"Mal Pal!" "Ellie!"
I run to my best friend and jump into her arms hugging her. "You act as if you haven't seen each other in years" Rose deadpans beside us. I drop back onto my feet as I look at Rose, "I'll have you know. We haven't seen each other in 2 weeks 4 days 3 hours 49 minutes and..." I check my watch, "15 seconds..16..17". "Okay! We get it! You missed each other! Just date already!" Rose shouts as she walks towards the elevator. I shake my head, "No thank you. She's too high maintenance for me".
She scoffs and hits my shoulder, "Please you wish you could get with me". I roll my eyes and wink at her, "If I wanted you, trust me we would be together by now". Rose steps in the elevator and bangs her head against the wall, "Please stop flirting in front of me! I feel so fucking single around you two!" I laugh as I wink at the midfielder who glares at me. "Okay Mal I think sweet baby Rose needs some love right now" I grin at Mal who grins back, "I think your right". We both hug Rose from both sides in a big hug and then we both obnoxiously kiss her on the cheek, "Muwha".
She wipes her cheeks as the doors open, "You too are insufferable". "But you love you really" I smile and sling and arm over her shoulder. "Sadly" she mumbled. "Rude!" Mal and I shout after her in unison. She shakes her head and walks off to her room. "I can't believe we're not sharing a room" Mal groans. And I nod, "Yeah maybe we can persuade our roomies to trade who are you with?" "Lindsey. What about you?" She answers but I shrug, "I don't know they haven't showed up yet but my room only has one bed so depending on who it is will determine how my mornings go". Mal nods agreeing with me, "Yeah Pinoe would keep you up all night". I shrug, "I was thinking of Allie. She snores man".
She laughs and waves at me while walking towards her room, "I'll see you at the meeting later". I wave, "See ya later". I walk into my room and get started on some homework trying to get some bit ahead seeing as camp would take up most of my time. I was just finishing up an assignment when the door opens. I take out my headphones and turn only to be tackled out of the chair, "Ellie!" I groan, "Hey Kel". "Well it looks like we're roomies" she grins and look up at her, "That's great squirrel can you get off of me now?" She groans playfully, "Okay fineeeeee".
She gets off of me and nods towards the bed, "I guess we're sharing for the next week". I nod, "Unless you want to swap with Mal and share with Lindsey". She pouts, "We haven't even been roomed together for 10 minutes and your already trying to get rid of me?" I laugh, "It's not like that. It's just Mal and I always room together". She jumps into the bed, "Who needs Mal when you have me!" I laugh and I jump on top of her causing her to grunt before I cuddle into her, "I like to cuddle so if it annoys you I can take the couch". She just cuddles me back holding me close, "Hey as long as you don't snore we're good". I yawn, "Good because I'm about to take a nap". She lets out a quiet yawn and nods sleepily, "I think I'll join you".
And with that we both drifted off tired out from our day of travels
.............
"Come on rugrat, it's time for dinner". I stuff my face into the pillow, "I don't wanna". "Come on kid we got to go or else Jill will be on our ass for being late". I groan and sit up to see Kelley smiling at me. I slip on my shoes and pull my hair up into a ponytail and grab my phone, "Okay let's go stuff our faces". Kelley laughs loudly as she follows behind me.
"How fast do you think you are?" Kelley asks as we get to the elevator. I raise an eyebrow at her, "I don't know. Why?" She smirks at me, "Do you think you could beat the elevator down to the meal room?" I grin, "Wanna find out?"
"Loser buys the other coffee?"
"Your on"
"Go!"
I bolt for the stairs and quickly race down the stair as carefully as I could to not face plant down 4 flights of stairs. I was skipping every 2 steps taking long strides to try and quicken the journey. I was panting by the time I got to the door and ran to the meal room. I got to the door and bent over gasping. Everyone in the room stopped what they was doing and looked up at me confused.
But when I didn't see Kelley anywhere I threw my hands up in the air, "Yes!" A second later Kelley bolts into the room and her mouth drops at the sight of me, "No way!" I point at her, "Suck it squirrel I win!" "How?!" Kelley exclaims while the team still look on at us. "Okay what is going on?" Alex asks as she comes up to us. "Kelley owes me coffee" I smile. "Why?" Christen asks looking between the two of us. Kelley points at me, "She somehow beat the elevator down here".
Everyone turns to me, "So you ran down 10 flights of stairs and beat Kelley in the elevator?" Christen asks. "Yep" I nod. The room was quiet for a second before Sonnett spoke up, "Are we sure she's human? I mean has anyone seen her birth cert?" The whole room fills with laughs while I wink at Sonnett before going grabbing some food. I fill up a plate before taking a seat at the young ones table. I catch up with all the younger ones for a bit and maybe plan a prank or two with Sonnett. I was talking with Mal when I saw Christen and Tobin leave the room. "I'll see you guys tomorrow" I say quickly before I throw away my trash and chase after the two, "Chris! Toby! Wait!"
They both stop and turn around waiting for me to catch up. "Hey Ellie how are you?" Christen smiles hugging me first. I smile as I hug her back, "Great. Can't wait to be back with the team for a week". "And you survived your first year of college" Tobin jokes as I hug her next. "Yep" I nod popping the p, "got by okay. Although I'm getting help due to my dyslexia. And I love playing with the Bruins". Christen moves a loose strand of hair behind my ear, "Well that's good. And if you ever need any help we'll always be here to help okay?" I smile and nod, "I know. Thanks mom".
Her hand freezes and her eyes widen a small bit. I look at her before I realise what I did. "Uh I'm um I-I h-have to go. I uh have to talk to.... Kelley? Yeah Kelley! Uh bye". I turn on my heel and bolt down the hall. "Elliot wait!" I hear behind me but I just keep running. I don't stop until I reach my room and fumble with my key card and curse when it doesn't work and it takes a minute before it turns green. When I finally get the door open I stumble in the room and drop onto the bed. My breathing was getting slightly heavy and I tried to focus on the breathing techniques that Christen taught me and remember how Jess was always able to calm me down.
After a few minute I was able to calm down and get my breathing back to normal. I quickly did my nightly routine and just as I was finished Kelley walked in the door. But her smile dropped when she saw me, "Hey is everything okay?" I barely nod and walk over to her and wrap her in a tight hug and buried my face in her neck. She sighs and kisses the top of my head while rubbing my back, "Let's get you to bed yeah?" I nod and she lifts me up and carries me to the bed. She gently puts me in the bed. She tries to stand back up but I grab onto her wrist, "Stay. Please". "I'm just going to to go get changed Ellie" she promises. I sigh and frown but let her go and she quick gets changed and brushes her teeth before she climbs into the other side of the bed and I immediately cuddle into her. She sighs and holds me close whispering some reassurances in my ear and starts to hum slightly.
The small vibrations from her chest slowly put me to sleep and I drifted off to sleep. "Night Ellie. Sweet dreams". And with that I was out for the night.
..............
I closed my eyes as felt the light breeze blow across my skin. I could feel the goosebumps raise up on my legs not kind of regretting wearing shorts and pulled the oversized hoodie closer to me for warmth. I pulled my legs into my chest and wrapped my arms around my legs as I looked down over the city.
It didn't matter that it was 8 o'clock there were already cars driving by and people walking on the streets below. Even from the roof I could see the faint noise of car honks and the usual city noise. I start to hum out a tune while tapping my fingers on my bare knee trying to distract myself from the embarrassing moment last night that has plagued by mind since last night.
"You know still kinda annoyed you didn't tell us you could actually sing"
I look over my shoulder to see Alex standing near the door. "So I'm guessing you saw the video" I sigh. She walks over to me and sits down beside me, "I think everyone has. Last I saw it was almost at a million views". I groan and hide my face in my hands, "I didn't know I was being recorded. I didn't want anyone to know". "Well it's out there now. What can you do about it? If you want I can text Taylor and see if she wants to do a collab?" She teases. I shove her shoulder, "Piss off Lex".
We both laugh it off for a minute before we just sat in silence just enjoying the peace for a minute. But Alex decides to break it, "So I talked to Kelley this morning". I let out a frustrated sigh, "Of course you did. What did she say?" She puts her hand on my shoulder, "Nothing bad. She just said she was worried about you. That when she came back into your room she seemed a bit...off or flustered to say the least. She was worried you had just been after a panic attack". I lick my lips, "I didn't have a panic attack. I calmed down before it happened". "Well it must have been bad if you almost had a panic attack over it. What happened Ellie?" Alex reasons.
I let out a sigh as I look out over the city drumming my fingers on my knee, "I...I called Christen Mom". Alex just nods, "Well she does act like your mom doesn't she. Tobin too". I run my hand through my hair, "You don't get it". She just shrugs causally, "Then help me get it". I sigh heavily, "It's just Christen and Tobin have been amazing to me. They treat me like family and I couldn't be more thankfully for them. For all you guys". I take another deep breath, "But when I called Christen Mom it felt like I was replacing mom. And no one could replace her but Christen does stuff that reminds me of my mom and I can't help but feel safe and loved. I just freaked off and ran off before we could talk about it and I'm so confused. I just...don't know".
Alex clicks her tongue, "So that's probably why Christen couldn't sit still during breakfast". I sigh as I lean my chin on my knees, "What am I going to do?" Alex throws her arm around me in a side hug, "Look Ellie. I know that no one could replace your parents. But everyone can see how much Christen and Tobin care about you. There's no doubt about it. So whether you call them mom or not that won't change how much they care about you. Hell they have already claimed you as their kid there's no going back now".
I let out a laugh as Alex chuckles beside me and I lean into her side, "Thanks Alex". "No problem kid. I'm always here to talk" Alex smiles. "How did you know I was going to be up here?" I ask. She shrugs, "Even though your always in the spotlight, your more of the quiet type. I thought you would come up here to take a breath and think". I nod and sigh, "I should talk to Christen and Tobin shouldn't I?" She nods, "I think so yeah". I push myself off the ground and Alex gets up beside me. But before I go for the door I quickly hug her, "Thank Alex. I don't know what I would do without you". She smiles and pats my back, "Anytime kid. Now cmon we have a meeting to get to".
We leave the roof walking side by side her arm slung over my shoulders in a side hug. We go straight down to the meeting room and when we walk in I immediately look around for Christen and see she's sitting beside Tobin. Just when I'm about to walk over to her, Jill starts the meeting and I sigh as I let Alex drag me to a seat at the back in between her and Kelley. The meeting was fairly standard just talking about what we were going to work on for this camp and then what our schedule is going to be like for the next few months. "Okay so I think that's everything. Is there any questions?" Jill asks before she ends the meeting. I was waiting for her to just end the meeting but was shocked to see Mal put up her hand in front of me, "Yes Mal?" "Why did you split up Ellie and I?" She pouts and everyone else laughs. "Yeah! I can't believe you split us up and stuck me with squirrel. In a room with one bed!" I exclaim. "Hey!" Kelley says from beside me throwing her arm around me, "I'm not that bad. You love me really". I shrug and smirk, "Your alright. But on the plus side I now have proof that your drool in your sleep". Kelley's eyes widen while everyone else burst out laugh and Jill tries to settle us down. "Okay okay quieten down now" Jill chuckles before looking at Mal, "It was going to happen eventually Mal. Just be happy you don't have to share a bed with Kelley".
The whole room laughs again while Kelley pouts, "I feel attacked". I smile as I hug Kelley, "I still love you squirrel". She smiles and hugs me back, "Love you too baby Koala". "Okay if that is all your free to go dismissed" Jill announces. Everyone gets up and walks out of the room and dispersed. I'm looking around for Christen and Tobin but I can't see them. But I quickly find them when Tobin pats my shoulder, "Wanna come up to our room?" I nod, "Sure".
Tobin walked in between Chris and I hugging both of us as we walk. Eventually we got to their shared room and I sat on one of the bed while the two of them sat across from me. I play with my fingers, "So uh about yesterday...". "You mean when you called Chris Mom" Tobin smirk. I blush while Christen slaps Tobin's arm, "Uh yeah that". "Why did you run off afterwards?" Christen says softly. I start to play with my fingers again but Christen reaches across and puts her hands on mine stopping them, "I just... panicked". I take a deep breath, "I just got scared after I said it. It slipped out and I wasn't sure how you would react and... I felt like I was betraying my mom". I sniffle as my eyes start to water slightly, "It just feels like I was betraying her by trying to replace her". "Oh sweetie" Christen sighs as she gets up and sits beside me, "I'm sorry I reacted badly. I was just shocked and caught me off guard. And I know I could never replace your mom but I'm glad you think of me as someone to come to if you ever need it. And I don't mind if you call me Mom it's completely up to you. I already see you as a daughter to me anyways".
I smile as I hug Chris tightly, "I love you". She smiles the top of my head and hugs me back, "I love you too Ellie. So so much". After we pull away I jump across to Tobin who was sitting watching us, "I love you too Toby". She laughs as she hugs me back as I sit in her lap, "Love you too Ellie". Christen joins us back on the bed as we all share a big group hug and we stay like that for a bit. "Can I stay with here with you guys tonight?" I ask nuzzling my face into Tobin's shoulder. "Sure!" Christen smiles, "how about a movie night?" I smile, "Yeah I would love that". Christen puts on a movie while Tobin pulls out two packets of Oreo's. "Toby I love you!" I grin as I take one of the packets. "What about me?" Christen teases as she sits down beside me. I kiss her cheek and I cuddle in between them, "Love you too Mom". "And we love you Ellie" Christen whispers before kissing my head. I sat in between the two watching the movie cuddling into Christen while Tobin had her arm stretched behind the two of us.
I smile as I feel Christen card her fingers through my hair and Tobin lets me play with her fingers while letting me eat Oreo's. "Okay I'm cutting you too off" Christen laughs as she takes away the second packet of Oreos from us that was almost empty.
"But Chris!"
"But Mom"
Tobin and I whine in unison and we turn and laugh with each other while Christen rolls her eyes at us but she can't hide the smile on her face, "And I thought I only had one child to deal with". I pout, "Please I'm more mature than Toby anyday". Now it's Tobin's turn to pout, "Hey!". Christen shrugs, "She's not wrong Tobs". Tobin huffs but I hold her hand, "but we still love you". She doesn't say anything but just pulls Christen and I closer to her and we continue watching the movie. Eventually I relax as Christen runs her fingers through my hair which slowly lulls me to sleep leaving me to fall asleep in a Preath hug.