Chapter Text
Emily was so happy that she was finally going to get to see her friends. When the camp roster came out and most of her favorite people were on it she was ecstatic. She felt like it had been forever since she had seen most of them. She was especially excited, (and a little nervous) to see one person particular, Lindsey. Emily now knew that the saying “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” is completely true. Since being away from Lindsey her feelings for the girl had only grown. She was hopeful that maybe they could find some time to talk at camp. She knew this was her chance since Lindsey was now single. So needless to say, Emily was super excited for camp.
Then the news came… Lindsey wouldn’t be there because she has tested positive for Covid. Emily found out on Twitter just like most people. Lindsey didn’t even call her to tell her. Once getting to camp, Emily saw Tobin making a beeline for her.
“Hey Son”
“Hey Tobin,” Emily said sadly.
“Cheer up kiddo. I have a message for you,” Tobin smiled softly at Emily.
Emily’s head shot up as she looked at her lanky former teammate, “What kind of message?”
The forward just grinned before replying, “The kind I think you will want to hear” before handing her a letter and walking away.
Emily looked down at the envelope in her hands and was shocked to see her name in Lindsey’s handwriting. Several questions were running through her mind now. How did this letter get here? What did Lindsey want to say in a letter that she couldn’t say over the phone or even FaceTime. Emily decided that when she made it to her room she would open the letter to see what was in store for her.
After she had entered her room and put her stuff down Emily sat on the bed and opened the letter. There she found a handwritten note from her best friend.
Dear Dasani,
I’m so sorry I’m not able to be at camp with you right now. I was so looking forward to it. I really miss you. I have even been getting up early just to watch your games. This is the longest we have been apart since going the Thorns together and I really don’t like it.
However, the time apart has also made me realize some things. I have realized just how much I miss our coffee dates. I have realized how much I miss our Netflix marathons (even though you always tried to put your cold feet on me). I miss you being at practice with me everyday. I miss hearing your voice encouraging me on the field. I miss the way we would cuddle in close together on the cold, lazy mornings after a sleepover. I miss the way you were always there to comfort me when someone would upset me. The way your arms felt wrapped around me as you whispered in my ear reassurance that I was good enough no matter what anyone else said.
Most of all though, I just miss you. The way your eyes crinkle when you smile, the way you laugh out loud at something you found funny, and just the way you made me feel whenever you were around. So even though I hate the distance and the time apart, it has made me realize something- I don’t want to lose you. Emily Ann Sonnett, I love you. I’m in love with you. I have had these feelings for awhile but I kept running from them. I’m sorry that I couldn’t tell you in person. I had planned to talk to you at camp or after but then I tested positive.
So, I really hope I haven’t ruined things by telling you these things. If you feel the same way then you can call me. If you don’t feel the same way, then I hope we can still be friends. I just couldn’t go another day without telling you how I feel. I convinced Sophia to take a letter with her for Tobin so that Tobin could give this to you. Tobin is the only one who knows about my feelings for you. I hope to hear from you soon Em. I love you.
Lindsey
Emily couldn’t believe what she had just read. She felt something warm and wet on her face and reached up to find tears leaking from her eyes. She quickly wiped them away and started to read the letter again because she couldn’t believe she was lucky enough to have someone like Lindsey love her back. She heard a knock at the door and thought about ignoring it but then she heard Kelley’s voice through the door, “Sonnett, let me in!” The blonde got up to let her friend in the room because there was no way Kelley would stop until she did.
“Are you okay Son?” The older defender questioned. “Have you talked to Lindsey? Is she okay?”
“Slow down Kel,” Emily told her friend, “I’m okay I guess. I haven’t talked to her but I did get this from her.”
The younger girl handed her friend the letter. Kelley was the one that Emily had talked to about her feelings. Every time Lindsey would go back to Russell, Emily would call Kelley and talk about her feelings for her best friend. Kelley has been her shoulder to cry on many times. The blonde watched her friend as she read the words on the paper. After she finished reading the letter Kelley handed it back to Emily with wide eyes.
“Wow” the brunette trailed off.
“Yeah…” replied the younger girl, “like I’m so happy right now but I can’t believe she actually feels the same way about me that I feel about her.”
“She would be crazy not to Em. I have told you this. You’re a catch!” Kelley grinned at her friend. “I’m going to get out of your hair so you can call her. Let me know if you need anything.”
Emily took a deep breath and sat down on the bed and pulled up Lindsey’s contact and stared at it for a minute before pressing the call button. As she waited for Lindsey to pick up Emily thought about what she was going to say. The phone just kept ringing though and the message that Lindsey was unavailable came through. “That’s weird” Emily thought. “Oh well, maybe she is sleeping.”
A few minutes later there was a knock at the door. Emily opened it to find Tobin standing there. “Hey Emily… Can I come in?” Emily stepped back to let Tobin in the room as the older girl sat down on edge of the bed.
“Come over here Son,” said Tobin as she patted the space beside her.
Emily could tell something was up but she listened to her former club teammate anyway. Tobin took a deep breath before saying, “I just got a call from Mike. Lindsey started feeling worse so the doctor had her admitted to the hospital. He said that she is okay though but is sleeping a lot.”
Emily couldn’t make sense of Tobin’s words after hearing that her best friend was now in a hospital bed. She sat there staring at the wall in front of her in shock. She could feel her eyes tearing up and soon she felt Tobin wrapping her arms around her.
“Em, she is okay. I promise. Mike just called as a precaution to let us know and so hopefully we wouldn’t worry as much,” Tobin tried her best to comfort the defender.
Finally Emily calmed down and caught her breath and looked at Tobin, “She finally told me how she feels and now this happened… What if it’s too late? What if I never get to tell her I feel the same way? Or how much I love her dimples when she smiles? Or-“ Tobin cut her off, “Em, you can’t think like that. Lindsey is going to be fine. She is strong and will beat this. Also, trust when I say that she knows how you feel about her. She may not have wanted to acknowledge it but she knew. It’s kind of hard to hide the love in your eyes when you look at her.”
Emily blushed a little and ducked her head before looking up at Tobin, “Thanks Tobs. Do you really think we can make this work?”
“Yeah, I do. You guys just go together. There may be some hard times but you guys can work your way through them. I know you and Linds can make it through anything life throws your way because you really love each other.”
“Thanks Tobin. Did she tell you she wrote me a letter?”
“Yeah. She told me that she wrote a letter for you and asked me to give it to you. I wasn’t sure what the letter said until you said she told you how she feels.”
“Yeah in the letter she said that you were the only one who knew about her feelings for me.”
“She has always loved you Emily. It just took her awhile to figure out exactly what that meant. Be patient with her but I’m glad she finally told you,” Tobin said as she pulled Emily into a hug.
After Tobin left to go back to her room Emily picked up her phone to send a text to Lindsey. If Lindsey couldn’t talk right now then that’s okay but Emily knew that she had to tell her at least one thing. She pulled up the messages app and opened the thread between her and Lindsey.
Hey Linds,
So I got the most amazing letter at camp today. I wish I could talk to you about it face to face but since that’s not possible right now then text messaging will have to do because I can’t go a minute longer without telling you that I love you. So I need you to get better so I can take you on a date like you deserve because you deserve the world. I love you Lindsey Michelle Horan. I can’t wait to be able to see and tell you these things in person
❤️ Emily