Bend It Like Becker

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Author's Notes: Hobbits give mathoms to others on their birthdays, so here's mine to you - the final two chapters of this story. For those of you who have been reading it chapter by chapter the past few months, I hope you find the ending a satisfying conclusion to all the mix-ups, etc., I've put Jess & Becker through. And thanks for all the birthday wishes! :)

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Chapter 41 - RIGHTEOUS REDEMPTION

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As the RSID team cheered their victory, Becker felt his heart sink. After everything that had happened, after all they'd been through, losing now made all their efforts seem for naught. He sighed and started to head off the pitch, utterly dejected, when a sudden movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention, and he turned to see Abby sprinting towards the goal. Momentarily confused, he looked to where she was headed ... and saw Connor lying unconscious on the ground just inside the penalty box! Becker instantly took off running himself, reaching his injured teammate's side just as Ghani did. Abby was already knelt by her fiance, tenderly stroking his cheek.

"Connor?" she gently coaxed. "Connor, c'mon, wake up."

His eyes slowly fluttered open, and Becker watched as Abby's shoulders instantly relaxed, clearly relieved.

"Temple, you okay?" Becker asked.

Connor smiled weakly as Abby helped him sit up. "Yeah, I was having the strangest dream. And you were there... and you... and you."

Becker rolled his eyes, but then his gaze followed Connor's to the last person he'd addressed.

"Are you up for taking the penalty kick yourself?" the referee asked. "Or would you rather someone else take it?"

"But the match is over," Abby said, echoing Becker's own thoughts.

Ghani shook her head. "Since he was fouled before the final whistle, we still get a kick."

Becker couldn't believe it. It was as if they were being given one last shot at redemption. It didn't matter that Connor's goal couldn't win them the game - nor even tie it - the opportunity still felt like a gift, as if someone somewhere were looking out for them.

Abby helped her fiance to his feet as the rest of the players gathered around to watch the final kick of the game. It suddenly felt as if everything were happening in slow motion as Connor carefully placed the ball on the penalty spot. The ref made extra certain everyone was outside the box as the air was filled with deafening cheers and shouts from the other players. Most blokes would've choked under the intense pressure of all eyes upon them, but Connor was used to working under such pressure. He took a deep breath and briefly mumbled something to himself before running up and kicking the ball.

If his words had been meant for luck, they apparently worked, for the ball spun low, arcing banana-like around the goalkeeper and into the bottom of the net.

The ARC team erupted into cheers and rushed to crowd around Connor, overcome with excitement.

"You know you didn't win, right?" one of the RSID players commented snidely as he passed, but Becker and the others ignored him. They may not have scored more points, but as far as they were concerned, they'd definitely "won".

This was confirmed a moment later when Becker spotted Lester off talking to a man in a pin-striped suit, the same man who'd been gawping as he rode by on the motorway. The soldier still couldn't place where he knew the man from, so he asked aloud, "Who's the suit?"

Everyone turned to look, and Matt, Jess, and Abby all answered in unison, "The Minister."

"How do YOU know that?" Connor asked his fiance, surprised.

"Because his framed photo is hanging in the ARC," Abby explained patiently.

"It is?" Connor sounded doubtful.

Abby nodded. "You walk by it every day."

The image of the Minister's portrait totally flashed in Becker's mind - no wonder the man had looked familiar - but the image was almost instantly replaced by the sudden memory of the Minister's wager. Becker held his breath as he watched the two gentlemen talk, hoping his guv'nor wasn't getting too badly scolded. However, the suited man didn't appear too angry; in fact, he was now smiling heartily and patting Lester on the back. Becker was relieved that Lester's job - and his own - were no longer in imminent jeopardy, despite the team's loss. However, he was still a bit nervous, waiting for the other shoe to drop, for how could the Minister be so jolly when he'd just lost a substantial sum of money?

They would soon find out, for Lester was shaking his guv'nor's hand and heading back towards the team.

"Well?" Matt prompted.

"What'd he say?" Abby asked.

"How much money he lose?" At his fiance's scolding frown, Connor quickly defended, "What? We was all thinking it."

Lester ignored Connor's question and simply answered, "The Minister was extremely impressed by our show of teamwork... both on AND off the field."

Becker knew what that meant - the Minister had seen them out on the motorway, voluntarily assisting with the accident, whilst the rest of the team had continued to forge ahead on the pitch. Becker was pleased to see that the Minister, too, seemed to have his priorities straight, something Becker never would've guessed prior to today.

"But we lost, yeah?" Connor pointed out. "Don't he care about that?"

Lester shrugged. "According to him, the whole point of the exercise was to work on our teamwork skills, a fact the RSID players seemed to have forgotten." Lester subtly nodded his head to where the Minister was currently giving the other team a proper wigging. "Besides," their guv'nor continued, "he said he's certain we'll beat them next year."

"Next year?" Becker repeated warily, not liking the sound of that.

"We have to do this AGAIN?" Connor whined, once again speaking for them all.

Lester nodded, clearly not thrilled with the idea himself. "The Minister wants to make it an annual event."

Connor shook his head. "Just kill me now."

...

As everyone began to pack up their kit, Jess stood off a ways from the others. She wanted to be happy, to join in the celebration, but things were still strained between her and Becker, making her feel uncomfortable around the team. If she'd had her own car, she would've long since made her excuses and left, but she needed to get a ride back to the ARC and thus was stuck waiting by herself till Lester was ready to go.

She wasn't alone for long, though, for Chas and Neela soon approached.

"Thank you so much," Jess gushed. "To both of you. For EVERYTHING. I don't know how we could've done it all without you."

"I don't feel like I did much," Neela said with a shrug.

"Are you kidding? You were brilliant on the field - best player on the team, without a doubt. And you even managed to supply us with an amazing ref... and substitute," she said, flashing Chas a grateful smile.

"I'm just so happy to be back in touch with you after all these years, Lil' Nosy. We've got to start hanging out more. Who knows - maybe even double-date sometime?" he added with a wink.

Jess smiled weakly. She knew she'd have to tell Chas about Becker eventually, but not now, not while they were still celebrating.

"And you're coming to the pub, right?" Neela asked.

"Pub?" Jess asked blankly.

"Yeah, we're all going out," Neela explained. "Lester said first round was on him."

Uggh! Hanging out with the team was the last thing Jess wanted to do right now. "Well, it's late, and I'm... uh... pretty tired. I think I'll pass," she said, hoping she could get a ride from someone.

But Chas wasn't buying it. "No way, Lil' Nosy," he said. "It's not even tea time. Besides, you have to come - you helped make all this happen."

"Yes, you must stop by," Neela insisted. "At the very least you need to raise a glass to our engagement."

Chas looked stricken as he turned to his girlfriend. "Engagement?"

Realising what she'd done, Neela bit her lower lip, glancing guiltily at Jess as she uttered a regretful, "Oops."

"Jess!" Chas said, turning to her, clearly angry. "What the hell? I didn't tell you just so you could...! You knew I wanted it to be a surprise! How could you do-?"

"Don't yell at Jess."

Becker's voice was the last thing Jess had expected to hear. She turned, shocked, as the soldier walked up behind her.

"It's not her fault; it's mine," he continued. "If you're angry with anyone, it should be me."

Jess simply stared at Becker, her mouth hanging open. She never would've believed what had just happened, but she must've heard him properly for she saw Becker flash Neela a stern look of warning, as if ordering the girl to keep mum, and the female soldier gave a nearly imperceptible nod in return.

Chas, however, must not have noticed this subtle interchange for he was still fuming. "What possessed you to tell her, Becker? You may be her Captain and her coach, but you had no right! This is a private... Just because you don't have the guts to... I never would've told Jess if I'd thought you would... What kind of prat are you?"

But Becker didn't defend himself. He simply stood there and took it, a look of contrition upon his face as he nodded, mumbling, "You're right. I'm sorry."

"Chas, what's it matter?" Neela jumped in, taking her boyfriend's cheeks in her hands and turning him to look at her. "I love you, and I'm SO happy, so who cares how I found out?" And with that she kissed him.

But the kiss didn't last long for Chas pulled back quickly to ask, "So...is that a yes?"

Neela laughed. "What do you think?" she teased, and he instantly moved in to kiss her again, much longer and more passionately this time.

Jess shifted her feet uncomfortably, not knowing where to look, feeling as if she were very much intruding on this extremely personal moment.

When the couple finally separated, Neela asked, "So, do I get a ring?"

Chas laughed. "Naturally. It's in the glovebox. C'mon."

As he took her hand and started to lead her away, Neela called back over her shoulder, "So we'll see you two at the pub later, yeah?"

Becker nodded and gave an affirmative wave, but Jess wasn't interested in answering - she was too filled with questions of her own.

"Why'd you do that?" she asked Becker as soon as the happy couple was out of earshot. "Why'd you lie to him?"

"I didn't," Becker stated matter-of-factly. "I told him it was my fault, and it was. I mean, you never would've told Lester if I hadn't-God, Jess, I am SO sorry. I was a total prat, and I can't believe I said those horrid things to you. I was just so... I mean, there I was, all ready to take you out on our date, and there you were, snogging in Chas's-"

"Date," Jess interrupted, suddenly recalling him having used the same term during their confrontation right before the game. "Did you...did you just say 'date'?"

Becker nodded, looking sheepish. "That's...that's why I asked you to dinner. I figured it was about time we... Abby'd convinced me that I should... I mean, after everything that'd we'd... So when I asked you out yesterday, I meant it to not just be dinner but to be a date." The last two words were spoken in unison as Jess momentarily joined in, and Becker gave a relieved smile before continuing. "So then, you see, when I caught you sneaking off with Chas and...well, I just naturally assumed you two were...and I felt like such a fool. But that doesn't justify what I... I mean, leaving you crying like that... and then this morning, no one knew where you were, and I couldn't get the image of you standing there sobbing out of... Jess, I am SO sorry. Can you ever forgive me?"

Jess could see the contrition in his eyes. And it all made more sense now. He'd lashed out in anger, not only at her but at himself because he'd felt such a fool - was it any wonder his words had been so harsh? But everything he'd done since had proved just how much he cared. And now here he was, heart in hand, begging for her forgiveness.

No, not just begging. These were not just empty words. Becker, who tended to avoid awkward social situations like the plague, had voluntarily come to her defence, throwing himself on that social grenade by taking the blame for divulging Chas's secret. That kind of self-sacrifice couldn't be feigned.

And besides, why was he suddenly throwing this word "date" around? Since when had he asked her out? And why on earth hadn't she been informed?

"Jess?"

Becker was staring at her, a look of sheer dread upon his face, and Jess realised she'd never answered his question.

"Yes, of course I forgive you," she said, delighting in the radiant smile that instantly broke out on Becker's face.

"Thanks, Jess," he said, exhaling with relief. "I promise I'll do whatever it takes to make it up to you, so if there's ever anything..."

"Well," Jess smiled, "I do believe you still owe me a chocolate souffle."

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to be continued