Here we go! Finally, getting to the hosts!
I disclaim all that is not mine.
Before I made the national team, after my father passed away, I was a complete wreck. I never did drugs or drank alcohol, but I did worse things. I drove too fast, speeding at 90 miles an hour and so forth. I went to parties where people wanted to do drugs... I just didn't care. I even went so low as to just have a lot of sex. With what I was seeing with my mother, I started to believe that no one could love anyone. That everyone was just believing in a fucking lie. For years I believe that love was all a lie and anyone who believed in it was a complete moron just getting tricked by whom ever it was they were with. Because of that, I started just having one night stands and someone's friends with benefits. That was the worst moments of my life. In retrospect, I can see how stupid I was. I wanted companionship, I wanted someone there for me, but I was going about all the wrong ways of getting it. That kind of life, being promiscuous, it's for some people, and they can live that way if they wish, but not me. After a few years, I found out that I am actually just a one person, closed relationship kind of person. But then I just wanted anything to help me forget my home life, my sadness and how lonely I was. What I was doing was just making it worse.
I was called a slut, a floozy, a whore, all of it, for that part of my life. Honestly, I felt it too, but I just didn't care about what others called me, and I still don't. Do I think it's wrong for people to live that way? No, not if it makes them happy. It didn't make me happy. I hated myself for that. For what I did. I did all that just to forget, which is even worse. I didn't date, I was more interested in people whom I didn't have to have feeling for if they just left me, which I always expected of people, and sometimes I still do. Whats even worse is that they didn't care for me, either. It was just meaningless.
When I joined the national team, however, I had to quickly change all of that. I had to become more responsible and I couldn't just go out and do the things I did. That was a life changing moment for me and it honestly saved me from myself.
I made the team in late 2008, when I was 15, after the Olympics. After months of training and preparing, I was finally going to be playing my first game, against Canada. I didn't get to start the game, but I came in after half. It was in Abby's home town of Rochester, New York. I was literally shaking with nerves. Once I was subbed in and I took that first step onto the field, it all went away. I couldn't hear anyone but the team, I couldn't see anyone but theme either. I cut it all out and just played the game.
My first goal was a beautiful one. Heather O'Reilly passed it between two defenders, and Abby got it. Instead of taking the shot with the goal keeper right in her face, she passed with with her heel towards me. I got my left foot on it and it floated into the goal, hitting the back of the net. It seemed like it took me forever, like time slowed down. I went absolutely ballistic. I just took off down the field. I stopped in the center of it, and got tackled to the ground by Abby. Everyone just celebrated with me my first goal, and it was just heartwarming to see that they were just as excited for me that I was for myself, if not even more.
One wasn't enough either, I had to get another one the same game.
After the game, I had so many people wanting me to sign something for them. It was overwhelming, honestly. No one knew who I even was 45 minutes prior!
After the game, I had Abby talk to me, telling me that I shouldn't let it get to my head. It's overwhelming for everyone at first, even her. I just listened to her, and learned from her. I always felt like Abby was the older sister I never had. I was always pestering her in practice and asking for advice and some of the best advice I've ever gotten for not only the game, but from life, came from her.
I smiled at her and thanked her for helping me in practice. I told her that those two goals are from her teaching me. I said that, and she told me one of the things that I've never forgotten.
"Everyone needs help, but it wouldn't matter how much help someone's gotten if they didn't have the raw, natural talent beforehand, and Val, you have that ten fold."
I was stunned beyond words. I didn't know what to say.
So, fast forward to a year and a half later. Some people came, and some left. I was lucky enough that Pia kept me on the team. I was playing in Sweden, her home country. The score was 2 - 1, and I was a started. In the middle of the second half, I went to shoot. The second the ball went flying into the goal, I was tackled. For some reason they didn't count that goal, I guess it was because of the foul... which I think it should have counted still (After all, the foul happened AFTER I too the shot). My knee felt as if it was on fire. The pain was so bad, tears left my eyes as my scream echoed around me. Everyone in the crowd went quiet as I went to my side, crying. I don't remember much, but I remembered that there was a PK, and who ever took it I told them they better make it.
It seemed like a few seconds later where I was at a hospital, being told that I was going to be out for a while. I had snapped quadriceps tendon, a fracture on the knee cap and some Meniscal tears. I was torn up. I wanted to play, not be out!
I flew home, and got some surgery done. I was told that I may never be as strong as I use to. As soon as I could, I started rehab on my knee. It was the single most painful thing I've ever felt. Every movement, every stretch, everything made me want to cry and give up.
Soccer was my only love. It's the only thing I'm good for, really. So my will to keep going made it so I will not give up, simply because of the love of the game. I didn't want to be a quitter. I wanted to get to the World Cup in Japan! To the Olympics after that! If I just gave up, I'd never have the chance to even try. But, when I was out, I just started to do schooling. I tried to get as much of it as I could now so that later, I wouldn't have to go any of it. I did get a lot of it done, which I was glad for.
Slowly, after time, it started to be in less and less pain. I got to train a bit, start passing the ball after a few months. I was so happy to be back with a soccer ball at my feet. I got to train with the team, and be back on the roster. Pia took a chance with me for the world cup roster. She added me onto it, telling me that if she felt like I wasn't ready, I'd get replaced.
U.S. soccer booked me a ticket to Japan and sent me there, and even got me into one of the top schools in Japan to finish up my schooling. I was anxious, nervous, because I was leaving before the team did, months before. I studied Japanese as my language through middle and high school, so it was a good fit. I went there and was at the hotel we'd stay at for the games. I was a teen girl, alone in a foreign country and I was a bit terrified.
Then, it was my first day of school. The school was actually pink. I hated the color, and I still do. It's Pepto Bismol pink too, so it's safe to say it was sickening. It was a high class school, where all the people are sons or daughters of families who owned companies or had wealth. I was out of place. I didn't make much playing soccer, especially since I was out for months. It even had uniforms, which for girls were an atrocious banana dress.
I met with the schools chairman, and my 'class' representatives, even though I was taking my last few classes to graduate by their standards, I was still in year two, out of three. I was told about the school, the three classes I had to take, and then I was left to the class representatives. The vice class president was the chairman's son, Tamaki Souh. He wasn't full Japanese, to which I found out later that he was french as well, which explained his blonde hair. He was excited and bouncing off the walls. The type of person who gets excited over the littlest things. The president, who was also Tamaki's best friend, was Kyoya Ootori. My first thought was 'how can he stand the other guy'? He seemed like the calm and collected type. I thought at least he wasn't annoying... then he opened his mouth. At first, I hated him. He was cold, and mean, a first. He was sarcastic and smug, acting like he was better than me. That changed, later on, but it surely did anger me.
I wasn't expecting these two to completely flip my little world upside down, however. That was an unexpected twist.
