This is honestly just a self-indulgent impulse Oneshot again xD
I watched a YouTube video of some soccer injuries (YT recommendations amirite) it somehow didn't let me rest anymore.
That produced this Oneshot that I've been contemplating uploading for quite some time, especially because of where I took the inspiration.
So yeah, have this I guess?
Oh yeah and I have no idea of all the medical stuff so don't ask me plis this is fictional
Glandus and Hexside had always been rivals. That's how it has been, that's how it would be years from now.
And not just rivals in any sporting event that Bonesborough held, no, their schools were rivals everywhere they went. Dedicated bus lines were running through the same neighborhoods for Glandus and for Hexside students.
Even the teachers weren't spared from the rivalry. They claimed they knew the best, that the other school didn't teach their subject right, and that all their students were better than those that went to the other campus.
Luz hadn't really gotten any of that.
Just because she went to Glandus because it was closer to her home, she didn't get hating on Hexside all the time. Sure, she understood what the school spirit meant to most and she was picking a side whenever there were matches of competitions and cheering for her own school, but she didn't get the threats and the separation Bonesborough had to suffer through that. It went as far that parents started moving neighborhoods, just to be in the area of their kids' school. Not because Bonesborough was big, but because no Glandus parent wanted a Hexside neighbor.
Sometimes it even went as far that some people quit their job because their colleagues went to the opposing school in the past. Her Mama had told her of that.
Luz had never been one to hate Hexside. Actually, she quite liked their campus – that's what she could tell from looking from afar, at least, because she hadn't even been allowed closer than that – and she had met some Hexside kids in the mall once.
They hadn't exactly been side picking either and they had spent a nice day together, even if their contact had stopped there because of their opposing schools.
Willow and Gus had probably righteously feared bullying, upon being seen with a Glandus student.
Even if Luz had never been much of a Glandus student herself.
She had moved here when she had been thirteen and spent one year in this new city by now because her mother had gotten a better job here than where they had been before. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy being here, it was just that the whole hatred going on had gotten on her nerves. In Glandus she had never really been accepted because she had been new and the kids here didn't want her included in any activity because she was no "true Glandus student", but the label still kept her from making friends.
By now Luz had just accepted that she had to finish school in Glandus and be done with the whole class society in Bonesborough. Maybe someday, her mother and her could leave again, leave this whole stupid town behind and not worry about school up into her adult life.
Well, to somehow make the Glandus kids accept her, Luz had joined the soccer team. If she was fighting for their school, at least they'd know she was no threat?
She hated that she had to actively prove to be a part of their school. In her old school, it hadn't mattered in the slightest if someone was cheering for the school or not. People had just gone there because they had to, because they wanted to study and learn or because they were actively part of a team and wanted to play sports. Here, it was a whole different thing.
If you didn't go to all games, you were immediately flagged as a traitor, and if you even remotely showed any sympathy towards the other school, you were automatically bullied.
Oh well.
In her old school, she had been on the soccer team as well, and while never being a major player, she had been relatively good at chasing the ball off of the opposing striker and send it back to the other team's side again.
It had just been school soccer as well, so nobody had expected her to play like a professional, and that's where she had belonged. In the comfortable mediocrity and at least being active three times a week during practice. Her Mama had told her that was important for her health if she decided to spend the rest of her free time reading and gaming.
Luz supposed that was right.
Having at least some extra endurance and strength proved to be quite useful and it was fun, too.
With the classmates in her old school, it had been fun at least.
Here in Glandus, it was a massacre.
They had let her play once, in a practice match, and she had immediately known that this was no joke. The Glandus students, desperate to be better than the opposing team of Hexside, were playing in a whole different league.
Not even during the practice match, where some of the players had been forced to wear similar jerseys as the Hexside team wore, they had spared their own teammates. Luz had wandered to the bench almost immediately, as per the order of her coach, and had only been allowed to participate in practice from then on.
Of course, she had also been there as Glandus had played a match against Hexside for her first time. The game had been brutal.
Some students had jokingly referred to it as a Bonebreaker, which is what they called the matches whenever Glandus and Hexside ran up against each other. And Luz had been dumbfounded to find that, in fact, no less than three students had been carried off the field with broken bones.
After that, she had voluntarily stayed on the bench, be grateful for the extra sports activity in her weeks, and otherwise kept her mouth tightly shut whenever the coach would announce their next run-up team and their active bench players. She was so glad to be a passive one.
That was until the new season started and she had to watch the Hexside versus Glandus matches again. She didn't like being at these matches. They usually ended in heartbreak and a lot of people crying while the team and the fans of the winning school gloated and shoved it in everyone's face.
Especially once it was clear that one school was starting to fall behind in the season.
Which was the case with Glandus this year.
Falling behind usually meant losing, and losing meant berserk mode.
Luz had never seen anyone play as aggressively as her team once more and more points went to Hexside for scoring in several matches.
Glandus had already switched out their goalkeeper and Luz hadn't heard from them in a while. She supposed they had been excused from school for extreme bullying and having Hexside score so many goals. They also had switched out their team captain in between games, to a much more aggressive character, a striker, who screamed at their team and urged them to attack as much as they could.
Meanwhile, Luz had worked to slip lower and lower on the passive bench. She absolutely wanted no part in this.
Especially since, if Glandus was playing more aggressively, Hexside was, too.
Usually, towards the end of a season, their schools' hatred grew to unfathomable extents and their matches went so brutal not even the referees cared to whistle at every foul play.
Right now, Luz was watching a match happening again, and she honestly just wanted to hide her eyes and ears from the brutality on the field and the roaring audience behind her.
Her Mama had stopped coming to her games because she couldn't watch as well, and Luz would've loved to stay home with her, but sadly, she had mandatory first-row seats to the massacre that was this match.
Another foul play sent a Glandus student to be carried out by paramedics and their coach switched in their next to last active bench player.
Luz was safe for the moment.
She was the second passive bench player because the coach hadn't been able to deny her skill in defense techniques, but for now, they were sending in more strikers to give Hexside the final nail in the coffin in their tied match.
And the last minutes were running already. They were approaching the ninety-minute mark and in ten minutes, everything would be over and Luz could finally go home again.
Her gaze went over the field, following the ball and doing her best to drone out the hateful comments her coach made about the Hexside team. The team captain of the Hexside team took the ball and ran up to their goal and while Luz didn't really want them to score a goal, because she was afraid her team would straight-up murder them, she also hoped they'd make it.
The Hexside team captain was a girl around Luz's age, with dyed green hair that she kept tied back in a half ponytail. She was really good at this.
Like, stupid good.
Luz imagined she must've spent hours over hours perfecting her technique and perfecting her dribbling, her ball control, and her reflexes.
The captain that went by the name Blight dribbled her way up to the front and double passed the ball to a colleague of hers, then she shot and Luz almost held her breath. But the Glandus goalkeeper threw his entire body against the shot, no matter the consequences, not to let it pass.
Frustratedly, the Blight captain gave her teammate a high five and jogged back across the field to get back into her position as the left side striker, rubbing over her face. When she got closer, Luz saw that her golden eyes were furious.
Apparently, she was a true and furious Hexside student and must've dreamt of scoring the goal to relieve her team and her audience.
Honestly, Luz was impressed with her technique. She wouldn't have minded this Blight girl scoring in the least, because if she did, she'd deserve it.
Didn't she already score the first goal for Hexside?
Luz couldn't remember.
Her teammates began sprinting after the ball again and Luz squinted her eyes at the captain. She seemed like she was in total control of the game and that the ball only obeyed her. How did she do that?
Almost, Luz considered asking her for a few lessons, but then she remembered that she was wearing the wrong jersey for that.
A girl with pink hair chased the ball off of their defense again and ran for the goal, but was quickly stopped by a foul, and Luz groaned. Her team just wouldn't stop kicking after their enemies' ankles and trying to get them out of a good run. In her opinion, the match had to be flowing, not constantly interrupted.
Luckily, her fellow teammates on the bench considered her groan as a reaction to Hexside getting a free-kick. She would've been in serious trouble if they had any doubts about her loyalty.
Once again, the match restarted when Hexside lost the ball to a Glandus midfield player who jumped in and secured the possession, before running back up front and passing the ball to a striker who was in position. They were intercepted by a few Hexside defenses but managed to run up to their opposing goalkeeper and try to shoot a goal, yet the Hexside keeper was really good. Her practiced hands caught the ball right out of the air and she immediately threw it to a teammate to try and get the ball away from their goal.
Luz leaned back, her eyes scanning the field to spot the green-haired captain running with the number 12, observing her closely.
She didn't belong in a school team. Luz was sure that this Blight girl could go much higher if she wanted to, but her coach probably wouldn't let her join another team to get back at Glandus for winning last season. Or maybe she chose to stay here and shared the hatred of the schools against one another.
Either way, Luz wouldn't deny her abilities. And if she chose to stay in her school's team, she was free to.
The Blight passed the ball to the pink striker with the 3, then she ran up front, gracefully maneuvering around a Glandus midfield player, before taking back the ball from number 3 and trying the other side instead, passing the ball to a defense teammate that ran up with her.
Just when she was about to shoot, a suit blocked Luz's view. She looked up to see the furious expression of her coach glaring down at her, then she gulped.
"Noceda, get up and warm yourself up. You're up next."
Grimacing, she looked up the active bench, where no defense players were left. Huffing, she quickly got up not to play the risk of angering him more, then she started jogging alongside the sidelines.
Oh boy, she sure was glad her mother wasn't around to witness her getting sent on the field. She would probably die worrying for her.
And honestly, Luz was not up to playing against Hexside. The longer the tie remained, the more brutal the match became and usually, the worst injuries happened in the last few minutes when the players tried everything to get the ball where they wanted it.
She jogged around the field, doing a few exercises to get her muscles warmed up and her ligaments properly stretched before the coach already whistled in a completely run-down midfielder and lined her up for next.
Luz hopped a bit in place, puffing her cheeks in an attempt to calm herself down, then she looked around. The entire passive bench seemed glad that she was up and not them, while the active field players looked down on her once they realized she was gonna be in.
She wasn't the worst but she knew, if the Hexside captain would choose her for a duel, she was done for. Jumping in place, she held her hand out to be switched in but the player coming in barely touched her fingers, shooting her a glare. Their intentions were clear.
If she was to lose this match for Glandus, she would be in hell.
Luz gulped and jogged on the field, then she searched her place on the left side defense, grimacing. She would absolutely have to face the Blight girl, after all, she played left-side striker. This was not going to be good. Despite being light and flexible, and able to squeeze through tight spots, Luz was nowhere near outplaying a captain like her in tactics or technique. She was just a damn good soccer player.
Keeping the ball in her vision and moving along with the instructions from her Glandus goalkeeper, she did her best not to die from the nerves. Here, on the field, the cheers and boo yells seemed that much louder, that much more intimidating. Luz moved along with her teammates when they approached the goal and passed the ball a few times with her defense mates, then she dared a shot towards the middle, a high cross into the penalty area, where her team captain was smart enough to accept with their chest and guide to the front lines. The shot to the goal was defended by the Blight she had seen earlier and shot into the sidelines, making Luz groan. They almost had it.
Her defense teammate gave her a clap on the shoulder, a gesture that could've been a compliment but Luz knew better. She had proved her worth – for now.
Gulping, she ran herself free again and accepted a pass from a midfielder, then she tried once again over the left flank, but this time, she ran into the Blight team captain. Her golden eyes looked that much more intimidating up close and after a short duel, Blight stormed past her.
With the ball.
For a short moment, Luz looked down to her feet where the ball had been before, dumbfounded, then she chased after the captain. Thanks to not having to control the ball, she was just a little faster and chased it off her feet in the last moment before she could make a preparing shot into the box just before the Glandus goal. The audience cheered when Luz passed the ball back to her striker, but soon, she felt a shoulder hitting hers and Blight sneered when she caught her gaze.
Apparently, she was not happy that a passive bench substitute had taken her ball and eventually foiled another attempt at the goal. Luz furrowed her eyebrows but kept quiet about it when the Hexside captain began sprinting upfront to her own goal again.
Luz was just happy she hadn't made a complete fool of herself.
The last five minutes came around and another two Hexside players had been fouled, one even having to leave the field because of his injuries.
The game picked up now. They knew they would have at least 5 minutes additional time due to all the fouls and interruptions the match had to suffer, so it was actually going to be another 10 minutes.
Luz did her best not to let the Hexside players pass through her defense and while she did okay on the most part, their strikers were more technically skilled and were working together better than Luz did with her teammates.
They didn't trust her that much, and while she did try her best, she only had the ball whenever she was defending the goal. Her teammates never passed to her and Blight and the pink one quickly picked up on that. The attacks shifted to her side of the field and Luz had to do a lot more suddenly, trying to have a foot in Blights dribbling or foiling her passes to the main striker.
Glandus had another failed attempt at the Hexside goal and Luz had wisely stayed behind, because suddenly, Blight started sprinting towards her like mad.
Luz suddenly realized what happened. The pink-haired striker sent a long shot up front and Blight accepted it with ease, running towards her full sprint. Luz knew, behind her, there was only their goalkeeper. She had to do her job.
Searching for an opening in Blight's sprint, she closed the direct shot to the goal. Blight hinted to the left but Luz sprinted right and as she expected, the striker's foot pushed the ball right into her feet.
Turning, Luz ran to the sidelines, attempting to shoot back upfront but number 12 was faster. She pulled on her jersey and she considered taking the foul but decided against it, not deeming it enough to get a whistle, so she changed directions to the back of the field and towards the Glandus goal to shoot back to the goalkeeper, but Blight had her feet in her sprint.
When Luz went to the ground yelling in pain because the opposing team captain's spikes had dug right into her heels, she felt the girl behind her stumbling as well and falling on top of her.
That hindered any attempt of getting up and kicking the ball out of a corner shot. Luz looked up to see the ball rolling over the backline. This was a corner for Hexside.
Huffing, she suddenly felt the anger surging through her and grabbed behind her to shove the Hexside girl's shoulder while she was still lying across her back, causing her to kneel back and let Luz get back up as well.
"You did that on purpose!", she accused the captain over the roaring audience of Hexside cheering for their corner, and the accusing screams from Glandus that Luz had been fouled.
The Blight just shrugged and glared at her.
"I didn't choose to fall over Glandus scum, your dirty feet caused this.", she shot back and Luz got back to her feet, rubbing her ankle. So, turned out the Blight did share the school's hatred for Glandus.
Growling, Luz retreated back to her goal without getting a whistle from the referee who had been too far away – and didn't consider anything below broken bones a foul anyway – to get ready for the corner.
The team captain of Hexside followed her and Luz turned around to shoot another glare at her, but the green-haired girl didn't even acknowledge her anymore. She was focusing on the corner shot her fellow striker, the pink-haired one, would deliver.
Luz huffed in anger, still feeling the spikes of number 12 hurting in her heel, but she couldn't focus on that yet.
After the corner shot, she'd wait for a little moment to adjust her kneepad and shoes and be done with it. Unfair players, all of Hexside, she grumbled to herself, before shaking her head. She would not start hating Hexside for playing unfairly. It was an unnecessary foul but she didn't get the whistle. And besides, nobody probably knew the Blight flopped all over her just to prevent her from getting up and saving the ball to the sidelines.
Huffing and jumping, she waited for the pink-haired striker to deliver the shot. She raised her arm, then she ran up and shot the ball.
Suddenly, everything around Luz went into slow motion. She bent her knees to wind up, then she jumped, along with a few players around her. The ball was flying towards the closer goal post so Luz quickly realized she had jumped unnecessarily since she had positioned herself on the far side goalpost.
Watching one of her teammates, she went down again. The Blight captain had jumped as well but the Glandus player forced her shoulder down, pushing himself up higher. The ball came sailing down on his head and he directed it away from the goal, towards an open area where a Glandus striker was already sprinting to get the ball before a Hexside defense player would get to it.
Luz hit the ground with her feet and was about to chase after her team that was aiming to get to the opposing side as quickly as possible when she noticed someone lying on the field.
The Blight girl had gotten a hard hit on her head by the Glandus player's knee when he had forced her down. Luz hesitated, even when her goalkeeper started sprinting after the game. Nobody from Hexside or Glandus had stayed in front of the goal. Glandus had taken the opportunity to sprint to the front and Hexside couldn't let the goal happen.
Nobody but Luz had stayed behind.
Another glance back to the Hexside team captain confirmed that this was no attention-seeking foul. This was also no attempt to get a penalty kick since she was outside the penalty area.
Taking the few quick steps, Luz then went down to her knees and softly shook the girl's shoulders. She was out for the count. Panic started taking over her when she realized that this could become really serious really quick, so she let her emergency training take over.
Every player in Glandus was trained to take emergency first aid training, in case something like this would happen during their games. Luz had been no exception.
The girl was convulsing and her jaw was pressed shut, so Luz swung a leg over the player's middle and turned her on her side while forcing open her mouth. She had to make sure the girl's tongue would not be in danger of being swallowed.
When she had managed that, she kept her fingers in the girl's mouth, relieved to feel her breathing still, before waving her arm to the sidelines to call for a medic.
"She's injured! She's injured, come here! HERE!", Luz yelled desperately, still kneeling over the Hexside captain, but all eyes were peeled to the front. Only a few Hexside fans were shouting, probably angry that an opposing teammate was touching their captain, and that the referee hadn't realized a player on the ground yet. But Luz couldn't care for that.
Over the roaring crowd, she yelled back to their coaches, waving her arm frantically.
"HEEEEEEEEY!"
Suddenly, the match became quieter. Glandus had probably failed to score.
Heads were suddenly turned at Luz's screaming and she waved some more, before turning back to the girl beneath her, who was unmoving but was still breathing. She kept her fingers between Blight's teeth to keep her from shutting her mouth, then she looked back up again.
The crowd had become a lot quieter now. Some were probably still processing that a Glandus player had started attending to a Hexside player's need.
Finally, the medics came running, as well as the Hexside players and trainer, while the Glandus players stayed away.
Luz looked back down again, putting her hand in the nape of the team captain's neck, to make sure it was overstretched. She started convulsing again and her teeth snapped shut, but despite the pain, she wouldn't pull them out. She had to ensure Blight wouldn't swallow her tongue.
Screaming, she tried forcing her jaws apart again, before the first Hexside players finally arrived, the medics still a few steps apart. Immediately, as soon as Luz had freed her fingers, her job was overtaken by some other Hexside players and she felt herself being hoisted to her feet while the medics started attending to the Hexside team captain.
The pink-haired striker was suddenly taking all of Luz's attention.
"Who do you think you are, huh?!", she snapped and Luz, holding her bitten fingers, stumbled back, bewildered when the striker pushed her again, "Who the fuck told you to fucking touch her, huh?!"
Luz furrowed her eyebrows, but before she could say anything, a Glandus player approached as well and shoved the Hexside striker away with their shoulder. Gulping, Luz recognized her team captain.
"Louis, I-"
"SHUT your damn mouth, Noceda!", he growled, then she was grabbed on her ear before he pulled her to the sidelines, "This is the LAST DAMN TIME you're on this team."
She winced in pain when she was thrown to the sidelines, stumbling into her coach who glared down at her.
"Go take a shower, and then go home. You're off the team.", he quietly scowled and Luz's face fell while she was holding her ear. All she had done was to help a teammate, what-
"B-But-"
"I'll talk to the principal about your behavior. Now go before I beat you up right here in front of everyone."
With tears stinging in her eyes, Luz made her way off the field, feeling the glares of the crowd and the field players in her back.
She didn't witness the rest of the game. After taking a shower and changing out of her gear, she threw everything into her bag and left the stadium. It was like she was walking in a trance.
All she had done was help someone in a life-threatening situation. It wasn't like she had betrayed her team or scored a goal in the wrong direction.
It wasn't like she had done something wrong… Right?
That Blight girl would've probably been in real trouble if she hadn't reacted fast. None of her teammates had stayed behind, and none of the audience had noticed anything. Luz didn't know if that Blight girl would've actually died, but she'd rather not risk it. And if she had learned anything from watching soccer matches on TV, it was to think about the person behind the jersey first.
If she had learned anything from her mother, it was to always help, no matter who was in need.
And if she had learned anything from playing soccer, it was that sportsmanship was worth more than any winning goal.
Soccer was supposed to be fun, bring people together, not divide them.
She sighed when she walked up the front stairs to the porch, before fumbling her keys out. Her mother was probably cooking dinner right now.
When she entered, a questioning gaze met hers. Kicking off her shoes, she broke the eye contact again and focused on getting her jacket off her shoulders.
"Mija? I thought the match wasn't finished yet?", she heard her mother's warm voice ask, and she just shook her head.
"… It was a tie. I don't know more.", she finally replied and her mother made her way over, weaving a hand through her hair.
"Aw, Mija, you don't need to be sad about this. I'm sure next game your team can-"
Shaking her head, she avoided her mother's touch, grabbing her sports bag again.
"I'll-… I'll be down soon. I need a minute."
Her mother was sensible enough to let her be, so Luz took her things and ran upstairs to put the soccer stuff in the laundry and used the opportunity to launch herself on her bed. What she had done had been right.
It had caused her to lose her spot on the team and she would probably be bullied for the rest of her school life, but she had saved someone's life. Probably.
Burying her head in the pillow, the tears came. How the crowd had booed her. Both Glandus for caring for a Hexside player, and the Hexside fans for touching one of them.
How the teams had looked at her, how none of the players had cared that the team captain was out, unconscious on the floor, convulsing and-
Dry sobs escaped Luz's throat when she nuzzled deeper into the pillow, shaking her head and trying not to doubt her actions. She had done the right thing. She had saved someone's life. Why did it feel so wrong, though?
Sobbing more, she didn't hear her mother entering the room after knocking several times. She only sensed her mother's presence when Camila was already sitting down on the mattress and running a hand through Luz's hair again.
"Oh, Mija… What's wrong?", she softly asked while lying down beside her, nudging her to turn her head out of the pillow. Luz sniffled, then she exhaled and looked at her mother.
"… I'm off the team.", she finally mumbled and squeezed her eyes shut, expecting her mother to be disappointed in her. After all, Luz had never managed to stay in any club until now. Her weirdness usually kicked her out fast, made her an outcast, and not even the soccer team from the last school had wanted her.
But being kicked off for a reason like helping an unconscious player?
Luz couldn't help but be mad about that.
Instead of disappointment, her mother just gently scratched her scalp, then she hummed.
"What happened, Mija?"
She sighed. It was time to recount the story, apparently. Telling her mom what had happened was harder than she thought, though.
It didn't help that Camila got quieter and quieter the longer she listened to what Luz had to tell her. When she came to the part where the Hexside team captain had fallen to the ground and everyone had continued the game, her Mama's hand in her hair stilled. Being a nurse, she knew exactly how dangerous a hit to the head could become. Luz continued telling her how she had put the girl on her side and forced her mouth open before Camila continued stroking her hair. In the end, she told her how the Hexside players had pulled her off their team captain and how her own team and coach had reacted to her helping a Hexside player before sending her home.
Once again, Camila's hand stilled. She had some choice words to say about that, but she bit them down, in favor of Luz telling her story until the end.
When Luz was finished, her mother wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close.
"Mija, I am so proud of you. You did the right thing and neither your coach nor your team can deny that."
Sniffling, Luz pressed closer to her mother and nuzzled her nose in the crook of her neck, as she always did when she was distressed.
"But Mama, they kicked me off the team. They-… I think they hate me now."
Camila huffed at that, wrinkling her nose.
"If they can't realize that you did the right thing, it's their fault for being blind, Mija. You saved someone's life."
Luz supposed that was the right thing to do. Even if it got her kicked off the team.
When Amity woke up, she found that her siblings were both standing next to a white bed, and looked way too concerned for this not to be a dream.
Amity was skeptical.
What had happened that she was in this strange bed? And what were her siblings doing here, all serious and completely non-teasing?
"What-…", she tried but Emira's hand in her hair quickly made her shut up, moving with such softness that she had never felt from her siblings.
"You got knocked out pretty bad, mittens…", Edric said, no hint of a bit in his voice when he shuffled in closer, taking her hand. Amity was speechless at the sheer worry they displayed.
"It was-… Really scary. Do you remember what happened?", her sister now chimed in, taking her hand out of Amity's hair.
Her mouth felt dry. Gulping, she tried speaking again, but her voice came out raspy.
"… I was-… Playing…?", she slowly recounted, but she only remembered that she had been on the field, not what had caused this or anything after.
Her siblings nodded, then Emira tried a smile, though it came out very shaky and not that reassuring.
"You got knocked out cold and started convulsing. If that girl hadn't been there to help you, the doctors said you would've been in a very different situation now."
Desperately, Amity racked her head to try and remember but she couldn't. She just remembered the fact that she had played in the Bone Breaker match, not exactly how or why it had come to the accident. And which girl?
Furrowing her eyebrows, Amity looked back up to Emira and Edric, trying to formulate her thoughts somehow, until she decided on the most pressing question she had.
"Girl? What girl?", she inquired and Edric hummed.
"That other player that you fouled before, the Glandus girl. She stayed behind and made sure you were going to be okay."
At that, Amity wanted to sit up and scream, but her sister reacted fast and pushed her back down on the sheets. A Glandus payer had touched her?! Made sure she was-… Okay?
"Hey, wow, calm down mittens. Nobody from your team cared to stay, she was the only one who got the medics to notice.", her sister reasoned and Amity huffed. That made her no less a Glandus student.
"She touched me!", Amity tried but Emira gave her a pointed glare.
"She was the only one who cared about you. This could've ended very differently if she hadn't."
Growling, Amity crossed her arms, before Edric lifted his eyebrows.
"… She had her fingers in your mouth."
Cringing, Amity gagged and covered her ears, shaking her head.
"That's disgusting! Ew, ew, ew, I had Glandus stuff in my mouth, EW!", she squirmed, while Edric laughed and clapped his knee. Emira merely rolled her eyes, before she got up and announced that she'd get the doctor notified and would bring some snacks. Edric chimed up that he wanted something from the vending machine, of course, something they weren't allowed to eat at home since their parents required them to watch their figure, before she exited the room, still hearing Amity complaining.
Huffing, Emira balled her fists. This was ridiculous. She had never understood why the two schools in the Bonesborough area were so petty about each other. It was so useless, especially to rule out half the dating pool in their cities. Oh, and of course it pissed her parents off when they associated with Glandus students.
Most of all, Emira just couldn't understand why they would battle each other so hard.
This was just school, who cared about that?
Except for Edric, only a handful of students of both schools shared their opinion about the borderline racism between their two schools. Apparently, this girl couldn't care either.
Emira found a doctor and told them that her sister had woken up, as well as directing them to the room, before making her way down to the lobby where the vending machines stood.
Tapping her foot on the tiles, she pondered on what to get. Meanwhile, her head was still racing. The girl who had cared for her sister had worn the number 18, and her last name had been Noceda. Maybe Emira could find her family and get them a thank you gift, like a box of chocolates or a card. She at least wanted to show her that there were a few people that cared that she had helped out her sister, despite them wearing different jerseys. It's the least she could do.
She didn't know exactly how dangerous it had been for Amity, but one thing was very important. None of her sister's teammates had stayed behind, nobody had even cared. Just that girl.
Humming, she got Edric his treat, then she tapped her chin this time, pursing her lips in thought. The girl had been sent home, as far as Emira could see. Maybe she has even been kicked off the team, as competitive and hostile as she knew their schools. As a Hexside student, they wouldn't have handled her differently and she doubted the Glandus team was much nicer.
Due to it being a weekday and pretty much nighttime by now, there wasn't a lot going on in the lobby. Some people were waiting around for treatment, some patients from upstairs that stayed the night wandered around, to get fresh air or socialize, and otherwise, nobody was really loud.
So, she immediately heard when someone said the name she had just been thinking about.
Whipping her head around, she saw a woman on the counter, holding a card that almost looked like a staff card, accompanied by a kind of scrawny girl. She squinted her eyes.
"… Name's Luz Noceda, my daughter. Could we visit a girl that was admitted here tonight, her name's-… What was it again, Luz?"
The girl mumbled something that sounded distinctly like her last name, so Emira was quick to pull her own treat and approach them quickly, getting their attention when she got closer.
"Blight, I assume?"
The woman turned to her with kind, brown eyes and she began to smile, nodding.
"Yes, actually. We don't know her first name, but Luz said her jersey read Blight. Do you know her?"
Emira grinned and puffed her chest, gesturing to herself.
"I'm Emira Blight, her older sister.", turning around the woman to the girl behind her, she smiled and offered her hand, "Luz, I assume? Noceda? Hi, I saw what you did on the field tonight."
A little skeptical, Luz took her hand and she shook it, before pulling the girl into a big hug. Surprised, she stumbled into the embrace, obviously because she was suddenly being hugged by a stranger.
"Thank you so much, Luz. Because of you, Amity's okay. I was really impressed by that."
Slowly, Luz's stiff posture relaxed and she patted her back before Emira released her and smiled back at the girl's mother and spoke to Luz again.
"Thank you, really. I-… I'd really like to express my gratitude. Not everyone would've done what you did, Luz. How can I repay you?"
Rubbing the back of her pixie cut, Luz shook her head and for the first time, she said something to Emira.
"Oh, don't worry. I'd, uh-… I'd just like to know how your sister is. I mean, we don't have to visit her or anything, but-"
Emira already waved off and gestured them to follow her, something the mother more than readily did. Only now, she could also read the card that hung around her neck, which identified her as a nurse in this very hospital. Pulling Luz along, they followed Emira down the hall to the elevator.
"Nonsense. I'm sure my brother would like to thank you as well, and we'll see to it that Amity will behave. You know-… School stuff."
Luz grimaced and nodded, which only strengthened Emira's suspicion that Luz wasn't exactly a fan of the school's hostility as well.
"But I'm sure she'll be grateful as well."
The elevator door opened and the three of them entered, waiting for Emira to press the right button and have the doors close again, then Luz began switching her weight on her feet, nervously bobbing around.
"We, uh-… I just wanna know if she's okay, you know if she's uncomfortable having me around…"
Once again, Emira shrugged that off and laughed.
"She'll be fine. You helped her today, she ought to understand to accept that.", then, the twin leaned against the wall of the elevator, eyeing Luz, "Hey, by the way. I saw neither your teammate nor your trainer was really nice to you after that. And you got sent off the field. Are you off the team?"
At that, her mother grumbled and Luz grimaced, rubbing her biceps. She was quite cute, Emira noticed.
"More like off the school… After dinner, my principal called and expelled me from Glandus. We wanted to object but, uh, I have a file that's not exactly stellar and we can't afford a lawyer. So-… I guess I'll have to try Hexside now. If they'll have me."
At that, she felt her jaw falling. They had actually expelled her for helping a student of a different team?! Shaking her head, Emira pushed off the wall and threw her arm around Luz's shoulders, not caring that the girl stiffened up with the touches of the stranger. Huffing, she squeezed her shoulder.
"They will accept you. I'll get you in and when principal Bump realizes you saved his team captain, he'll for sure accept you in. Plus, I'd guess he'd love getting an edge on Glandus and making it into the local news.", rolling her eyes, Emira continued, "And besides. My parents are-… A little bit influential. Regarding the funding of the school. Bump would be stupid not to let you in after you saved their daughter."
With wide eyes, Luz and her mother stared at Emira, then the older woman placed a hand on her arm.
"You would put in a good word for my Luz? It'd be-… Fairly difficult to get her back into Glandus with a lawyer. I-… We'd be so relieved."
Nodding confidently, Emira grinned at them.
"It's time I use the Blight family name for a good cause.", she decided, which sent her being pulled into a tight hug by both Nocedas this time, a good, heartwarming hug.
"Thank you so much!", her mother sighed, and even if Luz was a little bit hesitant, still, she was hugging her as well. Pulling back, Emira softly punched her arm.
"Consider it a thank you, for tonight. And don't worry about the Hexside students. They might be biased towards Glandus, but I'll look out for you. Nobody will breathe towards you wrongly. After all, you did kind of betray Glandus for our Hexside captain."
Chuckling, Luz rolled her eyes.
"That's honestly so stupid. I never understood this rivalry when I came here a year ago.", she mumbled and Emira laughed.
"It's so stupid.", she agreed, "But only a handful of people seem to understand that."
The elevator stopped and they exited to walk down the hall, passing some patients and nurses who greeted Luz's mother, before arriving at Amity's room.
When they entered, the doctor was already gone, having left behind Edric and Amity who were talking about what happened after Amity had been knocked out, then Emira got their attention by tossing Edric his treat which hit him in the back of the head.
"Hey siblings, guess who's here!"
Edric turned with a slight scowl but his face immediately shifted to confusion when he spotted Emira's company. Much in contrast to Amity, actually, who furrowed her eyebrows and stared at Luz. The poor girl was so taken aback by her younger sister's reaction that she stopped walking and stood completely still.
Emira rolled her eyes and stepped to the bed, nudging Amity's shoulder.
"Be nice, mittens. She did a lot for you."
Edric's face lit up at that and he turned from his sister back to the Nocedas, getting up to shake both their hands.
"You must be that Glandus player! I saw what you did today. Thank you so, so much, honestly.", he exclaimed and Luz managed a smile for him before turning back to his younger sister. She was crossing her arms and looked down to her feet. This didn't look good.
"Mittens.", Emira pressed out with a forced grin, catching her sister's glare, "We will go outside now to have a word with Mrs. Noceda regarding Luz's enrollment in Hexside High. Why don't you two become good friends until then?"
The bite in the older girl's voice was unmistakable, even so, obvious that Luz flinched. She pulled her shoulders up when Amity gave a snarl before Emira waved her brother – they looked like twins – and her mother out the door, leaving them to their own devices.
After the door clicked into its lock, silence filled the room and Luz found herself swaying from side to side again, before sighing. Amity glared out the window, obviously very focused on ignoring her.
"… So-… Uh, you're Amity, huh?", she tried to make conversation but the girl still ignored her, "Uhm, you play well. I believe you trained a lot…?"
Still, no answer. Luz sighed and nodded, looking around the room. There was the light blue hospital floor, the white walls, and ceiling, a small table and chairs, as well as another empty bed. There honestly wasn't much to distract herself with.
"… Okay…", she tried again, no reaction, "So, uhm, are you feeling any better?"
Finally, the girl whipped around to her and looked just about ready to snap at her, but something inside her made her hesitate. Finally, she huffed and gave a rigid nod.
"… I'm fine. You can stop talking now."
Softly nodding, Luz kicked the floor, then she tried looking around again before the girl spoke up once more.
"… But, uhm. Thank you. For tonight.", it sounded forced, but Luz didn't care. She dared a little smile, before nodding.
"You're welcome. It was honestly what everyone should've done, though."
Fidgeting, the girl then looked down to her feet again, before breathing through a few times. It looked like she was struggling to formulate a sentence.
"… I-I heard I bit you.", she finally mumbled and Luz grimaced, making a fist with her still somewhat aching fingers. It hadn't been bad, hadn't been open as well, but she had bitten down pretty hard.
"Oh, yeah. That's okay, though, it was more important to keep you safe."
Once again, they fell into silence, but this time, it was a little easier to bear for Luz than before.
"… You'll start in Hexside now?", Amity began again and Luz had to suppress a little smile at the curiosity. For someone who had tried so adamantly to ignore her at first, Amity was starting a lot of conversation now.
"Oh, uh, yeah. My principal called and expelled me. I guess helping you was the last straw to kick me out.", she admitted and Amity looked back to her, tilting her head. Something like disgust snuck back on her face.
"You're a troublemaker?", she asked and Luz was quick to shake her head.
"Not really. The Glandus community never really liked me because I only moved here a year ago. They blamed a lot of stuff on me, most of it was me being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I try to be a good student, really."
That seemed to somewhat settle Amity again because she began fidgeting with her blanket again.
"… Oh. So you're new.", she noted and Luz nodded again, "Which year do you go to?"
Luz looked up again to meet her gaze, trying a smile.
"I'm a freshman, 9th grade. You?"
Amity really, honestly, gave her a small smile. Luz wasn't sure if it was a mean or a genuine one.
"Me, too. Looks like we'll be classmates.", she finally said and Luz rubbed the back of her head again, biting her lip.
"… Is that okay? I mean-… I come from Glandus, so… I'd understand if I won't fit in at Hexside, too."
At that, Amity shrugged, leaning back against her pillow again.
"You know, as far as I'm concerned, you come from the outside and got off in the wrong school.", she said and Luz thought she hadn't heard right, "Besides, Emira is right… You did help me tonight. I think it'd only be fair if I helped you a bit, too."
Luz managed another smile at that and offered a hand, one Amity took after a bit of hesitation.
"Uhm… Thank you."
When they parted their hands again, Amity looked back up to her.
"Actually, I was thinking to let you join the soccer team. You know, because you're not that bad a player and, uh, with a lot of practice you could actually become useful.", she offered and Luz grinned.
"You know what, I'd actually like that."
Let me know if you liked it!