Chapter 14
Keira
Keira stirred under an unfamiliar duvet, waking with a deep, shuddering breath and stretching her legs.
She lay on a plush super king bed, a luxury compared to her single bed at home.
Every corner of her body ached. She slowly blinked her eyes open, allowing the room to come into focus.
The room was painted navy blue, with silver-framed art decorating the walls, and a white architrave running around the ceiling.
A three-pronged light fitting hung from the ceiling, and the mahogany dresser and wardrobe matched the deep umber tones of the bed frame.
She blinked a few more times, then turned on her side. The other half of the bed was empty.
She propped up on her elbows and looked around the room, taking in the décor and the hastily discarded clothes she and Amelia had left strewn across the floor.
She leant out of the bed, grabbed her jeans and dragged them towards her, retrieving her phone from the pocket.
Her eyes went wide when she saw the time.
She never slept past ten. She always had to be up early to make her dad’s breakfast since he couldn’t take his medication on an empty stomach.
Her screen also displayed a notification that she had a text from Amelia.
I’m so sorry, I got called into the hospital. There’s a spare key hung up by the door – can you lock up after you leave? Help yourself to coffee and whatever you can scrounge for breakfast x
The annoying little voice in Keira’s head piped up. Why didn’t Amelia wake her and say goodbye? Was she avoiding her? Would she see her before the next training session, or would the awkward first conversation have to happen there?
A second message was from her dad; he’d gone to stay with Frank for the night. At least he hadn’t been alone while Keira had been…busy.
She tried to clear the negative thoughts from her mind, dragged herself out of bed, and got dressed.
After checking the room to make sure she had everything, she headed downstairs.
She paused in the hallway. Normally, she'd just leave. She looked between the front door and the doorway into the kitchen. If she left, the bubble would burst. Plus, a small part of her wanted to have a proper look around, to help her understand Amelia a little better. She turned and entered the spotless kitchen, filled with real wood and clean lines. She searched the cupboards for instant coffee, not wanting to touch the fancy, expensive-looking coffee machine that sat pride of place on the counter. She carefully closed each cupboard door after herself, but the sound still echoed around the empty house. Briefly, she raised her arms in defeat. Checking her phone once again, she found, yes, Amelia had actually said there was coffee in the house. The cupboards turned up some expensive granola and other foods she didn’t recognise.
In the back of one cupboard, she spotted a box of kid’s cereal and smiled, standing on her tiptoes to reach it.
A few minutes later, badly made mug of fancy coffee and cereal in hand, she retreated to the sofa in the living room.
She looked around, observing the room properly.
The room seemed colder this morning, the greens no longer warm and inviting.
The space barely looked lived in. She thought of her own living room, less lavish, but filled with warm memories and homey touches.
She couldn’t see any other photos of Amelia’s family, other than the one from her tween years.
Perhaps not surprising, but there weren’t even any photos of Amelia with friends, either.
The only photos were official Blizzards team shots from previous seasons.
It was like she was scared to settle in to her own home.
Keira walked over to one of the bookshelves, running her finger along the spines of the books.
Most of them were medical textbooks, some of them she wasn’t even sure she could pronounce the title.
There were medical journals, too. There was also a shelf dedicated to basketball.
Books on tactics, biographies, and autobiographies of famous players, as well as books on leadership.
She wondered if Amelia ever read for fun.
She tried to imagine her sitting on a beach at some resort, reading a romance novel while catching a tan.
Even imaginary Amelia looked twitchy at the concept.
After washing up her mug and bowl, and gathering her things, Keira exited the house, dutifully locking up and posting the key back through the letterbox.
She hadn’t really noticed the rest of the street the night before in the dark, but now in the daylight she could see large houses on each side, and expensive cars parked on the street or in short driveways.
This place was far away from the small, terraced house she shared with her dad.
Keira stepped into the chill of her empty house, an icy contrast to the warmth that had enveloped her at Amelia’s place.
The silence was disconcerting. Darkness filled every corner, leaving only vague silhouettes of familiar furniture to guide her.
She frowned and hesitated in the doorway.
This feels weird. She shook off the eerie feeling and flicked on the light switch.
She couldn’t remember the last time she had been home alone.
If her dad went out, to hospital appointments or to the supermarket, or to visit a friend, she always went with him.
She understood how he might feel she was treating him like a child, but he was her dad.
She’d never forgive herself if something happened because she wasn’t there.
“Hello?” she called out, just in case. No response came, only the faint echo of her own voice bouncing back at her.
She closed the door behind her, attempting to seal the cold outside, with limited effect.
Their old, terraced house wasn’t well insulated.
Keira shrugged off her coat and hung it up, before glancing into the living room.
A thin layer of dust coated the surfaces, and she could see where her father had attempted to tidy up in his own way—his magazines shifted from one spot to another, rubbish collected into one spot, and his blanket carefully folded on the back of the chair.
His limited energy meant even that would have been an effort for him.
She opened the curtains, letting bright light into the room, before sitting on the sofa.
She tried to bask in the quiet, but her mind was full of anxious energy as memories of the night before made her shiver.
The clock on the sideboard showed it was a little after twelve, so she pulled out her phone and typed a quick text to Sonia, asking if she was awake yet.
She needed to put this energy somewhere, and talking it through with her best friend seemed like a good idea.
Sonia must have sensed her need, because a few minutes later, she was video calling Keira.
“Hey.”
“Hey, I’m just getting ready to head to work, what’s up?” Sonia turned and put something in a bag Keira heard rustle off screen. She’d leant the phone against something as she moved about the room.
“Why does something have to be up?” Keira asked.
“I know you,” Sonia replied, staring directly at the screen. Keira shifted on the sofa.
“There may have been an…incident.”
“Oh?” Sonia picked up some sports tape and scissors and put them in the bag.
“I slept with Amelia.”
For a few torturous seconds there was silence as Sonia finished packing. She seemed to be weighing her words.
“Was it bad?”
“No?”
“Then why are you so worked up about it? You’re practically vibrating in that chair.”
“I don’t know what it means.”
“Ah, you see, when a woman loves another woman…” Sonia began with a smirk on her face.
“Shut up.” Keira laughed.
“Well, what d’you want it to mean?”
“I don’t know.” She sighed.
“Have you asked her about it?”
“No, she was gone by the time I woke up. She had to go to work.”
The look of doubt that fluttered briefly across Sonia’s face expressed everything Keira was trying to say. Had Amelia really needed to go to work, or was she just avoiding Keira? Was this just a one-off, to get it out of their system, or did it mean something more?
“Sounds like you need to talk to her.”
“I know.” Keira ran her free hand down her face. “But what am I supposed to say? ‘Hey, thanks for the sex, I really like you and if this was a one-night stand it might break my heart’?”
“Maybe don’t word it quite like that,” Sonia chuckled. “Look, I gotta go or I’m gonna be late.” Sonia said, picking up the phone and sitting down on the bed with it. “Whatever happens, I’m here for you, okay? Plus, congrats on punching above your weight. Didn’t think you had it in you.” She winked.
“Hey!” Keira exclaimed. “Wait—how do you know what she looks like?”
“Oh, we’re best buds on social media, didn’t you know?” Sonia chuckled. “Byeeeee!”
Sonia hung up, before Keira finished processing. She just stared at the now blank screen, jaw half open.
Nothing good can come of them being friends on social media.
The rest of Sonia’s words hung around in her head, and her fingers hovered over the text chain she had with Amelia.
What on earth would she say? Everything she wanted to say sounded needy and desperate. Eventually, she decided it was not the kind of conversation they should have over text. Plus, if Amelia really was at work, she wouldn’t be able to reply anyway, and Keira thought the waiting might kill her.