Avoiding Fate

Togetherness??

Arsenal had won the WSL, Conti Cup, Fa Cup, and Champions League for a second year in row, Elizabeth was out for the first four and a half months of the season so from february to May, Elizabeth had scored 19 goals in all competitions to be the joint top scorer of the season of the club along with Alessia

This season was tough physically for Elizabeth with recovery and trying to get back to starting eleven but it was also tough mentally for her as she's spent a lot of it alone or in her own head after a comment she's read online after playing a game or being compared to alessia, there was a lot of speculation about her contract as she was coming to the end of a two year contract, she really wanted to stay but Harlow made her realise the "togetherness" of the club excluded Elizabeth so she decided to not extend and take a break from football to focus on her mental health and live life again away from football maybe in private she just wants a life where she's wanted right now was a place where she was actually wanted and right now that wasn't arsenal, she'd barely talked to anyone if it wasn't about football,

Elizabeth didn't tell anyone that she was leaving the only people she told were Harlow, her dad,her older brother Elliott and younger sister Rachel as they were the most important people to her, she obviously told the club too but Elizabeth didn't want to make any hassle and leave with no one knowing including players so in the few days before the season officially ended  when she thought everyone left she started clearing out her locker bit by bit so she didn't have to do it when the season end and when everyone was there
Whilst she was clearing out her locker she found a picture of when she first joined and the picture of her, leah and the team on the pitch in the emirates last season when Elizabeth had her ankle in the boot she started crying thinking back on the past season and how much had changed since that picture was taken,

Elizabeth was in her world of her own so she didn't notice someone coming in and pulling her into a hug

The person who pulled into a hug was Leah, she was here getting treatment after training and was about leave when she heard someone crying in the changing room she instantly walked in to see if they needed help but when she saw Elizabeth sitting there she had this urge to pull her into her arms which she never understood because for some reason she wanted to protect Elizabeth which she was doing the opposite this past season Leah saw the abuse elizabeth was getting from "fans" about everything Elizabeth did but she had emilia in her ear telling her that elizabeth was the worst person and that she deserved it, Leah kicks herself for letting Emilia do that,

What really struck a nerve for Leah was when she met Elizabeth at Harlow Sinclair's Concert two months ago and Elizabeth said " i haven't spoken to the team about anything not football related in months" because it made her realise all of the stuff that Elizabeth had through by herself and leah had realised she'd become a shell of the women Elizabeth was when she joined Arsenal before Alessia, before her ankle injury, before everything.

Since the concert Leah has tried to keep more of an eye on Elizabeth but Elizabeth was the last one to training and the first one to leave so she hadn't seen much of her, Leah was truly worried for Elizabeth because the constant reminders of her and alessia's relationship that was over longer than it had actually been a thing, but fans were obsessed with it

When Elizabeth finally came back to her senses and out of the world she was, she realised that she was in Leah's arms, which when she saw that she instantly jumped up and started to pack her bad rubbing the tears away from her eyes, they both stood in silence whilst elizabeth finished packing her stuff leaving the things that she needed for the next few days in training, leah just sat there trying to come up with a logical explanation to why Elizabeth was clearing out her locker she couldn't come up with one so she just decided to ask her straight out

LW: Elizabeth why are you cleaning out your locker the season isn't over yet

EB: just getting a head start on it plus so i can do it by myself without anyone judging me for the decisions i've made

LW: none of us judge you, we all love you

EB: * scoffs *

LW: What's that for ?

EB: nothing, i'm finished im just leaving * grabs her bag of stuff from the locker she had just cleaned out *

LW: No, Elizabeth please stay I want to talk to you I've been trying to since Harlow's concert but all you've done is shut me down or run away and I'm sick of it why can't you just talk to me

EB: Leah look I know you're trying to be the captain and act like you're actually worried for me because I know it's utter rubbish that you do

LW: what's that even supposed to mean, who was there for you when alessia cheated on you with Emilia

EB: what for a week a year ago, Leah a year is a long time a lot of things can change in someone's life and I'm sorry you're not in mine anymore by your own choice

LW: what does that even mean of course I'm in your life

EB: nope you're not and you chose to do that I've made my peace with that you'll have to deal with that, we're no longer acquaintances anymore and from four days time we'll no longer be teammates

LW: Wait, you're leaving Arsenal ? Where are you going to now what WSL club are you going to go to now even though you say you're a life long gooner but the amount of time you've spent at clubs who are rivals of us tells me your not and that you only say that to get in my good books so I'll put in a good word

EB: you know what Leah screw you, see that's how you know you're not in my life anymore because you would've known how much being at Arsenal this last season has nearly killed me and how hard this decision was to make , so yes I'm leaving Arsenal but I'm not going to another WSL club I'm not even going to another club I'm stepping back from  playing football professionally because my mental health cannot handle another season of it

LW: you're giving football up ????

EB: no i'm making a decision that is the best thing for me and my health right now and if i stay in this environment any longer i will not survive it so i'm sorry for letting you and the team down but right now after the way you've all treated me I actually couldn't give a crap about that right now and I'm assuming the others won't care either so please tell me why you care

LW: wow I didn't realise it was a bad place, I'm truly sorry for making you feel like that I didn't realise you we were making you feel so crap

EB: well yeah Leah that's what happens when you randomly cut someone off for no apparent reason

LW: I had a reason back then Emilia told me you were only using me to get into bigger teams so you could get the bigger trophies and the buzz of the media

EB: I don't need you Leah to show the world how good I can be or get into bigger clubs I can do that all by myself so you can run back to your bestie Emilia and tell her that she needs to no longer try to ruin my life or career because I am done with every single one of you now if you excuse me I'm going to leave you now

Elizabeth leaves the club changing room and is never back there again because she buys a one way ticket to New York to be with Harlow