Morning Coffee
The vibrating of her phone woke Ashlyn. With her eyes still closed she reached out from under the covers and slapped around the nightstand for her phone. When her hand closed around the cool metal of her iPhone, she peeked at the phone, momentarily blinded by the bright light, and read the message from the group chat displayed on her screen.
Carli: Meeting in the lobby at 8 am for a hike, if anyone is interested. Don’t forget sunscreen!
Ashlyn groaned and locked her phone. Last night the hike has sounded exciting, but as she lay in bed half asleep still, she could feel how sore her body really was.
Alyssa walked out of the bathroom in a pair of joggers and a hoodie. “You going on the hike, Ash?”
“I thought about it,” Ashlyn offered, sleep still evident in her raspy voice. “But I’m still exhausted from training.”
“Aw, that sucks. Well, I’m going to head to Starbucks. Want anything?”
“No thanks. I think I’m gonna try and get some more sleep.” She let out a yawn before plopping her face back into the soft pillows.
Ashlyn woke up at eleven to another text message, but this time she was surprised to see it was from Ali.
Kriegs: Thanks for the aspirin! You’re a lifesaver. My brother would kill me if I showed up to brunch hungover.
She smiled before remembering the fact that Ali had tried to sleep with her the night before. Ali was attractive, she couldn’t deny that, but she also knew that Ali just came out of a four year relationship--a relationship that she was really hurt over. The last thing Ali needed was to have rebound sex with a fellow national team member in the midst of her grief. Ashlyn thought for a few minutes before typing out a response.
Ash: Thought you could use them. Have fun with your brother today :)
Ashlyn got up gathered her things to take a shower, deciding to finally get out of bed. The scalding water helped soothe her aching muscles and she spent at least ten minutes just standing under the steady flow. She ended up finishing her shower just as the hot water began to run out. Ashlyn dressed and decided a coffee run was in order, grabbing a snapback along with her phone and wallet.
When Ashlyn stepped into the Starbucks down the street, the first thing she noticed was how much warmer it was inside the small building. That, and the fact that there was a relatively short line, which she was grateful for (she didn’t mess around when it came to coffee). The young brunette barista who took Ashlyn’s order was funny, earning her a big smile from the blonde keeper who was still trying to wake up fully despite it being closer to noon at this point. Ashlyn took her coffee and sat down at one of the small tables in the corner of the shop before pulling out her phone and checking her news apps.
“Ashlyn?” She looked up to see a smiley Ali Krieger, surprisingly still gorgeous despite the fact she should clearly be hungover after Syd and Pinoe kept feeding her drinks all night.
“I thought you had brunch with your brother?” Ashlyn asked quizzically.
Ali laughed before settling into the seat across from Ashlyn. “I do, it’s just not until one o’clock. And I need my morning coffee to start my day off right.”
“Same,” Ashlyn noted, taking a drink from her own cup.
“Thank you again for the aspirin,” Ali said after a moment of silence. “I took it when I woke up in the middle of the night.”
“You were pretty wasted last night.”
Ali looked mortified for a brief second before her cheeks flooded. “I didn’t embarrass myself, did I?”
Ashlyn debated telling her that they almost slept together, but one look at the defender told her she should spare her the gory details. Instead, she simply shrugged. “You almost fell a few times, but I managed to save you from ruining that pretty face of yours.”
Ali groaned before smiling at Ashlyn again and shaking her head. “You’re always coming to my rescue, Harris.”
“You’re always putting yourself in questionable situations,” Ashlyn challenged with a grin.
Before Ali could respond, her name was called out as her order was placed on the counter. She quickly retrieved her drink, flashing a smile at the barista that called out her name before sitting down at the table again.
“I have about,” Ali glanced down at the watch settled on her wrist. “Ten or so minutes before Kyle comes to pick me up. Mind if I keep you company until then?”
“Of course not.” Ali was quickly becoming one of her best friends on the team, except for Whitney and Tobin, of course. But she was definitely getting up there with the amount of time they spent together.
“Cool. How was last night for you?”
“Long,” Ashlyn groaned before telling Ali how Whitney had convinced her to go out with the group. Ali listened intently and laughed along when appropriate, also recalling Christen shouting about body shots, before admitting that the end of her night was fuzzy and how she hardly remembered getting into her room.
“I’m glad you were there to take care of me. I definitely owe you one.”
She shrugged. “It was no big deal. It gave me an excuse to leave before Whit did.”
“How about a movie night later?” she asked. “I’ll buy a pint of Ben & Jerry’s and we can share it over Netflix.”
Ashlyn thought for a moment before nodding her head. At this rate, half the team would end up owing her ice cream by the end of camp. “Sure. You can text me when you get back and we can hang out.”
“Great,” Ali smiled at her. Just then, her phone chimed. She pulled it out of her pocket and Ashlyn noticed that her face fell just slightly. “Kyle’s here. What’s your favourite flavour?” She asked quickly, typing out a response to Kyle and standing up.
“Americone Dream,” Ashlyn admitted sheepishly.
Ali just laughed before rising from the table and saying her goodbyes. Ashlyn watched through the window as Ali walked out of the glass doors and towards a taller man leaning against a black car and tapping away at the iPhone settled in his hands. She watched as Ali called out to him and he lifted his head before a huge smile found it’s way onto his face and he wrapped his arms around Ali, picking her up and spinning them around. When he set her back on the ground, Ashlyn saw how similar the two looked. She could confuse them as twins, if Ali hadn’t mentioned that Kyle was a year older than her earlier in the week. They had the same smile, for sure. The two spoke for a little while before climbing into the car and leaving.
Ashlyn spent the better part of her day relaxing. She got a massage as a part of recovery, despite it not being an actual recovery day, and she even took a nap after. Ashlyn ordered room service for an early dinner, so she ate her grilled chicken breast and veggies while continuing with the third season of Grey’s Anatomy. Halfway through episode 12, Ashlyn’s phone vibrated next to her and she looked down to see a text from Ali, letting her know that she had made it back to the hotel.
Kriegs: Meet me in my room in five minutes?
Ash: Yea, just let me put away my leftovers.
Ashlyn closed her laptop and readied herself for the movie night. She arrived at Ali’s door a few minutes later and she quietly tapped her knuckles against the dark wood. The door opened quickly and Ashlyn had to remember how to breathe when she saw Ali, dressed in Nike leggings and an oversized sweater, her hair pulled over her right shoulder.
“Come in,” Ali offered, moving to the side to allow Ashlyn access.
The keeper made her way inside and took a seat on the edge of Ali’s bed, similar to the night before when they drunkenly stumbled inside the room. Ali quietly closed the door and went to the desk on the other side of the room to grab her laptop. Sitting next to it is a small paper bag that she also picked up and deposited it on Ashlyn’s lap before setting her laptop on the bed and rifling through her bag for an HDMI cable.
“What’s this?” Ashlyn asked, confused.
“You’re ice cream, silly.” She turned toward the tv to plug in the HDMI cable and Ashlyn can hear her struggling to reach behind it. “I told you I owed you for last night.”
“Right. Need help?”
“I think I got it,” Ali responded, lifting herself onto her toes to reach the slot. She huffed before turning to Ashlyn with a sheepish grin. “Maybe not.”
“Hand it over,” Ashlyn laughed, taking the cord from the defender and easily reaching behind the television to plug it in.
Ali rolled her eyes at the ease in which Ashlyn plugged in the cable. “Whatever. What do you want to watch, Stud?”
Ashlyn quirked an eyebrow at her. “Stud, huh?” Ali shrugged at her, asking again what she wanted to watch. “I don’t really have a preference.”
“Silver Linings Playbook is in my recommended list. Wanna watch that?” She asked, standing to connect her laptop to the television.
“Ugh, yes. I love that movie so much.”
“I haven’t seen it. You can get comfortable on the bed while I set this up.”
Ashlyn pushed off her shoes and climbed onto the bed, propping the pillows up so they could sit against the headboard and tearing off the plastic ring from the top of the Ben & Jerry’s container.
“Jennifer Lawrence is so pretty,” Ali noted after she had settled onto the bed and grabbed the extra spoon for the ice cream.
Ashlyn tried to search Ali’s face in her peripheral to see if she had simply noted that Jennifer Lawrence was attractive or… more.
They were half way through the movie when Ali leaned over and rested her head on Ashlyn's shoulder, the pint of ice cream long forgotten and melted on the nightstand next to them. She had felt Ali shiver next to her, so Ashlyn slung her arm across Ali’s shoulders and pulled the same blanket she had used to cover Ali with the night before over the both of them.
“Thank you,” Ali mumbled, her voice sounding tired.
“Are you tired?”
“No, no. I’m just getting comfortable,” the defender assured her.
Ashlyn nodded and turned her attention back to the movie in front of her. A few minutes later, she felt Ali’s fingers running over her t shirt which caused her heart rate to skyrocket. She was no stranger to girls pulling the same moves on her, but she was definitely new to it coming from a teammate.
“Ali?” she carefully asked but was cut off by Ali’s lips on hers.
“Shh,” Ali whispered, moving so she straddled Ashlyn before kissing her again.
Ashlyn complied and settled her hands on Ali’s hips while the brunette threaded her fingers into the long blonde hair. They kissed for a while, the kisses slowly turning deeper and more desperate as time went on. Ali slid her hands down Ashlyn’s chest, lightly scratching along fabric of her shirt, before dipping her hand below the blonde’s waistband. A sigh fell from Ashlyn’s mouth as Ali began to work circles against Ashlyn’s clit. She could feel her stomach tightening the faster Ali’s fingers moved, her orgasm building up faster than normal.
Ali continued, expletives and her name falling from Ashlyn’s mouth urging her on. After a few more moments, Ashlyn came, her face pressed against Ali’s neck and her hands clutching the brunette’s hips.
“Are you okay?” Ali grinned as soon as Ashlyn pulled back and leaned her head against the headboard.
The keeper nodded her head and opened her eyes to look at Ali. Her eyes were darkened and the grin on her face caused Ashlyn’s stomach to clench again. “What was that for?”
Ali shrugged and bit her lip. “I don’t know. You’re attractive, and I’ve kind of wanted to do that for a while.”
“Do what? Sleep with a woman?”
“You’re not the first woman I’ve slept with.” Ali rolled her eyes.
“College?” Ashlyn asked, confused.
Ali shook her head.
“But you just broke up with Connor.”
“Wow, Ashlyn. Bisexuality exists, y’know. Just because I haven’t openly dated a woman, doesn’t mean I’m not attracted to them.”
“Fair,” Ashlyn replied, holding her hands up in surrender. “Sorry.”
“You should be,” she smiled.
“How can I make it up to you?” Ashlyn asked, having a pretty good idea of what Ali was going to suggest.
“I have a few ideas,” the defender grined, pushing their lips together again.