Xavier opened a folder on the table in front of him and looked at it briefly before looking up.

"Let’s start with what you’ve done," he said, looking at Leo.

"Because I think it’s important to establish that before we talk numbers."

He went through it methodically.

The goals, the assists, the way Leo had changed how Wigan played from the moment he came into the team.

The period when they were third in the table and looked genuinely special.

He talked about the FA Cup run and what Leo had contributed across it, the semi-final at Wembley, and the final against City.

And he talked about the playoff, the free kick against Swansea, as well as the volley in the playoff final.

"All of that," Xavier said, settling back slightly, "in your first professional season before turning 18 a few days ago."

"The club wants to see that journey continue here. The fans want it. The staff want it. And to show that in good faith, we’re prepared to offer you thirty-four thousand pounds per week."

After he finished throwing that number on the table, he looked at Leo, trying to gauge any reaction, but all he got was a completely blank slate of a human.

At least that was what Leo was trying to portray, though inwardly it was a whole different matter, and why would he not?

It was almost nine times what he was currently earning, and internally, something was trying to come out of his face that he was working very hard to keep inside, but Noah had been clear: whatever they offer you, you give them nothing, and so he gave them nothing.

Noah had been sitting with his hands flat on the table and his expression set to something that could have been described as politely interested but was actually nothing of the sort.

"Is that all he’s worth to this club?"

Xavier’s mouth curved slightly.

"Leo’s importance to this club is not something to be understated—"

"It sounds like it is," Noah said, cutting across him cleanly while never shying away from Xavier’s stare.

"Seven goals and seven assists, and from a deeper midfield role at that. This was what Leo gave you in his first professional season. Well, half season."

After he said that, he went silent for a bit as if leaving them to absorb the numbers.

"That isn’t a number that looks like much until you consider what it means for a defensive midfielder in his debut year at the professional level."

Xavier said nothing.

"Wigan were third in this league at one point," Noah continued.

"Third. And then Leo got injured, and in the time he was out, the club went from third to eighth."

He looked at Xavier directly, still not backing down.

"And then it took a still-injured Leo, playing on a leg that your own medical staff had concerns about, to drag the team from eighth back to sixth. And then he won you the playoffs."

"I’m not being dramatic when I say singlehandedly. I’m being accurate."

Xavier’s face remained composed, though the effort of keeping it that way was visible to anyone looking closely enough.

"I hear you," Xavier said carefully.

"But we also have to be mindful of the dressing room. The senior players, the ones who have been here longer, who have given this club years. If the youngest player in the squad is suddenly earning more than them, it creates a dynamic that’s very difficult to manage. It is already going to be weird when the amount I just put on the table gets leaked!"

Noah looked at him for a moment.

"So," he said.

Xavier blinked. "So?"

"So what?" Noah said.

"They know their worth. They negotiated their contracts. That’s what agents are for," he continued, shaking his head slightly.

"That argument doesn’t hold. Why should they feel weird when a better player is earning more than them?"

A brief silence settled over the table before suddenly, Noah turned.

Not to Xavier but to the end of the table, where Mike Danson had been sitting with the comfortable stillness of a man watching a tennis match he was enjoying enormously.

"Mr Danson," Noah said. "You’ve seen Leo play."

Danson’s expression shifted into something warmer.

"I have," he said.

"What do you think he’s worth to this football club?"

Danson looked at him for a moment and then turned to Xavier with a smile that was almost sympathetic.

"It seems you’ve met your match," he said.

Xavier said nothing, which said something.

Danson looked back at Noah with the appreciation of someone who recognised a well-played move when they saw one.

"If we’re paying for potential," he said, "Leo could be earning what some established top-flight players earn. We both know that."

He straightened slightly before curbing his own words.

"But we have to manage the books responsibly. Giving too little understates his importance, but giving too much will bring scrutiny and too much pressure to the kid."

"So what do you suggest?" Noah asked, throwing the ball back to Danson’s court.

"What should we do?" Danson repeated.

"I mean, I’m the owner, not the negotiator," he said while throwing Xavier a look.

Then, he paused and looked at Leo briefly before looking back at the table.

"Seventy thousand pounds per week."

At that, Xavier turned to him sharply, only for Danson to raise his hand at him without sparing him another glance.

Xavier, who was about to speak, closed his mouth, but then, "Eighty," Noah said.

Xavier’s head snapped back toward him with the expression of a man who had just heard something that genuinely offended him on a personal level.

Danson, though, smiled slowly.

"Seventy-five," he said. "And we still have bonuses to discuss, which I imagine will be a conversation of their own, so cut me some slack. Afterall we don’t want to bankrupt the club before we play a single game."

"Bankrupt who?" Noah said with a scoff while looking away.

Xavier sat back in his chair and looked at the ceiling briefly with the quiet devastation of a man watching something happen that he couldn’t stop.

Leo, though, was looking at Dawson in a new light.

The man had been bold, yes, but almost pleading when he met him, and now, seeing him negotiate on his behalf made Leo feel like he had made one of the best decisions in his life.

But still, Leo had absolutely no idea when the number had gotten this high or how Noah had taken them there so quickly, but he was sitting very still and trying to look like this was the kind of conversation he was used to being in.

A moment later, Danson rose to his feet and straightened his jacket, moving like a man who had said what he came to say.

After that, he put a hand briefly on Xavier’s shoulder.

"I’ll leave the rest to you to iron out," he said.

Then he looked at Leo.

"I look forward to the new season," he said simply, and walked to the door and let himself out.

After the door closed, the room stayed quiet and still.

Xavier kept his eyes on the door for a while and then turned back towards the table.

Then at Noah, who had already opened his notepad to a fresh page and picked up his pen.

"Shall we go on?" the latter said with a smirk as he Xavier glaneed at Leo.

-------

Okay guys, I decided to spare you the details of the contract in the normal Chapters since I didn’t want it to be filler so I will put it in the auxilliary Chapters. Be sure to check it out there. Bye for now and have fun reading!