Modern Family: New Life

Jay Pritchett drove his truck at a slightly dangerous speed, gripping the steering wheel tightly, frustration evident on his face.

"Damn it, why did it take you so long to pick an outfit, Manny? What are you, a girl?" Jay complained, almost growling as he made a sharp right turn.

Manny, sitting in the back seat, didn't seem fazed by Jay's comment.

"You must understand, Jay, that a man's attire is extremely important. One never knows when they might run into their future soulmate," Manny replied, adjusting his fine fabric turtleneck slightly, as if preparing for a grand appearance.

"It's a football game, Manny, not a fashion show. And if there are any girls there, they'll be looking at Andrew," Jay scoffed impatiently, not putting much thought into his words.

To him, all eyes would be on Andrew—his favorite grandson, though he would never openly admit it. Not because he cared about hurting the other three's feelings, but because he didn't want to deal with his stubborn daughter, Claire.

This time, Manny didn't reply and simply looked out the window, a slight frown on his face. Jay always compared him to Andrew, and the comparisons were never in his favor.

His small gesture went unnoticed by Jay, whose eyes remained fixed on the road, his thoughts focused on the game, oblivious to the sadness reflected in Manny's eyes.

However, Gloria, sitting in the passenger seat, did notice her son's expression.

She shot Jay an accusatory look. "Don't be so mean, Jay!" Gloria exclaimed, her Colombian accent heavy with reproach.

"He's just a boy who wants to look good, please!" she added.

"He can look good without taking more than thirty minutes to pick an outfit," Jay muttered more to himself.

"What? Speak up," Gloria said in a threatening tone.

"Nothing… Sorry, Manny," Jay said, not wanting to argue. He didn't have time for this, and he knew Gloria was a fighter—this argument could last forever.

Right now, the most important thing was not being late to the game.

Gloria instantly knew Jay's apologetic tone was completely fake. She was sure he didn't even realize what he had said wrong, but she let it go. Arguing now wouldn't be wise.

Finally, they arrived at the parking lot near the school stadium. The problem was that it was almost completely full. After several minutes of searching, they found a spot—far from the stadium—meaning they would have to walk quite a distance.

Jay, of course, cursed about this and hurried Gloria and Manny along, feeling like they were walking at a snail's pace.

"Why did you wear heels to a football game?" Jay asked, frowning as he looked at Gloria's tall red stilettos. She was walking slowly and carefully across the parking lot.

"It's the final game of the regular season. I have to be well-dressed for the occasion—and for the photos when they give Andrew his awards," Gloria replied with a slight smile.

Like Manny, she had also taken a long time to pick out her outfit.

Regular-season finales usually don't have official award ceremonies like the ones seen in regional and state playoffs.

However, Andrew's school had planned a small individual awards ceremony to highlight the players.

This was because, for the first time in years, Palisades High School had made it to the regional playoffs—not only qualifying but finishing in first place with the best record in the school's history.

The school was thrilled and had organized this awards ceremony to celebrate the team and encourage them to keep up their strong performance in the regional playoffs—and, who knows, maybe even qualify for the state playoffs for the first time in history.

'You too, Mom?' Manny thought, feeling a strange mix of jealousy and frustration. Though he would never admit it out loud, something inside him stirred as he watched his mother, so enthusiastic and excited about Andrew's athletic career, supporting him so much.

Gloria hadn't even understood football rules before, and now she seemed like an expert. Plus, her relationship with Andrew had always been good—he had accepted and included them in the family before anyone else.

Since Manny wasn't interested in any sports and Gloria was an enthusiast, she had naturally focused her energy on Andrew in that area—without realizing that her own son felt left out.

Manny didn't want to admit it, but he couldn't help feeling jealous of how all the family's attention was centered on Andrew.

They finally entered the stadium, which was nearly packed and buzzing with energy. The 2,000-seat stadium, which had once been difficult to fill, was now completely full every Friday without fail.

As Jay, Gloria, and Manny walked down the aisle toward their seats, people began recognizing Jay instantly.

Some flashed him smiles and nodded in greeting, while others enthusiastically called out to him.

"Hey, Jay! You finally made it!"

"The boys are already warming up! Though Andrew's nowhere to be seen."

"And he's not with you?"

The parents of the players and regular attendees already knew Jay well—he was Andrew's grandfather, after all.

Jay greeted everyone with a smile and his usual raspy voice, his previous bad mood vanishing in an instant.

A man approached Jay with a grin. "Jay! Your family's already here and in their seats! Let me take you to them," he said, handing Jay a cold beer.

"Oh, great. Lead the way, Matthew," Jay replied with a smile as he accepted the beer. The man, Matthew, was part of the school's sports committee.

He led Jay, Gloria, and Manny to their seats, which were right at the 50-yard line—a perfect view of the field.

Cameron, Mitchell, and Lily were already there, as well as the entire Dunphy family.

Phil was sitting next to Luke, who was rapidly devouring a tray of nachos with cheese. "Slow down, buddy! They're not gonna run out—chew properly," Phil said, handing Luke a soda to keep him from choking.

Alex was reading a book, completely oblivious to the stadium's atmosphere. Haley was absorbed in her phone, though unlike Alex, she was actually waiting for the game to start.

Claire was talking with Archie's mother about how much their sons would crush the opposing team. She had become friends with Mary (Archie's mother) because she was just as competitive as Claire and wanted her son to dominate his rivals.

Jay greeted everyone briefly and took his seat. He also greeted the parents of Reggie, Archie, Kevin, and Steve—especially the fathers.

"Great seats, huh?" said Fred, Archie's father, with a smile.

"Yeah, the perk of having star players on the team," Jay commented, letting out a dry chuckle while looking toward the field.

"Reggie is the way he is thanks to Andrew. If he were on his own, he'd be a total mess, but Andrew knows how to keep him in line," said Marty, Reggie's father, with a small laugh.

His son was a disaster at school—rebellious, bad grades, and constantly getting into trouble.

Marty had no idea how to make him behave since he was always busy working. He saw his son's talent in sports, but thanks to Andrew, Reggie had discipline—or at least that's what Marty thought, judging by how his son carried himself.

'Does everyone really have to talk about him like he's the Jesus Christ of football?' Manny thought, clearly exasperated by the endless stream of praise for Andrew.

"Do we really have to watch the game? We already know the outcome," Alex commented, tearing her eyes away from her book. She had to spend two hours of her life on this game and would much rather be at home, studying in peace without all the noise.

"Oh God," Haley sighed, finally looking up from her phone to glance at Alex.

"What?" Alex snapped, her tone unfriendly.

"You have no social life outside of Andrew's Friday night games, and now you want to skip those too? If you stop watching these games, you'll turn into a hermit who only lives between home and school," Haley said with a teasing smile.

"A total loner," she added.

"I'm not a loner. I just prefer doing something productive rather than wasting my time on something so predictable," Alex said, crossing her arms.

"And what about you? Do you even know the meaning of the word 'productive'? It might help improve your grades and your life in general," Alex shot back, escalating the argument until Claire had to step in, yelling louder than both of them.

At that moment, Pippa arrived with her parents, along with Leonard and Howard, who had secured these seats since they were Andrew's friends.

Cam and Mitch greeted Pippa's parents warmly as they took their seats next to them.

"Where's Andrew?" Pippa asked Leonard and Howard, noticing that Andrew wasn't warming up with the rest of the team.

Jay, Claire, Phil, and everyone else stopped talking and turned to look at Leonard and Howard, who suddenly felt a bit nervous under the weight of all the sudden stares.

"He should've come out by now…" Leonard answered. They had already recorded the first part of the video, and Andrew should have been on the field by now.

"Maybe he's just getting in the right mindset to destroy this team," Howard commented, recalling how intimidating Andrew had been when someone called his parents strangers.

"What do you mean?" Cam asked with slight concern.

Luckily, Howard didn't need to answer because a roar erupted from the stadium. Everyone turned toward the field, and there he was—Andrew jogging onto the field at a moderate pace.

"He's angry," Haley commented.

"Yeah… Did you notice? His brow is constantly furrowed," Cam said, and Haley nodded several times.

"Oh… You're right. I hadn't noticed, it's barely perceptible," Pippa added from the side, squinting to get a better look at Andrew's face. She spotted a barely noticeable furrow in his brow, something unusual for him.

Haley glanced at Pippa for a moment, said nothing, and returned her gaze to the field. The warm-up ended, and the cheerleading performance, led by Regina, began.

There were 1,700 people watching the game from Palisades High School, with the rest being visitors from the rival school.

Regina shined. The entire spotlight of the performance was on her, and the whole stadium cheered as she flawlessly executed the intricate choreography they had prepared.

Howard didn't miss a second of it, aiming his camera at the cheerleaders and recording the entire show.

"Pervert," Lauren muttered, noticing through the camera that Howard was zooming in on an area that made him look like a creep.

"When did you get here?!" Howard asked, startled, realizing that Cara, Lauren, and Zach were now sitting to his right.

"Just a bit ago. We went to get food and drinks," Lauren replied with a grimace as she saw that Howard hadn't stopped recording and was still zooming in.

The performance ended when the cheerleaders held up a giant paper banner, and the team made their entrance, led by Andrew.

After that, the rival team entered, and the game began. The referee called both team captains to the center of the field for the coin toss. The winner would choose whether to attack or defend.

Andrew called heads. It landed on heads. Without hesitation, he chose to start on offense.

"We're going for a kickoff. I need you to protect me…" Andrew said, surrounded by the offensive team, all listening attentively. They nodded seriously, unsurprised by their captain's absolute confidence.

He gave a few instructions, and they got ready to receive the kick.

A kickoff return touchdown happens when the player catching the ball manages to evade all defenders and runs to the opponent's end zone without being tackled.

This type of play is spectacular and rare since the kicking team usually has the advantage in coverage and tries to prevent long returns. However, if the returner is fast, agile, and has good blockers, he can pull it off.

The opposing kicker sent the ball soaring through the air with a powerful kick.

Andrew, positioned at the 5-yard line of his own field, locked his eyes on the perfect spiral descending toward him. Without hesitation, he caught the ball firmly and immediately took off running.

His blockers reacted instantly. Reggie and Kevin cleared the way with hard blocks, taking down the first defenders trying to close the gap. Andrew dodged the first tackle with a sharp cut to the left, then changed direction with an explosive move, leaving another defender behind.

The crowd erupted in cheers as Andrew accelerated. His strides were unstoppable, and his speed only seemed to increase. He spun skillfully past another tackle attempt.

By the time he crossed the 50-yard line, only two defenders stood in his way. Archie cleared the path with one last crushing block, and Andrew saw his opportunity.

He picked up the pace, leaving the last man behind.

"TOUCHDOWN! I never thought I'd witness a kickoff return touchdown at the very start of the game! Only ten seconds!" the commentator shouted, jumping from his seat in excitement.

The clock showed only 10 seconds, and Palisades School already had the lead.

The stadium went wild. Only ten seconds into the game, and Andrew was already in the end zone, gripping the ball tightly as his team rushed toward him to celebrate.

From the stands, Jay stood up with a proud smile, clapping enthusiastically. Gloria also jumped to her feet, shouting words of encouragement in Spanish.

Phil lifted Luke onto his shoulders, cheering loudly. Alex glanced up from her book with a slight smirk. "Predictable," she muttered. She already knew the opposing team didn't stand a chance against her cousin.

"THAT'S IT! KEEP UP THAT INTENSITY, ANDY!" Claire shouted, eager for more action. Archie's mom felt the same way.

"Did you record that? Or are you still filming the cheerleaders?" Clara asked Howard, who had his camera pointed at the field.

"I recorded it…" Howard replied.

Pippa and her parents joined the celebrations alongside Mitchell and Cam.

"Did you see that, Lily? That's your brother!" Cam exclaimed proudly, pointing at the field.

"She's asleep, Cam…" Mitchell said with a strange expression. He wasn't sure what was weirder—that Cam hadn't noticed their daughter's Asian eyes were closed or that Lily could sleep through all the noise.

Meanwhile, in the stands, Haley was the only one who didn't share the general excitement. She clapped mechanically, without effort, her eyes fixed on Andrew. Something didn't add up.

'This is weird…' Haley thought. She had never seen Andrew play with such aggression right from the start.

The most unsettling moment—if it could even be called that—came when he reached the end zone, though almost no one noticed.

Andrew didn't smile. He didn't raise his arms in victory. He didn't even show the slight happy grin of celebrating with his teammates running toward him.

His face was serious. Cold.

Haley was right. Andrew had an intensity that soon everyone began to notice.

The first quarter ended, and the game was an absolute blowout: 24-0 in favor of Palisades High School. Andrew played both offense and defense. So far, he hadn't missed a single pass and had been involved in every scoring play.

He also had an impressive number of highly effective tackles. Every time Andrew tackled, the impact echoed through the stadium—hard, almost brutal hits that made people turn away or gasp, "Oof!"

The opposing quarterback—the one who had previously called his parents weird—became Andrew's primary target. He was tackled multiple times, hitting the ground hard and getting up in pain.

The entire opposing team, and even the spectators, began to realize that Andrew wasn't playing to win—he was playing to destroy them.

Even Claire, who had earlier wanted to see blood and enjoyed watching her nephew demolish the rival team, started feeling sympathy for them.

The Jefferson High School players looked exhausted and defeated, and the faces of their parents showed distress. And this was only the end of the first quarter—there were still three more to go.

"This is weird… Did I lose my sense of euphoria after so many touchdowns?" Claire murmured, arms crossed.

The second quarter began, and it only took 30 seconds for Palisades School to score another touchdown—a perfect pass from Andrew, caught by Alan, who celebrated enthusiastically.

Andrew's teammates noticed something was off, but it was better for them. The pity was for the losers.

If they could crush their opponent and set incredible winning records, all the better for them.

Meanwhile, the opposing quarterback, who Andrew had tackled several times, began throwing erratic passes under pressure, his body shaking every time he saw Andrew coming.

He remembered what he had said to Andrew and regretted it—maybe he shouldn't have been so cocky.

"GAME OVER! PALISADES WINS WITH 80 POINTS TO 0 AGAINST JEFFERSON!" the announcer declared in astonishment, his voice full of disbelief. The stadium erupted in cheers and applause.

Coach David approached, smiling with satisfaction. "Great job, Andrew. You were more fired up than usual today. Why so much intensity?" he asked, somewhat curious, noticing something seemed different about his star quarterback.

Andrew took off his helmet and smiled faintly, returning to his usual enthusiasm and good energy. "Really? I played just like I always do… It must be that the other team is just too weak," he responded.

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