sparks fly [toni shalifoe, the wilds]

the girl in the dress cried the whole way home

"Alright, ladies, we're a bit tight on time this session so I want everybody's full attention on the game!" Spencer shouted, putting her shin-pads on deftly as she shouted out to the rest of the team. The changing rooms reeked of deodorant and hair product, and Toni could barely hear herself think over the noise of girls. 

"Is that girl showering over there? We're legit about to go and play!" Rachel grumbled, stretching her arms out and almost knocking Toni over the in the process.

"I dunno, Rachel, I tend to keep my eyes glued to floor these days." Toni joked, pushing her friend's arms out the way.

Rachel raised an eyebrow, "You've got to be kidding me, Toni. You need to put all your energy into this exchange programme and stop fucking around with-"

"You sound just like Martha right now. This was literally the speech she gave me before I got on the damn plane. Besides, it's not like I have any other entertainment right now."

"And you sound like a frat boy," Rachel shot back, earning an eye roll from Toni. "I'm going to go ask Spencer if I can go stretch outside early."

Toni nodded, folding her arms. Rachel was really getting on her nerves recently, but she didn't dare explode in the middle of the changing rooms for the sports team that was keeping her in this fancy school. 

"Why are you showering? If you think that your hair's going to dry while you're running around, you've got another thing coming. It's raining cats and dogs out there, you lemon," Spencer scolded, her blonde ponytail swinging left and right as she talked. "Everyone, get outside NOW please!" 

Rachel nodded at Toni triumphantly as if she was living vicariously through Spencer, and Toni reluctantly picked up her hockey stick and her gum shield. She was not looking forward to this, at all.

Meanwhile, up in the music room, Grace looked up from the piano to catch a glance of the hockey team on the AstroTurf. Her eyes scanned the crowd for Toni, and her heart beat faster when she saw her, as if she was warming up just for her. 

She was definitely falling for Toni, she was all she could ever think about. For the first time in her life, everything she'd ever heard about being gay was just white noise. Surely something this pure and delicate couldn't be filthy and wrong like she'd heard from her family and friends. 

"Alright guys, I'm gonna work with you independently on your devised pieces," Mrs Hatsworth announced, looking over briefly at Grace, "Full attention please, meaning you specifically Grace."

Grace's cheeks flooded red as she pulled her mind away from the AstroTurf to the music room, which was pretty difficult, seeing as a boy was sat on the very piano stool that her and Toni had sat on a week ago. Well, that, and the fact that Toni was supposed to be taking her on a date tonight. 

Grace had never been on a date before because, well, no boys really took her fancy. Sometimes her mother would tell her about a family friend whose son had just come of age, and then she'd immediately have to make an excuse. Once she'd actually said that she'd met a boy at school, and that was difficult to get out of to say the least.

Her heart raced as she strummed a few chords out on her guitar, imagining that Toni was sat next to her, nodding away like she always did. Grace noticed that Toni used to pick at the skin around her nails, and she loved the way she walked with her hands in her pockets. She couldn't wait to get to know everything about her, and she was exhilarated to start tonight. 

Toni panted, sweat dripping down her face and into her hair as she dragged her feet through the changing room door. All she wanted to do was faceplant straight onto her bed, but clearly Rachel had other ideas. 

"Quick, go grab a shower. We've got to be out of here in ten minutes, come on!" She urged, gently pushing Toni into the shower area. She angrily swung around, hating to be touch without her consent. 

"Number one, don't touch me, number two, where are we going? I was gonna go home, I have a thing with Grace tonight." She demanded, mopping her brow with her sticky hands. 

"Grace? She's gonna have to wait, we've got an exchange programme meeting, I legit told you last night!"

"What?" Toni fumed, loud enough for a few other girls to look at her. 

"For Fuck's sake Toni, I told you this was a bad idea!" Rachel hissed, slightly embarrassed that they were receiving some stares. 

"Fuck you!" Toni shouted back, throwing her hockey stick at her and stomping to her locker to get a towel. Rachel rolled her eyes and cursed under breath. 

With Taylor Swift blasting from her phone in her right hand, and a curling iron in her left, Grace had never been more nervous in her life. She hadn't talked to Toni all day, what with their conflicting A-Level schedules and their totally different friend groups. Grace was also nervous to ask for Toni's number, deeming it too risky in case her parents were to go through her phone.

She breathed shallowly, dabbing a touch of blush on her pale cheeks before standing up to admire herself. She was wearing a red skater dress, made out of beautiful satin, balanced out with some Doc Martens. She'd curled her brown hair, and it hung just above her breasts and to finish it all off, she was wearing a gold chain and hoop earrings. She had no idea where Toni was going to take her, and so she'd spent ages dithering over every little detail of her outfit. But it was perfect.

Her mother was at the house, along with her brother, but both were preoccupied with family friends in the dining room. She shouted to remind them that she was going out and grabbed one of her Fendi bags. And then put it back. And then picked it up again. And then put it back. She squealed with nerves and ran out of the door, pushing it closed gently. 

She was too scared to get her license - she'd been gifted lessons from her father, and then walked straight out of the first one because it was too daunting - but Toni had agreed to pick her up at the bench near her house. She sat down, biting her lip with excitement. Her legs were shaking slightly, as were her hands. Her first date, her first date with a girl. 

The clock ticked five minutes after five on her watch. She stared at the clock's hands in disbelief, as if the clock wasn't telling the whole truth. Toni had seemed excited to go out with her... was she not? Grace furrowed her brow and opened her phone, but quickly realised that she had nobody to text. She crossed her legs. Maybe there was traffic? She'd wait another five minutes.

And she waited five minutes, and another five minutes and then another ten minutes. She would have waited forever if she knew Toni was coming. Was she just pranking her this whole time? Grace sniffed, a single tear falling from her eye as she slid up from the bench and cried the whole way home.