Different Opinions
“Wait let me get this right, Alex Morgan called you and asked you to lunch as a “thank you” for the other day?” Kelley asks Tobin as she watches Tobin get ready for lunch.
Two days after the photoshoot with THE Alex Morgan Tobin gets a call from an unknown number and it is none other than THE Alex Morgan asking her to lunch so she can properly thank her. Tobin immediately agrees and surprisingly doesn’t embarrass herself.
“She probably just wants to look at the edited pictures and make sure I didn’t screw anything up.” Tobin says and walks out of her bedroom and into the kitchen to grab her keys and bag.
“Are you gonna show her if she asks?” Kelley says as she grabs and apple from the bowl and takes a massive bite from it and some juice falls from her chin onto the floor.
“Okay, gross Kell. And yes I’m gonna show her, I am no idiot.” Tobin says as she walks to the back door.
“Good luck! Love you!” Kelley says from the refrigerator.
“Please don’t eat all my food again!” Tobin yells back but slams the door shut before Kelley can respond.
“No promises.” Kelley says to no one in particular.
Tobin gets in her car and begins the short journey to the restaurant Alex picked out. Tobin’s brain is going a million miles an hour by the time she parks her car and walks into the restaurant. ‘Don’t be an idiot. Don’t be an idiot.’ Is the chant that is taking place in her brain. She walks up to the friendly looking hostess.
“Hi, I’m looking for Alex Morgan.” Tobin says to the hostess and her eyes go wide at the name.
“Yes of course, right this way.” She says and Tobin follows behind her to the back of the restaurant. Tobin finds Alex sitting at a table in the back room by herself and makes her way to the table. ‘Don’t trip. Don’t trip’ is being muttered under her breath. Luckily she doesn’t trip and makes it to the table safely.
“Hey Tobin, glad you could make it!” Alex says as she gets up to hug Tobin.
Tobin freezes at this and it takes a good two seconds to realize that THE Alex Morgan is hugging her. She finally wraps her arms loosely around the torso of Alex. Tobin feels like she might pass out but what she doesn’t know is Alex feels the same way.
“Yes of course, Ms. Morgan.” Tobin replies as she sets her bag down and takes her seat across from Alex.
“Tobin we talked about this, please call me Alex.” Alex says and Tobin nods her head.
“Right my bad, force of habit. H-How are you?” Tobin asks as she shifts in her chair and takes a big sip of her water.
“I am exhausted but I am good.” Alex says coolly.
“That’s good.” Tobin starts but doesn’t like the way that sounds so she says, “Well, not good that you’re exhausted but good that you’re good.”
“I know what you meant.” Alex says and can’t help but laugh at how nervous Tobin is. “How’ve you been?”
“Y-Yeah good and busy.” Tobin says and before she can say anything else the waiter comes up to the table.
“Hi ladies I’m Mike and I will be taking care of you this afternoon. What can I get you to eat?” He asks and Tobin quickly looks over the menu to find something but before she can order Alex speaks.
“Well Mike, if you knew who I was then you would have already put my order in.” She says very cheekily and Tobin is not sure what to say. Mike is speechless also.
“Get me your supervisor, Mike.” Alex says without looking up from her phone.
Mike walks away with his metaphorical tail between his legs and Tobin’s mouth and eyes are still wide open. ‘Well I guess the bitch is back’ Tobin says to herself.
“What are you going to order Tobin?” Alex asks in the same sweet voice from before she ripped Mike’s balls off with her bare hand. Tobin is scared that she might do the same to her if she answered wrong.
“Um, I-I am not so sure yet. W-What about you?” Tobin slowly stutters out and almost covers her face incase Alex’s harsh words are thrown at her.
“Well, I normally get the blueberry pancakes here but Mike obviously didn’t know that.” Alex says and then proceeds to laugh. Tobin is slightly turned off at this but is willing to give Alex another shot because maybe Alex had a long morning.
“Maybe he is just new and wasn’t aware that you’re a regular?” Tobin says very quickly without looking at Alex’s face. Hopefully Alex doesn’t hit Tobin for this.
“Maybe, but come on Tobin, I’m Alex Morgan. Who doesn’t know who I am?” Alex says and Tobin is 100% turned off at this, so much so that she immediately and discreetly texts Whitney to call her and get her out of lunch.
Alex is completely oblivious to how uncomfortable Tobin is and carries on with a different conversation but before she can say anything Tobin gets a phone call.
“Hey Whit, can this wait, I’m at lunch.” Tobin says and mouths an apology to Alex as she gets up from the table to walk around the room.
Alex notices the way Tobin talks on the phone and how relaxed her voice is. Alex also notices how Tobin is not wearing any shoes and looks under the table to find Tobin’s back flip flops under her chair. She is humored by this and curious at the same time, Tobin is a mystery that she wants to solve. Alex, however, is the exact opposite. Tobin wants nothing to do with her anymore, the rumors were true.
Tobin finishes her call and returns to the table but not with good news.
“Is everything okay?” Alex asks and Tobin says her head from side to side.
“Not exactly, there has been an emergency at work. Someone lost Taylor Swifts edits and I have to get back down there and calm the storm. I had a lovely time and maybe we can have a full meal some other time.” Tobin says cheekily hoping Alex will catch the hint and never talk to her again, but no such luck.
“Absolutely! I’ll call you tomorrow. Good luck calming the storm.” Alex says and Tobin gives her a half smile and darts to the door not looking back.
Alex and Tobin walk away from lunch with different opinions. Tobin never wants to have to be in the same room as Alex ever again and Alex can’t wait to see Tobin again.
Alex gets into her car and heads to the only place that truly feels like home, the soccer park near her house. She has been coming here ever since she bought her house a couple years ago. Sitting in the grass with a soccer ball at her feet she thinks back to lunch and realizes how Tobin’s attitude changed after their waiter left, and then it hits her, Tobin thinks that she’s a bitch.
“Oh crap, look what you did Morgan.” Alex says to herself as she pulls out her phone to compose a text to Tobin.
Alex: Sorry about lunch. That’s not the real me, let me make it up to you?
Alex pushes send and prays for a response from Tobin. She doesn’t get one, at least not then. After waiting for what seemed like hours for Tobin to respond Alex got up and started juggling the ball.
Soccer has always been a stress reliever for Alex. When life got to hard or school got to be too much she would drop everything and play soccer in her backyard. She played so much that she wore a hole in the fence in the back of the yard. Her parents finally bought her a net and then signed her up for club soccer. She took off from there and the rest is history.
Alex wishes it could still be that easy, she is tired of having to do interviews and photoshoots. She just wants to play soccer and not be the face of soccer. She knows her life will never be normal but she would like to at least have the opportunity to go to the grocery store without wearing a disguise.
After playing by herself Alex walks over to her spot on the grass and takes a big swig of water. She stuffs her phone and keys in her pocket and begins to walk home not noticing the unread message from Tobin on her lock screen.