Stargirl | Matildas X Original Character Fic [part Four]

Stargirl | matildas x original character fic [part seventeen]

Words; 2.9k

Pairings; matildas team x astrid taylor (OC)

Warnings; alcohol and drinking, swearing

masterlist

So after spending the past three weeks and Christmas with their families, it was time for the Sweden Squad to jet off to Fiji for new years, basking in the sun before heading back to the Sweden cold.

They had all departed from their closest airports, figuring it was easier and cheaper than all congregating to one airport then taking another flight from there, so they were all arriving in Fiji at separate times. 

In Astrid fashion, the youngest member was the last to touchdown and make her way to the hotel, getting slightly lost in the airport after landing, trying to make her way to the taxi departures. It also didn’t help that her bag was the last to come out from the plane, waiting almost an hour for it to appear. It was honestly a miracle nothing else went wrong. 

“Maybe we should have taken a flight together, it might have been an easier experience on my end.” Astrid spoke as she appeared behind the other three girls who were waiting in the hotel lobby for her. 

“Took your sweet old time then.” Kyra laughed while getting up as Charli raced to hug Astrid, who then flipped the brunette off behind Charli’s back with a smile.

“You know what Kyra-.”  Astrid let go of Charli and began walking closer to Kyra. 

“No!” Courtney pointed between the two girls, stopping them in their tracks. “You two will not fight while we’re here, I’m not dealing with it, this is our relaxation time.” She looked sternly between the misfits who nodded at her, holding in their laughs that threatened to escape. 

“No fighting.” Kyra put her hand out to shake, Astrid stepping forward to connect her hand to hers. 

“No fighting.” Astrid repeated before pulling Kyra into a hug as well. 

“Alright, let's get you unloaded and off to the beach we go!” Charli had grabbed hold of the bags Astrid dropped during her arrival and signalled to the lifts, everyone else following behind as they headed to their shared room. 

The rest of their arrival day was spent on the beach, soaking in more sun and swimming in the beautiful water, enjoying their time together. And after a nice dinner, followed by a bit of partying, the four players eventually made it to bed and slept well into the next day. 

The group had decided not to plan anything for the 5 days they were there, wanting to just unwind and decide on the day if they wanted to do anything. But Astrid just wanted to swim like she had the whole time she was home. 

Growing up right on the water instilled this love and connection in her, wanting to spend as much time as she could before heading back to Sweden where the chance to swim was nonexistent unless it was in the form of an ice bath. 

This was something Astrid had been pondering for a little bit, whether Sweden really was the place for her. There was much to love; she was thriving at Hammarby, she was with her best friends everyday, she was experiencing life in a new place. But like she had felt when talking with Steph a few months ago, there was something missing but she couldn’t place it. 

Her deep thoughts were rudely interrupted when a pair of hands gripped her shoulders and disrupted her peaceful float in the pool. She let out a scream and quickly stood up in the water, turning around to face the culprit that had a wide grin spreading across her face. 

“KYRA! Really?!” Astrid pushed Kyra by the shoulders, earning a laugh from Kyra and holding back her own laugh. 

“What! I just wanna have some fun.” Kyra flashed her smile and it broke Astrid, the younger girl shaking her head and biting back a smile. “You wanna play mermaids?”

“Kyra Cooney-Cross, you are more of a child than Harper.” Astrid joked yet Kyra seemed to take it as a compliment, smiling even wider. “Come on then.” Astrid nodded her head to the deeper part of the pool, taking off under the water and Kyra excitingly swimming behind her. 

Charli and Courtney watched from their pool chairs, shaking their heads at the duo and their childish nature that seemed to match one another perfectly. Everyone was marvelled at what the pair seemed to be oblivious to but wouldn't dare bring it up, waiting for them to eventually figure it out. 

New Year's Eve. The most exciting and fun night of the year, especially when you were partying it up in Fiji with your best friends.

They spent the day lounging around once again before heading off to get ready for the hotel’s party that had been set up. Before the party had even started the girls were already tipsy and borderline drunk, taking their pre-drinks a little harder than normally, but they were on holidays so why not. 

As usual, Astrid was the last one to be ready, rushing the final steps of her makeup because Charli was hounding her to hurry up so they could get down to the party. They made it down in time, nearing 11pm and the party was definitely going strong. Everyone from the hotel had gathered outside near the pool area mingling with one another, celebrating the year ahead and most of all getting drunk as hell. 

Although they were professional athletes who were on pretty healthy regimes, no one was here to stop them from getting drunk and having fun like normal young people in their late teens and early 20s. So it went without saying that there were no limits to the amount of drinks they would consume tonight.

The four of them stayed together for the first part of the night, dancing near the DJ and scouring the people around them to hopefully find someone for a midnight kiss, but very clearly struggling as they all stood in a close circle downing drink after drink. Eventually they split up, hoping to find luck by not standing together and closing off everyone else around them.

Time had passed and suddenly it was 5 minutes till midnight; plenty of time to find a random stranger for a New Year’s kiss, right? Surely it can’t be that hard to find. But yet here Astrid was, eyeing off everyone and anyone that looked like they could be her type, but finding no one to do the job. 

3 minutes. She didn’t know where the other girls were and was getting slightly overwhelmed by the people around her, she ended up retreating out of the crowd outside and finding her way back inside the hotel. 

2 minutes. Astrid finds an empty hallway to find her breath, using the wall behind her to stabilise her as the alcohol makes her head spin. The music outside had decreased in volume largely, fading into the background of her ears, instead hearing the thump of her heartbeat in her chest. 

1 minute. She had zoned out while staring at the wall opposite her, the patterns on the wallpaper seemed to be moving or maybe it was her as she swayed on her feet, her body feeling the effects of the alcohol now that she had stopped. This is how Kyra found her, stumbling down the hallway herself when she spotted a familiar face. 

“Hey there.” Kyra’s slightly slurred words broke Astrid out of her trance and turned her head towards the midfielder, a smile instantly appearing on her lips. 

“Kyra!” Astrid’s voice was high pitched as she stepped towards Kyra with a wide smile, wrapping her hands around Kyra’s neck and pulling her into a hug. 

“I thought we lost you to someone in the crowd.” Kyra embraced the hug before pulling back, Astrid’s arms staying where they were and Kyra’s subconsciously falling to Astrid’s waist. And if there wasn’t plenty of liquid courage involved, both girls would have never found themselves so close so casually. 

“Too many people and I couldn’t find you.” Astrid playfully booped Kyra’s nose, both girls laughing before focusing in on the noise coming from outside. 

Seven…six…five…

“It’s almost midnight.” Kyra whispered, bringing Astrid’s attention back to her, the countdown fading to the background once again. 

“Yeah.” Astrid breathed out. Her heart began racing as her eyes fell back on Kyra’s. 

Four…

Three…

Two… 

One… 

The group outside cheered as the clock struck midnight, fireworks going off on the beach and yet Astrid and Kyra couldn’t be less interested. 

All they were interested in was the fact they were closer than before and now their lips were touching. 

Astrid’s hands had moved up from their place on Kyra’s neck, now resting on her cheeks as Kyra held her close by the waist. 

The kiss lasted 22 seconds before they both realised what was happening and they stepped apart. The noise outside returned to its full volume as they stepped back into reality, awkwardly looking away from each other. 

“Should we…” Astrid spoke as she pointed back to the glass doors that led back outside. 

“Uh… yeah… probs.” Kyra nodded and they walked back outside, Astrid once again feeling overwhelmed with the amount of people squished together. Kyra noticed her hesitation and silently placed her hand in Astrid’s, keeping her close as they weaved through the crowd together. Astrid followed, trying to ignore the feeling of having Kyra’s hand in hers and instead focusing on finding Courtney and Charli. 

“There you guys are!” Charli’s voice was what helped them locate the two girls, Astrid and Kyra turning around instantly, dropping their hands and stepping closer to them. “Where were you for the countdown?” Charli looked at Astrid, Courtney was now talking to Kyra separately. 

“Uh somewhere over the back.” She looked vaguely in that direction before Charli spoke again. 

“Did you get your midnight kiss?” Charli teased with a big smile. Astrid paused for a second before answering. 

“Uh yeah, I did.” Astrid scratched the back of her neck. “I think I’m gonna head up.” Astrid just wanted to get away and go to bed, her brain moving too fast for her to keep up with the thoughts. 

“You sure? You okay?” Charli instantly became worried but Astrid was quick to brush her off. 

“Yeah I think I had too much, stay safe okay.” Astrid gave her a hug before weaving herself back through the crowd and back to their room. 

“Where’s stargirl?” Courtney asked as Charli reappeared beside her, herself and Kyra noticing that Astrid was now missing. 

“To bed. Said she had too much to drink.” Charli shrugged her shoulders, Courtney nodded along before taking another sip of her own drink but Kyra was concerned and slightly disappointed but kept it to herself. 

The next day didn’t start till almost 1pm when they all finally rolled out of bed, slowly pushing back the curtains to let in some light but not enough to further increase their pounding headaches. They headed straight down to lunch, hoping to soak up any remaining alcohol and cure their growing hangovers. 

A few words were mumbled between one another but it seemed like more than a few were too much energy and they fell back into silence. To be honest, Astrid didn’t have much she wanted to talk about, especially because there wasn’t much of last night she remembered. Except for a very specific moment she was very scared to bring up. 

Kyra had easily returned to her normal self by dinner time, once again acting more like a child than an adult and attempting to encourage the other girls to join in. Astrid slowly joined in with her antics and jokes, watching Courtney and Charli shake their heads in disappointment but silently hiding their laughs behind stern faces. 

It seemed to Astrid like all had returned to normal within the group, Kyra obviously not wanting to bring it up or she in fact had no recollection of the kiss, which Astrid was grateful for. But there was a feeling in her stomach she couldn’t pinpoint when she thought about Kyra and the kiss, choosing to push it to the side and continue on with their holiday as normal. 

After one last day of fun in the sun, the group had returned to the airport, dreading heading back into a cold Swedish winter but excited to return to the sport they all love so much. The flight was long, way too long, they had kept themselves entertained individually, movies and naps taking up most of the time. But they finally landed back in Sweden, more than ready to fall in their beds and sleep, especially now that it was leaning towards 11pm. Charli had taken a separate flight from the other three like usual, wanting to land closer to her home and also stay away from Kyra and Astrid who were bound to fight over something and then make up after 5 minutes. 

An uber brought them home, dropping Astrid off first before heading up the road to Kyra and Courtney’s place, the younger girl bidding them goodnight as she lugged her suitcase up the front steps. Once inside Astrid locked the door, flicked on the lights and pulled her phone out faster than ever. 

“Pick up, pick up, pick up.” Astrid paced her small kitchen as she waited for the line to pick up, looking at the small mess in her living room that she had left behind months ago, before the last Matilda’s camp.  

“Hello?” A semi groggy voice answered from the other end and a sigh of relief left Astrid’s mouth. 

“Oh thank god.” Astrid was still walking back and forth, bringing her hands up to her mouth. 

“Astrid?” Cortnee recognised the voice and quickly acknowledged the slight panic in her voice. “What’s wrong?” 

“Something happened and I don’t know what to do.” She began letting out the thoughts that had been building over the past 3 days, running her hands through her hair. 

“What do you mean? Are you okay?” Cortnee was even more worried, sitting up a little more as concern raced through her.

“Yeah, no, I’m okay. I think.” Astrid shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut. 

“Just calm down and tell me what happened.” Cortnee was trying her best to calm Astrid from the other side of the phone, needing her to speak properly.

“I kissed Kyra. She kissed me. We kissed.” Astrid finally spat it out and bit her nails even more now, waiting almost 10 seconds for Cortnee to process and finally speak.

“WHAT?!” She tried not to shout and wake Charlotte up, crawling out of the bed beside her and moving outside her bedroom. “Are you serious?!” She whispered into the phone, a small smile donning her face.

“Yes.” The line went silent as she waited. “Cortnee, help!” She whined into the phone.

“It’s about fucking time.” Cortnee commented and Astrid was confused.

“What do you mean?” She paused her pacing. 

“You guys have been pining and obliviously flirting practically since the day you met, but especially over the last few months, I’m surprised it didn't happen earlier.” Cortnee tried not to let out a laugh.

“No we have not. It wasn’t even supposed to happen.” Astrid let out a frustrated sigh. 

“You didn’t do it on purpose?” Now Cortnee was the confused one.

“No… not really.” Astrid paused, letting out a breath. “It was on New Year's Eve. We were both really drunk and I don’t remember much, I don't even know if she remembers.” The familiar feeling returned to her stomach as they brought the moment up again.

“You haven't talked about it?” Cortnee asked her softly.

“No! She didn't say anything the next day or the rest of the trip, we just got back and I needed to call you.” She stopped her pacing. “I’m so sorry, did I wake you?” Astrid prayed she didn’t mess up the timezones and it wasn’t the middle of the night there.

“I was getting up in a few minutes anyway, it’s all good.” Cortnee began walking towards her kitchen and away from her bedroom door. 

“Okay.” Astrid let out a soft sigh.

“But you need to talk to her. She might remember it too but is scared you didn't or don’t want to remember.” Cortnee leant against her kitchen bench, hoping to speak some sense into Astrid. 

“But I'm scared. What if it was a mistake for her?” Astrid was confused with the feelings that were building inside her as she thought about it again.

“Was it a mistake to you?” Astrid paused at Cortnee’s words, letting her brain stop racing for a moment and focus on a single thought. 

“I don't know, I mean I don't regret it…. But I don't know what this would mean for us.” The pacing began again and her heartbeat began to quicken.  

“What do you want it to mean?” Cortnee softly asked.

“Stop asking me questions about things I don't know the answers to!” Astrid let out another frustrated sigh.

“You called me for advice!” Cortnee laughed at Astrid’s clear struggle with this issue.

“And I haven't gotten any yet.” Astrid remarked, holding back the small laugh she was harbouring. 

“What time is it there?” Cortnee asked her yet another question.

“Almost midnight.” Astrid looked at the clock on the stove.  

“You’re probably exhausted, get some sleep, when you get up, think about my questions and maybe, just maybe, you’re both ready to talk about it.” Cortnee reasoned, and finally Astrid was happy with a response. 

“Okay. Okay, I'll do that. Thank you, Viney.” Astrid smiled on her end. “Any time, star. Go to sleep.” Cortnee spoke one last time before hanging up, leaving the young forward standing alone in her own kitchen and thinking about Cortnee’s words. But she took her advice and headed off to shower and then crawled into bed, trying to ignore the growing thoughts that began racing around again.

to be continued...

Stargirl | matildas x original character fic [part eight]

Words; 3.0k

Pairings; matildas team x astrid taylor (OC)

Warnings; swearing, mentions of injury (no blood)

A/N; so the games for this chapter weren't easy to find or go off but they still needed to be in there so i did this, hope it not too much of a cliché... enjoy

masterlist

After the Spain and Portugal games there came the AFF Women's championship and a lot of the regular players had left and gone back to their clubs or on a break, especially considering it was only a week later. 

Charli and Astrid had been given the clearance from their overseas clubs to stay on national duty but Kyra and Courtney decided to go back to Sweden and play club games instead. Although it felt weird being in camp without the other two, it gave Charli, Cortnee and Astrid time to spend together with the other girls who were joining the squad for the first time. 

Before the competition started, Charli, Cortnee and Astrid spent their few free days in Portugal before they had to fly over to the Philippines and begin their pre-match training with the rest of the team. They pretty much spent all their time on the beach enjoying the hot weather and good food, grateful to spend a few days relaxing before getting into game mode. 

Training was training, but with a newer team full of even more inexperienced players it gave them the opportunity to develop a new style of play. Without players like Sam and Emily Gielnik there to take that central forward position, the coaches decided to test Astrid and see if she could handle the pressure there rather than on the right or left. Safe to say she could. 

She was communicating well with Cortnee and Larrissa on either side of her, fighting off the defence and working with the midfield to score goals in the mini matches. Seeing Astrid take on this role so easily inspired the coaches when deciding on the starting line up for the next match. 

Match day. Everyone was in high spirits for today, training had been going exceptionally well and the team dynamic was strong. They had been ushered into a conference room of the hotel to talk about the game and reveal the line up. Cortnee and Charli had been talking up Astrid being in the starting XI for the game, but Astrid kept brushing them off, not wanting to get her hopes up. 

Over the past few days they had been analysing the Philippines style of play, so this session was a slight revision and going over their starting line up. Then came time for Tony to reveal his line up. He went through the slideshow, going from the defenders, to midfielders and finally the forwards. Charli’s name had been shown which was no surprise and Cortnee’s was revealed for the right forward position, Astrid looking at the left side and spotting Amy’s name, dropping her head down slightly. Tony began to list the names and their positions.   

“And as the central forward, Astrid Taylor.” He spoke and Astrid lifted her head, eyes wide as she finally spotted her name on the screen. Her jaw dropped and Charli let out a little cheer, patting Astrid on the back, Cortnee ruffling her hair before Astrid finally smiled. She was part of the starting line up for the first time, as the central forward too. 

The bus ride to the pitch was mostly silent, most girls listening to their own music, some chatting amongst themselves. Astrid hadn’t really spoken to anyone since boarding, taking the time to get in the zone, needing to be focused on the game she was starting in. 

The team warmed up, took their time getting changed and had their team huddle, the subs leaving to go sit on the bench, Astrid staying behind for the first time and readying to line up in the tunnel. She gave Cortnee and Charli a hug before they left the change room, standing in front of both of them donning the number 3 again. 

She was nervous, why wouldn’t she be. She was starting for her country for the first time, a true honour and a big deal. She didn’t want to stuff up, she couldn’t, everything had to go perfectly; according to her at least.

The game had been tough from the second that whistle blew. The opposing team were determined to maintain strong possession and keep Australia from any chance at scoring, everytime they did, a tackle or block stopped any chance. The brunt of their tackles had fallen to Astrid as she was constantly trying to get a goal in and have a 1-0 scoreline before halftime. 

As the central forward, she was receiving balls from Cortnee and Amy who were on either side of the pitch. Finally the ball had been stolen off the Philippines again by Charli, passing it up to Vine who was speeding up the right side. Two defenders closed in on her so she shot the ball over to Astrid who was in direct line of the goal again. Astrid had a clear shot, preparing to kick the ball with her left foot this time. 

She saw her foot make contact with the ball, but what she didn’t see was a Philippines defender coming in for a slide tackle, knocking Astrid to the ground in an attempt to steal the ball. As she began to fall her right foot got stuck, a searing pain shooting up her ankle, grunting in response to the pain and landing harshly on the ground. 

She rolled to her back after hitting the ground, grabbing her right foot immediately. Her body could only focus on the pain and everything around her blurred into the background, barely hearing the refs whistle and the concerned gasps from her teammates. The Philippines player had been shown a yellow card and the Australian side was glad.

Her eyes screwed shut from the overwhelming pain, trying to breathe through it, but finding it difficult. Charli was the first to her, running over as soon as she saw Astrid staying down unlike the last few tackles.

“Ankle?” Charli knelt down to Astrid, the girl only nodding in response as she held back her tears. The ref had run over, Cortnee following closely behind, coming to the other side of Astrid, looking down at her. 

“She needs medical.” Cortnee looked to the ref who began waving over the medical staff. 

“Char, this is bad.” Astrid sucked air through her teeth as the pain continued, tears falling from her eyes. If Astrid was crying from this, then it was bad; she rarely cried and had developed a high pain tolerance over time, meaning it was not something minor. 

“It’s gonna be okay, star. They’re coming.” Charli squeezed Astrid’s upper arm, watching the medics run to where they had gathered. The rest of the Matildas stood still on the pitch watching the scene, a few taking this time to get a drink, but watching the scene with concern alongside the coaches. 

“Her right ankle.” Charli told the physios as they removed Astrids grip from her foot to examine it. She hissed in pain as they removed her boot, moving her arm to cover her eyes and the tears forming. 

“Out of 10?” A physio asked while looking at Astrid. 

“7.” A sob wracked her chest, not even thinking about the pain anymore, even though it was very much there. She had already been thinking about the time she would have off from football if this was a serious injury, which it was already feeling like. 

After they determined there was no way she could continue, Charli and Cortnee helped her up, she tested putting weight on it but even just a toe on the ground was way too much. They offered to get a stretcher but Astrid only shook her head, opting to hop off the pitch with the physios either side of her, holding her up. As she made it to the technical area she locked eyes with Tony. 

“Well done, you played exceptionally.” He patted her shoulder and she only nodded in response before they led her down the tunnel and into the medical wing. After they had checked her and asked her questions about how it manoeuvred in the ground, all they could determine for now was at least a two degree sprain. 

The physios taped her up and provided crutches to avoid weight bearing for the meantime until she could go and get scans at the hospital. But Astrid desperately wanted to watch the rest of the game now that halftime was over and the second half had begun. So she crutched her way back up the tunnel and to the sub bench, the girls immediately making space for her to elevate and ice her ankle and watched the game pan out.

The game ended and Australia had lost 1-0, the players shaking hands with the winners, Astrid got herself up and over to where Tony was standing at the edge of the pitch. 

“How’s it feeling, Astrid?” He asked as he saw her approaching. 

“Not too good, so far it’s second degree, 4 to 6 weeks.” She gave him a tight lipped smile, more upset over the timeline than the injury itself, everything was falling into place for Astrid and now it was halted. 

“I’m sorry, but you played so well up until that point, I’m very proud of your progress since joining Hammarby.” Tony gave her a firm pat on the back. “You’ll be back better than ever soon enough.” 

“Thank you.” She nodded and he headed off onto the pitch to his players. 

“Hey.” Charli was now at her side. “You okay?” She hugged her arms around her neck, Astrid let go of one of the crutches and held onto Charli. She tucked her head into the older girl's neck, simply shaking her head and letting tears slip again. “It’s gonna be okay.” Charli whispered in her ear, gently stroking her back. 

“You did so well today.” Astrid moved away and wiped her eyes, moving her hand back to the crutch. 

“Thank you.” Charli smiled brightly at her. Astrid could see the huddle forming behind them, Charli turning around to see where her eyes were focused. “Come on.” Charli bent down with her arms behind her. 

“What are you doing?” Astrid laughed at her. 

“Get on, it’ll be faster.” Charli looked back at her, nodding at her. Astrid shook her head, dropping her crutches to the ground and jumping with one foot onto Charli’s back, the blonde’s arms looping under the other's thighs, hoisting her up gently. 

“This is ridiculous.” Astrid laughed as Charli walked them across the field. 

“But faster.” Charli commented back. What they didn’t see was Ann walking behind the pair carrying Astrid’s crutches to the huddle and shaking her head at the two young players. Astrid had jumped down to her good foot, using Charli and Cortnee to stabilise her on one leg.

“Here.” Ann finally made her presence known, Astrid smiling as she saw the woman behind them. 

“You are an angel, Ann Odong. Thank you.” She took the crutches and placed them under her arms, sighing at the relief in her left leg as the weight was distributed to the crutches. 

Astrid had gone straight to the local hospital instead of back to the hotel with the team, the team physios wanting her to get scans as soon as possible. Charli wanted to go and keep her company but Astrid said no, not wanting to interfere with her sleep after a long game and promising to keep her updated. 

It wasn’t until 12:30 am she finally had her XRAY and MRI done, waiting for almost 3 hours and trying not to fall asleep in the emergency room. The results came back finally after waiting some more and they had officially ruled it a second degree sprain like the physios initially thought. The hospital had supplied her with a moon boot to protect it but not walk in it, still advising no weight for at least a week. 

Astrid was so tired and still in pain that she just nodded and asked to go back to the hotel, ready for bed and the day to end. They got back and one of the physios helped her to her room, Astrid assuring her she was good from there and to go to bed, knowing Charli would be more than willing to help her out. 

She opened the door and immediately Charli jumped up at the sound, rushing out of bed to come face to face with Astrid. 

“JESUS CHRIST!” Astrid almost lost her balance when Charli popped up in front of her. “Oh my god.” She let out a breath, heart racing from the fright. 

“Are you okay? What did they say? How long?” Charli shot out her questions and all Astrid could do was blink. 

“Calm down, let me sit please.” Astrid began to manoeuvre herself around Charli, flopping down on her bed and letting out a deep sigh. “No walking for one to two weeks, four to six for total recovery, no torn ligaments or tendons, just a really bad sprain.” She rattled off what the doctors told her while looking at the ceiling. 

“I’m so sorry star.” Charli sat on her own bed. Astrid turned her head in confusion at her words. 

“It’s not like you tackled me. These things happen.” Astrid let out a soft laugh. 

“I know. But it was your first start and I was so happy for you. You didn’t even get to halftime.” Charli tilted her head. 

“I’ll get to start again, it just won’t be for a little while.” She put a small smile on her face but it wasn’t genuine. 

“You need a hug?” Charli asked. 

“I need a shower, but sure a hug would be great.” She sat up and Charli jumped over to the other bed with open arms, both giggling as Astrid lent her head on Charli’s shoulder. Their arms wrapped around each other and Astrid could not be more grateful for having her best friend here with her. 

The rest of the competition continued, Australia faring much better than their first game and coming out with wins and high score lines against their opponents. But to watch from the sidelines was very hard for Astrid. 

She had never really been injured before, very lucky to only have had minor things growing up that didn’t last very long, so it was very unusual for her to just sit and watch the team play and not even be a possible substitution. But she did and she was the first one cheering when the final whistle blew, hobbling over to her teammates to congratulate them. The games were finished and it was time to return to Sweden with Charli, parting ways with Cortnee again, not seeing each other till the next camp in September. 

Although Charli’s closest airport to her Swedish home was Malmö, she chose to fly even further to Stockholm just so she could make sure Astrid was okay, nervous about flying with her injury. Astrid assured her she would be fine but Charli wouldn’t listen, telling her she would just take a train from Stockholm back to Malmö once she was settled back at home.

So when they touched down in Sweden Charli used her best knowledge of the language to source a wheelchair for Astrid to get around in until they got to the car where Kyra and Courtney were waiting. 

“You’re being ridiculous Charlotte.” Astrid sighed as Charli pushed her from the gate to the luggage collection. 

“Shush cripple.” Charli laughed, weaving through the crowd quite fast, Astrid gripping onto the sides in order to not fall out while also holding her crutches in one hand.  

Charli collected their two bags and wheeled them out, along with their carry-ons, while Astrid pushed herself to the exit, actively looking for Kyra and Courtney in the crowds. 

Kyra and Courtney kept their eyes peeled for the two other girls, expecting to see Astrid struggling on crutches and Charli close behind. Though Charli finally appeared, her signature bright grin on her face and they couldn’t see Astrid close behind. Until their eyes shifted lower and saw her pushing herself in a wheelchair, instantly covering their mouths to hide their laughter. 

Kyra not so sneakily pulled her phone out, filming Charli smiling first then over to Astrid when she finally spotted them, sending a death glare down the camera. 

“Nice ride.” Kyra said from behind the camera. 

“Shut it.” Astrid shook her head as she stopped in front of them. “Let’s just go home please.” She looked up at all three girls who simply nodded, still controlling their laughter. 

“Would you like a hand madam?” Kyra bowed to Astrid, smirking at her while extending her arms. Astrid silently passed Courtney the crutches, placing her good foot on the ground, gripping onto Kyra’s hands and bringing herself up. Courtney quickly put the crutches under Astrid’s arms, the injured girl removing her hold from Kyra. On the way home, they dropped Charli off at the train station, saying a long goodbye and promising to keep her in the loop about Astrid’s foot. 

They eventually made it back to Astrid’s place, Kyra and Courntey wanting to make sure she was set up with everything she needed and made her dinner, only leaving when Astrid was ready for bed and sure she didn’t need anymore help. 

This went on for the next week; the girls going Astrid’s every morning to make her breakfast and take her to training with them, Astrid doing some gentle rehab with the physios while they got to train. Then they would go home, cook her dinner and make sure she was all good before going back to their own place. 

Astrid was more than excited when the physios at Hammarby said she could begin walking in the boot, finally able to get around her own apartment and not have the older girls watching her every move. She was so grateful she had them there to help her, but she wanted some alone time after they returned from training, finding it hard to watch them play and train without her, missing being able to step out on that pitch and play the game she loved so much. 

To be continued...

So high school | Jessie Fleming x reader

Summary; The story of how you and Jessie were brought together one fateful night in college and didn't leave each others side ever again.

Words; 2050

Pairing; Jessie Fleming x UCLA reader

A/N; Mother Taylor has inspired me and a tiktok that paired a footballer with an academic girl and I had thoughts. Then I was wondering who to do it with and THEN… UCLA J FLEM. I hope you enjoy this as much as I do because I’m in a Jessie mood rn. Btw this has been sitting in my drafts for literally like 2 months and I haven't had the inspiration to finish it until today. Enjoy loves xx

Jessie was more than kind of uncomfortable right now.  She was tired after a full day of classes and an early morning training session, wanting to flop into bed after her long day and sleep away most of the weekend. But here she was, nursing a cup of coke in the corner of a frat house and wishing she had declined the invitation to come out with half of the soccer team. 

“You good?” Teagan had made her way over, leaning against the wall and looking down at the midfielder who was seemingly lost in thought.

“Yeah, fine.” Jessie nodded her head, hiding the fact she desperately didn’t wanna be here anymore. 

“Why don’t you try and go talk to someone? I’m sure there are plenty of pretty girls catching your eye right now.” Teagan nudged her shoulder with a smirk, downing her drink before walking away again. Jessie sighed before taking another sip of her coke and walking to another section of the house where more people congregated. 

Her eyes filtered through the room, trying to take the goalkeeper's advice but giving up after noticing every pretty girl making their way over to someone else. Eventually her feet mindlessly walked her over to the back door, the glow of the pool under the moonlight catching her eye first before she spotted you. 

Your friends had practically dragged you from your dorm, insisting you had to come and party with them, but where were they? Probably inside making out with frat guys and forgetting you actually came with them. That’s how you had found yourself sitting on a deck chair outside, avoiding the loud music and heavily intoxicated 20 year olds celebrating the start of their senior year, after your friends ditched you early on.

It didn’t bother you, them leaving you alone that is. And you could have gone home but you wanted to stay and make sure your friends made it home safely. 

Jessie only saw the side of your face from how you were positioned on the chair but immediately found herself drawn to you. People may have called her crazy for falling with just one look, but when you know, you know. 

You didn’t hear the sliding door open, too busy looking up at the moon and wondering what else you could be doing right now if you stayed in bed. It wasn’t until you heard the chair beside you creek that you finally noticed her, snapping your head at the noise and becoming encapsulated by her big brown eyes and freckles immediately. 

“Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you.” She apologised, her eyes somehow getting bigger and more beautiful. 

“I-it’s okay.” You let out a breath. “Just wasn’t expecting anyone else to be out here.” You shared a soft giggle and she finally smiled. 

“Yeah, not really my scene.” Jessie shrugged and began sitting back in the chair, copying her movements and turning your head to face her.

“Me either.” You smiled before reaching out a hand to her. “Y/N.”

“Jessie.” She connected your hands, ignoring the tingling she felt in her fingers while you pushed down the butterflies fluttering around your stomach. 

You two spent the rest of the night talking before she offered to walk you back to your dorm, after finding out your friends had already left with guys and you were left alone. Well, not so alone now. 

The next few weeks would find you and Jessie with each other as much as possible, save for your individual classes, and you were happier than ever. You weren’t dating, no but it began to feel like it, especially when you ran down the bleachers after she won her next match, Jessie catching you as you jumped into her arms with pride. 

After almost two months since meeting you finally had your first kiss. It wasn’t super romantic but exactly how you would have wanted it to go. You and Jessie were hanging out in her dorm, you studying for an upcoming exam and her pretending to catch up on classwork but really spent the whole time staring at you. 

“Jessie.” You were focused on the millions of highlighted poems and texts that sounded you on the floor but could feel her eyes burning in the back of your head. “I can feel you staring.”

“What?” Jessie acted dumb, biting her lip to hold back a smile as she watched you turn your head, raising an eyebrow.

“You know that if you don’t get this work done you’re not playing this weekend. And I already cleared my schedule to watch you soooo.” You sat up fully, leaning back on your arms to look up at her on her bed.

“Can we not just take a small break? We’ve been at this for hours!” She whined, tilting her head at you, a fake pout accompanied by some puppy dogs eyes. 

“It’s literally been 45 minutes.” You deadpanned as you got up and jumped up to sit next to her. 

“45 minutes too long.” She huffed and you stifled a laugh as you looked at her. 

“What would you rather us do then?” You asked while shaking your head at her, letting out that laugh but stopping when her silence was noted. You looked up to find her staring, no, gazing into your eyes, a look on her face she had many times but this was the first time you noted it. She looked lovestruck. 

Your mouth opened to speak again but you were cut off when she was suddenly moving forward, one hand reaching up to hold your cheek and the other moving down to hold your waist. Before you could process anything, her lips were on yours and it was as if you had been transported into another world.

After that kiss your relationship didn’t seem to change that much, still spending almost all of your time together, though this time spending it a little closer and with a lot more kissing. Something about your relationship felt so young and naive, like you were back in high school making out at parties and never spending more than a couple hours apart from one another. 

You now went to all her training sessions, sitting in the bleachers finishing homework while she prepared for their next match. Jessie loved you just being there but was getting a little annoyed that you weren’t fully paying attention as she ran rings around her teammates in an effort to impress you. She knew the perfect way to get your nose out of your books. 

“HEY BABE!” Jessie shouted up to you across the pitch. The sheer volume and urgency of her voice caught your attention instantly, looking up to find her waving her arm comically in your direction. 

“What?” You laughed alongside her teammates who were standing on the pitch waiting for something to happen. 

“WATCH THIS!” She yelled again before running back to her starting position, eyeing up the cones and dummies she meticulously laid out and the ball that laid in wait for her. You bit back a smile at her excited nature, waiting for her to begin whatever trick she was about to show off. 

She began dribbling the ball skillfully through the first few cones that were placed closely together. Yourself and her remaining teammates watched her feet intensely, quite impressed with how precisely she was keeping the ball in and under her feet. She made it through her round of cones and looked up towards you in the stands, making sure you were in fact watching her and whether or not you were impressed. But what she failed to notice was how close she had positioned the steel dummies that were part of her second skill test. 

Everyone saw it happen before she did, running straight into the dummy, too distracted by you to realise she was running into it. You heard the ding from halfway up the bleachers and within seconds you were racing down to her on the pitch, trying to keep your laughter at bay so you could seriously check on her. 

“Jessie, are you okay?” You knelt down to where Jessie was now sitting up, legs splayed across the grass and a hand to her temple, soothing where she hit her head. 

“Don’t laugh. I was just trying to impress you.” Jessie finally spoke, avoiding your eyes and producing a pout, meanwhile her freckled cheeks were getting redder than they already were. 

“Oh baby I know. It was very impressive till… you know.” You directed her eyes back to you with a soft smile, biting your lip again to hold back your laugh. 

That night Jessie continued to pout, even when you were giving her all your attention, laying between your legs as you held an ice pack to her temple and babying her all night long even though you didn’t put the dummy there, she did. 

After graduation you moved with Jessie to England for her contract with Chelsea, you managed to land a position at the University of London, teaching in the English department, a great start to your life together in a new country.  

Jessie proposed to you in January of 2022 after three and a half years of dating, keeping it private and personal by dropping down on one knee as you were getting into bed one cold night. 

Clad in flannelette pyjamas and fluffy socks, just having got out of the shower, you walked back into the bedroom expecting Jessie to be curled up in bed and waiting for you. But as you turned the corner she was bent down on one knee and holding a ring in her shaking hands. Jessie had prepared a whole speech about how much she loves you and wants to spend the rest of her life with you but in true Jessie fashion she got nervous and the only words that came out were. “Marry me? Please?” 

You both took the next year to plan the wedding for Spring 2023 before the world cup, wanting to make sure you knew what you wanted and to enjoy being engaged before being married. 

The big day finally arrived and you hadn’t seen Jessie in more than 24 hours, both of your bridesmaid groups separating you from one another for practically the first time in almost 5 years. 

It was a beautiful ceremony filled with all for your close family and friends to celebrate your love and unite your families. You cried, Jessie cried, everyone cried. The reception though was one massive party. Everyone danced, everyone drank and most of all you got to have fun with your wife like you did back in college. 

At the end of the night, after the party ended and everyone went home, you and Jessie were sipping champagne on your hotel room floor, giggling with one another in the silent room while wearing matching pyjamas. 

“I love you.” Jessie said as she stared, no gazed, in your direction. “You’re so pretty, will you marry me?” Her words were slightly slurred as her tipsy frame swayed back and forth every so slightly. 

“Too late, already did.” You laughed as you brought your left hand up to her face, showing off both of your shining rings. “Look.” You brought her hand up too, showing her own ring clad fingers to her, shock adorning her freckled face. 

“We’re married already?!” Jessie shrieked and you knew it was time for bed. 

“Yes, now come on. Time for bed my love.” You placed a kiss on her lips before putting your flutes down and pulling Jessie up with you from the floor. You dragged her over to the large bed, crawling alongside each other to then assume your regular positioning. Jessie waited for you to get comfortable against the pillows before laying herself across your chest, her pillow. 

“Baby?” Jessie spoke after a few minutes, tilting her head to look up at you. 

“Hmmm?” You respond as you begin to stroke her hair gently. 

“Tell me about the first time you saw me.” Jessie asked before setting back down against your chest. You let out a small breath, a smile donning your face as she asked you. 

“Well, I was sitting at a party next to the pool…” 

THE END

Stargirl | matildas x original character fic [part three]

Words; 2.1k

Pairings; matildas team x astrid taylor (OC)

Warnings; none (i don't think)

A/N; part three everyone. longest one so far, if they're too long please lmk and i can make them shorter if needed. hope you enjoy this one, favourite part so far.

masterlist

The day had finally arrived and Astrid didn’t even know that today could be the day she was waiting for. It was game day, 8th of April 2022, a friendly between Australia and New Zealand at the Queensland Country Bank Stadium in Townsville. 

The starting 11 walked out onto that pitch and the rest took their seats on the bench, anxious to see how the game would pan out today. It was in the 32nd minute that New Zealand scored their goal, officially taking the lead. After the halftime break and some substitutions the game began again, the Matildas managing to keep strong possession on the ball down their side. 

It was nearing the end of full time and New Zealand were still in the lead 1-0 and the girls were struggling to just get that ball in the net, the opposing defence strong as ever. Astrid was sitting on the bench, nervously watching the game ahead of her when Tony approached her. 

“Taylor.” Tony called out to her, Astrid instantly looking up at her coach. “Start warming up again, you’re subbing for Fowler.” Tony smiled watching the young player’s face light up and give him a firm nod. Charli gave her a shoulder shake and let out a small squeal as Astrid got up, moving over to the sidelines to warm up again. It was finally happening, she was finally making her debut for Australia. 

“Ready kid?” Tony caught Astrid’s attention as she ran back over to where the assistant ref was signalling for a substitution. And before she knew it, Mary was running over, engaging Astrid in a small hug before she ran on the pitch. The crowd cheered as the youngster came on with 13 minutes till full time, taking her position on the right side of the field. 

Only 3 minutes later Steph Catley is set to take a free kick. The players are all lined up, ready for the ball to fly towards them. Steph nods to the ref and uses her trusty left foot to shoot it towards the wall of players, angles the ball slightly further from Astrid who’s already running, Kerr goes for a header goal but it falls short. 

Astrid feels as if she's suddenly going in slow motion. She sees the ball leave Sam's head and she runs faster, lifting up her right leg to catch it and knock it towards the goal. And as if the universe was on her side, the goalie had run slightly away from Astrid's position of the goal, giving her the perfect opportunity to sink it into the top left corner of the net. 

As they see it ripple the crowd roars with cheers, every player on the bench rising to their feet in celebration, Tony making a run for the edge of the technical area in celebration. Astrid stood still with her mouth agape, shocked as to what had just happened. It wasn’t till Foord came running to her, gripping her body in celebration that she could breathe again, turning to face Caitlin as a wide smile grew on both of their faces. The rest of the team on the field came charging down on the pitch to jump all over the young player, screaming and yelling their excitement. 

GOOOAAALLL! And it’s a magnificent one to equalise the Matildas with New Zealand by none other than number 3, Astrid Taylor in the 80th minute! This is her first ever Matilda's goal and what a shot it was by the 17 year old, with only being on the pitch for less than 5 minutes AND in her international debut! It’s unbelievable. 

At that moment Astrid almost started crying. 17 years old, finally playing her first game for her country and a game changing goal 10 minutes from full time in front of a massive crowd. Her teammates were beyond proud of her, not only for her first goal but for bringing them to an equaliser after a long and tough game. 

Full time ended and still at a tie, the team patiently waited to see how many extra minutes were given to hopefully score once more and take the win. An additional 5 minutes is shown after Cortnee subs Hayley, Astrid giving her a high five and focus is pulled back to the game. Astrid bounces on her feet, body now pumping with adrenaline to take this home. 

And with the magic right boot of Emily Van Egmond the Matildas gained a goal in the 93rd minute, bringing them in front of New Zealand. The stadium erupts once more after the ball ripples the net, Emily running straight for Polkinghorne as the rest of the team follows suit, celebrating with her before returning to their places, focusing on the last 30 seconds of time. 

Australia wins a corner and Steph runs to take it, officially over stoppage time when she shoots it over to the goal, it bounces backwards off Alanna’s head and by miracle Sam Kerr knocks it over the players and past the white line. 

Sam runs straight to Steph with her arms outstretched, catching her up high as they meet, everyone else following behind with outcries of excitement, jumping on top of each other in celebration. The time is still running and the players are instructed to return to their positions. The ball is played and all though it gets shot down to Lydia in the Aus goal, no one runs to defend, the final whistle blowing before there's even a chance it could go in. 

They’ve done it, they've won. 3-1 over New Zealand and Astrid could not be more ecstatic to have been a help in that. The Townsville crowd erupt in cheers in favour of the Matildas and they all release massive smiles before they go off and shake hands with their own players and those on the New Zealand team. The players on the sideline slowly make their way onto the field, Charli running directly to Astrid, engulfing her close friend in a tight embrace, spinning her around on the field. 

“YOUR DEBUT AND A GOAL?! I’M SO PROUD.” Charli yelled over the loud stadium music. Giving a final squeeze they let go and Charli rests an arm over Astrid's shoulder, pulling her into her side, incredibly proud of her friend as they walk the pitch to meet their teammates. So far this was the best day of Astrid’s life and one she would remember for the rest of her life. Tony reached the pair on the pitch and held Astrid’s hands. 

“Congratulations, I’m very proud, Astrid.” Tony nodded his head at the young player as she looked at him.

“Thank you Tony.” Was all Astrid could get out without her voice cracking, trying to not cry tears of happiness. Kyra and Cortnee ran to hug her first, squeezing her tight with pride. As they began to do their lap of the pitch, the rest of the team embraced Astrid, congratulating her, saying how proud they were, and grateful she brought them to that equaliser. 

Eventually a presenter called out to Astrid and she ran over to them, fixing her hair as best as she could and removing some sweat from her face. 

“Astrid, do you mind doing a small post-match interview?” The lady from Channel 10 asked. 

“Yeah, yeah. Of course.” Astrid nodded and straightened out her shirt. 

“Great.” The presenter waited for the go ahead before talking again. “We’ve got  Astrid Taylor here, only 17 years old and scoring her first Matildas goal in her first appearance, and an impressive one at that. Astrid, congratulations and how do you feel?” She pointed the mic to Astrid. 

“Oh thank you. Ah yeah. I don’t even really believe it myself. I mean I wasn’t really expecting to be going on at any stage and making my debut tonight, but Tony told me to get ready and then it happened.” Astrid laughed as she talked. 

“I mean it was quite impressive. Only being on for 3 minutes before you were able to sneak it in. What was happening in that moment for you?” The reporter asked and Astrid swallowed. 

“Yeah it was crazy. It was Steph’s kick and I saw it go to Sam and I just began running in that direction, and as it bounced off her head, I caught it and just shot it in the direction of the goal and hoped for the best. I guess it was my luck that Esson was more focused on Sam than me!” Astrid made everyone around her laugh, heart still beating fast with adrenaline and nerves from being on camera. “I’m also just really happy we got the win, Emily and Sam helping us turn the game around so late.” 

“Absolutely incredible. And so is your score sheet with your club Sydney FC. I mean you only joined back in November and you have scored at least 16 goals with them.” 

“Oh thank you. Yeah that club is incredible and I’m so glad I’ve got Viney there with me to get those with.” Astrid smiled brightly. 

“Well again congratulations and thank you. Enjoy the celebrations!” She reached out to shake Astrids hand as she muttered a small ‘thank you’ before walking back to the last lingering teammates that gathered near the tunnel, watching her proudly. 

The bus ride back to the hotel was as expected, loud and full of excitement, obviously preparing to scream their winning chant. 

“BUILDING UP SUSPENSE, BUILDING UP SUSPENSE, BUILDING UP SUSPENSE, BUILDING UP SUSPENSE, BUILDING UP SUSPENSE. WOOOOOOO.” The team began to chat, banging on seats and windows as Lydia stood up to lead them. 

“IT’S A GRAND OLD TEAM TO PLAY FOR, AND IT’S A GRAND OLD TEAM TO SEE, AND IF YOU KNOW THE HISTORY, IT’S GONNA MAKE YOUR HEART GO WOAH. WE DON’T CARE WHAT THE OTHER TEAMS SAY, WHAT THE HELL DO WE CARE.” The noise from the bus was getting louder and louder as all players and staff members joined in. “FOR WE ONLY KNOW THERE’S GOING TO BE A SHOW AND THE AUSSIES WILL BE THERE.” 

“WAS IT ONE?” Lydia yelled, awaiting the response. 

“NO.”

WAS IT TWO?”

“NO”

“WAS IT THREE?” 

“YES.” Claps and cheers ran through the bus. 

“HERE WE GO, HERE WE GO, HERE WE GO, HERE WE GO, HERE WE GO, HERE WE GO, HERE WE GO, HERE WE GO, HERE WE GO, HERE WE GO, HERE WE GO, WOOOOOO.” Everyone cheered in celebration, clapping loudly, Kyra rubbing Astrid’s hair from her seat next to the other girl. A large smile erupted on the young girls’ face, still in disbelief of what just happened. 

After dinner the room quieted down, everyone paying attention to their captain at the front of the room. 

“Um, obviously a very special game today, glad we got the win today and an incredible performance. Astrid,” Sam directed her eyes to the young girl sat next to Charli and Kyra. “You have worked so hard these past few months and I think I speak on the behalf of all of us when I say we’re so proud. You’ve really proven yourself and today a miracle really happened. Not only your first cap but your first goal in 3 minutes of being on the pitch! I mean I think that might be the most impressive debut in Matildas history.” The room erupted in cheers and claps, Astrid shook her head and covered her face with her hands. 

“Yeah Stargirl!” A shout comes loudly from Charli and the room falls to laughter. 

“So congrats and we’re so happy to have you as part of this team and family.” Sam finished, Charli and Kyra pushing Astrid to get up and walk to the front of the dining room. The girls clapped and cheered for her, a smile on her face as she approached Sam. 

“Thank you.” Astrid mumbled as they hugged, Sam patting her back with a final squeeze, letting go to hand her the official Matildas cap. Astrid looked at it for a second before turning around to face the team, her team. “Um, thank you everyone for making this day so special. A little bit lost for words right now,” She let out a small laugh. “Obviously I can’t take all the credit for the goal, Steph and Sam were the ones who even made it possible, I was just there to help you out. Getting to make my debut today with this group of girls just makes it so special and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the inspiration of every one of you. Thank you for all the support and I love you all. Thanks.” The room clapped again, Astrid moving over to the side for a photo with her cap. 

Sam then made her speech for Caitlin who played her 100th cap, reminiscing on their journey together before presenting her with her shirt, while also giving a cheer to Katrina who had returned to her first game tonight after having Harper. The night ended with team celebrations before heading to bed to recover from a big game. 

to be continued...

A/N; also i know this may seem a bit unrealistic but we're in a fake world with a fake character who's just really good at football so idc. xx

Gnomeo and Juliet | alanna kennedy x reader

Summary; Two players steal each other's hearts and keep it from everyone because they know how controversial their relationship could be to their club’s rivalry. OR Y/N and Alanna soft launching their relationship over time until they decide to share it. *Features social media posts.*

Pairings; Alanna Kennedy x Manchester United reader

Words; 2.2k

Warnings; swearing (i think that's it)

A/N; i literally love alanna so much and don't think there are enough posts about her so naturally i write one. i just thought this was cute and different from a chealse v arsenal rivalry (though i really love those). enjoy and please give it some love and feedback xx

Lioness star Y/N Y/L/N set to leave her club of four years, Brighton & Hove Albion W.F.C, and join Manchester United W.F.C on a two year contract at the beginning of the 2023/2024 season. 

You had really valued your time at Brighton, starting your senior career there and blossoming into a strong forward for both the club and the England Senior Women’s team, better known as The Lionesses. 

But when the offer from Manchester United came in at the end of last season, you knew it was the right move. Leaving the team you had come to know and love was tough to say the least but the adventure before you sounded a lot more exciting. So during the break before pre-season began, you made the move to Manchester and took a few days to settle into your new home and surroundings. 

Manchester was very different from Brighton; no beach and much bigger city life, but it was a good different. You had found that everything in Manchester was so much closer, and in great reach of your new club and housing. 

You had officially settled into your new home, very quickly making it feel just like your last one, then decided to go exploring through the city. The first thing a person would normally do would probably be going shopping or searching for a new café to become the regular, but you had spotted the Manchester Art Gallery and decided to go in. 

It was quiet, as expected for midday on a Wednesday when most people were at work, but you found it peaceful. It was a break from the regular hustle and bustle of your regular life as a professional footballer. 

It wasn’t until a particular painting caught your eyes that you realised someone else was in there, because you quite literally walked into them. 

“Shit. I’m so sorry.” You apologised quickly to the taller person, picking up their phone you had knocked out of their hand, from the floor. “Here…” Your voice trailed off as you met bright blue eyes while handing them their phone.

“It’s all good, thank you.” The woman met your eyes and she also felt the world pause around her, you were no longer in the gallery but just in a moment of time with each other. 

“Sorry the painting distracted me.” You snapped out of your trance and nodded to the painting on the wall; the story of Romeo and Juliet portrayed on a large canvas. 

“Well it is quite captivating.” Alanna spoke, still looking at you, now at the side of your face as you looked at the painting. 

“It is.” Your eyes fell back to hers and realised she was still staring at you, a slight blush rose to your cheeks, both smiling at each other. “Hi.” You extended your hand out, indicating a handshake. 

“Hi.” She laughed at your chivalry for a second before shaking your hand. “Nice to meet you.” She spoke softly in the quiet gallery.

“You too.” You smiled up at her, quite literally encapsulated by her. 

That was three weeks ago before you decided to get coffee after finishing a self led tour of the gallery, then the conversation kept going and you ended up at dinner together, continuing to learn about one another until the night ended. 

What you didn’t seem to bring up was that you both knew who each other were, but there was a mutual agreement that it didn’t matter. You weren’t professional footballers who had gone up against multiple times in the past at both national and club level, you were just two people who met and wanted to get to know each other. 

Now you were both deep into pre pre-season, you at Man United, her at Man City, and there wasn’t as much time to meet up for fun dates every night, now relying on text messages and late night calls before bed to catch up. 

The first kiss took a while to get to, but boy was it worth it. 

You had both decided to keep whatever this was between the two of you, soaking in the quiet moments shared in one anothers apartments and over long phone calls. It was still labelled a friendship, you both knew you wanted more, both scared of what the other might say if you revealed your feelings. But when you both had a free long weekend, you decided to take Alanna down to Brighton and show her your old home, soaking in the last of the warm weather before winter began to creep in. 

It was the best decision you could have made, relishing in being able to spend time together away from your normal lives. You had rented a small air bnb right near the beach, enjoying the solitude together as you cooked together and watched the sun rise and set each day by the ocean. 

It was on the second night after dinner that she finally made her move, unable to swallow the feelings bubbling inside her. You sat on the beach alone as you waited for Alanna to join, wrapping your arms around yourself to shelter from the cool breeze. 

A blanket had been wrapped around your shoulders and a warm body nuzzled into your side, a small smile on your face as you rested your head on her shoulder, Alanna looking down at you as you watched the waves crash. No words were said for what felt like ages, the only sounds being the waves and the seagulls heading off to bed. 

“Y/N.” Alanna suddenly spoke, a thick Aussie accent breaking the silence. 

“Hmmm.” You hummed in response, keeping your head in its place. 

“I want more than this.” Her statement made you move your head, turning it to meet her blue eyes. 

“More?” You spoke softly. 

“More.” She nodded with a small smile before she moved her hands from her legs, twisting to cup your face before moving closer. You thought she was going to kiss you straight away but her forehead came to rest on yours, both closing your eyes as you basked in the silence. 

“Just kiss me already.” You breathed out and she smiled before closing the gap, joining your lips in a strong kiss. Her hands cupped your face, yours held her waist before trailing up to meet her face. It was passionate but soft, saying so much without any words and your heart grew. 

y/n.y/l/n.. just posted a story

alannakennedy just posted a story

Since you were both heavily in the public eye, it was an easy decision for you both to keep this new found relationship to yourselves, not wanting to receive any unwanted attention from the media, fans and even your own teammates. 

You were able to keep it that way for a while, without you guys being on the same national team or at the same club keeping this secret relationship a secret was quite easy. And since no one thought you would even know each other personally, there were no fans sifting through evidence to put two and two together. Of course though, you both wanted to show each other off, you were so happy and so was Alanna, so maybe a soft launch would be best until you decided to go fully public. 

It started small.

y/n.y/l/n.. just posted a story

alannakennedy made a post

alanna kennedy almost as good as home

y/n.y/l/n.. made a post

y/n.y/l/n.. felt like a fairy tale

alannakennedy just posted a story

Your teammates began to ask about the secretive posts, hammering you about it in the locker rooms at training, Alanna's friends and teammates doing the same.

“When are you going to tell us more about these mystery posts?” Mary had asked Alanna while she was tying her boots before training. Alanna paused for a second before sitting up and looking up at the other Australian. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Alanna simply shrugged with a straight face before standing up and walking away. 

“Oi mate.” Ella Toone had caught your attention as you walked out to the carpark after a late friday night training session. You paused and turned around, waiting for her to catch up, instantly wrapping an arm around your shoulder as she met you. 

“What’s up?” You turned to her as you walked towards your cars.

“Few of us are going round Zelly’s to watch a movie, you in?” She asked with hopeful eyes. 

“Sorry love, got plans.” You apologised, knowing you had a certain blonde already waiting for you at your apartment.

“This wouldn’t have anything to do with a possible mystery woman you refuse to tell us about, would it?” Ella asks with a suggestive smirk, nudging your shoulder as you remain stoic. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” You simply shrugged and patted her shoulder as you let go of her, walking to your car door. “Goodnight Tooney.” You waved before getting in and racing home to Alanna, preparing for your own movie night of Gnomeo and Juliet and a weekend spent in each other's arms.

The day had come, the one you and Alanna refused to talk about until the night before.. It was the Manchester derby day. The day every City and United fan had waited for and the one you and Alanna dreaded. 

y/n.y/l/n.. made a post

y/n.y/l/n.. Derby day. Let's bring it on home red's! ❤️

alannakennedy made a post

alannakennedy The day we've all be waiting for. Come on blue! 💙

Sure you had come up against each other in the past at both club and national level, but you had yet to do it since being in a relationship together. So it was going to be different this time; harder. You both decided it would be best for your teams if you didn't interact with one another from the moment you joined your teams for the match, and until that final whistle blew.

The plan was going well during the first half of the match; Alanna had started with City in the defensive line and you were sitting on the bench waiting to get subbed on. Katie Zelem had secured the United side a goal through a penalty early on, but City fired back and took the lead 2-1 at halftime. 

You got subbed on for Nikita Parris at the very beginning of half time, taking her place as the left forward and a strong striker. Though this became a slight issue because of who was currently defending the City goal and in charge of blocking your shots at goal; your very own girlfriend. But in that moment you had to act like you didn’t know who she was on a personal level, right now you were just opposing players who both wanted their teams to win. 

It was hard for you both to act like that, stealing glances on the pitch, brushing past each other ever so slightly without anyone noticing too much. You had both been able to get away with this secret relationship so far because you’ve haven’t had to be in the same place yet, but maybe it was time for that to change. 

The final whistle blew and City had won 3-1, your side not being able to score any further goals despite your best efforts. You looked around at all your teammates, defeated looks all over as City celebrated together before exchanging handshakes with the other team. 

You and Alanna had purposefully left each other till last, waiting until you could be alone with each other in a busy and full stadium. You had finally found the blonde Australian and began walking towards her and she finally locked eyes with you. Seconds before you had very different expressions, one filled with happiness and one filled with disappointment. But as soon as you got closer the one expression you both shared was one filled with love, and your heart melted as she brought you straight into a hug rather than a friendly handshake. 

Her hands wrapped around your waist as her slightly taller frame leant down, your hands found their way around her neck before you buried your head in her neck. An instant feeling of warmth and security flowed through both of your bodies as you hugged, Alanna pressing a soft kiss to your neck as she buried her own face in your shoulder. 

Confused looks fell to both sets of teams at the interaction, at first because of the more than friendly hug and second because of the familiarity they could sense between the two of you. 

“I’m so proud of you.” You murmured, still holding tight around Alanna’s neck. 

“You played so well, it was a tough game.” She spoke back instantly, squeezing your waist before slowly pulling back to look at you. You smiled at her as you exited the hug, genuinely happy for her but still very upset your own team couldn’t secure the win like they wanted. 

“You should go celebrate.” You nodded to the City team who gathered in the middle, preparing for their post-match huddle, your team doing the same further down on the pitch, all players still watching the interaction with lost eyes.

“I’ll find you after and we’ll go home together.” Alanna nodded to you, looking down to your now interlocked hands, a small laugh leaving her lips. “This is going to be everywhere tonight.” She looked back up at you as a small smile grew on your face. 

“Definitely.” You laughed too. “Are you okay with that?” You raised a brow at her. 

“Yeah. I’m ready to show off my girl.” She winked playfully at you, now both of you laughing, shaking your head at her before playfully pushing her shoulder and walking over to your team. 

y/n.y/l/n.. made a post

y/n.y/l/n.. the gnomeo to my juliet

tagged @alannakennedy

alannakennedy made a post

alannakennedy my girl in red

tagged @y/n.y/l/n

THE END

so real

Stargirl | matildas x original character fic [part eleven]

Words; 2.4k

Pairings; matildas team x astrid taylor (OC)

Warnings; swearing

masterlist

The camp ended and everyone headed back home to their clubs for their next matches, sad to be leaving each other but it was only a month until the next camp against South Africa and then Denmark. 

Kyra, Courtney and Astrid had returned to training at Hammarby, quickly preparing for their next match in only four days' time. It was going to be one of the quickest turnarounds for a match Astrid had ever had but she was ready to jump back into training and get onto that pitch. 

On their second day of training, before they had even begun their warm up, Astrid and Kyra had been approached by the club’s social media manager as they were walking through the halls together.

“God morgon tjejer." (Good morning girls) She waved to them as they got closer. 

“Hallå.” (Hello) Kyra smiled, slowing down her speed to meet her halfway. 

“God morgon.” Astrid spoke with a bright smile.

“Before you start training today, could we film a quick video with some questions? For the instagram page.” The woman spoke with a heavy accent. 

“Ja, of course.” Astrid nodded, looking over at Kyra who was nodding yes to her as well.

“Perfekt. Come with me please.” She gestured back down to where she came from, the two Australians following close behind. 

They were led to an empty pitch, not far from where the rest of their team were chatting before they began warming up. Two chairs were placed in front of a camera where the two girls had been led, sitting next to each other in their warm jackets, trying to block out the changing weather and cold breeze. 

After being told what they were doing and briefed what to say, they started rolling. 

“Hi! I’m Astrid Taylor.” Astrid waved to the camera. 

“I’m Kyra Cooney-Cross.” Kyra waved with a smile. 

“And today we’re going to…” Astrid looked at Kyra.

 “Take a best friend quiz and see how well we know each other.” The older girl finished the sentence. The social media manager handed them each some cards and instructed Kyra to go first. 

“Okay, easy one. When is my birthday?” They were now facing each other and Kyra could see slight panic forming on Astrid’s face. “You better know this.” She raised a brow at her. 

“I do, I do. Uhhhhh.” She lifted her head to the sky, pretending to think even though she knew the answer. “February 15th, 2002.” Astrid looked back at the girl who was smiling. 

“That’s correct. One point to you.” Kyra nodded. 

“Yay. When’s mine?” Astrid’s eyes flicked down to the card then back up to Kyra’s.

“April 13th, 2004.” Kyra spoke confidently. 

“Well done.” Astrid nodded with a smile. 

“Okay, when did I make my Matilda’s debut?” Kyra read from the card before looking up. 

“Oh shit. Uhhhhhh.” Astrid had to actually think about this. “I know it was like mid 2021.” She looked at Kyra who was nodding. “And it was against Denmark?” She tapped her chin. “I wasn’t even on the team yet so it’s not like I was there to know, but I did watch it at home. Is that good enough?” Astrid pleaded with Kyra.

“Is it?” Kyra looked to the manager. 

“Half a point.” She responded. 

“Yes! I’ll take it.” Astrid smiled. “When was it though?”

“10th of June.” Kyra nodded at her. 

“Right. When was mine? This will be easy cause you were there and it wasn’t that long ago.” Astrid argued but waited for Kyra to respond. 

“9th of April, 2022. AND you scored your first goal too, which is just crazy.” Kyra complimented the girl across from her who blushed slightly but moved on quickly. 

“Another point to you. How many goals have I scored with the Matildas?” Astrid asked the next question with a smirk. 

“Uhhhh…” Kyra filtered through her brain for the answer. “I’m gonna say 5 or 6 maybe?” She looked hopefully at Astrid. 

“It was 5, so far.” Astrid smiled as she waited for Kyra to ask the next one. 

“Point for me. How many siblings do I have? And what are their names?” Kyra asked with a smile. 

“Easy. Three sisters.” She looked at Kyra who nodded. “Mia, Shani and Mali?” She raised her brow hopefully.

“Another point to you.” Kyra nodded.

“Final questions, because from the looks of it,” She paused and both girls looked over to where their team was beginning to warm up in the background. “We’re technically late to training.” Astrid laughed towards the camera. “Okay, what are your three favourite qualities of mine?”

“It does not say that!” Kyra laughed and leant forward to check Astrid’s card, finding the question was true. “Ugh, okay. I would say… you're very goofy, you have an incredible strike from both feet and… you’re always very positive. You have an ability to bring the energy up in everyone without even doing much.” Kyra spoke and Astrid felt it very hard to not blush at her, heart melting at her words. 

“Oh my god, you’re so sweet.” Astrid playfully pushed her shoulder. “Finish this off will you, please?” Astrid nodded to the final cue card in Kyra’s hands. 

“Alright, how would you describe me in five words?” Kyra confidently held up five fingers, ready for Astrid to begin. 

“Ooooo, okay. Hilarious, quick, silly, determined and….” She trailed off as she watched Kyra drop a finger at each word, only one finger remaining. “Bright.” 

“Bright?” Kyra smiled but was slightly lost.

“You just like, are never dull, or down. You’re always smiling and just, bright.” Astrid creates a gesture with her hands, making both girls laugh in their seats. Once they settled they looked up to see the manager telling them to wind things up.

“I think you won. But only by like half a point.” Astrid collected herself, looking at Kyra. 

“Still counts.” Kyra shrugged proudly. “Anyway, we better get going and get to training.” Kyra turned to the camera and then to Astrid. 

“Let’s go.” Astrid smiled before they both got up and pretended to run off to their team. 

“Cut. Thank you.” Their social media manager thanked them as they removed their mics before saying goodbye and finally heading off to their warm ups. 

After training hard for the past few days it was finally game day against Rosengård, Teagan’s current team and Charli’s previous one before going on loan to Vittsjö a few months ago. Although Rosengård were tough opponents already, Astrid knew it would be even tougher with Teagan in goal against her. She knew how Astrid played and where she liked to go for goals from being in training together, but this is what happens when you play for club and country, sometimes you have to go against your friends and alter playing styles to come out on top. 

None of the three girls had been selected for the Hammarby starting XL but they were at least on the substitute bench and they would likely get put on later, Astrid especially. She didn’t mind the ‘super-sub’ reputation she had earned, always being able to deliver towards the end of games, but she would also like to start in more games and gain more minutes with her club. 

The game started and within 17 minutes they had secured a goal and only a few minutes later a second in the 25th minute by the same player. Going into halftime they were buzzing, but still determined to keep going and secure the win because they knew Rosengård would come back fighting. And they did. 

Kyra had been subbed on at around 60 minutes, Astrid not far behind at 70 minutes, coming to the left forward position with Kyra behind her in the midfield; it was time for them to make some magic. The coaches knew how good Astrid and Kyra were together, and how effortlessly they could pass the ball,wordlessly connecting with each other, proving them very useful subs in the later half of the game. 

Kyra had battled the ball from the Rosengård midfielders, Astrid watching her and making a run closer to goal, trying to escape their tough defence. Once she had found enough empty space up near the corner, Kyra launched the ball to her, Astrid catching it with her chest and rolling it down to her feet. Immediately a defender found her again and she paused with the ball at her feet. She had two options here; be quick with her feet and dance around them with the ball. OR she could take inspiration from her national teammate, Caitlin Foord, and try for a nutmeg to get around her. Let’s just say Astrid was feeling adventurous today. 

She made quick eye contact with the defender, both paused before looking back down at the ball. She moved her left foot to resume her play, making it look like she was going around the Rosengård player, instead shooting it through her and darting around the frozen player, catching the ball with her foot and heading for the goal.

She kept running with it, too risky to pass it down to anyone and deciding to go alone as she inched closer to a ready Teagan, expecting Astrid to take her regular shot with her right foot but scoop it to hit the left side of the net. But Astrid knew she would be expecting that so instead she struck powerfully, still with her right boot, but let it go directly to the right side of the net, watching as Teagan jumped for the left and missed the ball completely.

And in the 87th minute, the net rippled and the home crowd cheered, Astrid running straight for Kyra as she always did, jumping onto her when they met. 

“SHE’S BACK!!!!” Kyra screamed in her ear as she caught her, holding her close as the rest of the team joined, patting Astrid on the head and cheering her on. “You fucking nutmeged her!” Kyra spoke into Astrid’s ear, shaking her shoulders slightly as the group of players parted, returning to their spots. 

“I know. Cait will be proud.” Astrid smiled proudly, before parting with Kyra to go back to her position for the last few minutes of the game. As soon as the whistle blew, the Hammarby bench cheered and the team began to shake hands with their opponents. 

“Good game.” The first player Astrid made her way to was Teagan in the goal, putting her hand out for a fist bump against her gloves. 

“Nice shot. Wasn’t expecting that.” Teagan laughed before they pulled each other into a hug. “I’ll catch up with you later.” Teagan pulled back, nodding towards where both teams had started their separate huddles, Astrid following her gaze and turning back to Teagan. 

“Of course! Bye.” They shared another fist bump before they jogged over to their huddles, Astrid slotting in between Kyra and Courtney, waiting for the coach and captain to speak about the game and their win. After the huddle was done, the team took their lap around the pitch to thank the fans for coming and supporting. The three Aussies were walking around the pitch, Kyra and Astrid now wearing jackets Courtney had given them, still not used to the cooler weather in Sweden. Astrid was chatting with the two girls when Kyra nudged her shoulder and pointed out a sign in the crowd. 

‘Astrid Taylor/No. 13 Can I please have your jersey? (You’re my favourite… shhhh)’

A little girl, no older than 8, had been holding the sign over the barricade, waiting for her to spot it, eyes lighting up when Astrid finally did. Her heart instantly melted and she walked closer to where she was standing. 

“Hello.” Astrid smiled sweetly to the young player. 

“Hi.” The girl spoke shyly with a Swedish accent. 

“Am I really your favourite?” She leant closer to the little girl who nodded with wide eyes. “Thank you! Well, I won’t tell the others then, but neither can you. If you promise to keep it between us… you can have my shirt. Deal?” Astrid grinned at her. 

“Deal.” The girl spoke with a big smile. Astrid stood up again, unzipping her jacket and holding it between her legs. She was glad to have her long sleeve on underneath, shielding her from the wind once she took off the jersey on top. She slipped her jacket back on before holding the shirt out, grabbing a pen from her mum and signing her name and Hammarby number on the front before giving it to her. 

“Tack!” (Thank you!) The girl squealed while looking at the shirt. Her mum held out her phone and passed it to Astrid with the camera open.

“Varsågod!” (You’re welcome!) Astrid spoke before snapping a selfie with the young girl and her family, passing the phone back, waving goodbye and walking back to Kyra and Courtney who were waiting by the tunnel for her. 

“That was the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.” Courtney remarked as they all walked towards the home side changerooms.

“That was the nicest I’ve ever seen you be.” Kyra spoke from the other side and Astrid’s jaw dropped, giving the older girl a light smack on the arm. “Jokes.”

“You are so annoying, Kyra Lillee Cooney-Cross.” Astrid scoffed at the aforementioned girl whose jaw had dropped; Courtney stifled a laugh at Kyra’s reaction and the full name drop.

“And you’re not? Astrid Mae Taylor.” Kyra fired back quickly, Astrid had the same reaction, eyes wide at Kyra. 

“How dare y-” Astrid moved forward to hit Kyra again but Courtney held her arms back and pulled her away from Kyra.

“Enough, you two! You’re acting like an old married couple or something, my god” Courtney mumbled the last sentence as she pushed Astrid into the changing room, Kyra stalking in close behind. The closer they got, the more playful they became with one another. And boy was it annoying Courtney. 

She was very glad that they didn’t in fact live with each other, even if the bickering didn’t last long, it would be a nightmare to live with the two of them under the same roof. She dealt with it enough at training, outside of training and even more at national camp, especially when you add Charli into the mix; the three of them were known to be annoying, playful and goofy off the pitch, often roping some of the other younger girls into their plans and tiktoks while they had time off. 

This was one of the main reasons Astrid loved Matildas camps. Not only did she get the honour of playing for her country and her family; she got to spend all of her time with the girls she quickly called family and make memories with her best friends at the same time. So it was safe to say the next camp couldn’t come soon enough for Astrid.

to be continued...

safe to say i’m terrified for what’s about to come

i love being an arsenal supporter ❤️🤍

really hoping they can cure my sickness with a win

🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

I just wanna know how the BAU team decides who says what when they deliver the profile each case.

Do they stand around in the conference rooms and assign certain parts of the profile like in group projects? Or do they have a specific order they follow each time with like the specific parts? I just wanna know.

Like imagine them telling the PD they were ready but take another 5 minutes arguing about who says what. I really wish we got to see this at some point.

And imagine when new agents like Alex and Cate come in, and they’re just watching this whole ordeal unfold during the case.

(yes i know it’s a TV show but for a second let’s pretend it’s real)