VG Day 5 - Life is strange

You wake up peacefully in your room at the Lodge, which you share with Viti. Viti is fast asleep in the other bed. You remember what happened yesterday, and coming back to the Human World in a daze... You get out of bed and take a shower, remembering all the craziness. Did you dream all of it? Maybe you did...

Viti wakes up, and you go downstairs together to find something going on.

At breakfast, everyone quiets down at the coaches gather at the front of the room. Everyone stops eating and talking to listen. Something is going on.

Michelle steps forward, apparently the spokesperson.

"So, announcement time. Everyone listening?" she asks.

"Yes," everyone says together.

"OK. Remember how you have all been gossiping about a new league? And how that's our fault, kind of?" She gestures at the other coaches.

"Yes," everyone says.

"About that. There's no new league," she says.

The room explodes with shock and from some girls, outrage.

"What?" You can't believe it. It's all anyone could talk about yesterday...

"Shut up and listen," Michelle says impatiently. "It's not a league. It's a TV show."

She has to wait again while you all freak out.

"But! But! It's not getting produced yet," she goes on. "Seriously, guys. Let me finish. The producers are here to do a trial run. Your coaches and supervising coaches all have the contract, and you will get your chance to look at it and make your decision."

You want to laugh... like anyone is going to NOT want to be on a TV show about soccer. Everyone will sign.

"For this show, we are going to do a scaled down league, which means teams. But it's a show, not a league. That means these people want to see drama. They want rivalries and things like that. You're sorted into teams, and you *stay* with your team. Your team is like your family," Michelle says.

Wait a minute. What are the teams? Who is on which team? You and lots of the other girls start demanding to know, but Michelle shushes everyone.

"We'll post them in a minute. And I know! I know there's romance here at this camp where we are supposed to be concentrating on training," she says, kind of irritatingly. "So this is how it works. On Mondays you train. On Tuesdays, you have a half-day of training and a practice match. On Wednesdays, you do strategy and light training. On Thursdays, a half-day of training and match prep. On Friday, you have a real match against another team. There will be six teams. Three matches. The winning teams get to spend the weekend here at the lodge. The losers have to stay at camp. What happens at the lodge stays at the lodge. This is the only place where you can mingle with other teams. So if you want to mingle, you have to win. If you don't care about mingling and you just care about soccer, you still have to win, because only winners get interviews. That's how this is going to work."

Whoa. That's a lot. But wait... there are a lot of girls at camp, but not enough for six teams.

"Are these just very small teams, then?" Beth pipes up.

"No. Full teams. More girls arrive tomorrow, and a few of the girls from the Swim Camp are going to come up and join. We..." she says, pointing at herself and the other coaches. "Are your subs if there are injuries. Yes, we know there are some girls here who don't have to sit down to pee. Those girls don't have to hide that. No secrets. Any other questions?"

Wow! You can shower with everyone else now? And share a changing room? And yes, there are lots of questions, but you just want to know what team you are on... but you don't get to see that until after you sign a contract, and none of the coaches will let anyone sign a contract that they have not read yet.

Going over the contracts takes most of the morning. You finally get yours signed, and are handed a sheet with the teams on it. You are officially a contestant in the pilot shoot for Football Ultimate Television Association, or FUTA for short.

You check out your team.

PINK TEAM:

1. Riley (USA) Captain, Striker COACH: Tiff

2. ATT Aki (JAP)

3. ATT Lara (UK)

4. MID Sun (KOR)

5. MID Sam (UK)

6. MID Elena (KEN)

7. DEF Rebecca (USA)

8. DEF Sheva (SEN)

9. DEF Lili (MON)

10. DEF Max (USA)

11. GOAL Viti (IND)

You are shocked... this is a lot to take in. Viti finds you to tell you she's glad to be on your team. You get a high-five from Lara, and Michelle keeps rubbing your back.

Everything is happening so quickly. You are excited. Soccer is everything to you. But you have to get away from everyone. It's just too much!

You leave the Lodge and walk around outside a bit before going into the woods. Today is nice, not cold like yesterday or hot like the day before... it's beautiful. And peaceful. You sit down in a clearing in the woods and think about how you are going to be a good team captain.

Someone is texting you. You get out your phone to see a contact you have never seen before. It's Demi! There is even a photo of her grinning face.

Her: Checking in on MAH WIFE

Seriously? You text back:

You: Hi

Her: How are things going?

You: OK I guess

You: U?

Her: Amazing here! Want to hang out?

You are suspicious, but you can hear some of the other girls walking through the forest. You kind of do want to get away from this place for a while...

You: Where?

Her: My place

You: How do I get there?

Her: Magic

You look up from your phone to find yourself in a green field. In the distance you can see a town, and even farther away, what might be a big city... but out here it's just the fields at Demi's huge house that you saw at the wedding. It's really a mansion. How do demons get rich?

For a second you are afraid... but honestly you have been here before and gone home safely, so it's not a big deal... You walk up toward the house, and you see the nice pool out back. There is a red-skinned woman lounging in a bikini beside it, but it's not Demi. Demi is a bit shorter than you, with a tight body that still has full curves... this demon by the pool is taller, with longer hair and horns, and the biggest boobs you have ever seen, straining against her white bikini top.

She does not seem to notice you. The front door is open, and two demons with short hair, dressed as maids are inside. They appear to be twins.

"Welcome," they say together.

"Hi. Is Demi around?" you ask.

They lead you back outside to the other side of the house and point at a hill. There is a tree on top of the hill, and someone is up there. It must be Demi.

You walk up to find her on a picnic blanket. It looks like she has already eaten... she is wearing a pretty yellow sundress, but you stop and stare at her from several feet away.

"Darling!" she calls out brightly, looking happy to see you and waving.

You stare at her belly. It's huge. She is like... obviously, OBVIOUSLY pregnant. It looks like... about 7 months.

"What is happening?" you ask.

She puts her hand on her belly. "What do you think?"

"Who's the father?" you ask... you know it's not a normal marriage, so your feelings are not hurt, but you saw her a day ago and she was not pregnant at all. She DID say that time was different here... that was how she planned the wedding so fast. So months have gone by since you got married... she is still wearing her ring.

Actually, you are too.

"It's yours," she says.

"Nope. No! That's not possible," you tell her. Your doctors have always told you that you are not able to do that.

"Things are different here," Demi says.