[ Ah, I move in in two days! I don't know where any of my classes are! I start classes in five days! Help! ]

Their stay in Washington D.C. was rewarded by a two-one win for the Orlando Pride. Casey, Alex, Ali, and Ashlyn made sure to get pictures together before they left the stadium and got on a plane in the morning. Things had gotten better throughout the few days they were in D.C., being with familiar people outside of the team a comfort. She was starting to get back on her feet, Jackson becoming a thing of the past. She would not forget her time with Jackson, but she was moving on.

They arrived back in Orlando the following morning, and they would have the rest of the day to themselves until tomorrow evening when they would pick training back up again. They were not on the docket for a midweek game, so they were able to take a little break before they got going again. She was going to spend the day catching up on school work. She was so close to finishing her junior year, then she would get her break and focus on this season of soccer and on herself.

May came, and it was finally time for Alex and Casey to get back together with the US Women's National Team for a series of friendlies against Mexico and Canada as a battle of North America, as the American Outlaws had dubbed it. They would be playing two games against Mexico in Chicago and Philadelphia and two games against Canada in Utah and North Carolina. Their first game was in Chicago where the US Soccer Federation Headquarters were located, so they would all meet at the hotel and go from there.

"Ready?" Alex asked as she finished loading up her car. They switched back and forth between carpooling every week, so since this week was her week, Alex would be driving them to the airport.

"Yeah just about. The dogs are all set, right?" Casey asked as she threw the remainder of her things in her backpack. Even for National Team duty she travelled light.

"Wendy next door said she'd look after them. They should be good for the next two weeks." She informed as Casey came out of her bedroom, hugging and kissing her dog on the forehead before they left. Alex had gone next door to make sure their neighbor had a key, and Casey locked the door behind her.

"Do you ever pack anything but a couple t-shirts and shorts?" Alex asked when she came back, and Casey shrugged.

"Nope, what's the point when they give us stuff to wear anyhow?" She responded, and they both laughed as they got in the car.

"You've got a point, but what if we make a trip out on the town? You know we always do." She informed, and Casey chuckled.

"Don't worry, I've got something nicer than what I usually wear." She answered.

"What, your nice jeans and sweater again?" Alex huffed, and Casey laughed.

"As a matter of fact, no, I actually brought something a little nicer." She said, and she knew her teammate gave her a once over.

"Oh really?" She asked sarcastically.

"Yup. I figured it's time to step out of my comfort zone and not dress like a homeless person." She said, getting them both to laugh.

"Did you always dress in t-shirts, soccer shorts, and your Birks?" Alex questioned.

"No, in high school I was considered in the popular crowd so I dressed the part, and it was before Jackson and I were dating. Now that I'm getting over it, I figure I should start caring a little more about how I look." Casey explained to her.

"You? One of the popular kids? I knew you were well liked among the school but not popular." She responded, actually sounding shocked.

"One of the popular jocks, I guess. I played just about everything growing up, but my varsity sports were volleyball, basketball, and soccer, soccer being my favorite and the one I was most passionate about. Being in three of the most popular sports at school, I fell into the crowd." She continued.

"Just how popular were you?" She asked.

"I was pretty popular, I guess." She shrugged, trying to be modest about how popular she was.

"Humor me. Prom queen? Queen bee?" She pried, and Casey rolled her eyes.

"Homecoming court all four years, homecoming and prom queen. I knew every single teacher in the school and they knew me, I could get away with some stuff because I was tight with quite a few of them. My dad and my principal are best friends, so he's let me slide with some stuff. But I wasn't one of the snobby popular kids, yaknow? Like a stereotypical thot or mean girl." She told her, and there was the shocked expression on Alex's face.

"Yeah I get it. But really? I mean don't get me wrong, you're easy to like and get along with, and you're really badass. I just pictured you more like just one of the guys, a girl who doesn't dress to impress, but is this underrated gorgeous girl that doesn't get noticed." Alex told her, and it was Casey's turn to give her a shocked look.

"Yeah I'm one of the guys, or I was, but that's beside the point. Alex, you think I'm pretty? And a badass? How thoughtful." Casey gaped at her, and they were both laughing again.

"I say that in the meanest way possible. I'm just saying I think your looks go unnoticed." She shrugged as she pulled into the airport parking lot.

"Thanks, I guess." She chuckled as she parked and cut the engine, and they both got out of their seats and grabbed their luggage, Casey grabbing her backpack and Alex grabbing her single suitcase and backpack of her own. She locked her car and the two of them went toward the taxi service that would take them straight to the front of the airport so Alex could get her suitcase sent to be loaded on the plane. Since they were flying from all over, US Soccer was paying for their flights, and they had the option to fly first class, so when they found out, they both jumped at the opportunity and got seats right next to each other in first class. They also had the option to have checked bags, so they just needed to make sure they were there on time for their flight. They grabbed some coffee and made their way across the airport to where their flight would be arriving in a half hour. They had been in and out of enough airports to know how long it was going to take to go through security and TSA, and they had it down to an artform.

"Casey, don't freak out, but that looks like the entire FSU football team by our terminal." Alex said lowly as they walked towards their terminal. Casey looked up from sipping her coffee and saw what she was talking about, and sure enough, a group of about sixty rowdy college jocks were waiting to board their flight, most if not all of them sporting Florida State University Football in the form of a t-shirt or hoodie. She spotted the beach blond hair instantly, and as they got closer, his vibrant blue eyes locked with her piercing green ones. She held onto her coffee the best she could, knowing she would drop it if she did not focus. Alex grabbed her hand and stood in front of her, guiding her toward their terminal. Casey suddenly felt as if she could not breathe. She had not seen Jackson since she yelled at him in the middle of Alex's home two months ago.

"Alex, what the hell? Why does their flight have to be right next to ours?" Casey asked lowly. She knew Jackson was still staring, and she had to fight the urge to stare right back.

"Casey, relax. Remember, you're better without him. You've been doing great, you're a whole new person, so act like it. Sit up straight and have a normal conversation with me, alright? He's gotta see that you've moved on. Haven't you?" Alex told her, trying to calm her down. She did not respond, but followed her advice and sat up. The whole situation just made her laugh.

"Yeah, you're right. Screw all this." She said with a little pep back in her step, and it made Alex smile. A few minutes later after comfortable conversation, Jackson had made his way over to them and was standing in front of them.

"Hey Casey." He greeted with a shy smile.

"Jackson." She answered in the most mundane voice she could muster.

"How are you?" He asked, and she scoffed.

"Really?" She asked, then laughed. "You know what, I've been great. Never better." She continued with a smile. It felt kind of good to see the exact moment that his heart cracked, but it still hurt her a little.

"Oh, uh, that's good. I'm glad." He stammered in response. "I hope all is well." He added as their flight was called. Alex frowned and stood up, her brows furrowed in frustration.

"You cheated on her with her best friend, and now you want to see how she's doing? Go back to your frat boy teammates and leave us the hell alone." She said a little louder than all three of them would have liked, and those around them fell silent. Casey did not have to say anything else, for Jackson backed away and walked over to his teammates.

"Now that was badass, mom." Casey mocked as they were called to board their flight to Chicago.

"I'm glad to be your badass mom. Now go sit and eat your apple slices."

--

They arrived in Chicago three hours later, and they would have the rest of the evening to themselves. Alex was not in the mood for anything, but since Casey took a nap on the plane, she had some pent up energy she needed to get out, so an evening run was in mind. She changed from her Birkenstocks to her Nike running shoes and left her shirt in the hotel. Alex always made fun of her for not running with a shirt on, but Casey did not care - she did not have awkward tan lines. Casey still ran as a part of her morning routine that Emily and Kelley thought she was crazy for doing, and whenever she got out of training, she went for a run. It was her way of getting her day started and cooling down for the night.

She put on her armband and put her phone, credit card, driver's license, and room key all in the sleeve before putting in her earbuds and leaving the hotel. She had her location shared with Alex just in case anything happened, and she was off, planning to do a good ten mile loop, but who knew where she would end up. She loved being able to see all the different sites there were to see, taking it all in as she ran the streets of Chicago. It was calming, and it gave her time to think.

She saw Jackson for the first time in two months, and although she was shocked, she felt nothing for him, and that was a good sign, she thought. She had been working to get over him, and that was a good start. Maybe it was time for her to branch out again, but she was still frightened. She was stubborn, but it was a different kind of stubborn. This stubborn was the one that had walls built miles high after getting hurt by someone she loved, and it was going to be difficult to try and break them down.

A hard knock to the shoulder threw her off balance and pace. Once she was sitting on the ground, she took her earbuds out of her ears and looked up to see a gentleman holding his hands out in an apologetic manner. He was also going for an evening run, his sweat glazed face and chest giving him away.

"I am so sorry." He said, his voice a deep baritone sound, extending his hand out to her.

"Uh it's alright. I'm sorry, I wasn't really paying attention." She said with a small chuckle. She took his help and got up to her feet quickly.

"I guess both of our times are messed up now." He said with a laugh, and she just smiled, putting a hand on her hip and checking her watch with the other. "What were you going for?"

"Well, I was on pace for about a sixty-five minute ten mile stretch, but not anymore." She responded, and he seemed shocked.

"Damn, that's impressive. I just run for fun. You a runner?" He asked her, and she shook her head.

"No, pro soccer." She responded, and a lightbulb seemed to go off in his head.

"That's why you look so familiar! You're the wonder keeper that lead the USA to gold at nineteen. Radcliffe, right?" He answered with the biggest grin on his face.

"Casey Radcliffe, and that would be me." She confirmed with a laugh.

"I know we're both really sweaty, but would you mind taking a picture with me?" He asked her, and she chuckled.

"Sure, no problem." She agreed, and he took his phone out of his pocket sleeve and put his camera in selfie mode. She smiled next to him, and he took a couple.

"Sorry, I'm sure you get stopped all the time." He said as he put his phone back.

"No, not as often as you would think." She responded with a chuckle.

"Well someone as gorgeous of you I would think you would be." He responded, and she looked away, her cheeks thankfully already red from running.

"Thanks, I guess." She chuckled.

"Good luck this weekend, I'm not gonna make the game as much as I want to. But, whenever you want somewhere to go for an escape anytime you're in Chicago, go by Howl at the Moon, and if you happen to be by the bar, ask for Alessio." He told her, and she made a mental note of it. She nodded to show him she took the information in, and as if on cue, he looked at his watch and sighed. "It was really nice meeting you, Ms. Radcliffe, but I've gotta run. Ha, get it? Well... I do have to go. Have a nice stay in Chicago." He said, laughing at his own joke, which made her laugh as well. Before she could say anything, he was off to running in the opposite direction. Her ten mile run was ruined, but in possibly the best way. She looked at the time and figured to just make her run back toward the hotel, but she could not shake this feeling she had now, and she had no clue if it was going away anytime soon.