USWNT Oneshots

Hope's Puppy

Carli lloyd was walking back home from training when a realization hit her. Her girlfriend, Hope Solo's birthday was tomorrow, and she hadn't gotten Hope a present. Where am I going to get a present for Hope? She thought. She kept walking until she saw something out of the corner of her eye that made her do a double take. Going back, she saw a storefront filled with crates and kennels. The sign on the door read "Seattle Stray Rescue." Carli remembered Hope telling her about her childhood dog, Charlotte, who had helped her learn to walk. Charlotte had been killed by Hope's "stepdouche," however, and Hope hadn't ever gotten over it. She hadn't had a dog since, but she still loved them. Carli smiled, and walked into the shelter. "May I help you?" the woman at the desk asked. "Yes." Carli said. "I'd like a dog, please." "Come with me." the woman said. She led Carli into a back room. The walls were lined with large, clean, spacious cages, and toys littered the middle of the room. Carli walked along the walls until she came to a cage containing a tiny white husky puppy. "How much is this one?" she asked. "Oh, you don't want her." the woman replied quickly. "She's aggressive. She's bitten ten people." the husky looked up at Carli with big blue eyes, tilted her head, and whined. "Can I at least take her out and spend time with her?" Carli asked. "Fine." the woman replied. She unlocked the husky's cage, and the tiny dog came bounding out. She ran straight to Carli and nuzzled into her hoodie. Carli looked down, and saw that she was wearing Hope's University of Washington sweatshirt. She smiled. "She seems to like me." she said. The woman stared. "How much?" Carli asked again. The woman told her, and Carli paid. The woman put the husky into a small travel crate, which she handed to Carli. Before Carli got home, she stopped by a pet supply store and got a bed, a collar, a leash, a Seattle Reign tag, some toys, and some food and food bowls for the puppy. Then, she went home. Hope was on the couch waiting for her. "Where the hell have you been?!" Hope asked. "I've been waiting for ages! I called James, but he said you'd left hours ago!" "Sorry, babe." Carli said. "I had some errands to do before I came home." she set the crate on Hope's lap. "Happy early birthday, Hope." she said. Hope opened the door, and the husky came running out. "Oh. My. Fucking. God." Hope said. "Is she mine?!" "She's ours, baby." Carli said. The husky put her tiny paws on Hope's shoulders and licked the goalkeeper's nose. Hope had tears of joy in her eyes. "I can't believe you got me a dog, Carli!" she exclaimed. "I know how much you miss Charlotte." Carli replied. "You can name her." "Snowball." Hope said. "Her name is Snowball." "You two are a lot alike, you know." Carli said. "How so?" Hope asked. "Well, people think you both are aggressive." Carli said. "But you're not. You just hadn't met the right people."