Chapter Text
"Remind me again why we're doing this?" Tobin grunts as she helps Alex hoist her luggage into the car, peeling off her ragged UNC sweatshirt and sloppily tying it around her shoulders.
"Because Syd left her car here last time she was in town, and she asked me to drive it back to Kansas City," Alex rolls onto her tiptoes to reach the trunk door and shut it closed.
"And remind me again why I actually agreed to doing this?" Tobin squints her eyes against the bright rays of the California sun, and Alex twirls the keys around her finger.
"Because you're my best friend, and you love me," she shoots Tobin an innocent smile.
"Are you sure that's it, Al?"
Alex heaves out an exaggerated sigh before adding, "And I promised to buy you a new snapback."
"Ah, yes, now it's coming back to me," Tobin smirks, and Alex rolls her eyes before the two of them load into the car.
"Alright, here we go," Alex revs the engine, and Tobin toes off her flip flops, tucking her legs into her chest. "You got the map?"
"Yup," Tobin pops her lips and twists her torso to grab it from the backseat. "Oh, I almost forgot!" she digs into her backpack to grab her GoPro, and Alex starts pulling out of the driveway when she notices Tobin starts recording a video.
"Ok, Tobin and Alex's road trip. Day 1. Minute 1. Today we're driving about 4 and a half hours to Vegas, and neither of us have had the urge to kill each other yet." She shoots a thumbs-up to the camera before panning the camera on Alex. "Say hi, Al."
"Hi to whoever is actually gonna waste their time watching this," Alex keeps one hand on the wheel and uses the other to wave at the camera. "You'll be seeing me again when Tobin screws up the directions and gets us lost."
Tobin shifts the camera back on her and rolls her eyes. "She's just upset she's doing all the driving today." She reaches to click off the device and stuffs it back in her bag. "This is gonna be a lot of fun."
"I agree," Alex smiles. "Two gals. One car. Five states to drive through. A million things could happen."
"That sounds like the tagline of a movie," Tobin muses. "I'd watch it."
"Huh," Alex acknowledges. "I'd watch it too. Especially if it was actually based on us, and we got to choose who played us."
"I would call Anne Hathaway," Tobin says, and Alex groans.
"Not fair! You know I love Anne Hathaway," she complains, and Tobin pumps her fist into the air. "Fine, then I call Emma Stone."
"Ah, she's a good one," Tobin says. "You wanna trade?"
"Deal."
"Cool. Hey, when's the next pit stop?"
"Not for another couple hours," Alex says. "Didn't I tell you to go pee before we left?"
"Uhhh, maybe," Tobin scratches the back of her head. "I...wasn't listening," she adds through clenched teeth, and Alex reaches over the center console to smack her. "Ow!"
"Oh, c'mon, I didn't hit you that bad."
"I know, but I'm still a little sore from the last time I beat you at arm wrestling," Tobin stifles a laugh, and Alex smacks her again, gnawing on the inside of her cheek to fight back a laugh of her own.
"Only because I let you win."
Alex shifts her weight on the balls of her feet as she waits for the gas tank to fill up, drumming her fingers along the side of the car when Tobin stumbles out of the convenience store juggling snacks in her arms. "Tobin, I said you could buy two snacks. Two. Not ten."
"Sorry, mom," Tobin says teasingly, and the corners of Alex's lips curl upwards. "Don't worry, I didn't forget about you, I got us a pack of Nilla Wafers."
"Do I wanna know why you didn't ask for a bag?" Alex helps Tobin open up the door to the passenger's seat so she can unload all the food.
"Bags are for losers," Tobin shrugs and slides into her seat. "How far are we from Vegas?"
"A couple hours." Alex removes the gas pump from the car and places it back onto the stand, twisting the cap back onto the gas tank and making her way back to the driver's side. "Another round of 20 questions?"
"Yeah, it's my turn to think of something, hold on," Tobin says, and Alex fails to bite back a smile as the midfielder pinches her eyebrows together and purses her lips. "Wait, my turn to pick the music too." She interrupts her train of thought to grab Alex's phone from the cup holder and scrolls through the music library to find a song. "Oh my God."
"What?" Alex's heartrate quickens, scanning her surrounding for any incoming cars as she merges back onto the highway.
"You deleted our James Bay playlist?" Tobin says exaggeratedly, and Alex frowns.
"I forgot to back it up to my laptop when I bought a new phone," she explains.
"Rookie mistake, Al," Tobin shakes her head before settling on Let It Go, and Alex figures they can remake the playlist over the next few days. "Ok, I thought of something."
Alex goes to switch into a faster lane before exhaling a deep breath through her nose. "Ok, uh, is it a person?"
"Yup."
"Are they real, or are they part of a Harry Potter universe?"
Tobin lets a long moment of silence pass between them before mumbling, "Harry Potter."
"C'mon, you've used a Harry Potter character for the last 4 rounds!" Alex starts laughing, and Tobin covers her face with her hands before doing the same.
"I'm sorry, I'm in withdrawal ever since I left my books at Cheney's place last month."
Alex turns down the radio at the mention of their friend, twisting her lips before asking, "How are you dealing with all that by the way?"
"I'm ok," Tobin shrugs. "I mean, it gets a little boring when I have some free time, and I can't read them, but-"
"I meant Cheney's retirement, Tobs," Alex clarifies, and Tobin clicks her tongue.
"Oh."
"Yeah."
"Umm," Tobin rubs her cheek to distract herself. "I mean, it stinks. And I'll miss her. A lot."
Alex nods her head understandingly.
"But I know she's doing what's best for her and her family. So I can't be too upset, you know?"
"Yeah, I do," Alex comfortingly pats Tobin's knee. "If you're ever feeling down about that stuff, you know you can tell me about it, right?"
"Yes," Tobin pretends to sound annoyed, but Alex can tell by the way she averts her gaze down to her lap that it means a lot for her to hear.
Not many people get to see the vulnerable, softer side of Tobin Heath.
Alex is just glad that she's part of the few who can.
"Now, c'mon, guess who I'm thinking of," Tobin lightens the mood again, and Alex thoughtfully taps her chin.
"Well, the past four characters have all been secondary characters, so I have a feeling that you're trying to psych me out this time and go with someone who would be so painfully obvious. So I will lock in my answer as Harry himself."
"Dammit," Tobin slumps her shoulders in defeat, and Alex cheers triumphantly. "Ugh, I hate how much you can read me," she groans.
"It was Chapter 3 of the manual I received when I agreed to be your best friend."
"I just think it's a little ridiculous for people to say Peeta forced Katniss into have kids, you know? I mean, the girl led an entire rebellion and overthrew the government. I don't think she's gonna let a boy dictate how she should live her life," Tobin rambles an hour later, and Alex takes a sip out of the Snapple bottle they're sharing.
She doesn't really have a strong opinion on the topic, but she loves how passionate Tobin gets when she talks about books, so she nods her head in agreement. "Excellent point, Tobs."
"Don't even get me started on the readers who think she should've ended up with Gale," the midfielder shakes her head, and Alex drapes her wrist over the steering wheel.
"Yeah. It's a bummer they made Liam Hemsworth play such an unlikeable character in the movies," she frowns, and Tobin voices her agreement.
"That's what I'm saying!" she props her feet on the dashboard and sinks more comfortably in her chair, the candy wrappers surrounding her crinkling with each movement. "Sorry if I'm getting annoying with all the nerd talk, Al."
"Hey, don't say that," Alex reaches over to poke her side. "It's a nice kind of nerdy. I like it," she shoots Tobin a smile, who returns it eagerly. "C'mon, vent more about your frustrations. I'm all ears."
"I. Interstate." Tobin says quickly as they pass another sign.
"Ugh, I was gonna say that!" Alex says frustratedly before scanning the billboards for any word that starts with the letter I before Tobin can pull even further ahead. "I. Ice cream." Her eyes widen as she spots a billboard for the letter J. "J! Jamba Juice!"
"Ah, no!" Tobin clutches her head. "You got lucky, J's are impossible!"
"Bow down to the master," Alex states confidently.
But 20 minutes later, she ends up losing. She gets stuck on X, and Tobin teases her for it for the rest of the ride.
"Tobin and Alex's road trip. Day 1. Minute...I don't know. I'm too lazy to do the math. Hour 4 and a half," Tobin says into her GoPro as Alex walks back to the trunk to grab their bags. "Al got mad at me for hogging the music, but other than that, no physical altercations have occurred."
Alex snorts in amusement, shaking her head at the camera when Tobin pans to her. "We still have a lot of road to cover. I'm not counting anything out until we actually get to Kansas City."
"We're in Vegas right now, spending the night at the Bellagio where we'll do some big kid things," Tobin takes her duffle bag from Alex, who continues to listen to her in fascination. "Big kid things mean we're gonna get drunk. If you didn't catch on.
"We leave tomorrow morning around 9, then we'll start making our way into Utah. Hopefully we'll survive tonight to do so." She clicks her GoPro off and stuffs it back into her bag.
"So who do you plan on showing these video documentations anyway?" Alex smirks as they make their way inside the hotel.
They both look like a mess; wrinkled clothes, hair sticking out in thousands of different directions from the 2 minutes Tobin thought it'd be fun to roll down the windows whilst cruising 90 mph on the highway.
But Alex doesn't mind. She thinks they look kind of cute.
Or, at least Tobin does.
"I don't know, really," Tobin slips on her PDX snapback and slings her sweatshirt over her shoulder. "Maybe when I'm a boring old lady, all grumpy in my nursing home, I'll wanna look back on them and remember the wildest week of my life."
Alex smiles softly before scrunching her nose. "You as a grumpy, old lady is weird to think about it."
Tobin pushes the door open to the lobby, "Yeah, I hated myself when I said it."
They earn a few whispers and stares as they make their way to the front desk, and Alex shoots people small smiles while Tobin timidly averts her gaze to the floor.
"Ah, Ms. Morgan and Ms. Heath, what can I do for you this evening?" the employee at the check-in desk greets.
"Hi, we're here for check-in," Alex props her elbows onto the counter.
The employee, whose name tag reads Lucas, punches a bunch of keys. "Ok, I have you two for a one night stay with an 8:30 am check-out tomorrow morning."
"Sounds like us," Alex nods, and Lucas punches another set of keys before handing them their room keys.
"Alright, you'll be staying in room 2106."
"Awesome, thank you," Alex says, and Tobin shoots him a polite wave before they head up to the elevators.
"I don't that's something I'll ever get used to," Tobin says once the doors slide shut. "The way people look at you like you're an exhibit at the museum."
"Yeah, I guess that's what being a reigning World Champion does to your rep," Alex teases, and Tobin belts out a genuine laugh. "Better than the pity looks we kept on getting in 2011."
"Valid point," Tobin follows her out of the elevator once they get to their floor, and Alex swings open the door to their room to find only one bed propped against the wall as opposed to two. "Oh."
"There's only one bed?" Alex pinches her eyebrows together. "That's weird, I thought we requested a room with two queens, not one king."
"It's not a big deal," Tobin drops her bag onto the ground before plopping onto the sheets. "I'm pretty sure we've slept in the same bed more times than not, anyway."
"Yeah, you're right," Alex shrugs. "It's just odd, I guess. That he didn't mention there was only one."
"If you're worried about me drooling on you during the night, I promised I outgrew that," Tobin jokes, and Alex rolls her eyes, plopping down onto her back next to her friend.
"I doubt you outgrew the kicking, though."
"Is this hot enough to convince a guy that I'm into him when in reality I just need him to get me free drinks?" Tobin strolls out of the bathroom in tight, dark jeans and a black, low-cut, sleeveless top.
Alex's eyebrows shoot up immediately, her eyes involuntarily scanning her best friend up and down. "Let's just say, if I were a stranger, I'd buy you all the drinks they offer at the bar."
"Awesome," Tobin says triumphantly, smoothing out her hair and grabbing her phone off the bedside table. "You ready to go?"
"Yup," Alex slips on her wedges and hoists herself up from the bed. "Let's get wasted."
"And then," Tobin doubles over laughing in a failed attempt to compose herself, causing Alex to do the exact same, "and then, she says, 'put your pants back on!'"
Alex starts laughing so hard she forgets how to breathe, gripping onto Tobin's arm to keep her balance. "Stop being so funny," she playfully shoves the midfielder, who starts to laugh impossibly harder. "I hate how funny you are!"
Alex is out of it.
Tobin's on the opposite end of the bar letting someone buy her another drink, while Alex is still on a high from her last round of shots.
She started keeping track of how many rounds she had done, but she lost count after 6.
She also can't stop giggling. Everything is funny.
Even when something isn't funny. She can't help but giggle just a little bit.
She really needs to sober up.
It's almost midnight, and she motions towards the bartender for another glass of vodka when she feels an arm snake around her waist.
"Next round's on me," a scruffy guy in his mid-20 smirks, and Alex immediately shrugs out of his touch.
She may be drunk, but she's not that drunk.
"Yeah, on second thought, I think I'm good," she roughly pats his chest, but instead of taking the hint, he nudges himself closer into her side.
"Can I just say you did an amazing job at the World Cup earlier this year?" his words are slurred, and Alex has to fight back a sour face when she eyes the beads of sweat trailing down his forehead. "Seriously. You were awesome."
"Thank you," the adrenaline in her system starts to simmer, and she continues to tiptoe away from the guy.
"You wanna get out of here?" he reaches out to place a hand on her arm, which she quickly smacks away. "C'mon, we can go to my room and-"
"Hey babe," Tobin, Alex's Lord and Savior, comes to the rescue, draping an arm around Alex's shoulders and nuzzling into her neck. "You good?"
"Yeah, I am," Alex shoots the guy a hard glare, and he squints his eyes.
"Wait, what? What is going on?" he starts to lose his balance, leaning onto the counter for support.
"Were you hitting on my girlfriend?" Tobin frowns, and he's quick to shake his head.
"No, no, of course not," he scratches the back of his head before rubbing his eyes. "I, uh, no. I wasn't."
Tobin tips her head in acknowledgment before murmuring not-so-quietly into Alex's ear, "You wanna go back to our room?" she presses an innocent kiss to Alex's temple, but it's enough for Alex's heart to start beating out of her chest.
"Yeah, let's go," she hurriedly grabs Tobin's hand to interlace their fingers together, curling her free hand around the midfielder's waist and shooting the guy a curt wave.
"Thanks for saving me down there," Alex leans against the wall once they make their way up to the room to slip off her shoes.
"Anytime, Al," Tobin collapses onto the bed, rubbing her temples with her fingers. "Shit, my head hurts."
"How many rounds did you have?" Alex digs through her bag, grabbing her old UC Berkley shorts and a plain, gray t-shirt.
"I lost count," Tobin slings an arm over her eyes to block out the light from the room. "Hey, neither of us should be driving too early tomorrow. Especially like this."
"I'll call the front desk tomorrow morning and ask if we can extend our check-out time," Alex starts peeling off her clothes and slips into her pajamas, too exhausted to get up and get ready for bed. "Tobs, can you get dressed, or do you need me to help?"
"No, no, don't worry about me," Tobin attempts to shrug off, but by the way she doesn't make any notion to move, Alex takes it upon herself to help her out.
She scoots over to Tobin's duffle bag and pulls out her World Champions t-shirt (she's not sure if it's been in wash ever since the team got them considering Tobin wears it nearly every day) and gray cotton shorts.
"C'mon, up," she walks over to her friend and slowly assists her in sitting upright, helping her change into a new set of clothes.
"Thanks, Al, you're the best," Tobin digs the heels of her hands into her eyes.
"It's the least I could do after you saved me from McHorny," Alex says lightly, and Tobin breathes out a tired laugh. "So we're even. Deal?"
"Deal."
"Good. Now I hate to say this, but I can't really brush your teeth for you, so you'll have to take care of that yourself."
"I think I'll manage," Tobin averts her gaze down to her lap, and waves of hair fall over her face as a result. "Hey, Alex?"
"Hmm?"
"I think I forgot toothpaste."
"Fine, you can use some of mine."
15 minutes later, the two of them bury themselves under the covers, their bodies practically molded into one being.
Tobin's out in a matter of minutes, and Alex takes in the serene, peaceful look on her face before falling into a slumber of her own.