USWNT Short Stories

"Can't Sleep?"- Tatumn and Ella

"C'mon guys really? Not a single one of you would let me date your theoretical brothers if you had one?" Ella pouts as she tried to find the reason why majority of the girls on the team wouldn't let their brothers date her if they had one. "Am I that bad?!"

"Ella, you're the epitome of a frat girl," Zoe justifies. "Not in a bad way though."

"What part of me gives off frat vibes?" Ella raises an eyebrow and asks around the table, trying to defend herself. "I literally don't talk to anyone who tries and talks to me."

"That's the thing, literally everyone flirts with you," Moe teases.

"That is so not true," The forward shyly objects.

"I smell bullshit," Emily adds in a sing-song voice, finding the whole thing to be amusing.

Ella rolls her eyes, "Oh c'mon that's not my fault though."

Tatumn snickers and receives a playful glare from Ella, followed by the rest of the Red Stars girls to tease her even more. Deep down Tatumn hated Ella's ability to just attract any male or female around her. Tatumn despised the fact that Ella is just so charismatic, charming, and flirtatious. The defender hated it because wants the forward all to herself but she never was hers to begin with.

"So you're acknowledging it though that everyone does flirt with you," Danny wiggles her eyebrows and tries to add more fuel to the fire.

"But you know you're hot so you let it happen 99% of the time," Nikki says it matter-of-factly, taking a swig of her beer.

Ella doesn't sleep around. None of them use apps — at least most of the girls on the team. That's mainly because over half of them are already coupled up and the remaining singles are getting more recognition, to the point where it would feel slightly mortifying to be found by a fan on a dating app around the local area.

Tierna pipes up after shoving a fry in her mouth, "You think if you walked up to any chick in here and tried to get her number, they would say no?"

Ella flushes with the challenge, "I don't even have game so yes, I think they'll say no."

Tatumn is looking at her and Ella is looking back and neither of them are saying anything because they haven't talked about the championship final. Not yet. It's been half a goddamn year and they haven't talked about it yet.

They haven't talked about the fact that at some point Tatumn started sleeping in Ella's bed every night, and at some point Tatumn stopped even bothering to tease her about it. She started texting to ask if anyone was over at her apartment and at some point the defender just packed her toothbrush in Ella's bag because it was easier than carrying it over every night.

They haven't talked about the way no one else mentioned this — not a joke, not a single teasing comment. They haven't talked about the way Ella held Tatumn's hand on the bus ride home from every game, interlacing their fingers with a quiet smile.

It seems like every girl on the Red Stars had their suspicions about the two brunettes liking and having feelings for each other but not a single confirmation came out from the two.

They haven't talked about the fact that after the NWSL Championship in 2021 against the Spirit— after Ella held her in a crushing hug for several beats too long on the field, after Tatumn watched the tears stream down Ella's cheeks after the final whistle and just wishing she can wipe them away for her — when they got back to their hotel room, Tatumn continued to comfort her best friend until she couldn't help but kiss her. She wanted to make Ella feel better and the only thing she thought of doing wasn't using her words.

They haven't talked about the fact that Ella kissed her back, her soft gentle lips that tasted slightly salty from her tears, intertwined with her best friends'. They haven't talked about the fact that the only thing that stopped that kiss was the sound of knocking on their door, as Tatumn rushes to get it and standing out their hotel door was Mal. Her head down and eyes puffy from tears, acting like it wasn't strange at all to see two of her teammates completely tomato red but at the time seemed normal after the results of the devastating final.