30 Day Angst Challenge

Twenty: Falling For 'The Enemy'

This one is set in late 2020

Today was a big day for my family – my cousin Dominic had recently received his first England call up, and today he would be joining up with the national team for the first time. I would be going with him, since I was a huge football fan. I was waiting for him to come and pick me up; I had my bag packed and ready to go when Dom knocked on the door.

"A'right cous?" He greeted me.

"Not bad, yourself?" I replied.

"Excited." He told me.

I followed him to his car, where he loaded my bag into the boot before we got driving. St George's Park was about a two hour drive away from Merseyside, and we spent the journey listening to music and chatting about England's upcoming games against Wales, Belgium and Denmark.

England were looking to secure top spot in their Nations League group by beating both Belgium and Denmark, however the Wales game was only a friendly. And of course, the games were behind closed doors due to the pandemic, so I was only really going with Dom for support to make sure he wasn't completely on his own for his first call up. I'd be watching on TV from the hotel though.

"Right, here we are." Dom pulled up in front of a very fancy looking hotel.

"This is where we're staying?" I breathed.

"No, this is where I'm staying. I hope you've got something lined up." Dom said. My face dropped.

"Relax, I'm only joking!" Dom cried. He'd given me a good scare for a minute.

"Prick." I mumbled teasingly.

We headed into the hotel to check in – Dom and I were staying in different rooms since the players would all be on a floor together. We deposited our bags in our rooms and Dom dropped me a text to say he had to head to the first training session and would be back later to introduce me to the team.

So I decided to take an opportunity to explore the hotel. There was a pool, a spa, and the restaurant looked fantastic. I decided to take a swim, and by the time I was out, dried, and back in my room, I had a text from Dom telling me everyone was on their way back and to meet him in the hotel lobby. I dressed back into the clothes I was wearing earlier and threw my damp hair into a ponytail before heading down.

I only had to wait ten minutes before the team was arriving back. I knew all their faces – Harry Kane, Phil Foden, Mason Mount, and everyone else. I spotted Dom in the crowd, chatting with his Everton teammate Jordan Pickford and Ben Chilwell.

"Hey." I smiled.

"Hiya – did you have a good afternoon?" He asked.

"Yeah, I just went and checked out the pool." I replied. "How was your first training session?"

"Fun. Very fun." Dom responded.

"You're only saying that coz you nutmegged me." Ben Chilwell said.

"That was definitely the highlight of the afternoon!" Dom teased.

"Anyway, (Y/N), you obviously know JP already, but this is Ben. He plays for Chelsea." Dom told me.

"Dude...I know. I know who everyone is." I reminded him.

"Oh yeah?" Dom cocked an eyebrow.

"Don't you believe me?" I asked, folding my arms.

"I'm gonna test you." Dom told me. "Who's that?"

"Kalvin Phillips. Leeds United." I replied, naming the person who Dom was pointing to.

"That was a lucky guess...who's that?"