A/N: So I may have started writing this during the last offseason. Better late than never amiright 😅
[WOSO Masterlist]
It wasn’t ideal.
You’ve barely had enough time to move all of your things into your new flat when the call came.
You’re still new to the city, new to your teammates, new to everything, and now you have to drop everything and rush back home.
Granted, it wasn’t anything too serious. Your sister going into labor wouldn’t normally warrant an express ticket home, but with your parents already passed and her husband deployed overseas, you weren’t about to leave her to push a seven pound bundle of joy out of her body without any support.
The football side of things was easy to resolve. Renée understood the importance of being with family. Given that the season was still a couple weeks out from starting, it wasn’t like you were going to miss much. Football wasn’t going anywhere, it would await your return.
Things on the personal side, however, well that was a different story.
Penny stared as you paced back and forth in the locker room. You haven’t been here long enough to vet any boarders or petsitters yet so she’s been hanging out with Winnie any time you’ve gone to training. You could check if Winnie’s handlers would be willing to watch Penny while you’re gone, but even you could admit that she was a handful. You weren’t willing to tick off anyone before you’ve even had a chance to make a name for yourself here.
You’re trying to figure out if it would make sense to book an additional ticket home for your furry companion when a voice pops up behind you.
“I’ll take her.”
Lia seems unbothered when you turn around wide-eyed. She’s already sitting on the ground, giving Penny some belly rubs, the thwack of her tail hitting the floor in excitement echoing in the otherwise quiet room.
You clear your throat, trying to pull yourself together. “I can find somewhere to board her, it’s fine. Please don’t go out of your way--”
Lia waves you off, claiming that there was no good reason to do so when you had plenty of teammates vying for a chance to hang out with your big fluffball.
And so it was set.
For two weeks you wake to a piercing wail rattling deep into your skull. Despite the warm cocoon of blankets tempting you to fall back to sleep, you always stumble towards the nursery to buy your sister some time to rest. You would be lying if you said your love of your nephew outshined your want for a full eight hours of undisturbed sleep, but when there’s always a new dog photo waiting in your messages when you finally collapse into bed again, well it’s more than enough for you to cling on your last bits of sanity.
Lia’s been very connective since you’ve left. She’s taken to snapping a picture of your pooch every morning before she leaves for training. Penny always looks overjoyed, a starstruck sort of look when she gazes at the woman behind the camera.
And then there’s the daily facetimes. Sometimes an hour, oftentimes stretching to two, Lia calls every night, right before she heads to bed. What started as a check in on your dog turned into something softer. Into a detailed recount of her day at training. Into stories from your childhoods, anything to keep the other on the line longer.
And so what if you start to enjoy your chats with Lia a bit more than the fleeting minutes you got to coo at your baby? It’s not like Penny really understood that you were talking to her through a tiny box from over 4,000 miles away.
The day your sister’s mother in law arrives, you’re conflicted. A part of you was relieved to finally be able to go back to England, back to your own bed, but there was also the guilt and worry of leaving your sister so far away. It takes countless reassurance and a promise to visit during the winter break for you to finally step foot on the plane back home.
It’s dark when you pull up to Lia’s.
You hadn’t wanted to disturb her, arriving so late, but the Swiss insisted, promising that your company would be welcomed, not resented.
There’s a flutter in your chest, a bit of nervousness when you walk up the drive to the door. Though the two of you have been calling every day, neither of you were particularly close prior to your departure. If you’re being honest, you were quite surprised that she agreed to take in Penny.
Lia gives you a soft smile when she opens the door. Followed close behind is your sleepy angel, lumbering gingerly over to you. Her tail thumped softly side to side, tongue licking at your hand languidly.
It wasn't until the next day, after you had already carried Penny to the car, after Lia had pressed a soft kiss to your cheek in farewell, after you spent most of the night thinking of the midfielder, that Penny seemed to realize what your appearance meant. Penny spent the following day glued to your side. You couldn’t take more than two steps without running into her. Breakfast was made with shuffled steps, longer strides always resulting in a stumble over your furry pooch. Bathroom trips were trips for two, no privacy in your own home even as you go to relieve yourself. Wherever you went, she’s right there with you.
You don’t realize something is wrong until the next day.
By then all the excitement had worn off and she seemed… depressed.
Trusted enough to stay home alone now, she barely even got up to greet you when you returned from training. At home she’d just park herself in front of the window, staring longingly into the distance. For what, you had no idea.
Taking her out for a walk didn’t seem to help much either. She’d perk up for the first couple of minutes, but then it’s like a switch. Her motions become lethargic and it isn’t long before she’s pulling the other direction to go home.
You’re debating whether you should take her to the vet when everything clicks.
It was an unofficial dog day at training. Calvin was sprinting around saying hi to everyone while Myle was snoozing next to Penny.
A nose twitch was the only indication you got before Penny was sprinting across the field, nearly sending Myle flying off of her.
Laughter fills the air as Lia crouches down to meet the onslaught of kisses.
Of course. How could you have missed it?
“I think she missed you,” you mutter sheepishly as you slowly make your way over.
Lia gives you a grin, leaning down to press a couple kisses to Penny’s forehead. “I do have a way with the ladies.”
And that’s how you find yourself here, at Lia’s home, an hour after training ends. What’s supposed to be a supervised playdate turns into a gourmet meal (for the dog, not you. Lia microwaves you some nuggets usually reserved for your vice captain), which quickly turns into a hostage situation when Penny decides both of your laps are the perfect place for her to take her after dinner nap.
Stuck with nothing but the soft snores of a conked out dog and burning curiosity to get to know your new teammate better, you and Lia settle to talking until Penny wakes.
You talk about everything and nothing. From childhood dreams, to favorite colors, nothing is off the table.
“So I meant to ask earlier. Is Penny short for anything?”
You nod, lips quirking a bit at the way Lia looks gleeful at your confirmation. “Yeah, why?”
“Leah and I got into… a bit of an argument about it,” she chuckles. “Short for Penelope, right?”
Lia looks on curiously when your face flushes red. “Oh. Uh, no.”
She has to strain to catch your next words.
“Penny’s short for Penalty Kick.”
There’s a moment of silence as your words sink in.
Lia blinks slowly.
“I’m sorry, did you just say Penalty Kick?”
You shrug, trying to act nonchalant. “You should meet Penny’s sister. My sister and I adopted the two of them at the same time.”
“Let me guess, her name is Corner Kick but you call her Corn.”
You pause. “Well no, but that’s a good one. Her name is Hattie.”
Lia waits.
You swallow.
“As in Hat Trick.”
“Penalty Kick and Hat Trick,” she repeats, as if saying them out loud again would make it any less ridiculous. “Hardcore football fans, I see.”
You roll your eyes, trying to hide your amusement. “Whatever. I only see one dog around here. Hit me up when you decide to adopt and name one of your own.”
“I don’t know, it’s a little tempting to adopt Corn the Corner Kick now.”
“Shut up!” you laugh, reaching across to shove at her shoulders.
In doing so, you accidentally jostle Penny, and the sleepy growl you receive is enough to send the two of you into another fit of giggles.
Lia slaps your arm in warning when Penny raises her head to glare at the two of you. Clearly having fun was something your dog did not approve of.
You run a hand through her fur, hoping the soothing rhythm would calm her down.
“No but honestly, thank you so much for watching her while I was gone.”
“It was no problem, really. Penny was an angel the entire time. Might have to kidnap her every now and again.”
You’re ready to crack another joke, deflect, when she follows up with a soft, “I definitely don’t mind the company she comes with.”
You say nothing, trying your best to ignore the flush rising to your face.
So maybe you haven’t stopped thinking about her since you’ve been back. You were trying to come up with an excuse to see the Swiss outside of training, but it looked like Penny had her own plans.
And if the two of you wake the next morning, still on the couch, head’s bowed in an uncomfortable angle but nearly touching, the only witness to the squeak you let out is the furry menace who watches with what could only be described as glee in her eyes from her spot on the floor.
Okay cool, cause all her stories with her sisters dog have a hold on me, ngl😅 sorry, this is gonna be long, my brain is scrambled today, lmk if it's to specific or whatever😂
So i was thinking reader is new to the team, kinda quite and not that integrated with the girls yet, so comes across a bit cold. They have a dog who is basically their best friend, and during one international break or smth lia offers to take care of him (lia and r are not close yet, just collegues being friendly towards each other) an r agrees. Lia keeps sending cute videos and pictures to keep r updated, and when they get back and pick up the dog he's basically in love with lia, becoming very apparent when they run into lia during a walk in the park a while later and the dog immediatly demands cuddles. So they start hanging out more (for the dog's sake ofc), with lia joining for walks that end with coffee hangouts and movie nights that end as cuddle sessions on the couch with sleepovers because the dog decided to fall asleep on top of both of them. Eventually neither of them can deny that this has definitely become romantic at some point. So basically r realising lia is a total sweetheart, lia realising r is actually a huge softie, and the dog being the world best wing man
Okay so at least I can say that I finished this right before the 1 year mark 😅
Someone tell me why next Friday is my long awaited last day at work and yet I've somehow managed to lose my ability to work half a day that day as I intended but also LOSE MY HALF DAY TODAY
Someone tell me why next Friday is my long awaited last day at work and yet I've somehow managed to lose my ability to work half a day that day as I intended but also LOSE MY HALF DAY TODAY
Omg, that would be amazing! I could really use a new comfort fic rn🙈 Obviously no worries if you don't manage this weekend or anytime soon tho <3
Your request for me to take a look at my drafts collecting dust made me realize I actually had many fics that were almost completely polished, so fingers crossed I'll get something out for you soon!!
Yeah sure, sorry, i totally forgot to clarify🙈 i forgot how i worded the request, but it was the one with Lia dogsitting for R
Yes!! I remember this one. It's like 95% written. I think I just need to finish the ending and edit. I'm slammed at work this week but let me see if I can get it somewhat decent to be posted this weekend 🙂
Hi! I sent you a request for Lia last year, and i was just wondering if you'd still plan on doing it? All in your own time ofc, i really don't mind waiting. But in case you decided against it, i'd love to know so i can maybe recycle the idea eventually. (That said, ofc i'd prefer you to write it, that's why i sent it to you in the first place 🙈🫶)
I have so many requests just chilling in my inbox, with some that are maybe drafted somewhat 😅
Could I get a cliffnotes of what you requested and I can see if it's one I've almost finished?
andulkaphoto
origamiaround
pixelskylines
snowghoul
prguitarman
theartofmadeline
