You can't Outrun the Truth

Football first, Coffee second

I was subbed on during the final twenty minutes against Sweden. We had a 2-0 lead after Lindsey scored early on and there was an own goal in the second half. The ball rolled out for a corner and Tobin went over to take it. She was in no rush to put the ball into play in order to waste as much time as possible. Erikson ended up being the one to mark me, probably because of the fact we play each other in the WSL on occasion. Tobin send the ball in and I jumped up and directed the ball to the top left corner of the goal. I landed fully on my left leg and felt something in my knee pop. I ignored my knee and rolled onto my back. Sam slid over to me smiling so I figured I had ended up scoring.

"Great header Firefly!" She shouted, hugging me.

"Thank you Girafe, coming from you means I did something right!" I laugh. The rest of the field players joined our hug and Lindsey helped me up. I tested my leg and felt some pain but it was manageable. We closed out the game with a 3-0 win and Rose tackled me into a hug afterward.

"This is like the Spirit all over again! With you or me scoring every match!" I laugh and hug her back. She puts her arm around my shoulders and I'm thankful for the unintended support as we walk around the pitch shaking hands and talking to fans. When we finally get back to the locker room I sit down and wait for Carli's post-match speech.

"We played a great game, shutting Sweden down is hard and we did it well. Great goals Lindsey and London, and great game in goal Alyssa. We finished top of the group, so let's go into the Round of 16 not conceding." Jill came in next and gave her talk and then we all got changed and showered. I decided I was going to shower at the hotel so I could deal with my knee.

When we got back I immediately went into the bathroom and turned the shower on. i sat down on the toilet and let myself feel the full amount of pain now that the adrenaline had worn off. My knee hurt to the point where I could barely walk. I choked out a sob and threw my top off. There is no way I was going to miss out on the World Cup. I took a shower and changed into shorts and a t-shirt.

"FIRE! ROSE, MAL, LINDS, SONNETT, ABBY, AND I ARE GOING TO GET COFFEE! ARE YOU COMING?" Sam shouted through the door.

"SURE! JUST GIVE ME A SECOND. I wrung out my hair quickly braided it and limped out of the bathroom. I grabbed my purse and sunglasses and followed Sam down to the lobby. We borrowed one of the team cars to drive and Sonnett played her music. Lindsey ordered for everyone since her French was the best and we all sat down at a table by the window.

"London, smile for a picture!" Rose said pointing her camera at me. I posed for the picture and smiled as she took the picture. I saw her typing on her phone for a bit and then my phone vibrated with an Instagram notification that Rose tagged me in something. It was the photo she had taken of me captioned When you have soccer at three but coffee at 6.

"I don't get it," I told her.

"You're wearing a US Soccer shirt, it's funny."

"No one is going to understand that!" i say.

"Yes they will!"

"Let's see shall we?" I posted the same thing on my story and posted a poll asking who understood it.

"Has anyone responded yet?" Lindsey asked a couple of minutes later.

"Maybe, I'll check in a minute." I take another sip of my iced coffee and see Rose grab my phone. She tries to guess my passcode and ends up locking me out of my phone. "Thanks for that Rosie."

"No problem, it's now five minutes by the way. What's your password?"

"Give me my phone back."

When my phone is undisabled again I check the results.

"It's 60% and 40% to yes." I scroll through the replies and see all the girls here replied yes, as well as Jackie and Daan. Jill said no.

"Shocker," Rose says, reading over my shoulder. "Can we post something else on your story?" She asks already getting the camera ready.

"I guess, what?" She hands the phone to Abby, who is sitting across from us with Sam and Lindsey. Mal gives me instructions on how to sit and Rose positions herself. Abby took the photo and handed the phone back. Rose and I looked it over and Rose nodded.

"Like it?"

"What's the point of it?" I ask.

"Make Jill mad," She shrugs.

"That is so mean," I look closer at the photo, you really wouldn't think much about it if you weren't hyper-analyzing it. Rose and I were sitting close and I turned sideways so she was hugging me from behind. My hands rested on her arms and her head was on my shoulder, smiling against my neck. "Let's do it. I'll tag the rest of the girls so only those who look close will notice."

"Clever girl!" I posted the picture and we finished our coffee.

When I stood up from the table I immediately regretted the decision and grabbed onto Mal.

"Everything okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just sore," I lie.

"Ok, you should take an ice bath back at the hotel and stretch some."

"I'll try after dinner. I also just want to sleep," I say.

I ended up taking an ice bath after dinner in the bathroom in our room. Sam was sitting on the floor next to me and we were watching The Office.

"We play Spain next," She says.

"Yep, the winner moves on, the loser is out. High pressure."

"We got it. Spain is good but I think we can beat them."

"Hopefully, I don't like playing these big matches against friends though."

"Right! You know some players on their team. Any information on their striker? Aurelia Vidal?"

"Nope. Leila Ouahabi and Mapi Leon."

"Still helpful information, getting around their defenders will be important."

"That and shutting down Vidal. I should try and get some information out of Leila about her."

"You should. Let's call her!"

"Fine, go get my phone." She brings my phone and I call Leila putting her on speaker.

"Hi, London! Good win against Sweden today!"

"Hi Leila, thank you. You played well against China. A shutout is always good."

"Yes, and Aurelia kept us in!" I look over at Sam at Leila's mention of their striker and she nods confusedly. I think she has a vague idea that we are talking football.

"Yeah, she's great! She seems to work very well with everyone."

"She does, she's a great person and player. It's easy to play with her."

"And her skill! I mean it's amazing," I say edging closer to tips on how Aurelia thinks.

"It is, she spends a lot of time on the pitch. And that is all I am going to say, I know what you are doing."

"I don't know what you are talking about."

"You are trying to find out about her. Not happening. And I see you were making Jill jealous?"

"Maybe."

"Good luck with that, especially if you advance past the Round of 16."

"Thank you. Coffee after the game?"

"Yes."

New character!! Hope everyone enjoyed this! <3