Chapter Text
August 2012
Kelley slowly opened her hotel room door, careful not to wake her roommate. Hope stood on the other side with a soccer ball in one hand and a mischievous grin on her face. Before Kelley had the chance to ask what brought the goalkeeper to her room at 2 in the morning, Hope quickly put a finger to her own mouth, signaling her not to say anything. The adventurous sparkle in Hope’s eyes was hard to go unnoticed and Kelley instantly knew she was up to no good.
And because Kelley wasn’t one to miss out on an adventure, nevertheless a spontaneous night outing with the one and only Hope Solo during their last night in London, she felt her hands search for the doorknob behind her.
The door closed shut and there was no going back.
Without saying one word, Hope successfully led Kelley the few blocks down from their hotel room until they reached their destination.
Wembley Stadium.
As Hope carefully checked her surroundings to make sure no one was watching, she slid herself through a small breach in the security gate and proceeded to the nearest side door to let themselves in. Kelley had no idea how Hope managed to gain an access key to the infamous London stadium and honestly she didn’t really want to know either, but of course, not wanting to be outdone, Kelley didn’t object and followed suit.
Hope walked through the tunnel to the main field to find the main light switch, and soon the field light up in all its glory. Hope stood at the sidelines and looked at awe at the field before her.
“And that’s how you break into Wembley Stadium.”
Kelley felt herself do a whole turn as she looked around. This was truly breathtaking. Words could not describe what it felt like to win gold for their country in this exact stadium, so Kelley found it even harder to describe what it felt like to stand in the empty stadium with absolutely no one around except for Hope beside her. Her eyes wandered, but somehow found their way back to the taller woman who had just stolen her heart. Kelley failed to stifle a laugh.
“You’re crazy, you know that? What are we doing here?”
Not wanting to give an answer quite yet, Hope simply shrugged before stepping on the pitch and dropping the ball to her feet. They passed the ball back and forth until Kelley broke their silence. She chuckled once more at the ridiculous situation she was in and how Hope was the reason for it.
“I’m pretty sure this is against the rules.”
“Oh come on, Kelley. Do you not know me at all? I don’t play by the rules.”
Kelley smirked in return, “Good. Because neither do I.”
-
“Hope? Hey, wake up.”
Hope was startled by the sound of her name and a pair of hands gently shaking her shoulder. Her vision cleared and she soon realized Carli had taken a seat beside her.
“Hmm?”
“The doctors want a word with you.”
Carli motioned down the hallway where a team of medical staff seemed to be waiting. Hope sighed and out of exhaustion, she forced herself to stand up.
Nearly a week ago, she and Kelley had been celebrating their anniversary at a restaurant that had just recently opened in downtown Seattle. After wandering hand in hand along the waterfront for a good amount of time, they decided to head home in attempts to beat the storm that appeared to be rolling in. They had just crossed the bridge back to their home in Kirkland when a truck in the opposing lane recklessly cut the corner, skidding on an inch of rain and just snipping the side of their car. Fortunately, it wasn’t a head on collision and Hope walked away with no more than some whiplash and irritation to her shoulder. Unfortunately, Kelley wasn’t so lucky. The passenger side of the car had been impacted greatly, causing some brain damage and leaving Kelley unconscious at the scene. Thankfully, medics had arrived promptly, giving doctors a sufficient amount of time to stop Kelley from bleeding. It would be no longer than a week for her to wake up from surgery.
But this had been the longest week of her life.
Spending more time at the hospital than their home, Hope anxiously awaited for Kelley to wake up. She lashed out the first few days, not being able to comprehend the reason why Kelley had not even begun to stir and it took quite a few people to convince her that she needed to give it some time and wait patiently. Both her mom and her in-laws stood by her side while her closest friends helped out as often as they could. Currently, Carli and Alex were keeping her company.
“Any news?”
“Actually, good news.” The doctor said with a smile growing on his face.
Hope perked up. “Really? Is she awake?”
“Not quite…however, her brain is showing an increase in electrical activity, which is a very good sign. So if you’d like to sit by her side, it shouldn’t be long now.”
Hope sighed in great relief, thanking the doctors before entering the room. She pulled a chair to the bed side and reluctantly stared at the woman she loved, something that Hope normally liked to do if Kelley wasn’t laying unconsciously in a hospital bed. Hope hated how fragile and weak she looked, and how that contrasted her normally spirited and vibrant personality. She wanted more than anything to hear her voice again. She needed her to wake up.
A few hours passed and Hope’s anxiety only seemed to manifest in her knee shaking up and down, and her grip on Kelley’s hand becoming tighter and tighter. Hope knew she needed to calm herself down and decided to take a little walk around the hospital, but not before placing a gentle kiss on Kelley’s forehead.
However, as she did so, she felt Kelley tremble beneath her and stir for the first time in many days. Hope was slightly bothered by the kiss being so fairytale-like, but she also couldn’t contain her excitement and happiness that Kelley might actually be okay. She sat on the hospital bed, making sure Kelley would not be alone when she woke up.
Within a matter of minutes, Kelley’s eyes fluttered open. She was startled by the unfamiliar room, but was even more so by the body hovering over her and the close proximity of another face. Kelley gently placed her hand against her teammate’s chest, hinting at her discomfort with the lack of personal space.
“Hope? Uhm, what are you doing?”
Hope felt tears form in her eyes and as she blinked them away, she felt herself smile.
“I’ve never been so worried in my life…you’re going to be okay, Kell. Thank God.”
Hope couldn’t be happier and out of reflex, she pressed her lips against Kelley, but surprisingly their kiss lasted much shorter than she would have liked. Kelley had shoved her away, a little more violently than necessary.
“Oh my god! Hope, get off of me!”
Hope was startled by the sudden outburst and stood up. She looked at Kelley, noticing for the first time how confused and terrified she was. Hope didn’t understand quite exactly was going on, but from the look in Kelley’s eyes, she knew something was definitely wrong.
“Am I hurting you?” Hope cautiously asked, trying to make out the readings of the hospital monitors surrounding them.
“What? No, you aren’t…but…what were you just doing?” Kelley looked up at her teammate, even more confused than before.
“I…I was kissing you.” Hope stated in a matter of fact tone.
“What? Why? Hope, what’s going on?”
“Kelley, are you alright?”
“Why were you kissing me? Is this a prank?”
“A prank? What? No. I was kissing you…because I can?” Hope felt ridiculous for trying to explain this to Kelley. She tried to bring clarity to their confusion. Her voice trembled with frustration, but more so with worry.
“Kelley, we’re married.”
“N…no…”
“What do you mean no? I’m your wife.”
“My what?”