LOST ON YOU

27

Kai's POV:

The day after winning the FA Cup should be a celebration or at least a rest day, right? Well, not for me. We have to be at St. George's Park at 9am for the England camp. Just fantastic, if you ask me.

To make matters worse, today is also the day we announce my departure from the club, and I have to write something for the fans. As we arrive with Marcus, cameras are already filming us. The guy behind the camera smiles and we fist bump him.

"The champions are here!" he announces.

"Definitely," Marcus laughs, and we walk into the facility.

Upon arrival, we received our keycards at the front desk. It's always the same routine - I get room 107, and Marcus gets 108. We walked to our rooms, knowing the drill.

We agreed to meet before the light gym session at 11am. It's only for those of us who played the full 90 minutes yesterday - me, Marcus, Phil, John, and Kyle. The others, who were subbed, will have a light session on the pitch.

I dropped my bag in the corner of the room and flopped onto the bed, reaching for my phone. Opening the notes app, I started typing and deleting. I have no idea what message I want to leave for everyone...

~

We met up and made our way to the gym, which thankfully was in the same building. I had my England shirt and shorts on, but I felt like a mess.

As we walked, I still had my phone in my hand, trying to write something, but nothing came to mind.

"Mate, drop the phone already, we have recovery to do!" Marcus urged, breaking my concentration.

I sighed, "Just give me a minute, will you?"

He put an arm around me. "What's bothering you so much?"

"Today's the day of the announcement, I have to post something..." I sighed once more as we reached the gym door, with Marcus's arm still around me.

As Marcus swung the door open, we froze at the sight before us. It was the Lionesses. "Are we in the wrong place?" Marcus questioned.

"No, come here assholes!" John's voice echoed from the other side of the gym.

The space wasn't even that big, so the situation felt awkward. I noticed some of the girls glaring at me, especially Leah's friends. Even Beth, who usually had a big grin, was now shooting daggers my way.

Marcus pulled me with him. "It's today? That's mad!" he almost shouted.

I nodded, following Marcus towards the group of lads who seemed to have stumbled upon the gym's equipment. Behind them, a few girls were pedaling away on stationary bikes, and on the other side, Leah's friend group was clustered together, shooting us curious glances.

Marcus shot me a knowing look, but I pretended not to notice as we joined the others. While Marcus grabbed a foam roller, I found a spot to sit and leaned back against a nearby machine.

Phil grabbed a ball and called out, "Let's do some juggling!"

I dropped my phone and joined in, forming a circle with the lads as we began passing the ball between us. I could feel the eyes of the girls on us, but I focused on the rhythm of the game, trying to ignore the tension in the air.