Chapter 7
The next couple of weeks are spent getting to know more about one another. They go on multiple dates and talk about everything. Kelley tells Hope about the new things Lily says or what she did the night before. Hope listens, intently, trying to learn more about the blonde-headed girl. One night, Hope decides to pay Kelley a visit at the bar, figuring a Monday wouldn’t be too busy for her. As she walks in and sees the place looking deserted, she knows she was right. She saunters up to the bar and takes a seat in the back corner.
When she finally sees Kelley, she’s instantly concerned. The woman looks exhausted, her lips resting in a frown, and her eyes lacking the excitement they normally have. When she sees Hope, she forces a smile. “Hey. What are you doing here?” Hope frowns, slightly, at the lack of energy coming from the bartender. “I thought I’d come have a drink. You okay?” She asks, slowly, trying to read Kelley’s face. “I’m fine, it’s just…Lily’s been sick the past couple days and she’s had trouble sleeping.” Kelley breathes out, tiredly.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Hope asks. Kelley hadn’t mentioned Lily’s sickness to her. “I’ve just been trying to focus on her. I had to call out of work yesterday because she wouldn’t let me leave. Luckily, she was napping when I left today.” She explains. She wasn’t trying to distance herself from Hope, but sometimes Lily just needs her full attention. Hope nods, in understanding. “Are you okay?” Kelley shrugs, sighing a little bit, as she pours Hope a drink. “I’m just tired.”
“Can I do anything?” Hope knows Kelley’s going to say ‘no’, but she figures it won’t hurt to ask. Kelley locks eyes with her, a sense of vulnerability showing itself through. “Will you just stay here with me until my shift’s over?” Hope knits her eyebrows together, but nods. “Everything okay?” She asks, suspiciously glancing around the building. Kelley nods. “I’m just having a really bad day and it’s so slow. You being here helps.” She answers, pulling a small smile from the goalkeeper.
Kelley smiles at her, appreciatively. “I’m only here until 10. The manager is letting me out early because it’s been so dead.” Hope glances at her phone, noting it’s already 9:30. She watches as Kelley makes her way around the bar area, cleaning and going through the ‘closing’ routine. “I’ve been talking to Lily about you.” The bartender mentions, as she cleans the counter in front of Hope. “You have?” She asks, slightly surprised. Kelley’s made it seem like she wants to keep Hope at a distance from the child. “She obviously remembers you from the night you met, but I want to make sure she knows you’re not just some stranger.”
Hope takes a sip of her drink. She’s happy that Lily will know who she is when she finally does get to see her again. Kelley walks away and busies herself with taking inventory. By the time ten o’clock hits, Kelley’s all but running out the door. She quickly punches out and Hope barely has time to put on her jacket, before following Kelley out of the building. “Thanks for staying with me.” Kelley says, as Hope walks with her to her car. The goalkeeper shrugs it off. “I’m glad I did.”
When they finally make it to Kelley’s car, the bartender smiles up at Hope, sadly. “I really have to get home to her.” She says, regretfully. She’s missed Hope the past few days. The two haven’t had much time together because of Kelley’s busy schedule. Between work and Lily, plus Lily’s sickness, the woman hasn’t had any time to spare for her girlfriend. “I know.” Hope replies, easily. “Get home safely. You know to call if you need anything.” She states. Kelley nods. “I’ll text you when I’m home.” She says, softly, before leaning up to peck Hope on the lips.
The week after Hope visited Kelley at the bar, she has Kelley over to her place, once again, while Carli is out of town. They decide they’re gonna order take out and watch a movie or two, before Kelley heads home and spends the rest of the night with her favorite girl. Everything is going really well when Kelley arrives. They eat their late lunch on the couch and watch a random crime show that Kelley had found on the TV.
“I’m gonna go change.” Hope whispers, after they both finish their food. Kelley nods and watches as the woman walks upstairs. She hesitates for a few seconds, before she finds herself following the brunette. When she gets to Hope’s open bedroom door, she peeks in and makes eye contact with her girlfriend. Hope feels her face get hot, as she realizes she’s clad in only Nike Pros. Kelley walks right up to Hope, while the goalkeeper shoots her questioning glances. Kelley reaches up and pulls Hope down by the back of her neck, before kissing her, hungrily. Hope moans into the rough kiss and allows Kelley to take the lead. The bartender pushes her backwards until Hope falls onto the bed. She’s immediately straddled by the smaller woman and her hands are pinned above her head.
Hope looks up into aroused hazel eyes and tries to catch her breath. “What are we doing?” She whispers. Kelley smirks, before leaning down and kissing her deeply. She moves her lips to Hope’s neck, immediately finding her pulse point, pulling a loud moan from the keeper’s throat. Hope begins to push against Kelley’s hands, which still have her firmly pinned to the bed. “Let me go.” The keeper requests. Kelley ignores her, continuing her path to the base of Hope’s neck. “Kell, let me go.” She says, a little more firmly. Kelley looks up at her and takes her hands away. Hope’s hands fly to Kelley’s neck and she pulls her into a heated kiss, immediately regaining the control.
Hours pass and Hope jolts awake to an empty bed. She looks around the room to find Kelley’s clothes, which were previously scattered around the floor, missing. It’s dark outside now, probably around 10 o’clock, as the moon shines through her bedroom window. “Kell?” She calls, while sitting up in bed. She furrows her brows and stands up, throwing on a t-shirt, before heading downstairs. “Kelley?” She calls again. With no response, she moves to the front door, opening it, slightly, to find that Kelley’s car is gone. She instantly feels dirty. ‘Was she playing me?’ She thinks. ‘Is this all she wanted?’ She can’t help that this is the first place her mind goes to. Hope slams the front door closed and goes to her phone to find that she hasn’t missed any texts from Kelley. She shakes her head and tosses her phone on the couch, making the decision to take a shower and go to sleep for the night.
Hope tosses and turns in her bed all night, her mind racing with thought. ‘Why would Kelley just leave without saying anything?’ She groans and turns to check the time. 7:00 shines, brightly, back at her. She decides to get up for the day, considering she can’t sleep anyway. It isn’t until she’s making herself some toast that she hears a knock at the door, followed by the door opening. “Hope?” Kelley calls. The goalkeeper turns and leans her back against the counter.
“I’m sorry, I forgot my phone. I went to text you and I couldn’t. Then I couldn’t come and get it because Lily was sleeping. I’m so sorry. I didn’t want to wake you, but I had to get home.” She explains, as she walks into the kitchen and approaches Hope. The goalkeeper feels relieved at the explanation and nods her head. “It’s okay.” She responds, simply. Kelley nods and leans up to brush her lips against Hope’s. “Last night was perfect.” She whispers against the keeper’s lips. Hope smiles, before pulling the shorter woman into a deep kiss. Kelley pulls away only a few seconds later. “I have to go. I just came to grab my phone. Lily’s waiting in the car.” Hope perks up at the mention of the child. Kelley notices, but doesn’t mention it. She leans up to give her one more lingering kiss on the lips, before grabbing her phone from the living room and heading out. Hope makes her way to the window and watches as Kelley’s small white car pulls away.
“Is Carli gonna be at your place tonight?” Kelley asks from the other line. It’s been a couple of days since they’ve last seen each other. Kelley’s been so busy with work and Lily that she’s had little to no free time since she picked up her phone from Hope’s house. “Yeah, she gets back at around 4. Why?” Kelley stays silent for a few seconds, before changing her mind. “Never mind. I was gonna see if I could come over. Maybe you’d want to come over my apartment instead?” She asks. Hope hesitates, but smiles at the offer. She’s still never seen the inside of Kelley’s apartment. “I mean, yeah…sure.” She responds. “Where’s Lily gonna be?” She asks, confusedly. Usually the baby sitter watches Lily at Kelley’s apartment.
“Where do you think she’s gonna be?” Kelley asks, amusedly. It’s clear that the importance of her offer flew right over the goalkeeper’s head. “I don’t know. Is Donna taking her somewhere?” Hope asks. Kelley rolls her eyes. “She’s gonna be here, you big idiot.” The goalkeeper can’t even be upset at being called an ‘idiot’. She tries suppressing the grin that’s made its way onto her face. “Oh…Oh. Okay. Yeah.” She stutters. The bartender hears the smile in Hope’s voice and can’t help but wonder why she hadn’t made the offer sooner. “Okay. Well we have dinner at what time, Lil?” She hears Kelley ask. She’s confused for a few seconds, but soon she hears a small voice yell “6 o’clock, Hopey!”. Hope smiles at the nickname that only Lily could get away with calling her. “You told her I’m coming?”
“I told you, I’ve been telling her more about you lately. She knows who you are.” Hope lets out an airy laugh. “You’re sure you’re okay with this?” The goalkeeper asks. Kelley picks up her daughter. “I don’t know. Lily are you okay with Hopey coming over tonight?” She asks. “Ya!!” She shouts, enthusiastically. Hope brings the phone away from her ear, in an attempt to save her ear drums. “Okay, okay. I’ll be there.”
As Hope gets closer to Kelley’s apartment complex, she feels herself becoming increasingly nervous. ‘It’s just a four-year-old.’ She keeps thinking to herself, trying to calm her anxiety. I’m here. She texts Kelley after pulling into a parking spot. She gets out and grabs the bag of take out that she brought for dinner, along with a couple of children’s word searches she thought Lily might like. “You look pretty.” Kelley mentions, as she opens the door for her girlfriend. Hope smiles, mumbling a ‘thanks’, as she walks past her.
“Lily, look who’s here!” Kelley calls out, as they enter the apartment. Hope hears light footsteps quickly making their way towards them. “Hi, Hope.” She says, before running into the living room. Kelley rolls her eyes at the girl, smiling at Hope. “She a little bit hyped up, at the moment.” She chuckles. Hope smiles and pulls Kelley into a hug. “Thanks for letting me come over.” She whispers, softly. Kelley pulls away, slightly, and places a kiss on Hope’s lips. “Thanks for coming.”
The brunette walks into the kitchen and looks around the small apartment. It’s a two-bedroom, with one bathroom for the mother and daughter to share. It’s perfect for Kelley and Lily. Not too small and not too big. She walks around, while Kelley takes the food out of the take-out bag. The living room has two couches enclosing the space and a flat screen sits on the wall. A dark wood coffee table is placed in front of one of the couches, where Lily is currently watching a cartoon.
Kelley eventually gets Lily to calm down enough to sit and eat her meal. “How was school today, Lil?” Kelley asks the preschooler. Lily shrugs and dips a French fry into her ketchup. “We made butterflies.” She answers. Hope looks at Kelley questioningly. “Why don’t you tell Hope about it.” The mother offers. Lily perks up and gives Hope a smile. “We made paper butterflies and we painted them. Mine is yellow and green and black and white and blue, our favorite color.” She rambles, excitedly. Hope raises her eye brows, slightly surprised that the girl remembers her favorite color. “It sounds great. Do you get to bring it home?” Hope asks.
Lily nods, enthusiastically. “We need to wait for them to dry. Maybe if we bring them home tomorrow you can come over and see it!” The child states, looking between Kelley and Hope. The older woman looks at her girlfriend, asking her silently for permission. “We’ll see, Lil.” Kelley answers, giving Hope a reassuring smile. The three of them finish their meal, listening to Lily tell Hope all about pre-school and all of her friends. Alex is her best friend, while Sarah, Maverick, and Michelle are her ‘regular’ friends. “They’re not my best friends, they’re just my regular friends. Alex is my only best friend.” She had explained.
“Hopey, come see my room!” Lily says after dinner. She grabs Hope’s hand with both of hers and tugs her in the direction of her room. Kelley laughs as the goalkeeper sends her a look that says ‘help me’. Kelley takes care of the dishes, while Hope follows Lily. “It’s messy. Mommy hasn’t cleaned it in a long time.” The girl says, as they enter the room. The walls are a deep blue, which Hope assumes was Lily’s choice. She catches sight of the beige color from what she can see of the carpet. Toys are scattered all over the floor, leaving barely enough room to walk. “You know, Lil, you could help your mom and clean your room yourself. That way she doesn’t have to do it.” Hope explains. Lily looks at her, clearly confused.
“But I’m too little to clean.” She says, shrugging her shoulders. Hope crouches down to be at eye-level with the girl. “How about I help you? Let’s clean up all your toys, then maybe we can play a game.” She offers, softly. Lily smiles, clearly intrigued by the idea of playing a game. “Can I choose the game?” Hope almost laughs at the negotiation tactic. “Okay.” She concedes. Hope and Lily make their way around the room, placing the toys in their designated spots. Hope places the items where Lily tells her they belong and with both of them picking up the mess, it doesn’t take very long to finish.
“See? That wasn’t very hard, was it?” Hope asks, hoping to teach the girl that she can clean up after herself, regardless of how ‘little’ she is. Lily shrugs. “It’s easier when Mommy does it.” Hope rolls her eyes, but smiles at the child. “Okay, what game do you want to play?” Lily’s eyes light up and she makes her way over to where her games are located. “How about this one?” She asks, pointing to a board game. Hope nods her head. “Whatever you want.” The two set up the game on the carpeted floor, which is now clear of toys.
“Hopey, are you mommy’s new girlfriend?” Lily blurts out, as Hope moves her piece three spaces. Hope looks at her for a few seconds. “You’ll have to ask your mom about that, Lil.” She replies, refusing to answer the question if Kelley hadn’t talked to the girl about it yet. “I hope you’re mommy’s new girlfriend. I like you way better than the last lady. She was mean.” The blonde mentions. Hope tilts her head. “She was mean?” Lily nods. “She was mean to mommy. Then she left.” Hope sighs, thinking about her next words carefully. “I’d never be mean to your mom.” She reassures. Lily smiles and nods, knowingly. “I know!”
Kelley peeks her head in the small room and a smile instantly makes its way on her face. “I can see your carpet.” She mentions, smiling at her daughter. Lily perks up at the pride in Kelley’s voice. “Hopey helped me.” She stands up and grabs her mom’s hand, pulling her to join them on the carpet. “Who’s winning?” She asks, curiously, looking at the mostly finished game. “Me!” Lily says, happily. Kelley looks at Hope, who feigns disappointment. “I’m not good at board games.” She mutters. Kelley rolls her eyes at the brunette.
The three of them spend their first night together playing games and helping Lily with the word searches that Hope brought for her. They eventually settled down and put on a movie in the living room. Within the first half of the film, Lily had fallen asleep on the couch. “Thanks, for cleaning her room. You didn’t have to do that.” Kelley says, keeping her voice down. Hope shrugs. “It only took us a few minutes.” The bartender rolls her eyes, but doesn’t respond, refocusing her attention on Lily. “I’m gonna bring her to bed. Wait here.” Hope nods and watches as Kelley picks up her daughter and carries her down the short hallway.
Once Kelley returns, the pair settle in the kitchen. “Lily asked me if I’m your ‘new girlfriend’.” The goalkeeper admits. Kelley raises her eyebrows, in surprise. “Did she?” Hope nods. “Then she told me that the ‘last lady was mean’ to you.” She uses her hands to make quotation marks. Kelley sighs, knowing that Lily saw way too much of the downfall of her last failed relationship. “Kayla wasn’t the most considerate. She didn’t care if Lil was around when she would yell. That’s the main reason we broke up.” Hope nods, in understanding.
“I’m sorry she asked about that. What did you tell her?” Kelley asks, curiously. “I told her to talk to you about it.” Hazel eyes meet blue and Hope knows she handled that situation in the right way. “I’ll talk to her. I’ll tell her.” The goalkeeper shrugs. “It’s up to you, Kell. She’s your daughter. If you think she should know then tell her. I’m just glad I finally get to see her.” Kelley smiles. “I want to tell her. She loves you, she’ll be ecstatic.”
“What are you doing this weekend?” Hope asks, after a few seconds of silence. Kelley thinks it over in her head, trying to remember her work schedule. “I work on Saturday until 3, then I’m off for the night and I’m off on Sunday.” She states, tilting her head at Hope, questioningly. “Megan and her girlfriend are coming over to hang out with Carli and me. I was gonna see if you and Lily wanted to come?” She asks, gauging Kelley’s reaction nervously. “You want me to meet Carli, finally? I was beginning to think she’s your imaginary friend.” The bartender jokes, earning a light glare from Hope. “I was trying to save you from being interrogated. If you bring Lil, she might let you off the hook.” She explains with a wink. “We’ll be there.”