Work Text:
It's been three days since the last whistle was blown.
Three days since Norway got kicked out of the Women's World Cup. Three days filled with sadness, anger and a lot of questions.
Today marked three days after the game, and it was time to finally fly back home for the Norwegian Team as their dreams ended earlier than expected. There was no reason to stay any longer in New Zealand. Some of them decided to go on vacation first before going back to their clubs, others wanted to go straight back to work with their teammates at home, already focused on winning their national league or the UWCL.
And then there was Ingrid, who just longed for a hug from her favorite person.
It's been five weeks, since she and Mapi last saw each other in Oslo, right before the Norwegian Team took their flight to New Zealand. Five weeks including only one call per week and five to ten messages per day, so the Norwegians wouldn't be distracted from their big goal: Winning the World Cup. In other words, it was horrible.
Of course Ingrid wanted to win, she'd always been very ambitious, especially when it came to her national team. But following some stupid rule including not being able to communicate with her girlfriend regularly for weeks was one of the Norwegians worst nightmares. She didn't know who exactly came up with the idea of limiting their time on mobile phones during the World Cup but it seemed like this person had absolutely no clue how important emotional support from loved ones could be.
At the airport, they said their goodbyes to one another, because of course they weren't all heading in the same direction. Some of the players took the first flight to Dubai together and parted their ways after that, which is why Ingrid wasn't alone the whole time. But still, she had enough time to think about what had happened while staring out the window, which resulted in her being a lot more restrained and quiet than usual.
While the others were talking about their families and private lives or playing some board games, the young Norwegian couldn't help herself as her mind was always wandering back to the game they've just lost. She couldn't stop blaming herself.
When they arrived in Dubai, Ingrid didn't have much time left to say goodbye to her friends, as she needed to hurry to catch her next flight back to Barcelona. She was the last one in the queue boarding the airplane, no time left to check her phone as the security was already pretty stressed out.
Around seven hours later the Norwegian finally arrived in Barcelona. She'd always been unable to sleep during flights, so obviously she was pretty exhausted and definitely not in the mood to talk to anyone. Ingrid always listend to music while being above the clouds, so her battery had died a long time ago and there's been no way for her to charge her phone since then. Maybe it would've been clever to save some of her battery so that she could at least make a call or something after her arrival but she wasn't new in the city so she already knew her way home using public transport.
Normally, Ingrid absolutely adored Barcelona but today it was incredibly noisy and there were way too many people on the bus. Also, it was shortly after noon meaning it was incredibly hot outside. The Norwegian wanted nothing more than sleep. Everyone around her seemed to be louder than usual, they wanted to annoy her for sure.
As if that wasn't already bad enough, she also had to carry her whole luggage on her own which normally would've been absolutely manageable for her but not today. She just felt like laying down, right here, on the street, in the middle of the day, just to take a short nap. Seemed to be a good option in all honesty, but Ingrid knew exactly that her bed at home would be much more comfortable than laying down on the street. Especially with some specific Spanish defender laying right next to her, ready to cuddle for hours.
It took her another whole hour and when she finally stood in front of the apartment, opening the door, it really felt like entering paradise. Right away, the indescribable smell of fresh tulips, strawberries and her favorite vanilla-cheesecake began to rise to her nose and she couldn't help but sigh in relief.
Putting her luggage down, she closed her eyes for a moment to take a deep breath. Ingrid tried to take it all in. The familiar smell. The muffled sound of cars through thick glass windows. The footsteps of the neighbors above her. She couldn't quite describe the feeling of finally coming home after being on another continent for around a month, but the Norwegian knew, that there was almost no better feeling for her than this. Almost.
"Mi amor?" Ingrid could feel her whole body slowly relaxing at the sound of her girlfriend's voice. This was home.
When she opened her eyes again, she saw Mapi standing at the foot of the stairs, a concerned look on her face. It seemed like she had just taken a shower, her hair still a little wet. Despite the concern, there was also a soft smile on her lips and suddenly, Ingrid felt every emotion of the past weeks flooding over her at once. This was exactly what coming home felt like.
She tried to hide it, but the tears slowly welled up in her eyes. Mapi was standing too far away, so she couldn't see the tears in her girlfriend's eyes yet, however she recognized the unbelievable fatigue standing right in front of her. She slowly approached her girlfriend, eyes not leaving her for a second. "Por qué no me llamaste? [Why didn't you call me?] I tried to contact you for hours, but the messages didn't even get through. I wanted to pick you up at the airport, cariño. You must be incredibly exhausted."
The Norwegian just shook her head. It didn't matter anyway, now that she was already home. "No pasa nada, estoy bien. [It's okay, I'm fine.] My battery died during the flight, so I couldn't call you. But it's okay, really. Puedes darme un abrazo? Te he echado mucho de menos. [Can you give me a hug? I've missed you so much]" Mapi nodded eagerly, already opening her arms as if she'd sensed her girlfriends next move.
In the blink of an eye, the two of them were finally back in each others arms. The immense weight of the last few weeks was immediately gone and Ingrid suddenly felt as light as a feather, ready to fly away from all her problems and dark thoughts. She had to close her eyes again, entirely drifting off. When she took another deep breath, she couldn't stop but imagine a field of fresh tulips, because this was exactly what the spanish defender in her arms smelled like.
Sometimes, Ingrid completely forgot, that her apartment hadn't always smelled like this. Sometimes, she completely forgot that there'd been days without Mapi in her life. Unimaginable. They'd been together for almost two years now, everything that happened before meeting her girlfriend felt like a whole other life to the Norwegian.
"Beklager at jeg ikke skrev til deg [I'm sorry I didn't text you]." Mapi just shook her head, hugging her girlfriend a little tighter, "Ikke tenk på det [Don't worry about it]. You're here now, which is all that matters." It always amazed Ingrid how fast her girlfriend had been learning her language. Of course, she was still far from being fluent, but whenever she had some time for herself, Ingrid always found her over some Norwegian crossword puzzles. There'd just never been someone before who would've done this for her.
Being completely lost in her thoughts, she didn't feel it at first when Mapi slowly broke away from the embrace to finally look at her. The tears in her eyes were still there, Ingrid just couldn't help it. She almost forgot how good it felt to be back at home. In the next moment, she felt her girlfriend's hand gently resting against her cheek. "Cariño, why are you crying? Todo está bien, estás en casa. [Everything's fine, you're home.]" The Norwegian slowly nodded her head, but when she saw the caring look in her lover's eyes, a tear found its way down her cheek. "I know", Ingrid started, taking a deep breath before going on, "but I just missed you so much og jeg elsker deg så høyt. [and I love you so much]" The loving smile on Mapi's lips instantly caused an eruption of butterflies in Ingrid's stomach. Even after two years of seeing her smiles almost every day, she still felt this way about the Spaniard. "Yo también te amo mucho — pero parece que te mueres [I also love you very much — but you look like you're dying]. I mean, no offense, mi princesa, you're just as pretty as always, but you really need to get some rest."
Ingrid sighed, but she knew Mapi was right. She struggled keeping her eyes open, so she probably should indeed get some rest. "Vienes conmigo? [You're coming with me?]"
Immediately nodding, the Spaniard already grabbed her girlfriend's hand. Pulling Ingrid behind her, she went up the stairs to their bedroom. After taking her girlfriend's bag, Mapi gently pushed the young Norwegian through the door. "Do you need anything else? Like something to drink or to eat? Yesterday, I bought your favorite cheesecake from the bakery down the street. There's still something left in the fridge for you, mi amor." Ingrid had always adored how thoughtful her girlfriend had been from the very beginning. "To be honest, I just need you. You, our bed and some sleep." — "Muy bien, podemos arreglarnos. Te haré un café de todos modos y guardaré las maletas. [All right, we can manage that. I'll make you coffee anyway and put the luggage away.]"
But Ingrid really didn't want her girlfriend to do any of these things right now. She just wanted to cuddle, nothing more, nothing less. The Norwegian dropped onto the bed, but continued to look at her girlfriend, who was just about to leave the room. "Mapi." Immediately the spanish defender turned around and looked back at Ingrid, "Sí?" — "Por favor, acuéstate conmigo, sólo quiero abrazarte [Please, lie down with me, I just want to cuddle]." Thinking about it for a few seconds, Mapi gave up in the end and it didn't take long for her to accompany her girlfriend. "Como desees, mi princesa [As you wish, my princess]."
Ingrid couldn't hide her bright smile, when her girlfriend lay down in her arms. She took the chance to bury her face in the Spaniard's hair right away. Huge fields of tulips. Simply perfect. The two of them were so used to being in each others arms that it always felt like two puzzle pieces perfectly fitting together.
They were quiet for some moments, just listening to each others breathing. It had been way too many days without feeling each other this close. During the Euros last summer, they were at least able to see each other once a week when they had some free time in between the games, but being that Mapi didn't take part in the World Cup this year and Barça wanted her to stay for training, they were unable to visit each other. It had been hard for Ingrid that there wasn't even an opportunity for her girlfriend to be at her games, it would've probably helped the young Norwegian a lot like it always did when they played together at Barça.
"Jeg har savnet deg [I missed you], mi amor." Ingrid's smile grew even wider and she muffled a small "I missed you more" in the hair of her lover. The Norwegian could feel her girlfriend's soft laughter and even just listening to that sound made her heart beat faster. Everything else wasn't important anymore, it was just her and Mapi and that was all that mattered.
Ingrid didn't even register herself slowly falling asleep in the Spaniard's arms, but there was nothing she could've done against it anyway. When Ingrid woke up again, everything around her was dark. She wasn't able to look at the clock as she was trapped in two strong arms wrapped around her. In all honesty, it felt like heaven on earth. Ingrid didn't want to wake her girlfriend, so she moved really slowly, only resulting in Mapi tightening her grip around her.
There was a soft grumble finding its way to her ears, "Don't goo, quédate conmigo [stay with me]. Pleaseee." — "Elskling, I just want to check the time." There was no answer. "Min kjære." Just as Ingrid was about to speak again, she felt her girlfriend shift a little so that she had enough space to sit up and take a quick look at the clock on her nightstand. 1AM in the morning. She'd slept for almost 12 hours. Jet Lag really seemed to be a thing.
"Can you please come back down here? It's the middle of the night, mi amor." Ingrid looked down at where the drowsy voice was coming from but she couldn't see anything as their whole bedroom was completely dark. "But I can't sleep anymore, I'm wide awake!", she tried to explain herself. "Plus I think I really need to take a shower. I feel absolutely disgusting." She could only hear a deep sigh.
Ingrid was about to leave their bed, when she suddenly felt herself being pulled back in her girlfriend's arms. "Cinco minutos más, vale? Luego prepararé un café y tú te duchas [Five more minutes, okay? Then I'll make coffee and you take a shower]." — "Suena perfecto [Sounds perfect]." She could feel Mapi's grin against her cheek, which immediately put a soft smile on her own lips. Even if it was the middle of the night, this scene reminded her of so many mornings they'd spend as a couple in the past few months since moving in together. And she for sure wanted to continue experiencing these moments forever.
When Ingrid tried to sit up again after a few minutes, she suddenly felt a soft kiss on her lips. An obvious attempt by Mapi to drag time into infinity. She really wanted to go take a shower, but it was impossible for her to resist her girlfriend's kisses. It had been way too many weeks without kissing her so she let her win this one time. There was a soft whisper against Ingrid's lips, "Please don't ever go away again for such a long time." The Norwegian's mouth curved into a small smile, before kissing her girlfriend again. These kisses were filled with so much love, they truly showed how much the two of them had missed each other the last weeks. It was impossible to put these feelings into words.
After breaking the kiss a few minutes later, Ingrid couldn't see the frustrated look on her girlfriend's face but she knew for sure it was there. "I really need to take a shower, elskling, but I'm coming back!" — "Fine."
Normally, the shower would've helped her a lot, but as soon as the Norwegian was alone in the bathroom, ready to step in the shower, the dark thoughts in her head came rushing back. All of a sudden, Ingrid could feel all the weight on her shoulders again and her heart began to ache. Why hadn't she fought harder for the win? They could've won the game, she knew for sure.
The water coming down on her helped her to finally let go completely and she couldn't stop the tears from falling down anymore. But instead of feeling better after crying in the shower, she just felt worse. Ingrid could hear the soft noises of their coffee machine coming from downstairs, deciding that there was only one thing, or person, that could really help her right now.
"Min kjære?" Mapi immediately turned around when she heard the shaking voice of her girlfriend behind her. There she was, standing in the middle of the kitchen, hair wet from just taking a shower and eyes very red from all the crying. The Spaniard didn't even need to ask, the reason for her girlfriend's crying was obvious and honestly, she'd just waited for Ingrid to be ready to talk about it to her. "Está bien, cariño, ven aquí [It's okay, darling, just come here]", she insisted, opening her arms for a very big hug and it didn't take long for Ingrid to oblige.
The Norwegian could feel new tears welling up in her eyes, especially when her girlfriend started whispering soft encouragements. "Está bien estar triste, cariño. Sé cómo te sientes ahora mismo [It's okay to be sad, sweetheart. I know how you feel right now]." These words were truly the only thing which could've helped Ingrid right now. "Sé que estás decepcionada. Pero sabes que en el fútbol también hay que perder, mi princesa [I know you're disappointed. But you know, in football you have to lose too]." The Norwegian knew that her girlfriend was right, of course she was. But she just couldn't help but blame herself for losing the game against Japan. Her own goal was always replaying itself in her head. How could she'd been so dumb?
Ingrid didn't know how to form the words to tell her girlfriend how miserable she felt, but that wasn't even necessary. Mapi knew exactly what was going on inside her head. "Sabes que no es culpa tuya haber perdido. No eras el único en el campo [You know it's not your fault you lost. You weren't the only one on the field]." — "I know, but — but I just feel like I made so many mistakes." Ingrid had to take a deep breath, before continuing to talk, "And — And without my mistakes, we could've made it, you know? We could've won against them. And then there's this one really big mistake I made and—" "—Mi amor, everybody makes mistakes. Stop blaming yourself, please. No eres más que un ser humano. Esto es lo que pasa [You're only human. These things just happen]."
Ingrid tried her best to believe her, but the intrusive thoughts in her head didn't want to leave yet. It was as if Mapi could sense her problem, which was why she'd just kept talking, "It's hard, I know, but you have to move on, cariño. The World Cup isn't important anymore. Don't forget we won the Champions League last season, alright? You can't always win, you also have to lose sometimes."
The Spaniard was right, they'd won the Champions League. These had been the best days of Ingrid's life for sure. She always loved to think back to the moment the whistle was blown and their victory had been decided. "Listen to me, min kjære. I know that you feel like shit, it's totally understandable but still — Jeg er stolt av deg, okay? [I'm proud of you, okay?]"
In moments like these, Ingrid didn't know what she'd done to deserve all this love and she struggled to find the words 'cause all the Norwegian could think about was how much she loved her girlfriend. Especially today, when Mapi's words were all Ingrid needed to hear to feel better.
So she decided to just say the first thing that came up her mind, "Jeg elsker deg." — "Jeg elsker deg mer, min kjære [I love you more]." Their hug seemed to last forever and after a few more soft kisses, two cups of coffee and a piece of vanilla-cheesecake, they decided to go back to bed.
In the meantime, Ingrid was feeling much better, even though the intrusive thoughts in her head had of course not yet completely disappeared. It would for sure take some more days for her to slowly move on from her loss, but she could handle that — at least she wasn't alone with her thoughts anymore.
"So I guess we're rooting for Sweden now?" Ingrid could feel the shocked gaze of her girlfriend staring at her back. But they would for sure not support the Spanish National Team after everything that had happened during the Euros. She rolled over to look at Mapi, who was already about to contradict but stopped when she saw the pleading look on Ingrid's face. "Frido really deserves to win, don't you think?" — "Fine. Good for her, that I absolutely hate what's happening with my national team at the moment. Don't tell Alexia, but yes, yes we are rooting for Sweden."
It was still dark outside, but they could already hear some birds singing. Barcelona seemed to be slowly waking up.
Ingrid's sleep-wake-cycle was completely in a mess so she couldn't sleep anymore, but she knew that Mapi was indeed very tired, so she let her sleep. Watching her slow breathing calmed the Norwegian, she just looked so peaceful and Ingrid was sure that her girlfriend was by far the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. No one could ever change her mind. Also, the influence the Spaniard had on her was simply indescribable. She felt so at peace just by watching her sleep and every negativity seemed to be erased whenever Ingrid was with her.
A safe space, that was truly what home should feel like.