The rookie

Part 3

Today is the day. The start of my trail. I wake up early in hopes to avoid Charlotte and Andrew. I grab my bag, throw on some make up to cover the black eye, and run out the door. I grab my boots and run.

Sarina messaged me what time to meet the driver and asked for the address of where to pick me up. I didn't want them to see the dump I was living in so I told her to meet me on the street a couple rows over from my house. She didn't question it luckily.

It was currently 7:56am and I was meeting Alex, I think was his name, at 8:00am, I run down the alley ways as a short cut, making it there by 7:58am. I didn't have to stand for long as right on the dot a fancy black car pulled up on the curb in-front of me. I held my small backpack and waited for the driver to get out the car,

"Julia, is it?" He questioned, I simply just nodded my head, "great, I'm Alex I'm here to pick you up for Sarina." He walked closer extending his hand out to me.

"Nice to meet you, I'm obviously Julia, but please call me lia, I hate my full name." Alex just simply laughs and directs me to the passenger seat of the car.

"We best get on our way, it's a little over an hours journey"

"Wow Sarina wasn't joking when she said it was a bit away from here" I say with a little chuckle to my tone.

"Indeed she didn't. Just out of curiosity, you do know where you are going, right?" He questions me as he gets in the drivers seat and buckles up his seatbelt.

"Yeah some football training camp or something right?" He just simply chuckles at my reply leaving me confused.

"Sure kid, sure" his reply leaving me questioning myself. Sarina said it was just a football training camp to try out for a team? Did I not hear her correctly?

I must have dozed off speaking to myself in my head because one minute I was staring at the "leaving Milton Keynes" sign and now I'm being nudged on the shoulder by Alex.

"Hey kid we are here." He simply said as I'm awoken from my sleepy state. I pick up my head and rub my eyes, getting rid off all the sleep. And then it hit me. I realised where I was.

"Umm is this a joke, or even a dream, what on earth are we doing at St George's Park?!?!" Astonished at where I am.

"Ahh so you know the place then?" He simply just smiles at my reaction and mouth gawping staring at the place.

"Know the place, damn I've dreamt of this place, ever since David showed me clips of the lionesses train here I knew that's where I wanted to train."

"Ahh so you know of the lionesses?" He questions me,

"I watched them every chance I could get when I was younger, Helen and David use to always play the matches on the TV, I haven't watched them for a while now though," I was about to carry on until I realised what I was saying.

"Why not?" A simple question, which should have a simple answer. Shit. How am I going to reply to that.

"Just reasons" really. Is that the best you could think of, I mentally scald myself. Thankfully he didn't push and moved on.

"Well this is it." He stops the car and we both simultaneously get out the car.

"What am I doing here though?" I question again.

"You really don't know?" He furrows his eyebrows.

"If I did would I be asking?" I reply with a chuckle in my voice, he simply just laughed at my response,

"Just a simple training camp wasn't it?" He replies, making me eye roll but chuckle at the same time.

As we enterndes the building, it was everything I had dreamt of and more. My mouth gaped open as I completed a 360 turn taking it all in whilst walking to reception.

"Hi Donna, I have collected the rookie. Tell Sarina we are in our way to her now." Alex says with a simple smile.

"Sure thing Alex" the lady replies with a polite smile, my guess is that that's Donna.

"Hey what's a rookie?" I Question as we walk away from the desk following Alex through a bunch of doors and hallways,

"Well that kid, would be you." Once again I find myself eye rolling at his response. The rest of the short walk was in silence as I take in the views of the training facility. This was insane.

Eventually we arrived at a office looking room which had Sarinas office written on the door. I thought nothing of it. I was too busy being in awe of where I was. Alex knocked on the door twice before there was a voice telling us to enter. As we walked into the office I spotted Sarina sitting at a desk with paperwork surrounding her.

"Ahhh Julia, it's lovely to see you again, I can't wait for you to show us what you can bring to the table." Sarina welcomed me with a smile

"Well if it's anything you told us, she can bring quite a lot." Alex replied with me now furrowing my eye brows. This is mental. I'm speechless

"Nice to see you again Sarina" a simple reply but that's all I could get out.

"Ready to train with the lionesses then?" Wait what, did she say lionesses,

"Excuse me" I mumbled in disbelief. Maybe I heard her wrong,

"She said are you ready to train with the lionesses" Alex repeated a little louder chuckling as he knew I had no idea what I just got myself into.

"Uh yeah I mean uh yeah sure" I stutter struggling to get my words out, before recollecting myself, "wait you mean THE lionesses" I whisper, but apparently not quiet enough as Sarina chuckles,

"The one and only my dear"

What has my life become?