Miss America

Chapter 1

         "Here we are." This was already weird for me. I was sitting on the front right side of the car. Driving from the airport in London to this town on the left side of the road.

I walk into my Aunt Nina's house for the first time since I was 12. It looks the same, but with a couple more cats. My Dad hangs out front of the house getting some of my bags from the trunk and on a work related phone call. I offered to help but he knew how restless I was the whole ride here waiting to see my family I so very missed.

"Clifford!" I exclaim seeing my favorite fat cat this house has. He rubs against me purring I hope he's happy to see me. He's got to be like 10 years old at this point, he was less energetic this time I saw him.

I hear a commotion of voices from outside on the patio. I realize my Aunt has company over, due to us being earlier then expected. It was late in the afternoon, they were expecting us after dinner time. I call out to her seeing her outside through the paneling glass doors. "Aunt Nina!"

She pulls me into a swallowing hug. I haven't seen her in so long, She looks really healthy, her face has gotten more defined, she's practically aging backwards.

"You look amazing." She says to me while still in the embrace. She says it loud enough so only I can hear her.

Her short bobbed blonde hair was styled with loose curls that looked perfect. She had on red lipstick like she always does. It suits her really well and makes the smile on her face brighten up with her eyes.

"Uncle Eddy!" He pulls me into a hug lifting me off the ground at the same time. He spins me around in the air like I'm a little kid, my feet and legs dangling in the air. He puts me down safely on the stoned patio beneath us.

"We weren't expecting you this early, it's still noon." Uncle Ed says in his familiar English accent.

"Yeah the uh flight was earlier then we expected." I stammer a little bit at my words because I can feel the gaze from the unfamiliar people besides me as I spoke. "Sorry how rude of me, my names Rocky."

I hold out my hand to the Father who was the closest next to me sitting next to his wife. They're a very classic looking couple, but not an old looking one. They just had on poise clothes. The Mother was wearing a white sundress and a tan woven sunhat, her hands painted with french tips, pearls draped around her neck.

"Nice to meet you Rocky, my names Clyde Lockwood we live next door." He shakes my hand with a very sweet smile. He looked intimidating when I first saw him.

"How are you darling? My names Becky." The Mother holds out her manicured hand for me to take. "This is our daughter Daisy and over there is her brother Grayson."

Daisy was across from me and we quickly say hi to one another from a far. She wasn't in proper clothes like her parents, sporting some track shorts and a t-shirt.

Daisy is pretty, and reminds me of my cousins from Philly. She had fake lashes, but they looked natural not too big, and groomed black hair, her eyebrows were perfectly filled in. She looks like someone I would be friends with.

But Grayson catches my attention when I spot him juggling a soccer ball while everyone else is relaxing. He is muscular, I can tell through the white tank top that has extremely wide arm holes where his ribs can be seen.

I played soccer my whole life, and couldn't wait to come to England to play. That was one of the good things I would get from this year in England. Imagine how good that would look on my College application.

But my Dad and I quickly learned when I enrolled into the new school there was no girls team. He assured me he would fix it and I believe him, he would do anything to make sure I played soccer.

I cried one night in my room over it, alone, in the dark, with deafening silence. Soccer was the only way I've met friends before, I was never involved in anything else. Sure I made friends with classmates here and there, but nothing brings you closer then being on a team with people working together for that goal.

The last two years of highschool I was always with my girls on the soccer field. I didn't have time to do anything else. Soccer completely absorbed any free time I had. But to me soccer was hanging out with my friends, we got to work hard and have fun together.

I was devastated to not be able to play for the school. There was teams for minor leagues around here for girls I could play for but they were all recreational. The schools soccer program is what would train me and prepare me for college ball.

On the schools fucking website that's all they could pride about the school was how good the soccer program was, yet there's only a boys team.

"Grayson come over here and say hello to Rocky, Nina has been talking about her coming here for months." His Mother, Becky says. He stops what he's doing and says hi to me with a wave and friendly smile.

"Sorry Mum tryouts are in 2 days." He apologizes but to his Mom, not me.

"I play soccer too, I was captain in Philly." I state trying to keep conversation with him.

"Oh that reminds me! Rock the coach and principle here wanted me to tell you that tomorrow you have a meeting on the field with the coach. They looked at that highlight video your Dad sent to them of you playing. They want you to go out for the boys' team." Aunt Nina says making me practically jump out of my seat. The last month I thought there was no chance of me playing here made my life a little gloomy. So even at the slightest chance of being able to play made me and my Dad ecstatic.

It may seem like he just cares about soccer, but he cares about other aspects of my life. He always wanted me to do good in school, to get good grades. Other than keeping it together at school and soccer he never really had other expectations for me.

I tune in and out of a conversation the adults are having with my Father about taxes or something boring like that for 20 minutes before I reach a breaking point.

I look at Grayson shuffle the ball through his feet doing footwork around the ball. He looks like all the guys I've dated in the past, frat boy like. Blonde hair short at the sides, longer on the top. He's classically a pretty boy with his pale skin, flushed cheeks. I think his hair is bleached since the roots match his eyebrow color.

Shit I'm staring

"I'm going to unpack my room a little bit." I state practically flying out of my chair. I see Daisy's eyes lock with mine with a smile on her face.

"I already did most of it for you, only a box or two left." My Aunt says, I thank her before walking into the house.

"I'll come help you." Daisy says. We walk into the kitchen and up the stairs before she speaks again. "Thank god you said something I couldn't stand another minute listening to them bitch about taxes."

I chuckle at her comment.

"I know I was about ready to pay the taxes for them." I respond, she looks at me and smiles. Her teeth perfectly lined up and white.

We start unpacking boxes and hanging up decorations that was left to do, Nina already unpacked the majority of my things. My Aunt put some things in here from when she was teen that she had. There was a very pretty looking doll on my book case, a stack of magazines, a radio set, and a couple books she thought I would like. It was sweet of her to do that it makes me feel closer to her. Even though it was a little gesture, I appreciated it.

"So you play football?" Daisy asks. She was hanging up some clothes in the closet while I was trying to figure out my fairy lights.

"Yeah I play forward and sometimes striker. Want to play some music?" I reply to her question.

"Yeah sure. By the way your clothes are so cute, I'm sitting here hanging them up and I'm obsessed with your style."

"Well feel free to come by and borrow them anytime." I smile at her.

Instead of replying to me she stares at me with a grin on her face. I look back at her wondering what was wrong. Was something on my face?

"What?" I furrow my face at her while she just smiles.

"Want to have a sleepover and get drunk tonight?" She finally answers me.

"Why not?" I smile.