Finding the Way Back (gxg)

Chapter 14

As September arrived, the hot summer temperatures had finally eased off, however minor the change was. Instead of being baked alive in nearly one hundred degree weather, we were getting to enjoy the upper eighties. Not that it made a lot of difference with the oppressive humidity that constantly lingered in the air.

Over the last month, a few things had happened. For starters, I had regained my full confidence in my more revealing swimsuit in public, although that mostly came down to only ever wearing it when I went to the pool or beach with Rose. Still, I enjoyed being able to reclaim that part of myself while not feeling like I was attracting unwanted attention. Plus, it helped that Rose was in love with the idea of matching anytime we wore our swimsuits.

And making her happy was a priority.

Therapy had also been progressing smoothly, and I was fully back to walking with a normal gait. Now it was all about slowly rebuilding my strength and stamina for the next few months. For now, I was still limited to time on the stationary bike and brisk walking every other day, but eventually I could run again. That was the part I was most looking forward to.

Unlike a lot of athletes, I actually enjoyed running outside of playing soccer. To me, it was something that was freeing and always helped to clear my mind. I also enjoyed feeling the burn in my lungs and legs, signaling that I was pushing my body to stay in shape. Besides, when you are running nearly ten miles over the course of a full ninety-minute match, every little bit of conditioning helps.

Rose and I were also doing well. Amazing even. We had sneaked in time to go out on dates, and she had even attended all of my physio sessions as my personal motivator. Not that I needed any additional motivation, but I would always welcome her encouragement every time I felt myself beginning to struggle during an exercise.

What we were most excited about, however, was the start of the European soccer season. The major men's leagues were already in full swing, and we were only a week away from the start of the women's leagues. It was something that would help pass the time and provide a distraction from being stuck at home, unable to play soccer myself.

Arsenal's women's team was deep in its preseason training camp, and Emily had reported that the atmosphere in the club was a mixed bag. Some of the girls and Renee were still disgruntled and weren't performing at their best. Others were perfectly content to carry on as if nothing had happened. Regardless, Emily felt it would spell disaster for the season ahead as they lacked the cohesion that they needed to challenge Chelsea for the title.

For now, I let the thought get pushed to the back of my mind as I had other things to think about. Like how I had been invited to the CONCACAF awards ceremony set to take place in December. If I had to guess, I was likely up for the best young athlete award off the back of my performance at the U20 World Cup. There was no telling if I actually stood a chance at winning with my injury removing the months that I could have spent proving myself even more.

Then there was the fact that I could bring a plus one if I chose. Rose was the obvious answer, but I hadn't brought the subject up as I wasn't even sure if I would go to the event. While it was a tremendous opportunity, I wasn't sure that I wanted to make the trip yet.

Today I was hanging out with Finn and Rose as we were currently watching Napoli take on Juventus in Serie A as we waited for Dortmund's match against Mainz to start.

Rose and I watched while we cuddled together, and Finn was glued to his phone. I didn't know who he was talking to, but I had an idea.

So, I pulled out my phone and fired off a text.

Liz: Stop distracting Finn. He is supposed to be watching a soccer match.

The tying bubbles appeared quickly.