through the silence

restless reflections

The next morning, I woke up to the sound of my alarm blaring through the room. I groaned, pulling the blanket over my head, trying to ignore it for just a few more minutes. But with training and a full day ahead, I knew I couldn't afford to stay in bed any longer. With a deep sigh, I pushed myself up and started getting ready, moving through the routine almost on autopilot. After about twenty minutes, I glanced over and noticed that Laura was still fast asleep in the bed next to mine.

I chuckled softly. Laura could sleep through anything.

"Laura," I called out, walking over to her bed and giving her a light shake. "Wake up. We're going to be late."

She mumbled something incoherent, rolling over and burying her face in the pillow.

"Come on," I said, a little louder this time, shaking her shoulder more firmly. "We have to get to breakfast."

Laura finally opened one eye, glaring at me like I was the reason for all the world's problems. "Five more minutes," she groaned.

"Nope, not happening," I said, pulling the blanket off her. "We're already cutting it close."

She sighed dramatically but sat up, rubbing her eyes. "You're too much sometimes," she muttered, but there was a small smile on her face.

"Yeah, yeah, just get up," I teased. "We don't want to be late."

After a rushed getting-ready process, we finally made our way downstairs and arrived at breakfast just in time. Syd, Klara, and Bibi were already seated at a table, waving us over as we walked into the dining hall. Laura and I quickly grabbed some food and joined them.

"Cutting it close, huh?" Bibi teased, raising an eyebrow as we sat down.

"Blame Laura," I said, grinning. "She would've slept until noon if I hadn't woken her up."

Laura rolled her eyes, biting into her croissant. "You act like we're late, but we're right on time."

"Barely," Syd added with a smirk. "Anyway, what do you guys think about the matches coming up? Austria and France aren't going to be easy."

Klara nodded, her expression serious. "Austria's improved a lot. They're solid defensively, and their counter-attacks are dangerous. We'll need to stay sharp."

"France is always tough," Bibi chimed in. "They've got so much individual talent. We'll need to play as a unit, stick to our game plan."

Syd leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms. "I think we'll be fine, as long as we stay focused. We've been training well, and we've got the chemistry."

I nodded, trying to focus on the conversation, but my mind kept drifting. The upcoming matches should've been all I was thinking about, but instead, I couldn't stop replaying everything with Jill. No matter how much I tried to push it aside, it lingered, just beneath the surface.

As we finished breakfast, Sara Doorsoun approached our table with a bright smile. "Hey, guys! After training, some of us are going out for dinner. You want to join?"

We all nodded enthusiastically.

"Count us in," Syd said. "We could use a nice dinner out."

"Perfect. I'll let the others know. See you guys at practice," Sara said before heading off.

Once breakfast was over, we headed back to our room to change for training. I slipped into my training gear, but my mind wasn't on football. I kept thinking about Jill, wondering why I couldn't get her out of my head. No matter how much I told myself I wanted to move on, part of me didn't. Part of me couldn't let go.