Talex Who (Tobin/You)

75

When I got back to professional play, I had helped MHS Girls' Soccer get another state championship, and Hope had been asked to come back to U.S. Soccer as the new Keeper Coach for the team, the current coach was retiring, and who better to coach the keeps than the keep herself, right?

"You're telling me you had absolutely nothing to do with this." Hope asked as we packed up our Malibu apartment so we could go home, her back to Jerramy and Seattle, and me back to The Pride and Orlando.

"Not even a breath in the exchange that got you considered belonged to me. I didn't know about this until you knew about this." I said and she nodded. "But, like, are you going to take the job?" I asked and Hope sighed as we put our things in the rental car.

"I'm not sure, Y/N." She said and I huffed.

"Come on, Hopey, you still love the game, you always will, you miss the national team, I know you do. You've said yourself that your shoulder would never permit you to get back in goal, but you could mentor players who know you or aspire to be like you. Do you want to pass that opportunity up?" I asked and Hope groaned.

"I'll think about it."

And she thought about it, for about a week before accepting the offer. Word on the team, too was that they were pushing to get rid of Jill finally and the appeal was going through, slowly but surely and who they were looking at for the coach was really interesting, Abby, Boxxy, Christie, Cheney, and even Mia, yeah Mia Hamm. Like, don't get me wrong, I love me some 2015 retirees, but Mia fucking Hamm, man. Nothing was definitive, though, so I wasn't going to get my hopes up for anything besides the championship against the Thorns. De ja vu.

-
Tobin
-

"So here we are again, facing off with the Pride for yet another Championship. How does it feel to be playing against the love of your life for another Championship title, Tobin?" Kate asks and I chuckle, pushing her hand away, since her 'microphone' was a brush.

"It feels like a normal league game, Kate." I say and she sighs.

"You're no fun." Kate says and Sonnett opens her big mouth.

"She's shitting herself, Kate. She's scared of hurting Y/N out on the pitch, but she's Tobin Heath, so she's got to play it cool."

"Yeah, and Sonnett is Emily Sonnett, so she has to put her two cents in when she isn't asked to." I say, throwing a sock at my teammate who shrugs, throwing the sock back at me.

"Deal with it. You're going to have to if you go through with your plan." She says and I shake my head.

-
Y/N
-

"How you feeling?" Alex asks as we get ready in the locker room before the game and I sigh.

"Physically, I feel great, emotionally, I feel good, mentally? Let me get back to you with that." I say and Alex chuckles as I get up and go get taped. We knew who was going to add a star to their crest next season, but that didn't mean that both teams weren't going to try their damndest tonight, I knew I was. I had to. I had myself to prove wrong.

-
Carli
-

"Both of these teams are great teams, the Thorns still have Tobin Heath on their roster, and Orlando Pride still has Y/N Y/L/N in their artillery, both women are supposed to start the game tonight as forwards. Y/N will be right beside Alex Morgan, and Tobin will be playing beside Christine Sinclair as the Thorns captain and Canadian national team member plays her final NWSL game, seeing as she's retiring after this game, no matter the outcome. Portland has had quite a rough season though, and Orlando has had quite the opposite, they've sat at the top of the table since the second week of the season. It seems as if this team has only grown stronger since their debut back in 2016, I'm excited to see how tonight turns out with Y/N Y/L/N finally back on a starting lineup after her return from that break she took after the Olympics in Paris last summer, for those who don't know, Y/N Y/L/N partially tore her ACL, MCL, and her medial meniscus, known as an unhappy triad, while helping the United States Womens' National Soccer Team reclaim their title as Olympic gold medalists, and took the rest of 2020 to recover from the surgery she had to undergo following the Olympics. She did help coach the girls' soccer teams at her high school while she was healing though. Coached them right to a state championship before buckling down and getting back into shape for this season, where she ran into complication after complication, she's only been fully cleared for about a month, but she's had familial issues to deal with, so finally after all that has cleared, the captain of the team can finally put that armband back on and most likely get Orlando yet another NWSL Championship."