#matilda fanfic

[pand1on]

do ants read really small books

Word Count: 1166

Summary Being a superpowered ant unfortunately doesn't mean Matilda is exempt from learning some basic reading and writing skills. Turns out learning like most people do doesn't work so well for her. Sonic helps bring some fun into it.

Matilda was reading a book. Well, she was trying to read a book. 

She sat in lush grass under an old oak tree. Reading inside had been a completely futile effort, and she had hoped that a blue sky instead of a pale ceiling would make her practice a bit easier. 

It didn’t.

The sun was too hot, the air was too still, the world too quiet. 

Most notably, the book that Shadow had given her was painfully boring. Matilda’s eyes kept glazing over and she quickly forgot words she read a moment before, if she could even process them in the first place. Sounding out words was not as helpful as it was supposed to be, many of the sounds didn’t resemble anything she’d heard before, and even the act of translating the image of a word to a sound was a struggle. She found herself staring at the same page for an untold amount of time, as if looking at the words hard enough would imprint them into her mind. Her focus was not on reading, but on how she should be reading. How it should not be this difficult, if she was to believe what everyone told her. 

Reading was not as difficult as writing, which was in turn not nearly as difficult as math. She thought, maybe, that practicing reading would be an easier method of being productive. Maybe it would provide a small victory she could bring home to brag about and use as a bargaining chip to buy herself a break from learning. 

All it really did was frustrate her.

Matilda was so absorbed in how she was not reading that she didn’t notice Sonic skidding to a stop near her. He leaned on the oak tree to look over her shoulder and startled her when he spoke. 

“Whatcha readin’?”

Matilda jumped. She stared at Sonic, trying to formulate an answer. Her eyes drifted down and she felt embarrassed. “I dunno.”

“Must not be very interesting if you don’t know.” 

Frustration bubbled in Matilda’s chest. She slammed her book shut and tossed it in the grass beside her. The book was suddenly an object of hatred, and she did not want to look at it anymore. It felt like a representation of her failure.

Sonic kneeled down to pick it up. He sat in the grass next to Matilda and turned the book over in his hands. 

“Well no wonder,” he said. “This sounds like it sucks!” 

Matilda hugged her knees to her chest. “Yeah. It does.” 

Sonic gave her a knowing look. “Shadow gave this to you didn’t he?”

“Yeah. He said it’s easy, but I don’t know what he’s talking about,” she sighed. “But I’m supposed to learn so…I’m trying to read it. But it’s hard! And it doesn’t make any sense!”

Sonic tapped his chin, thinking. “What’s hard about it?” he asked. 

“You’re good at reading, you won’t get it.”

“Nah,” Sonic said. “I just do it a lot, doesn’t mean I’d pass a test.” 

Matilda lifted her head and gave him a quizzical look. 

“It’s true! I hated reading when I was a kid, and I’ve always been pretty slow at it.”

“Then why do you do it? Seems like it’s the worst,” Matilda said.

“A good story is worth the effort.”

Matilda started picking at blades of grass. She mulled over the sentiment, and found herself unconvinced. So far her experience with reading was nothing but frustration and feeling like she was missing something.

“How about this,” Sonic said. He reached into his quills and pulled out a thick book bound in forest green. “Let me show you my favorite book. I think it might change your mind.” 

Matilda hesitated, but was curious. “What’s it about?” 

“There’s awesome fights in it. And dragons.” Sonic smiled when Matilda’s antennae perked up and her eyes widened. “If you like it, you can use it for reading practice. But forget about all that for now, see if you like the story.” 

“Okay,” Matilda said. “But if it’s boring, I’m never reading again!” 

Sonic laughed. “Alright.” He cleared his throat for some drama and presented the cover of the book. It was a beautiful deep green with gold leaves around the border and a hedgehog holding an elaborate sword below overly fancy lettering. The edges of the cover were frayed and some of the lettering was fading. 

King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. A collection of legends and tales from the land of Camelot.

Sonic had told the truth in saying that he was not a fast reader. He would stutter or reread sentences, much like Matilda found herself doing in her reading practice. Still, she was enraptured. The drama Sonic put into his voice and the excitement of the stories themselves were more than enough to keep her attention. Often Sonic would stand and walk around, he would gesture and lose his place and preface certain sections with an assurance that “now this is the good part”. Matilda found herself doing some of the same. There was no pressure to remain still or quiet, and she felt free to move about and laugh and commentate. 

Some hours passed. By the time Sonic turned the final page, the sky was a dusky orange, and the sun was slowly making its way below the horizon. By the end of the book, Matilda and Sonic found themselves back under the oak tree. Now Matilda was smiling and talking about the stories. She focused on the sword fights of course, jabbing her arm in a mimickry of stabbing a sword as she talked about them. Her sullen attitude from before was completely gone, replaced by a childish excitement much more typical of her. 

Sonic let her talk, listening intently until Matilda was interrupted by the sound of approaching rocket skates. Matilda leapt up at the sound, immediately starting to tell Shadow about the stories she’d just been told before he’d even stopped in front of her. Shadow listened, but looked past Matilda at Sonic, who held up the book. 

Sonic stood and held the book towards Matilda. “Safe to say this might be some fun practice?”

Matilda nodded enthusiastically and took the book in her hands. “I love it!” She hugged it to her chest and leaned slightly forward, dropping her voice. “It’s a lot better than that other one.” 

“Glad to hear it,” Sonic said. “And hey, it’ll still be hard, but at least it’ll be a fun read.”

Matilda looked hesitant. “Um…Could I practice with you sometimes?” 

“Of course kid,” Sonic said. “I’ll make sure I’m more fun than whatever this guy’s doing.” He gestured at Shadow, teasing. 

Shadow rolled his eyes, but did not comment. 

Matilda beamed. “Okay!” 

Goodbyes were exchanged and Matilda scampered off homewards, expecting Shadow to follow.

Although Matilda herself had not read, she had a new excitement for the idea of it, and the prospect of practicing was no longer absolutely sickening.

Sometimes all it takes is swordfights and dragons and room to run around.

[darkmatilda]

𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐬 | 𝐬.𝐫𝐞𝐢𝐝

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: when you were accommodated in such a shabby hotel, the last thing you needed was a power outage. and upon learning about one of your colleagues' fear of the dark, you can't bring yourself to not help him

𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬/𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐰: spencer reid x newbaumember!femalereader, spencer is afraid of the dark and the reader comforts him, they comfort each other tbh, elle&morgan my fav duo, glasses reid obvi.

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬: 4.7k

𝐚/𝐧: these are my official apologies for all the recent stories 🫶🏼 i wanted it to be so much shorter but i just love writing conversations between characters so that's how it turned out. @mggslover i'm so sorry for not adding spencer falling off the bed but i didn't want to ruin that subtle ending :(( maybe next time

"Please, I’m begging you, I’m really begging you—begging in the name of a god I don’t even believe in. Tell me we’ve got the wrong address," Morgan said, squeezing his eyes shut the moment you all crossed the threshold of the motel where you'd been assigned to stay while working on the case in another state.

You noticed Elle’s expression falter as well. From the outside, the place hadn’t looked that bad. Well, perhaps it only seemed that way because the street it was on was so dark you couldn’t make out much of anything. Midnight must have been approaching; the first day of the investigation was officially over.

“We didn’t get it wrong,” Reid declared, stepping inside as the last of you, quickly scanning the interior. “I memorized it perfectly. Besides, there aren’t any other accommodations in the area, so this has to be it.”

“Do you remember that one case,” Elle started, “where the unsub killed women in hotel rooms and decorated the interiors with their intestines?”

You glanced at her, curious—or as curious as you could be under the circumstances. You’d only joined the team fairly recently; this was your third or fourth case at most, and none of them had been quite that… gruesome. Of course, you were well aware cases like that happened. It was only a matter of time before one came your way. Unfortunately.

“This motel totally looks like the kind of place where something like that happens on a daily basis,” Elle continued. “My advice? Don’t look under the beds tonight. Or in the closets, if there even are any.”

“I just hope there’s hot water,” Derek sighed, his voice carrying a tone of resignation. “We once ended up in a place that didn’t have any. I almost handed in my resignation.”

“You deal with gruesome murders every day, but no hot water is too much for you, Princess?” you raised an eyebrow, glancing at him out of the corner of your eye as you made your way toward the reception desk to pick up your room keys. The motel’s walls were yellow—not the cheerful sunflower or sunny kind of yellow, but more like dried-up cat pee yellow.

“He’s got a point, though,” Elle chimed in, taking the key from an elderly woman at the reception desk. “Think about it. You come back after a long, grueling day, from dawn to midnight, just like today. You’re exhausted, barely standing, and you can’t even take a hot shower.”

Morgan pointed at her and nodded in agreement. You shrugged.

“Cold isn’t that bad,” you muttered. Honestly, you hadn’t expected anything luxurious from the place you’d been sent to. It was just a few days, after all.

“Oh, are you one of those people practicing that millionaire morning routine?” Derek teased. “You know—waking up at three, cold shower, steak for breakfast, daily planning, self-help book…”

I just grew up poor, you thought to yourself, but aloud you only let out a short laugh.

“I’d kill to have time to read a book before work. Any book. Not to be yanked out of bed by Hotch at five, like today, and scrambling to get out the door.”

Elle and Morgan exchanged a very brief look, almost secretive. You narrowed your eyes, suspicion suddenly welling up inside you. Before you could ask about it, someone else spoke up.

“He called me at half past six,” Reid said, tilting his head in mild confusion.

Out of the corner of your eye, you noticed the others silencing him with a look.

“Hey, what’s going on?” you stopped in your tracks, demanding an explanation. “He called me half an hour earlier than the rest of you?”

“You live farther away.”

“We’re practically neighbors, Elle Greenaway.”

“I’m about to drop,” Derek suddenly interjected with theatrical exhaustion. A change of subject. A not-so-subtle change of subject. “If I don’t lie down soon, I’ll fall asleep standing up. See you all tomorrow, folks.”

“You’re absolutely right—sleep well.”

With that, he and Elle headed up the stairs to the third floor, where they’d been assigned rooms. You and, as it turned out, Reid were staying on the second floor.

You turned to him slowly, arms crossed over your chest.

You didn’t even need to say anything—your stern gaze alone made it clear you were waiting for an explanation. Reid looked like he was about to throw his hands up in a defensive gesture, clearly regretting that he’d brought up the topic at all.

“Okay,” he sighed nervously. “What I’m about to say is not meant to offend you in any way, not even the slightest…”

“Offend?” you repeated, furrowing your brow. “Jesus Christ, Reid, don’t look at me like that—I’m not about to punch you in the face…”

“It’s just…” he began, a little calmer now. “All of us, including Hotch, I assume, are aware of the fact that, occasionally—just sometimes—you have a slight tendency to…run a bit late to work.”

He looked at you, and a telling silence fell between you.

"Yesterday, you were fourteen and a half minutes late."

"Fifteen minutes doesn't count as being late. And have you heard of a grace period? It's allowed to arrive within that time frame, without any consequences."

"Fine. What about two days ago, twenty-one minutes and seventeen..."

"Metro malfunction. I had no control over that."

"And six days ago, on Tuesday? Twenty-four minutes and..."

"I don’t remember such a situation, because, Mr. Big Brain, not all of us have such a memory. But I assume there was a reason..."

"Alright, fine," Reid interrupted you calmly. "I’m not saying there wasn’t a reason. But still... it happens quite often, and that's a fact. So it’s no surprise that Hotch, when the situation especially calls for it, prefers to call you a little earlier than the rest. Just out of caution."

You sighed, no longer able to argue about it. Maybe he was right; you did sometimes lose track of time in the mornings or fail to wake up to the sound of your alarm, closing your eyes for an extra five minutes... which resulted in small delays. You had never been directly reprimanded for it, so you were unaware that it had become such a big issue. Slightly embarrassed, you pressed your lips together.

"As usual, I guess you're right. And by the way, I’m heading to my room. I had thirty minutes less sleep than all of you, I’m exhausted," you said in a lighter, joking tone. A brief smile crossed Reid’s face. "Good night, wise guy.”

"Good night. And don’t look under the bed."

"Believe me, I wasn’t planning on it!"

With those words, you both disappeared into rooms directly opposite each other. The sounds of doors closing synchronized. You started your usual evening routine, placing your suitcase in the corner of the room. It was really small, narrow, and rectangular. The walls had that same awful color, the light was too bright, causing a headache. So you decided to just turn on the night lamp on the shabby nightstand next to the single bed.

It turned out that the only bathroom was in the hallway. You almost cried; you didn't want to take all your things with you and then come back with them. You remembered that you'd taken a proper shower that morning, so maybe a repeat wasn’t absolutely necessary. You were too sleepy for it, so you just set the alarm for fifteen minutes earlier to do it in the morning. After changing into comfortable clothes, you immediately lay down on the bed. Following Elle’s advice, and then Reid’s too, you didn’t check what might be hiding under it.

You weren’t hiding it, you were a terrible sleeper. Falling asleep in new places usually wasn’t a problem for you, even if it was a place that looked like a dive where someone could stab you in your sleep. But that night, something was bothering you. After giving it some thought, you realized it was Reid’s words.

Of course, it wasn’t that you held it against him. He was just stating facts; he had no intention of offending you, as he assured. And you didn’t even feel offended. More like unpleasantly confronted with a certain fact. You had only been part of the BAU for a short time. Well, just a week ago Derek stopped calling you the new girl. Although on the outside, you came across as very confident, on the inside, you were preoccupied with the team’s opinion of you and what they might think about you. Mainly because they were all older and more experienced.

You were especially worried about the fact that your tardiness and chaos had drawn the boss’s attention. Being on good terms with your superior was incredibly important, in case something ever happened, in case you made a more serious mistake…those small things could influence how the rest of your career would unfold, and the decisions made about you.

But above all, you wanted everyone to like you. Simply like you. So you wouldn’t walk around every day with your heart in your throat, praying for the day to end, constantly overwhelmed by a sense of misfit and loneliness.

You turned to your side, not sure how long you had been lying there, thinking. Suddenly, you realized you had to pee.

With great reluctance and sleepiness, you reached for the bedside lamp to turn it on and go to the bathroom. However, when you tugged at the cord, it... didn’t turn on. The room remained shrouded in darkness. You tried once more, then blindly made your way to the light switch in the room. You pressed it, and nothing.

What was going on, a power outage?

You shook your head in confusion. Whatever was going on, it didn’t change the fact that you had to go to the bathroom. You remembered the flashlight in your jacket pocket, and in the darkness, it took you a while to find it. When you finally had it in your hand, you felt ready to complete the mission. To pee, that is.

The moment you stepped out into the hallway, a light source flared up right before your eyes. You let out a muffled exclamation, partly from surprise, partly from being almost blinded.

“Damn, sorry…” Reid hissed, equally confused, turning his flashlight downward, away from your face.

You rubbed your eyelids, turning off your flashlight. Two light sources were unnecessary.

“Is there no power for you too?” you asked.

Reid nodded. It was only then that you really looked at him—he was wearing very loose pajama pants and...

“Cute,” you clicked your tongue, pointing at his white sweater with a bear wearing glasses. He had them too, worn very low on his nose. He must have put them on absentmindedly, in the dark, right after getting out of bed.

“I got it from Penelope for my birthday,” he said in a tone as if he were giving a statement. His hand briefly touched the fabric, right at the center of the brown bear’s face. “It’s really comfortable and soft. Perfect for sleeping...Anyway, I was heading to the reception to find out what the issue is and whether anything can be done about it. You too?”

"No, I just really need to pee. Do you really want to go there at this hour?" you asked, raising an eyebrow in surprise. "I mean, outages happen, and they'll have to fix it, but it's the middle of the night. We don't really need the lights right now, and if you want to go to the bathroom, you have a flashlight, as I can see."

You kept your gaze on him, realizing that since he noticed the lack of light, he must have been either heading somewhere himself or keeping the light on. Or maybe he had been sleeping with the light on. He did seem a bit tense. One of his hands was still resting on the half-open door, nervously gripping it. The other was pressed tightly to his body, his chest rising in an odd rhythm. Not a quickened pace, like with a panic attack, but more unnatural, like he was trying to control it.

"Are you afraid of the dark?" the question slipped out of you directly. After a moment, you realized it might have been a little too blunt. You had asked it carelessly, suspecting there might be another reason behind his behavior. For some reason, fear of the dark didn’t seem to fit his rational character.

Reid quickly shook his head, firmly denying it.

"No. No, of course not. I was just... reading when the light went out."

Oh, you didn’t even need to be a profiler to see right away that he was lying. You crossed your arms, a little amused by how stubbornly he was denying it.

"You were reading? At this hour? When we’re back to the investigation first thing tomorrow morning?"

He shrugged, shaking his head again.

"I couldn’t sleep."

You sighed. In the end, neither his fear nor his shame were your concern, so you didn’t see the point in interrogating him any further. You signaled that you were dropping the subject, and some expression passed across his face. Gratitude. Gratitude for not pushing the issue or mocking him. You felt a bit offended that he had even thought you might do that.

“If you still plan on going to the reception, wait for me, I’ll go with you. I just need to quickly stop by the bathroom.”

Reid opened his mouth, clearly surprised by your suggestion.

“Well, what?” you replied with a shrug. “I can’t let something eat you on the way. A demonic hand emerging from the darkness…”

“Very funny,” he commented, rolling his eyes. However, the corner of his mouth twitched, and his breathing seemed calmer.

“…The ghost of Richard Ramirez haunting the walls of this hotel. Or some other bloodthirsty maniac.“

"Didn't you really have to pee badly?"

"The team wouldn’t recover from losing you, Reid!" You threw that line over your shoulder as you walked toward the bathroom.

Of course, there was no light there either, so you had to use your flashlight. He was waiting for you, and together, in silence, you headed down the stairs toward the reception. Given how small the motel was, it wasn’t open 24/7. You had to wait a while before someone came to assist you.

“That happens sometimes,” the employee shrugged. “We’re not sure where the problem is exactly, but someone’s supposed to come check it out tomorrow…”

“Can’t anything be done about it now?” Reid asked, a trace of frustration in his voice that he was trying to mask—especially when he glanced at you from the corner of his eye. “Maybe it’s just a simple overload? Where are the fuse boxes…?”

“Reid,” you said gently, placing a hand on his elbow to draw his full attention. He turned his head toward you, surprised by the tone of your voice. You gave the employee a discreet signal that you didn’t have any further questions and he could leave.

“You’re not fixing the electricity in some rundown motel. That would just be… ridiculous.”

“I’m not talking about fixing it,” he clarified quickly, though it was clear he hadn’t let go of the idea. “But in most cases, it’s just a simple short circuit. I could just take a look—”

“—Or you could just sleep in my room.”

The words left your mouth, surprising not only him but also yourself. Yet, it wasn’t as though you regretted them or wanted to take back the offer. On the contrary, the moment you said it out loud, it felt even more fitting. When you were a little kid—like most children, probably—you’d also been afraid of the dark, and running to someone else’s room always helped. Curling up beside someone, just knowing someone was there, made all the difference.

You watched his reaction, the way he shook his head slightly from side to side, a small frown creasing his forehead.

“You’re joking, right?”

“Not at all. Come on.” You grabbed him by the wrist—the hand not holding the flashlight—and pulled him along. He moved hesitantly, but he seemed too caught off guard to plant his feet and stay put.

He stopped only when you reached the door to your room, pulling his hand free from your grasp.

"How do you even imagine this working? There's... there's only one bed in there."

"If that bothers you, grab the mattress and some bedding from your room. You’ll hardly notice the difference—those beds are unbearably uncomfortable anyway."

He lowered the flashlight slightly, letting the surrounding darkness of the hallway creep over his face. It was barely visible now, but the hesitation etched on it was unmistakable. Standing across from him, you held his gaze without saying a word, silently reinforcing the fact that you weren’t joking.

The thought of him struggling to fall asleep for the rest of the night and then suffering through another day made you feel genuinely sorry for him. Besides, even though you hadn’t known each other long, you already considered him a sort of friend. If there was anything you could do to help, you wanted to do it.

"It's no big deal, Spencer," you reassured him one last time, hoping the words would finally sink in. "Really. And if you want... we don't ever have to talk about this again. Tomorrow, or ever."

His chest rose as he drew in a deep breath.

"Th-thank you," he said at last, cautiously, as though he'd packed so many thoughts into the single word that saying it out loud was an effort.

You smiled gently and understandingly. Before stepping into the room, you briefly placed a hand on his arm.

"Oh God, that sweater really is soft..."

He let out a short laugh, perhaps releasing a bit of the embarrassment he’d been holding back. You both disappeared into your respective rooms, and you lay down in bed, waiting for him to show up. Well, the moment dragged on a little too long.

You were almost certain he’d only agreed to your suggestion to get you off his back and had no intention of actually following through. Propping yourself up on one elbow, you debated whether to go to his room and drag him over or just let it go. They say you shouldn’t force help on others. Maybe there was some truth to that.

Shortly after that thought, your door creaked open slowly. You heard it but couldn’t see much—the room was too dark, and he wasn’t using his flashlight. Perhaps he assumed you were already asleep and didn’t want to risk waking you.

Either way, he moved around your bed to lay down a pillow and blanket on the floor, skipping the effort of hauling over an entire mattress. 

"Your back is going to hurt," you remarked softly, your voice adjusting to the rhythm of the night, blending with the surrounding darkness.

You lay on your side, facing the spot where he had set up his makeshift bed. All you could see was the outline of his figure, his hands clasped loosely over his stomach, head resting on the pillow. You even caught the slight shrug of his shoulders in response to your comment.

"Actually, sleeping on the floor can have health benefits. It helps maintain a neutral spine position," he replied.

“Seriously?” you scoffed. “Do you really have to come up with a counterargument for everything I say?”

“Such a curse of mine. If you don’t like it, well, you invited me here.”

“Annoying bastard. I guess it’s too late to kick you out?” you wondered aloud, of course, rhetorically. But you quickly added, worried that he might take it seriously, “Sleep well. You and your spine.”

An amused sigh escaped him.

 “You… and your spine too.”

Well, you guessed that's enough of the chit-chat. You felt a bit disappointed, but you had brought him here for a reason. To let him sleep, not to entertain you with conversation. To your surprise, you didn’t feel sleepy, even though you had struggled with it earlier. You had been thinking about... hard to even pinpoint what, there were a few things. The little worries typical of the night, suddenly growing to some huge proportions.

You were still lying in the same position, some time had passed. Your cheek was almost touching the edge of the bed, on the same side where Reid slept. Well, actually, he wasn’t sleeping. You could see a faint, barely noticeable gleam of his open eyes. They were cast downward, trying not to stare into the empty blackness above his head.

“Have you always been afraid of the dark?” you decided to ask, with no sarcasm.

“I’m not afraid,” he replied, though he could always pretend to be asleep. But the answer came out automatically.

“Alright, brave guy.” You didn’t even scoff, you just said it calmly and accepting. Maybe later he’ll tell you, when he stops being so embarrassed about it. “So, I guess you came here to get to know me better. And you know, I think you’ve got the chance. Could you... could you tell me something? Just honestly?”

"Me?" he asked, surprised, even sitting up slightly. "I mean... sure. But what?"

You suddenly sighed, regretting even bringing up the topic. God, that was so stupid...

"Just remember, honestly. Do you think the rest of the team likes me?"

Reid was silent, a strange feeling gathered in your stomach. Instead of answering negatively, he propped himself up on both elbows, and you saw a slight movement of his head. A nod.

"Are you asking this completely seriously?"

You shrugged, not sure if he noticed, so you confirmed out loud in a slightly hoarse voice. And then, to your absolute surprise, he just laughed.

"I don’t get it," he confessed after a short moment during which you stared in silence at his silhouette. "How... how could you think it could be any different? You’re always joking with Derek and Elle, and... we get along well too, I hope..."

"You’re right. But... but that’s not what I meant, I just... ugh, seriously, I can’t explain it. Fine, you know what, never mind."

You turned onto your back, as if that would completely sever the conversation. The one you’d stupidly started. You hoped he wouldn’t mention it to anyone. Another stupid thought, after all, he wasn’t like that.

Silence again, broken only by breaths. A new sound joined them, a slight rustle of the sheets. When Reid spoke again, his voice sounded somehow higher, and you were sure he was sitting on the floor as he said it.

"It might be a little surprising, but when I was a kid, I wasn't afraid of the dark," he began, completely changing the tone of his voice. He wasn't surprised like before; it was lower, gentler, despite the topic he was addressing. "I mean, I wasn't afraid of it more than any other kid my age. That... that serious fear, the real fear, started later. I don't want to say it was when I started working for the BAU because that wouldn't be entirely true. But it was around the time I started taking everything seriously. Seeing it with my own eyes, every day."

You didn't even realize when you had turned back onto your side, just to look at him, listening to his words.

"Do you have nightmares?" you asked.

"Sometimes. Actually..." he sighed, swallowing. "All of it, the fear and the nightmares, it's like they don't exist when I'm in a place I know. A place I trust. I can sleep just fine with the lights off in my apartment, the same in a jet. Everything starts in places like this. “

There was silence from your side, and you felt a bit… touched that he decided to tell you this. No beating around the bush, no lying, and, most importantly, no overwhelming embarrassment. It was a normal topic after all; everyone has their fears.

"And you?"

"What about me?"

"Do you have nightmares?"

In the first few days after starting the job, you did. Then they stopped. That’s just how things go, you suppose.

"Not anymore," you admitted, letting out a small laugh. "But that doesn’t mean I sleep well. Now I just worry at night."

"About whether the team likes you?"

"Okay, I know it sounds childish, but it’s really been bothering me lately. They might… they might seem to like me, but deep down, they might not think that highly of me. I… I'm new, not that experienced, I’m always late, and I don’t think I’m bringing anything new to the table..."

"Of course, you’re bringing something," he interrupted you. You hadn’t noticed when, but you were both sitting up now. Your voices weren’t sleepy whispers anymore, you were having a real conversation. "Each of us brings something different, something characteristic of ourselves. That's how it works in a team. That’s why you’re here. Without you… okay, you might not know this, but since you’ve been here, these last four cases have gone much more smoothly."

"Do you really think so?" 

"Well, you asked me to be honest. Completely honest."

You've always had a bit of imposter syndrome, doubting your abilities, and approaching others' positive comments about you or your achievements with skepticism. 

Something in the way he spoke, his quick words, his engagement in them... made you believe him, somehow.

"Reid," you began, surprised to find that there was less weight in your chest, in your body. "I know, I just know, that you'll refuse, but still, I'll ask. Do you want to lie down with me?"

You didn't even know what exactly prompted the question. Caring about your back, you could answer. But was that really all it was?

For a moment, he was silent, thinking you were joking, but when it dawned on him that you weren't, he scoffed.

"Well, you were right, I'll refuse..."

"Sorry, but I doubt you'll fall asleep any other way. I was watching you, as creepy as that sounds. You were lying there with your eyes open, you were scared."

"I'm an adult man who's afraid of the dark. That's pathetic on its own, without being tucked to sleep by a coworker."

"I never mentioned anything about tucking you in."

He hesitated, embarrassed. 

"You took the least important part of my statement..."

"I took what I wanted. The rest is nonsense. Your age doesn't determine what you can or can't be afraid of. I'm a grown woman, and I'm afraid my colleagues don't like me. Which sounds more pathetic, huh? Fear of the dark or that?"

“I think it’s a point we could argue about for hours.”

“Which we don’t have. It’s late, we should go to sleep. Quick question, are you lying down with me, or are you fooling yourself into thinking you’ll fall asleep without it?”

A heavy, resigned sigh escaped him. Without adding anything else to his words, you turned onto your side, your back to him. You heard the rustling of the sheets, and for a moment, you froze, surprised. But no, he hadn’t joined you. 

You weren’t sure how you felt. Disappointed seemed like too strong a word. It wasn’t as though he had refused some incredibly important request of yours. It was just… perhaps the best explanation would be that, once you had convinced him to sleep in the same room for the sake of helping him, you wanted him to take something comforting from that night. You wanted it to be one of those good nights, like the ones he had in his apartment or in the jet, the ones he had mentioned. Not one of the others, filled with fear.

But then, the mattress beside you dipped, as someone else settled onto it.

You turned to the other side, and suddenly your faces were right across from each other. Reid swallowed, almost nervously. He seemed to be adjusting to the situation, to the sudden closeness, the small space you shared. You propped your hand under your head, observing him discreetly. It hit you that he always had a bit of an issue with contact with others. A doubt crossed your mind: had you made him uncomfortable?

Minutes passed, though, and his body seemed to sink more comfortably into the bed. His arms were no longer stiff, his hands resting freely, no longer clasped tightly across his chest. You could also hear his breath, and the more peaceful it became, the calmer you felt too.

And even though no words seemed necessary anymore, he decided to speak once again.

"Thank you."

taglist: @she-wont-miss @mggslover @kakamixo @nyeddleblog @dylanobrienswife0420 @wmoony

@heddgie @khxna @marauder-exe-old @yujyujj @charleyreid @kitty-kai @sp3ncelle @pleasantwitchgarden @beesin03 @misserabella

[wosounited]

Pretty Please? (Lia Wälti x Catley!Reader)

“Y/n, I said no” Lia frowned.

“But Lia, angel, baby, beautiful, love of my -”

“No” she repeated, throwing her head back in frustration that you would not stop.

“It’s not fair” you huffed, slumping onto the couch with your arms crossed as she stood over you in a similar position.

“It is absolutely fair. I already have a golden retriever to look after with you. I can’t look after another dog” she smirked. A low blow, but she was absolutely right. You definitely fit the stereotype of a golden retriever lesbian that followed after her girlfriend everywhere and always had bundles of energy.

“But I’ll look after him” you pouted. She looked at you like she was debating it for a minute, she sometimes found it hard not to give in to you. “Pretty please?” you smiled hopefully, like you thought she was about to give in.

“No” she groaned again, leaving the room and going into the kitchen, clearly not finding it that difficult to say no to you right now.

“This isn’t fair” you said again with a huff, loud enough that you knew she could hear you, but in a tone that wasn’t stroppy enough for her to think that you were actually annoyed.

“Life’s not fair” she mocked you back. “Come help me Schatz” she shouted as you quickly got off the couch and sauntered into the kitchen. She turned to look at you as you walked through the door. You were pouting like a sad little puppy. “Come here” she sighed when she noticed your sad face. You were much taller and bigger than Lia, but she thought you were the cutest little thing to ever live.

“I just want a dog” you shrugged and she cupped your face. She knew you wanted one so desperately, but she just couldn’t bring herself to think of having a puppy right now. Especially while you were both nursing bad injuries.

“More than you want dinner?” She smirked, trying to lighten the mood as you rolled your eyes. You wrapped your arms around her waist and placed your chin on her shoulder while she cooked you both dinner. This was your job while she cooked, to just stand there with your arms around her and tell her how pretty she was and how much you loved her. Although, you’d added that part into the job description yourself. She would often feed you over her shoulder, some chocolate or whatever ingredients she was throwing in to your dinner, like cheese or chopped up peppers she had to spare.

You and Lia had been happily together for four years, and had been living together for three and a half of them. You moved in during COVID, after you both didn’t want to spend the proposed two week isolation period alone, and never moved out. You’d become too used to being together every day to ever even think of moving out now. You both liked your routine together and you were head over heels in love with the Swiss girl, even if she wouldn’t agree to get you a dog. You were currently both injured and going to physio on a regular basis at the Arsenal training ground. Lia had hurt her ankle and was out for the rest of the season, but you were pushing hard to be back for the Olympics, that you and your Aussie teammates had qualified for. You’d been following through on the recovery process of a bad back injury.

You had enjoyed the last international break, just you and Lia going in and out of physio appointments and then having the rest of the day to relax. You loved that she walked around all day in your hoodie that was far too big for her, and how you’d both spend all day cooped up on the couch when you got home.

However, this international break was different than the last one. You were back running now, but Lia was nowhere near that stage of her recovery. You had to do a bit more training during this window, while she still got to hobble in and out of physio. Usually you would piggyback Lia into the physio room and it would cause the physio to give you an earful about your back. You still couldn’t lift weights or kick a ball yet, but you were able to run, which was exciting.

It had been awhile since you were last in Australia, to see your family and mates. You luckily had your sister, Steph, here with you in London though. But you missed your Aussies at home. Lia was in the same boat with her family and friends in Switzerland, but she was significantly closer to home than you were. She’d noticed your mopey self was out a bit more than usual lately, and knew it was down to your lack of time at home and the upcoming international window that you still weren’t fit for. You usually spent every second you could when you were in Australia catching up with your friends and family. They all loved Lia too, the few times that either you’d brought her home, or they’d been over to visit you. Lia was good for you. She was kind, and thoughtful, and knew you were just a hopeless, big, softie that loved her so much, and she loved you back just as much.

With you and Lia, it was love at first sight. You’d signed for Arsenal a year after your older sister. On the very first day you were at the training grounds, when Steph introduced you to Lia, you nearly tripped over your own two feet when the Swiss girl smiled at you. Steph figured it out pretty quickly that you liked Lia, despite you not telling her. And she knew Lia liked you when Lia simply told her that she liked you. Steph gave you the big sisterly push to ask Lia out, and you’d been together ever since.

-

You had the day off today as everyone was leaving for the international window. You moped around all day yesterday, saying goodbye to your teammates and trying to hide how annoying it was that they were talking about seeing their family and friends. It pissed you off when you heard Caitlin and Kyra talking about their plans to head to the beach the second they got there. You tried to find Steph to say goodbye and give her something to give your mum and dad that you’d got them for their wedding anniversary, but you couldn’t see her anywhere. You thought maybe it was a sign to keep it for them yourself when you saw them in Paris in a few months.

You had been messaging Lia, who had stayed at home today, all day, telling her how annoyed you were about not being able to go home to Australia. The reason you couldn’t find Steph was explained later that night when you got home. Lia, being the most thoughtful girlfriend to ever exist, decided to call in a favour with your older sister, which actually was a win-win for everyone. Once Lia had explained the plan, Steph of course agreed as she was more than happy to help cheer you up in anyway she could. Lia had been trying her best all day to cheer you up, but knew what she had in store for you this evening would brighten your spirits.

She knew that her plan was definitely going to work when you were cuddled up on your couch and started teasing her.

“You know what would make this better?” You smirked as your girlfriend thought she was catching your drift. She moved as if she was about to straddle you before you decided to speak again. “If we had a little, teeny, tiny, puppy right here” you gestured to the minimal space there was between you.

“I hate you so much” Lia groaned as she pushed herself off you and walked towards the kitchen to start dinner. You shortly followed suit, laughing at her all the way in, getting ready to carry out the big role you had to play in the dinner preparations. You heard the front door bell and Lia squirmed to get out of your hold when you squeezed her hips tighter to stop her leaving. “Keep your eye on this” she said, handing you the wooden spoon as you looked at her, stunned.

“Wait baby, what am I suppose to do?” You shouted back, cluelessly looking at the sizzling pot. Her lack of response led you to use your own initiative and you just started harshly jabbing the contents of the pot with the spoon.

“Hey” Steph smiled when Lia opened the door. “You are both life savers” she squealed.

“It’s honestly fine. Y/n is going to freak out” Lia laughed. “Come in. Hi buddy” Lia smiled, patting Calvin’s head and letting them both walk in ahead of her to the kitchen.

“Hey girl” Steph shouted as she burst through the kitchen door.

“Hey Ste- oh my god, Calvin” you dropped to your knees to be face to face with Steph’s dog, who loved all the attention you gave to him whenever you saw him.

“Babe, our dinner” Lia tutted at you, annoyed that you’d just left it to practically burn and rushed over to start stirring the contents of the pot again.

“Baby, Calvin” you teased playfully, fully lying down on the ground now, playing with the big fluffy dog.

“Okay, so, I usually walk him twice a day, he’s fed around 10am and - Y/n, are you listening?” Steph asked, placing her hands on her hips.

“Oh Calvin, who’s the best boy? Do you want treats? I have so many treats for the bestest boy in the whole wide-”

“Y/n” Lia snapped, and that tone of voice Lia could turn on would always knock you out of what you were doing. “Steph is speaking to you” she told you, pointing her spoon at your sister.

“Walk him twice a day, feed him at 10am and 6pm. Don’t over do it on the treats and make sure he sleeps in this bed, and this bed only” Steph informed you, dropping the dog bed that was in her hands onto the ground.

“What are you talking about?” You frowned, standing up off the ground now as Calvin pottered back over to his mum.

“We are watching Calvin while Steph goes back to Australia” Lia informed you, watching your eyes bulge out of your head.

“Calvin is staying here?” You asked.

“Yes”

“With us?”

“Yes”

“In our house?”

“Listen, if it’s too much I can always ask Sam and-” Steph said, trying to stop the flow of questions being fired at Lia.

“No, no, no. We can watch him. It’s cool” you coughed, trying to keep your shit together.

“Okay. Thank you both so much again. I’ll see you both when we get back” Steph smiled and gave Lia a hug.

“I’ll walk you out” you said, leaving Lia in the kitchen and letting Steph say goodbye to her baby boy before you both walked towards the front door.

“You okay?” She asked emphatically, knowing that even though you were excited Calvin was here, and you and Lia could chill for the next few days, you still longed to be going with her to the airport.

“Yeah” you nodded, folding your arms across your chest and becoming suddenly interested in looking at your socks.

“It’s going to be so soon until you see them all again” she sighed, pushing into your much taller frame for a hug.

“Just miss ‘em’” you shrugged, and eventually wrapped your arms around her.

“Don’t think they don’t miss you too” she mumbled against your shoulder. You stayed wrapped up in the comfort of each other for a little bit before you pulled away.

“Enjoy your flight with Kyra” you smirked as she rolled her eyes.

“She’s a bloody pest that girl” Steph laughed. “I want daily updates of your nephew” she added, wagging her finger at you as she stepped outside the door, bidding you a final farewell before you shut it behind her. You let out a sigh, which you wish was a scream. You wanted nothing more than to just be going home, but all that left your mind when the big fluff ball took a run and practically threw himself against you.

“Come on, let’s go help your auntie Lia make dinner” you cooed at the dog, who trotted after you towards the kitchen.

-

Minding Calvin was a piece of cake. You usually didn’t handle responsibility well, burning dinner, turning whites into any other colour when you put a wash on. But a dog was somehow something you stepped up with. You’d just brought Calvin for a walk, and had left his bowl full of food out for him when Lia trudged down the stairs. You could just about manage to make toast and coffee, and you made sure you made that for you both every morning.

“Morning, my-” Lia began before she was stopped by a loud squeak. She looked down to see the floor was practically covered in dog toys. “I can’t remember all of these being in Calvin’s bag?” She raised her eyebrows.

“Well, um, me and Calvin were on a walk this morning and um, we found this shop” you began to explain as Lia frowned at you. “He’s just such a good boy” you shrugged and dropped down to squeeze his face. She tip toed around the toys and you pulled her up to sit on the counter, handing her the plate and mug. She kissed you gently to say thank you, before you pushed yourself away. “Couldn’t go by your favourite shop without getting you these, though” you smiled, producing a bunch of flowers that you’d already put in her vase. She giggled in excitement and pulled you close again, setting down her breakfast on the countertop. She wrapped her hands around your neck, and her legs around your waist. Both of you were too wrapped up in your lazy morning kisses to notice that Calvin was propped up on his hind legs, eating Lia’s toast straight off the plate.

“Calvin Catley” Lia groaned loudly against your lips, shooing the dog away as he ran off with the toast.

“I’ll make you more darlin’” you smirked at her annoyed, scrunched up face, watching on at the dog munching her breakfast.

-

As the days of dog sitting Calvin ticked on, Lia couldn’t get over how organised you’d become. You’d really stepped up while you had your fluffy house guest over, and since you’d gotten injured, she had never truly seen you happier. It was like anything that could have went wrong with Calvin, you were magically right behind him to clean it up, fix it, or replace it. Lia liked seeing you being responsible for a change and couldn’t quite get over that all it took was a dog, that wasn’t even yours, to do the trick.

-

You were on the couch, asleep, when Lia got in from physio. There was no training today due to everyone starting to arrive home from camp.

“Y/n?” Lia called, and when she got no answer, she knew you were having a nap on the couch, which was a very common occurrence for you. She found your big, tall, sleepy self to be cute enough as it was. However, adding a dog on top of that, snuggled into you, made it a thousand times cuter. She quickly snapped a photo and sent it to Steph, who was on her way over to collect her son.

The knock at the door didn’t wake you, but instinct of who it was, woke Calvin. He instantly plodded to the door and began dancing as he could start to pick up Steph’s scent.

“My baby boy” Steph squealed as Lia opened the door to reunite them.

“Ssh, Y/n is asleep” Lia shushed the Aussie captain and beckoned her inside.

“That picture was so cute” Steph giggled as both of them made their way into the kitchen, not before they both poked their head in to check you hadn’t woken yet, which you hadn’t. Lia swears a bomb could hit the house and it would barely make you move in your sleep. “I hope Calvy wasn’t too much trouble” Steph smiled, patting the dog’s head who was beside her as the pair sat on chairs in the kitchen.

“He was the best boy at cheering Y/n up, definitely” Lia smiled back, also giving the dog a gentle squeeze of affection.

“You need to get her a dog” Steph laughed as Lia rolled her eyes with a giggle. Steph waited awhile, accepting Lia’s multiple cups of tea, trying to see if you would wake so she could thank you for watching Calvin, but you never woke up. Steph eventually had to cave to her tiredness and jet lag and headed home, not before adding the photo Lia had sent her to her Instagram story.

When she left, Lia headed up to get changed before she nestled in beside you on the couch. She put on a TV show she was independently watching, and she’d just gotten through an episode when you squirmed awake.

“Oh, hello” you chuckled, pressing a lazy kiss on her cheek as she smiled and pushed closer against you. “When did you get home?” You mumbled tiredly.

“Hours ago” she groaned playfully.

“Does that mean Calvin is gone then?” You asked as you felt the girl nod against you.

“Steph said she’ll come by tomorrow with him to get all of his stuff that was in here. We didn’t want to wake you” she whispered, kissing your cheek. “Come on, let’s go start dinner”

“No” you groaned, pulling her waist against you tightly. “Comfy” you mumbled, causing the girl to laugh.

“Will we order in then?" she asked and you nodded, handing the girl your phone to put the order in.

-

A few days had passed and Lia noticed you were gone a bit mopey again. Steph was overwhelmed with the amount of toys you’d bought for Calvin and labelled you as the best auntie ever. You just weren’t allowed to tell Beth that she’d called you that.

You kissed Lia goodbye as you headed off to training and she stayed home due to not having an appointment today. During the worst part of her injury, you’d been doing most of the cleaning jobs at home, as she was off her feet. But now that she was at a good stage where she could clean, her plan for the day was to scrub the entire house. Only, when she started with the living room and found one of the toys you’d bought for Calvin under the armchair, her mind started racing. She knew getting you a dog would make you so happy, but it brought so much chaos. You’d always need someone to dog sit when you both were on international duty, or at an away game, a puppy would destroy the house and would definitely eat Lia’s toast every morning. Was that a lifestyle Lia really wanted to get into?

She stood inspecting the toy she was holding for a little while. She remembered you and Calvin playing with this specific one on the third night he was over. She thought about how happy you were in that moment, and in all the moments that you had the dog in your house. How could she ever stand in the way of you being that happy?

You got home a bit later than usual, Beth and Leah had an issue with something that apparently only you could fix and it needed to be done right away. You knew the pair were up to something because every time one of them would speak, the other was trying to hold back their laughter.

“Baby?” You shouted, coming through the door and dropping your gear bag down while you simultaneously kicked off your shoes.

“In here” she called back and you knew the sound came from the kitchen.

“Sorry I’m so late. Beth and Leah had some issue with their-” you said as you walked towards the kitchen and swung open the door. Lia had asked the pair to distract you and keep you out of the house for at least another hour or so. “What the - Lia” you whispered, dropping to your knees to be instantly pounced upon by the tiniest puppy you’d ever seen in your life.

“So, I decided you were right. A teeny, tiny, little, puppy would definitely make cuddles on the couch better” she giggled, cupping your face.

“It’s ours?” You asked so softly it was like you were afraid if you spoke louder that the puppy would break. It occurred to Lia only then that even though she got the puppy for you, that it was adorable you instantly referred to it as both of yours. She nodded at you with a smile as you leaned over to kiss her. “I love you so much”

“I love you too” she said, kissing you back gently. “What do you want to call him?” She asked.

y/n_catley with liawaelti

Liked by stephcatley, leahwilliamsonn, alessia and 185,736 others

y/n_catley: Mummy’s best new leaf collector 🍁

liawaelti: Teeny, Tiny, Little baby Roo 🦘

mylemeadema: woof 👋

stephcatley: Showing this to Calvin immediately

leahwilliamsonn: Open your door, I’m outside

alessia: And it’s freezing out here

[wosospacegirl]

And they were roommates - part 4

Summary: Y/n gets injured and has to stay in recovery for 8 months. It's a good thing her friend and teammate Kyra is more than willing to move in with her. wink wink

Warnings: kissing!!making out!! idiots falling in love!! team banter!!!

Word count: 4.7k

MASTERLIST

You can read part 1 here and part 5 here

..

Kyra thought that last night had been a product of her dreams. She had kissed Y/n, her long-time friend and roommate while watching ‘But I’m a Cheerleader’. And when she woke up, she was cuddling with Y/n, which made everything even better.

Kyra’s arm was spread out on the mattress while Y/n slept on top of it, mouth slightly open as she breathed quietly. Her cast was on top of a pillow and her other–and good – leg was intertwined with Kyra’s. Kyra didn’t want to get out of bed, especially when Y/n’s sleeping face looked so cute, but it was 6:30 in the morning and both girls had a big day ahead of them.

The girl enjoyed a few seconds of Y/n’s warm body against her, but before Kyra could say anything, Y/n began to move slightly, pushing her face closer to Kyra’s body until she was lying on her chest, her left arm hanging on Kyra’s shoulder.

The physical touch was welcomed by Kyra. She gently ran her hands over Y/n’s scalp. “Good morning,” Kyra said in a hoarse morning voice.

“Hmm,” Y/n murmured, not opening her eyes, feeling the softness of Kyra’s shirt against her cheek. “What time is it?”

“Almost 7.”

“Too early, wanna sleep more.”

Kyra stroked her cheek. “I know, but you can take a nap after we get back from Arsenal, yeah? You have physio today.”

“I forgot about that,” Y/n said, finally opening her eyes to look at Kyra. “You’re pretty, did you know that?” she said smiling, still a bit dazed from the deep sleep she had been in.

Kyra blushed slightly, but hid it with a grin “Is that why you kissed me yesterday? Because I'm pretty or something?”

“Yeah… or something.,” Y/n said, kissing Kyra softly on the lips.

Kyra froze for a moment, but quickly melted into Y/n’s kiss.“We're just doing this now, aren’t we?” Kyra asked, smiling. “I mean, I'm not complaining.”

“What? Kissing? I guess so if you still want to.”

“Great, I do, I wanna do it a lot.”

“A lot?” Y/n giggled. “Won't even make me work for it” she said teasingly.

“If your leg wasn’t broken maybe, I might not be so nice,” Kyra said, tapping her chin. “But since I'm still your caretaker, then yes, you get free kisses.”

Y/n smiled, cupped Kyra’s jaw and brought her face closer, their lips touching. and Y/n deepened the kiss, neither caring if the other had morning breath or not.

“You’re the best caretaker, ever” Y/n whispered against Kyra’s mouth.

“Glad you like it, I might put it on my resume for when I retire,” Kyra said. She hesitated at first, but gently placed her hands under Y/n’s shirt, feeling the skin on her waist. “So I can get a job afterwards, or whatever.”

Y/n shook her head and kissed Kyra some more. “No, I don’t wanna share you with other sad and injured footballers, I just want you for myself.”

“So are you admitting you like having me around?” Kyra said.

“I mean, you give great kisses and you always remind me to take my medicine, so yeah, maybe I do.”

Kyra loved hearing that she gave great kisses. The thought of being complimented by Y/n made her brain go fuzzy. It was quite an overwhelming and new feeling. So Kyra turned to what she knew best: jokes.

Kyra pumped her fist dramatically in the air “Yey! Would you mind repeating that again?” She picked up her phone and opened a recording app.

“Oh fuck off,” Y/n pushed the phone away, laughing. “We were having a moment.”

“Sorry, couldn't help myself, let’s just kiss some more,” Kyra said before filling Y/n’s face with kisses.

..

They didn't talk about it.

They didn't talk about any of the kisses they had shared. They hadn't mentioned whatever it was they were doing, not because they didn't want to, or because it was awkward, it was just because it felt normal. As if they'd been in this domestic routine for ages.

Kissing Kyra; telling her she was pretty; cuddling up with her at night…it was all normal, comfortable and serene. Their routine didn’t change, they continued to do the same things every day, except they kissed.

Y/n was always very focused on football. So focused that she simply did not care about other things, like romantic relationships. She put everything she had into football because she knew it was up to her and no one else. She didn’t really open up to people, especially those who weren't her friends, so it was hard to build any type of romantic relationship.

However, after all these weeks of living with Kyra, she’d realised that her friend had meant a lot more to her, and she wasn’t afraid to show it. It felt good to finally let go and relax, to put football and her long-standing fear of vulnerability aside for a moment.

This wasn’t Y/n’s first time being with someone, she had one-night stands before, but they’d been very…awkward. In the mornings, she and random girls Y/n had met in London’s nightlife would dance around ‘good mornings’ and ‘see you’ or even ‘we should do this again’. But it was all very superficial, as it had to be.

Y/n was not sure what Kyra thought of their thing but she seemed to enjoy it. Y/n didn’t want to put a label on it. She just wanted to kiss Kyra some more, cuddle with her through the night and overall just enjoy their little domestic, and pretty much, ordinary life.

They didn’t have to rush into it, or overthink it. Just live in it for a while. There was no big elephant in the room that needed to be discussed. There was just Kyra and Y/n, and she was grateful for that.

After a few minutes of lying in bed and doing nothing, the girls left the bed and went to the kitchen to start their day.

“You can add the mushrooms and onions now, but let it cook before you add the salt and pepper” Y/n said. She sat on the kitchen counter while Kyra stood by the stove, wearing Y/n's apron with the saying ‘I love stirring things up’. It looked cute on her, but the size wasn’t right.

Y/n made a note to buy an apron just for Kyra. She didn’t really enjoy sharing her things. Red flag, yeah.

Kyra had a frown on her face, if Y/n hadn't known they were only making omelettes, she would have thought Kyra was being sent off to war.

“I hate cooking,” Kyra muttered, stirring the mushrooms uninterestedly.

“We can't live off of cereal for the next months to come,” Y/n said, without looking at Kyra, concentrating instead on the recipe book in her hand. “Can you also chop the spinach for me when you're done?”

Kyra grumbled so that was a yes.

Y/n took the eggs and the bowl that were already on the counter and started beating the eggs with a whisk.

Y/n loved to cook. It was one of the most therapeutic things for her. She loved cooking for herself and for others. She took pride in eating something and being able to explain, step by step, what she had done and what ingredients she had used.

When she got injured the doctors had told her that she wouldn't be able to stand for long periods of time, so cooking and baking was promptly removed from the list of things she enjoyed, but couldn't do, along with football and morning runs.

This was the first day she had cooked since the injury. She had tried cooking standing up in her crutches but this had led to her falling over while trying to pick up ingredients from the pantry. She had cried her eyes out of anger before Kyra found her on the floor, a mess of tomatoes and beetroot down with her.

She felt frustrated and pathetic, but there was nothing she could do about it except accept that she was fated to eat Kyra’s bad food for a while.

A few weeks after that incident, she tried another strategy, the one she was doing right now: sitting on the counter while giving instructions to Kyra, but, of course, she got frustrated again because Kyra couldn't follow instructions and Y/n was too much of a control freak, so she gave up cooking one more time

However, something had happened between Kyra and Y/n–they kissed! Y/n hoped that since they shared quite a few kisses, they could successfully share a kitchen as well, so she tried cooking again.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Y/n shouted from the other side of the kitchen.

Kyra stopped putting whatever spice she was adding to the food and looked at Y/n confused, holding the spice jar in the air.“What? You told me to add salt and pepper on it after it was cooked!” Kyra said, defending herself.

“That's not pepper, that's paprika!” Y/n pointed out, hands down her face. “Now our omelette is ruined!”

“No, it's not,” Kyra made a face. “It's just paprika, not cocaine. We can eat it just fine.”

“Here, pass me the eggs,” she demeaned. “Are they frothy already?”

Y/n took the bowl from the counter, and put it behind her, trying to get out of Kyra’s reach. “We're not putting my eggs on that. I hate paprika, it makes everything taste horrible.”

Kyra was silent for a moment, her face stoic. “Are you being serious right now?”

“Yes.”

“Why the hell do you have paprika if you hate it, then?” Kyra questioned.

“You can't be a real cook and not have paprika in your kitchen.” Y/n shrugged.

Kyra tried to take the bowl from her again, but Y/n was quicker and got it out of the way, holding it to her body for dear life.

“I'm being serious! Maybe we can throw the anions, mushrooms and spinach mix away and you can make it again, using the right and correct seasoning this time.” Y/n suggested.

“You want me to chop the onions again?!” Kyra said with a gasp. “I just cried, chopping them.” She pointed at the onions as if they had hurt her.

“Maybe you can try wearing sunglasses this time?” Y/n pointed.

Kyra didn't respond. The girl just turned away and opened one of the upper cupboards, taking out three boxes of cereal with one hand and two bowls with the other.

She placed the cereal boxes and the bowls next to Y/n and pointed At each box. “Do you want Coco Pops, Raisin Oats or Weetabix?”

Y/n stared at the cereals, disgust on her face. “What?!”

“Cereal. Which one do you want?” Kyra pointed at each of the boxes again, repeating its brand name.

“I don't want cereal,” Y/n said, more sassy than she liked to admit it.

“Well, but I do,” Kyra said, picking up the Coco Pops one, and pouring it into a bowl.

Before taking a spoonful, she took a step closer and kissed Y/n on the nose, then packed her on the mouth. "You're way too bossy in the kitchen–my cortisol levels are through the roof,” she explained, taking a bite of her cereal.

Y/n pouted defeatedly, picked up the Raisin Oats and poured it into her own bowl, without saying a word.

Kyra tapped the spoon against the bowl in her hand. “Wow! That's actually so good,” Kyra said mouth=-full.

“You say that as if you haven't done this every day for the last week,” Y/n said grumpily, taking a spoon of her raising. It tasted so processed.

Kyra shrugged. “Well, at least your Raising tastes better than paprika anyway.”

Y/n and Kyra could share kisses and a house, but they couldn't share the kitchen, or even the same cuisine taste.

..

Kyra and Y/n arrived at Arsenal half an hour before the training. Which was plenty of time for Y/n to say hello to all the staff members and Win on her way in. Y/n didn’t realise how much she had missed the people she used to see every single day. All the staff members made sure to tell her how much they missed her too and wished her a recovery.

Y/n felt strange at first. In the changing room, everyone was wearing their training kit, and boots and had their hair up, ready for training, everyone except for Y/n, who stood in the middle of the room, and couldn't help but feel like the odd one out, even though all the girls assured her that she was still very much part of the team.

It was still difficult to be surrounded by such amazing players, and friends, while Y/n had only just learned how to walk on her crutches without stumbling.

“Look who's here!” Leah was the first to see Y/n, greeting her with a hug. “How have you been? Giving that pest over there a hard time?”

“Always,” Y/n said, winking at her captain.

“Y/n! I didn't know you were coming in today.” Alessia said, being the next one in line to give Y/n a warm welcome.

Y/n hugged Alessia as she waved at other teammates, who were just as happy to have her back, even if it wasn't for playing or training.

“Kyra didn't tell you that I've been cleared to start physio with our physiotherapists here at Arsenal?” Y/n asked, turning to look at Kyra, who was sitting on the bench, putting her boots on.

“I did tell them!” Kyra said, defensiveness in her tone “But they didn't believe me.”

“Easy there, little pest,” Steph said behind Kyra, patting her on the back. “This is what happens when you think it's funny to make up stories, and now we don't believe you when you tell the truth.” Steph walked past a stunned Kyra, coming to greet Y/n. “But it doesn't matter anymore because Y/n is actually here!”

“Bloody hell! Is this still about the loose screws?! Have some mercy and let it go!” Kyra said, pulling her hair into a ponytail.

The team laughed at Kyra and for a few seconds Y/n felt what she used to feel before her injury, a sense of belonging to the people around her and to her club… After all the girls chatted with Y/n, they left the changing room and headed onto the pitch, leaving only Y/n, Kyra and Alessia still chatting, just like old times.

“And then Kyra tackled Renéé to the ground, can you believe it?!” Alessia said, having just finished telling her the story of how Kyra was responsible for getting Renée–aka their head coach–in the infirmary a few days ago.

“She told me to treat her like any other player,” Kyra mumbled. “I felt bad though, but she said she wasn’t angry.”

“I would give anything to see Renée get tackled,” Y/n laughed.

“I think Steph actually got it on video,” Kyra said.

Y/n’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “Really?!”

Kyra smiled. “Nah, I’m joking.”

“I hate you,” Y/n muttered.

Alessia interrupted the two girls by putting one arm around Y/n, but not quite leaning over her so that Y/n wouldn't lose her balance. “Did you know I’m gonna be your physio-buddy today?”

“I fell hard on my shoulder yesterday, Mary wants to have a look at it.” She added.

Mary was Arsenal's upper body physiotherapist. Y/n wouldn’t be doing any sessions with her, instead, Clare would be the one to keep up with Y/n's injury. But both physiotherapists did the physical therapy in the same room, so Alessia and Y/n would spend the whole morning together.

Alessia led Y/n through the door of the changing room, heading to the opposite direction of the pitch, where the physio room was. They quickly noticed someone walking behind them.

Alessia smiled softly, “Aren’t you doing drills with the team today, Ky? Or do you also have an appointment with Mary too?”

Kyra blushed slightly as she shook her head. “No, I don't have an appointment. It’s just that–” Kyra turned to Y/n. “–don’t you want some help? I always help you walk around and… I can stay with you and Alessia during physio today too, I’m sure Renée won’t mind.’

“Thanks, Ky, but it’s ok.” Y/n looked down at her crutches then at Alessia and smiled softly at Kyra. “Lessie here will help me, you don’t need to worry about me now, just focus on your training.”

Kyra listened to Y/n but didn’t move. Kyra had spent most of her free time with Y/n. The only time they had been apart since her injury was when Kyra was at training, so it felt strange not to be by Y/n’s side when she could.

She knew Y/n would kill her if she ever knew how much Kyra was worried about her and her injury all the time. Y/n absolutely didn’t like people fussing over her, so Kyra was having a particularly hard time today.

She needed to give Y/n some space away from her, maybe it would do her some good, and make her feel more independent too.

“I'll keep an eye on her, Kyra, ” Alessia said, placing a comforting hand on Y/n's back. “Don't worry, go on, if anything happens I'll come get you, yeah?”

Y/n smiled and Kyra a thumbs up, reassuring her that she could leave

Kyra just nodded her head, a small smile on her face as she turned around and walked away.

Y/n would be fine. Why wouldn't she be fine? She was only doing physio, for God’s sake. Kyra thought, a mix of emotions on her mind as she left the two girls alone.

“She seems very concerned about you,” Alessia said. “Did you fall or something? When Leah was injured she fell down the stairs of her house, remember?”

“Yeah I do remember that, I was the one that had to come to her house to help her” Y/n said. “I fell too, twice actually, once in the bathroom and once in the pantry a few days ago,” Y/n pointed to her crutches. “I still haven't got used to using them.”

“Was Kyra the one who helped you?”

“Yes, she was very nervous, but she didn’t wanna show it,” Y/n continued. “So she just kept saying I shouldn't try to kill myself trying to walk on my own because people would think I died because of her.”

“I think she was trying to hide how much she cared for you with her jokes,” Alessia said. “Did you know Clare and Mary had to ban her from getting into the physio room because she kept interrupting the other girls ’sessions to ask about your injury, and if there were any kind of new treatments around.

Y/n stopped and laughed at Alessia. “She did that? That’s so Kyra honestly.”

“Yes, but I think her ban was lifted a few days ago,” Alessia said jokingly as she opened the door to the physio room and helped Y/n to one of the therapy tables.

Thankfully the room was empty, so Alessia and Y/n were able to talk about whatever they wanted freely.

“It’s a little funny watching you and Kyra,” Alessia said, putting up a chair next to Y/n’s table. “I think we’re so used to seeing her acting as a menace and treating her like a little sister that we get a bit shocked when she acts more responsibly.”

“It’s adorable, really,” Alessia added.

Y/n smiled, thinking of Kyra’s soft face. “Yeah, she is.”

Y/n almost blurted out that she had never seen Y/n as a little sister, especially now. Y/n and Kyra weren’t exactly hiding that they were…kissing? snogging around? But Y/n still didn’t want to talk about it too much. It still felt too intimate. It was something that belonged to them.

“Kyra’s been treating me really well,” Y/n continued. “I mean she always jokes and teases me a lot, but she’s also very patient when I’m mad about my injury, and she always drives me around, so that’s a plus.”

Y/n wanted people to see Kyra the way she saw her. Not just someone who plays around, but also someone who’s very caring and generally loving.

“Well, I'm glad to know you have someone like Ky on your side right now.” Alessia smiled. “It makes me worry less about you and her, I feel like you act as her voice of reason sometimes. ”

“Please, I don’t need more people to worry about me, I promise.” Y/n rolled her eyes playfully. “This whole recovery is going slower than I thought it would be but I’m just learning to be patient.”

“You’ll get there,” Alessia said reassuringly.

“Now please let’s talk about something other than my stupid injury, please!” Y/n said dramatically, making Alessia laugh.

“Ok, so let me tell you what happened in the tunnel in our last game–” Alessia started the story, and both girls were busy while waiting for physio to begin.

..

“I'm never coming back here again,” Y/n mumbled as she sat on the bench, wind in her face, watching her teammates do running drills on the pitch. Physio had taken up two hours of her and Alessia’s morning and it was hard; Y/n even considered just cutting off her leg and leaving it there.

“Yes, you're,” Leah murmured from her side, drinking her water and watching her surroundings “Physio honestly sucks but you’ve just gotta do it, mate” The captain shrugged. “It’s good that you’re feeling pain, it means your nerves aren’t screwed up.”

“Yeah, but it fucking hurts!” Y/n complained, crossing her arm “

“Breaking a bone hurts, what made you think growing them back wouldn't,” Leah said condescendingly.

“Have people ever told you how much you suck at supporting others in need?”

“Have people ever told you how annoying you are when you whine?” Leah bit back.

Y/n rolled her eyes. “Hey, share your water with me, I left my bottle in Kyra's car.” Y/n made grabby hands, but Leah shook her head rather dramatically.

“Ew, no.” Leah said, “I hate sharing water, grab one from the cooler.”

Y/n raised an eyebrow at Leah, signalling at her cast. “Could you please get me some water, then?”

Leah complained all the way to the cooler and back, but finally handed Y/n her water bottle. “Are you like this with Cooney-Cross at home too?”

“Like this what?” Y/n asked, taking a sip of her cold water. Damn, she was thirsty.

“Demanding,” Leah said teasingly, taking the spot next to Y/n again.

“I wasn’t at first. I didn’t like asking for help,” Y/n answered, her eyes searching the pitch for Kyra in the pitch. “But she cracked me.”

“I think you cracked her too,” Leah said nonchalantly, watching Kyra as well.

“What?” Y/n asked, turning her head to Leah.

“She’s different.” Leah continued. “She’s not acting so much like a pest lately, she’s been more responsible, less reckless on the pitch too.”

Y/n didn’t answer.

“I wonder if it’s because of you,” Leah added.

Wow, Leah, always the straightforward one.

“She’s a young player, we’ve all been like that once,” Y/n said, trying to steer the conversation, sensing something suggestive in Leah’s voice, but not wanting to give in to Leah, not.

“I wasn’t,” Leah said proudly.

Y/n laughed sarcastically. “Oh yeah, because you were always so calm and collected.”

“I beg your pardon? I have the least yellow card ib from this team,” Leah bit back, rolling her eyes “Anyway, I’m just casually, very casually, letting you know that I’m sensing something different in Kyra.”

Y/n didn't answer again.

“So I’m just leaving the door for this conversation open,” Leah continued, trying to sound chill, but Y/n had known her for a few years now. The captain had thought this whole conversation through. “If you ever want to talk about it, I mean, I’m here.”

Leah honestly could give two shits about other people’s lives, so Y/n was rather amused by Leah’s way of showing that she was interested in her life and in whatever she had to do with Kyra’s change in behaviour.

“Is this your way of trying to be casual? Because you failed, bro.”

Leah furrowed her eyebrows. “I’m just trying to be a good friend. Alessia told me I should be more welcoming, and more…emotionally available, so this is me trying. If you prefer my old version I can bring her back”

“Please bring back my old Leah,” Y/n said, playfully putting her palms together as if in a prayer.

“What happened between you and Cooney?” Leash asked bluntly.

This was the Leah she knew.

“Nothing happened between me and Kyra,” Y/n said. “We just got closer, we’ve been sharing a house for the last one to two months, in case you don’t remember. ”

It wasn’t exactly a lie, but it was the best Y/n could tell Leah right now.

Y/n and Kyra weren’t even dating, but Y/n couldn't help but wonder what it would be like if they disclosed whatever they had going on to the team. It wouldn't be anything new, it was very normal to date with your teammates.

Arsenal itself had a lot of couples that were brought together through the club, it wasn’t something unusual. But of course, when new couples formed the dynamics of the team changed a bit.

If they started dating, would people stop seeing Kyra as their little sister? Would the team stop seeing Y/n as this tough player who only had eyes for football and maybe a nightstand here or there?

When she thought about it Y/n realised that she really didn’t care about what her teammate thought about it. When Viv and Beth started dating, everyone just moved on with their lives, it was the same with Katie and Caitlin.

Y/n and Kyra just weren’t the type to make a big deal about it, they would probably just notice the shift between them and accept.

“I’ll pretend to believe you if you tell Alessia I tried doing the whole talk your feelings out with you,” Leah mumbled next to her, pulling Y/n out of her thoughts.

“So Alessia was the one who sent you, then? That little minx was with me the whole morning, she could've asked me.”

Leah shrugged, getting up from the bench and starting to warm up. “She didn't want to intrude.”

“So you intruded on her behalf?” Y/n asked, finding the whole situation funny.

“Yeah, I mean, you get closed off sometimes and it’s hard to reach out to you,” Leah said, more firmly now.

“It takes one to know one,” Y/n said, smiling at Leah.

Both women had been friends for a very long time. But the friendship between Leah and Y/n was different, they didn’t text every day, and they didn't plan to meet every week.

It was the kind of friend shared by two reserved people who enjoyed their privacy but still knew they could always count on each other

Y/n and Leah had the same faults, they were proud, stubborn and overly independent. So they knew each other, they knew how the other reacted to the world. And of course, they knew how hard it was for them to open up.

“Well, you know where I live if you ever feel like talking about why your eyes haven’t left Cooney for a second,” Leah patted Y/n’s back before running back to the pitch.

Maybe people would realise that she and Kyra were together sooner than she thought. Especially since Y/n was bluntly staring at Kyra while she played.

So what if she actually cheered a little when Kyra scored a goal?

..

| PART 5 |

Notes: Please like, share and let me know what you think! Feedback is important and makes me want to write even more. :D

Read more of my work here -> Masterlist

[khadij-al-kubra]

THIS WAS SO SWEET!!!!

the pursuit of a name

hello everyone!! 

i might as well reintroduce myself here since i’ll likely get some new readers! i’m ezzy and i’m 21, i usually write for mean girls the musical but i’ve recently watched the new matilda movie and hohoooo the hyperfixation resurgence was just. WOW so anyway! here i am lol

there’ll be more information for you towards the end but i don’t want to take up too much space at the beginning. 

tw for 

mentioned/implied abuse 

and please let me know if i miss any warnings so i can add them in!!

enjoy!!

—————

“I’m back,” Matilda says as she opens and closes the door to their place. 

“Hi, darling,” Miss Honey greets. “Is Mrs. Phelps well?”

“Oh, yes,” Matilda says as she comes to join her in the kitchen. “She gave me this for you.”

“Oh,” Miss Honey says as Matilda rests a well-loved copy of An Honest Thief on the table. “I’ve been wanting to read this again.”

“I know,” Matilda says with an impish smile. “Oh, she gave me extra lemonade for you, too.” 

“How nice of her, thank you,” Miss Honey says as Matilda puts the tin thermos on the table as well. 

“What are you doing?” 

“I’m working on a few papers to finalize your adoption,” Miss Honey sighs. 

“Oh.” Matilda says. 

“Oh?” Miss Honey questions, peeking at her over the tops of her reading glasses. “Are you upset about it?” 

“Aren’t you?” Matilda asks softly. “You look stressed.” 

“No, darling, no,” Miss Honey says immediately. “The forms have been… a challenge, just because we have no way of getting in touch with your biological parents. Some information I need, I can’t get. But there’s ways around the lot of that for circumstances like ours.”

“Oh.” Matilda says again. “What information?”

“Nothing I think you’d know, brilliant as you are,” Miss Honey sighs, removing her glasses and leaving them to hang by the chain around her neck. “Oh, but your middle name, what is that?” 

“I haven’t got one,” Matilda says quietly. “My parents said I was lucky I got a name at all.” 

Miss Honey sighs and gently tips up Matilda’s chin. “They were lucky that they got a Matilda.” 

Matilda gives her a small grin, but there’s a sadness behind it that makes Miss Honey frown. 

“We have the opportunity to change your name when your adoption goes through. Would you like to?” 

“I’m not sure,” Matilda says. “I… I am Matilda. I like my name.”

“We don’t have to change your first name if you don’t want to. Matilda is a perfectly suitable and lovely name for you,” Miss Honey says. “But if you’d like to pick a middle name for yourself, we could do that.” 

Matilda mulls this over. “Can I think about it?”

“Of course,” Miss Honey says comfortingly. “Take all the time you need. A name is a big decision.” 

Matilda nods. “I’m going to go put these in my bedroom.”

“Alright,” Miss Honey says as Matilda stands and grabs her large stack of new books. “Oh, that reminds me!”

Matilda pauses on the staircase and turns to see her. 

“We still need to decorate. Would you like to head to the shops today and see what we can find?” 

Matilda’s face splits into a wide smile and she nods eagerly. Miss Honey grins back and motions her up the stairs. Matilda heads up a few more before she pauses again. “Miss Honey?”

“Yes?” 

“Will I be a Honey too?” Matilda asks. “When I’m adopted?” 

“If… if you’d like to be,” Miss Honey says, trying to hide her excitement. “Is that what you’d want?” 

Matilda nods. “Matilda Honey sounds much nicer than Matilda Wormwood.” 

“Then you’ll be Matilda Honey,” Miss Honey confirms. Matilda smiles again and rushes up the stairs. 

—-

“What sort of theme do you think you’d like your room to have?” Miss Honey asks as they peruse the aisles of the home decor shop. 

“I don’t know,” Matilda says softly, holding her hand as she looks at all the different options. Dinosaurs, flowers, the circus, dogs, different cartoon characters… it’s overwhelming.

“That’s alright,” Miss Honey says comfortingly. “We can take our time with it. How about we start with a color, to simplify things? Do you have a favorite color, Matilda?” 

“Blue,” Matilda responds. “Would a blue bedroom be too terribly depressing?” 

“I don’t think so,” Miss Honey replies. “Blue is a very relaxing color, I think that would be a fine color to paint your room.”

“Do you like blue, Miss Honey?” Matilda asks, looking up at her. 

“I do,” Miss Honey says. “I think it’s a wonderful color. So many lovely things are blue.” 

“Like the sky,” Matilda says. 

“And bluebells,” Miss Honey says. 

“And the sea.”

“And your eyes,” Miss Honey says, gently tapping the end of Matilda’s nose. Matilda blinks in shock before she giggles faintly. “Let’s go pick some paint.” 

Matilda follows her to the paint aisle and looks around at all the different swatch cards. Miss Honey picks a few blue ones and starts perusing the different shade names. 

“These colors have very strange names,” Matilda says as she grabs a few too. 

“They do, don’t they?” Miss Honey chuckles. “Look here, this one’s called Lost at Sea.” 

Matilda giggles as she holds up one of the cards. “I’ve got one called English Channel.”

Miss Honey chuckles as she reads the one Matilda holds up. “How funny. It’s a lovely shade, though.” 

“It is,” Matilda agrees with a nod. “But I like this one.” 

“Light Sky,” Miss Honey reads through the glasses perched on the tip of her nose. “It’s quite peaceful.”

“Yes,” Matilda says. “Whenever I got overwhelmed before I could do my telekinesis, I used to imagine myself floating in the sky with the clouds. On a hot air balloon, or something. And I was so high up nothing could bother me anymore.” 

“That sounds lovely,” Miss Honey murmurs softly. “Would you like to do that in your room? We could paint the walls this color if you’d like, and add clouds.”

“Could we?” 

Miss Honey crouches down to her eye level. “We can do whatever we’d like.” 

Matilda beams and tackles her in a hug. Miss Honey squeezes her close and gently strokes through the soft ends of Matilda’s hair. They stay that way for a moment, both of them relishing in having someone dear they can hold close, before Miss Honey grabs the swatch card and heads to find someone to mix it up for them. Matilda follows, tightly holding her hand. 

—-

They start painting the next day. They were both quite exhausted after their shopping day, but Matilda is so eager to get started that Miss Honey can’t find it in herself to push it back any further. 

They don some tattered old things of Miss Honey’s that can stand to get covered in paint. Matilda giggles when she sees her in the ill-fitting and informal sweatshirt and jeans. Miss Honey laughs right back seeing Matilda swimming in an old button-down blouse with holes in the elbows and some shorts tied to fit around her waist. 

“Miss Honey?” Matilda asks as she takes a small brush to outline the electrical outlets. 

“Yes, Matilda?” Miss Honey replies as she rolls the blue over a section of the first wall. 

“What’s your middle name?” 

“My middle name is Faith,” Miss Honey says. “My father said that it took so much faith for he and my mother to have me that they hardly even had to think about it.” 

“Jennifer Faith Honey,” Matilda recites to herself. “It’s pretty.”

“Thank you,” Miss Honey says. 

“Is it very common to take someone else’s middle name?” Matilda asks as she outlines the light switch. 

“Not very common, I would think,” Miss Honey says. 

“Oh,” Matilda replies. Miss Honey smiles sadly. 

“Were you hoping to share a name?” 

“Not really,” Matilda shrugs. “I’m just looking for inspiration.” 

“I think you’ll know when you find the proper one for you,” Miss Honey says, finishing the first wall. 

“Matilda Faith sounds nice, but I don’t think it’s right for me,” Matilda replies. 

“And that’s perfectly alright. We’ll get your name sorted out whenever you find the right one for you,” Miss Honey says. She takes a step back to admire her work. “What do you think?”

“It’s brilliant,” Matilda says, unable to keep a smile off her face. 

“Good,” Miss Honey says, panting a bit for breath. “Hard work, isn’t it?” 

Matilda rests her brush on the tray and nods, coming to hug her. “Thank you.” 

“Of course, my little firefly,” Miss Honey murmurs, kissing the top of her head. “You’ve got paint in your hair.” 

“You smell of it.” 

“I think we’ll both need a bath after we finish here,” Miss Honey chuckles. 

They continue chatting as they paint the other three walls. Matilda eventually finishes all her outlets and joins in using the rollers. With the both of them working it goes much more quickly, though Matilda can only reach about three quarters of the way up the wall with hers and has to leave Miss Honey to do the rest. 

By the time they finish the last, the first wall has dried. Miss Honey cracks open the can of white paint they purchased and takes a sponge. Matilda watches curiously as she dabs it in seemingly random spots on the wall in front of her, until she pulls back and reveals a quaint little cloud. 

“What do you think?” 

“It’s fantastic,” Matilda beams. Miss Honey smiles back and holds out the sponge. 

“Why don’t you do a few?” 

Matilda takes the sponge from her hand and dips it into the paint. She picks a spot on the wall and stares at it, unmoving.

“Matilda?” 

“What if I ruin it?” Matilda asks worriedly. Miss Honey gently rests a hand on her shoulder and leans in to look from Matilda’s eye level. 

“Have you ever seen a perfect cloud?” she asks softly. Matilda thinks before she shakes her head. “Then how could you ruin it?” 

She gently slides her hand down Matilda’s arm and guides the sponge to the wall. Once it’s squished against the surface and the first splotch of white is there, Matilda’s fear dissipates the slightest bit. She pulls it away and dabs it around in a few more spots before she takes a step back to see what she’s done. 

A delightful, fluffy looking cloud sits before her. 

“Beautiful,” Miss Honey says. “Do a few more.” 

“What are you going to do?” Matilda asks. Her eyes widen as Miss Honey suddenly pulls out several tiny pots of various colored paints. 

“Skies with just clouds are boring, don’t you think?” 

Matilda smiles and nods. Miss Honey grabs a step stool and heads to the corner of the wall closest to Matilda’s window. 

Matilda sponges on another cloud as Miss Honey outlines a hot air balloon in a rainbow of colors. 

Miss Honey is beautiful when she’s concentrating on something. Matilda likes watching her read, or cook, or clean, or do paperwork. Anything, really. Her eyes aren’t angry the way her parents’ used to be. They simply look… excited. Welcoming to whatever this project she’s working on might bring her. 

Her hair is unkempt today, since they’ve been working so hard. Matilda observes the frizzy strands framing her face, illuminated from behind by the afternoon sun streaming in through the window. She looks like the angels in all those paintings in the books about art Matilda has read. Matilda doesn’t believe in angels in the biblical sense, but if there ever was a real one, it would be Miss Honey.

The silence between them is peaceful as they continue working on the accent wall. Matilda’s old house was always loud; whether due to her parents shouting at each other or just the ever-on television. It’s quiet, here, but in a comforting sort of way. Miss Honey doesn’t feel a need to speak all the time. Matilda appreciates that. 

Miss Honey starts humming a tune to herself as she works. She sings and hums a lot. Her voice is soft, and sweet. She almost never notices she’s doing it. Matilda often just sits and listens to the comforting, dulcet tones of her voice. She doesn’t dare mention the humming or the singing to Miss Honey’s face, lest she become self conscious and stop it altogether. 

Their home is quiet, but not silent. And Matilda is perfectly happy with that. 

-

The sun is beginning to set by the time they finish with their respective tasks. Miss Honey has painted the most beautiful hot air balloon Matilda could’ve possibly imagined, with stripes in every color of the rainbow holding up the little basket. 

“I think we need one last finishing touch,” Miss Honey says as they admire their handiwork from the other side of the room, hands resting pensively on their chins. 

“Finishing touch?” 

Miss Honey grabs the yellow paint and pours some into an empty tray. Matilda approaches in confusion, which only grows when Miss Honey sticks her hands into it. 

“Miss Honey!” 

“I think…” Miss Honey says pensively, looking at every little place on the wall. She reaches up high and places one hand on the wall. “Here.” 

“What are you doing?” Matilda giggles. Miss Honey lines up her other hand against the first handprint so it’s facing the other way and repeats the motion. 

“Come on,” Miss Honey coaxes, motioning to the paint with a smile. Matilda hesitates for a second before sticking her little hands into the gloopy yellow paint. Miss Honey comes up behind her and hoists her into the air. “Put one handprint there.” 

Matilda does, lining up her hand so it’s perpendicular to Miss Honey’s handprints and squishing it against the wall. She squeals slightly as the paint oozes and gets between her fingers. 

“And there,” Miss Honey coaches. Matilda puts handprints everywhere Miss Honey points to, and smiles as she’s rested gently back on the ground. 

“The sun,” she says when she sees what their handprints have made. 

“I think that’s the best sun I’ve ever made,” Miss Honey says proudly. 

“Our thumbprints made a love heart,” Matilda giggles, standing on her tippy toes to show the part where their thumbs overlapped. “There.” 

“I think that’s fitting,” Miss Honey says quietly. Matilda smiles up at her. Miss Honey smiles back. “Now, I think it’s time we leave this to dry and go wash up for dinner.” 

Matilda nods. Impishly, when Miss Honey turns, she presses a still-yellow hand against her backside. Miss Honey yelps and whirls around. 

“Oh, you little gremlin!” she says. Unlike all the previous times Matilda has heard those words, there’s not a hint of malice behind it. She squeals as Miss Honey lunges for her and leaves a print on her shoulder. Matilda grabs a brush and some of the unused paint in other colors and swipes some over her sleeve. 

Miss Honey grabs some purple and swipes some onto Matilda’s nose. Matilda gasps, going a bit cross-eyed as she stares at her purple nose. Miss Honey bites her lip as she tries in vain to hold back a laugh, like she herself can’t believe she just did that. 

It turns to a shriek as Matilda suddenly charges, armed with some green that she swipes all over Miss Honey’s jeans. Miss Honey retaliates by grabbing her and spinning her around in a circle, leaving Matilda laughing harder than she thinks she’s ever laughed in her life and completely unable to do anything other than sink to the plastic-covered ground in exhaustion when she lets her go.

Miss Honey laughs as she lies next to her, staring up at the as-yet undecorated ceiling. “Oh, you make me laugh, Matilda.” 

“You make me laugh too, Miss Honey,” Matilda says quietly. Unthinkingly, she reaches for and squeezes her hand. Miss Honey squeezes her back. 

—————-

“Mrs. Phelps?” Matilda asks the next week during one of her daily visits to the book bus. 

“Yes, Matilda?” Mrs. Phelps replies, her turbaned head popping out from behind a shelf.

“What’s your name?” 

“My name?”

“I’ve only ever known you as Mrs. Phelps. What’s your first name, your middle name?” Matilda asks. 

“Why do you want to know so suddenly?” Mrs. Phelps asks, sitting in her chair and pouring a glass of lemonade. 

“I just think a person’s name is a good thing to know,” Matilda explains. Mrs. Phelps doesn’t seem to notice her dodging the question. 

“My first name is Praveena,” she says. “And my middle name is Dawn.” 

“Praveena Dawn Phelps,” Matilda says. Mrs. Phelps nods. “I like your names.”

“Thank you. I like yours too,” Mrs. Phelps replies. Matilda sips thoughtfully at her lemonade. 

“Do you have any books about names?”

“I must, somewhere” Mrs. Phelps tuts. “Remind me to organize my sections.” 

“I remind you every time I visit, Mrs. Phelps.”

“You do,” Mrs. Phelps acknowledges. “Fat lot of good it does, eh?”

“Miss Honey and I could help you do it sometime,” Matilda says as they both scan the shelves for anything to do with names. “She’s been wanting to visit you more.”

“Has she?” Mrs. Phelps says, a bit louder than she needs to since she’s a slight distance away. “She’s always welcome.” 

“I’ll let her know. We’ll clear a day,” Matilda says. 

“Ah! Here we are,” Mrs. Phelps calls. Matilda rushes over as she pulls out a small stack of dust-covered baby naming books. “I’ll keep an eye out for others, but this should be enough to get you started.”

“Oh, yes, this is perfect!” Matilda says. “May I borrow these?”

“Of course, Matilda,” Mrs. Phelps says. “What are you up to? Trying to name a character in a story of yours?”

“You could say that,” Matilda replies softly, staring at the books in her hands. “Thank you Mrs. Phelps! I’ll see you tomorrow!”

“By the windmill!” Mrs. Phelps calls as she goes rushing out the door. 

“Windmill!” Matilda yells to acknowledge she heard. Mrs. Phelps shakes her head affectionately and starts packing up for the day. 

—————

“Your new room is brilliant,” Lavender says upon seeing it for the first time. It’s come a good ways since the painting of the walls. Every day they add a little something. Matilda has a proper, massive, cozy bed with fluffy white sheets and pillows and blankets like a cloud. 

She has a huge bookshelf, large enough to practically take up the whole wall. Miss Honey has been taking her to bookstores as well as her visits to Mrs. Phelps at the library, so it’s filling up quite quickly. She has her own desk for schoolwork and a place to read. And Miss Honey even put together a special reading nook in the corner, with a plush carpet and rainbow-colored cushions to sit on, and a tulle rainbow curtain hanging from the ceiling like a tent. It’s everything a little girl could want from a bedroom. “Thank you.”

“What are you reading this time?” Lavender asks around a mouthful of bubblegum, lying on her stomach on Matilda’s new bed. 

“A book of baby names,” Matilda replies. 

“Baby names? What baby?” Lavender asks. She gasps suddenly. “Is Miss Honey-”

“No, she’s not,” Matilda interrupts. “I’m trying to pick my middle name.”

“You don’t have one?”

“No,” Matilda replies. “And I can’t find one for myself, either.” 

“My mum says picking my middle names was harder than my first,” Lavender agrees. 

“What’s yours?” 

“I’ve got three,” Lavender replies.

“Three?!” Matilda asks in shock. 

“My whole family kind of does. In the Philippines a lot of people have got two first names, and their mum’s old last name usually becomes a middle name,” Lavender says. “My parents gave me two first names and two middle names. But I count the second first one as a middle one.”

“That’s lucky,” Matilda says. “What are they?”

“My first name is Lavender-Maria,” Lavender says. “And my middle names are Elizabeth and Santos.”

“Lavender-Maria Elizabeth Santos Torres,” Matilda says. 

“In the flesh,” Lavender says with a nod. 

“How did your mother pick your middle name? The Elizabeth one, I mean?” Matilda asks, closing her book and gently putting it aside. 

“I dunno,” Lavender says with a small shrug. “She said she thought about names she’d seen and that she liked. In stories, and stuff. And she picked one from that. But she picked my brother’s because his middle name is our dad’s dad’s dad’s name.” 

“Stories…” Matilda mumbles to herself. She shifts so she’s lying flat on her back, looking up at her ceiling. Miss Honey hung twinkly lights all over it that look like stars when the lights are off. The lights aren’t on right now, since it’s daytime, but they’re one of Matilda’s favorite bits of her new bedroom. “What do you think my middle name should be?” 

“Lavender?” she suggests with a chortle. 

“I wouldn’t want to steal your name,” Matilda replies in complete seriousness. “But it is a lovely name.” 

“What are some of your favorite book characters? Just pick one of them,” Lavender says. 

“Ophelia,” Matilda says. She wrinkles her nose. “Matilda Ophelia sounds like a medical condition.” 

Lavender laughs harder than is probably appropriate. “Yeah.” 

“Sherlock Holmes,” Matilda says.

“He’s a boy.” 

“Yeah,” Matilda sighs. “Casy?” 

“Casy’s not bad,” Lavender says. 

“It still just… doesn’t feel like me,” Matilda grumbles. “How about… Josephine? Miss Honey’s been reading me Little Women before bed this week. She says Jo reminds her of me.”

“Matilda Josephine is just a mouthful,” Lavender says, blunt as always. Matilda nods with a sad sigh. Lavender clocks it, because she sits up and rests a friendly hand on Matilda’s shoulder. “You’ll think of something. You think of everything.” 

Matilda giggles at that. “Thanks, Lavender.” 

“What are best friends for?” Lavender says. 

—————

It takes another month of thinking, and another four name books Mrs. Phelps orders specially for her. Matilda spends practically all of her free time poring over what her middle name should be. She’s had a few that sound nice, but none of them have quite given her that… aha moment. That just right feeling, like the kind you get when a story has the perfect ending. 

She’s about to call off the hunt for a middle name altogether and stick to just being plain Matilda, when something Lavender said comes back to her. 

“But she picked my brother’s because his middle name is our dad’s dad’s dad’s name.”

A family name. 

Matilda never met her own grandparents. They never visited or called. She wonders if her parents even bothered to tell them she existed or not. She doesn’t know their names, or what they look like. Neither of her parents have siblings, so there’s no aunts or uncles to pick from either. She most definitely isn’t interested in naming herself after her parents.

She doesn’t have any family names to pick from. 

She fidgets sadly with a loose thread on Miss Honey’s duvet, thinking about everything and nothing at the same time. Miss Honey is working on something for the school at her big wooden desk against the wall. Matilda listens to the sound of her pen scritching quietly across the paper in perfect, even strokes. 

Miss Honey says all the time that Matilda doesn’t have to ask for hugs when she needs one. And Matilda needs one now. 

She stands and pads over to the desk, wrapping her small arms around Miss Honey’s shoulders and resting her chin to peek over the left one. 

“Hello, darling,” Miss Honey says, resting a warm hand against Matilda’s cheek. 

“Hello,” Matilda replies quietly. 

“You alright?” Miss Honey asks. Matilda nods, so Miss Honey gives her a gentle pat and returns to her work. 

Matilda’s eyes wander over the desk. Everything stays in roughly the same place on Miss Honey’s desk. A snow globe that had been a gift from one of her students, a paperweight in the shape of a swan from another. Matilda’s eyes suddenly lock onto the photos of Miss Honey’s parents. 

“Miss Honey?”

“Yes, Matilda?” the woman replies. 

“What was your mother’s name?” Matilda asks quietly. The story that eventually led them both here told Matilda that her father’s name was Magnus, but Matilda never learned Miss Honey’s mother’s name. 

“My mother?” Miss Honey asks. Matilda can feel her smile as she reaches for the photograph. Mrs. Honey was a very beautiful woman. She gave Miss Honey her eyes, and she had dimples too. Matilda never met her, but even looking at the picture just fills her with a sense of love. “Her name was Katherine. But everyone called her Kate.” 

“Kate,” Matilda says. “Would… do you… do you think she’d mind if that became my middle name?” 

Miss Honey turns her chair around and gently takes Matilda’s little hands into her own warm ones, squeezing her palms. 

“I think she would be so honored,” she says. “That a little girl as amazing as you would want to be named after her.” 

“Really?” Matilda asks. Miss Honey has tears brimming in her eyes as she nods. 

“Really. From everything my father told me about her… she would have loved you so much, Matilda. You two would’ve been the best of friends,” she says, her voice trembling the slightest bit. 

“She sounds like I would’ve loved her too,” Matilda says, drying Miss Honey’s tears with little fingers. “As long as she liked to read.” 

“Where do you think I got it from?” Miss Honey asks with a chuckle, pulling Matilda into her lap. Matilda rests against her shoulder as they both look at the photo one more time. 

“Matilda Kate Honey,” Matilda says, more to herself than anything else. The words just feel… right, in her mouth. In her mind. She’s a Honey. And her middle name is Kate. Just like her grandmother. She does have a family name after all. “I love you, Miss Honey.” 

“I love you too, Matilda Kate.”

—————

thank you for reading!!

now to the boring stuff lol

i post on wednesdays!! not every single one, but when i do post things it will be on a wednesday so if you’d like to see more from me that is the day to keep an eye out! 

please feel free to leave requests, whether for these two or not and i will do what i can to make them happen :) 

i am, unfortunately for everyone involved, american, so i apologize for any inaccuracies in their britishness or for any differences in british systems and american systems that i’m not aware of. please bear with me!! 

with the exception of lavender (and likely a few other more ‘background’ characters) i’m going to do my best to leave them as physically vague as possible. for stories like these i think it’s more important that you as the reader be able to imagine whoever you want as these characters; whether that’s yourself, your favorite actor, or something else :) 

going along with that i did as much research as i could about how filipino people handle names but i am not filipino so i apologize sincerely again if anything with lavender wasn’t accurate.

i’m on wattpad and ao3 at the same handle so please feel free to pop in and say hello there if you’d like to!

i think that’s everything!! thank you so much for reading!! i hope you enjoyed and that you have a lovely day! 

[futfemfantasies]

A wedding to remember ~ Steph Catley x reader

Weddings in vineyards are always beautiful but it's something about the venue under the Australian sunset that makes it stand out. With fairy lights decorating the trees and rustic vibes from the wooden tables, Emily and Kat designed it perfectly. You watch the newlyweds have their first dance, a glass of champagne in hand, when you notice a familiar brunette join your other Matilda's teammates across the dance floor.

Steph has been in your life since you were teenagers. Growing closer when on camps together and sharing moments on and off the pitch. Between you both there has always been an unspoken connection that neither person wants to acknowledge. For many years now, there has been one complication for your friendship to progress further - Dean. You told yourself over and over again that there was no chance anything could happen. But Steph got engaged to Dean and you couldn't stand to see it so you move clubs to protect your feelings. Every camp for the national team you'd try to hide your feelings but many of your Matilda's teammates caught on quickly. Every time Steph glances your way, it becomes harder for you to keep those feelings settled.

The sun started to move behind the horizon and more people moved to the dance floor. You decided to stay back and watch, not really in a dancing mood. You heard heels click behind you and you felt a hand on your shoulder. You turned around and saw the woman taking over your thoughts since you arrived.

“Hey stranger,” She said softly.

“Hey,” you replied, trying not to appear nervous.

Steph smiled small, but warm. “You've been hiding over here all night.”

“Just enjoying the view.” you said, gesturing to the many trees in the vineyard.

Steph nodded, looking at the sunset and dimly lit trees before facing you again. “You've been radio silent lately, is everything okay?”

“Just a lot on my mind I guess.” you hesitated. Steph studied you, her expression unreadable.

“You know you can talk to me about anything?”

“I know.” you whisper before going to see your other Matilda's teammate.

Emily insisted that all the Matilda's are to go on the dance floor at least once during the night. Ellie dragged you on there, declaring you needed to ‘loosen up’. After pushing through the crowd, one of your favorite songs comes on. As you dance around with Ellie, she gives you a slight nod to look behind you. Steph was there with her hand outstretched, silently asking you to dance as the music got slower. You hesitate for a millisecond before taking Steph's hand. Time seemed to slow as Steph guided you to the middle of the dance floor. You placed your hand on her waist, trying to ignore all the feelings inside. Neither of you spoke for a while, just gently swaying with the soft melody, until Steph broke the silence.

“Dean and I broke up.” she said, voice quiet but steady.

You stopped in your tracks, looking Steph in the eyes. “what?”

“It's been coming for a while,” Steph admitted. “We both knew it wasn't working anymore,” Before you could respond she continued.

“I've been thinking a lot about what I want - about what makes me happy,” Her eyes met yours, hands tighten around your waist. “and it's you.”

Your breath hitched, as the weight of her words started to settle in. “Steph…”

“Follow me.”

Steph untangles from you and pushes her way through the crowd. You follow behind like a lost puppy until you get a little bit away from the reception. Steph pulls you in her arms and you search her face for any hint of doubt. There was only honesty and Hope.

“I've wanted to say this for so long,” you admit, as your voice trembled. “but I didn't think I could.”

Steph hold your face in one of her hands as she smiled, “well, now you can.”

With that, the distance between you became non-existent. the music Fading Into the background and all you can focus on is her. you both lean in and the wedding slowly forgotten as you two were caught up in each other.

The kiss under the stars changes everything. For the first time, the barriers between you and Steph crumble. As you pull back, your foreheads resting together, Steph smiles—a real, unforgettable smile that feels like home.

“We can’t keep this just for tonight,” she says softly.

You nod, your heart pounding. “I don’t want to.”

The rest of the wedding fades into a blur. You and Steph spend the next few days together, slipping away from the chaos to steal quiet moments just for yourselves. Long walks along the beach, lazy afternoons in the sun, and late-night conversations filled with laughter and shared memories remind you both of what you’ve always had—and what you could have.

As the offseason looms, you both return to Europe, reluctant to leave the bubble you’ve created but excited to see what the future holds. Steph heads back to London, while you return to Barcelona, the distance between you feeling more manageable now than ever before.

The transfer window is in full swing, and rumors are flying about player moves. You’ve kept your decision close to your chest, wanting to surprise Steph when the time is right. The deal with Arsenal has been finalised, and the announcement is just days away.

With the help of Caitlin and Katie, you arrange to meet Steph at one of your favorite coffee spots in London. She’s already seated at a corner table when you arrive, her face lighting up the moment she sees you.

“I didn’t expect to see you so soon,” she says, standing to hug you.

You grin, nerves bubbling under the surface. “I have a surprise.”

“Oh?” she asks, raising an eyebrow as you both sit.

You slide an Arsenal scarf out of your bag and place it on the table between you. Steph stares at it for a moment, her eyes widening as realisation dawns.

“No way,” she says, her voice filled with disbelief and excitement.

“Way,” you reply, unable to keep the grin off your face. “The transfer is all finalised. I’m joining Arsenal next season.”

Steph laughs, leaning back in her chair as she takes it all in. “You’re serious?”

“Completely,” you say. “Thought it was time for a change—and maybe time to be closer to you.”

Her smile softens, and she reaches across the table to take your hand. “You have no idea how happy this makes me.”

For the first time in a long time, everything felt right.

[cooneyscross]

You're My Little Secret - Kyra Cooney Cross

Kyra Cooney Cross x lionesses!reader

summary - kyra's coming to arsenal and none of the girls know that you already know each other very, very well.

warnings - nothing except its kinda crap, lot's of rambling. (let me know if you want me to make this a series)

Kyra x Sunny masterlist

Kyra Cooney Cross was Arsenal's latest signing, the young Australian leaving Hammarby to come and play for one of the biggest clubs in England. Most of the girls had known for a while now about her joining you since before the world cup.

Since the news was properly announced, Caitlin and Steph had made sure to send multiple essays on all the group chats about making the girl feel as welcomed as possible.

Unlike Kyra who had already played for two clubs, Arsenal becoming her third, you were much like Leah Williamson, you'd been with Arsenal since you were 8 and had risen up to the top through the academy and now were a frequent starter for the senior team.

Arsenal had become a home for you, and you never planned on leaving. All the girls had become your family, every single one of you shared a special bond. That's what made Kyra coming to Arsenal so awkward.

You didn't mean to keep such a big secret from everyone, you and Kyra had just wanted to stay private. No one knew, not even Katie who was like your older (extremely annoying) sister or Vic who was your best friend. Kyra hadn't even told Mini and Charli. You just never felt the need to tell them.

Only one person even knew the two of you had met before, but she didn't have a clue that you were together.

Even when they would constantly pester you, trying to get you to go on dates you just let them go on, always ignoring them.

But still after over a year of calling Kyra your girlfriend, not a single person knew about the countless kisses the two of you had shared, or all the nights you'd spent with only each other.

Nobody knew all the coffee dates or the late-night walks.

Nobody knew of the hours you'd spent on facetime when you were away from each other.

It was hard acting like you hadn't already known the girl for 2 years and been dating for 1 and a half of them. But it was better that way. You'd seen how crazy fans went about trying to prove that Katie and Caitlin were dating and the stress that had caused on their relationship, and all the times when they felt like they had no privacy. You and Kyra didn't want that. If you didn't tell anyone, not even your teammates and friends, there was no chance of the public finding out as long as you stayed discreet. But that was easy considering the two of you had a long distant relationship and no fans even knew the two of you had ever spoken to each other.

It was going to be harder now though.

Kyra had received many offers from clubs around the world, but when Arsenal had offered it was a no brainer that she would join the red and white team. She would do anything to be able to spend more time with you, a nice change to the normal distance in your relationship.

A few days after the news Kyra had joined was announced, it was her first day at the club. And for you it was your first time seeing most of the girls as you had been out since the end of the world cup with a minor ankle injury missing out on the games against Linköping and Paris FC in the champions league qualification.

Vic was the first person you greeted as she walked in, practically dragging her feet along the ground. You leaped onto your best friend wrapping your legs around her, forcing her to give you a piggyback.

'Get off me Sunny.' She groans trying to shake her body and get you off. You just wrapped your arms tighter around her neck resting your chin on her head.

Sunny was the nickname you had received when you had begun properly playing with the senior squad. The girls had been talking about you when the topic of your bubbly personality came up. You can’t remember who, but someone said something relating you to the sun and ever since then the name Sunny had stuck.

'But I haven't seen you in ages.' You complain before giving up and sliding down her body and landing on your bottom on the floor. A small pout on your lips. 'I hate you.' It was meant to just be a whisper but she still heard you, resulting in a kick in the head.

'Get up you big baby.' The Dutch girl demands, and you do as she says following her to the room where most of your teammates already were.

You go around the room giving everyone a hug, except for Steph and Caitlin your favourite people to annoy on the whole team. You tugged at both of their hair as they were facing away turning away almost immediately and diving into conversation with Beth and Leah.

You didn’t get to say much though, as a pair of hands turn you back around and your greeted by two pissed of Aussie's faces. Y/n L/n,’ you wince at the full name, the girls only ever saying it when you were in trouble, ‘we haven't even said a word to you and you're already annoying us.' Steph gives you a stern glare and you smile sheepishly.

It was well known by almost everyone that you loved to annoy your older teammates.

'We've only just gotten away from Kyra and now we have to deal with you, and her when she gets here too.' Caitlin groans, 'Do you reckon Jonas will let me resign and go play in a foreign country?' You grin cheekily at her, knowing that she really loved you. Katie often joked that you were like Caitlin's child as you always came to her whenever you had problems, and she always had your back.

'It's ok Cait,' You say, giving her a light pat on her shoulder 'I know you hate to admit it, but you love me.' She rolls her eyes at you wrapping you up in a headlock, you wriggle around, making weird, suffocated noises as you try to escape her grasp.

It's almost like fate that Katie walks in in that exact moment, you slip out of Caitlin's grasp and sprint over to the older Irish girl. 'Katie, you need to sort out your girlfriend.' You tell her urgently 'She was trying to kill me.' Katie laughs, looking over at her girlfriend who is back talking to Steph. The Ireland captain was used to the playful banter you and Caitlin had, often having to be the one to step in when you both took it a bit too far.

'Do I not even get a hello?' She teases you causing you to roll your eyes and poke her in the stomach. 'Oi, I'll get Caitlin to put you in another headlock.' She threatens.

'Please. No!' You plead, putting your hands up in defence before running over to Lotte. You slung your arm over her shoulder. 'Carlotte Mae Wubben-Moy.' You grin watching her face to see her reaction at her full name.

'You know how much I hate it when you call me that.' You don't have time to respond to her when Steph and Beth come and join the two of you.

'Is she annoying you as well?' Steph asks Lotte, giving her a sympathetic look as she sees your arm over her shoulder and your signature cheeky, smug grin that you always have whenever you are annoying someone. 'God you and Kyra are going to get along like a house on fire.' She tells you, her face slightly scared as she thinks of all the pesty things you and Kyra would do upon meeting each other.

Little did she know that you and Kyra already got on.

You’re about to respond but don’t get to as Jonas walks in. A hush settling in the room.

'Hello girls.' The Swedish man shoots everyone a smile as you all move to sit down on the chairs so you're facing him 'Special welcome back to Sunny, so nice to see you again after the break, congratulations on your success at the World Cup, you played brilliantly,' the mention of the world cup sends a stinging pain through you. You still hadn't fully recovered from the loss in the final to Spain, you were so close to winning and were still devastated that you couldn't get the result. 'Before we properly talk about the season ahead and reflect on the games against Paris fc and Linköping, I'd like to welcome our newest signing who I am sure will play a massive part in helping to lead us towards success. I am sure you already know who she is but please welcome Kyra Cooney Cross to the Arsenal family.' Everyone claps and some people even cheer as the Aussie comes into the room.

You almost immediately make eye contact with her who had been searching for you the moment she walked in. You have to bite your lip to hold back a large smile.

You hadn't seen her since the Lionesses had played the Matildas in the semifinals. You had been too busy recovering from your injury so you could be back in time for the start of the season to have time to properly catch up with her, so it took all your self-control not to get up and run into her arms.

She goes and sits with Caitlin, not wanting to make it weird if she went and sat with you.

You turn to Alessia who is sitting next to you, the two of you have a short conversation while Kyra is settling in, before you have to listen to Jonas talking about important stuff, but it was pretty much the same talk he had at the beginning of every season.

When he lets everyone go and do a light gym session, before proper training after lunch, you are almost immediately on your feet and heading into the gym.

You talk to Alessia but are hardly paying attention waiting for Kyra to come out wanting to say hi to your girlfriend. When she does, she's with Steph and Caitlin who are pointing at all the girls, probably telling Kyra all their names and stuff about them. You'd already done that over face time.

When Steph points to you and Alessia, you make eye contact again. This time you smile and wave at them. Kyra says something to them that you can't hear but they begin to walk over to you.

'I don't know if we should be doing this.' Steph says anxiously, who you can hear now since they were getting closer.

‘Doing what.’ Your girlfriend asks.

‘Introducing you and Sunny, you’re the biggest pests in the world.’ Caitlin tells her.

'We'll probably end up regretting this moment when they start stealing our boots every training session' Steph says and you grin at the left back.

'That's such a boring prank, I've got much better ones planned already.' You laugh and Caitlin rolls her eyes.

'Kyra this is y/n, but everyone calls her Sunny, Sunny this is Kyra.' Caitlin says to the both of you. It was weird hearing people introduce the two of you like you were strangers, but you played along with it anyways, not wanting to raise suspicions.

You pull her into a hug, and she wraps her arms back around you in return. You almost melt into her warmth, the familiar smell of her perfume consuming your nostrils. You could stay in Kyra's arms forever, but you know it would look weird if you stayed like this for too long.

'Nice meeting you.' Kyra says holding her hand out for you to shake. Her acting skills were terrible, she sounded like a robot, and you had to hold your breath so you wouldn't laugh at her.

'I look forward to playing with you this season.' You say back, knowing you probably sounded just as awkward as she did. You shake her hand, and she smiles slightly when she sees one of her rings on your finger. When you let go of each other Kyra turns to greet Alessia, this time the interaction seems more natural.

'It's going to be a tough race to see which one of you is more annoying.' Steph tells you as you and her watch Kyra interact with Alessia. You're not trying to look like a lovesick puppy, but as Caitlin looks at you from the side it's all she can think of, she tells herself she's just seeing things though, you can’t be looking at Kyra like she’s your long-lost lover. Right?

'I need the toilet.' Kyra whines to Steph after a while as the five of you are walking to the weights area of the gym.

'I'll show you where they are.' You say almost immediately, cringing at how eager you sounded to show a girl, who supposedly you were only meeting for the first time, where the toilets were. You played it off though missing Caitlin's small frown of confusion before she shrugs and says she'll meet Kyra at the cafeteria at Lunch.

'Don't get up to any mischief.' Steph tells Kyra in a way much like how a mother would talk to a child 'you don't want to make a bad first impression.' Kyra nods and you both watch as the two older Australians walk away.

'Lessi, you coming?' You ask the blonde striker, who shakes her head. 'I'm going to go and see Lotte.' She says leaving you and Kyra alone.

As you and Kyra walked off, you felt almost giddy. You had time just the two of you for the first time in ages. When you were out of sight from everyone else, yours and Kyra's hands intertwined.

'I've missed you so much.' She whispers a small smile cracking on your face.

'I've missed you more baby.' You say, turning around and holding open the door for her stepping to the side so she can enter. 'I'll wait out here for you.' A small frown forms on her cute face.

'I don't really need the toilet.' She tells you as though it was obvious 'I just wanted to spend time alone with you.' She steps closer to you placing a hand on your arm.

You two had been in moments like this too many times to keep count, but that didn't stop your heart from racing. Every time you were with Kyra, whether it be on facetime or in person, you'd constantly be questioning how you got so lucky to have a girl like her.

When she's so close to you that your chests are basically touching, you close that small gap placing your lips on her. Your hand holds the back of her neck, keeping her as near as possible, whilst hers sneak underneath the fabric of your training top running up and down your back. The contact of her skin on yours gives you shivers, turning into putty at Kyra's touch.

As the two of you were sharing a passionate moment, Steph and Caitlin were doing warmups in the corner of the gym, their voices were hushed but intense.

'I don't know, Steph.' Caitlin whispered; her brow furrowed with suspicion. 'Did you notice how they were acting before? It was just… off.' Steph nodded thoughtfully, adjusting the weights before her next shoulder press.

'Yeah, it was weird. Like they were trying too hard to act normal.' She glanced around before leaning in closer. 'Do you think they're hiding something from us? Like, maybe they knew each other before, and they've been keeping it from us this whole time?' Caitlin eyes widened with realization.

'I think you might be onto something. How else do you explain why Sunny was so eager to take Kyra to the toilet. and the way she was looking at her.' They exchanged knowing looks.

'Should we ask them about it?' Steph asked her Aussie teammate who just shook her head.

'Let's just see how the next few days go,' Caitlin says, not wanting to jump straight to conclusions 'There's probably nothing even going on and we're just overthinking. Sunny can be very friendly, that's probably it.' Steph hums in agreement the two of them changing the subject to Steph's upcoming wedding.

Back in the toilets you and Kyra were still making up for lost time. The two of you had moved into the bathrooms, you were sitting on the sink your legs wrapped around Kyra's torso. She had undone your plait, so your hair was now loose, all knotty from her hands being tangled in it.

When you pull away Kyra's eyes are glued to your face. The midfielder memorising every single detail almost as if she was never going to see you again. 'God your gorgeous.' She mumbles placing a light kiss on your jaw, you lean your head back a slight sigh of pleasure escaping your lips. Kyra uses this as an opportunity to place wet kisses all along your neck but you're quick to push her away knowing it would look strange if you came out of the toilets with fresh hickies littering your neck.

'Not now.' You tell her when she pouts, your quick to slide off the sink and readjust your t-shirt. 'We should get going before anyone notices we’ve been gone for a while.’

‘But I’ve only just got to see you.’ She complains clinging to your arm like a koala clings to a tree. ‘five more minutes? She begs giving you puppy eyes that you normally found it very hard to say no to.

‘I’m sorry Ky, but we really got to go otherwise they’ll start wondering where we are.’ It takes a minute of persuading Kyra, and then fixing your hair and hers before you’re walking back out to where everyone else is.

‘I’ve never heard anyone call you Sunny before.’ Kyra says.

‘Really? Surely you’ve heard someone call me it before, everyone does.’ You say slightly shocked, even your parents had started calling you Sunny.

‘Nope, never have.’ The Aussie answers ‘I think I’ll stick with babe and my love. You know, the names only I can call you.’ She sends a wink your way and you shove her lightly.

'Who said I wasn't seeing anyone else?' A teasing grin plasters your face as you joke with Kyra, her face turning stone cold.

‘I’ll take my ring back; I’ve been wondering where that was for a while now.’ She warns making you laugh.

‘Oh yeah.’ You’d almost forgotten about the ring ‘I think it looks better on me though. I even put it on my middle finger so I could do this.’ You flip her off making her jaw drop.

‘That is not the way you should be treating your amazing, super-hot and funny girlfriend is it?’ She teases ruffling your hair.

‘C’mon Ky.’ You sigh, undoing your hair again and re-plaiting it ‘That’s the second time you’ve messed my hair up already today.’ She laughs.

You are back in the gym now, hopping onto the bikes to do your warmups while Kyra leaves you to go back to Caitlin. When you get off the bike you grab a mat to do your stretches, alone until Vic comes next to you.

‘I’ve been looking for you for ages.’ She says sitting next to you watching as you stretch. ‘We need to do our pull-up comp, you may have beaten me last year but I want revenge.’ She grins and you roll your eyes.

‘As if. I love your confidence though.’

‘I’m serious, I’ve got this one in the bag.’ Vic tells you one you've finished, you and Vic make your way over to the pull up machines. Manu noticed the two of you getting ready and since last year, when you two had started the pull up competition everyone had been placing bets on who would win.

‘Everyone, Vic and Sunny are doing the pull up comp.’ The Austrian shouts catching most people’s attention.

Kyra was with Caitlin and Katie at the far side of the room, but still heard the goalkeepers loud shouts. ‘What is that?’ She asked the older pair.

‘When Vic joined last year her and Sunny did a competition to see who could do the most pull ups. Sunny won and Vic is determined to win this year.’ Katie says, catching Kyra’s interest. She’d love to see her girlfriend doing pull ups with her muscles on full display.

'Let's go watch.' Kyra insists, not leaving the others much a choice as she's already gotten up and started walking over.

'Someone's a bit eager.' Katie chuckles to Caitlin.

'Yeah.' The aussie responds, though her voice is only a mumble as her thoughts were still thinking about her and Steph's conversation from earlier.

When the trio reached the pull up machines, you and Vic were mid argument about who was going to go first. 'I won last time so I should get to pick.' You stated, restating your argument for the 100th time.

'Exactly.' Vic sighs, 'You won, so you don't need an advantage.' Everyone groans, some people who had gathered round to watch debating walking away if the two of you were going to keep going back and forth arguing the same points.

'Do you want to do this or not?' Manu asks the two of you, standing in between you to temporarily stop your bickering. 'Because if you carry on we're going to have to go outside before you can actually do the comp.'

'Fine.' You spit giving Vic a nasty glare 'You can go first, but you'll still lose.'

'Will not.'

'Will so.'

Will not.'

Will s-'

'Can the two of you shut up for once?' Lotte interrupts and you look around noticing that Lia, Sabs and Stina had all returned to their workouts.

'Sorry guys.' You apologize before walking over to the bar and getting your grip ready. When Manu says go you start, at first its easy and you breeze past the first 10, but then your arms begin to ache and you slow down each pull up becoming harder and harder.

'C'mon Sunny!' People begin cheering, their shouts getting louder as you get to your 20th, you use all your leftover strength to do one more before collapsing.

After catching your breath, you get up, sending Vic a cheeky smile as she gets on the bar ready to have her turn.

You spot Kyra watching from afar with Caitlin and Katie, not knowing that the girl was replaying your pull ups in your mind. The whole time she had been practically drooling over you, mainly your biceps that were on display.

No one had noticed the midfielders lovestruck expressions as she watched her girlfriend work out.

Everyone except Steph.

When Kyra notices you staring she smiles, dimples forming on her cheeks. She walks over to you and you've completely forgotten about the competition, unbeknownst to the loud cheers as Vic also reaches 20 pull ups. People sighing as she's unable to complete a 21st.

'Maybe I should get some bars so I can see you do that every day.' Your girlfriend whispers in your ear when she reaches you a small smile breaking onto your face.

'You enjoyed that did you?' You tease flexing your muscles causing Kyra's cheeks to get a light pink tint and her to stumble on her words.

You pull your sleeves back down when Vic wraps her arms around you. 'Were you even watching Sunny?'

A feeling of guilt washes over you as you realise you were too caught up with Kyra to watch Vic have her turn.

'Yes...'

'You little shit.' Vic gasps when you fail at lying 'I think you should be disqualified...' She turns around to everyone else 'Who else thinks Sunny should be disqualified?' she shouts everyone immediately agreeing.

'You guys.' You wine, hurt by their betrayal 'You don't even know why Vic thinks I should be disqualified.'

'Yeah but it's worth it to see you mad.' Katie laughs causing you to flip her off. 'I wouldn't be doing that if I were you.'

Later, when everyone was outside doing drills Steph and Kyra were distanced from the the others. The older girl asking Kyra about how she was settling in so far.

The left back, who had not been able to stop thinking about how you and Kyra had been acting strange decided now would be a good time to ask about you.

Steph leaned forward slightly, her expression curious yet casual. 'You and Sunny seem to get along really well. Do you like her?'

Kyra felt a pang of panic shoot through her. She hadn't expected Steph to pick up on anything. She tried to keep her voice steady, hoping that Steph was just being curious. 'Oh, um, Sunny? Yeah, she's… she's nice. We get along.' Kyra's words stumbled over each other, her mind racing for a suitable explanation.

Steph raised an eyebrow, her gaze penetrating. 'You seem a bit flustered,' she remarked softly, a knowing smile playing on her lips. 'Is there something you're not telling me?'

Kyra's heart sank. She hadn't planned for this conversation to take such a turn. You would kill her if Steph found out. She glanced around nervously, hoping no one else was listening in. 'I… I don't know what you mean Steph.' she managed finally, trying to keep her voice light despite the knot of anxiety in her stomach.

Steph leaned back, still smiling knowingly. She knew Kyra was hiding something. 'Come on, Kyra,' she said gently. 'I can tell when something's up. You can talk to me.'

Kyra sighed inwardly, knowing she couldn't keep denying it. She glanced over at Sunny, who was engrossed in her phone, oblivious to their conversation. 'It's… it's not like that,' Kyra began awkwardly, her cheeks flushing. 'We're just got along straight away.'

Steph's smile turned into a grin of amusement. 'Uh-huh,' she teased lightly. 'Sure, just friends.'

Kyra felt a mix of relief and nervousness. She hadn't intended to reveal anything, but now it seemed Steph was onto something. "I… I really mean it, I think that we're going to be close, that's all.' Kyra insisted, hoping her voice sounded convincing.

Steph chuckled softly, shaking her head. 'Okay, Kyra,' she said, her tone affectionate. 'Whatever you say.'

As they continued the drills, Kyra couldn't help stealing glances at you, when you looked up and caught her eye, you gave her a happy smile. Kyra thought Despite the awkwardness of the moment, Kyra couldn't deny the warmth she felt knowing that Steph suspected something, even if she hadn't outright admitted it.

[misfit0789]

Forever Out of Reach?

Kyra Cooney-Cross x Reader

Summary: R doesn't get to follow through on her plans…or does she?

Word count: 4.2k

Warnings: Angst, hurt/comfort, maybe main character death

Part 1, Part 2

This is part 2 to my other KCC fic! It is a bit all over and the POVs switch but I'm kind of happy with the way it came out and I hope you all enjoy it! I did change this from my inital plan so it is not as angsty as I originally planned but this will do. Also this is not proofread! I wanted to get this out.

Kyra POV

"Kyra we get it, you're excited to see Y/n but please sit still! There's still an hour left of the ride before we reach London." Steph groans having had enough of Kyra bouncing in her seat next to her on the plane. Kyra sighs stopping her movements, sitting back in her seat.

"Sorry," Kyra whispers, "Yes I'm excited to see Y/n but something just doesn't feel right. I can't shake this feeling that something bad is going to happen or has happened. To make it worse I can't send or receive texts and calls until we land so I can't reach out to Y/n to try and calm my anxiety." Kyra reveals. Steph looks at the younger girl with a look of sadness, reaching over to wrap her arm around the midfielders shoulder and pulling her into her body. Kyra lets out another sigh this one more shaky as she tries to hold in her sobs from the anxiety rattling her body, resting her head on Steph's shoulder.

"It's okay, I'm sure everything is okay. Like I said we only have about an hour left of the flight. Try and get some rest." Steph whispers, rubbing her hand along Kyra's arm. The younger girl nods leaning into Steph more to try and be able to relax enough to get some sleep. Eventually Steph feels Kyra's breathing even out and lets out a sigh herself hoping she's right in that everything is okay for Kyra. She's never seen the girl like this and she hopes she never has to again.

~~~~~

Y/n POV

"Y/n/n! Wake up!!" Harper yells, jumping on top of me. I groan at the feeling of her foot in my ribs. I turn over wrapping my arms around her, holding her to my chest.

"Shhh, sleepy time," I mumble. I feel her laughing as she wiggles in my hold trying to escape.

"Harps, go join RaRa in the kitchen for breakfast. Y/n/n will be there soon." I hear Katrina say loosening my hold on Harper so she can listen to her mother. My niece sliding out of my arms and running out of the room. I let out a sigh turning onto my back and staring at the ceiling. My view is interrupted when Katrina's face appears in my line of vision. "Nervous?" I nod.

"I'm confident she'll say yes but I still have that sliver of doubt she'll say no. I don't want to lose her Kat," I say emotion present in my voice. I hear Katrina sigh before she moves to lay next to me in the bed. I sit up and shuffle over giving her the space to sit. She wraps her arm around my shoulder pulling my head to rest on her shoulder.

"If I know anything it's that Kyra will say yes to you. She loves you. There is no doubt about that. You will never lose that girl. I'm sure of it." Kat says rubbing my arm. I let out a breath relaxing at the words from my sister.

"Thanks Kat. I needed that," I wrap my arm around her pulling her into a hug. She pulls back a soft smile on her face.

"Of course. You're my baby sister and I love you. There is no reason for her to say no to you. Now Clara and I made breakfast, why don't you get dressed and come eat. You have a few hours before you have to head to the airport." Katrina says standing from the bed, moving towards the door to her guest room.

"As long as Clara cooked and you watched then I'll eat," I joke throwing the covers to the side, rising to my feet and stretching. She rolls her eyes.

"I'm not that bad of a cook, you like some of the things I cook," She says watching as I grab my overnight bag, rifling through it to find clothes to wear for the day.

"Emphasis on the some there Kat," I say tossing my bag to the side with one arm as the other holds the clothes.

"You're an ass Y/n" Kat rolls her eyes not noticing the person hiding by the door.

"RaRa! Mama said a bad word!" Harper yells turning and running towards the kitchen where Clara is with Koby. I look at Kat with a smirk as she smacks her forehead.

"Someone's in trouble," I sing walking towards the ensuite. As I turn to shut the door I see Kat glaring at me.

"That statement rings true Y/n," She says before turning and running after her daughter. "Harper!" I chuckle shutting the door, moving to take a shower.

~~~~~

After I was showered and dressed I made my way to the kitchen for breakfast. I see Koby in his high chair, Kat sat next to him helping Harper eat as Clara finishes up the cooking.

"Morning Y/n! Have a seat, I'll make you a plate," Clara says, a beaming smile present. I smile and nod moving to sit opposite Kat and Harper.

"Y/n/n! Nanna got Koby and I gifts when we went to see them! Want to see!" Harper exclaims. I chuckle and nod.

"Of course! Give me some time and I'll come see what Nanna bought you once I've finished eating. Okay?" I ask, Harper nods eagerly before sliding off the chair and running into the other room. "Thank you Clara. What did Kat cook? I want to know what to avoid," I joke as Clara places a plate of food in front of me. I jump when Kat kicks my leg under the table.

"Watch it," Kat warns, I chuckle as I begin eating.

"What time are you due to pick Kyra up?" Clara asks a few minutes later as she cleans up the kitchen. I finish my last bite and answer.

"She texted me earlier, they are due back around 6 so I'll leave here around 5 to hopefully avoid traffic." I say, standing with my plate to place it in the sink.

"You nervous?" Clara asks, rinsing my dish. I let out a deep breath and nod.

"Very, but Kat helped ease my nerves a little. I was overreacting. Ky and I have been through so much together, I was an idiot for thinking she'd say no," I chuckle, Clara nods, drying the dish and placing it in the cabinet before turning to face me.

"Your sister was right, that girl loves you with everything she has. She won't say no to you." Clara reassures me. I smile and nod giving her a hug.

"Thank you, I'm so happy my sister met you." I say. I feel Clara smile as she gives me a squeeze.

"I'm happy too, she gave me my family to love and brought you into my life. I've never had a better nap than when I'm with you," she jokes laughing. I laugh pushing her away.

"I'm happy to be of service," I joke stepping back, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go see what my mother bought my niece." I point over my shoulder where Harper is with Kat and Koby.

"Oh you'll love this!" Clara laughs. I give her a confused look before moving into the living room where Kat is sat with Koby on her lap as Harper plays with what looks to be a kids doctor toy set.

"Look Y/n/n!! I'm a doctor! Like you!" Harper yells walking over to me with a white lab coat and a stethoscope around her neck. I kneel down to her level admiring her look.

"Wow! Looking good Harps!" I say bringing her into a hug," Nanna did a good job with your gift huh?" I ask as Harper pulls away from me. Harper nods eagerly.

"Uh huh! She got me these too!" Harper exclaims moving to grab what looks to be bandages and a toy syringe.

"Woah! Now you really are like me! Do you remember how to use this?" I ask pointing at the stethoscope still hanging around her neck. She nods running over to ger her teddy bear and show me.

~~~~~

"I'll see you guys in a couple days for dinner." I say to my sister as I grab my bag from the floor by her front door, looping the strap over my shoulder.

"We will see you and your fiancée then." Kat teases. I roll my eyes pulling her into a hug.

"Thank you," I whisper. Kat gives me a squeeze before she pulls away.

"Go pick up the pest. Enjoy your night together." Kat say giving me a smile. I nod and bid my goodbye to Clara, Harper and Koby before making my way to my car. I throw my bag in the boot, patting my pocket where I have Kyra's ring. A smile on my face at the thought of seeing Kyra and finally proposing to her.

I get in my car and begin my drive to the airport, music softly playing from a playlist Kyra had made. I quietly sing a long to one of the songs before everything goes black.

~~~~~

Kyra POV

"Ky where is your girlfriend? She should have been here by now." Alessia asks me. I let out another sigh as I check my phone for what feels like the hundredth time in the last 5 minutes looking for any message or call from Y/n.

"I don't know. She told me she was leaving Mini's at 5 to avoid traffic. She knew we'd be here around 6. It's almost 6:30, she'd never be this late without letting me know. Let me try Mini. Maybe they got caught up talking and she left late forgetting to call me." I unlock my phone pulling up Mini's contact and pressing the call button. The phone rings twice before someone answers.

"Kyra!" I smile hearing Harper's voice, though a much as I'd love to talk to her I'm too worried about Y/n.

"Hay Harps! Is your mom or RaRa around?" I heard her shuffle around before a new voice is on the phone.

"Hello?"  

"Clara? Have you or Mini heard from Y/n?" I question quickly. My nerves at a high.

"Kyra? No? She left a little after 5 to avoid traffic to get you at the airport. Is she not there?" Clara questions, worry growing in her voice knowing how uncommon it is for Y/n to be late somewhere.

"No," I choke out, my worry increasing. "I've called her and texted her but her phone goes to voicemail and my texts are going unread. Clara I'm worried. Y/n would never do this," I say on the verge of tears, realizing something must be seriously wrong.

"Okay, I will call a baby sitter and Mini and I will come get you okay. We will figure out where Y/n is and what's going on. I need you to take deep breathes okay Kyra" I nod, forgetting she can't see me before whispering out a 'yes' as I begin to take deep breaths trying to calm my racing heart.

"Ky?" I turn to see Alessia, Leah and Steph looking at me in concern. Y/n was supposed to bring them to their apartments before we went home ourselves. I shake my head, saying a quick goodbye to Clara before hanging up.

"Clara said Y/n left their place a little after 5 and that they haven't heard from her since. Clara is getting a baby sitter then coming to get us." I explain, continuing to take deep breaths. They nod but stay silent having known Y/n long enough to know her being late is not normal.

After waiting a few more minutes my phone rings. I move quick to grab it hoping it's Y/n but instead it's Y/n's work. Why is the hospital calling me?

"Ms. Cooney-Cross?" A voice on the other side asks.

"Yes? This is her." I say confused moving away from the girls, avoiding their questioning looks.

"This is Casey from London General. We have you listed as the emergency contact for Dr. Y/n Gorry. I’m sorry to tell you but she was in an accident…" I stopped listening after that trying to wrap my head around what she said, standing in shock on the sidewalk in front of the airport.

"Ky?" I blink seeing Alessia's concerned face in front of me. "What's going on?" I just shake my head. The woman on the phone still talking. Alessia reaches for my phone passing it off to Steph who talks to the woman trying to understand what is going on.

"Y/n - " I cut myself off as a sob escapes me.

"Oh Ky…" Alessa rushes forward wrapping me in her arms letting me cry into her shoulder. Her hand runs up and down my back as she whispers quiet reassurances after Steph caught her and Leah up. "Y/n will be okay. She's tough Ky" Alessia whispers as I continue to cry.

"Kyra what's going on? Why are you crying?" I release my hold on Alessia to see Mini stepping out of her car, Clara following from the other side. I rush over wrapping her in a hug continuing to cry. "Woah!" She stumbles but wraps her arms around me any way, rubbing my back to try and comfort me.

"Y/n was in an accident," Steph starts. I hear Mini and Clara gasp as Mini tightens her hold on me. "They wouldn't tell me much, only that she's headed in for surgery. She was brought to London General." Steph explains as I let out another sob, not knowing she was in surgery.

"Okay, Less and Leah grab the bags and put them in the boot. I'll bring you two and Steph home after I drop Mini and Ky at the hospital for Y/n." Clara says gently leading Mini and I to the car.

"We'll stay at the hospital. Y/n is family. We won't leave." Leah says determined, bags in hand. Clara gives her a smile and nods helping Mini and I into the car as the others follow once our bags are in the car.

As Clara starts the drive to the hospital I sit in the back knee bouncing, showing my worry for Y/n. She's tough but she's never been through something like this since we've know each other.

Please be okay Y/n.

~~~~~

I jump out of the car as soon as Clara pulls up to the hospital ER doors running to the reception desk. Mini right behind me.

"I'm looking for Y/n Gorry?" I say as soon as I get to the desk.

"Are you family?" The girl asks.

"I'm her fiancée," I say before I can stop myself. Mini glances at me in confusion before responding herself.

"I'm her older sister," The girls nods before typing on her computer for what feels like forever. I anxiously tap my foot and my finger on the desk waiting for the girl. "Ky, take a deep breath. Y/n will be okay. She has to be," Mini says placing her hand on mine to stop my tapping. I nod.

"Looks like she just got out of surgery. Once she is settled in a room the doctor will come and get you both. Only family is allowed in." the receptionist explains. Mini and I nod before moving to the others who stand and look at us anxiously.

"Well?" Alessia asks when we reach them.

"She's out of surgery. They are putting her in a room then someone will come get us so we can see her. The receptionist says family only." Mini explains.

"You guys can go. It was a long flight. Mini and I will send you an update when we hear more." I say taking a sear next to where Mini sat.

"Absolutely not. Like we said before Y/n is family. We will wait here as long as we need to." Steph says, Leah and Alessia nodding in agreement. Steph moves to kneel in front of where I'm sitting. Placing her hands on my knees, crouching to be eye level with me. " I will wait as long as I need. Besides she's the only one that can reign you in, ya pest." Steph jokes. I let out a laugh, through my tears, pulling her into a hug.

"Thank you Stephy," I whisper. She pats my back before pulling away, a soft smile on her face.

"Always, You annoy me but I still love you," She presses a kiss to my forehead before standing to sit with Leah and Alessia.

"Y/n Gorry?" A man in a white lab coat calls, reading off a clipboard. All of us jump and move towards him. "Woah! I was told her fiancée and sister are here. I can only speak with them." He clarifies. Mini and I step forward.

"Sister," Mini says raising her hand.

"Fiancée," I say raising my own ignoring the looks from the others. The man nods.

"I'm Dr. Cursor, I handled Dr. Gorry's surgery. Please, follow me." He turns moving to a set of doors. He scans his badge to open one of the doors, holding it open, allowing us in. "Dr. Gorry suffered a concussion and three cracked ribs, one of which punctured her lung, which is why she needed the surgery. We lost her once but as you know she is a fighter. The rest of the surgery went great. She is still asleep but should wake up in a few hours. You guys are more than welcome to stay as long as you'd like." Dr. Cursor explains stopping outside a room. I nod though I didn't hear much of what he said after 'lost her once'.

"Thank you Doctor." I hear Mini say before she opens the door to the room. I gasp seeing my Y/n laid there on the bed looking so lifeless. Tears roll down my cheeks as I move to stand next to Y/n. I slowly take her hand in my, brushing my thumb over her knuckles.

"Oh Y/n/n." I whisper. I lean down and press a kiss to her forehead, stepping back to sit in the chair next to her bed.

"She's okay Ky," Mini says placing her hand on my shoulder.

"She died," is all I say. I hear Mini sigh as she moves to sit on Y/n's other side.

"She did…but she came back to us. She's still here." Mini says, sounding like she's trying to convince not only me but also herself. "She's still here," she whispers.

~~~~~

Y/n POV

I hear a faint beeping sound as I begin to wake up. My eyes are heavy as I try to open them, though I slam them shut at the bright lights in the room. I blink quickly trying to get rid of the heaviness in my eyes and also adjust to the lights. Once my vision is clear I take note of the hospital room I'm in. In addition to the beeping I hear soft snores from my right, turning I see Katrina laid back in the hospital room chair fast asleep, a thin blanket covering her. I smile at the sight. Turning to my left my smile grows when I see Kyra laying with her head on my arm and her hand wrapped in mine. That explains the numbness in my arm. I give Kyra's hand a squeeze moving my right arm slowly towards her before gasping at the pain that shoots through my body. Kyra and Katrina shooting up at the sound.

"Y/n!" They both exclaim.

"I'll go get the doctor," Kat says squeezing my shoulder softly before stepping out of the room, leaving Kyra and I alone.

Once Kat is gone I make eye contact with Kyra. I frown seeing more tears building in her eyes. I reach up, ignoring the pain to brush away the tears that fell.

"Oh my love," I whisper reaching up to pull her into me. She breaks as she clings on to me. I rub her back trying to calm her. "It's okay. I'm okay Ky. I'm here." I whisper, as she continues to cry in my neck.

"You died," She whispers as she pulls away, cupping my face in her hands. I close my eyes leaning into her touch. I open my eyes to brush away the tears on her face, before leaning forward pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"I'm so sorry my love, I - " I'm cut off as the door opens and Dr. Cursor walks in. Katrina in tow. I lean back in the bed from Kyra, but move to grab her hand, knowing she needs the comfort as much as I do.

"Good to see you awake doctor." he exclaims walking to the monitor by my bed. "How's your pain level?" he asks, writing notes on his clipboard.

"5" I grit out, he nods and starts to write that down. I wince when Kat hits my foot, followed by Kyra lightly smacking the back of my head. "Ow!"

"Tell the truth," Kyra says, Kat nodding in agreement. I roll my eyes.

"Yes ma'am…the pain is at a 9." I sigh. He nods, "I also have a headache. What happened to me?" I question realizing I have no idea how I ended up in a hospital bed.

"Well what do you remember?" Dr. Cursor asks. I go quiet trying to wrack my brain for what happened.

"All I remember is I left Kat's place after 5 to be able to pick up Ky and a few of the other girls, then…it's all black." I say laying back in the bed, taking a deep breath to try and alleviate some of the pain in my head. I feel Kyra brush her thumb along my hand trying to provide some comfort.

"You were struck by a drunk driver. They hit the passenger side of your car but your car flipped from the speed at which he hit you. You have a concussion and three broken ribs. Once punctured your lung so you went into emergency surgery. You coded once but we were able to bring you back. You've been out for a few hours from the anesthesia. Your sister and fiancée have been here with you since you got out of surgery." I look at Kat in panic at the word fiancée, but she shakes her head with a soft smile. Dr. Cursor doesn't notice as he continues speaking, finishing up his checks. "I'll be back in a couple hours to see how you're doing. I upped your morphine so you should be in less pain." He says before leaving the room.

"F-fiancée?" I question.

"Uhm, they would only let family in your room so I said I was your fiancée so they'd let me in," Kyra explains playing with my fingers. A nervous habit she has. I look at Kat who nods confirming what Kyra had said, letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

"Speaking of, the others are still in the waiting room. I'll go let them know you are awake and double-check if you are allowed non-family visitors," Kat says. She moves towards me taking both my hands in hers, Kyra letting out a whine at the loss of contact with me, before putting something in my hand. "You got this," She whispers pressing a kiss to my forehead. I nod giving her a grateful smile as I feel the ring intended for Kyra in my hand. Kyra looks at me in confusion having heard Kat's words.

"You got what?" She asks. I smile and holding her hand in mine before taking a deep breath.

"When we met I knew you'd be the one for me. The way you brought out my chaos and the way I reigned in some of yours I knew we were perfect for each other. I had something planned a bit more our style but we are nothing if not spontaneous, so…with that said Kyra Lillee Cooney-Cross, will you marry me?" I ask holding out her ring in the palm of my hand. She looks at me in shock, before nodding her head.

"Of course I will!" She exclaims grabbing my face and bringing me into a searing kiss. I smile holding her waist in my hands as best I can with our current positions. I pull back when air is needed, resting my forehead on hers. "I love you," she whispers. I smile pressing another kiss to her lips.

"I love you too. Now I believe this belongs to you," I say holding her left hand in one of mine as I slide her engagement ring on her ring finger with the other.

"It's perfect," she whispers. I look into her eyes and smile.

"So are you, my love." I whisper pulling her into another kiss. We are cut off by cheers coming from the door. We part and see Katrina, Clara, Alessia, Leah and Steph standing at my hospital room door, smiles on their faces and tears in their eyes as they move further into the room

"Finally!!" Katrina exclaims, causing the others including Kyra and I to laugh. "Welcome to the family officially pest," Kat says wrapping an arm around Kyra's shoulder.

"I couldn't ask for a better one," Kyra says, squeezing my hand. I smile and bring her in for another kiss, ignoring the teasing from those in the room. "I love you," she whispers to me again.

"I love you too," I whisper back.

[etherealstar-writes]

I WANNA BE YOURS | WOSO X READER | PT 17

pairings: woso x reader

summary: in which you're accidentally added to a random group chat, not knowing they're all actually famous footballers, and obliviously end up having many of them competing for your love and attention.

part: seventeen

part one here

✦ ——— ✦ ——— ✦

Y/N PROTECTION SQUAD

lotte has anyone checked on y/n lately?

lessi no why? what's up

lotte i feel like she's been trying to ignore us and the groupchat is quite dead that itself should be ringing some bells

niamh last time i saw her was when we went to nandos together a week ago but i could tell she was feeling a bit down, and these past few days she keeps saying she's busy or tired whenever i try to make plans with her

charli same here

leah wait you guys went to nandos again?!

steph that's what's concerning you the most rn omg? nandos? and not my child?

kyra i think we should revoke leah's privileges to be in this chat tbh raise your hand if you agree ✋

niamh ✋

lotte ✋

lessi ✋

charli ✋

katie ✋

steph ✋

georgia ✋

ona ✋

ella ✋

viv ✋

leah EXCUSE ME?! ALSO SINCE WHEN WAS VIV PART OF THIS GC?!

kyra see that just shows how uninvested leah is in this gc she isn't worthy to be part of the y/n protection squad

leah kyra istg you're gonna catch these hands the next time i see you

steph oi you won't lay a hand on my children not on my watch, williamson

kyra thank you mum 🥰

the REAL karate kid guys have we noticed that y/n's disabled comments on all her posts lately?

viv the fans and media can be quite toxic i won't be surprised if they caught up to her

niamh sent a few screenshots

kyra oh.

lotte no wonder she's been trying to avoid us she's most definitely seen all those tweets

katie i'm gonna fight em 😈

kyra i'm joining you 😈

niamh count me in 😈

georgia me too 😈

lotte guess i'll see you all on the battlefield

steph the battlefied it is

✦ ——— ✦ ——— ✦

THE NATIONAL DIVING TEAM

brightness why are we at war in twitter rn

sam the skippa HELP this is so entertaining

rusty metal @ the imposter aka y/n ❤️

meado y/n you need to see this

the imposter aka y/n ❤️ what is happening

mccard y/n protection army reporting for duty

meado

willybum DAMN YES STEPH

rusty metal i need more popcorn for this

the imposter aka y/n ❤️ stop you guys tysm i'm crying

the REAL karate kid you see those are the more .... civilised ones and then there's kyra's ones

pest don't be shy show em 😈

the REAL karate kid

willybum KYRA 😭😭

the imposter aka y/n ❤️ thank you kyra 😈

pest you're very welcome y/n 😈

kie ONA WHO TAUGHT YOU THIS 😭😭

the imposter aka y/n ❤️ PLS IM SO PROUD OF YOU ILYSM HAHAHA

pest our teachings have paid off

ona they sure have pookie 😈

rusty metal STOP 😭😭 you two are banned from teaching her slang

pest it's not our fault you're a grandma

the imposter aka y/n ❤️ okay but genuinely thank you so much everyone you guys really didn't have to back me up there but it truly means a lot to have your support i love you all so much 🥺😭❤️🙏

pest we love ya too y/n ❤️

mccard ❤️

stephy ❤️

neev ❤️

cha cha ❤️

elton ❤️

meado ❤️

viv ❤️

ona ❤️

rusty metal ❤️

the REAL karate kid ❤️

stairway ❤️

willybum ❤️

✦ ——— ✦ ——— ✦

[avaf00rd]

Engagement bliss

Leah Williamson x arnold!reader

“You’re gonna call me when you can yeah?” Leah asked as she held both your hands while you leaned into her body. You were both saying goodbye to each other as you were travelling to Florida with your Australian teammates for camp, while Leah would stay in England for Lionesses’s Camp.

Your first camp engaged.

As well as hers, but her first camp back since her ACL injury, you were on the edge of tears at the thought of how proud you were.

“Of course I always do” you said pulling her arms down slightly towards you that held yours, placing a long kiss on her lips

“Don’t loose it ay?” Leah said with a cheeky smile, pulling your left hand up in between your close met faces. Tapping the shiny ring on your finger.

“I won’t. Promise. Ditto yeah?” You said now holding up her hand with the ring you gave to her after she proposed. She interlocked both the hands that were up and kissed your knuckles. “Proud of you” you said softly. Maybe for the 10th time just this morning

“Thank you. I’m proud of you, always, but you know that” she said shrugging with a grin.

“Okay I should go” you said looking at your Watch, “I love you” you said kissing her again, lips lingering longer.

“Love you miss you already” Leah said, causing your face to scrunch up at the corny comment, you pulled away from her embrace and grabbed your suitcase she had wheeled in for you. You blew her a kiss before you walked up to Steph, Caitlin, Charli, Kyra and MacKenzie, your ‘London Aussies’.

“Fucks sake Throw me in front of a speeding truck already” Kyra groaned, dreading the upcoming flight, as you all walked towards your terminal

“Oh?” You and Steph said, concern and confusion.

“It’s just 9 and a half hours darling” you said rubbing the young girl’s head roughly.

“Come on pick up the pace” Caitlin said to the group, skipping, as you were all walking too slow the for the given time left you had the catch boarding

“I can’t” you said slowly as you yawned.

“Leah’s excited I’m assuming?” Your sister Mackenzie asked about Leah’s return to England Camp.

“Over the moon” you smiled as you nodded “I don’t know why she was sappier than usual about me leaving. While she’s barely gonna even think about me in camp”

“Please, The girl’s engaged and captaining England again. Yeah she’s on camp but I promise you she won’t stop thinking about you” she assured you as you both smiled. “Far out I’m gonna get so many messages from that girl, frantic, because she can’t reach you” you both laughed, reminiscing the multiple times that had happened.

“That’s because you always tell her I’ve been kidnapped or something!” “It’s funny!”

November 2023

Leah

Pick up

Why are none of the Arnold’s picking up my fucking calls

Why won’t y/n answer me

Tell me Macca

Pick up

She pinky promised to facetimeeee

Mackenzie

I don’t know she went for

a walk last night in the city

to clear her head and I

haven’t seen her come back yet.

Maybe try her again?

Wasn’t at breakfast

Leah

hehe funny

Macca

I’m serious. We r all concerned

Leah

I’m on a call with her now xx🖕

————————————

You could feel your body starting to give itself out slowly as you grew tired. You had been running some basic drills as you and your national team settled into the first session of the camp.

The Florida weather was nice, felt a bit more like home compared to England, but nothing like the Australian warm weather. You were excited at the reminder that you, Macca, Lani, Caitlin and Hayley would all head to the beach as soon as possible after training.

As you anticipated, all of your teammates that didn’t live in London and could not make it to your engagement dinner were fawning over your ring. Them just as excited as you. The Matilda’s media photographer had gotten you and Ellie to pose with your left hands up for a photo with both your rings.

Heaps of your national trainers commented on the fact that the engagement was radiant on your face and your energy was through the roof, causing you to smile ear to ear.

By the end the session, you were playing a game of 5-aside oztag. You had yourself, Sharn, Teagan, Michelle and Hayley on your team.

“Games over!” You exclaimed laying on the ground, when Caitlin had shoved you to the ground for the 10th time in the 20 minute game.

“Sore loser!” Caitlin yelled as she kicked the ball to your head before you quickly rolled away to dodge Caitlin’s good aim.

“That’s not even how you play” You yelled to your best friend as she made her way back from the try line.

“Yes it is” She laughed, whilst Michelle helped you off the ground.

“Great job today girls. Have a good afternoon I’ll see you tonight” Tony smiled at you all, letting you know you could head back to the bus.

On the bus you were leaned against the window, legs sprawled out against both seats in the row. Talking to Alanna who sat across from you in the same position. “I’m sorry again I couldn’t make it to your dinner last week” she smiled at you.

“Are you kidding me. I understand completely. Getting to see you here is just as amazing for me”

Alanna just laughed. Causing you to scrunch your eyebrows at her, you had only said something sweet.

“You sound so much like her” she laughed

“Who Leah?” You smiled

“Yes!”

“How” you couldn’t help but laugh

“The accent. You sound English now! You’re picking up on her too much. Don’t be turning English on us now y/n” you both laughed. “No but it was a nice offer from her for your dinner. And I love the fact that she told me she was going to propose before she did” Lani grinned.

“Did she actually” you said smiling

“Yes! She made a group chat” she said walking over to you, shifting your legs so they were now on top of her thighs and she took up the seat. Pulling out her phone to show you.

28 March 2024

Leah

Hello

Mackenzie

Hi

Alanna

Hiya

Leah

Alanna I’m gonna do it

Alanna

PROPOSE?!

Leah

yes😌

Alanna

Oh my gosh I’m about to cry

My lord

Oh my gosh she’s gonna be so so happy

She will bawl

Just know that

Oh my goshhhhhh eek eek

Why did you just direct that towards me

Mackenzie

I obviously know

Caitlin

I obviously know

Alanna

Point of the new group chat?

Leah

I don’t know you guys are

just her closest friends and

mean a heap to her so it just felt

right all together

Mackenzie

Aw shucks Leah too kind 🥹🥹

Caitlin

When do u plan on it?

I know you don’t want many

people knowing but i can tell

Katie right?

Too late

I did

She’s tearing up

And Vic and Teyah heard whoops

Leah

Cait!

Oh and this afternoon.

Mackenzie

WHAT THIS IS NEWS

Alanna

OMG

Caitlin

HUH I ANTICIPATED A MONTH

You couldn’t help but laugh at the small group chat your girlfriend has created. The texts managed to go on past your engagement when Mackenzie shared a video of the moment all of your teammates saw you and became obsessed with the ring. Which turned into them ganging up on you about something else, “Hang on” you stopped Lani from scrolling

“Uh uh!” She shoved her phone away making you both laugh.

“You better add me to that chat!”

“Never”

———————————

“Cmon!” you squealed. Pulling Caitlin’s hand as you both sprinted down the sand, Hayley filming the sweet moment. The sunset was electric and perfect. Around 10 of your teammates were already on the beach on a large blanket. Taking loads of photographs of the scenery surrounding you that you had all missed.

After 20 minutes of laying on Kyra’s lap and enjoying the water in front of you, talking with the people you missed most. The left pocket of your shorts started to buzz.

You immediately knew it was your fiancé, so you picked the phone up as you got up and walked away from the group. Every single one of them mocking the way you blushed and picked up the phone saying “hey baby”.

“Shove it up your ass” You yelled back at them as the mocking didn’t stop. You heard Leah’s warm chuckle on the other side of the phone.

“Who was that” she asked

“Most of the girls. They are mocking the way I talk to you” you said into the phone making you both laugh. “Tell me everything! Photos aren’t enough”

Leah talked on for ages about how camp was going for her. Friends, trainings, rooming alone, being engaged at camp, travel and the ‘too spicy’ food. The more she talked the more she managed the full your heart even more.

“What about you?” I’ve talked enough”

“Oh my girl I could listen to you for moths” you said softly “yeah it’s great. I’m very excited to play on Monday. Everyone is ready already” you said before hearing a few moments of silence on her end of the call “Leah?”

She just laughed

“What?”

“I was sent a video of you from a group chat of me, your sister, Alanna and Caitlin. You’re Looking relaxed on the beach there” Leah chuckled

“That damn group chat!” You exclaimed. “Add me to it! I’ve got fomo”

You did happen to be laying on the sand, by yourself, phone pressed up to your ear. In sight of your cheeky teammates. You sat up slightly to give them your middle finger.

“No we have a truce. We can’t add you. You don’t have fomo, you just don’t want us talking about you”

“Yeah fomo!” You said making her laugh again, “ and a truce?!”

“Haven’t lost the ring yet darling?” Leah said in that tone that could send you spinning

“Nup. I’m staring at it right now. Hoping you have yours on”

“Of course” she said

“I understand what everyone means. You really just can’t stop staring at it. Like it’s not even the ring it’s like the fact that it’s my engagement ring. From you”

“I can’t keep my eyes off of it. How could I. It’s a symbol of you” Leah said softly

“I love you. I need to go now they are packing up cause it’s dark now. I miss you Lee, I’m proud of you like you don’t even know”

“I’m proud of you. You call me when you get up in the morning. I’ll be sure to be awake. Love you, miss you”

“Bye” you both said before hanging up and you made your way up to the group that were half way up the beach waiting for you, you smiling in appreciation of it at them.

———————————

Leah

“Have you gotten the photos back?” Georgia asked me as I refreshed my email account on my laptop for the hundredth time.

“No. And it’s kind of frustrating. He’s taking a week longer than he said he would”

“What photos are we talking about?” Mary asked

“The professional photos from Leah’s engagement. They are taking too long apparently” Keira explained

“Mates probably sold them to the internet first” Mary shrugged

“Don’t joke about that” i laughed, worry lingering in my tone

“I thought you wanted the moment to be super private?” Mary asked

“No it was. There was no one else. He came like 20 minutes later, as well as our families. I managed to surprise y/n with her’s” I grinned at the thought of the moment as I explained to the three girls at the table

“Well I’m very excited to see them” Keira said

Me and y/n announced our engagement on our instagram via a simple selfie we took together just 10 minutes after I got down on one knee. She laughed brightly in the photo as we both held our hands with the rings up for the camera, me kissing her cheek, and a tear stained face y/n. As well as me posting a small snippet of the moment I first asked her. I had set my phone down to video, somehow without her batting an eye. We are both all for living in the moment.

But honestly, I knew getting to look back on it in a video would be so special with her.

We agreed we couldn’t keep it in for too long the next day, so could not possibly wait for the professional photos taken. Just two very excited people.

——————————

Y/n

While your Australian Captain and close friend Sam had unfortunately done her ACL, as was still out. You had been given the position to Captain your country whilst her injury. You would also officially Captain your country at the Olympics in July and August.

You were called up alongside Tony for MD-1 press conferences at camp whilst being captain. And you actually really enjoyed them.

“Ready y/n?” Tony asked as you got out of the car and were walking into the stadium. Pulling a thumbs up to the camera crew following you both for the Matilda’s all-access video.

When you were both later settled into the conference room, you shuffled your chair in closer to the microphone before it began. Questions were at first fired at Tony, on camp call up describes and inside training decisions made by the staff.

The first question that was directed to you made you smiled when the short lady started “Hello y/n, just wanted to start by congratulating you and Leah on your engagement last week” she smiled up at you

You laughed slightly and smiled wide back “Thank you very much I appreciate it” you nodded, motioning her to continue with the question before she asked you about the preparations in the team and how the team feels about being in sunny Florida.

“And also the team just- well you know we are coming from all around the world I would say, different seasons. And I know, coming from cold London that it is such a refresher being in this weather for walking around and relaxing purposes I guess”

“And training purposes I’m hoping?” Tony asked, making the room laugh

“That’s the most important one yes” You laughed

After 15 minutes, as the conference was soon to be closed. You got asked a question mentioning your engagement once again. “It’s your first camp being engaged. How does that feel?”

You tried to keep professional and not focus on your own relationship too much, “Yeah the support is real with this team, always is, and it radiates off the happy feeling we all get when we fly to camp. It’s all been, exciting for me and some of the girls have said the same to me so that’s a nice feeling” you said nodding towards her sweetly

“I’m hoping from y/n, this gives her a happy boost to get heaps of goals in on Sunday!” Tony says to you making you laugh and agree.

“We will end it there if there are no more questions, thank you everyone” the media manager announced

“Thank you” you mumbled quietly into your microphone before stepping out of the chair.

Receiving a text from your fiancé one you reached the car outside the stadium waiting to take you back to the hotel.

Leah

Spoken like a true Captain

Y/n

How did u watch that?

Leah

YouTube live darling😌

Y/n

I’ll be sure to watch yours then

——————————

You had played both games against Mexico and were leaving the hotel for the airport. It was 2am and safe to say the last thing you were in the middle for was getting on a nearly 10 hour flight. But the idea of Leah picking you up and getting to spend time with her at the end of the day motivated you not just fall asleep and miss your flight.

“Y/nnnn” Caitlin sung out as she opened your door. Bag of chips in her hand from the vending machine. “Time to go!”

“I could have been changing” you said, unplugging your phone charger from the wall

“Mm” Caitlin nodded, mouth full of chips “you should consider locking this” she tapped the door handle behind her before reaching for your suit case to wheel it out of the room, you following behind the your other bag as you closed the door.

12 hours later, you were finally out of security after they had to open your bag as hey suspected something. Which they were wrong about and apologised. And took out 10 minutes of your time.

All was pushed off your shoulders when you saw your favourite person standing in her jeans, your sweater, her favourite cream Uniqlo bag and a yellow bouquet of flowers in her hand.

It was a tradition for both of you whether Leah was at her own camp or not, she would greet you with a different colour of flowers and open arms at the airport when you reached London once again after camp.

You picked up the pace on your feet before letting go of your suitcase and jumping into her arms, sealing both your lips together with a kiss. Before she hugged you even tighter with a smile as you nuzzled your head into her neck, kissing her shoulder.

“I missed you” you said kicking your feet like a toddler in your fiancé’s arms, which she always found adorable and drove her crazy

“I’m sure I missed you more” she smiled before stealing your lips again and setting you down

“Hmm no” you said. Before she handed you the bouquet. “I love you. Thank you”

“My honour” she patted her chest in a jokingly matter, before you wrapped your arms around her neck again and kissing her for longer, and most definitely not for the last time that evening. “Hey you’ve still got it” she said softly as she held your left hand and caressing the finger the ring laid on.

You nodded with a smile whilst Leah wheeled your suitcase to her car as you walked. “I’m starving” you said watching her lift the suitcase into the trunk before you both settled inside the car.

“Good thing there is food in the back seat” you grinned, Leah turning on the car, you shot your head to the back seat to be met with nothing but some rubbish from Leah that had been there for weeks.

“Where?” You asked

“I’m joking” she mumbled before you slapped her shoulder hard “ow I’m about to drive” Leah whined

“That’s not funny!” You laughed

“You’re right it’s not. Let’s go get food now” Leah smiled at you sweetly and rubbing your thigh whilst she drove.

“Fine with me!” You smiled contently before grabbing the hand that rested on you before bringing it to your lips and kissing it “thank you fiancé”

Leah chuckled at the comment, making her cheeks warm up “that won’t stop until we actually get married will it?” She said

“Nah”

[vanteguccir]

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤMATILDA * MATT STURNIOLO

SUMMARY　::　Where Y/N remembers her traumatic past, but Matt is there to support her and help her heal the wounds through a day on the beach and playing with toys while recording a video.

FEATURING　Matt Sturniolo x reader　REQUESTED?　yes.

WARNINGS　::　fighting, crying, cursing, toxic and manipulative parents, traumatic childhood, a mention of aggression. ANGST with a happy ending.

AUTHOR'S NOTE　::　that is my work, I DON'T authorize any form of plagiarism; copy, "inspiration" or translation! | english isn't my first language, so I'm sorry if there's any grammar error.

The sun was radiant in the blue sky as Y/N, Matt, Nick and Chris arrived at the beach on a sunny Saturday, the sound of the boys' little cousins' desperate pleas begging to be allowed into the water filled their ears, along with the waves gently lapping on the shore and the smell of the salty sea, bringing a feeling of comforting familiarity to Y/N.

They quickly chose a spot on the soft sand that was close to the area where the children would play, spreading their beach towels and opening an umbrella to protect themselves from the scorching sun.

"Babe, can you put sunscreen on my back, please?" Y/N asked as she adjusted herself on one of the colorful towels, crossing her legs over the soft fabric.

"Of course, hon." With a gentle smile, Matt picked up the beach bag that rested on the sand, fishing out the sunscreen and approaching his girlfriend. He knelt, positioning himself behind her. "Bend forward a little, my love."

The boy opened the tube, squeezing it lightly and pouring a significant amount of the product onto the palm of his hand before setting the packaging aside. He brought his hand closer to her warm skin, watching a shiver rise up her back at the contact of the cold cream, starting to spread it gently on Y/N's back, his large and skilled hands massaging it with care and affection.

Y/N closed her eyes, losing herself in the comforting sensation of Matt's touch. She could feel the warmth of the sun on her skin and the cool ocean breeze caressing her face.

A loud, joyful scream from one of the children made her open her eyes again, looking up and focusing on where they were running, chasing each other while their hands tightly gripped colorful, plastic beach toys.

The laughter that followed them took her back to a time when she herself longed for that innocence and freedom, but rarely experienced it. Her childhood had been marked by absent parents and a lack of emotional stability that left deep scars on her soul, her mind recreating a scene extremely similar to the one she was experiencing at that moment.

　　　　　༻﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡༺

The sun shone high in the sky, warming the small playground where a 5 year old Y/N sat. She dangled her little legs on the wooden bench as she watched the other children play excitedly around her. The playground was filled with laughter and happy screams, but for Y/N, all she felt was loneliness.

Her parents, as always, were absent, lost in their own problems and worries. They rarely had time for Y/N, and when they did, she always felt like an intruder in their busy lives. She could hear their voices shouting at each other a few meters away from where she sat, while her father's phone rang incessantly.

As she watched the other children play with their parents, a lump formed in her throat. She desperately wanted to be like them, to have the attention and affection of her own parents, but she knew that this was just an unattainable dream for her.

Suddenly, Y/N felt a heavy hand on her shoulder, making her jump in fright. Her father was there, looking at her with an impatient expression on his face, the ring of his phone echoing loudly against her ear as the image of her mother with crossed arms and angry eyes appeared behind his back.

"Y/N, let's go. We have things to do." He said abruptly, not caring about the sad expression in her eyes.

"B-but daddy, I-"

"Now!" Her father raised his voice, squeezing the skin of her shoulder with significant force in his fingers, practically pushing her off the bench.

Y/N stood up immediately, her heart heavy with sadness and loneliness. She wanted to say something more. She wanted to beg for a moment of attention and affection, where they could play together on the seesaw or the slide, but she knew it would be useless. Her parents were always too busy for her, always too far away to listen.

As they walked back home, Y/N felt a feeling of deep emptiness settle inside her. That was just another normal day for her family.

　　　　　༻﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡༺

As her painful childhood memories resurfaced in her mind, Y/N felt tears begin to stream down her cheeks. She knew, even at the tender age of five, that her childhood was being stolen from her, that she was being forced to grow up too fast, to adapt to a world where love and attention were luxuries she could never afford to have.

The girl tried to hide it, wiping her face quickly and looking away to the horizon, but the weight of her memories was difficult to bear.

"And... Done!" Matt's voice interrupted her train of thoughts, waking her from her reverie. Matt's hand, now slathered in sunscreen, moved away from her skin, retrieving the tube again before rising from his sitting position.

Y/N whispered a gentle "thank you", blinking quickly to clear away the new tears in her eyes before her boyfriend saw them, a small sniffle escaping her, which she covered with a fake cough.

“Y/N, is everything okay?” Nick - who was standing a few meters away - asked, his voice filled with concern as he noticed the tears in her eyes.

Matt, who was next to their bag holding sunscreen again, looked up at his brother's question, his brow furrowed in confusion as he quickly turned around, looking at his girlfriend.

"I'm fine, Nick. I think it's just the sun." Y/N forced a shaky smile, rubbing her eyes with her closed fist, feeling a stab of pain in both of them from the roughness of her movements.

Nick accepted the explanation with a nod, but Matt could see the truth behind Y/N's forced smile. He approached her again, sitting next to her and wrapping an arm around her shoulders affectionately.

"Sweetheart, you know you can tell me anything, right?" Matt whispered softly, his voice gentle and comforting.

Y/N looked at him, seeing the genuine concern in his blue eyes. She was tempted to open her heart to him, to share the depths of her pain and anguish. But the fear of being judged or rejected still kept her hesitant.

"I know, Matt." Y/N muttered, her voice choked by the weight of her emotions. "I just... I was just thinking about some things, that's all."

Matt wasn't convinced, but he knew that pressuring her wouldn't help her open up. He just held her tighter, offering her silent comfort, his arm working to pull her so that she lay her head on his right shoulder, sealing the top of her hair for long seconds, the fresh smell of sunscreen surrounding their bodies.

　　　　　༻﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡༺

After leaving their cousins ​​at the triplets' aunt and uncle's house again, Y/N and the brothers returned to their childhood home, having the need to return a little earlier so they could record the video that would be posted that Wednesday.

While Nick organized the equipment and Chris set up the table that they would be sat while filming, Matt approached his girlfriend - who was carrying her bags back to Matt's old room -, worried about her somewhat distant expression.

"Is everything okay, petal?" Matt asked softly, walking alongside Y/N towards the bedroom.

The girl paused for a moment, feeling grateful for Matt's concern, but also determined not to make him worry about her, knowing the importance of recording that video, since they couldn't publish the one of last Wednesday.

"I'm fine, baby. I think I'll stay in the room for a while while you record." Matt frowned at her airy response.

"Are you sure? Don't you want to be with us, maybe behind the cameras?" His voice came out small, full of concern, but Y/N just smiled gently in response, appreciating Matt's gentleness but knowing she needed time alone to process her own emotions.

"No, baby. I think I need some time alone." Matt nodded, accepting her decision with understanding.

"Okay, I'll be here if you need anything."

A few minutes later, after a hot and invigorating shower that seemed to wash away all her sorrows, Y/N left the room, her hair damp, and a feeling of freshness surrounding her.

She was heading towards the living room to grab Chris and Nick's bags and take them to their respective bedrooms when she heard voices coming from the kitchen. Curious about the frequent laughter, she followed the sound and found the triplets sitting on the marble table in front of the camera, opening children's toys and testing them out as content.

An excited smile spread across Y/N's face almost automatically. She approached slowly, watching them excitedly, a small "wow" escaping her lips as she saw her boyfriend pick up the colorful cardboard package with a small lamb inside.

Matt, who was showing Snowy to the camera, turned around when he heard Y/N's footsteps, his eyes automatically lighting up when he saw her there.

"Baby! Do you wanna play with us? Look, this is Snowy!" His voice came out excitedly as he quickly showed the toy to his girlfriend, a childish smile gracing his face.

Y/N nodded excitedly, feeling suddenly energized by the relaxed and fun atmosphere in the living room.

"It's so cute, Matt! I've never had one of those." She responded just as excitedly, quickly moving closer to them.

Chris got up from his seat, taking a new chair and placing it on Matt's left side so that it was on the other end opposite Nick.

"Thank you, Chris." Y/N smiled in gratitude, sitting on the upholstered chair and resting her arms on the gray marble.

The girl looked at the lamb in Matt's hands with a sparkle in her eyes, feeling a wave of nostalgia and joy invading her heart. She reached out to stroke the soft fur, feeling an immediate connection to the toy that she never had as a child.

"Here, petal. Try it!" Matt handed it over quickly, the three brothers watching her as she tried to understand how the toy worked.

"This is like a toy I would like." Nick commented briefly.

"It is so cute!" Y/N squealed, her smile lighting up her face as she turned it upside down.

"Wait, I think you turn it on here." Matt leaned closer to her, bringing his right hand closer to the toy and pressing the small, almost invisible button.

Y/N shook the lamb gently, moving it in the air in the hope that it would make it react in some way.

"Wait, let me-" Matt touched the lamb's back after Y/N placed it on the table with a confused expression.

A surprised scream escaped Y/N and Matt as they saw the toy slowly begin to walk, the girl weakly slapping her boyfriend's shoulder as she frantically pointed at Snowy with her other hand.

"Oh my God!" Chris laughed, getting Nick's attention and watching the toy walk towards them.

"Let me put the leash on it!" Nick asked with a smile on his face, taking the toy and attaching the small lilac string to it before letting it walk closer to Y/N again.

Matt stared in amazement at the lamb, wrapping his right arm around his girlfriend's waist and pulling her closer, while his free hand held the small blue bottle, wanting to feed it.

Y/N laughed loudly, feeling completely at ease and free to be her true self. She never had the opportunity to have toys as a child, so that moment meant a lot to her.

As she played with the lamb and the other toys, Y/N felt overwhelmed by a sense of peace and joy, determined to enjoy every moment of the experience, keeping it in her heart as a precious memory of the childhood she never had.

　　　　　༻﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡༺

The sun was beginning to set over the horizon when the video came to an end. Nick and Chris were busy putting the toys into boxes to deliver to children in need the next day, when Matt approached Y/N with a mysterious smile on his lips, watching her return from his brothers' room after finally taking their bags to there.

"Baby?" Matt called softly, his voice full of restrained enthusiasm. "I have a surprise for you."

"A surprise? What is it?" Y/N looked at him quickly, eyes shining with curiosity and excitement as she felt her heart start racing.

Matt just shook his head, a smile playing on his lips.

"It's a surprise, baby. You'll see."

While Nick and Chris finished putting away the equipment, Matt led Y/N out of the house, quickly shouting to his brothers that they would be back soon before closing the door behind him.

The two walked silently towards the car, Matt quickly opening the passenger door for her gently before getting into the driver's seat, noticing from the corner of his eye his girlfriend bouncing her leg up and down anxiously.

The boy quickly brought his right hand to her leg, firming his grip there so that she stopped her frantic movements before stroking the covered skin lightly.

"Relax, pretty girl."

After making sure she was fine, the brunette started the car, driving down the long road, the sun setting painting the sky with shades of pink and orange as they drove away from the city.

Y/N curiously observed the route, trying to guess where they were going. The playlist she and Matt had created at the beginning of their relationship played softly on the radio, filling the car with a selection of their favorite songs that reminded them of each other.

As they got closer to the shore, Y/N felt a pang of anticipation growing inside her chest, her eyes darting across the landscape quickly as her mouth opened slightly.

"Matt, where are we going?"

"You'll see, babe. We're almost there." Matt just smiled, keeping the secret.

Finally, the car parked in one of the beachfront car spaces, and Y/N looked out the window, her eyes widening in surprise as she recognized the familiar scene.

"The beach?" She asked, confused. "What are we doing here?"

Matt turned off the engine and turned to Y/N, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"It's your surprise. Let's enjoy the beach. For real this time."

The sun was already almost completely gone when Matt and Y/N found themselves walking along the beach, their hands intertwined and their feet sinking into the soft sand, while their free hands held tightly to the pair of their own sneakers. The sound of the waves gently crashing beside them created a serene soundtrack to the moment.

Matt looked at Y/N beside him, seeing the mix of emotions on her face as she looked out to the sea, her eyes fixed on the waves, and her brow frowned tightly.

"Hey princess, is everything okay?" Matt asked softly, his soft voice bringing her back to the present while he squeezed her fingers gently.

Y/N looked up at him, her eyes shining with a mixture of sadness and determination.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just trying to process some things." Her voice came out lower than expected, her tongue escaping her mouth and quickly wetting her lips in a nervous act.

Matt nodded understandingly, offering her silent support as they continued to walk along the beach. He could feel the tension in her shoulders, and he was determined to help her find happiness in that moment.

So, suddenly, Matt stopped and looked at Y/N with a mischievous smile on his lips.

"How about we go for a swim?"

Y/N stopped next to him, processing what he said for a few seconds before her eyes widened in surprise, a smile slowly stretching on her face.

"Right now?"

"Yes, right now!" Matt exclaimed, dropping his sneakers onto the sand and taking hers, doing the same before grabbing her hand again, running towards the sea and pulling her tightly behind him, a scream lost against the wind that hit her face.

The two ran across the sand, laughing and screaming in euphoria as the waves lapped at their feet. They threw themselves into the sea, the cold waters enveloping them as they jumped and played like two carefree children, their clothes sticking to the skin of their bodies, but that was their last worry.

Y/N felt a sense of freedom like never before. The salt water washed away her pain, while Matt's laughter filled her ears in joy. For a moment, she allowed herself to forget all the weight of the past and simply live in the present moment, surrendering to the happiness that radiated from each pulse of the sea.

"This is amazing!" Y/N shouted, laughing as she jumped over or into the waves alongside her boyfriend's.

"You are amazing!" Matt replied, a radiant smile lighting up his face as his eyes traveled over the features of Y/N's face, his dilated pupils almost taking the shape of two hearts.

They played and jumped in the waves until they got tired, with each moment sinking deeper into their brain like a precious memory.

When they finally left the sea and threw themselves on the sand, panting and exhausted, Y/N felt a sense of peace and calm invade her being. Matt lay down next to her, their hands touching lightly, both ignoring the strange feeling of the sand against their wet bodies.

Y/N sighed deeply, staring to the starry blanket of the sky above them. She pondered deeply before turning to Matt, lying on her side, the corners of her eyes reflecting the starlight.

"You know, I've never had a real childhood." She began, her soft voice thick with emotion. "I've never talked about this to anyone before, but I know I can trust you, and I feel like it's time to reveal it... after today."

Matt turned so that he was equally lying on his side on the sand and facing her, his eyes showing immense tenderness, encouraging her to continue.

Y/N took a deep breath before speaking again, her words filled with painful memories of her troubled childhood.

"My parents were always busy with their jobs and making money, the more money the better... They rarely had time for me. The only memories I have of my parents are of them yelling at me or at each other." Her voice wavered as she fought to control her emotions. "Sorry." She laughed in disdain at her body's reactions.

"You don't have to be sorry, petal. I'm here with you." Matt whispered quickly, lifting his free hand and bringing it to her waist, caressing the skin covered by her wet clothes.

Y/N closed her eyes before speaking again.

"I felt so lonely, Matt. I never had friends because I was always very closed off, maybe because of the events at home, and the fact that I was quiet seemed to scare the other children away..."

Tears began to form in Y/N's eyes as she relived the painful memories of her neglected childhood.

"I felt so lost and abandoned." The girl continued, her voice shaking with the intensity of her emotions. "I prayed so much to whatever was hearing me to have a normal childhood, with friends and play times, but all I had was loneliness and sadness." She swallowed hard. "You know, my mom used to hit me sometimes... Nothing very serious, she just got angry because of how I behaved so quietly and different from her." Y/N shook her head quickly, a sob escaping her throat.

"Baby..." Matt traveled his hand from her waist to her free hand, holding it firmly, allowing her to cry without interrupting, knowing that she would never go beyond her limit by telling him about her traumas.

Y/N smiled weakly through her tears, feeling grateful for Matt's comforting presence. She snuggled closer to him, sand creeping up her legs, laying her head on his chest, just below his chin, taking comfort in the warmth of his body.

"It's okay, really-"

"No, sweetheart, this is not okay. Please, don't talk about your pain as if it's all alright." Y/N sighed deeply.

"My dad called me last week..." The girl murmured, changing the subject as she played with Matt's fingers between hers. "He wanted to see me again. He said he missed me." She laughed, her laugh full of irony and sarcasm.

　　　　　༻﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡༺

Y/N's phone vibrated in her pants pocket, interrupting her as she tidied up her shared room with Matt, taking advantage of the fact that he was recording a video with his brothers. She picked up the device, her brow furrowing as she saw an unknown number on the screen.

"Hello?"

"Y/N, it's me." Her father's voice sounded on the other end of the line, and Y/N swore she felt her heart instantly freeze.

"Dad." Her voice came out indifferent, completely the opposite of her emotions.

"Hey, hi! Hm, I passed by your old room the other day and thought about you, I've been missing you, you know? And I'd like to see you. Can we set up a date?"

Y/N was silent for a moment, fighting a flood of conflicting emotions. She knew she didn't want to see her father, not after all the trauma he and her mother had caused herself. But she didn't want to be rude either; despite having grown up in a troubled home, she learned from life to be kind to everyone.

"Sorry, dad." She murmured finally, her voice firm. "I'm busy. I can't." Her father was silent for long, agonizing seconds, seeming surprised and angry at the same time. "That was all that-"

"What do you mean you're busy? Are you avoiding me?" Y/N took a deep breath, closing her eyes tightly and trying to remain calm.

"It's not that, dad. I'm just busy at the moment. I need to go..."

"That's unfair, Y/N!" Her father snapped, his voice rising in anger. "I really don't understand you. First, you left home at 17 and completely disappeared from our radar in such a way that I only see updates of you through your boyfriend's ridiculous YouTube channel. All you had to do was find a rich boy, so you totally forget about me and your mother. I fed you and gave you a roof over your head all your life, and you treat me like this? You're an ungrateful brat!"

Y/N felt tears well up in her eyes, a mixture of sadness and frustration flooding her body in an atrong shiver. She knew she couldn't continue this conversation if she could even call it a conversation.

"Whatever you say, dad. I have to go." She responded quickly before hanging up the phone, her trembling fingers moving automatically as she blocked the number.

　　　　　༻﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡༺

"I said no. I was so short with him. Do you think I was wrong, Matt?" She cried harder, her body shaking as the intense sobs tore from her throat.

"No, never! Baby, listen to me. Fuck your parents, okay?" Matt pulled back slightly, lifting her head gently so he could look into her eyes, seeing a strand of surprise pass through her pupils. "Fuck them for always treating you in a horrible way and totally contrary to how parents should treat their children. Fuck them for fucking your head so much to the point that you feel guilty for not wanting them in your life anymore."

Y/N tried to look away, but Matt's hand beneath her chin held her firmly - but gently - in place, stroking her jaw with his thumb lightly.

"You're amazing, Y/N. You're a strong, amazing woman, and I don't want you to feel guilty about everything that happened in your childhood because none of it was your fault! You don't have to be sorry for leaving them and growing up..." The tone of his voice was firm, while his eyes carried a tone of seriousness unlike any Y/N had ever seen.

Y/N scoffed, trying to shake her head no, her mind reminding her that she wasn't any of those good things.

"I'm serious, pretty girl. You're so strong, the strongest woman I've ever met." He whispered, loosening his grip on her chin slightly, moving his hand up so that it cupped her cheek, caressing the soft skin gently. "You can let it go, you know? You can let it all go. I promise."

"I love you. I love you so much, Matt." The girl murmured, pressing her cheek against his palm and closing her eyes slightly, her wet eyelashes caressing her flushed, wind-chilled skin.

"I'm always here for you." Matt reinforced, leaning his head close to hers and lovingly sealing her forehead with his lips for long seconds, exhaling the salty scent left by the sea.

"Now, how are we going to get back to the house with wet clothes like that?"

© vanteguccir

[holyblonded]

harper days | always sunny in australia

pairings: harper gorry x sister!reader, mini gorry x teen!reader

summary: you babysit harper, a master manipulator, for the day

warnings: lost children

notes: i had no idea how much i needed harper and chickie written together

“Are you sure I’m the right person for this?” You shifted awkwardly, glancing at Mini with uncertainty. “I mean, if it’s about the cost of a regular babysitter, I’d be happy to chip in and help you pay—”

“Chickie,” Mini interrupted with a small smile, resting a hand on your arm. “Harper loves you. She specifically requested you today and refused anybody else. Please do me a solid?”

You sighed, still not entirely convinced. But before you could come up with another excuse, a small body crashed into your legs, tiny arms wrapping tightly around you.

“Chick! I missed you!” Harper’s voice was filled with excitement, and when you looked down, you were met with her beaming face as she hugged you with all the strength her little body could muster.

You couldn’t help but smile as you ruffled her hair. “I missed you too, Harps.”

Mini folded her arms, raising an eyebrow. “Still think you’re not the right person for this?”

You hesitated for a moment, but Harper was already clinging to you like you were her favorite person in the world, and the thought of letting her down made your stomach twist.

“You really think I can handle it?” you asked, still a little unsure.

Mini nodded firmly. “Absolutely. You’re great with her. And, honestly, she’s probably going to be the one taking care of you by the end of the day.”

Harper nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah, Chick, I got this!”

You laughed, finally relenting. “Alright, alright. You win. We’ll have the best day ever.”

Mini sighed in relief. “Thank you. You have no idea how much this helps me.” She crouched down to Harper’s level. “Be good for Chickie, okay?”

Harper gave her mom an exaggerated thumbs-up. “Always!”

Mini shot you a knowing look. “That’s a lie, but good luck.”

After a few more instructions and an over-the-shoulder “Text me if you need anything!”, Mini finally headed out, leaving you alone with Harper, who was already bouncing on the balls of her feet.

“So, Harps, what do you wanna do today?”

Her eyes lit up instantly. “Play at the playground! And play football! And have a picnic!”

You chuckled. “That’s quite a list. But you know what?” You crouched down to her level, grinning. “We’re gonna do all of it.”

Harper let out an excited squeal, grabbing your hand and tugging you toward the door. “Let’s go, Chick! We have so much to do!”

The grocery store was buzzing with people, but you and Harper were on a mission. With a small shopping cart that was definitely not meant to be used as a race car (despite Harper’s best attempts), the two of you navigated the aisles, picking out sandwiches, fruit, juice boxes, and enough snacks to last the entire afternoon.

“Ooh! Chick, can we get the star cookies?” Harper pointed excitedly at a package, eyes wide with hope.

You pretended to think about it, tapping your chin. “Hmm… what’s the magic word?”

Harper beamed. “Please?”

You grabbed the cookies and tossed them in the cart. “That’s my girl.”

After loading up on picnic essentials, you found yourself in the sports section, eyes scanning the shelves for a kiddie football. It didn’t take long before something caught your attention, an Arsenal-branded football, perfectly sized for Harper.

“Harps, check this out!” You held up the ball, and her face lit up.

“IT’S RED!” she cheered.

“Just like our team,” you said, kneeling down in front of her. “Wanna make it official?”

Harper nodded rapidly, so you pulled out your phone and hit record.

“Alright, Harps,” you said, holding the ball up, “who’s your favorite team?”

“ARSENAL!” she shouted.

“And what color is London?”

“RED!”

“And who’s your favorite player?”

Harper giggled before launching herself at you, wrapping her arms around your neck. “You!”

Your heart practically melted, but you still had one more thing to teach her. “Alright, repeat after me—North…”

“NORTH!”

“London…”

“LONDON!”

“Forever.”

“FOREVER!”

You stopped recording and grinned. “Perfect. You’re officially one of us.”

Harper clutched the ball like it was her most prized possession, and you ruffled her hair before steering the cart toward the checkout line.

As you placed your items on the conveyor belt, Harper stood beside you, still bouncing with excitement. You were just about to grab your wallet when she gasped dramatically.

“Chick! Look! It’s Kyra and Charli!”

Your eyes snapped up, but before you could register where exactly she saw them, Harper had already wandered off, her tiny legs carrying her toward the chaos that was Kyra Cooney-Cross and Charli Grant in a store.

By the time you finished paying and looked down, Harper was gone.

Panic surged through you instantly. Your chest tightened, and the air around you suddenly felt too thick.

“Harper?” Your voice wavered as you frantically scanned the store. “Harper?”

Your breathing picked up as worst-case scenarios flooded your mind.

Then, a familiar voice cut through the noise. “Chickie?”

You turned to see Steph standing nearby, a concerned look on her face. She had a basket in one hand, but her focus was entirely on you.

“I—I can’t find Harper,” you admitted, your voice barely above a whisper.

Steph immediately stepped closer, placing a firm but gentle hand on your shoulder. “Hey, breathe. She’s probably with Kyra and Charli, yeah? Let’s go find them.”

You took a shaky breath, nodding. Steph was right. Harper had said she saw them. And if she was with them, she was safe.

The two of you moved quickly through the aisles, scanning for any sign of Kyra’s unmistakable energy or Charli’s bright blonde hair.

Finally, near the home goods section, you spotted them and sure enough, there was Harper, hoisted up in Kyra’s arms as Charli tried to steady her.

“You got it, Harps?” Kyra asked as the little girl stretched toward a stuffed koala on the highest shelf.

Almost immediately, relief crashed over you. “Harper!”

The three of them froze, turning to face you. Harper beamed. “Chick! Look, I found a koala!”

Kyra and Charli, meanwhile, both looked equally confused.

“Wait,” Charli frowned, looking between you and Harper, “she’s your kid for today?”

Kyra blinked. “How did she even get here?”

Steph crossed her arms. “That’s what we’d all like to know.”

You wasted no time in striding forward and pulling Harper into a tight hug. “You scared me, Harps.”

Harper hugged you back, small arms wrapping around your neck. “Sorry, Chick… I just saw Kyra and Charli and wanted to say hi.”

You sighed, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Next time, you tell me first, okay?”

Harper nodded, and you pulled back to give her a soft smile.

Kyra, however, nudged Charli and muttered, “Look at our little Chickie. All grown up.”

You shot her a glare. “Kyra, I swear—”

Steph clapped her hands together. “Alright, enough of that. Harper’s safe, Chickie’s no longer panicking, and Kyra and Charli are somehow still standing after whatever this was.” She looked at you. “Let’s get back to our actual plans, yeah?”

You nodded, taking Harper’s hand. “Yeah. Let’s go have our picnic.”

Harper grinned. “And play football!”

Kyra smirked. “Don’t let her nutmeg you, Chick.”

“Oh, piss off Cooney-Cross,” you scoffed, rolling your eyes. “I taught her.”

With Harper’s hand in yours, you led her back toward the front of the store, your heart finally settling after that brief moment of sheer panic. But one thing was for sure, Harper was going to be glued to your side for the rest of the day.

The park was quiet except for the occasional sounds of kids playing and the rhythmic thud of a football being passed between you and Harper. She was full of energy, her little legs moving as fast as they could to keep up with you. Every time she managed to get the ball past you, she would let out a triumphant cheer, arms raised above her head like she had just won the World Cup.

“You’re getting too good, Harps,” you teased, tapping the ball back toward her. “Might have to start calling you the next Sam Kerr.”

Harper gasped dramatically. “No! I wanna be like you!”

That made you pause, warmth spreading through your chest. “Oh yeah?”

Harper nodded eagerly. “You teach me cool tricks! And you’re the best!”

You laughed, shaking your head as you knelt down. “Alright then, little legend. Let’s learn a new trick.”

For the next thirty minutes, you showed her how to pull off a simple step-over. At first, she kept tripping over her own feet, but after some exaggerated demonstrations (and a few dramatic tumbles on your end just to make her laugh), she finally got it. The moment she successfully pulled it off, she shrieked with joy and immediately demanded you record her doing it so she could show Mini.

After wearing yourselves out, you packed up and headed back to your and Sam’s place, where the second you sat down on the couch, Harper immediately climbed into your lap, demanding Bluey.

Not that you were going to say no.

So there you were, curled up on the couch, Harper tucked into your side as the two of you watched episode after episode. Harper giggled at the show, occasionally quoting lines before they even happened, while you felt yourself slowly sinking deeper into relaxation.

That’s how Mini found you when she came to get Harper.

“Alright, Miss Harper,” Mini sighed, hands on her hips. “Time to get ready for bed.”

Harper clung to you tighter, her little arms wrapping around your torso. “Noooo, I wanna stay with Chick!”

Mini groaned. “Harper…”

You glanced down at the little girl, who was now nuzzling into your hoodie, clearly refusing to budge. With a small chuckle, you looked up at Mini. “I can keep her for the night, if you want.”

Mini exhaled in relief. “If you’re sure? She’s all yours.”

Harper perked up, eyes shining. “YAY!”

Mini shook her head, muttering something about you spoiling her daughter before leaving you and Harper snuggled up once more. At some point, exhaustion won out, and the two of you dozed off.

Sam, who had just come home from rehab, paused at the doorway, a slow smile spreading across her face. You and Harper were curled up in the exact same position, mouths slightly open, Harper’s tiny body cradled in your arms like she belonged there.

Shaking her head in amusement, Sam pulled out her phone, snapped a picture, and immediately sent it to the Matildas group chat.

sam

Found Chickadee and her mini-me. Pretty sure I’m being replaced.

Before she could even put her phone away, replies flooded in.

kyra

LMAOOOO

mini

I literally tried to take her off Chickie but she refused

steph

My heart. This is too cute.

ellie

They even sleep the same????

Sam rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t help the fond chuckle that escaped her. She grabbed a blanket and gently draped it over the both of you before ruffling your hair lightly.

“Goodnight, ya little chook,” she murmured before heading to bed.

[darkmatilda]

𝐃𝐈𝐕𝐀 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐑

series masterlist

♱ you are everything—dazzling, intelligent, a chemist, confident, and aware of your worth. he is spencer reid.

.ᐟ the parts are not strictly connected—it can be read out of order .ᐟ

𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐧 | 𝟔.𝟓𝐤

after losing a bet, spencer ends up on a blind date

𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐟𝐟 | 𝟐𝐤

while examining the evidence, spencer puts all his professionalism aside because you look like a goddess

𝐩𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 | 𝟒𝐤

spencer is asking you for a favor again—this time, he wants you to go undercover with him at a casino. as his girlfriend.

𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 | 𝟐𝐤

it was finally time for spencer to repay the first of the two debts he owed you and help with the work in the laboratory

𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲'𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐢'𝐦 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐧𝐞 | 𝟑.𝟓𝐤

you take spencer on a fake date where he gets confronted by your ex

𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 | 𝟑𝐤

thinking you got infected during the investigation, you ask spencer to examine you. more specifically, your breasts.

𝐜𝐨𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 | 𝟐.𝟑𝐤

the sight of Spencer with a child makes you see him in a slightly kinder light. which he finds suspicious.

𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 | 𝟑.𝟑𝐤

spencer gets distracted when you flirt with another agent right across from his desk

𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 | 𝟑.𝟓𝐤

spencer makes an unkind assumption about you, and for reasons unknown, you feel the need to prove him wrong

𝐬𝐨𝐟𝐭 𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐭 | 𝟐.𝟏𝐤

you've lost count of how many favors you've done for him. yet, you can't say no when he shows up at your lab...with a kitten

𝐠𝐨 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞 | 𝟑.𝟖𝐤

in which one spencer finds you in a place that might be attacked and tries to save your life—only for you to end up saving his instead

𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 | 𝟑.𝟏𝐤

after finding out you’ve been going through a rough time, spencer decides to talk to you—unintentionally starting an argument.

𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 | 𝟑.𝟕𝐤

in which both of you take garcia's joke about kissing to ease the tension a bit too seriously

—IN PROGRESS [REQUESTS OPEN]—

[wosounited]

Cooney-Crush My Heart (Charli Grant x Cooney-Cross!Reader)

For the purpose of this story, reader and Katrina lived in London a year before KCC and Charli

You always loved that football was something you shared with your sister. Both of you were now playing professionally in London. She’d just signed for Arsenal, while you’d been playing for Chelsea for just over a year. As well as that, you both played for the Australian national team. While the Australian cohort in London was constantly growing, somehow you ended up best friends with the England defender, Niamh Charles. She was your best mate, and you’d decided to move out of your rent-a-mum, Katrina’s, house and in with Niamh, after living with the older woman for the entirety of last season.

“One of my children is fleeing the nest then?” Katrina teased when you told her the news. You could only laugh with a nod. “Lucky, there will be room for Charli and Kyra now” she smiled.

“Charli is moving to England too?” You asked, rather quickly.

“Her transfer to Spurs just went through” Katrina informed you. You were the oldest of Katrina’s adopted kids. You were the one she trusted to have serious conversations with. The one she trusted with Harper, her actual child, the most. Her mum instincts were unmatched, and that’s how she knew the minute you and Charli were introduced that you both liked each other. You were quiet, unlike your younger sister, so she never thought to bring it up with you and make you awkward. “Harps, come say goodbye” Katrina shouted. The little toddler came running towards you, immediately demanding to be picked up.

“I’ll see you soon, kiddo” you pressed a kiss to her cheek and let her down as she ran off giggling “Thanks for everything” you said as you hugged Katrina.

“I still expect you to follow through on babysitting duties” Katrina smirked as you laughed.

“Anytime you need me” you smiled.

It was your actual mum that made you collect Kyra from the airport. But your sister had just failed to mention that a certain blonde would be with her and also needed a lift.

“You didn’t tell me your sister was coming” Charli punched Kyra as she caught you standing on your phone at the arrivals gate.

“My sister is here?” Kyra smiled, rubbing her arm from where Charli had just hit and looking around to try and spot you. “Y/n” Kyra shouted when she found you standing against a wall scrolling on your phone. You looked up with a smile, a smile which quickly turned to a look of anxiety when you noticed Charli beside her.

“Shit” you mumbled as you somehow managed to lift your hand up to wave to them. Kyra practically jumped into your arms, making you laugh before placing her back to the ground.

“My big dopey older sister” she chuckled.

“I am not the dopey one out of us too” you teased back, before looking to the blonde.

“Hi” Charli smiled.

“Hey” you smiled back, opening your arms for her to fall into, which she did. “I’ll take them” you said, pulling her suitcases, and only her suitcases, towards the exit.

“Wow thanks Y/n, don’t worry about me” Kyra shouted as you laughed.

“You’re both staying with Mini then?” You asked as Kyra and Charli both nodded.

“Don’t tell me we’re sharing a room” Kyra teased.

“God no” you laughed. “I moved in with Niamh” you explained as you slipped Charli’s bags into the boot of the car.

“Oh yeah, your girlfriend” Kyra teased while Charli’s smile quickly dropped off her face.

“Kyra how many times? She’s not my girlfriend” you rolled your eyes before finding Charli’s through the mirror. “Niamh is just a mate” you nodded before pulling your eyes towards the road. You pulled up outside Katrina’s house, helping the two, well Charli, carry her bags in. You hadn’t seen Katrina or Harper in a few days so you went in to say hello.

“All of my kids coming in at the same time” Katrina exaggerated a smile as the three of you walked through the door. “Harper look who’s here” she shouted as the toddler came running. She ran by Kyra and then Charli before jumping into your arms.

“Hello monkey” you laughed putting her up on your shoulders. “Kyra and Charli are here too, did you say hello?” you squeezed her legs as she waved to both of them. Charli looked at you in awe with how you interacted with the toddler.

“Where’s mummy?” Kyra asked the toddler who pointed towards the kitchen that Clara was in cooking dinner.

“Go tell mummy that we’re here” you told the toddler as you placed her carefully down on the ground and she ran off towards the kitchen, dragging Kyra with her.

“Are you staying for dinner then?” Katrina asked as you checked your watch.

“Uh” you hesitated.

“Stay?” Charli asked as your head shot up.

“Yeah, uh, yeah. I have time” you nodded. “You can take my old room. It’s bigger than the other one” you smiled at the blonde as you took her bags upstairs.

“Again, thank you Y/n” Kyra shouted from the kitchen before running after you with her own bags in hand.

“Stay?” Katrina teased in Charli’s tone of voice once you had both left ear shot.

“Shut up” Charli groaned.

“That is no way to speak to your mother” Katrina smirked. “If you wanted, I could talk to Kyra about-” she began.

“No, no. There is nothing to talk about” Charli shook her head.

“What? No! I want that room” Kyra shouted from upstairs.

“Piss off” you shouted back.

“Go help your other mum, I will sort this out” Katrina pushed Charli towards where Clara was in the kitchen before she went up to break up you and Kyra fighting. You had your little sister in a headlock when Katrina got to the top of the stairs.

“Let me go” Kyra demanded as you laughed.

“Little baby Kyra gets the little baby room” you teased with a smirk.

“Y/n, enough” Katrina huffed as you instantly let go. She wasn’t your real mum of course, but boy was she just as scary. “You, go downstairs” Katrina pointed at the staircase and looked on as you quickly jogged down. “You, put your stuff into that room and be down for dinner in the next five minutes” Katrina frowned as Kyra stumbled into the smaller bedroom with her bags.

You slid into the kitchen to find Charli standing alone. Clara had gone to get Harper changed and had squeezed your face gently as you passed each other in the hall.

“I didn’t know you were moving to London” you said to the younger girl, as you both were setting the table.

“It was a spur of the moment kind of thing” Charli giggled to herself.

“I can see why you and my sister are friends” you chuckled.

“London just seems so big” she gulped as you nodded.

“I definitely thought the same, but you get used to it” you shrugged.

“Maybe you could show me around?” Charli hinted.

“Yeah, absolutely, sure” you agreed, in three different ways. Charli wasn’t too sure how to react. She hadn’t expected you to say yes.

“Oh, um, great” she nodded. The rest of the family piled in as you plated up the food. Kyra pushed by Charli to sit beside you as the blonde sat opposite you, watching you and Kyra subtly kick each other under the table. You’d headed home straight after, back to you and Niamh’s place.

“That you?” Niamh shouted.

“If you is me, then yes” you called back making the girl laugh.

“You have dinner yet?” She asked.

“Yeah, I ate at Katrina’s” you nodded.

“Aw, mummy made you dinner?” She teased as you punched her in the arm. “How’s your sister?” She asked.

“Annoying as ever” you shrugged with a laugh. “Actually, Charli is here too” you mumbled as Niamh’s eyebrows shot up.

“As in Grant? As in your sister’s best friend that you are in love with?” She smirked.

“Shut up” you groaned.

“Sorry, I meant your sister’s best friend that you are secretly in love with” she whispered in a more sarcastic tone.

“I’m never drinking around you ever again” you laughed. It was a drunken night after you’d won the league that you told Niamh you really liked Charli. You thought she’d be too drunk to remember, but she’d brought it up just about every day since.

“Are you ever going to tell her?” She asked.

“No way” you shook your head. “Kyra would flip and anyway, it’s just a stupid little crush. She doesn’t like me that way” you shrugged. You’d just sat down on the couch with a mug of tea, and Niamh with food, starting to watch an episode of the show you were watching together when your phone beeped.

Charli

Hiiii

It was so nice to see you today!

Want to take me sight seeing tomorrow?

Y/n

Hey

No.

Charli

Stop being annoying

Y/n

The first sight you can see is my house

Charli

Fine

See you at 8am 😏

Y/n

Do not come to my house at 8am Charlotte Grant

Hello

Charli?

I’m serious

That is still night time.

Fine I’ll see you at 8am

You’d never been one for mornings. Early morning starts last season consisted of Katrina physically pulling you out of bed. But now, Niamh had taken over that job. But you got yourself up this morning to see Charli, and Niamh thought she was seeing things when you arrived into the kitchen at 7:30am.

“Am I dead?” She asked.

“I’m going out” you informed her.

“I just can’t believe you got yourself out of bed” Niamh laughed. “Are you meeting someone?” She asked.

“Yeah, Charli” you replied as she smirked and began to say something. “Don’t start, it’s too early” you huffed as she remained quiet. Niamh was the one that answered the door when it knocked, an equally nicely dressed Charli stood on the other side.

“Hey, you must be Charli” Niamh smiled.

“Yeah, it’s Niamh, right?” Charli said as your best friend nodded.

“Y/n is just in the living room. I think she may have fallen back asleep” Niamh laughed. “Be my guest at waking her up. It’s a daily struggle” Charli walked into the living room, where she found you asleep sitting up on the sofa.

“Y/n” she hummed softly while she gently rocking you.

“Mmm?” You mumbled.

“You still okay to come out?” She asked as you nodded and opened your eyes.

“Next time we go out we’re doing it at night time” you groaned as the blonde giggled.

“Would you rather spend the day in?” She asked. You debated it for a minute, but you’d actually planned to take her to some nice places, so you shook your head.

“Nah, we’ve got things to see” you smiled, rubbing your eyes and standing up. You took her to all the tourist attractions that didn’t cost a bomb. You also took her on the tube, and explained the different lines and how they worked. You actually had a really nice day.

“Any suggestions for food? I am starving” she mentioned as you walked back towards the station.

“Why don’t you come back to mine? I think Niamh’s made dinner” you suggested.

“Would she mind?” Charli asked.

“She usually cooks big portions” you laughed. You and Niamh both ate a lot of food, so you usually cooked to serve 6-7 people. You brought the girl back to your house, where Niamh had cooked and was more than happy to whip out another bowl for Charli.

“You want to stay and watch something? I can drop you back later if you’d like” You asked as Charli smiled and nodded. “I can go get you spare clothes, just so you’ll be a bit more comfortable” you said, putting your food to the side and jogging upstairs.

“So, how are you finding London?” Niamh asked Charli while digging into her food.

“Yeah, it’s definitely bigger than I imagined” she laughed.

“Yeah it is” Niamh nodded. “It’ll get easier” she reassured her. “Especially when you’ve got a personal bodyguard” she laughed.

“What do you mean?” Charli asked.

“Hello?” You mumbled when you answered the phone, coming down the stairs with spare clothes in hand.

“Y/n Cooney-Cross, where is Charli?” Katrina snapped down the phone.

“In my house?” You frowned. “Is everything alright?” You asked.

“She was meant to be home over an hour ago” she huffed.

“Sorry that’s my bad” you lied. “I will drop her home in about an hour, we’re just having dinner”

“Okay” Katrina sighed in relief that her other child was safe. “Also, while I have you, can you mind Harper tomorrow for a few hours?” She asked.

“Yeah of course” you smiled. “Everything alright?”

“Clara just has an appointment in the morning” she sounded stressed. Expanding a family was stressful.

“Well, I’ll see you in the morning then” you nodded.

“Great, I’ll bring Harper over to you at about 8”

Fantastic.

You got back into the living room with clothes, as both girls instantly fell silent. They seemed to be caught up in a very intense conversation that fell flat the second you got into the room.

“Here, you can get changed in my room” you said, handing Charli the clothes as she took them from you and headed to your bedroom to get changed. “I hope you don’t mind, I have to look after Harper in the morning” you told Niamh.

“It’s no issue” she smiled. She knew you idolised Katrina and you loved Harper as if she was your real sister. “But I will throw that child on you tomorrow if you are not awake when they get here” Niamh laughed.

“You won’t need to” you reassured her, but you really couldn’t offer any type of reassurance great enough to Niamh that she’d believe you.

“Your clothes are too big” Charli laughed as she came back in with your clothes looking baggy. KCC was small but y/iCC was big. Your heart dropped when you saw her in your clothes.

“Niamh might have something better” you stutter as you stood up but Charli grabbed your hand and squeezed it.

“It’s fine” she smiled, as you both sat back down next to each other. “I would much rather be in your clothes” she whispered. You grinned to yourself and hit play on the TV again and the three of you continued to watch the show.

“I’m gonna hit the hay” Niamh yawned when the show ended.

“It’s 9pm?” You laughed.

“Which is why it doesn’t bother me when I need to get up before 8am” Niamh smirked. “Make sure to clean up before you go to bed”

“Alright mum” you teased as Niamh headed off to bed. “Wanna go home?” You asked the girl sitting next to you.

“Can I stay for another while?” She asked and you nodded with a smile. You changed what was on the TV to a movie. Your issue with sleeping wasn’t limited to being difficult to wake up, you also fell asleep extremely quickly. Charli had also drifted off, letting her head fall ontop of yours that had already fallen onto her shoulder.

“Actually-” Niamh said as she re-entered the room, but stopped herself when she noticed you were both asleep. She got a blanket and put it over the two of you and sent Katrina off a message to let her know that you’d both fallen asleep and it was fine for Charli to stay. Katrina and Niamh kept in touch, like two mums co-parenting a child. You being the child in the scenario.

-

You woke the next morning to Charli asleep beside you and your arm wrapped around her waist. She was also dressed in your clothes and looked adorable, tucked up against you.

“Cha cha” you mumbled.

“Only Harper calls me that” she laughed.

“Yeah, well Harps is going to be here soon” you shrugged.

“Oh, Harper is already here” Niamh said as she came in with the toddler who demanded to be lifted up onto the couch that you and Charli had made into a make shift bed.

“Hey Harps” you smiled picking her up and plonking her in between you two. “Where’s mummy?” You asked.

“Mummy is gone. Mummy is angry with Y/n for being asleep, isn’t she Harper?” Niamh smirked as the toddler innocently nodded. “She said she’d be back around 2” Niamh nodded as she shuffled off to make breakfast.

“Movie day or London day?” You asked the toddler.

“London day” she shouted back.

“Okay, give me 5 minutes” you smiled as you picked her up and spun her around like an airplane before you dropped her beside Charli and got up to get changed.

“What’s a London day?” Charli asked.

“Oh, it’s when we go out and do something” you shrugged, leaving the room before wincing at your bluntness. “Would you want to come?” You asked, sauntering back into the room and seeing the girl smile. “Is that okay Harper? If Charli comes too?” You asked the already nodding toddler.

Charli got changed into her outfit from yesterday again. You grabbed a few slices of toast and gave Charli your car keys.

“No, I want train” Harper said, shaking her head and stomping her feet.

“Okay, okay, no car” you replied, pointing to the rack where you usually left them for Charli to put them back up.

The three of you headed out, and Charli could have melted with how good you were with Harper. The little toddler practically spent the entire day on your shoulders, or holding your hand. You’d do anything that child asked you to do, and that is why Katrina trusted you with her. You’d let Katrina know that you’d meet her back at her own house, to save her coming to yours.

“Come on, let’s get your mummies something before we bring you home” you smiled, tugging the little girls’ legs who was sat happily on your shoulders.

“This” Harper shouted, pointing at a bouquet of flowers as you made eyes with the awaiting florist. She was an attractive blonde, and definitely your type.

“Could I grab these, please?” You asked as she smiled at you.

“Of course. I’ll get them wrapped up for you” she picked them up and took them to the desk. “Is she yours?” She asked, eyes falling to Harper who was now on the ground yet firmly holding onto your hand.

“No, my little sister” you chuckled.

“She’s so cute” she giggled, “Are these for someone special?” She asked you, but Harper answered anyway.

“Mummies” Harper shouted, making grabby hands for the bouquet, making both you and the florist laugh. Charli watched on as the girl clearly was flirting with you, but you seemed oblivious. You paid for the flowers and headed out of the shop. With Harper back on your shoulders, you needed to hang on to her, so you handed Charli the bouquet of flowers. You liked how natural it felt handing her them. You noticed how happy she looked being handed them, even though she knew that they weren’t for her.

“You know she was flirting with you?” Charli laughed, but inside she was not laughing.

“Oh, uh, I don’t think so” you shook your head. You didn’t really care to look at other girls. It had always been Charli, ever since you first met her.

“You’re oblivious” she rolled her eyes.

“I just don’t care” you shrugged.

“Why? Do you have a girlfriend?” She asked.

“No” you shook your head. “There’s just nobody else that I find attractive” you said, hoping the girl would get the hint.

“Good” she replied, quietly. You were silent on the journey home. You got back to Katrina’s house, stopping in quickly to say hello and to make sure Harper didn’t destroy the flowers before they got to Clara and Katrina. “Thank you, for last night and today” Charli smiled.

“It’s no stress” you reciprocated her smile. You walked towards the door as Charli’s heart dropped. Maybe you were just oblivious when people tried to flirt with you. “Charli?” you said when you got to the door.

“Yeah?” She replied.

“Are you doing anything tomorrow?” You asked.

“Um, no. Why do you ask?” She blushed.

“Would you maybe-” every ounce of confidence you had gained was gone now, but when you caught her eye it all came rushing back. “Would you maybe want to go out?” You stuttered.

“Like, on a date?” She asked and you nodded. “Yeah, I would love that” she smiled.

“Cool, I’ll pick you up then at 7?”

“7am, right?” She teased. You playfully rolled your eyes and left the house, practically running home to go to sleep so it would be tomorrow.

“Did I hear that correctly?” Katrina smirked.

“Hear what?” Kyra asked, coming through the door.

“Y/n just asked Charli-” Katrina began.

“If I would rather Chelsea or Arsenal” Charli blurted out to interrupt Katrina.

“And what did you say? You better have said Arsenal because there is no Australians on the Chelsea team” Kyra protested. Everyone looked at Kyra with their mouths open, wondering if she was being serious. “Like, at Arsenal, you’ve got me, Steph, Caitlin. Who even plays for Chelsea?” Kyra pondered.

“Y/n/n” Harper shouted.

“Sam” Katrina added.

“A bunch of nobodies. That’s who” Kyra protested, storming upstairs. Katrina waited until she heard Kyra’s door shut to turn back to Charli.

“I don’t want to tell her” Charli whispered.

“As long as you both understand how much more complicated it gets if you don’t” Katrina said as Charli nodded. “Thank god you’re not my real kids” she chuckled leaving the room.

“If they were ours then two of them going on a date would be pretty awkward, no?” Clara laughed.

You basically busted through your own front door, bypassing the living room where Niamh was and going straight to the kitchen. You opened the fridge and grabbed some leftovers of Niamh’s cooking before joining her in the living room.

“You’re late” she frowned.

“Sorry I missed curfew again mum, please don’t ground me” you teased.

“Oi, that’s mine” she shouted at the bowl in your hands.

“What’s mine is yours, and what’s yours is mine Niamhy” you smirked, taking a forkful of food into your mouth as she groaned.

“Wanna do something tomorrow then?” She asked.

“Yeah, I’m free in the morning” you shrugged.

“As if you’re going to get up in the morning” she laughed. “Are you minding Harper or something later on?” She asked.

“Uh, no” you shook your head. “I have a date”

“A date? Does this mean you’re finally getting over your little sister’s best friend then?” Niamh laughed, picking up the remote to change over to the show you had been watching together. But when you didn’t respond, she knew by the look on your face who the date was with. “Your date is your little sister’s best friend” she sighed as you hummed. “Shit man, did you tell Kyra?” She asked.

“No, fuck no” you shook your head frantically. “She would ruin it”

“It’s your funeral” Niamh shrugged. “On the other side of things though, I am happy for you. I know you like her and she clearly likes you” Niamh smiled.

“Yeah, yeah just put your stupid show on” you laughed.

“It’s our show” Niamh protested before flicking it on. Like usual, you were asleep in seconds.

-

“Which friend?” Kyra asked as Charli got ready for your date. “A friend or a special friend?” She teased, wiggling her eyebrows.

“Why does it matter?” Charli groaned.

“So it’s a special friend then” Kyra smirked

“It’s just a dinner” Charli hummed.

“Well, I wanna meet them. Do I know them? Is it a guy? A girl? Do they play football? What club do they-” Kyra began firing out questions.

“Kyra enough, please” Charli sighed. “It’s a nothing with a nobody”

“Alright, if you say so” Kyra grinned, clearly up to something. “But if he, she or they don’t have you back by 11pm they’ll have to answer to mum” she skipped into her room and got ready herself. She was heading out with her Arsenal team mates tonight. Kyra had thankfully gone out when you arrived to collect Charli. You still had a key but you decided to knock.

“Did you lose your key?” Clara asked with a grin as she opened the door.

“I just thought it would be more respectful to knock” You were clearly anxious, but Clara knew exactly how to calm you down.

“Harper, guess who’s here” she shouted as the toddler came flying towards you out of nowhere.

“Y/n/n” she squealed as you picked her up.

“Harps” you chuckled, squeezing her tightly as she clung to you just as tight.

“That’s for you, kid” Katrina smiled at Charli who was applying some make-up in the mirror.

“Jesus, I am so nervous, my hands are sweating. Do you think it’s normal how sweaty my hands are?” She held them out as Katrina grabbed them, ignoring how sweaty they were to make it seem like it was in fact normal.

“Hey, listen to me. It’s okay to be nervous. I know she is too. But you both really like each other” Katrina reassured the now nodding girl. “After you” she gestured towards the door. You stood with Harper in your arms as you looked up to the shuffling noises from the top of the stairs. You couldn’t think straight when you saw how good she looked

“Holy fu-” you began but Clara nudged you into the arm. Hard enough to stop the next word leaving your mouth, but not too hard that you would drop Harper. You placed the toddler on the ground, before fixing your jacket.

“Hi” Charli smiled.

“Hey” you grinned. “Ready?” You asked as she nodded. She headed outside, as Katrina pulled you back.

“Good luck” she smiled, and gave you a quick hug. You waited for the door to close before you said what you’d been thinking.

“You look really nice” you smiled.

“Thank you” she beamed. “You do too” she added with a giggle. You took Charli to a fancy restaurant in central London and invited her back to your place afterwards, which she accepted. It was late when you’d gotten back to your house as you’d stayed after dinner to have a few drinks, you were drinking the non-alcoholic ones due to having the car.

Niamh was already in bed when you’d got home. You hadn’t been on your phone at all tonight as you were too caught up having a nice time with Charli. You’d missed Niamh’s message letting you know that Kyra was staying with you tonight because she forgot her key to Katrina’s, but had her one for your house. You’d went to get Charli spare clothes again, as she settled on the couch waiting for you to come back. She was finding something for both of you to watch when you came back with clothes. She headed to your bedroom to quickly get changed, while you grabbed some snacks from the kitchen. “These are so baggy” Charli giggled as she came in dressed in your clothes.

“You decide on a film?” You asked as she nodded and pulled you by the hand onto the couch. “Just keep it low, Niamh’s in bed” you said before she pressed play. The movie played lowly in the background, but it was merely background noise. Even after talking all through dinner and drinks, you just wanted to keep talking to her. “I meant to ask, did you like the place that we went to?” You asked as Charli smiled.

“Yeah, the food was really good. Thank you a lot for paying too, you didn’t need to do that” She was lightly tracing her fingers along your hand.

“Don’t be silly” you shook your head. “I asked you out, didn’t I?”

“I didn’t think you liked me, like that” Charli mumbled.

“I’ve liked you for a really long time, Charli” you stuttered out. It didn’t take long for the confidence to pick up and you leaned in to kiss her. She kissed you back, instantly. It got fairly intense, pretty quickly, mainly due to the fact you’d both been hung up on each other for years. She swung a leg over your lap and placed her hands to the back of your neck, while yours fell to her thighs. Your hands had just started to tug up the Chelsea T-shirt she was wearing.

“The fuck is this” Kyra demanded as you instantly broke apart. You were a bit shell shocked why your sister was here as you hadn’t seen Niamh’s message.

“Ky” you began, placing Charli back onto the couch and standing up.

“She’s my best friend” she shouted. You desperately tried to calm her down while also trying not to wake Niamh. Caitlin and Steph came through the door to make sure Kyra got in okay, only to walk into what was unfolding. “You’re both fucking dickheads. You’re meant to be my best friend and you’re meant to be my sister” Niamh was up now too, jogging downstairs.

“Kyra, come on” Caitlin frowned as she shoved the girl outside your house, deciding to take her to stay with her and Katie.

“Are you two okay?” Niamh asked as you sunk into the couch beside Charli.

“If it’s any consolation, honestly loving this” Steph smiled pointing to you two.

“Take me home” Charli said to Steph as she got up.

“Wait, Charli-” you pouted trying to reach out for her. But she was gone, Steph following off behind her after rubbing your shoulder and closing your front door.

“Shit man” Niamh grumbled as she brought you in for a hug. You didn’t really know what to do or what to say. You just stood rooted to the spot and felt numb. She eventually got you settled on the couch as she headed into the kitchen to make you tea. You were sat in the exact same position, hunkered up and staring at the wall when Niamh got back. “Here, mate” Niamh said, handing you a mug of tea.

“Thanks” you mumbled, taking it from her hands.

“It’ll all work out, you know?” Niamh smiled sympathetically and placed a hand on your shoulder. You just nodded unconvincingly as the two of you sat in silence and stared straight ahead.

“Can you just put something on TV?” You grumbled as Niamh nodded and hit it on. She usually sat on the armchair, beside the couch, but sat beside you now, and put her head on your shoulder. That’s how the two of you drifted off to sleep. Niamh was a good mate.

-

Caitlin had dropped Kyra back to her house the next morning, while Charli had ended up staying with Steph, and was still there.

“Morning sunshine” An oblivious Katrina smiled as Kyra pushed by her and went straight upstairs. “Caitlin?” Katrina frowned as to why her fellow Aussie teammate was stood in front of her.

“Morning” she groaned.

“Start talking” Katrina snapped. Caitlin explained everything very quietly so that Kyra couldn’t hear them talking. Katrina knew she had her work cut out for her. She thanked Caitlin for looking after Kyra and getting her home safely before she headed up to Kyra’s room and knocked. “You okay?” Katrina asked the young girl who was hunkered up on her bed.

“Did you know?” She asked. “About Y/n and Charli” she added to clarify what she meant, although Katrina knew what she meant.

“I knew they were going on a date” she nodded.

“Why would you not tell me?” Kyra groaned.

“It’s not my place and they asked me not to. They were both scared to upset you”

“How could they do this? Charli is meant to be my best friend and Y/n is my sister” Kyra huffed.

“Have you spoken to either of them?” Katrina asked as Kyra shook her head. “They really do like each other, I think you should talk to them”

“And what? Give them my blessing? I don’t think so” Kyra shook her head.

“Stop acting like a child” Katrina warned.

“What if they break up? I’ll lose my best friend or my sister. Or what if they both don’t talk to me?” Kyra pouted.

“But what if it works?” Katrina argued. She could tell that sent Kyra into a spiral so decided to leave her with her thoughts. “Come and get tea when you’ve settled” Katrina said before slipping out of the room and down the stairs. Niamh had convinced you to go and speak to Katrina, as she knew Katrina would be able to help process your thoughts a bit better. So, when you got to Katrina’s, it was just unfortunate the first person you met was a mopey Kyra coming downstairs.

“What do you want? Your girlfriend isn’t here” Kyra huffed.

“I just came by to-” you began before she cut you off.

“I don’t want to hear your stupid fucking apology” she shouted, a bit too loudly for a certain toddlers ears.

“Kyra” Katrina shouted. “Both of you give over. Now”. Kyra stomped back upstairs before stopping and turning to look down at you.

“I’m never going to be okay with it” she slammed her bedroom door and never came back out. Your body tensed up in a way it never had before. You felt like the worst person and the worst sister on the planet.

“You okay?” Katrina asked as you nodded.

“I’m sorry for shouting with Harper here” you mumbled.

“It wasn’t you” Katrina pouted at how visibly upset you looked and tried to reach for your arm.

“I need to, uh, get home” you shook your head and pulled away from her.

“Y/n/n” Harper shouted as your fingertips gripped the door handle. “Movie day, movie day” she demanded.

“Not today, Harper” Katrina cooed picking her up and the toddler pouted, making grabby hands for you to take her out of Katrina’s arms.

“Do you want to do movie day with me and Niamh?” You asked as the little girl nodded frantically. “Is that okay with mum?” You turned to Katrina.

“Only if you promise to cheer Y/n up” Katrina smiled, squishing Harper’s cheeks gently.

“Y/n/n sad?” Harper poked your face.

“Not anymore” you smiled, squeezing her cheek as she giggled and pulled your neck tightly for a hug.

You took Harper back with you to have a movie day in your house, which Niamh was more than happy to take part in. It also got Harper out of the house so when a certain blonde got home, no child had to be a witness to the screaming match that was bound to take place. Charli got home shortly after you’d left, with a concerned Steph following her in to talk to Katrina. Charli immediately ran upstairs to her bedroom.

“Mini, I wish I could describe the look on Y/n’s face when Charli left” Steph began.

“I don’t know what to do with them all” Katrina sighed.

“I’m glad they’re your kids and not mine” Steph chuckled. “Speaking of your kids, where is your actual one?”

“She’s over with Y/n and Niamh. I’m going to leave them two to work it out without little ears around” Katrina informed her. Not too long after Steph had left, Katrina and Clara also headed out, to give Charli and Kyra some space. Charli had just sat in her room all day watching reruns of shit TV when she was eventually disturbed by a knock on the door.

“Hey, uh, can we talk?” Kyra grumbled. Charli nodded and sat up on the bed as Kyra sat on the bottom. “Are you and my sister like-”

“It’s nothing” Charli shook her head.

“I didn’t walk in on nothing” Kyra frowned.

“It was one date and one kiss. It meant nothing. It won’t happen again” Charli was of course lying about it meaning nothing, but was trying to make peace. “So we’re fine, right?” Charli pouted.

“Yeah, it’s cool” Kyra nodded. “So, are you two like friends still?” She asked.

“We’ve always just been nothing, she’s just your sister” Charli shrugged.

You on the other hand, found it better to just avoid the two of them. You’d stopped coming by the house and just ignored Kyra’s calls or texts. You decided not to go back to Australia for Christmas, instead spending it with Niamh’s family after a lot of pestering that you couldn’t be alone. You’d almost become a different person. You’d barely looked in Kyra’s direction when you’d played her a few weeks ago in the league. Kyra did try to approach you to say hello but Niamh had interrupted to let her know it probably wasn’t the best idea. When it came to playing against Charli, you didn’t stick around after the game at all. You were too afraid to even look at her.

Kyra felt as though she was going crazy. Her fears of losing you were happening and nothing serious had even happened between you and Charli. So, your real mum and adopted mum had given Kyra some kind of a pep talk to try to fix things with you. And she did it in the only way she knew would make you agree to spend time with her.

“London day” Harper squeaked as she jumped on your bed while you were still asleep.

“Harps” you groaned, picking up your phone to check the time.

“She wanted a London day with her big sister” Kyra chuckled and startled you a bit.

“What are you doing here?” You frowned.

“London day” Harper demanded as you and your sister caught each other’s eye and laughed. You got changed quickly, lifting Harper up on your shoulders where she happily sat for the whole day. On the way back, you stopped into the same florist you had the day with Charli.

“Oh, look who’s back” the florist smirked as you came through the door.

“Harper, say hello” you smiled, squeezing her legs. The toddler gave a quick wave before giving you a tug to let you know she wanted to be put down. She walked around with Kyra to pick some flowers.

“You’re so cute with her” the girl mentioned with a flirty tone.

“Oh, uh, thanks” You laughed nervously.

“These flowers aren’t for someone special this time, are they?” She hinted as you shook your head. “Would it be weird if I asked you for your number?”

“You want my number?” You said in disbelief.

“Is that okay?” She asked.

“Uh, yeah” you nodded, taking her phone to put your number in. You had to move on eventually, right?

“I’ll text you” she smiled, putting her phone back in her pocket. She took the flowers from Harper and you paid for them, like usual.

“Did you get her number?” Kyra asked when you got outside.

“She asked for mine” you shrugged.

“And what? You just gave it to her? What about Charli?”

“What about Charli?” You frowned. “You said you wouldn’t be okay with it, and we haven’t spoke since”

“But you still like her?” Kyra asked.

“Feelings don’t just go away over night” you shrugged.

“It’s been four months” Kyra pointed out.

“Well I’ve really liked her for years so sorry for still feeling-”

“Years?”

“It doesn’t matter Kyra” you huffed.

“No but it does” she said softly.

“When I heard she was moving to London, I really thought it might happen” you sighed. “But it doesn’t matter, I don’t want you upset or-”

“Years, huh?” She asked and you nodded. “Harper, we got the wrong flowers” Kyra playfully pouted. “These aren’t mummies favourites, whose are they?” Kyra smirked.

“Cha cha” Harper giggled.

“Let’s go back” Kyra said, taking Harper from you and handing you the flowers. “Go tell her” Kyra smiled.

You stood puzzled before she shoved the flowers harder against your chest.

“You’re sure?” You asked as Kyra nodded with a smile, turning off with Harper on her shoulders now. You took off on a run towards Katrina’s, hoping that Charli would be home. And strangely, she was the only one home. She was startled by whoever was here. They had just burst through the front door and she got up to check who it was.

“Y/n?”

“Hey” you mumbled.

“Katrina isn’t here” she replied instead of greeting you.

“I came to see you, actually” you practically whispered. She didn’t answer so you just continued. “Listen, Charli, I really like you and I have liked you since the day we first met. I get this is awkward with Kyra and everything, but I want us to be something, even if that’s just friends” you stuttered out. She hadn’t said anything, and like the idiot you were, you were gearing up to say something else, which she seemed to sense because just as you opened your mouth to speak again, she stepped forward to put her lips on yours. You both melted into the kiss. This one a lot more gentle than the previous one you’d shared. “So you want to be friends then?” You smirked.

“So badly” she teased, kissing you again. “But what do we say to Kyra?” She winced.

“She’s surprisingly now on board” you shrugged. “Oh, these are for you” you smiled, handing her the flowers that had firmly stayed in your hand since you got here.

“Just to be clear, we are more than friends now, right?” She asked as you nodded and kissed her again.

“Jesus, not infront of the baby” Kyra shouted, covering Harper’s eyes as they came through the front door.

“Come on Harps, let’s go start dinner” you smiled, as the toddler came running after you towards the kitchen.

“That didn’t take long” Kyra laughed as Charli rolled her eyes playfully. “Come on, let’s help your little girlfriend make dinner then” she smirked as they headed towards the kitchen.

Funny enough, Kyra never had to worry about you and Charli breaking up.

[pitchsidestories]

don't want you like a best friend II Steph Catley x Reader

masterlist I word count: 1748

a/n: inspired by this request here, we hope you'll like it.🥰

it's coffee time (group chat)

Steph

girls !!!

Jen

what's up, Stephy? It must be late where you're mate.

Beth

don’t write girls and let us wait!

Steph

I need to confess something.

Beth

tell us!!!

Steph

my best friend is gorgeous.

Beth

that was all? Wow, what a let-down 🥱              

Steph

I think I'm in love with her.

Jen

you’re messing with us. You’re not serious, right?

RIGHT?

Beth

that must be a joke.

Steph

no, I'm serious.

Jen

are you absolutely sure about your feelings for her?

The next day

Steph

girls, I obviously meant it platonically. Sorry, I was a bit tipsy last night😅

Jen

drunk people and children always tell the truth.

Beth

you two should talk about this.                          

Steph

we're on vacation.

Jen

yeah, perfect opportunity for it

Ever since your started playing for the Matildas youth teams, you and Steph had been best friends. You were roommates at every game, you were the first person that got to meet Calvin when he was still a puppy and of course, the two of you would go on vacation together to switch off from the stress of football.

This year, Steph had booked a beautiful hotel with a huge pool for the two of you. Your room overlooked the ocean, and you were completely in awe when you first walked in.

In fact, you still were mesmerized by the beautiful view a few days later when you got ready to go down to the pool. You pulled an oversized shirt over your bikini and turned towards Steph who sat on her bed, frantically typing on her phone.

“Come on, Steph. Time to go down to the pool, the weather is perfect.“

“I’m coming in a sec.“, she said, her gaze still on her phone.

You gathered your stuff for the pool, throwing a towel over your shoulder: “Okay.“

Steph finished typing and turned off her phone: “I’m ready.“

“Perfect. Let’s go.“, you smiled as the two of you made your way to the pool.

It was still empty, the blue water glimmered temptingly in the midday sun, inviting you in. You dropped all your stuff on a deckchair and without hesitation jumped in.

Steph stared at you in surprise as you emerged back to the surface. You grinned at her, pushing your wet hair back. She looked so shocked, she must have missed that you had just jumped in.

She shook her head in disbelief but a smile softened her features.

“Is it cold?“, she asked?

“No, very refreshing.“, you laughed, splashing some water into her direction.

She quickly pulled her feet back to avoid getting wet.

“Maybe I’ll come in too.“

“You should!“

Steph got up from her deckchair and in contrast to you, used the ladder to get into the pool. Halfway in, the cold water hit her calves and with a shriek, she climbed back out.

You immediately burst into laughter. One of the toughest players that you knew and she still couldn’t handle cold water.

“You’re such a liar!“, Steph yelled and gave you reproachful look.

“Sorry but your face was so worth it.“, you wheezed.

“Hate you.“, she pouted jokingly.

“No, you don’t.“, you smiled, pushing yourself out of the pool.

She shook her head: “No, I don’t.“

“See.“, you grinned as you walked over to her, your arms outstretched and dripping water on the concrete.

Steph cursed under her breath as you pulled her into a very wet hug: “Ew, you’re dripping water everywhere!“

“Sorry not sorry.“

She rolled her eyes with fondness and moved her clothes in a pile from the deckchair so it wouldn’t get wet: “You’re so annoying.“

“Excuse me? I’m not as annoying as Kyra.“, you laughed and sat down next to her.

“No one’s as annoying as that little pest.”, Steph countered. Even in her pretended annoyance her love for the younger teammate shimmered through. They really were like mother and daughter sometimes.

“You love her too though.”, you smiled at her before your face turned serious.

After a pause you changed the topic. “Can we talk about last night?”

“You mean when I almost kissed you?”, she asked cautiously in return.

“Yes.”, you nodded slowly.

Not looking into your eyes, your best friend glanced at her fingernails instead.

“That was dumb.”, Steph muttered under her breath.

“Best friends don’t do that.”, you remarked calmly.

“I told you; it was nothing.”, the defender insisted fiercely.

“What if..”, you started carefully but were immediately interrupted by your friend.

“What if what? Is this one of those but what if we kissed as a joke things?”, she huffed.

“No, I’d never joke about such things.”, you stated firmly.

“Wait? What are you trying to say?”, Steph gave you a look you couldn’t quite interpret.

“I don’t want to ruin our friendship.”, you mumbled.

“That’s why you didn’t kiss me last night? That’s why you pulled back when I tried to kiss you?”, your friend pressed on, biting her lip anxiously.

“Yes and call me old school but you were tipsy and I didn’t want you to regret it.”, you smiled weakly.

“I.. that’s very sweet of you.”, she replied softly.

“But would you like to kiss me?”, you asked her, your heart pounding hard against your chest. It was a question which potentially could change your friendship forever.

“I think I do.”, Steph admitted, putting a loose hair string back behind her ear.

“Me too.”, you confessed nervously.

“You do?”, she glanced at you surprised.

“Yes.”, you confirmed, sounding sincere.

“I guess we should then.”, your best friend grinned shily.

“I agree.” You could hear her stomach growl, so you quickly added with a smirk on your lips. “Maybe we should have dinner first.”  

“Please.”, Steph answered while you walked hand in hand to the restaurant inside the hotel.

“That was so delicious, and the dessert was perfect.”, you sighed happily, once you both had finished your dinner.

“Agreed, it was really good.”, the defender said.

“Can I?”, you have begun almost timidly. The anticipation for the first real kiss has risen for you two over the course of the three courses meal, it was nearly unbearable. You were so hungry for the touch of your friends soft and sweet lips. Waiting for her reply.

“Yes.“, Steph said quietly.

That was all it needed, you leaned forward and kissed her gently and carefully. You pulled away after a few seconds, searching for any hint in your best friends face. “And? What do you think?“

Steph bit her lip with a smile, her eyes sparkling in excitement: “Can I try again?“

“Please.“, you laughed. This time you let her initiate the kiss.

Stephs lips found yours with impatience and a sense of urgency. This kiss lasted longer, it was more passionate.

“I like it!“, Steph decided as she ended the kiss abruptly.

“I like it too.“, you grinned.

You noticed that she was still staring at your lips.

“I never kissed anyone that tastes so good.“, she admitted.

You couldn’t help yourself, you had to reference the Matildas’ iconic warm up song which was also Stephs favourite song of all time: “Strawberry kisses.“

“Nothing’s as sweet, the taste still drives me crazy.“, she sang the lyrics.

“Such a good song, I hope we’ll hear it at the Olympics.“

Steph looked at you like you had gone crazy for a moment: “Of course we will!“

You grinned at her: “Of course. You’ll play it.“

“Exactly.“, she confirmed, lost in thoughts while her fingertips reached for yours.

This year’s vacation must have been your favourite so far. There were many more kisses after your very first one, slow mornings in the hotel bed and lazy touches in the afternoon sun.

The memories of your holidays followed you to the Matildas training camp a few days later.

As usual, you arrived with Steph. Only this time, there was more between you than just friendship.

You felt like you were constantly grinning, like all your teammates would know immediately by just looking at you.

But there was no time to greet the other player as you were knocked off balance by Kyra who pulled you and Steph into a hug: “Missed my mums!“

You frowned at her but laughed: “Mini is over there. She is your mum.“

You pointed towards Katrina with Harper sitting in her lap.

Kyra rolled her eyes: “Yes, but…“

She didn’t have to finish her sentence, you understood.

“She’s busy with her two small children?“

“Yeah.“, Kyra pouted playfully.

Steph gently stroked the younger players hair: “Poor pest.“

You met Stephs gaze with a grin and shrugged: “I guess it’s our turn to babysit, babe.“

“Babe?!“, Kyra and Caitlin both echoed simultaneously.

Kyra pulled out of the hug to study the two of you with excited, curious eyes while Caitlins face was pure bewilderment.

Steph bit her lip and reached for your hand: “I don’t think I have to explain this, right?“

“Yes, you do!“, Caitlin disagreed, impatient to get the full story.

“It just happened.“, Steph offered her short version of events which earned her an eye roll from Caitlin.

“So, you two are not only best friends but girlfriends now?!”, Kyra gasped dramatically.

“Yes. She’s, my girlfriend.”, your lover confirmed, smiling proudly at you.

“Wow, that’s amazing.”, Caitlin yelled excitedly.

“Thanks, Caitlin.”, you gave her a grateful smile.

“So that happens when two best friends go on a vacation together.”, Mackenzie commented with a huge grin on her lips.

“More like when two people who had a crush on each other for years go on a vacation together.”, you corrected her.

“And who were too afraid to ruin such an old friendship.”, Steph added, looking at you lovingly.

“My favourite idiots in love.”, Alanna sighed, moved.

“Lani, we’re not idiots.”, you protested smirking.

“You’re a bit.”, the Portland Thorns goalkeeper disagreed amused, referring to for how long it took the two of you to realize that you don't want each other like best friends.There always have been something more than friendship and your teammates saw that all along.

“But only a bit.”, you replied.

“As long as you finally figured it out.”, Caitlin intervened soothingly.

“That’s so cute but can we all get ready for training now.”, Tony Gustavsson requested smiling.

“Ugh, Tony.”, the youngest Arsenal player groaned.

While the training begun you thought to yourself that were was nothing better than to be on that football journey together with your friends and the love of your life.

[russo-woso]

Unexpected || Matildas

Request | Masterlist | Prompt list

Warning pregnancy, morning sickness, labour and delivery, chaotic birth

Summary You life turns upside down when you look at the stick, however, you’ve got the best people to help you

It had been a hard training session.

The sun had been blazing down, the heat sweltering and a lot of running had been involved.

You hadn’t been feeling too well when you woke up and after all the running, you definitely didn’t feel well.

It was the opening match of the Women’s World Cup in two days time so you had to be fit and well for then.

You were seventeen and heading to a World Cup in your home country.

It was daunting but so exhilarating at the same time.

As nervous as you were, you had the best people and teammates around you, calming you and your nerves.

It was your dream to play for your country in a World Cup so you were going to make sure you were well enough to play.

That thought came crashing down very quickly when you sprinted for the toilets.

You got there just in time, throwing your head in the toilet and emptying your stomach.

A hand rested on your back, rubbing it gently.

Turning round, you were met with your Australian and Arsenal teammate, Caitlin foord.

Caitlin was like the big sister you never had.

In your eyes, she was your big sister, and in her eyes, you were her annoying little sister that she loved more than anything.

In fact, you were so close, that you lived together in London.

“It’s okay, bug. I’m here.” Caitlin whispered, using your nickname she’d given you when you first met that now everyone used.

You flushed the toilet, before leaning back against the wall.

“You said you didn’t feel well this morning, didn’t you? Are you gonna be okay for the match?” Caitlin questioned, resting the back of her hand against your forehead.

“I have to be.” You said, feeling your stomach churning again.

“Bug, I’m not having you play if you’re sick. Let’s go see the medics.”

“It’s probably just the sun. I’ll be perfect by—” Before you could even finish, you were lunging forward to the toilet.

“Is everything okay? I saw Y/N run — oh, bug.” Mini began, walking into the toilets. Your team mum seeing you hunched over the toilet with Caitlin rubbing your backs

“I’m gonna take her to see the medical team. She complained this morning she wasn’t feeling well.” Caitlin explained to Mini as she continued to run your back.

You flushed the toilet again, this time for the last time.

Caitlin and Mini helped you to the medical room both of them sitting down and waiting with you for your ‘diagnosis’.

You told them all your symptoms and gave a urine sample before laying on the bed and staring into space.

“Y/N, I think I know what’s wrong. Would you like Caitlin and Katrina to be in here with you or would you prefer to be alone?” The team medic asked, looking between you and Caitlin and mini.

You have a confused look, before deciding.

“They can stay.”

“Y/N, you’re pregnant.”

The room fell silent.

“No… I can’t be. There’s a mistake. I’m only seventeen. Let me take another.” You panicked, tears threatening to fall.

“We ran three different pregnancy tests. You’re definitely pregnant.” The medic showed you the three tests, all of them with the word pregnant on.

“Bug…” Caitlin whispered, engulfing you in a hug as you sobbed.

Mini came round your other side, hugging you too.

There goes your chances of playing on Saturday.

—

It had been four hours and you hadn’t spoken to anyone.

Caitlin and Mini got you up to your room, leaving you there to think alone.

You were thinking about everything and anything.

How far along were you?

What are you gonna tell your parents?

Just everything.

You tried working out the first question.

You broke up with your boyfriend 4 weeks ago. It was in a heated argument when you shouted that you were breaking up with him. So at a guess, you were about five weeks.

As your thoughts swirled around your head, a small knock was heard before Charli and Kyra’s heads peeped round the door.

“Can we come in?” Your best friends asked as you nodded.

Although there were a few years between the three of you, you were the bestest of friends.

You were more closer to Kyra, but you loved Charli just as much.

“We saw you crying in the medical room, is everything okay bug?” Charli asked but before you could reply, the tears started again.

They both held your shaking body as you sobbed.

“I’m… I’m pregnant.” You managed to say between sniffs.

Kyra and Charli just looked at each other, a look of shock on both their faces.

“Oh bug, we’re here. We’re going to be here no matter what you do.” Kyra reassured you, hugging you tighter.

—

The first World Cup match had been a bittersweet moment.

You loved watching all your friends play but you couldn’t help but feel jealous.

The idea that you were pregnant had slightly settled down and you were slowly wrapping your head around the fact that you were going to have a baby.

Every morning since you found out, you were violently sick, not being able to keep anything down for the first few hours of the day.

Even if it wasn’t morning, you found yourself so nauseous.

It was like you were constantly running to the bathroom to be sick.

You were so emotional too. Every sad video you watched, you cried.

When Steph scored, you cried.

In between the match and when you found out about the pregnancy, you’d rung your ex but he hung up the phone as soon as you began to say the word pregnant.

You didn’t really care though, you didn’t want him in your life of the baby’s life.

Your parents took it badly, saying how disappointed they were before hanging up.

You had your teammates and that’s all that mattered to you.

—

You were now six months pregnant.

The time had flown by and you’d found out you were having a little boy.

Just like you thought, all your teammates had been so supportive when you told them.

Kyra also moved to Arsenal to help support you, claiming that’s she’d do anything for her best friend.

You couldn’t help but cry whilst you hugged her.

You were currently sat next to Kyra as you flew to Australia.

Australia were having a few friendlies and you were allowed to come and join in on a few training drills, and anyway, you loved coming back to your home country so who were you to say no?

The pane ride hadn’t gone to plan though.

Little man didn’t like the idea of flying and made it living hell for you.

You were either fast asleep or throwing your guts up.

“I’m sick of this now.” You sighed, settling down in your chair after running to the toilet for the fifth time.

“I know, bug. Not too long.” Caitlin said from behind you.

You safely arrived in Australia not long after, having a taxi there waiting to take you to camp.

The first to greet you was Mini.

She enveloped you in a hug, harper wrapping her arms around your leg.

“Hi, Harps.”

“Auntie Y/N pick me up?” Harper asked, bringing her puppy eyes out.

“Harps, I can’t anymore. I promise as soon as little man comes I will.”

“I love little man so it’s okay.” Harper said with a smile, walking away with Kyra.

“She’s so sweet. I hope he’s as sweet.”

“Not when he’s a part you.” Mini joked, you sending her a piercing stare. “

“Come on, mini. You know better than to mess with the pregnant one.” Steph chirped in, resting a hand on your shoulder, rubbing it gently. “Come on, bug. You had a rough journey here, let’s get you and little man to bed.”

—

It was the third night at camp and you’d been tossing and turning all night.

It wasn’t that you were uncomfortable or in pain, you just had really bad cravings.

You had been pared with Sam for camp this time, you being a striker so Tony thought why not pare you up with Australia’s main striker.

“Bug, what’s wrong?” Sam asked, sitting up and turning on her bed side lamp.

“He won’t stop kicking and I can’t get the thought of a Big Mac out my mind.” You said, tears threatening to spill.

“I’ll order you a Big Mac, I’ll stay awake until it comes.” Sam told you, picking up her phone.

“You’re the best, Sammy. Thank you.”

“Anything for you and little man.”

—

Three months later, you were now nine months pregnant.

You had forced Caitlin to go to training, leaving you by yourself.

Caitlin made you promise that if you had any signs of contractions or your water breaking, you’d ring her.

Unknowing to Caitlin, you’d been having contractions since around three o’clock that morning but knew you were in early labour.

It wasn’t until about an hour after she left, that your contraction took a turn for the worse.

They got a lot more painful and a lot closer together.

You made the decision to call Caitlin, her shouting at you over the phone, telling you off for not telling her.

She left straight away, walking through the front door not even fifteen minutes later.

“Y/N!” Caitlin shouted, her and Steph running through the front door.

“Here.” You said through gritted teeth as you sat on the yoga ball, your hands delicately holding your bump.

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.” Caitlin said, but changed her mood from anger to sympathy as soon as she saw the tears in your eyes. “You’re doing so well. We’re here now.”

“How quick are your contractions?” Steph asked, rubbing your back.

“Six minutes.” You managed to say, a contraction hitting.

“Come on, bug. Let’s get you to the hospital.”

Caitlin and Steph loaded the car up with the bags before getting you in.

Your labour continued to quicken and with luck being your worst enemy, you got stuck in the worst traffic on the m25.

You were now fully in active labour, pain constantly there.

“Fuck, he’s coming. I can feel.” You said, throwing your head back in pain.

Caitlin shot Steph a panicked look in the mirror.

“Okay, bug. I’m pulling over.”

Steph immediately jumped out the car whilst Caitlin called 999.

“Bug, can I take your trousers off?” Steph questioned and you nodded, sweat dripping down your face.

“Shit. I can see him.” Steph announced, helping you lift your leg onto the dashboard so you were in a comfortable position to push.

Caitlin listed carefully to the person over the phone, grabbing everything around the car that could be useful.

“Bug, you need to push when your next contraction hits, okay?” Caitlin said and you nodded, grabbing her hand.

A contraction hit so you pushed with all your might, squeezing the living daylight out of Caitlin’s hand in the meantime.

“His heads out.” Steph revealed, and you took a sigh of relief. “He’s so close, bug. Your bubbas nearly here.”

“It hurts too bad. Fuck, I can’t do it.” You breathed out, your head thrown back in pain.

“You can, bug. I know you can. One big push now.” Caitlin encouraged, laying a blanket down on your chest ready for your son.

“That’s it, bug. He’s coming. Look, he’s here. He’s here, bug.” Steph cried, placing him in your chest.

Tears clouded your eyes as you looked down at him.

“Hi, bubba. Oh I know, it’s okay. Mummy’s here.” You cooed as you rubbed his little back, his cries settling down to soft whimpers.

“The ambulance should be with you within a few minutes. Whatever you do, do not cut the umbilical cord. I can hear him crying so that’s all good. Is mum all good too?” The person over the phone asked.

“I’m all good.” You said, your eyes still focused on your baby boy.

“He’s gorgeous, bug.” Steph whispered, kissing your head gently.

“He is, Y/N. I’m so proud of you, we both are.” Caitlin added, wiping the sweat from your forehead and pressing her lips to it.

“I’m sorry about your car.” You apologised, a panicked look spreading on your face.

“Bug, I don’t care about the car. You and little man are my main priorities.” Caitlin laughed slightly at your panic.

Blue lights and sirens were heard as the ambulance pulled up beside you in the lay by.

It wasn’t long before you and your son were laying comfortably in a hospital bag, both of you being checked over.

He was perfect. A 7lb healthy baby boy.

Once you were settled, you took a picture of your son, sending it to the Matilda’s group chat.

You followed up with a message saying, ‘the newest Tillie.’

Ellie immediately booked flights from France, alanna said she was already in her car driving down to London.

It made you so emotional how much they cared about your baby boy.

You were wrapped in your thoughts when Caitlin spoke up.

“What’s his name, bug?” Caitlin asked as she crawled him in her arms, Steph having had a cuddle a few minutes prior.

“Krew. Krew Y/L/N.”

“Hi, Krew. Hi bubba.” Caitlin cooed, looking at the baby fast asleep in her arms.

You also messaged Kyra, telling her to come to the hospital.

Surprisingly, the normally energetic Kyra was so calm, gently knocking on the door.

She entered with a balloon and a bunch of flowers.

“Ky, you didn’t have to. Thank you.”

Kyra didn’t respond though, her eyes focused on the baby in your arms.

“I’m so proud of you.” Kyra said, tears flowing down her cheeks as she hugged you.

“Would auntie Kyra like a cuddle?” You asked as she pulled away.

“Auntie Kyra would love a cuddle.”

The rest of the afternoon went smoothly, some other teammates coming and saying hello.

Caitlin decided she’d stay the night so Steph went home, leaving the three of you alone.

Caitlin went to sleep not long after, having you promised her to wake her if you needed anything.

A small whimper was heard as you closed your eyes and you looked at Krew, whose little legs were kicking away.

A quiet cry followed, his face having a tiny frown on it.

“It’s okay, bubba. Shh, that’s it.” You whispered, holding him close as he stopped crying.

You focused on all the gift presents in the corner of the room, all of them from teammates.

There were blankets, clothes, stuffed animals, everything.

“You are so loved, little man.”