Chapter 12

5am is far too early to be waking up. I wouldn’t voluntarily wake up at 5am even if I knew that was the exact time that Alycia Debnam Carey was being dropped off at my doorstep, naked and giftwrapped for me. Okay, maybe I would if it involved a celebrity.

I wouldn’t any other time, I can guarantee that. I would never put myself through the pain that comes with lack of sleep, and I certainly wouldn’t pick 5am as a wake up time for kids supposedly going on a school trip unless I was a sadist.

Turns out my coach is a sadist.

I groan as my alarm blares for the fourth time since I snoozed it. I’m supposed to be on the bus in an hour, I’d given myself just under two hours to get ready, but now that I’ve snoozed my alarm so many times I’m not going to have time to get ready like I wanted to.

Looks like today is going to be a makeup free, casual day.

I scramble to get ready, washing my face and brushing my teeth at lightning speed. I swear under my breath when I see I now have half an hour to get to school and my car isn’t fixed, and I’m not even dressed yet.

“Fvck fvck fvck fvck fvck.” I groan angrily as I pull on an arsenal shirt and a pair of jeans, looking out of the window and seeing that the sun isn’t even out yet. I grab my soccer team hoodie and my sports bag which I packed last night thank god and stumble down the stairs towards the kitchen.

My mom and dad are both gone.

I find a bag full of food on the counter, a note from my mom telling me to have a good day at the college practice and to “learn some skills”. I smirk at her phrasing and grab an apple from the bag as breakfast before slotting my lunch into the front pocket of my sports bag.

I know that my mom and dad would be around more if they could be. They used to be around all the time when Will and I were growing up. We spent every second of every day together doing something fun or exciting. My dad was the one who got me into soccer. He was trying to encourage Will to play, but he was more interested in throwing a football about. We were all in the back garden and dad just gave me the ball and told me to see what I could do. I was only six but I ran with the ball like I’d been born with it at my feet.

He then got me into the little leagues and I started playing games and going to training, and soon enough dad and I were breathing the sport. We even went up to the Fox and Hounds bar during pre season and watched the Arsenal vs Colorado rapids game.

Dad said I cried when Hector Bellerín turned up, but there are no tears in the photographs so I think he lied.

I’m pulling my trainers onto my feet when I hear a knock at my door. I scrunch my face up in confusion. Who the hell is at my house at half past five in the morning?

I grab a bat my dad keeps in the umbrella stand and spin it in my hands, fully prepared to hit someone. It’s better to be way overprepared and maybe scare a child, than open the door and get whacked by an older person wanting to rob me. I creep closer, fully aware of the fact I’m in my house by myself, and that I’m really not going to be a match against a fully grown group of adults with a bat that’s starting to make my arms ache. I hold my breath when the shadow of whoever is knocking walks by the glass panel next to the door and I sigh in relief when I realise who it is.

“Mackenzie, why are you at my house?” I pull open the door and make her jump, her eyes widenening at the sight of a bat in my hand. “I thought I was being robbed!”

“Why would I knock if I was robbing you?” Confusion is evident in her voice. “Wouldn’t the whole point be to make sure you were unaware of me being here to rob you?”

“I don’t understand robber logic!” I raise my arms as I let her in. “Maybe you’re the distraction for whoever is actually breaking into my house and stealing stuff.”

“Ooh that’s a good point.” Mackenzie agrees as she stands in the entryway to my house. “If we were to start robbing people together I’d have to do the talking though. I’m more attractive than you so I’d keep their attention for longer whilst you stole stuff.”

I chuckle and roll my eyes as I make my way over to my keys which are hung up on the kitchen hanger. Everyone has their own separate hook for keys and other important items so that there’s no excuse as to why you’ve lost something. “I think people would be put off by your arrogance.”

“You think my arrogance is sexy.” She teases as her eyes follow me around the room. I look at her and scoff before letting my eyes travel over what she’s wearing. She’s wearing a pair of sports leggings and a Harvard hoodie, a pair of white Nike trainers on her feet. She’s even wearing her thin, wire frames glasses which make her look even more attractive than before. I prefer it when she wears those, but for some reason she doesn’t ever wear them. “When you’re done checking me out we can finish this conversation.”

My cheeks flush red as she laughs, her head tilted back and her teeth bared. If I wasn’t so embarrassed I’d be commenting on how pretty she looked when she laughed. Instead I got caught checking her out. “I wasn’t checking you out, I was seeing what you were wearing. I didn’t want to be over or under dressed.”

My excuse was lame, I knew it; Mackenzie knew it. She didn’t say anything though, probably so I could keep the slither of dignify I have left, she just nodded and bit her lip to stop herself from smiling. “Shall we get going then?”

“You came to pick me up?” I ask, honestly surprised. I know she took me to school yesterday but for all she knew it was a small thing that got sorted straight away and my car was back to working order. I smile internally at the way her skin starts to turn red with her awkwardness.”You do realise we’re going to be early to school, right?”

“Well, you do owe me breakfast.” Mackenzie regains her composure and bumps her shoulder against mine. “You fancy paying your first favour with a McDonalds drive thru?”

My stomach rumbles at the thought of a breakfast wrap and I know my body has been sold on the idea. We walk to the door and I lock it behind me, slipping my keys into the front pocket of my bag with all my other stuff and jogging down my steps to catch up with Mackenzie.

McDonald’s is on the way to school, and at this time in the morning the drive thru is empty, the parking lot offering a pick of any space we wanted if we were eating in. Mackenzie orders our food and I can’t help but stare at her. Even this early in the morning she’s gorgeous. Everything about her is so effortless it’s annoying. Her blonde hair is tucked behind her ears, exposing her neck, her arm resting on the door of her car as she speaks into the order machine, her large lips moving quickly with her words. Even under a baggy hoodie you can appreciate her figure, whereas my curves are swallowed in fabric whenever I wear something like that. She glances my way, her grey eyes lighting up in the early light of the morning.

And she just smiles.

No teasing, no flirting, nothing to ruin the moment. She just looks back at me, and smiles so softly I forget where we are, the fact we’re just friends, that I’m not even out yet. All I want is to tangle my fingers in this girl’s hair and kiss her senseless.

“If you’d like to drive down to the payment counter, have a great day!”

We break eye contact like someone has just poured a bucket of iced water over us. Heat creeps up my neck as I fiddle with my bag to grab some money to pay for the McDonald’s, Mackenzie drumming her fingers apprehensively against the steering wheel as her knee bounces.

“Hi! That’ll be twelve dollars sixty seven please!” The girl at the payment counter speaks chipperly despite it being quarter to six. I lean across Mackenzie and hand the cashier the money, my mind trying to ignore the fact I’ve got my chest practically pressed against her face, my free hand clutching her thigh for balance, and that she smells like laundry detergent and coconut.

Mackenzie inhales sharply but doesn’t say anything, just breathes softly against my exposed skin.

I drop back into my seat once I’ve got my change and clip my seatbelt in, looking at Mackenzie when she doesn’t move the car. “Mackenzie? You going to drive and get our food or am I walking to the window?”

Mackenzie eyes come back into focus and she laughs breathlessly, putting her car in gear and driving for our food, dropping the takeout bag in my lap followed by the drinks holder.

I grin when I see two coffees and two milkshakes, Mackenzie grinning straight back. I was too entranced in watching her order, I didn’t hear her actually ordering.

We pull up to school without about ten minutes to spare, most of the girls already here and packed into the bus. Coach is stood with a clipboard, her narrowed eyes watching me and Mackenzie approach. “Nice of you to join us girls.”

“Glad to be here coach.” I salute, offering her my untouched coffee as she rolls her eyes my way. I just want to dive into my milkshake, and being in Mackenzie’s presence has made me feel more awake than caffeine ever could. Plus I want to try and sleep on the coach seen as though we’re on here for a couple of hours at least.

Coach drops her resting bitch and takes the drink gratefully, throwing her finger behind her and pointing to the doors.

“Get on, you two are the only girls not on the bus.”

I get on the bus first, my duffle bag making walking through the aisle slightly awkward. I smile at girls I make eye contact with as I look around for April, who’s no doubt saved me a seat. I see that Mr. Walker has taken a seat at the front of the bus, his soccer team hat pulled low over his eyes as he rests his head on the window. I grin when I finally see April situated at the back of the bus and make my way towards her. I drop into the seat next to her, Mackenzie sitting in the only spare seat next to Freya and sliding her bag under the chair like everyone else has.

She’s sat two rows in front of me on the opposite side so if she turns round, we have a pretty good view of each other.

“You want some wrap?” I ask my best friend as I hand over my McDonald’s bag and milkshake so I can manoeuvre my duffle off my shoulder. “And I literally mean the wrap. Don’t touch my milkshake or you won’t have a throat anymore.”

April scoffs and takes a sip anyway, smacking her lips together before taking a bite out of my breakfast. “Extra large is big enough for you not to miss a sip of milkshake, Alex. Now get over here I need your shoulder as a pillow.”

I grin and scoot over, taking my drink and wrap and letting her nuzzle her head into my shoulder, her amber hair tickling my face. I slide my milkshake into the drinks holder built into my armrest as I tackle the wrap first, my eyes wandering the aisle of the bus to see what my friends are doing. Raven has her giant headphones on, her head nodding to the beat of whatever song she’s listening to.

Gemma is spinning a ball on her fingers as she talks to someone in the seats directly across, but I can’t make out who it is.

I catch sight of Elise Mears, the junior who’s managed to break into the varsity team this year, and she’s leaning over the back of the seat and talking to Freya, leaving Mackenzie to look at me.

She’s smiling, discreetly pointing at Freya and rolling her eyes, earning a grin from me.

I tilt my drink her way and she does the same before Freya taps her shoulder and she turns away from me. I don’t stop looking even after she has. I don’t think I’m capable.

~•~

“Alex.”

I wake with a start, April’s hand on my arm and phone in my face. I scowl and push her phone away to the sound of her laughter and run a hand through my hair before wiping my tired eyes. The bus is no longer moving and sunlight is streaking in through the windows, everyone getting up and out of their seats and piling off the bus with their sports bags. I yawn and stretch out my limbs like a cat, pulling my hoodie down when I realise it’s ridden up and exposed my stomach.

I stand and grab my bag from under my seat, taking my rubbish with me so I can throw it away. April is typing on her phone and laughing, no doubt posting that video on her story or sending it to the group chat. Mr. Walker counts us all off the bus and calls out to Coach Sanders that we have everyone before standing behind me and following me off.

“Right folks!” Coach Sanders calls out once everyone is off the bus. She’s scribbling on a clipboard, her hair hidden underneath a baseball cap and her eyes scanning the crowd. “First you’ll be watching a training session by the UPenn women’s soccer team. I want you to watch their attitudes to training, I want you to see the kind of drills they perform, I want you to learn without doing.”

My eyes scan the crowd, my gaze darting across many of the girls listening intently. Most girls look like they’re excited to be here, whether that’s because we actually get to watch a college team play or that we’re getting a day off school to sit on our asses and watch something we could’ve found on YouTube, I dont think I’ll find out.

“What’re the kit bags for then, Coach ?” Elise Mears calls out when Coach Sanders stops talking and starts guiding us towards the stands of their training area. My attention piques at this, my curiosity heightened. I never even thought of the fact I’m carrying my sports bag with my training kit in, but now the question has been raised and I’m more than excited to find out.

Coach Sanders grins as she turns around and pulls her eyes away from her clipboard. “Well that’ll be because afterwards you’ll be the girls training.”

Exhilaration kicks in at the thought of actually training at college level, under college coaches. I grip onto April’s hand eagerly, turning to see her green eyes wide with excitement. Both of us want to play college football, and both of us want to go to UPenn, so this could be the best chance we’ve got at impressing the coaches.

April and I follow our soccer team into the changing rooms, where coach asks us to change into our stuff so that we’re not holding up the coaching team when it’s our turn to train. I pull my shirt over my head and rifle through my bag to find my training top, the tips of my ears warming when I see Mackenzie looking my way, her throat swallowing harshly as she tears her eyes from mine. I feel exposed knowing that she’s looking at me in my sports bra and training shorts, so I quickly pull my dri fit over my head and correct my ponytail, laughing at something everyone else does as I play off the way her stare makes me feel hot.

“Come on, slowpoke.” April teases me as she digs her fingers into my side. “Grab your shinnies and your cleats and leave your sliders on, it’s what everyone else is doing.”

I nod my head dumbly and finish grabbing the rest of my stuff, the skin under my dri fit feeling warmer than normal. My mood instantly lifts when I walk out onto the training grounds; the UPenn soccer team are already warming up on the field. The girls look incredibly focused, no jokes, no talking whilst the coach is talking. All eyes are on the coaching staff, and I don’t speak to anyone whilst I focus all of my attention on the girls moving around on the pitch in front of me.

April tries to whisper in my ear but I just brush her off, my eyes scanning every pass, every defensive play, memorising anything that can make me better; anything that can make me the best. I’m not the smartest girl in school, my brains aren’t going to get me into college without the unbelievably large amount of debt that’ll follow me. Soccer is my best chance at getting a scholarship, and I neeed to prove myself.

The UPenn team eventually gets split up, their twenty two woman squad splitting into an even eleven a side game, my eyes zeroing in on one of the centre backs on the green team. She’s not the tallest or the stockiest defender, but I can see her eagle eyes analysing every player’s position on the pitch, her voice loud and commanding her defence. She knows where the ball is going to go before it’s left the foot of a player, her reaction time lightning quick.

That’s how I want to be able to play soccer.

Time passes quickly, almost too quickly for my liking, my trance being broken when the coaches call time on the session, my eyes widenening when I look at my watch and see over two hours have passed. I unlatch my gaze from the pitch and look at my best friend, her green eyes glinting when she looks at me.

“Wow, just wow.” She breathes excitedly as I engage in conversation with her for the first time in two hours. “Did you see the way the players read the game? Their formations were so tight, nobody ever strayed from position…”

“And the central defender on the green time. God, the way she controlled the back line.” I gush as I pull my cleats on my feet, slotting my shin pads into their socks and pulling my socks up over the top of them. “I would give my whole left hand to be able to play like that.”

“You play like that anyway, Alex.” A voice says to me and I whip my head around to see that Mackenzie is talking to me. She’s sitting a few levels above me on the bleachers, her cleats already on her feet. She smiles at me as she ties her short hair back into a low bun and pushing her stray hairs out of her face with a headband. “I don’t think you realise how good you are. Your whole back line trust you, they listen to everything you tell them.”

“She’s right you know.” April says as all three of us stand at the same time and start walking towards the pitch, where Coach Sanders is stood alongside the UPenn coaches, calling us over. “If you and blondie were on the same team, your defence would be incredible.“

I blush at the compliments my friends are giving me. I know that I’m good, I mean I’ve been playing soccer since I was six years old and I’ve been captain of my highschool team since I was fifteen. Its just nice to hear it from someone fresh into the team, and its nice to be reminded that I am better than I think I am.

“Daniels, Doherty, Brake! You three better hustle your asses to the pitch or I’ll personally make you run laps until you throw up or pass out!” Coach Sanders’ voice booms across the pitch and I start to sprint, not wanting to start my training session with a group of coaches who already have a bad impression of me.

“Sorry coach.” I mutter when I reach the circle of girls waiting to train. I flip Freya the bird when I see the smug look on her face. She glares at me when Mackenzie slings an arm over my shoulder and smiles slightly at my pissed off expression.

“Right girls.” A man steps forward, his eyes glancing at every one of us through his thin wire framed glasses. “This training session is two hours long and it is going to push you to your limits. Feel free to stop for five minutes to catch your breath, but know that if you want to play soccer in college you need to be able to do this whole session without taking a break unless we give you one.”

I bounce on my toes and crack my knuckles, flashing a wild grin at my friends on the team.

“Well then girls, run your laps and then we’ll get started.”

Game. On.