hard feelings - an erling haaland story

twenty

Despite the pouring rain, the media day went ahead as planned, though he would've rathered been at home in the warmth than filming videos for social media on soggy astroturf with fine rain that could soak you through. A grumble from behind him caught his attention. It was the man he had been dying to see. Jack. His hair was drenched, rainwater dripping down his face. Erling let out a small laugh at the current state of his teammate.

"You alright, bro?" Jack greeted, as he ran his fingers through his wet hair. "Not rating this weather, dunno about you."

Erling nodded his head in agreement. "I would rather be at home." He paused briefly, Jack raising his eyebrow at the silence. "Could you have picked a darker restaurant for me to take Mia to?"

Jack began to laugh as soon as the blond stared blankly at him. "You asked what she liked, I said Chinese and gave you some suggestions. I never said you should take her there."

The Norwegian rolled his eyes, thinking of a witty response before being interrupted by the media director calling them over. With a frown plastered on his face, Jack trod his way over to the man, turning around to check if Erling was following him, knowing that their conversation was far from done. Afterall, Jack hadn't teased the blond.

Erling grew frustrated with every disruption from Jack, who when his teammate was asked about pre-match rituals would interrupt with stupid responses about Mia, causing the whole process to be longer than it needed to be. With every passing minute, the rain grew heavier and his motivation began to fade. He craved nothing more than the warmth of his bed.

"You should come round tonight, bro, Kev and Phil are coming." Jack smiled, whilst changing out of his soggy training kit. "Won't be dark in my flat."

The blond let out a laugh at the joke, appreciating that they were both able to banter with each other, with no awkwardness between them. "I would but I've got to help Mia with her groceries."

"She's got you whipped, my guy."

Erling shrugged, he didn't want to deny something so obvious. He would only be lying to himself and to everyone. It was as though the thoughts and feelings he suppressed for the eight years they were apart had come rushing back, and now he wanted to do everything with her, even the simplest chores. There was no greatest pleasure in life than to just spend time in her presence. Scoring goals, winning matches, progressing through to the next stage of a tournament, none of it was as fulfilling as just being next to the woman, watching her exist as a human.

"Well the invitation still stands and bring Mia with you. I don't think Phil's seen her in awhile."

He pushed the shopping trolley as the people they passed eyed him up, occasionally hearing his name chanted by some of the other shoppers. He greeted them with a smile or a wave. She simply ignored the interactions, going about her business, wanting to finish her shop as quickly as possible.

She hated doing the mundane things in life, it felt repetitive. Amelia would go to work, go home and then do a shop and repeat it all again. It felt like there was no escape from her dull life but Erling? He changed that, he added a small glimmer to her grey life. She never expected to be reunited with him in this way. Well, she never expected to be apart from him ever, they truly were inseparable. Their parents talking about how they did everything together, even taking their first steps together. From her birth until their early teens, they shared everything together, every milestone, every achievement. Spending time doing mundane tasks for daily living with him was new territory for the both of them.

"E, remind me again why you're doing a shop with me when you could be sat in Jack's flat doing whatever it is you guys do?" Amelia stopped, turning around to face the tall blond.

"I see them every day, I have barely seen you for the past few days." He retorted. "You act like it would've been a difficult decision."

"Shopping is long, E. You could be playing monopoly with them or something, instead of being in a big Tescos with me."

He rolled his eyes at the stubborn woman. Nothing had changed from her youth, she had always been stubborn, wanting to be right at all given times. "Well, Amelia, I'm not. I'm here in a 'big Tescos' with you." He mocked her, causing her to laugh in response.

The rain had began again, heavier and harder than it had been earlier that day. Lightning ruptured throughout the sky as the pair sprinted through the pouring rain with the woman's groceries in their hands. He couldn't help but stare at her as they both loaded his car. Ever since Jack had told him about what she had said out of anger about how she had gotten the ick from how he sat in her car, Erling had made sure to be the one driving around to avoid that situation from happening. The pouring rain began to soak the both of them through, he couldn't help but to stare at her, noting how her hair, that had been previously straightened, began to coil, or how her glasses began to fog over as the cold raindrops began to mix with her body warmth.

"Are we going to be cliche and kiss in the rain?" She joked as she looked up at him, their eyes meeting. He could see his own reflection in her dilated pupils. A metaphor of her feelings for him. "Well, E, that was a hint."

He smiled at her, pushing the hair that had fallen on her face aside tucking it behind her ear. "I would but you have your glasses on and you made it very clear not to even attempt going near your face when you wear them."

With a roll of her eyes, she pushed her glasses atop her head. "What's your excuse now?"

He shook his head. "Nothing."

Erling watched as Amelia got up on her tiptoes. He chuckled slightly, the action still not enough to close the gap between them. Deciding to not tease the woman further or be caught out in the rain for much longer, he bent down to meet her lips with his. The rain making what usually was a pleasant and enjoyable moment into something cold and uncomfortable. He didn't want to pull away but the heavy rain was making it difficult for the brunette to breathe.

Amelia laughed as soon as they pulled apart, wiping the rain away from her eyes. She attempted to wipe her glasses dry but had no luck due to how wet her clothes had been. "I don't know why they make that out to be so romantic in films, that was unpleasant. Also, still think you're too tall for me, might need a step ladder, save your back."

Laughter filled the room as Erling walked in wearing shorts that were most definitely too short for him. He picked up the closest thing to him and threw it at Jack, who had been sat there bellowing at the sight. Erling's head shot to look at the woman next to him frowning at the smile on her face. "This is your fault."

"E, it was either those shorts or some stretchy trackie bottoms that would've made you look like you were caught in a flood." This comment only made the three other men laugh even harder.

He appreciated his company, he had his childhood best friend and was surrounded by some of his teammates. He never imagined their paths would ever cross in this sense but he liked how Amelia seamlessly got along with them, how she was able to bounce off their humour. Although, he couldn't help but feel a slight pang of jealousy as he watched Jack scoop Amelia under his arm, the girl getting comfy at his side as the film began playing.

He sat at the other end of the same sofa, thinking that doing so would encourage her to move over to him. However, he had thought wrong. He cleared his throat, trying to signal to her that he wanted to be the one that she cuddled. A signal that they had used to grab each other's attention since a young age. Her eyes lit up as she heard the sound, crawling over to him, a smile on her face.

Despite the dim light, her eyes were lit up, bright like a full moon in the darkest sky. A look he only saw when she looked at him, a look that had been present since before they could count. "Was Erling Braut Haaland jealous?" She whispered to him. He responded with a nod, unashamed to admit to his jealousy to her.

He got closer to her ear, his breathing made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. "Need I remind you, Mia?" He leaned in closer, thankful that the room was dark, dark enough that the rest of the room would be unable to see the lack of distance between the two of them. "Are you forgetting what Mia means in Italian? There is a reason why only I must call you Mia."