3: A Mother's Intuition

Chapter 3

“Mummy, we're back!” Mia was in her little garden watering her flowers when she heard Sofia's excited voice. She chuckled as she turned around, seeing her hopping towards her, with Susan trailing behind carrying some shopping bags as they entered the exquisite oasis.

Nestled amidst lush greenery, the private country house of Mia, stood as a serene retreat from the chaos of fame. Designed with elegance and functionality, this haven catered to Mia's needs as a renowned artist and devoted mother to her five-year-old daughter, Sofia.

The estate's façade exudes warmth, with natural stone and reclaimed wood accents blending harmoniously into the surrounding landscape. A winding driveway led to the main entrance, flanked by meticulously manicured gardens and a sparkling fountain. The roof's subtle pitch and earthy tones ensured the house blended seamlessly into its surroundings with a guest wing accommodating friends and family, complete with luxurious amenities.

Outdoor Oasis includes an Infinity pool overlooking the rolling hills and lush gardens, with an outdoor kitchen and dining area, perfect for al fresco meals and entertaining.

The house also contains a private tennis court and basketball hoop. A safe haven, secured, gated entrance, and surrounding woods ensured utmost privacy.

A lush flower garden, with various varieties of flowers. She stood in the garden watering them when Susan and Sofia arrived.

Mia squatted down as she embraced her daughter. “You guys are back early. Did you have fun?” She asked, and Sofia squealed in delight and began telling her tale.

“Yes. Mummy, we had so much fun. I even got an action figure from my favorite football player. Look…” Sofia blabber on.

Susan and Mia's eyes met, and they laughed, knowing at the little child's tale. Mia's heart bubbled with joy and she was satisfied that she could make her daughter happy again. She'd gotten her love for football from her father, Lucas.

He had expected to have a boy as his first child, but then Sofia came, but it didn't stop him from loving her. Instead, he'd shared everything he was planning to share with his male child with her. From Jersey to the training, to the occasional traveling to see live matches. Their family had been blissful. Until Lucas started cheating.

Mia's train of thought was halted after a while when Sofia left them to go inside to play with her newest collection of toys. Then the women began their conversation.

“So, Mia, are you ready for your groundbreaking performance at the Champions World Cup this weekend?” Susan asked, her excitement evident in her voice.

Mia smiled heartily as she confirmed her readiness. “Of course, I am, Suzy. It's a dream come true”. Mia replied, her eyes gleaming in excitement. But suddenly it vanished.

Alarmed, Susan asked softly. “Is everything okay, Mia?”

Mia hesitated for a while before she answered, sighing heavily. “Yes, Suzy. It's Sofia. I haven't told her yet.”

Susan gasped in disbelief. “What? You haven't told her. Come on Mia. When were you going to tell her? When you're already on the plane? You know how she gets when she's away from you.”

“I haven't told her because I'm taking her with me!” Mia said suddenly, surprising Susan.

Susan stared at her for a while, and then her countenance softened. “Really? I think that would be great”.

“Right?” Mia asked as if waiting for Susan's validation. Susan nodded her approval and Mia continued.

“I've always had to leave her behind. Besides this time, her father is no longer in the picture. Plus, she loves football. It will be a good bonding time for us.”

Susan looked at her with care in her eyes, she drew closer to her and sat beside her on the garden bench, putting an arm on her shoulder.

“That's a wonderful idea Mia. You and Sofia deserve to make new memories together”. Susan assured her, and they hugged.

A few more chit-chats later, Susan was ready to leave.

“I'll leave now Susan. I'll make sure to get everything ready for Sofia to join you. Spain is ready to receive the world-famous pop singer Mia Martinez!” Susan exclaimed and they both laughed happily as Mia saw her off.

Mia returned inside to find Sofia in her room, engrossed in playing with her newest toys.

Sofia's room is vibrantly colored, a whimsical space with a canopy bed, built-in bookshelves, and an adjacent play area. The play area is filled with toys, art supplies, and a cozy reading nook.

The lights in Sofia's room were turned off, except the one peeking from inside her little camp-like house on the ground beside her bed.

Without making a sound, Mia snuck in carefully. She squatted down as soon as she got near Sofia in her tent and then was about to tickle her when Sofia turned back, making a “Boo!” sound.

“Hey! You smart Angel. You knew I was with her the whole time?” Mia asked in mock shock. Of course, she knew how smart and witty Sofia was. One of the many qualities she got from her.

“Yes. Mummy. You're not as slick as you think”. Sofia replied amidst laughter.

“Ouch. You're brutal”. Mia replied, laughing as she crawled into Sofia's Barbie-themed tent, and she joined Sofia to play with her toys for a while before she decided to talk to her.

“Baby, mummy has something to tell you”. Mia said softly, sounding more serious now.

She noticed Sofia's countenance slowly dropping. “Are you going away again, Mom?” Sofia asked sadly.

It broke Mia's heart seeing her like that but she knew this time would be different. “Yes baby, mummy is leaving for Spain this weekend…”

Mia watched as Sofia struggled to control her emotions, and then a sly smile spread across her face as she added. “...but you'll be coming with me this time.”

Sofia's eyes widened and shone with unshed tears as she asked. “Really, mummy? I can come?”.

Mia nodded, and before she knew it,, Sofia threw herself into her arm,s, hugging her tightly as she hugged her back. “Thanks, mummy”. Sofia whispered softly.

As they broke the hug, Sofia began to bombard her with questions. Having an inquisitive seven-year-old daughter with you, witt and Sass, isn't all that convenient all the time.

“We're going to Spain, mummy? What are we going to do there?”

“Your very famous mummy is going to be singing at the Champions World Cup opening game,” Mia announced proudly and Sofia gasped.

“Wow mummy, that's so next level. You're really famous”. Sofia said and Mia couldn't help but roll her eyes at her choice of words. Seems she's been learning a lot from her aunty Susan too.

“Of course I am”. Mia replied as they continued chatting for a while before Mia sent her to bed but not without reading her favourite bedtime story to her.

When she was sure Sofia was asleep, Mia tucked her in properly as she exited the room when she stepped on something. Looking down, she saw it was the action figure Sofia had shown her earlier. She bent down picking. It must have fallen out of her hand when she fell asleep. She thought.

Her face lit up with a smile as she remembered how happy she'd been to own the piece. Returning to its place, she stopped to take a look at the figure of the footballers. Then an idea popped into her mind. She needed some information on the footballers and their various teams to predict how their fans operate.

With that, she left to go to work.

As she browsed through players' pictures on the Internet, one of the players caught her eye.

“Wow, he's hot!” She exclaimed to herself as her eyes roamed the picture displayed on her laptop. “Andrea's Leonardo…sounds familiar”. She thought out loud.

Her search revealed a lot of tagged news articles with the name Andreas Leonardo. She clicked on the most recent and her eyes widened in shock. The article attached to a video explained Andreas', recent confrontation with another guy at a club. What's more? The fight was because of a girl.

Curious, Mia clicked on the video. Her eyes widened in disbelief as she watched Andreas punch the other guy. “Wow! He's tough. And to think he's doing all these because of an ex-girlfriend…” Mia scoffed.

She decided to go through the pictures next when her eyes caught something. It was a picture of Andreas kissing the supposed ex-girlfriend. But the kiss wasn't her concern. It was the girl. She looked familiar.

Mia thought for a while but she still couldn't find out who she was. She kept scrolling through the pictures hoping to find a clue. But she didn't find any. She decided to give up. There's no way she knew this girl. She thought to herself.

Going through the pictures once more, she muttered under her breath, “Hot and also scandalous. Aren't this the kind of men you always attract, Mia?” Sighed heavily, she closed her laptop and was about to leave when it hit her.

Lucas. Yes. That girl in the photo with Andreas was the same she'd met naked and high on crack at Lucas house the last time she was there. She quickly turned on her laptop again, rushing over to the pictures to confirm her suspicion.

“Oh! No”. Mia exclaimed, sounding horrified. It was the same girl.

The problem now was that Andreas, Sofia's soccer Idol, was the same guy fighting for a girl her father was cheating on them with. And Mia had promised Sofia that she'd let her meet her favorite player once they got to Spain.

Mia had sworn to always keep Sofia away from scandalous men; how then could she allow her to meet a man who was fighting dirty over the same girl her father was sleeping with?

Trapped between caring about her daughter's happiness and protecting her, Mia was at a different crossroads. And a decision had to be reached urgently.