NWSL | Off Season

97

CARLI

I picked up Ivy from Zola's, because Becky has some work to do with Adidas today. I obviously don't mind spending some time alone with my daughter. And I gotta admit, I've never been so sure about anything than I am right now. 

So it is a determined self that knocks on Arod's house door. When the blonde opens and sees me, she frowns. 

"Car ?" she asks, confused. "Everything okay ?"

"Yes, very" I reassure her. But my worry face just resurfaces several seconds later, and this time I have to tell her : "I need to talk to someone." 

Arod nods and opens the door a little bit more in order to let me pass. When I come into the living room, her boys just run at me, before stopping when they see the little girl in my arms. I smile at them and take a knee to be leveled-up to them. 

I smile. 

"Ryan, Luke" I say in a soft voice, as Amy is standing behind me. "This is your new friend, Ivy. She's Auntie Becky's daughter." 

"And Auntie Carli's" my teammate says, raising her eyebrows. "Be good to her, boys. Just like mama taught you : treat girls with respect."

"Yes mommy" Ryan exclaims, before smiling at Ivy. 

Luke doesn't say anything, because he looks like he is surprised to actually see a person that isn't a male. Adam, Amy's husband, chooses that moment to make an entrance. When he sees me, he drops his bag and briefly hugs me, all smiles. 

I pull away, slightly embarrassed but happy to see him. He must've realized that I am not very myself today - or maybe Arod is making a funny face so that he understands - because he says : 

"You girls go and talk, I'll watch the kids". He then smiles at me and shakes my hand. "Congrats, Carli. She's beautiful."

"It's all Becky" I joke. 

After smiling at me, Adam sits down on the couch, her eyes on the three children playing. I then follow Amy to her room, as she closes the door behind us. 

She raises her eyebrows. 

"I don't think I've ever seen you that nervous before" the forward states. 

Of course she hasn't. Even during the WWC in 2015, I wasn't that scared. I look at her, hardly swallowing my saliva, before saying : 

"Amy, I need your help."

**

CHRISTEN

I am woken up by the sound of Morena barking because someone rang at the door. Kelsey opens it, and I can hear a female voice say :

"Hey Wys-Wys, how are ya ?"

I immediately freeze.

So, there are two problems. The first one is that I am naked in Kelsey's bed. I mean, for me, personally, it's not a problem because after the night we shared, I know we can't get any closer than we were, our bodies in collision and everything. But the second problem is that Kelsey's apartment is in fact a loft, which means everybody can see the bed when they're standing by the door. Which means : I don't have the time to dress us or escape or anything.

Kelsey's voice is shaking :

"Uhm, guys, what are you-" she starts, nervously keeping the door half shut.

But whoever is at the door is not alone.

"You don't let us in ?" another voice with a strong Canadian accent asks.

It suddenly rings a bell : Kelsey told me that her teammates wouldn't stop texting her to make sure she was okay, and even threatened to visit her if she keeps on being distant. They somehow knew about the pills - well, when you're spending all your time with one person in a pro team, everything is known by everyone but the coaching staff.

The goalie is probably freaking out in the inside.

"It's just that-" she tries, but is cut off.

I see a redhead push her to the side and make her way in, quickly followed by who I recognize as Steph Labbé and Shelina Zadorsky, as well as Caprice Dydasco and Estelle Johnson, Kelsey's best friends on the current roster.

When Tori Huster sees me, her eyes go wide. I've always liked that girl, because she's very calm on and off the field, and after the Semi-Final we lost to Washington, she came to me and told me that Chicago deserved at least a draw or something.

The rest of them also see me, as I am sitting down on the bed, a cover around my body. Morena is still barking, until I clap my fingers and that she comes into the bed. When I am naked, Kelsey, on the other hand, jumped on her soccer pants and t-shirt, but her hair are in a messy bun. I can see the surprise in her teammate's eyes.

Steph bursts into laughter.

"Holy shit, who was expecting this ?" she exclaims, before Shelina gives her a bow in the ribs.

Kelsey's face is turning red, as Estelle has her mouth wide-open.

"I think we should come back in fifteen minutes, so that Christen can at least dress up" the defender says, as the others are nodding.

"Yah" my goalie says, setting her jaw. "Uhm."

"See you then !" Shelina exclaims, dragging Steph and Caprice out of the apartment before they tease Kelsey or something.

Tori, on the other hand, is looking straight at me.

"You and I are going to have a little chat, Press." she seriously says, before following her teammates out.

Kelsey immediately shuts the door, locking it. She sighs loudly, before turning around and face me. I am already starting to dress up, and the buries her face in her hands, before walking toward me.

She stops one step away from me, hesitant.

"I'm sorry"

"Kelsey" I breathe out, before taking a step further and surround her cheeks with my hands, forcing her to look at me in the eyes. She really looks terrified. "Don't be sorry. I'm ready if you are."

"Ready ?" she asks, confused.

"To meet your friends" I clear out, and she nods. "I mean, it will be very hard to deny anything now that they've seen us like that... I don't know if you were ready for that, and if you weren't, I am the one sorry. But if you are ready.. then I am."

She smiles at me.

"You're perfect" the goalie whispers, before pulling me closer.

As she is about to kiss me, I stop her from doing so.

"Kelsey" I say, smiling at her. "As much as I want that kiss to happen, I remind you that we have fifteen minutes until they come back, and your apartment is a mess after last night."

She looks around her and sighs.

"Only a little peck ?" she asks, begging.

I smirk.

"Okay."

She crashes her lips on mine, and as I am about to pull away, she restrains me from doing so and starts moving her lips on mine, before biting my lower lip and run away from me. I burst into laughter, as Morena chases her to the kitchen, that is not clean at all. After smiling for a while, I finish to dress up and do the bed.

I am a little bit nervous, especially on meeting Tori, because she's Kelsey's protective bestie, and those kind of friends are the hardest to convince. But nothing can go wrong : my sisters love Kelsey, so her friends are gonna love me...

... Right ?