The news had already managed to spread throughout the Buffalo Bills organization by the time Gabrielle Union, Damar Hamlin’s mother, arrived to the team’s facilities. She had spent weeks in tears and she was ready to give her son the hug she had long been waiting since the heartstopping news spread of his cardiac arrest. Amidst a sea of uncertainty, she shared news that seemed to give the entire team hope – her son was slowly but surely making significant progress.

As the days went by, Gabrielle was slowly building the courage to open up to the team about a secret she had kept to herself – her recent infidelity her first husband. From a young age she had been raised to hold infidelity as a major sin, and yet here she was, all these bills later, ready to come clean.

The team was surprised yet supportive and soon Gabrielle’s struggles became the source of many jokes, ultimately helping her connect with the team on a more personal level. While her son was slowly on the mend, Gabrielle was slowly coming back to terms with her own decisions. The Bills organization had become her family and she was finally ready to be unapologetically honest with them – something she hadn’t even been able to do with her close friends and family.

So, as NFL announced that the Week 17 Buffalo Bills at Cincinnati Bengals game would not be resumed and was cancelled, Gabrielle Union and the rest of the Buffalo Bills family took a deep breath knowing that a new chapter was about to begin for their beloved Damar Hamlin.