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Sunday, November 9

The last three days have been crazy. The whole league is talking about Declan and what he did. The media is having a field day. The fans are divided. Some support him, some condemn him and demand his resignation.

Apex is trying to do damage control, but it’s not working. The pressure is mounting, and I don’t think he’ll be able to keep his job for much longer.

Reporters have started asking me about him too. Four seasons on his team, five years as his sister-in-law, and everyone wants to know what I saw. The honest answer is nothing. I’ve been going back over those years every night, looking for what I missed.

But despite the chaos, the show goes on. The league doesn’t stop for a scandal. Today we’re playing a home match against Crestwood Athletic.

They’re a decent team, but they’re not at their best right now. Their captain, Abigail, broke her leg, and she’s out for the season. It’s a huge blow for them, and we want to take advantage of it.

We’re also playing for Rebecca. She deserves to feel this stadium behind her. The fans have turned out to support her, too. They’ve been chanting her name since the warm-up. The whole stadium is wearing white armbands, and there’s also a huge banner that says “We Believe You.”

In tribute, Rebecca is our captain for today. I tie the armband on her myself in the tunnel, the way Aditi and Valentina tied it on me in the visitors’ locker room at the Tide in March.

Rebecca then leads us out of the tunnel, and the crowd goes wild. She’s beaming. I can’t remember the last time I saw her this happy. She’s found her strength. She’s a survivor, a warrior, a hero.

Valentina holds my hand as we walk toward the center of the field.

“You’re going to be great today,” she whispers in my ear before we line up for the kickoff.

“So are you,” I whisper back, kissing her cheek. “Give them hell.”

“Always.”

We take our positions, and the referee blows the whistle. We start the match on the attack.

We’re playing our usual formation today, with three strikers: me, Rebecca, and Daisy. We’re trying to overload their defense to create more chances.

Valentina is in the midfield, alongside Rene and Rosario. She’s our engine, our playmaker, our heartbeat. I love watching her command the field. She’s so fucking sexy.

The first half is intense, but scoreless. We have more shots, higher possession, and even more corners, but we can’t break their defense.

With five defenders on the field, they’re making it hard for us. They’re also physical, trying to get under our skin, and Valentina is their main target.

She takes foul after foul without complaint, just gets up and plays on time after time. But I can see the anger in her eyes.

She’s close to snapping, and I don’t want her to get a card. So I do what I can to try to calm her down.

In the locker room at halftime, Raul tells us to be patient, keep moving the ball, look for gaps, and avoid unnecessary confrontations. He also tells us to be careful and to stay focused.

We nod and return to the field. The battle resumes. We’re still dominating, but no goals are coming. As the minutes tick by, frustration grows in us and the fans. Everyone is getting restless.

Then, in the 63rd minute, we break the stalemate. Sia passes to Rene, who sees Rebecca making a run. The ball reaches Rebecca, who skips past her marker into the box. A clear shot. She takes it.

Goal!

The stadium erupts. We run to Rebecca, who can barely contain herself. She’s ecstatic. She’s scored, and she’s proven everyone who doubted her wrong. I’m so proud of her.

Rebecca’s eyes are full of tears as she looks around. She tilts her head. It’s then I realize she’s listening to her name being chanted by the entire stadium.

More posters in her support are held up and I’m sure she’s never felt more loved.

When the final whistle blows we’ve beaten Crestwood 1–0. It’s a shutout, and we’ve extended our unbeaten streak. We’re on fire.

In the locker room Raul congratulates us.

“I’m so proud of all of you,” he says, then opens his arms to Rebecca. “Can I hug you?”