Wild Thing

-29-

Kelley watches around her as the stands begin to fill up with fans supporting both sides. The crowd looks to be equal parts black and gold and green and white with a little purple for her favourite player mixed in. 

The camera and audio guys do a final check to ensure everything is working and in place for the live stream on the college website. 

Soon music starts playing, and Kelley watches as the visiting Bytown Bruins make their way out for warmups with a large cheer from the crowd. The Crusaders take to the field soon afterwards, and the small area gets even louder. 

Kelley watches on as Kasey tapped hand, and all is the last player to emerge from the opening and receives the loudest cheer of all. Her body fills with goosebumps as she smiles at the woman she is now certain has stolen her heart. 

With the warmups complete, there is a short break before the game starts, and the starting lineups are shown on the board, as well as a few highlights and a birthday wish for someone in the crowd. 

Kasey makes her way over and completes her pregame responsibilities as the team's Captain before returning to the sidelines for final instructions. She looks over and smiles at Kelley before jogging on the field for the opening kickoff. 

The game gets underway, and right from the kickoff, the Crusaders take charge of the game. 3 minutes in, Sarah chips the ball past the Bruins keeper to make it 1 - 0 for the home side. The Bruins look flat from the start, and the Crusaders are keen to take advantage of it and their weak defensive coverage so far. They are also aware that their Captain is sitting on 19 goals, and it would be a huge accomplishment for her to hit the 20 goal mark with games still left to play. 

A few minutes later, Kasey plays the give-and-go with Emily and opts to pass back rather than take the shot from a tight angle. Soon, the crowd cheers out as Emily sends their second goal of the match to the netting. 

They begin feeding their Captain and the ball and hoping that she can reach the milestone. Five shots directed towards the goal, and Kasey has still not been able to get on the scoresheet. During a break in play, she looks over towards the sidelines and sees Kelley looking at her and motioning to calm down. She nods in acknowledgement and turns her focus back to the throw-in. 

In the 25th minute of the game, Kasey is finally able to celebrate as she connects on a one-timer from Jen and is able to power it past the diving Bruins keeper just inside the post. 

Kasey celebrates with her teammates before making a quick run over to the sidelines and hugging her girlfriend. The cameraperson zooms in on the moment, and all of those watching the stream see the goal and subsequent celebration and embrace. Kelley finds herself fighting back the tears on the sideline as the tall purple-haired player makes her jog back to the midpoint of the field for the restart. 

As the game restarts, Kelley feels her phone vibrating in her pocket and pulls it out to see who is messaging her. 

New Message

Sheridan: Dry those tears, O'Hara. Tell Kasey congrats on 20 for me. 

O'Hara: How did you know I was here? 

Sheridan: Jen and I were talking, and she mentioned Kasey chasing 20 and the fact that you were there. You should be aware that there are also pics of the two of you online from earlier today. Am I to assume that you are flying back in the am? Do you need a pickup?

O'Hara: Yes, I could do with a pickup in the am. 

Sheridan: Okay, I got ya; message me the time. Also, expect to hear from a few of your girls tonight. Shelina told me that the Pride was planning to watch at the hotel tonight.