AU where not only professional volleyball is co-ed, but also in the UK is as popular as football and rugby.Â
It's heavily inspired by The Sunshine Court.
1328 words.
Christopherâs car stopped in front of the sports hall, and for the first time, Grace saw the place where she would play for the next three seasons: the home of the London Lions.Â
She followed Christopher as he opened the door with a set of keys, and they walked through the halls, where she glanced at the posters of various former players.
Grace knew the Lightwoods had basically built up the team from nothing, but nevertheless, she was impressed by the pictures of Gideon and Gabriel Lightwood, their statistics from twenty years ago shown below their smiling faces, and by Cecily Lightwoodâs (or Cecily Herondale, seeing as she was still unmarried back then), whose record of scored points and aces was still unbeaten.Â
In more recent years, Christopher, his sister Anna, and his cousin Thomas had been the new Lightwoods in the team; Grace knew that Christopherâs older cousins, Barbara and Eugenia, despite not playing the game, were deeply involved in the administrative part of the Lions.
(Grace was sure that one of the two sisters had written the contract sheâd signed in a haste the day before).
âDo you want to see the pitch or the changing room first?â
Christopherâs voice brought her back to reality.
âThe pitch,â she said, unflinching.Â
He guided her through the corridors, and Grace held her breath as they walked to the pitch: it was the same brownish color of her old teamâs floor, but at the center, split in two symmetrical halves by the net, there was the white roaring lion, the symbol of her new team.Â
A sensation she couldnât describe rose in Graceâs chest: Tatiana had made her hate the sport she used to enjoy, especially since it had kept her away from her adoptive motherâuntil that, too, had become a way for Tatiana to torment her with the excuse of pushing her to do her best.Â
In a flash, she saw all the times Tatiana had beaten her because she hadnât been fast enough, or hadnât jumped high enough, or her spikes hadnât been as strong or as precise as required.
âAre you okay?â Christopher asked her.
Grace blinked a couple of times and met his concerned gaze. âYes, donât worry.â
Sheâd met him not even twenty-four hours earlier, but Christopher seemed to read her clearly, as though heâd known her all her life.Â
A few weeks ago, Grace had decided sheâd had enough of Tatianaâs abuses and, being nineteen, had been free to sign with a professional team without her motherâs authorization.
Sheâd been following the London Lions for a few years, initially because Tatiana hated the guts out of her brothersâ team and Grace had been curious to find out why, but then because sheâd become addicted to their game and sheâd turned into a fan before she could even realize it.
So sheâd had no qualms into sending an email to Cecily Lightwood, the CEO of the team, where sheâd attached her statistics from all her university team championships (and some YouTube videos of her most spectacular actions) and asked if she could sign with the Lions for the next season.
(Grace had realized later that sheâd been incredibly bold and entitled, but she had been desperate and maybe a little bit drunk when sheâd drafted the email).
To her surprise, instead, three days later, sheâd received an email from the administrative team with the contract for three seasons, without even asking her for a tryout.Â
Grace had signed it and sent it back as quickly as possible, but somehow, Tatiana had found out and had kicked her out of her house. Grace had only been carrying her phone, her driving license and some pocket money, and sheâd bought a train ticket for London and sent another email to Cecily Lightwood explaining her situation. Soon after, while sitting on the train that would take her away from Leeds, sheâd received a text from an unknown number.
This is Anna Lightwood, the Lionsâ captain. My brother has a spare room in his apartment, you can stay there until you find your own place.Â
Grace hadnât had the time to reply with her thanks that sheâd received another text.
Heâs picking you up from the station.
And there heâd been, waiting for her out of Kingâs Cross sitting on the boot of his car while talking on the phone, and he was the most handsome man sheâd ever seen.
Of course, Grace had seen Christopher Lightwood on television, when sheâd streamed the games on her iPad, sometimes in post-match interviews, but seeing him in person was totally different. He looked handsome in a way that cameras couldnât really capture, and heâd introduced himself with a warm smile before inviting her into his car and his apartment.Â
Grace had noticed that he was careful not to ask her why sheâd come to London one month before the season started or why she had nowhere to go; heâd just explained to her that Thomas, his cousin, had just moved to Istanbul to play in Turkey for the upcoming championship, but heâd seemed to understand that something was off with her.Â
He hadnât pushed, though, and when sheâd told him over breakfast that she wanted to see the sports hall, heâd accepted without qualms.
âYou look pale,â Christopher said now. âThereâs a vending machine next to the locker roomâtake some water and a snack.â
Grace, not trusting her own voice, just nodded and followed him. It was weird to have someone worrying over her, but in a way, that simple gesture warmed her heart.
She didnât need either water or snacks, though, and when she saw the door that led to the lockers, she asked, âCan I see the locker room first?â
Christopher seemed a bit surprised by her request, but said, âOf course.â
He let her in, and Grace found herself in the room with benches, lockers and gear hanging in front of each one of the latter.Â
The home jersey was golden, with numbers, logo and other details rendered in white. No, not white, Grace realized as she got closer to Christopherâs jersey, which had his last name and a 21 printed on the back: the details were of a very light silver that the camera couldnât catch, which made it look white.
âBarbara told me you havenât picked up a number yet,â Christopher said. âIf you want, you can tell me now.â
Grace glanced at the other Lightwood jersey, the one belonging to Anna, with the number 10.
She knew that the Lions gave the numbers between nine and twelve to their strongest players, but Grace didnât have the audacity to ask for those.Â
âWhich numbers are available?â
âWellâŚâ Christopher seemed to think about it for a moment. âThereâs oneâŚâ
If youâre not the number one youâre a failed athlete.
Tatianaâs voice made her flinch.
âNo, not the number one.â
She stared at Christopher and thought he looked incredibly cute when he was focused. In an interview, heâd said why he hadnât taken either twelve or elevenâback when Thomas was still in the team, heâd been nineâand heâd explained that he wanted to have his own number and not the ones people expected him to pick, and heâd chosen twenty-one because it was his fatherâs number reversed.Â
Grace had liked his way of seeing numbers and their meaning, and who could advise her best?
âWhat do you suggest?â she asked him in an impulse. âAny lucky number?â
Christopher mulled it over for a while. âMy parents say that five is their special number, but I donât know if youâd like it.â
God only knew that she needed good luck, and, despite knowing him for less than a day, Grace liked the idea of having something connecting her to Christopher.
When she closed her eyes and imagined the Lionsâ jersey with the name Blackthorn printed above a big 5, Grace couldnât help but smile.