What are we?
Christen looked up from her book when she heard the footsteps coming into the dining hall. She thought she will be alone this morning. She didn’t think that any of her teammates will be up this early since they decided to celebrate their 2nd victory in a friendly tournament against China last night. When the rest of her team member opted to go to another bar for more drinks, Christen followed Hope, Carli, Amy and Cheney back to the hotel preferring to be alone and sober to self-reflect on each of her mistakes in the game.
She knew that Amy and Cheney planned to stay a bit later in their room as Amy was bringing her two sons in camp and since today only involved recovery session before their next travel, she also know the rest of the girls planned to stay late in the pub and it was confirmed when her roommate is still sleeping by the time she wake up. To avoid disturbing her, Christen decide to do her reading in the dining room instead.
But to her surprised, she see Sam and Lynn walked into the room followed by Moe and Emily. The foursome walk in zombie like manner to the coffee pot at the end of the hall. Once they completely emptying out the pot, they made a move toward her table. Lynn took a seat on her left while the rest spread out on the remaining seat. From the look of their face, she knew they were having the side effect of last night celebration. Christen chuckled when they simultaneously let out a groaned and put their head on the table.
“I need more coffee to wake up at this hour.” Sam muttered out.
“You know you guys can stay sleep a little longer right? It’s only 7 in the morning and today we only have recovery which only started in the afternoon.”
“Yeah…but this girl here have a great idea to challenge Carli last night and to prove a point Cap asked us to go run with her this morning.” Moe gestured towards Sam.
Christen leaned back and really looked at the other four occupants on her table. Only now she noticed that all four of them were wearing their training gear and running shoes.
“I really don’t want to know how that happened. You guys dig your own hole with that one. What I want to know is how you got involved in this” Christen turned to the girl on her left.
“Urgh…I was just an innocent bystander. They were challenging Carl and by the time I reached them, she invited us to go for a run with her this morning.” Lynn explained.
“More like instructed us, actually.” Emily added.
Lynn sighed in defeated, grabbing Christen arm and leaned her forehead on it.
“My head is killing me, Press! Please save me! I’m begging you.” Lynn whispered pleadingly.
Christen chuckled and just shook her head. “I can’t save you from this little one.”
Lynn whined childishly. “But this is not how I want to be reminded of my first camp!” The rest of the table laughed along with her antic.
“And you are my savior! You are my only hope! Please…” Lynn’s head now rested on Christen’ shoulder.
Suddenly Moe, Emily and Sam sit up a little bit straighter looking behind them. Christen turned to look behind her expecting to see Carli but was surprised when she sees Tobin with her hood up glowering down at them.
“You are in my seat.” Tobin grumbled out.
Lynn moved her head from Christen’ shoulder confused and look around the empty seats remaining on the table.
“I…um..”
Tobin feeling impatient just walked closer to Lynn’s chair and took a firm hold on the back of it and jiggled the seat as if trying to push the girl out of it.
“I said..you are in my seat!” Tobin said a little louder.
“Tobin!” Christen chided.
“Shit! Sorry…” Lynn jumped up and move away.
She start to walk backwards slowly when Tobin distracted by Christen calling out her name again but stop still when Tobin turned back to glare at her. She was afraid to move as if the slightest movement will made Tobin pounce on her.
Lynn took a deep breath when Christen tugged on the midfielder’s hand and this time Tobin turned her glare to the other three. Christen just shook her head when Moe, Sonny and Sam quickly get up to move away to another table but not before pulling their motionless friend too.
Tobin smirked before she took a seat beside Christen. As soon as she felt the seat under her, Christen pinched her right arm.
“Owwww….why you do that for!” Tobin whimpered slightly while rubbing the reddened skin.
“That’s what you get for being so mean to them.” Christen explained.
“You know I don’t like to share.” Tobin replied back challengingly.
Christen pinched the midfielder again this time harder.
“Chris…please stop pinching me!” Tobin whined.
“Well I will keep pinching you until you get it in your head that I am not your property.” Christen said angrily.
Tobin grasped the hand that aiming for her skin again and this time she looked remorseful.
“I’m sorry. You know I didn’t think of you that way. Just that, when I woke up this morning you were not there and I got headache ….” Tobin shoulder slumped and she put her head down tiredly onto the table, clenching her jaw.
After hearing that, Christen felt her anger ebb away. Since the Algarve camp few months before, both of them started to spend more time together. Christen suspected the only reason Tobin gravitated toward her because she was feeling lonely after all her close friend in the team started to get busy planning their life for the future. She know Tobin feels like she was being left behind and currently Christen was the safe net that Tobin hang on tightly.
Christen leaned close and tried to pull her hands from Tobin grasped but the midfielder held firm.
“No….” Tobin mumbled under her breath.
“Tobin, I’m not gonna pinch you again. I just want to get you some water. I think you are dehydrated.”
“Don’t wanna drink.”
Christen sighed when she heard the petulant voice. She know when Tobin is in this mood, she just need to sleep it off so she pulled her hand again and this time Tobin let her go.
“Come on. Let’s go back to our room. You need to sleep.” She softly rub her hand up and down Tobin’s back.
Tobin nodded her head and let Christen led her away from the dining hall.
While across the hall at another table, there was 4 set of eyes watching the pair every move.
“What just happened?” Lynn asked quietly.
“Sorry, Lynn we forget to tell you not to sit Press left side. That’s Tobin spot.” Emily started to explain.
“But she was not there. It’s not like I took her place.”
“You are new to the team and she didn’t know you. She’ll warm up to you once she get to know you better.” Sam added.
“I have a boyfriend! I’m not into Press like that.” Lynn replied back defensively.
“Doesn’t matter. She’s quite territorial over Press.” Moe now added.
Before she can came up with another retort, Carli walked into the hall followed by Hope.
“Morning, girls! Let’s go! Hope will help to keep track of our time.” Carli shouted.
The four now quickly followed their captain and the keeper with a feeling of dread.
When they reached their hotel room Tobin dropped herself onto Christen’s bed. She pulled Christen’s pillow under her head and started to doze off. Christen rummaged through her luggage before she sat on the bed beside Tobin.
“Tobin, come on. You need to eat this pill and finish the drink.” She cajoled the prone figure on her bed.
Tobin just grunted before pushing up her body and take the glass from Christen’s finger. Tobin dropped back down on the bed after swallowing the pills but when Christen made a move toward the other bed, the midfielder grasped her hips.
“Stay please. I wanna cuddles.”
Christen hesitated at first but when Tobin just pulled her hips closer to her head, she relented. As soon as the forward lay down on the bed, Tobin shifted to rest her head on the forward’s shoulder. Christen thread her hand through Tobin’s hair while her other hand rubbed the midfielder’s back up and down comfortingly.
“This shoulder is mine…” Tobin whispered out before drifting off to sleep.
Christen let out a soft smile when she heard that. She know that Tobin’s territorial behavior was just because she was afraid that Christen will leave her too. But she didn’t have the courage to tell Tobin that since she was already in love with her, it will be hard for Christen to leave her. Unless Tobin doesn’t need her anymore.
It was 3 months later that her worst fears suddenly come into reality. Tobin met a girl in Portland and they were madly in love. Tobin didn’t tell her. Julie did when she bumped into the pair during her visits in Portland. When they meet in the next National camp, Tobin can’t stop talking about her new girl. Looking at how happy Tobin looked, Christen felt a pang in her heart. Christen listened to Tobin’s ramblings with a force smile on her face. It didn’t take a genius to figure this out. She know it’s time for her to leave Tobin too.