to be relegated. Presumably, Sean is full of thoughts about the winter signings and how to successfully score points in the next round.

When she met him again at the press conference, Sean actually took the initiative to say a few words.

'You've got a really good team, maybe a chance to get into the European zone, I wish you well, Kristen. ”

"Thank you, Sean, and good luck to your team. ”

Sean smiled, his eyes more blank than his usual irritability and intransmissibility.

They passed by.

Lu Ling glanced back at him. She knows what the relegation quagmire is all about. She knew how much pressure he was on. She knew what it was like to not be able to eat and sleep no matter what.

Thank God she's not in his place.

Few people already expect QPR to be relegated this season, both in terms of the current points and the quality and form of the team. And, Kristen Lue is being recognized by more and more people.

But what about the European theater? No, it's not just that, she wants more.

There was a game on the night of the 3rd, which was in high demand.

As the match drew to a close, Lu Ling called Nick. She could hear the background sound of the game on his side, as well as the human voice.

She screamed tentatively.

Nick's voice on the other end was a little excited, "Babe, I know the purpose of your call, but now may not be the time, I'll call you back later." He hung up as he spoke.

Ten minutes later. Manchester City lost.

It was Pep Guardiola's first defeat since losing to Christine Lu at the start of November and the Catalans' second defeat in the Premier League.

They lost at home to Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool. Lost three points.

Oh, it's not just Nick, it's Jose, they should be happy. Jose Mourinho's Manchester United won the game yesterday and are now one point above Manchester City to become the top team. Nick's Everton are yet to play this round and they play Bournemouth tomorrow.

The Cherries are now in 14th place. Not a difficult opponent. The only thing that's hard is that they're the only team Nicks have lost so far this season.

It's going to be a lot of fun.

On TV, Pep was giving a post-match interview to Sky Sports, touching his bald head, and for a moment, Lu Ling felt like he wanted to punch the reporter who had been asking questions.

Lu Ling turned off the TV. There's a reason she's watching this game. The league will be suspended for a week. Because the FA Cup is coming. The opponent of the third round of QPR is none other than Liverpool. (Premier League teams play from the third round of the FA Cup)

She turned on her computer and the high-definition footage of Liverpool's game against Manchester City should have been in the club's internal count. She needs to watch it all over again, maybe not more, maybe even twice.

When she saw City open the scoring in the seventh minute, she received a call from Nick.

"Babe, I'm sorry, I was with the players. ”

"It's really good, I think tomorrow they'll fight to win the game. ”

"I hope so. ”

Lu Ling paused the game that was still being played, and said with a smile, "Bournemouth is the team that gave you the first defeat of the season. ”

"Yes, but do you really think I'm going to make the same mistake?"

"It's not a question of whether I think it or not, sometimes, it's hard to avoid. ”

"No, I'm not going to let that happen. Nick said firmly on the other end.

"I'm sure you'll win tomorrow. She did.

"Thank you, babe." He laughed, and then he paused, "Three days to go." ”

"There are three days to go. She also said.

They said she would go to Liverpool to play the FA Cup in three days' time, and after that, they would finally be able to meet.

It's been half a month since that game against Manchester United.

"I've got to hang up, there's something else going on. ”

"Okay. ”

"I love you, babe, and good luck with me. ”

"Good luck, Nick, I love you. ”

****

Twenty-four hours later, Everton reached the top of the Premier League for the first time of the season. It was followed by Manchester United, followed by Manchester City. The Spaniard on TV has a big smile on his face, and just a year ago he was the manager of a Championship club. Now, a year later, he led another team to the top of the Premier League table, beating the Manchester giants.

The next two days were almost entirely in the news about Everton.

Lu Ling was asked another question about Nick at the pre-match press conference against Liverpool.

'Everton are at the top of the table now, Christine, I think if you hadn't won against Manchester City and drew with Manchester United, they wouldn't be where they are now......

Oh, that's a nice thing to say. Although, it is.

"That's so, but what do you want to ask, sir?" Lu Ling asked with a smile.

"Are you happy?"

"I'm glad. ”

"I think you've already congratulated Nick ......"

"Yes. ”

"He ......"

"You should ask the manager of another Liverpool team, after all, I am against them in this round of the FA Cup. I'm afraid you've forgotten his name, his name is Jurgen Klopp, remember, it's not Nick Flores, it's Jurgen Klopp. She laughed sarcastically. Then, as she wished, she heard laughter.

Lu Ling is already very good at dealing with reporters. When she's in a good mood, she doesn't mind joking with them.

In the evening, she goes to Patter's house to play with Zoe for a while.

Before leaving, Pat asks her if she has time to see her pony on Sunday.

Lu Ling thought in her heart that tomorrow was Saturday, and after the FA Cup, she would stay in Liverpool. Maybe she'll want to spend an extra day in Liverpool......

Seeing that she didn't speak, Patrick picked up Zoe and shrugged, "Monday is fine." ”

"If I'm back on Sunday, I'll call you. Rest early and ...... tomorrow"

"Tina, you've been looking forward to tomorrow, haven't you?" he asked, looking down at Zoe, seemingly casually.

Lu Ling looked at him, he suddenly raised his head, and she said, "Actually, it's not." She was indeed looking forward to it before, but when we were really about to meet, she felt uneasy and even cowardly.

Patrick looked into her eyes, he wanted to understand what was inside, but it was deep and elusive, and if he looked any further, he would only do something wrong. He rolled his eyes, "Anyway, when you get back, we'll go to Wimbledon to see the ponies." He must be looking forward to meeting you. ”