Saving Lotte Sullivan | Collingwood/Carlton

1: Night Shift

July 2018. Thomastown Industrial Precinct.
Lotte Calum Sullivan: 19 years of age.
D.O.B: 29 December 1998

'LOTTE!'

The young warehouse staffer jumped as her eyes snapped open and she turned around, clutching her chest. She looked up at her colleague as she began to wonder what the time was. She'd spent long enough crying herself to sleep again the previous night only to work a full 12 hour shift that day. She'd fallen asleep at the desk where she spent hours of her life fulfilling people's clothing orders.

'What time is it?' She asked, painfully blinking as her vision blurred, the bright overhead lights hurting her eyes.

'10:30. The manager's on his way in, so you'd better hurry up and pack that last order and then bolt' her colleague said. Lotte nodded as she slipped her painful steel boots back on and immediately grabbed her order sheet, racing around the giant warehouse and grabbing multiple things from the shelves and scanning them as she raced back to her station, carefully placing everything inside as she stretched her arms above her head. She was exhausted, and she hated her job.

She grabbed the heavy box as she carried it over to her best work friend's area for taping and processing for delivery, before wrapping her bright fluro-green and black jacket around her body. It was absolutely freezing in the large industrial Thomastown estate.

'Oi, Whitlock!' Lotte shouted, as she caught sight of her friend running through the warehouse up ahead.

'I've gotta catch the end of the game!' Eleanor Whitlock-Moore, better known as Ella, yelled back, as she made a beeline for the tea room. Lotte quickly followed her, making a coffee as her colleague and friend grabbed her laptop out of her locker and set up her phone hotspot, opening the Foxtel app and streaming the remainder of the live AFL match. She'd have to watch the whole thing again later, when she was back home in South Morang.

'Who's playing?' Lotte asked tiredly, as she stood over Ella's chair and looked down at the screen, dunking a biscuit into her hot drink, trying to keep warm. This was the Friday night routine for the two girls. Lotte would often nap at her station when the afternoon shifters left for the day and would then meet up with Ella to watch whatever game was on.

'My boys and your boys. Pull up a seat, Sullivan, honestly' Ella said, as Lotte did what was requested of her, both girls' intense stares locked on the screen.

'Shit. You are thrashing us' Lotte said, raising her eyebrows, a little annoyed. She absolutely despised Collingwood and nothing could make her change her mind.

'Hell yeah we are. SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP, PENDLES HAS THE BALL!' Ella yelled, putting her arms up in the air as she struggled to breathe. One of her favourites - Scott Pendlebury, to be exact - was lining up in front of the big sticks. Lotte rolled her eyes.

'You were the one speaking' she said quietly, taking a sip of her coffee.

'GOAL!' Ella shouted, jumping out of her seat and celebrating as she circled around the tiny tea room table. Lotte sniggered.

'You are a sadist' she said, watching her crazy friend.

'WE'RE INTO THE FINALS, BABY! THANKS GEELONG!' Ella yelled, dramatically grabbing Lotte's hand and making her give her a high five.

'It's only July, I really don't think that's how it works. Hey look, another one of your idiots just got a goal' Lotte said, quickly rewinding the play as the Collingwood player celebrated, Ella running straight to her chair and knocking her down to the ground.

'WHAT! WHO?' She screamed, as she stared at her laptop, almost jumping out of her skin. Lotte clutched her head as she stood up again, dazed.

'I was hit by a truck' she quietly mumbled, quickly blinking.

'It was number 26. 26. Who is that? I know all of our players. I can't think. I cannot look away from the screen, google it for me' Ella ordered, as Lotte rolled her eyes and grabbed her bag and phone out of her locker, quickly loading Collingwood's team list.

'Daicos' she said.

'Oh, of course. Peter's son, Josh' Ella said, nodding as she remembered. Lotte raised her eyebrows and rolled her eyes.

'You just seem absolutely enthused about him' she said sarcastically, as she continued scrolling through her phone, her best friend spamming her photos of footballers she found hot.

'He's no Darcy Moore, Lotte, honestly' Ella said, shushing her as she went back to the game.

'I'm gonna have to get going, I've got to get home before the last bus leaves the Reservoir Station. You can let me know all about how good cough bad cough Collingwood are on the phone tomorrow' Lotte said, swinging her backpack over her shoulder and zipping up her jacket as she put her phone away.

'I can give you a ride, if you want' Ella said, eyes still locked on the screen. 'Reservoir's only five minutes in the wrong direction' she added.

'Just give me a lift to the Keon Park Station and I'll get the train back home' Lotte said, as Ella nodded.

'You're gonna have to wait until we've sang our song though' she said, holding out a finger to silence Lotte.

'And this is why I will get the bus' Lotte said, smiling knowingly. 'Good luck with your Pendlebury, Moore and Daicos though' she added, as she put her coffee cup in the sink and headed for the door.

'Good luck with your not getting killed walking around the ghetto on a Friday night' Ella retorted, as she began to raise out of her seat again, her favourite player holding the hall.

'It's only Reservoir' Lotte said, shrugging.

'Lotte, the words Reservoir and safe will never ever go togeth - DARCY KICKED A GOAL! DARCY KICKED A GOAL!' Ella yelled, jumping up as she reached into her pocket for her Darcy Moore badge.

'See ya Monday' Lotte said, halfway out the door.

'Aren't we catching up at Northland on Sunday?' Ella asked, looking over. Lotte shook her head.

'I've got a thing with Ashlyn, sorry' she said, as the two girls said goodbye again and Lotte left the workplace, walking all the way down to the bus stop as she impatiently waited. It was bone achingly cold and wet. She quickly texted her older brother to let him know what was going on.

'Hey Cal bro, just left work for the night. Your beloved cats are losing to Collingwood :( it's been an exhausting week and I still have my dance performance tomorrow night. I'm nervous as anything but I'll be thinking of you. I love and miss you sooo much Calum and I'll message you again when I need to talk to you. x Lotterina'

She quickly closed the app, unable to feel her fingers from the extreme coldness as she quickly closed off Instagram and went to add Facebook to the list. Her thumb hovered over the Google app as she opened it, looking at the photo of the footballer she'd been forced to look up.

'Daicos. Huh' she mumbled, as she finally closed the app. She knew she'd heard the name somewhere, her dad sprung to mind for some reason. He was an Essendon fan, so that didn't make a whole lot of sense.

Shaking her head and letting it leave her mind, she boarded her bus as she sat as close to the driver as possible, holding her bag away from the aisle as she traveled over to the train station. She was beyond tired and couldn't wait to go home to bed.

It had been a huge week? That was an understatement. It had been an impossibly massive year. Lotte never expected to even make her nineteenth birthday.

But that was the first time she'd ever seen or heard of the Daicos boy, number 26, and she certainly wasn't expecting to even think of him again, unless Ella decided to have a change of heart.