Seventeen Months

May 29, 2017

**Tobin and Allie’s Apartment in Portland**

“Tobin…Tobin!!” Allie yells at the cozy figure in bed.

“Let me sleep,” Tobin grunts, still face first in her pillow.

“I will not let you sleep. It’s game day and your birthday and we have to meet Kling and Christen for brunch in a half hour!”

At the mention of Christen’s name, Tobin shudders under the blankets. Noticing her best friend’s reaction, Allie decides to take a different approach.

“Harry, are you still upset about last night?” Allie asks in a concerned tone, sitting down on the bed next to Tobin.

Acknowledging that she can’t stay asleep forever, Tobin flips onto her back to face her housemate and replies, “Of course I’m still upset about last night. Who the fuck says that, especially to a teammate?”

“Well…you,” Allie answers, hoping to lighten the mood a bit. Tobin’s expression morphs into a scowl.

Attempting to retrace her steps, Allie offers, “Sorry. But it really wasn’t that bad. Plus, the whole team was drunk, including Christen. She probably didn’t even hear what you said.”

“Yeah, Al. I’m sure she missed it when I literally blurted in her face, ‘We should kiss sometime’.” Tobin throws her arms over her face and groans. “Why am I such an idiot?”

“Tobs, you’re not an idiot. You just have a crush.” Allie reassures the midfielder. “And if I’m being honest, I don’t think you’re the only one. There’s definitely been some…tension between you and Christen since she joined the Thorns.” Allie winks at Tobin and stands up.

Tobin rolls her eyes and rolls herself out of bed to get dressed, yawning and rubbing her eyes.

**Christen and Meghan’s Apartment in Portland (Right below Tobin and Allie’s)**

“Press, wake up! We have to meet Allie and Tobin in thirty minutes!” Kling yells as she stomps into Christen’s bedroom.

“How is it already 10:30?” Christen protests, jumping out of bed frantically.

“Chris, chill,” Kling suggests, noticing how frazzled Christen seems. “What’s up?”

“Sorry, I just…” Christen considers for a minute, “I, uh, I just don’t want to be late.”

Kling gives Christen a suspicious look. “Uh huh, right. You sure that’s it? This doesn't have anything to do with a certain teammate, does it?”

Christen turns to face Kling, her face slightly red. “What are you talking about?”

“Chris, come on. You can talk to me,” Kling urges, putting an arm on Christen’s shoulder.

“It’s not a big deal,” Christen says with a sigh, “I just feel bad that I didn't say anything.”

“After Tobin expressed her unconditional love for you, you mean?” Kling says with a chuckle.

“You said I could talk to you, Kling. Don’t make me regret taking you up on it,” Christen asserts, shooting a glare at her friend.

“You’re right, I’m sorry,” Kling apologizes. “Do you think she actually meant it when she said she wanted to kiss you?”

“I have no idea. Probably not,” Christen answers with a tinge of disappointment in her voice. “I just wish I had said something, but I was so caught off guard. I doubt she even wants to see me right now.”

“I don’t know if it’s even possible for Tobin not to want to see you, Press. You guys are like magnets for each other,” Kling notes, trying to reassure her teammate.

“Oh my god!” Christen suddenly gasps, wide-eyed. “It’s Tobin’s birthday! I totally forgot. I didn’t even get her anything. I officially suck.”

“Ooh, I know what you could get her,” Kling comments with a smirk.

“What?!” Christen begs, oblivious of Kling’s tone.

“You can give her that kiss she asked for.”

“Good one, Kling,” Christen scoffs, secretly smiling to herself. “The least we can do is be on time to brunch, though. You ready to go?”

“Yep,” Kling responds, following Christen out the door.

At 11:07, Tobin and Allie arrive at The Daily Feast, a breakfast spot a few blocks away from Providence Park and find Christen and Meghan sitting down at a table outside.

“Sorry we’re late,” Allie apologizes, taking a seat next to Meghan. “The birthday girl decided to sleep in.”

“No worries. This one was passed out too,” Kling says, motioning across the table toward Christen. “Happy birthday, Tobs!”

“Thanks,” Tobin replies shyly, tentatively taking a seat next to Christen.

“Happy birthday,” Christen echoes with a shy smile, quickly making eye contact with Tobin.

Tobin smiles and nods her head in acknowledgment.

Breaking the silence, a waitress comes over to the table. “Hello, my name is Lyla. I’ll be your waiter today. What can I get for you?”

“I’ll take the Greek Yogurt Parfait,” Kling says with a smile.

“I’m gonna get the Eggs Benedict,” Allie declares.

“Hmm, I think I’ll try the Veggie Scramble,” Christen says.

“Can I get the Chocolate Chip Pancakes?” Tobin asks with a grin.

“Of course. I’ll have that out for you guys soon,” Lyla says, collecting the menus from the table.

“Chocolate chip pancakes? Nice, Harry” Allie jokes, smiling at Tobin.

“By far the best breakfast food,” Tobin defends confidently, stretching her arm around Christen’s chair out of habit. Immediately, she retracts her arm, remembering the events of last night.

Christen looks down dejectedly, wishing the whole situation had never happened.

“Um, I’m gonna go to the bathroom, be right back,” Tobin mumbles, standing up.

After Tobin disappears inside the restaurant, Christen looks at Allie and questions, “Is she okay? Did she say anything to you about last night?”

“She’s fine, just a bit regretful,” Allie offers with a shrug. “She thinks she screwed up your friendship.”

“She thinks she ruined our friendship?!” Christen marvels. “Oh Tobin…I’m the one who should feel bad. I didn’t say anything afterward. I know she didn’t mean what she said anyway. She had a lot to drink,” Christen adds, glancing at Allie to gauge her reaction.

“Well, I don’t know about that,” Allie says sheepishly, with a look at Kling, who is looking to the side with a crooked smile.

“What?” Christen snaps, looking back and forth between her two teammates.

“Nothing,” Kling says, shaking her head. “It’s just that…you know, Tobin’s not the kind of person who would say something like that if she didn’t, at least in some way, mean it.”

Before Christen has a chance to respond, Tobin approaches from inside.

“Did you miss me?” Tobin jokes, sitting back down.

“So much,” Allie professes, reaching across the table to grasp Tobin’s arm. Kling rolls her eyes.

“So, are you guys excited for the game?” Christen asks, focusing her attention on something other than the previous night’s awkward incident.

“Pumped, as always,” Tobin exclaims with a grin. “Always good to play at home.”

“Yeah, there’s no crowd like a Portland crowd,” Kling agrees.

“I can’t wait!” Christen says excitedly. “I’m nervous though. This will be the first time playing at Providence that the fans will actually be cheering for me.”

“Man, I wish I could relive my first time. It was magical,” Tobin reminisces, earning her smirks from Allie and Kling and a blush from Christen.

“Oh come on!” Tobin whines, letting out a laugh, “You know what I meant.”

The waiter returns with their food, and the four players talk, laugh, and eat for another forty-five minutes, and then make their way to the field to meet with the coach and the rest of their team for a meeting before the game.

It's halftime and the Thorns are up 1-0 against Sky Blue, thanks to a goal by Christine Sinclair. The players take the field again, and the referee blows her whistle to signal the start of the second half. For the first ten minutes, Portland controls the ball well and creates a few good chances in the attacking third, but fails to convert anything. In the 57th minute, however, a Tasha Kai goal, off of a beautiful through ball from Kelley O’Hara, gives Sky Blue the equalizer.

For the next twenty-five minutes, the score remains unchanged. Tobin almost scores off a counterattack in the 80th minute, but Caroline Casey leaps to the left to make a terrific save. Christen looks over and notices Tobin curse under her breath after her shot, wishing there was something she could do to make her teammate feel better on her birthday.

Seven minutes later, with three minutes left of regular time, Kling makes a beautiful tackle in Portland's defending third to gain possession. She passes to Allie, who runs upfield, looking for an outlet. Out of nowhere, Christen comes sprinting along the right side of the field, calling for the ball. Allie fakes out a defender and slides a perfect ball to Christen, who takes three touches and fires a shot from just outside the eighteen past Casey into the upper right corner of the net, giving the Thorns a 2-1 lead.

The crowd erupts as red smoke rises behind Sky Blue’s goal. Christen gives Allie a thumbs up and jumps into the air as her teammates run over to celebrate. Instead of melting into the group hug, however, Christen finds Tobin standing just outside the eighteen with a huge smile on her face. Free of any inhibitions, the forward sprints toward the midfielder and grabs the back of Tobin's neck, pressing their lips together, shocking all 17,000 people in the stadium, including Tobin. It's as if the world stops, and there is only the two of them standing on that field.

Eventually, Christen pulls away, gazing into the beautiful brown eyes in front of her. "Happy birthday, Tobin," she says with an honest smile before jogging back to her position on the field. Tobin stands there for several more moments, awestruck, before stumbling back to midfield.

After five more minutes of play, including two minutes of stoppage time, the game ends. The final score is 2-1. As the players high five and walk to their respective benches, Tobin and Christen lock eyes and smile, both knowing they have shared a moment neither of them will forget.