& she'll always be inevitable

chapter five

hope looks stunning. she always does no matter the situation. the lighting is terrible, her hair is thrown into a messy bun, she isn't wearing any makeup, and her sweatpants don't match her t-shirt, but it doesn't stop kelley from gawking whenever she has a chance. she sits cross legged in becky's bed while hope sits in her own. the distance is good. it gives them the opportunity to just talk and sort themselves out. hopefully go back to normal, even if it isn't exactly what kelley wants.
"we could have won today," hope sighs, swirling the champagne in her glass as if it's wine. it's warm and bubbly as it trickles down her throat. "that fucking header. i saw it, i just couldn't get to it on time."
"at least you got minutes." kelley sips her champagne and let's it sit in her mouth for a while before swallowing it. it's the nature of the game and she knows that, but it's canada, and she loves to play canada.
"maybe you were the magic on the pitch we needed."
kelley scoffs quietly. "im not magic."
"you are though." hope straightens out her legs and adjusts her t-shirt so that it covers her midriff, which kelley had been coyly staring at. "sometimes iced distracted in net when you're in front of me."
"bullshit."
hope's face reddens like that was the lamest things she's ever said and then just shrugs. "take that however you want."
kelley doesn't respond. she looks at hope over the top of her glass as she takes another sip. their gazes meet for just a second and kelley feels her body go warm.
it's farfetched, but she briefly entertains the idea that maybe hope is doing this on purpose; the drinking and weird pseudo- flirting; because maybe she does want kelley again and this is the only way she knows how. she's quick to realize how naïve she's being, though. they way that hope might want her is vastly different from the way she wants hope.
for kelley, it's about the flowers and handholding; the good morning texts and the good night facetimes; all the little things. she knows hope better than anyone (or at least she did) and hope just wants the now and the instant gratification. it's how she is about most things in life. except for her career, which she firmly believes in earning.
besides, emotionally, hope is a bit of a basket case. she could never give her the things she really wants. they may be cut from the same cloth, but somewhere in there, the fibers just don't completely match up.