Chapter Text
Leah Williamson didn’t mind the cold.
Not really. Not when it meant waking up early to get to the Arsenal training ground before the rest of the squad, before the shouts, before the banter. The North London air bit at her cheeks as she zipped her thick team coat higher around her neck. It was just past 7 a.m., and the sky was still a soft steel blue, the kind of color that told you the sun wouldn’t fully show up until noon—if at all.
Inside the training facility, her footsteps echoed as she made her way to the locker room, the bag over her shoulder slapping lightly against her hip with every stride. A creature of habit, Leah always liked being early. First in, last out. That was the way she did things. Especially now.
Captain of England’s U20s. Regular starter for Arsenal. Occasional call-ups to the senior Lionesses for training stints. It was a lot to carry, but she carried it like she carried the armband: tight and quiet, never showy, always there.
The locker room was empty when she arrived. She dropped her bag, pulled her boots out with mechanical precision, and tied her hair into a slick, no-nonsense bun. The silence let her think. Rehearse passes in her mind. Remember what Jonas had said about positioning. What the FA scouts were probably looking for next time she got a senior call-up.
She was lacing her boots when the door swung open.
“Captain overachiever,” Georgia Stanway’s voice rang out as she walked in, hands stuffed in her coat pockets, cheeks flushed from the cold. “Morning, sunshine.”
Leah gave her a nod, faint smile tugging at the corner of her lips. “You're late.”
Georgia tossed her bag into her locker with zero finesse. “I’m punctual. You’re obsessed.”
“Same thing.”
Behind Georgia came Keira Walsh, quieter, more internal, as always. Earbuds in, nodding to something only she could hear. She gave Leah a short look and a nod that said more than most people could say in five sentences.
“Are you ever not early?” Georgia asked, stretching out her arms as she sat down beside Leah.
“Not when I’ve got a senior session next week,” Leah replied.
Georgia grinned. “Big-time again, huh?”
Leah shrugged. “Just a session. Doesn’t mean I’m called up.”
Georgia narrowed her eyes. “You know that’s not true. You’ve got one foot in.”
Keira pulled out one earbud. “She’s too focused to admit it. Give it two months and she’s starting alongside Millie Bright.”
Leah ignored them both and stood up, grabbing her training bib. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”
Georgia followed her out. “Fine. Don’t believe it. But believe this—you’re coming to my birthday party this weekend.”
Leah blinked. “Didn’t you do something last month?”
“That was a pre-birthday,” Georgia said without flinching. “This one’s the real one.”
Leah squinted at her. “You have two birthdays now?”
“Obviously.”
Keira smirked behind them.
Leah shook her head, amused. “Fine. Where is it?”
“Just my parents’ house. Small thing. Food, music, people you know. Some you don’t.”
Leah raised an eyebrow. “People I don’t?”
Georgia gave her a cheeky look. “Like… Alessia.”
“Who?”
“Alessia Russo.”
Leah thought for a second. The name sounded vaguely familiar, maybe from a youth tournament? But she couldn’t place a face. “She plays?”
“Yeah, forward. She’s at UNC now, in the States. Flying in for the week. We grew up in the same England youth groups.”
Leah shrugged. “Alright. Not like I’ll be spending the night interviewing everyone.”
“You might want to with this one,” Georgia said with a grin. “She’s got more personality than all of us combined.”
Leah rolled her eyes. “I doubt that.”
“Oh, ye of little faith,” Georgia said, skipping ahead of her onto the pitch.
Meanwhile – 4,000 miles away
The sun was blazing in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Alessia Russo was still catching her breath as she jogged off the field. Her hair clung to the sides of her face, her legs burning from the sprint drills, but her lungs felt clear. Satisfied. She loved this part. The exhaustion that came after pushing yourself hard enough.
Her best friend Ella Toone collapsed beside her on the grass, arms spread wide like she was trying to make a snow angel out of sun-scorched dirt.
“I’m never running again,” Ella said dramatically.
“You say that every week,” Alessia replied between breaths.
“Yeah, but this time I mean it.”
Coach Carter walked by, clapping his hands. “Looking sharp, Russo. Keep it up.”
Alessia gave him a thumbs-up without lifting her head. “Yes, Coach.”
Ella turned toward her, one eye open. “You ready for the homeland?”
“Almost,” Alessia said, closing her eyes. “My flight’s Friday.”
“Georgia’s party, yeah?”
“Mhm.”
“I didn’t get an invite.”
“You’re not special.”
Ella snorted. “Rude.”
“She said it’s mostly childhood mates. Family. England camp people.”
Ella sat up. “So, like... any of the big ones gonna be there?”
“I dunno.” Alessia rolled over onto her side. “I haven’t asked. I don’t really know half of who she’s close with from U20.”
“Maybe Keira?”
“Maybe. I wouldn’t know.”
“You ever meet Leah Williamson?”
Alessia blinked. “No.”
“You’d remember if you did.”
“Why?”
Ella gave her a look. “Because she’s kind of the golden girl over there.”
“You know I don’t really follow futboll.”
Ella stared at her like she’d confessed to a crime. “That’s offensive.”
Alessia laughed. “I just don’t keep up with it. Too busy actually playing.”
“Still. You’re about to walk into a house full of Lionesses and youth legends and you’ve got no idea who’s who?”
Alessia shrugged. “Guess I’ll just wing it.”
“Fair enough.”
They both laid back down in the grass.
“Think you’ll stay long?” Ella asked.
“In England?”
“Yeah.”
“Nah,” Alessia said. “Just a week or so. Then it’s back here. Uni life. Games. Chaos.”
Ella smiled at the sky. “You’ll have fun. Georgia’s parties are chaos too.”
Back in London that night...
Leah sat in her room, still in her training gear, feet propped up against her desk. Her phone buzzed with a message from Georgia:
G: “can’t wait for you to meet less.”
“don’t scare her off pls x”
Leah typed a reply, then erased it. Then another. She settled for:
Le: “I’ll be nice. No promises.”
She stared at the message for a second before pressing send.
She had no idea that the girl on the other end of that conversation was about to change everything.