SUNSHINE

twenty one

Casey had been in and out of consciousness since they had got to the hospital, and she knew she had a concussion, the question was how severe. Jill had made sure to stay with her so she was not alone in a hospital in another state.

"Alright Ms. Radcliffe, we've looked at your scans and you've definitely got a concussion. Should take about a week or two to recover from, so that means no soccer. With your blackouts and dizziness, I would suggest not sleeping for the next twelve hours or so unless you have someone watching you, and avoid being on your phone and bright lights the first couple days. I'm assuming you have a medical trainer in your staff?" The doctor explained to her, then looked to Jill.

"Uh yes sir, we've got the best staff there is." She responded with a nod.

"I bet you do. Alright, I'm assuming her parents have been contacted?" He asked, and Jill nodded. "Okay, I'm going to hand you the discharge papers since she isn't exactly in the right of mind to do so, and if there's anything you can't fill out, don't worry about it or see if you can get something out of her. Otherwise, you are free to go. Just don't leave her unattended tonight." He explained, handing Jill a clipboard with papers on it. Casey was still somewhat out of it, so she did not bother trying to ask her questions about things she could not fill in. She did what she could and set it on the nurses station outside the emergency room bay they were in.

"Casey, time to go." She said softly as a nurse rolled in a wheelchair. She woke up with a start, and her head was pounding.

"Why does it feel like I got hit by a train?" She asked, holding her head.

"Because you kinda did. How you feelin'?" Jill asked as she helped the teenager into the wheelchair.

"Like there's rocks in my head." She groaned.

"Well you're not playing anytime soon. You can stay with us the remainder of camp, but you will not touch a soccer ball. I'll get someone to stay with you tonight and keep an eye on you." Jill told her, and she nodded.

"How are we getting back to the hotel?" Casey asked as they rolled out of the hospital.

"Don't worry, I'm ahead of you." She said, waving down the Uber that was waiting for them. They got in, Jill helping Casey into the backseat with her and the two of them rode back to the hotel in silence. Casey's head was still spinning, but not as bad as it was at the field. She could finally somewhat focus, and she knew that her time playing with the National Team in this stretch of play.

They arrived at the hotel, Jill getting off the phone with someone as they got out of the car, and Casey was glad that the sun was not as bright as it was. She already had a shiner from the elbow to the face, and that was painful enough. They went into the hotel and Casey rubbed her eyes.

"Casey, we're gonna break down the game. They're already in there and I've advised the staff to keep them quieter than they usually are, as to not trigger your concussion in any way. You good?" Jill explained to her, and she nodded. Casey followed Jill into the dining hall where everyone was gathered, and a hush fell over the lot of them. She went to where she had been sitting all week with Kelley, Emily, Alex, and Megan. They all silently crowded her, and she made sure they knew she was alright.

"Alright good evening everyone, sorry for the delay, had a little bump in the road but all is well." She paused, everyone just kind of chuckling. "So, amazing battle today against our rivals to the north. Not as many mistakes as last game, which were not many in the first place. There was some great shifts in the midfield, a lot of grit being put into some play making there, and I love the spark of creativity up top, so kudos to everyone." She paused again before moving on. "Um, if you haven't gathered, Casey is going to be out the rest of camp but she will be staying with us. She's alone in her room, so if someone would be kind enough to stay with her tonight to make sure she's alright. Alex, Kelley, someone who can stay up all night or go in shifts and keep an eye on her." She said, and Alex squeezed Casey's knee as a signal saying she would stay. She nodded and smiled as Jill continued. "Lastly, we've got one more game this week. We'll be flying out to San Diego early tomorrow morning, departure at seven in the morning so we can land around nine-thirty and be at the field around eleven to do a light training, break for lunch, then head to the fitness center in the evening, and we'll go from there. We'll see everyone back here in the lobby around five-thirty packed and ready to go. Have a good evening." She said, finally dismissing them all. Casey remained seated a little longer as they cleared out, the teammates she had been hanging out with for the past week and a half staying with her.