Little Sanchez // USWNT

Chapter 53

"Everything okay?"

"Yeah." I nodded. If I said too much, I'd cry, and I didn't want to cry on my birthday. "I just needed a break from Trinity. She'd been a lot today." I lied, cracking a small smile. 

"I get it. Birthdays around here aren't for the weak." She patted my shoulder and I took a seat at the desk, she sat on her bed. "So how's the day been so far?" 

"Well, you were with me for most of it." I laughed. "I went back to my room and Trinity wasn't there, so I had a moment of quiet. That was nice. I had a nice nap, I guess probably hour. I was trying to watch a match." 

"You like the quiet, huh?" 

"I do." 

"I always pegged you for one of the girls in the craziness, considering you're dating Rodman and even more so the fact that your sister is Sanchito." 

"I think they're the reason I value my alone time so much. When it's not one them it's the other." I smiled. 

"I get it. I'm the same way. A little peace and quiet is really, really nice sometimes." She said. "You can always come here whenever you need. I won't tell." 

"Thanks Julie." I leaned back and smiled at her. "That means a lot. Nobody really tries all that hard with me. They all think I'm a stubborn asshole. While they aren't wrong, I feel disconnected." 

"I understand. I felt the same way when I came back onto the squad and hardly knew most of you guys. But one thing I saw immediately was how close you were to your sister and Mal, and after everything I saw on the news about you two, I didn't know if you really wanted to be bothered." 

"You saw those things?" 

"Of course I did. It's not just relevant to soccer. The fire in Texas certainly wasn't. Ash's car crash was mostly relevant to your area but went national because of who she is. I don't know, Ainsley. You are slightly intimidating and it does seem like you want nothing to do with anyone except for Ashley and Trinity, and Mal when she was here. Maybe you just need to put yourself out there more." 

"Okay." I agreed. "They do all seem to like me, though. The whole birthday thing was so overkill, especially if they hate me." 

"There's not a person in this squad that hates you. Do you have any idea how much you're respected?" 

"Me? Respected." I must have looked shocked because she laughed. "But I literally turned 19 today and I literally started playing pro five fucking months ago." 

"Everyone knows how valuable you are to this team. Anyone on the squad who doesn't realize that shouldn't be on this team." 

I scratched the back of my head and stared into my lap. While I knew I was treated like I'd been around for a longer time than I had, I came into this World Cup with THREE fucking caps. Why is that the case? 

"You know, you're not even close to your peak yet." Julie pointed out. 

"Shit." I breathed. 

"You're already one of the best midfielders in the country. We're gonna see you become one of the top in the world." 

I still stared into my lap, but I felt a smile creep onto my face. 

"And I'll be your biggest fan." She smiled. 

"I'm gonna have to stop you there." I laughed. "Ash will always be my biggest fan and I'll always be hers. So you'll have to battle it out with Trinity for second." 

"I'll settle for third." 

"Watch your back. Mal'll be after you." 

We both laughed.