Enemy Lines (completed)

49

The following weeks were hard on not only the team but Bryn. Bryn was trying to leave her mark on the Demons Deacons women's soccer program. Even if it meant many tears and gallons of sweat. The team while in good spirits where having a hard time keeping up. Which in the long run they knew would help them but it was hard on all of them.

Especially when Bryn had gotten stuck in traffic for early morning weights. She would walk into the gym in yesterday's clothes with her hair tousled on her head and a coffee mug from home with coffee most of the time spilling out the top. Bryn was hard on the team. And inadvertently harder on herself. She had the weight of the world on her shoulders.

Former World Cup winning coach to the coach of a mediocre D1 college program. No one would ever say it aloud but everyone knew that Bryn would go in her office and break stuff after a practice. She always made sure to never single out a player or to raise her voice without reason. Behind closed doors was a whole different story. Bryn came into practice with a new clipboard every day as the one from the previous day was broken in pieces at the bottom of the trash bin.

If Bryn was being honest she was slowly lose her cool. As she readys herself for the upcoming weeks as the Decs were set to face up against state rival UNC at home, before facing Stanford on the road, and ending it with UCLA on the road. She was worried. These next 3 weeks could change the outcome of their whole season. If they lost to these 3 powerhouses they could easily not qualify for anything closely related to post season.

No one had told Bryn that post season was the easy part. The hard,grueling part was the start and middle of the season. If you didn't get a good start then you ended up playing catch up almost the whole season. Bryn even though the Dec's had a great start to the season something made Bryn go into the survivalists mode in her head.

She worked herself harder then she worked the girls. She had an unspoken agreement with herself, she wasn't allowed to go home unless she was in physical pain. She was always on edge and always with a beer or cig in arms reach after 9.

She heads out to the field to set up an attacking drill. The outside backs would carry the ball up about 15 yards before crossing the ball into the center of the field. The CM would either pull it out of the air and passing it up either side or they could put their head on it and send it airbound into the box.

Unlucky for her the girls weren't ready to do such a complicated drill. Bryn was fuming before the 30 minute mark.

She almost wanted to pick up each girl and move them as if they were pawns on a chess board. She was getting increasingly aggravated as time went on. Before finally calling the drill a quits and changing it to something easier. Just slowing down the movements.

The keepers were able to chill out as the play was stopped before the ball ever made it to the box. It got to the point where Bryn just called off practice and changed it to conditioning. The girls ran for probably an hour and a half with 2 5 minute breaks.

She did run most of it with the team to be fair. Her team was playing like a U-7 ymca backup team. Not the division 1 athletes she was hoping for. The only one who truly was performing day in and day out was Katie Meyers. The Stanford transfer who came here on a whim.

Bryn released the girls after the complete cluster fuck that was training. Walking into her office after practice she did the same motion she had been doing for the past 3 weeks. As soon as the door closed she would chuck her clipboard at the bathroom door. Only stopping when the satisfying sound of the plastic breaking and splintering against the thick pine door.

She waited 15 minutes for the girls to clear out before going to the gym. She worked legs. Going as deep and as heavy as possible. The pain was the only thing that have her an escape from her mind.

The weight room was her only escape from the world and it's expectations. No one carried about her name, accolades, or anything else. All the cared about was that she reracked her weights and wiped off the machines after she used them.

Picking up the kids from school, was a good escape for 5 minutes before the two kids would revert to their phone causing her faked smile to droop.

She always tried to act happy infront of the kids as it wasn't their weight to carry but it was hard some days.

——

After easily beating UNC 1-0 the demon deacons headed to California to face Stanford. It would be interesting to see how Katie preformed against her former team who has Mac Herman short list player Catrina MaCario.

The plane ride was almost to silent as Bryn tried to gather as much film as possible before writing down every note she saw fit. Stanford was a hard team and had one hell of a dynasty. With superstars like Jane Campbell, Tierna Davidson, Kelley Ohara, Christen Press, Andy Sullivan, and Sophia Smith just to name a few.

They had half a day to rest before they would play the cardinals on their home turf.  Home turf never scared Bryn. She always saw it as an opportunity to shut up her opponent fan but from overhearing conversations in the locker and weight room she knew most of her girls preferred playing at their own stadium rather then their opponents.

The game was a hard fought match between both sides. The keepers held their own leaving each side vying  for a goal for the whole 90 minutes of regulation time and the added minutes of stoppage time. Both keepers walked away with clean sheets as the game ended 0-0 with no cards and very few fouls.

Bryn was truly happy for the first time in possibly a month. Bryn walked into the room she was using as her "office". She exhaled exhausted from the co start stresss he had been putting on herself ever since she had come back from Manchester.

A knock at the door stopped her mind. She walked to the door and opened it as she turned around to take a seat in one of the chairs left in the office like space.

The one thing she wasn't expecting was freckled tan arms to wrap around her waist.

She looked down taking in the arms before turning around excitedly. She had needed Kelley ever since the day she showed up at her houses after she caught Tobin cheating on her.

Kelley had always brought out the best of the Coach. "I know I told you I would give you space but I wanted to see your team and why not come out when you played my alma matter."

The coach could only sign out in relief as she buried her head into the defenders shoulder. "I'm sorry kell. I haven't talked to you in so long. Next time you play the courage I want to meet up with you."

"I'm on IR. I had an ankle injury and I'm out for a good bit. So if it's okay with you could I maybe bunk with you and your crew?"

"The kids will love seeing you."

"I'm excited to see them."

"Well I need to round up my crew. Head to NC whenever and I'll pick you up form the airport."

"Okay will do. When I get down their I need to tell you something."

"Okay. We can talk tonight."

"It's okay. I want to tell you in private and I don't want to cloud your mind with my issues ahead of the big game against UCLA."

"Please don't remind me of the Bruins game. They have costed me enough hours of sleep as it is."

"You need to relax."

"I try but my stupid mind can't."

"Maybe I can help you with that."

"After the Bruins game I'm al yours until then I need to be on these girls like white on rice."

"I understand." She says a little disappointed but is quickly trying to recover.

"Well I need to head out. I love you kell and I can't wait to see in NC."

"I love you too. I'll text you the details when I book the flight."

"Okay. Bye kell." She hugs me again before turning and leaving the room.

===+++

This shit speeding up. I'm just having a hard time getting into detail and slowing down the speed of this book while also trying to wrap it up.