“I’ve got depth, you know.”
Emmie glanced at me, unimpressed. “Do you?”
“Absolutely.”
Her lips twitched. “Could’ve fooled me.”
“Mhm,” I hummed, noting the door coming up behind her. “Em.”
She kept on walking backward, unaware of her surroundings.
“Em, door,” I warned. She spun around, catching herself at the last second with a hand pressed against the metal.
I snorted, dragging a hand down my face. “Wow.”
She shot me a glare over her shoulder. “I had it handled.”
“Yeah, I saw. Elite reflexes.” I stepped up behind her, reaching past to push the door open. Tucker nudged his way past our legs to get out first. “Remind me again how you’re gonna kick my ass at football?”
Emmie straightened, brushing it off like she didn’t just almost face plant. “That was a fluke.”
“Right. The door came out of nowhere.”
She turned to face me, eyes narrowing as she dared me to continue.
I grinned, loving that glare directed at me. “I’m just saying…if you can’t take on a door, the field might be a little ambitious.”
Her lips twitched like she was fighting a smile. “You’re gonna regret saying that.”
“We shall see.”
With that, we stepped through the door and out onto the practice field. The same practice field I found out Emmie was the coach’s daughter. The indoor facility was perfect for today. The enclosed space was great for Tucker to run around and play while Emmie and I did our own thing. Plus, it was private so no one would take pictures of us here. A theme that followed us wherever we went.
The artificial turf smell hit me the second we walked through, oddly comforting. At least it wasn’t peak summer anymore. Back then, this place felt like an oven. The owner had dropped serious money on it, even adding massive fans to try and cool things down, but they never really stood a chance against the summer humidity.
“I always forget how huge this place is,” Emmie commented, turning in a circle to take it all in.
It was incredible, one of the biggest facilities in the US. We could easily fit the entire team in here and run separate drills without bumping into each other.
“I remember walking in here my first time and being blown away at the size,” I said as I walked over to the edge where the turf met a path of concrete. I squatted down and took my backpack off, rifling through to pull out Tucker’s water bowl and the toys I brought.
“I felt the same way with the rink my first time.”
I never realized until I met Emmie how nice it was to bond with another athlete. To have someone who justgot itwithout needing to offer an explanation. Our sports were worlds apart, but we had that same feeling every time we stepped out onto the field or ice.
I straightened up and glanced down the turf, watching Tucker run around without a care. Not for the first time, I was grateful we found each other. He deserved to have a happy life.
Not wanting to get all in my feelings again, I moved my attention to the mesh bag nearby that was filled with footballs. On the far side of the field, blocking dummies lined the turf, as well as footwork ladders.
“Ready to try out some football drills?” I asked, bending down to pull a football from the mesh bag. I tossed it in the air and caught it, turning to look at Emmie.
I was good at hockey, the rink almost like a second home, but this place? This right here was where I was the most comfortable, and I was excited to bring Emmie into it.
“Bring it on.” Emmie put her hands on her hips, looking beyond adorable in her leggings with a familiar looking sweatshirt falling to her knees. A sweatshirt that mysteriously went missing from my apartment a week ago.
Emmie put me through the ringer with ice skating, now it was her turn.
“You’re doing this on purpose,”Emmie huffed.
