Chapter 1
Natalie Scatorccio didn't have it easy for the first 15 years of her life. She had an abusive alcoholic father and a mother that stood by and did nothing to stop it. She also may have developed her own drinking problem to deal with things going on at home. There were two main things that kept her going though, soccer and her cousin, Nathan.
Natalie and Nathan were inseparable and may as well have been twins since they looked so much alike. They never kept secrets from each other, or if they did it was never for long. Nathan found out what was really going on in Natalie's house when she showed up to meet him with a black eye and busted lip that she couldn't hide. That same day she also came clean about her drinking. Nathan hugged her and suggested that she come stay with him and his parents since he knew they wouldn’t have an issue with it. Since that day, Natalie has been sober and living with Nathan and his folks which brings us to today.
Natalie had just shot a soccer ball through the goal on the beach her and some friends were playing at while her boyfriend, Bobby, ran after it.
“She shoots, she scores! Goal!” He grins at her while holding the ball.
“Alright come on, give it.” Natalie kept reaching for the ball before being lifted up over Bobby’s shoulders. “Quit it, put me down!” She laughed while slapping his back.
“Ok.” He laughs before spinning her around to the ground where he lands on top of her. Natalie reaches up to kiss him. “You know, you’re getting pretty good at that” he smiles at her.
“Yeah you are too, when we first started dating you couldn’t kiss at all.” She smirks at him.
Bobby shook his head with a grin still on his face “I’m talking about soccer, you’re probably better than half of the guys on the team.”
“Really?” Natalie asks softly.
“Absolutely babe.” Bobby grins before a confused look crosses his face. “Wait, I really couldn’t kiss?” Natalie laughs before kissing him to silence him.
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Natalie is making her way down to the soccer field with her friends Tai and Van for practice.
“I’m telling you guys the show is crazy. It has soccer, gays, and cannibalism. It’s like the perfect show!” Van waves their hands around excitedly as they’re talking. “You gotta watch it!”
“I don’t know, doesn’t really seem like my kinda thing.” Shrugs Natalie.
“Boooo Nat, what about you babe?” Van turns to Tai almost pleading as they arrive on the field.
“Sure babe” Tai agree distractedly “Hey why are there lacrosse players on our field right now?”
“They cut our team” Shauna, another teammate, comes up with a clipboard in hand. “There weren’t enough girls signed up.”
“This is bullshit, they can’t just cut us.” Natalie frowns before walking over to where the boys’ soccer team was practicing with the rest of the team following.
The team walks right up to the coach where he’s observing how practice is going. “Hey ladies, sorry to hear about your team. If there’s anything I can do, just let me know.” He looks at all of them briefly before turning back to practice as if the conversation was over.
“Actually,” Natalie starts “there is a way you can help us. We wanna try out for the boys’ team.”
The coach laughs before looking at Natalie’s face. “Oh, you’re serious.” He straightens up and looks at the rest of the girls’ team. “Look I can’t do that. We have two weeks before school starts and then we have our game against Wiskayok, a rivalry game. We HAVE to win.”
“Okay and we can help you win.” Natalie says and the rest of the girls agree when a couple of the boys from the team come running up, one being Bobby.
“Hey babe” Bobby grins at Natalie before turning towards his coach “What’s going on?”
“The girls here wanna join the boys team” Coach smirks while the boys laugh. Natalie ignores them and gives a hopeful smile towards Bobby who laughs with the boys. “Alright, alright guys. Look girls you’re all great players but you ladies just aren’t as fast as the boys.” The coach starts and Natalie starts frowning.
“What- “ Natalie gets cut off by the coach.
“You also aren’t as strong or as athletic. It’s just scientific facts.” Coach shrugs while the guys start smirking.
“Bobby what do you think, you’re the team captain.” Natalie looks to Bobby who just shrugs and smirks at her.
“Coach said it pretty well babe.” Natalie stared at him in disbelief.
“What the hell Bobby, you literally said I was better than half of the guys on the team just the other day!” The guys around Bobby start questioning him or give him looks.
“I never said that.” Bobby reassures the guys around him. Natalie just stares at him again before she shakes her head.
“You know what, fuck this and fuck you. We’re done.” She walks off the field with Bobby calling after her but she ignores him.
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Natalie was walking up the driveway to her aunt’s house with music blasting in her ears after the disaster on the field earlier. She couldn’t wait to just go and faceplant into her bed and forget everything that happened today. She would’ve been able to do so sooner if the hand on her shoulder didn’t stop her and spin her around.
“Oh ew, it’s you.” Allie sneered. “I thought you were Nathan, you two look so much alike from behind.”
Natalie rolls her eyes before putting on a fake smile “Gee nice to see you too, Allie. What’re you doing here anyways? Didn’t Nathan break up with you?”
“We’re not broken up until I say we’re broken up.” Allie rolls her eyes now. “Anyway, when you see your cousin tell him to call me.” Then she struts away before Natalie can really reply.
“Whatever” Natalie murmurs before walking into the house finally. Her aunt Lisa is there to greet her.
“Hi honey, how was practice?” Lisa asks and Nat attempts to walk past her to the stairs.
“Didn’t happen, the team was cut.” She was cut off by Lisa blocking her path.
“Oh that’s too bad honey, but I do have a surprise for you!” Natalie groans internally because surprises from Lisa usually have something to do with debutant things. “Close your eyes!” Lisa covers Natalie’s eyes with her hands and guides her to the living room.
“Ok, open them.” Natalie’s eyes widen at the sight of a bunch of frilly dresses that range from pastel pink to white. “Aren’t these just so darling?”
“Aunt Lisa, I appreciate the thought but I’m really not interested in being a debutant.” Natalie tried letting her aunt down gently, especially after everything she’s done for her in the past couple of years. Ever since her aunt and uncle Mike divorced, her aunt has been adamant on trying to get Natalie to become a debutant.
Lisa set down the dress she was holding with a small frown “I know honey, I was hoping that seeing the dresses might change your mind.” After seeing Natalie’s face, she sighs. “I guess I’ll just put these away for another time.” Natalie just gave her a small smile and nod before heading upstairs to Nathan’s room.
“Hey Nathan.” Natalie greeted before plopping onto his bed.
“Hey,” he greeted back as he was shoving clothes into a bag.
“You know Allie was looking for you. I don’t understand why you dated her anyways.” Natalie was looking at him while he continued packing. “Alright what gives, you running away or something?”
“Nope, my dear cousin, my band got a slot at music festival in London and I’ll be gone for a couple of weeks.” He grinned while Natalie’s eyebrows rose to her hairline.
“Wait London as in London, England?”
“That’s the one.” He grinned before throwing his bag out of the open window of his room. “Dad thinks I’m staying with mom for 2 weeks and mom thinks I’m staying with dad for 2 weeks so it works out.”
“Cool, cool, how about the part where you’re starting at Wiskayok, the new school you have to go to because you got kicked out of Cornwall for skipping?” Natalie looked at him with her arms crossed.
“Yeah about that, I was hoping that you would cover for me and call the school, make up something that sounds like it would last for two weeks.” Nathan pleads.
Natalie sighs because she knows that if this was she would do the same if it were soccer, plus she feels like she owes him for helping her out these past couple of years. “Fine, just make sure you’re back in 2 weeks ya goof.” She smiles at him before getting up to give him a hug.
“Thank you, you’re the best!” He hugs her back tight before he lowers his guitar out of the window with a rope he magically pulled from somewhere. “Alright, I’ll see ya!” He grins before climbing out of the window.
“See ya!” Natalie shouts before Lisa comes in the room holding a debutant dress from earlier.
“Were you just talking to your cousin?” Lisa asks and Natalie nods.
“Yup, was just on FaceTime with him and uncle Mike, you just missed them.” Natalie shrugs.
“Oh. Well picture this we’re at the country club right and they call you up and you’re wearing this!” Lisa holds up the dress in her hands with a hopeful smile.
“Sorry Aunt Lisa the answer is still no.” Natalie gets up from the bed finally.
Lisa lets out a sigh before murmuring “sometimes I just think you might as well be your cousin” and walking away.
Natalie, who was looking at a picture of her and Nathan hung up on the mirror in Nathan’s room suddenly got an idea. If she looked so much like her cousin, she could just become her cousin.