12
“That’s all you brought with you?” Tania asked Claire as they stood in the middle of the entryway/living room of Claire’s new team housing.
“You said the flat was already furnished,” she chuckled, “what more can I need?”
“Um… everything?” she chuckled. “Oh my God, Claire. We need to go shopping.”
Claire reluctantly agreed, however hesitant.
She did not want to accumulate more than necessary, in case the team went down a tier.
She didn’t quite know how it would work with her contract, but she assumed they wouldn’t need her services anymore.
Claire gestured to Tania to sit with her on the couch, taking in her new home.
“Let’s plan for this weekend, yeah?” Tania said, leaning back comfortably, cup in hand. “We can pick you out a new outfit for a certain, unfriendly captain…” She said teasingly. Tania was obviously prying for information.
“There’s nothing going on with him,” Claire responded.
“Sure, yeah,” Tania didn’t believe her. “He sure looks at you a lot, for ‘nothing going on’.” She air quoted.
“Seriously, there is nothing going on. He told me that it seemed I was breaching professional boundaries with another player.” Claire paused. “And… he might be unfortunately right.”
“Jack is a flirt, Claire,” Tania explained.
“He has hit on and tried to fuck every girl on staff and every pretty fan he has met. Noah knows this too.” This statement was not a surprise to Claire.
She knew handsome and charming men like Jack are easy to fall in love with.
She knew that he used his mischievous smile and easy demeanor to bed women.
Was she falling for it? Maybe she was a little curious.
“Yeah, you’re probably right.” Claire responded.
“There is no rule in the book though, about sleeping with players,” Tania mentioned, “in case you’re wondering.”
“You’ve checked?”
“Hell yeah, I have. Have you seen some of the guys on the team?”
Claire laughed with her friend, and she wasn’t wrong.
Jack stands at 6’3”, built like a wall with the unmistakable power of a winger who looks like he either lives in the gym or on the pitch.
His frame is broad and heavy with muscle.
And with those thick shoulders and solid chest, it was practically begging to be cuddled.
His blonde hair, Claire noticed, is usually kept short and practical, the kind that looks effortless even when it’s grown out just enough to catch the light.
Sharp green, precarious eyes that cut through people’s defenses, with charm and fun.
Ethically, Claire has still taken an oath, and while using her position to gain sexual favors is obviously taboo, honest relationships were not off the table.
Claire just did not want to fall back into a pattern of dating an athlete, on a team where she is a doctor.
History cannot repeat itself, regardless of how inevitable it felt.
The two friends had a wonderful afternoon.
Claire learned about how only foreign teammates and staff lived in team housing, for example, Liam “Luck”, who is here on a visa, lives across the hall.
Tania also explained how Claire can get around the city, and the nightlife, things to do, and fun extra activities.
At dinnertime, Tania departed from Claire, leaving her to the silence of an unlived house. Claire stood in the middle of the unfamiliar apartment. It wasn’t large. It had one bedroom, a compact kitchen, a balcony overlooking a small grove of eucalyptus trees – but it was hers.
For the first time since arriving in New Zealand, she wasn’t living out of a suitcase or hotels or borrowed spaces. Her clothes hung neatly in a wardrobe. Her books lined a low shelf by the window. An electric kettle sat on the counter, waiting to be used.
The team housing was tucked away from the main road, secluded enough that the sound of the city felt distant.
She could hear the faint thud of someone playing with their dog, throwing a ball and hearing it hit the grass in the evening light, the occasional laughter from the other units – but mostly, it was peace. The kind that felt earned.
She ran her hand along the sofa, breathing in the faint scent of fresh paint and new beginnings.
For the first time in years, she wasn’t running.
Not from her old job, not from the wreckage of what she’d left behind in the States.
The publicity of her situation. The past felt smaller here, quieter, like something she could finally set down.
As the sky outside deepened to a soft indigo, Claire opened the balcony door, letting the cool air brush against her face. She smiled to herself. Tomorrow would come with its chaos and challenges, but tonight, she let herself believe in the possibility of something lasting.
She was ready. Ready to take on the world.