Lily's PoV

I looked around the field inspecting the grass as the girls messed around. I had my headphones on and just kept to myself most of today. It was third place playoff in the Olympics. It was quite surprising to see that we were favorites to win today's game. Granny is convinced it's because they released the starting lineup the day beforehand and saw that I was starting. When she told Lisa her theory word had spread and now everybody is convinced of it.

I still had Evans 19 on the back of my jersey. Phil tried getting me to change but I liked 19. It was my number with the Royals so it had sentimental value to me.

I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned my head to see Lucy Broze standing there. I smiled softly at her and took off my headphones. "Uh hi." She chuckled and her smile grew.

"Hey, I just came to wish you good luck. We've got quite the ninety minutes ahead of us." I chuckled softly and nodded my head. We both looked around the stadium and I took in all the atmosphere as the fans made their way to their seats. "You know, I was quite surprised to see that you had chosen to sign overseas. I was kind of looking forward to sharing the field with you as a teammate rather than an opponent but then I heard that you were attending college. From past experience with attending UNC I gotta say you made a great decision." I looked over at her as she spoke. She looked at me and smiled softly.

"I'll be home soon enough I'd say. Maybe then we'll get the chance to play with each other." Her smile grew and she nodded her head. She stuck out her hand and I shook it firmly. Almost on queue both our names were called. We both chuckled and turned our heads to see Steph summoning us. "I'm really glad we get to share the pitch as teammates even if it was for a little while. It's been quite surreal."

She chuckled and nodded her head. "Wouldn't expect anything less Evans. Waiting on the day I get to kick your ass at club level though." I faked being offended and covered my heart as she chuckled. She shook her head and with a small smile on her face as we walked to our captain.

I looked at Steph and nodded my head to her. She looked between us in confusion. "What was that all about?" I glanced over at Lucy as she held her hands up in surrender.

"Just a bit of friendly competition. Nothing to worry about Steph." I looked over at her and she nodded her head. We walked into the locker room and went to our lockers. Mine was next to Ellen White and I smiled. I sat down on the seat and put my headphones back on as I changed. I had just finished lacing up my boots when we were called out to warm up. I taped my hamstring quickly to try help with the stiffness as I warmed up.

I walked out of the changing rooms and walked out to the field. I jogged over to my team and took a few shots with my weak foot watching them soar into back of the net. We did a warm up and had a little time to spare so I went back to shooting. It started to get a little crowded so I took to juggling the ball and keep ups.

We made our way back into the changing rooms and I put on my jersey as Phil spoke. I shut my eyes as he spoke taking in every piece of information. I know all the nation's expectations are falling on my shoulders for today's game. I've read the majority of news articles about today's game so I can feel the pressure. I felt a hand on my knee and opened my eyes to see Ellen looking at me worryingly. "You alright kid?" I smiled softly and nodded my head. She didn't look convinced but nodded her head.

It was finally time and we walked out to line up. I was held back last second by Steph and I looked at her in confusion. "Win, lose or draw today I will still be really proud of you. Don't listen to what any of the articles are saying because they're all a load of shite. We play this game as a team alright? We win as a team and we lose as a team." I smiled and nodded my head. She hugged me quickly and we walked out. I high fived all the management team as we made our way to the lineups.

I was towards the back of the line behind Ellen. I looked to behind me and smirked when I saw Lucy. She glanced up at me and returned the smirk before looking down again. We were led out and stood in a line as the national anthems played. The stadium was filled to the top with Great Britain and Sweden fans. I high fived all the girls before the game started.

We all got into position and Sweden had tip off. I was playing as a number ten role today as a play maker while Ellen played up top. Sweden started their play and we were immediately all over them. Not a single play made it past our third of the field while we dominated their half. I was being watched like a hawk by all the players on the left hand side but still managed to score two goals in the first ten minutes.

Nothing much happened in the first half hour of the second half. Ellen was getting closer and closer to scoring but VAR was being such an ass to her. Lucy slipped me the ball and I slowly made my way down the line. Players came at me from every angle but I easily dodged them.

I looked up to see if anyone was free seeing as I was being surrounded but all the free players were on the other side of the field. I faked out a few more players and ran towards the middle of the 18 looking for a suitable pass. I passed the ball to Ellen and she slotted it into the bottom corner. She looked around for the offside flags but when they didn't go up she came running to me and jumped into my arms.

"You did it El! You did it!" She hugged me tightly and thanked me over and over again. We were winning 3-0 but we didn't stop there. When the final whistle blew we won 8-0. I scored four, Ellen had three and Lucy joined in on scoring as well as I assisted all four. The girls all jumped around celebrating with each but I sat in the grass and laid on my back trying to catch my breath. It was still a little surreal.

I shut my eyes tight and took a few deep breaths. I felt a hand on my stomach a few seconds later and opened my eyes to see Steph kneeling down next to me. I smiled softly and sat up so I could hug her. "Thank you." I pulled away from her and looked at her in confusion.

"For what?" She only chuckled and softly kissed my cheek before standing up. She gave me a hand and wrapped her arm around my shoulder. The stadium was still packed as the crowd cheered loudly. We went and shook hands with all the Swedish players. I exchanged jerseys with Magda Eriksson after I had a bit of a fan girl moment. She chuckled at my excitement and we even got a few photos together which may or may not be getting framed to hang up in my room.

I made my way over to my GB teammates and hugged them all. I was the only Scot chosen to represent team GB at this Olympics but I know a few of the girls travelled to come see the game. Phil called me over and led me away from the group. He put a hand on my shoulder as he looked out around the crowd.

"I genuinely cannot thank you enough for what you've helped me and my team achieve this past year and I don't just mean your playing side. You've helped me and my management team so much on how to break down teams and find their weaknesses and even breaking down my own players. You run rings around each and everyone of them and they still can't figure you out. You're going to change the world of women's football Lily. You're already in the process of doing so. I want you to just enjoy this experience and take it all in so you can remember it." I looked up at him and smiled softly. I caught him off guard by hugging him but he just hugged me back and chuckled softly.

Our little bonding moment was interrupted when I was practically pulled away towards interviews and media. I was a little annoyed but when I saw that Lucy and Steph were with me I didn't really mind. When they saw me coming they both smiled widely and cheered.

"Ey it's our woman of the match." I looked at them in confusion and they both chuckled. I got handed my award and I smiled widely down at it. We were all asked multiple questions individually and together. Steph and Lucy answered most of them mostly because they noticed how nervous I got before answering the harder questions. When we were left leave I thanked them both but they both brushed it off saying I would do the same for them.

After another while we were left to get changed but I was the only one that stayed out to sign stuff for the fans. Lucy took my award into the locker room for me and I thanked her before I went to sign stuff. I had two security guards beside me at all times and I was grateful because things got a little rough after a while. I signed as much as I could for the little ones and took hundreds of photos as I made my way around the stadium.

People were clearing in the hundreds so the crowds were getting smaller by the second. After another twenty minutes of so there was roughly 200 people left. 23 of which were my family and friends. I made my way towards them and hopped the railing to greet them. My grandparents weren't here and I was a little bummed out by it but I completely understood as to why. They were getting older and travelling was getting harder for them. I made a mental note to call them later once I got back to my room.

I hugged my parents and took a few photos with them and Lisa joined as well. I moved onto the girls next and squealed when I saw them. I hadn't seen them in so long because of being in America and training for the Olympics. It was weird not having any of them by my side but I knew that they were exceptionally proud of me. I did it to represent them.

I took pictures with them all and caught up with them. I was a really bummed that Rach wasn't here but I knew that Utah needed her for games seeing as Becky and Kelley were here with the USA. I made a mental note to call her later as well. When the security guards informed me that I needed to head back to change I nodded my head. I told the girls where we were staying and that I'd meet them there before running into the changing room.

When I was in I smiled at the sight. The girls were still celebrating widely in their gear and I laughed. When they noticed I had walked in they all started clapping. I blushed profusely with all the attention that was on me and they all laughed before returning to their dancing. I made my way to my locker and smiled when I saw the award in there. I sat down and let out a huge sigh. Lucy came over and sat down next me handing me a bottle of water. They all knew that I don't drink and have never pressured me into trying and I'm really grateful for that.

After another hour of celebrating in the changing room we decided to head back to the hotel. As expected, all our families were gathered in the reception area talking to one another. I looked everywhere for mine but couldn't find a single one of the them. I was just about to head up to my room when I heard someone call my name. I turned just as someone collided with me causing us to fall on the ground. I leaned my head back and gasped when I saw Kelley and hugged her back just as tight.

"What are you doing here? Oh my god! I missed you so much." She chuckled and hugged me close again.

"Well I had to come support you kid. You've been the talk of the tournament and we had to come down and see what all the hype was about." I looked at her in confusion and she chuckled. She lifted herself off me and gave me a hand to help me up. I nodded her head to something behind me and it turned to see Ali, Christen, Alex, Becky and Ashlyn walking towards us. I ran straight for Becky and she met me halfway. I hadn't seen her in quite a while because of international duties and I missed her quite a bit.

When she was about to pull away from our embrace I held on to her a little tighter. "Don't let go yet. I'm not ready." I could see Chris looking towards us worryingly as Becky wrapped her arms around me once again and held me close. I felt her kiss the top of my head before leaning her cheek against it.

"I got you for as long as you need Lil." It wasn't until I heard my family that I finally let go of Becky. I greeted the rest of the girls and hugged Christen just as tight as I did with Becky. They were my second family and were very important to me, a lot more than I thought I realised. I was getting quite overwhelmed with everything so when Rach appeared out of nowhere and hugged me from behind I had a little breakdown moment. No one noticed except for Rach and she pulled me close into her. I leaned into her embrace as we bonded with the rest of my family. My parents wandered off and I saw them speaking with Phil. He looked over towards me and smiled widely with a nod of acknowledgement before turning back to my parents.

I let out a yawn and I heard a few chuckled come from around me. I smiled softly and snuggled closer into Rachel's embrace. She held me closer to her and kissed my temple softly. A few of my Team GB teammates joined in on our group and soon enough we were all just sitting around the reception area enjoying one another's presence while our families mingled. I was sat between Rachel and Becky on the couch and I smiled softly. I leaned my head on Rachel's shoulder and felt myself dozing off. I felt her kissed the side of my head very lightly.

"So, anyone wanna address the elephant in the room?" They must have thought I had fallen asleep as they spoke. I tried to stay as silent as I could while I listened in on their conversations.

"What do you mean?" I immediately recognized Ashlyn's voice and could hear the confusion.

"How a nineteen year old single handedly beat the number three ranked team in the world? I mean, that's not exactly a normal thing to do." That was Chris' voice. Dang they're really easy to tell apart from each other.

"Well they don't call her 'the wonder kid' for no reason now do they? We all knew that's she's basically a child prodigy. Why's this game any different to the ones she played during the World Cup?" Hey, my English captain was getting in on the action.

"Because Steph, she's still a child. She's barely just turned nineteen for heavens sake! We should be preserving her from all the bad this world can bring. You guys of all people should understand where I'm coming from." Oh uh, this isn't going to end well.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean O'Hara?" Looks like Lucy just got involved now.

"Guys, now is not the time nor place for this." Yes Rach! You tell them.

"Stay out of it Corsie. This has nothing to do with you." You did not just say that to my girl. My girl? I like the sound of that.

"All of you back off. This is a child we're talking about. She literally just won Team GB a bronze medal and had the time of her life doing so. We should be celebrating with her rather than fighting over her. I'm sure we all our opinions about how young she is to have this much pressure on her shoulders but she proved to us today that she can handle it. We need to step up and protect her like Rach said, from all the bad and evils that unfortunately come with this sport. So, why don't we all separate for a while and meet back up again in a while to head out for a few drinks?" I heard the hums of agreement and the shuffling of feet moving around me.

Once things had gone relatively quite I felt a hand on my knee. I opened my eyes and saw dad kneeling down in front of me. He smiled softly before standing up. "Come on kid. I think you need to have an early night." I yawned and nodded my head groggily. I stood up and wobbled a little but dad caught hold of me. He stood in front of me and told me to jump and I did so. I leaned my cheek against his shoulder blade and smiled softly towards Rach.

"Thank you for coming to see me." She chuckled light and nodded her head. She got on her tippy toes and kissed my forehead.

"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. I'll call by in the morning before I leave and we can go for breakfast." I smiled and nodded my head softly. Dad began walking and I slowly felt myself fall sleep against him. Next thing I know I was being lowered and opened my eyes groggily to see I was in my bed. Dad smiled down at me softly and I saw mum by his side. They both sat on either edge of my bed looking proudly at me.

"We're so, so proud of you Lil. Sleep tight baby girl." I felt them both kiss a cheek each before getting off the bed. It wasn't long after that I was out like a light.