Hallie awoke abruptly, her tan skin caked in a thin layer of sweat, when her phone began to blare the annoying alarm she had set the previous morning. She lazily searched for the device to turn it off, finding it difficult to do in the dark. Once she had silenced it, Hallie rubbed her eyes in an attempt to summon the energy that she would need for her first game today.
Hallie finally got out of bed and made her way to the window to open it. The sweltering Australian heat and the poor ventilation in her room did not mix well. Hallie quickly changed into her uniform, relaced her cleats, and grabbed her bag. Not feeling particularly hungry, she grabbed a banana and jumped into her car, anxious to make it to the game.
Hallie was well over an hour early for warm-ups, but that didn't matter to her. She was the first one to arrive at the field and she was grateful. She craved the feeling that warming up in solitude brought her. There was nobody around to criticize the way she kicked the ball out a little too far when she dribbled, or critique her imperfect left-footed shot. She liked being alone and she needed it more than ever today.
Wilbur Jensen, the scout from University of Sydney, was coming to watch her play today. He had e-mailed her and alerted her that other scouts from around Australia might be present as well. Today was an even more important game than the scrimmage was. At the scrimmage, the scouts were there to scope out potential talent. But they had already seen the talent. Now they were here for her. They wouldn't be scanning the field to see who made the best passes or whose corner kick was the cleanest. Today all eyes would be on Hallie and that was a lot of pressure for her to deal with. She couldn't quite begin to fathom how to even begin.
~*~
Players and coaches began showing up about 45 minutes after Hallie. She told herself not to search the stands for the scouts; she didn't want to psych herself out. Her team began their warm-up, Hallie leading them.
After they finished their warm-up, Hallie approached the referee for the coin toss. Hallie called tails (it landed on heads) and she made her way back to her team. The coach called out starting line up and the whistle blew, signaling to both teams that the game was about to start.
The teams got into position, the opposing team starting with the ball, and anxiously anticipated the shrill ring of the whistle. Finally, the ref blew the whistle. The game had begun.
~*~
Calum woke up with a heavy cloud of guilt surrounding him. He missed Hallie, but it was obvious that they shouldn't be together (although he couldn't really remember why anymore). He unlocked his phone to check the time, realizing that it was hours before he usually woke up on the weekends.
As he clambered up the stairs (his room was in the basement) and into the kitchen, he thought of the last time he'd had a real conversation with Hallie. It was during their date at the fair, before things had taken a turn for the worst when Hallie flipped shit about rollercoasters. They'd talked easily, like they'd known each other for years. He recalled her telling him about her game schedule because he said he wanted to go. The girls' first game was today. Calum figured he'd be able to make it since he's woken up so early, but debated if he should.
On one hand, if he went, he could see Hallie (not that he really wanted to). But seeing Hallie could also be awkward, especially since he was the person at fault. After many minutes of contemplation, he told himself that he would go, but only to see the game (not Hallie), but even he knew that he was only lying to himself.
~*~
Calum arrived a few minutes prior to the start of the game. He made his way through the sea of people in the stands, searching for a spot to sit. He eventually found a spot in the very back, and sat down, anxiously awaiting for the whistle to blow.
