hard feelings - an erling haaland story

fifteen

It had been two weeks since she saw Erling, she still avoided his calls and texts, wanting to block him on all social media and his number but couldn't bring herself to. If she were to do it, it would mean accepting that their friendship was over, that Erling's chapter in her life had officially ended. She had struggled to tune him out, everywhere she turned or whenever she opened social media, his face would appear praising his performance. She wondered how their lives could've been so different, how he was able to move on past their relationship, when he was still the centre of her life. Sure, it was a childhood friendship, it wasn't a massive deal but she couldn't help but long for that closeness with him again. In Amelia's mind, he had always been the only person to truly be there for her. She loved her father but he didn't understand what it was like to be a thirteen year old in that day and time but Erling did. She had spent more time knowing him than not. She had spent most of her life, from birth, knowing Erling Haaland, seeing into his life, watching him grow up, like he had done her.

Chloe had tried to fight her friend's side by glaring at the City players whenever they came into the bar. Guaranteed that it wasn't a productive way of fighting Amelia's corner but it was the thought that counted. Amelia appreciated everything that Chloe had been doing, the thought alone would make her laugh.

Everyone tiptoed around her, scared that she was fragile enough that any slight movement would break her. Amelia didn't understand this behaviour from her friends, sure, she was upset about the situation but she was more angry. Angry that she let him play with her emotions like that, that she let him string her along. She found herself in the gym again, channeling all her anger at him into the equipment she was using, this time she made sure to bring her headphones to prevent Jack scaring her again. Images of the blond Norwegian filled her mind, only pushing her to add more weight onto the equipment, with every single rep the image of him would disappear.

"Ya alreet there, me darlin'?" a voice spoke. Chloe. "Been here for hours. Don't usually last more than 30 minutes."

"I'm all good, Chlo. Just needed to burn some stress out." Amelia wasn't lying. She had felt tense since she drunkenly approached him even though her mind felt clearer after venting to him how she had been feeling. She kept one thing to herself, thankful her drunken self got the memo, something that she wasn't ready to share with anyone, not even Chloe. She loved Chloe with her whole heart, she had known her since she moved to the city again after deciding to up and leave Australia. Chloe had been there for her throughout everything but this time, she knew she wouldn't be able to find solace in her best friend. "I think I'm going to go to Italy, stay with my nonna a while. Get a change of scenery. Away from Manchester."

"Are you allowed to?"

Amelia shrugged. "I guess so, I'm not going on holiday. I'm going to go on a little Italian retreat, turn my phone off for the week and detox from everything. I miss the old me, the me before I bumped into Erling Haaland. I need to find her again."

"You know you can't escape him, Mils. No matter where you go, whether its a small Italian town on the Amalfi coast or blimmin New York city. He'll be there. He's a big name now! Open Twitter, insta, even Facebook and he's gonna come up. Especially when you follow all of his family on everything. He's not just your best friend from when you were younger. He's Erling Haaland, Man City striker, twelve goals in seven matches. You can't keep running away from your troubles, me love."

Yet, three days later, she found herself in a village nearby Cetara, in her grandmother's quaint seaside flat. Her phone turned off, no one could contact her unless they knew her Nonna's number. She found herself watching the sunrise in the morning, going for walks along the promenade. In the moment, she felt free. Free from all the thoughts that encapsulated Erling. Amelia became a regular face in the local coffee shop, often coming in and making small talk with the owner before going on her merry way. The bright skies and the warm weather allowed for her to feel free and for the first time in months, she felt safe, she was able to sleep through the night without disturbances.

In her usual routine, she found herself sitting at the small coffee shop, facing the sea front. It was a picturesque, with blue skies and seas. She often found herself tempted to walk into the sea and let the currents take her away. She often wondered why she chose to stay in Manchester when areas like this existed? The grey skies and dull buildings seemed so dreary, she knew returning to the city she made her home would be bittersweet, wanting to stay in the village forever, if she had no work commitments. She kept her gaze on the view ahead of herself, despite seeing movement in the corner of her eyes. A figure taking the empty seat at her side. It became common for people to take the empty seats and make small chatter with her the more she frequented the place, wondering if she was a mere tourist who had wandered off too far from the port nearby. Keeping her eyes on the sea in front of her, she broke the silence between her and the stranger. " È bellissimo, no?"

"Yes, just like you." The voice sounded familiar, she thought she was undergoing psychosis, imagining things that wasn't there. Too frightened to look, she kept staring ahead, not responding to the stranger next to her. It couldn't have been him, it couldn't have been the sole reason as to why she was in the tiny seaside village in the first place. She questioned how he found her, very little knew about her plans, with her mother and Chloe being the only people she had told, not even Jack, who, according to Chloe, had been knocking on their door asking as to where the Australian was. "I'm sorry, Mia. I did not mean those words. I wanted you to stay."

Silence. She didn't respond but her suspicions were confirmed. It was him. He was in the village she ran to thinking he wouldn't be able to find her. Yet, there he was. She should've known that Erling would eventually locate her there, with some holidays being spent there with his family. "Why do you run away from your problems, Mia?"

Amelia turned to face him. The sun shining on him, his hair looked golden against the light. He looked almost ethereal with the light on his side. She felt blinded by the brightness, insecure about how she looked in front of him, with her cropped vest and gym shorts on, hair thrown up in a bun that matched his on match day. Amelia sighed, looking away from him once again. "Because, Erling, I used to run to you, so where do I run when I don't have you? Who do I run to when you become the problem?"