One Hell Of A Life

chapter eleven: lead up.

Em POV:

"Thank you LG for sponsoring this video, remember all you have to do to win this beast of a TV is be following mine and LG's Twitter profiles, and then retweet the message about this giveaway that's on their page now. The winner will be notified a week after the charity match.

"And, don't forget! There's still time to get tickets for our match against YouTube All Stars! The link will be in the top line of the description and the one below it is for donating to the charity. We're nearly at £20,000 which is absolutely insane... we want to see Tobi with a mowhawk!

"If you enjoyed the video, just give that like button a little tickle, it helps me out a lot. Feedback in the comments is always appreciated, subscribe if you're new; have a nice day!"

I had been editing my butt off all day. The video needed to be out before Saturday.

Before the match.

And, finally, I was finished. I could schedule it for upload in the morning, and get some goddamn sleep.

Oh, and I did find a sponsor. I went to my local salon and got purple box braids done - extra long and extra bright. LG's logo is obviously purple - hence the colour choice.

-

Friday. The day before game day. And holy cow was I feeling the nerves. I'd even dragged out my old Off-White hoodie - which had been a gift from Dad to JJ, then handed down from JJ to Deji, and now from Deji to me. It's from a good few seasons ago, but to me it'll always be in fashion.

I was planning to take it to the hotel with me, too. We would all be staying overnight at a nearby Premier Inn where our buses would pick us up the next day to escort us to the stadium.

Speaking of which, I needed to pack a suitcase or at least take a bag. One night? Pj's, money, laptop. Spare clothes, a bit of makeup, charger and headphones - and that was me sorted.

Oh, shit, I needed my boots as well.

I opened my closet, only to be greeted by what seemed like miles and miles of rows of football boots, from all different kinds of brands: Nike, Under Armour, Puma, Adidas, New Balance; I even had a Yeezy pair. They're crap, by the way.

Rummaging for my trusty copper and green Messi boots, I came across a pair that I hadn't seen for a while. I recognised them, but surely, at a size three, they couldn't be mine. I was a size six, and those boots were pink.

Bleugh. Pink. Hate the colour.

"Holy shit." I gasped, pulling the shoes from underneath the gallons of others that were piled on top.

In my hands were my very first pair of football boots. Proper ones. The first ones that I wore to play in a match at Cheshunt football ground, and the first ones I ever wore to train on, like, actual grass. I mean, as apposed to astro turf. I had mouldies for that.

When I was ten years old, the academy made the decision to move me to the Spurs Under 12 squad as they thought I was performing so well. The first time I wore those boots, my team played the Arsenal Under 12's, because that's when we first started playing matches and going outside on the pitch to train in the summer.

Memories, huh?

-

"OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR YOU TWAT!" Was screamed at the top of Gib's lungs as he more or less battered my door down.
"COMING, PRICK!" I leapt up off the sofa and grabbed my keys and glasses that sat on the side. I scooped up my backpack and shoved my phone in the front pocket.
"You ready?" He asked, a smirk on his face and a glint in his eye.
"Oh, yeah. Absolutely." I beamed.

"Everyone who's going from round here is in Harry's flat." He explained, referring to the people who will be playing. "And Stephen and Will."
"You're kidding." My jaw dropped.
"No, why?" He questioned, puzzled.
"I haven't seen them for absolutely ages, Ali." I breathed.

A massive smile spread across my cheeks as we entered the flat that was full of lads. I looked around the room, ticking my mental check list:

There was Harry, speaking with Lux and Tobi. Near the TV, Manny and Freezy stood. Exiting the kitchen I saw Alfie and Suggy chatting. But flopped out on the sofa, I saw Will Lenney and Stephen Tries. They both abandoned their conversation and looked at me at the same time. Great grins appeared on their faces as I made my way towards them.

I plopped myself down next to Will.
"Hey." I squeaked, almost unable to speak due to the happiness that was filling me up.
"Hi." Stephen leaned round to get a better look at me. "Your hair, fuck me-"
"I'd rather not, Stephen." I replied.
"You witty fucking cock." He said rather seriously.
"Alreet, lads, now let's calm down now, shall we? Jesus Christ, Em-"

I cut Will off by throwing my arms around him. "Why haven't I seen you in so long?" I muttered.
"Bloody no clue." He chuckled.
"Come here, you ginger nonce." I giggled, getting up and hugging Stephen.
"I'd rather not be given that title, if I'm honest." He sighed.
"Well, tough." I jumped. "You're going to have to live with it. It'll be written on your grave and everything." Will laughed at my remark.
"He might as well have it printed on the back of his shirt!" He added.

Now, even Stephen laughed at this one.
"What's on the back of your shirt, Emmy?"
"13, and then at the top it'll be Emilohi." I told him.
"Thirteen?" He raised his eyebrows, horrified. "That's so unlucky."
"Well, I wore it when I was a kid. I think it's my lucky number." I pursed my lips, making my point clear.

"How come you chose it in the first place?" Stephen questioned further.
"M is the thirteenth letter of the alphabet. It's what everyone calls me." I shrugged.
"Smart." Will smacked the back of my head.
"Ouch! Bellend." I slapped his arm.
"Cheers, love." He smiled sarcastically.

"YO!" Freezy called up. "Are we gunna get going, or what?"

Butterflies suddenly filled up my insides, making my stomach feel fuzzy and my head feel wobbly with happiness. You know when you feel so incredibly happy and exited and nervous that you could almost explode?

That was me in that moment.

a/n:

words can't explain how happy i am with the support and love that this book is getting. i cannot thank you enough.

even just the numbers of reads that i can see on each chapter give me an idea of what i need to do more of to improve. and i know that to many big profiles out there that almost 700 reads on a book with fourteen proper chapters/parts is mad to me.

thank you so much.

lee x