"Well, ain't you an excited lad." Leah joked, seeing how I was tapping my thighs along the tune of 'Bittersweet Baby' by Blackwave that was playing in the car.
We had just parked in front of Beth and Viv's house. Most of the team was meeting there after coming home from the international break. The girls had invited us over to eat before we went back to training tomorrow. I suspected Beth to have invited us only so she could finally meet my dog, but I didn't care, I was just excited to see my teammates again.
I nodded at Leah's words, a smile gracing my lips. "Yeah. I miss the girls. Especially Katie." I confessed. "Don't tell her I said that, I won't hear the end of it."
Leah giggled at my words. "Oh, I'm definitely gonna tell her." She said, and I rolled my eyes.
"Annoying ass," I muttered Leah chuckled at my response, her laughter filling the car with warmth as she glanced over at me.
"Alright, let's go," she said, gently poking my side before escaping the car, walking to the trunk so she would get the drinks we brought. I followed suit, stepping out of the car and opening the backseat door for Drayton to get out.
As Drayton bounded out of the car with his usual enthusiasm, I smiled at his excitement. He seemed to sense the anticipation in the air, wagging his tail furiously as he took in his surroundings. He could probably smell the girls' dogs, too.
"Easy there, buddy," I chuckled, reaching down to ruffle his fur as he sniffed around the driveway, his tail wagging in delight. "you're gonna meet a new friend, yeah? You're gonna see, Myle is still little, but he's got a lot of energy, just like you."
Leah emerged from the trunk with a bottle carton in hand. "You talk to your dog a lot, don't you?"
I shrugged playfully as Leah joined me, closing the trunk with a soft thud. "Hey, he's a great listener," I replied with a grin, reaching out to take the bottle carton from her. Leah quickly stepped away though, offering me a mock-angry glare.
"Stop it. I'm a grown woman. I can carry a box."
I couldn't help but laugh at Leah's mock indignation. "Alright, alright," I relented, holding my hands up in surrender. "Just trying to be chivalrous, but I guess you've got it covered."
Leah grinned, shaking her head as she playfully nudged me with her elbow. "Always the gentleman, aren't you?" she teased, her eyes sparkling with amusement.
I chuckled, falling into step beside her as we made our way towards Beth and Viv's house. "I would if you ever let me," I mumbled, rolling my eyes and knocking on the door.
Beth swung open the door with a bright smile, her eyes lighting up as she caught sight of us. "You're late. But you have the dog. So immediately forgiven." Beth said, before crouching down, her arms open wide to welcome Drayton with open arms. Drayton wasted no time in bounding over to Beth, his tail wagging furiously as he nuzzled against her legs, his excitement palpable. "Hello, it's so nice to meet you, you big boy. Who's a beautiful boy, huh? Yes, it's you." Beth babbled, using the same voice she always used when talking to her dogs.
Drayton practically melted under Beth's affectionate words, leaning into her touch with a contented sigh as he soaked up the attention. "Sucker for attention, that one." I joked, and Leah nodded, giggling.
Beth straightened up, her smile widening as she glanced over at us. "Come on in, you two," Beth said, stepping aside to let us enter, grabbing the wine from Leah's hands. "The gang's all here, and Viv's got a spread fit for royalty waiting in the kitchen."
As soon as we stepped in, my eyes darted around to find a certain someone, unsuccessfully.
"Where's Katie?" I whispered to Leah, my brows furrowing in confusion as I scanned the room once more, hoping to catch a glimpse of my friend.
Leah glanced around, then shrugged. "I don't see her," she replied, her eyes narrowing slightly as she surveyed the room.
Then, suddenly, I felt someone jump on my back the way only she would do, then sing right into my ears with that iconic Irish accent; "she was a Gooner, now she's a gunner, Vale Villanueva, she is our new shooter!"
I couldn't help but laugh as Katie's familiar voice echoed in my ears, her infectious energy filling the room with warmth and laughter. With a grin, I reached up to grab her around the waist, hoisting her up in a playful embrace as she clung to my shoulders, her laughter ringing out like music to my ears.
"Katie McCabe, you absolute nutter!" I exclaimed, spinning around in a circle with her still clinging to my back.
"Oi, a week without seeing your annoying face, it was almost too good to be true, mate," Katie said, grinning cheekily as she finally hopped down from my back, only to punch my side playfully.
Katie's playful punch elicited a mock wince from me, but I couldn't contain the grin that spread across my face as I returned her gesture with a playful shove. "Fuck off, you missed me."
Katie rolled her eyes at my words, and walked to Leah, taking her in her arms. "This one I missed." She said, flipping me off and offering me her signature smirk.
Leah laughed, returning Katie's embrace with a warm smile. "Missed you too, Kitkat," she replied affectionately, squeezing Katie tightly before pulling back to look at her. "How was camp? Good?"
"Yeah, alright. I mean, we lost both games so that sucked, but it was friendly so who cares." Katie shrugged nonchalantly.
"Hey, girls, what's up?" I heard someone say behind me, and I turned to see Steph approaching, a wide grin on her face as she enveloped me and Leah in a warm hug.
We spent the next two hours or so greeting everyone, catching up on each other's lives, and joking around.
It was crazy how much I had missed those girls even though we had only been away from each other for a week. Leah was right, they all had grown to become my family. And a family way better than the one I grew up with.
After eating, Katie and I escaped to the backyard so we could do some shoots and kicks. It was still cold in London, but we were almost in spring, and I was kind of getting used to the weather.
With a makeshift goal set up at one end of the yard, we took turns sending the ball flying into the net, each shot accompanied by shouts of encouragement and playful banter.
"Top bins, Vale, top bins!" Katie cheered as I lined up my shot, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
I grinned back at her, determination fueling my movements as I focused on the goal ahead. With a swift kick, I sent the ball soaring through the air, watching with satisfaction as it sailed into the top corner of the net with pinpoint accuracy.
"Yes!" I exclaimed, pumping my fist in the air as Katie cheered beside me. "Did you see that, McCard? That's how it's done!"
"Damn, mate, what you eat today? You're making every shot!" Katie teased, her eyes widening in mock astonishment as she retrieved the ball from the net.
I chuckled at her words, my cheeks suddenly tainted in pink when I replied with a low voice; "more about who I ate."
Katie burst into laughter at my cheeky remark, her eyes sparkling with amusement as she playfully nudged my shoulder. "Yeah yeah, very funny," she said, rolling her eyes, clearly not believing me.
I grinned back at Katie, unable to suppress the playful twinkle in my eyes as I shrugged nonchalantly. "Hey, you asked," I replied with a wink.
Katie froze for a second, looking at me right in the eyes. "No. Fucking. Way." she then said, and I giggled at her words. "You did the thing?"
I couldn't help but laugh at Katie's incredulous expression, her eyes wide with disbelief as she stared at me in astonishment. "Yeah, I did the thing," I confirmed with a grin, my cheeks reddening even more at her reaction.
Katie's jaw dropped open in shock, looking at me up and down trying to piece together the puzzle in her mind. "Bloody hell, California," she exclaimed, putting her arm around my shoulders and ruffling my hair violently while I tried to escape her wrath. "You sly dog, you actually did it!"
I laughed at Katie's antics, trying to duck out from under her arm as she continued to ruffle my hair with playful enthusiasm. "Alright, alright, calm down," I protested, unable to suppress my own grin at her reaction. "It's not that big of a deal."
Katie scoffed at my words, her expression still filled with disbelief. "Not a big deal? Sister we're gonna go do shots!" She exclaimed, grabbing my arm and dragging me back towards the house.
Without any possibility of protestation on my part, I got dragged inside and then set down on the couch between Lotte and Laura, who was visibly asleep. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom. I came back and we did shots. Do not move your arse from that couch."
"What's up with her?" Lotte asked as we watched Katie escape to the bathroom, on the other side of the house.
"Just... Katie being Katie." I shrugged, before I glanced over at Laura, who was slumped against the armrest of the couch, her breathing slow and steady as she slept soundly. "Looks like she's out for the count," I remarked with a chuckle, shaking my head in amusement.
Lotte nodded in agreement, her lips quirking into a small smile. "Yeah, she's been knackered lately. Training's been intense, and she just wants to be able to play again," she explained, her voice soft as she glanced over at Laura with a fond expression.
I nodded in understanding, sympathy filling my heart as I watched Laura sleep. Training and matches could take a toll on even the toughest of players, and Laura was no exception. "Poor thing," I murmured, reaching out to gently tuck a loose strand of hair behind Laura's ear. "She works so hard."
Lotte nodded in agreement, her gaze softening as she looked at her teammate. "Yeah, she does. But she loves it," she replied with a small smile, her tone filled with pride. "And she's bloody good at it too. You know she trained almost all alone the entire week we were in camp?"
"She didn't go back to Austria to see her family?"
"Nope," Lotte confirmed, shaking her head. "She stayed here, working. Said taking a week off would slow her recovery down."
I pouted my lip slightly, looking over at her.
"Anyway, how was your week? Went back to America, right?" Little asked me, taking a sip of her beer.
"Yeah. It was nice. Got to spend some time with my best friend." I confirmed with a nod, a smile tugging at the corners of my lips as I recalled my time spent in LA.
We talked about our week away from each other for about fifteen minutes, until I realized Katie still hadn't come back from the bathroom.
"She's taking her sweet time, isn't she? Maybe I should go check on her," I suggested, glancing towards the direction of the bathroom with a slight furrow of concern.
Lotte nodded in agreement, her brows furrowing slightly as she glanced towards the bathroom as well. "Yeah, good idea. She's been in there for a while."
I pushed myself up from the couch, making my way towards the bathroom. Once in front of the door I knocked, and didn't hear any answer. I knocked again, calling Katie's name, and when I still didn't get any answer, pushed the door open, and much to my dismay, it was empty.
Where could Katie have gone? It didn't make sense for her to disappear without a word, especially when she had been so animated just moments before.
I was about to walk back into the living room when I heard a small giggling sound coming from the spare bedroom. So, basically Laura's room.
Curious, I followed the sound of the giggles, my brows furrowing in confusion as I approached the spare bedroom. Pushing the door open slowly, I peeked inside, my eyes widened when I took sight of the room.
Katie and Caitlin, both shirtless, kissing the living hell out of each other. With Caitlin pushed against the wall, and Katie pressed against her.
"Holy fucking shit." I immediately said, my brain struggling to process what I was seeing. The sound of my voice made the two girls jump and step away from each other.
Katie's embarrassed face immediately brought an immense smirk to my lips. "You two-" I started, but Katie immediately walked up to me and put her hand against my mouth, grabbing me by the arm and dragging me to the bathroom.
As Katie practically dragged me into the bathroom, I couldn't help but let out a startled laugh, my mind still reeling from the unexpected sight I had just witnessed. Once inside the bathroom, Katie shut the door behind us with a soft click, her expression a mix of embarrassment and urgency as she turned to face me.
"Please, Val, you can't tell anyone about this," Katie pleaded, her eyes wide with desperation as she looked at me.
I couldn't contain the grin that spread across my face at Katie's panicked demeanor, the sheer absurdity of the situation making it hard for me to keep a straight face. "You and Caitlin? Really? Damn, I never would've guessed."
Katie's cheeks flushed pink with embarrassment as she glanced around the bathroom, her eyes darting nervously from one corner to the other. "Please, Valentina, I'm serious, it's not... official yet, and Caitlin doesn't want anyone to know."
"Alright, alright, chill. I won't say anything. I promise." I assured her, reaching out to gently pat her shoulder in reassurance.
Katie let out a relieved sigh, her shoulders sagging with relief as she leaned against the bathroom counter. "Thank you, Val," she murmured gratefully, her voice filled with genuine gratitude. "I owe you one."
I chuckled softly at Katie's words, shaking my head in amusement. "Yeah, you do," I replied with a grin, my cheeks still tinged with pink from the unexpected revelation. "But seriously, I'm happy for you. Caitlin's a good one."
Katie's cheeks flushed even brighter at my words, a shy smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "Yeah, she is," she admitted softly, her gaze drifting off into the distance as she lost herself in thought.
"So it's like... serious serious?"
Katie nodded slowly, her expression serious as she met my gaze. "Yeah, I think so," she replied quietly, her voice tinged with uncertainty. "I mean, we haven't really talked about it yet, but... She ain't really the type to mess around, you know? And neither am I. Not with teammates."
I nodded in understanding. It was clear that this was something important to her, something she wanted to handle with care and consideration.
"Well, if you need someone to talk to, I'm here," I offered, reaching out to squeeze Katie's shoulder in a gesture of solidarity. "You know I've got your back, always."
Katie's grateful smile warmed my heart as she nodded in appreciation. "Thanks, Val. I appreciate it," she said, her voice filled with sincerity.
With a final squeeze of her shoulder, I flashed Katie a reassuring grin before opening the bathroom door and stepping back out into the hallway. As I made my way back to the living room.
That was going to be extremely hard not to babble about what I had just witnessed, especially to Leah, but I owed it to Katie to shut my big mouth, like she and the rest of the squad had done for me when Leah and I had told them about us.
I settled back onto the couch between Lotte and Laura, who was still peacefully asleep, and soon enough, Leah walked up to me and sat on my lap, visibly tired too.
Leah's weight settled comfortably on my lap, her arms wrapping around my shoulders as she leaned in close, her head resting against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her waist, holding her close as I pressed a gentle kiss to the top of her head.
"Hey, baby," I murmured softly, my voice barely above a whisper as I gazed down at Leah with a tender smile. "You wanna go home?"
Leah nodded against my chest, her exhaustion evident in the way she nestled closer to me. "Yeah, let's head home," she replied softly, her voice barely audible above the din of the room. "I'm beat."