~ 1 ~ #2
After Vicky left, I closed the door and took off all my clothes. I lay on the bed, spreading my arms and legs like I was doing a star jump. It was such a relief to be free of my clothes in this heat. The ceiling fan did little to help.
I put my arms behind my head and crossed my feet at my ankles. My chest loosened. My breathing slowed. This was the perfect place to keep my mind off the impending doom of not knowing what I was going to do with the rest of my life.
The life I’d known was over. What was ever going to top winning the Champions Leage at age thirty-five?
Or the Euros for the second time in a row?
I couldn’t think of a single thing in life that would ever be as thrilling, and that one thought scared the shit out of me.
Keeping fit and healthy would always be important to me, but I no longer needed to be an athlete performing at the highest level.
I’d spent years prioritising hard work, routine, and discipline.
For the first time in my adult life, well since I was a child, there was no gruelling pre-season strength and conditioning coming up.
Maybe I could skip the runs on this trip and stay out as late as I wanted?
I could do anything I liked now, which was such an unfamiliar feeling.
My bedroom door opened and someone came right into my room, seeing me very naked.
I grabbed the sheet to cover myself but it was too late.
“Oh, sorry!” She jumped out of her skin, turning around, shielding her eyes.
I grabbed more of the sheet.
She’d already left, closing the door behind her.
I wasn’t one to get embarrassed but that was kind of exposing. I shuffled to the door under my makeshift outfit. It must have been Rona.
And I was correct. Rona was right outside my door, blushing. “I’m so sorry about that.” She put her hand on her head, not looking at me.
“Don’t worry about it.” I shrugged.
She replied with a shaky exhale and a word I couldn’t make out, half high-pitched noise. She really suited her rimless aviator glasses. I’d known she was attractive, but in real life, she was so much hotter.
“Anyway, hi. I’m Lily. You must be Rona?” I smiled. “You were in that band Sculpt, weren’t you?”
“Yeah, that’s right. Hi.”
“Nice to meet you, Rona.”
She finally looked at me, taking in the sheet, and met my eyes. “Nice to meet you too, Vicky’s famous footballer friend.”
Her eyes were interesting and kind, like they held hidden depths. They drew me in, arresting me from opening my mouth again. And they were very pretty, possibly dark blue, but I couldn’t tell as her pupils were so dilated.
“I’ve been down at the festival and I came back to get changed and do my hair last-minute-dot-com-style.
I’m playing tonight. I also forgot my phone.
I’m running late. It’s chaos to be honest. Um but yeah, I’ve been using my straighteners in your room because the mirror in your room has better light by the window.
I’m sorry, I didn’t know you’d arrived and were in there. ”
“It’s okay. I got here a bit early.” My voice came out a bit weird because my throat had tightened up. “Plus, I like to put it all out there when I meet new people.”
She laughed, nervously. “Right.”
I gripped the sheet around my chest a bit tighter. “Do you need to get them?” I hooked a thumb over my shoulder back into the room.
“Yeah, sorry, do you mind?”
“Not at all.”
Rona crossed the room, clocking my clothes and underwear on the floor, before looking away subtly.
She was slightly shorter than me, on the skinny side, and had medium length brown hair which fell just above her shoulders.
She moved with a kind of delicate grace as she bent over to unplug her thing.
I watched her as she fiddled with the wire.
She was wearing sliders, light denim shorts that made her ass look great, and a tank top.
I couldn’t make out what her many tattoos were. I tried not to stare.
“These are lifesavers.” She wiggled her straighteners in the air. “My hair gets so frizzy. I was worried my hair was going to look a mess for tonight, so I dashed back here to fix it and change my outfit.”
Her hair looked perfect to me. “You can still do your hair in my room if you want. I can take a shower.”
“Oh really? That would be great, thanks.” She smiled, more composed now.
We held eyes for a second longer than necessary. I didn’t want to look away. My heart beat a little faster. I felt very naked under the ill-fitting sheet around my chest, but I also kind of liked it.
“Should I step out to let you…”
“Nah, it’s fine. I’ll just grab a towel and get my stuff.”
“It’s cool you’re joining us for the holiday by the way. Vicky has talked about you a lot over the years.”
“Oh God, has she? Well I’m stoked to be here with you guys. This place is so beautiful. If a little hot.”
“The heat’s a bloody nightmare. Nighttime’s are a struggle. I’ve been sleeping naked.”
I immediately pictured her naked while continuing to look at her, trying to keep my cool. Her mouth was perfect and I couldn’t take my eyes off her interesting face. She seemed intelligent and cultured. Like someone I could learn things from.
She laughed softly, gently smiling. “I feel like a typical Brit abroad complaining about the weather.”
“No, not at all. We all do it. It’s either too hot or too cold. We’re never happy. It’s our national obsession, isn’t it?”
She laughed. “Very true.”
I loved the sound of her laugh, smooth like silk.
“Will we see you down at the festival tonight?”
“I wouldn’t miss it. I can’t wait to see you play. I bet people love you and have come here just to see you.”
“If they knew how nervous I was about playing in front of a crowd they might not feel that way. But anyway, there’s me oversharing again. Feel free to come behind the decks at some point.”
I loved an overshare. She had nothing to worry about there. I wondered why she was so nervous for someone who must have performed many times. “Awesome! I’d love to. You know I’ve never been to a sapphic festival before.”
“What better way to start than on Lesvos.”
“That’s what I was thinking. It’s a shame this is the last day of it though.”
“I’ve heard it was really good. We could only make it here for the last couple of days and yesterday was awesome. I hope tonight is as good.”
“I’m sure your set will make sure it is.”
She laughed, nervously. “I don’t know about that. But the lesbians are going to go crazy when they realise their favourite lesbian footballer is here.”
I laughed awkwardly, still not used to people knowing things about me when I didn’t know them. “I hope that’s not true. I’m going to hide behind my snapback and sunnies and try to blend in.”
She looked at me for a few seconds, as if thinking something. “Famous or not, you strike me as a person who would always stand out in a crowd.”
I dropped my eyes to her mouth, transfixed by her lips and flirty comment, lost for words. There was something about her manner, thoughtful and intriguing, that had me captivated.
In a tantalisingly unhurried way, she looked me up and down, taking in the sheet bunched around my body, before turning around to attend to her hair in the mirror.
My pulse beating faster now, I picked up a neatly folded towel and dropped the sheet. Wrapping the towel around me, I had a feeling Rona was glancing at me out of the corner of her eye in the mirror, or maybe I wished she was.
How was it possible to meet someone and feel attracted to them straight away like this? I’d heard about things like this but had never actually experienced it until now.
As I stepped into the shower the only thing I could think about was my conversation with Rona and seeing her again tonight.
I exhaled under the powerful showerhead, smiling as the water rushed over my face. The journey here was done and now it was time to play.