Welcome to Ohio

Seventeen

Julie
-

"Hey, Jules?" Tammy asks as I come in from the store.

"Yeah, Tam?" I ask as I set the groceries she sent me to get on the counter beside her.

"Could you either put this up or go get Jaclyn from school? I already got Rachel and Damien." She says, and I nod.

"Yeah, of course, just let her know I'll be picking her up, and I'll head right over." I say, and Tammy smiles at me.

"And Julie." Tammy calls out as I leave the kitchen.

"Yeah." I ask, turning and poking my head back in the kitchen.

"Bring her straight. Home." She says, and I raise a brow. "No shopping, no houses of others. Bring her straight home."

"How about I bring her gay home?" I ask. "Because we all know she gay as f-"

"Julie!"

"Okay! I'm going!" I say before leaving the house, getting back in my car, and driving to the high school. Rachel is in elementary, and Damien is in kindergarten, so Tammy was able to get them, but now, with all the groceries.

When I got to the high school, I parked behind the gym, and got out, leaning against the hood as the bell rang, and after a while, Jaclyn came running up to me, and I caught her as she jumped at me.

"Jules!" She exclaims, and I smile. She spent the weekend with a friend , so this is the first time we're seeing each other. She was still in the foster home when I left, and I'm kinda bummed she's still in there.

-

A week after graduation, I got a call from Jill asking me to fly out for camp the day after Memorial Day, which was fine, kinda bummed that I couldn't show up for the first week of training, but hey, I was excited to get back with the national team. When I checked the calendar to book my flight though, I noticed that I'd be meeting the team on Tobin's birthday, so I texted everyone close to her asking what she'd like for her birthday, but when nobody gave me a solid answer, I asked Tobin her self, and she said she didn't care, so, since the fair was in town, I went and won her one of those gigantic stuffed dogs, and then won one for myself, put them in my car, and spent the rest of the night there with Melissa, and some of the soccer girls, but as all the rides started shutting down, we parted ways and headed home for the night.

-

When I land at the airport that the National Team was flying to, I held the giant dog under one arm, my suitcase in the other hand, and my new kit bag on my shoulders as I approach my teammates, and grin as Ashlyn turns Tobin to face me, smiling wide as she sees the dog under my arm, and I walk up to her.

"Happy Birthday, Tobin." I say, holding it out to her, and she grins, taking the dog from me.

"Where did you get this?" She asks, and I shrug.

"A fair was in town when I was called up, and asking you about your birthday. You said you didn't care. So don't you dare complain." I say, and Tobin smiles.

"Never. I love it." She says before coming over and hugging me tight. "Congrats, by the way, kid." She says as she pulls away from the hug, and I smile.

"Thank you, Tobin."

-

"Get up, JJ." Julie says as she comes over to me, and I groan as she kicks me gently in the hip.

"No. Leave me, save yourself. I'm dead." I say, groaning as Julie grabs my hand and tries to peel me off of the turf we've been practicing on.

"Julie." Carli calls out, and Julie drops me as we both look over at her.