Kenzie Kickstarts a Team

by Kit Rosewater

  “Hey, Mambo,” she said. “There’s been a change of plans.”

  Mambo raised an eyebrow. She looked over Kenzie’s shoulder.

  “Is everyone OK?” she asked.

  “Well, that’s the change,” Kenzie said. “We have to—”

  “Switch!” someone yelled.

  Kenzie froze. The hairs on her arms stood on end. She turned and gazed at the crowd. She knew that voice. But where had it come from?

  Suddenly, an opening formed in the middle of the other skaters. Bree—Bree!—emerged and glided forward—on roller skates! She came to a smooth stop at the bottom of the bleachers.

  “Reporting for duty,” Bree said with a bow.

  Kenzie’s jaw hung open. She closed it quickly and coughed, then looked away. She hoped her cheeks weren’t turning an intense shade of red—again.

  “What’s going on?” Mambo asked.

  “Didn’t you see?” Bree nodded toward the bench with Shelly and the others. “One of the Kenzilla players got hurt. I’m the alternate.”

  Mambo peered over at Camila. “Hold on,” she said. She made her way to the rest of the Kenzillas, leaving Kenzie and Bree standing together.

  Kenzie stared at her neighbor. Bree must’ve been at tryouts all along, she realized. There were so many girls—it would have been impossible to see her in the crowd. But why did she want to join the team now? What about what Shelly had said at the park?

  “Hey!”

  Shelly skated next to Bree. “You upgraded!”

  “My skateboard’s at home,” Bree said. “But I figured I’d try out roller derby. It would be nice to skate with some friends.” She turned to Kenzie and gave a shy smile. “And maybe some non-friends too.”

  Kenzie blushed. She felt the jitters come rushing back into her stomach. But, this time, they didn’t slosh around like liquid. They were light, like bubbles floating inside her. Looking at Bree in skates made Kenzie want to float. It made her want to do impossible things.

  Shelly lunged forward and wrapped her arms around Bree.

  “Thank you thank you thank you,” she squealed.

  Bree laughed and pressed Shelly back to standing.

  “Don’t mention it,” she said.

  Bree and Shelly skated to the bench as Mambo led Camila to the main bleachers. Tomoko and Jules stood and threw their arms over Bree’s shoulders.

  A voice kicked up in Kenzie’s mind.

  “Here she is, folks,” the announcer said. “The coolness queen. The derby star who tears up the track in her sleep. The skater of your dreams—Bree!”

  Kenzie shook her head. The announcer’s words faded.

  “Good luck!” Camila called. “Don’t break a leg!”

  Kenzie grinned and gave a thumbs-up to Camila, then skated to the group. As she looked across at her four teammates, something clicked in Kenzie’s mind. The team finally felt whole. It felt real.

  Kenzie, Shelly, Bree, Tomoko, and Jules formed a huddle.

  “One minute!” Mambo called.

  “There’s not enough time for a new plan,” Shelly said.

  “That’s OK,” Kenzie said. “I know what to do. Bree, you’re the fastest on wheels, and you’re way better at keeping your balance than me. You be jammer.”

  Bree nodded. “Got it.”

  “Perfect,” Tomoko said. “Now Kenzie and Shelly can do their blocking moves on the other jammer, and Jules and I can clear a path for Bree. Sound good?”

  Kenzie peered across the circle at Shelly. Shelly held out a fist.

  “Dynamic Duo,” she said.

  Kenzie put her fist in.

  “Trio!” Jules brought her hand in.

  “Quartet!” Tomoko said, giggling.

  “Cinco! . . . Or something,” Bree added. “The Kenzillas!”

  “Positions!” Mambo called out.

  Kenzie was relieved to be standing next to her teammates this time. At first she felt bad that Bree was standing on the jammer line . . . until she remembered how much Bree liked to show off. Kenzie wanted to turn and look at her, just for a moment, but she had to focus on the jam.

  “Banshee?” Shelly whispered.

  Kenzie thought for a moment.

  “Tiger,” she whispered back.

  Mambo blew the whistle. The blockers skated forward. Skating was completely different in the pack, Kenzie realized. She didn’t have to go fast, but she had to be ready for the jammers to come up from behind like a surprise sneak attack. How would she know which jammer to block and which jammer to let through? Now Kenzie understood why Jules had accidentally slammed into her before.

  “Zilla!” Kenzie heard over her right shoulder. That was Bree.

  She heard the slick rolling wheels of a different player over her left shoulder. Kenzie and Shelly nodded at each other. The Dynamic Duo was ready.

  “Rawr!!!”

  Both Kenzie and Shelly turned in perfect unison. They curled their fingers into claws and growled at the Cherry Pits jammer.

  “Augh!” the jammer cried. She stumbled back and wobbled on one leg.

  Bree took the opening and zipped through the pack. By the time the Cherry Pits jammer was through, Bree was deep into her loop. Kenzie listened for the sound of Bree’s skates versus the other girl’s. Bree was the clack, clack, clack as she threw herself forward with each stride. When she came around again, Kenzie made sure to get out of the way. Bree whooshed right by her, but the other jammer wasn’t far behind.

  “End jam!” Mambo said. “Kenzillas: three, Cherry Pits: one.”

  “Wait a second.” The Cherry Pits jammer swiveled to Mambo. She pointed at Kenzie and Shelly. “They jumped out at me! Isn’t that a foul?”

  “It is if there’s contact,” Mambo said. “But you were still a ways behind them.”

  The jammer turned and glared at Kenzie.

  “Growling? Really? What are you—a Tasmanian daredevil or something?”

  “Nope! We’re the Kenzillas!” Shelly said, bouncing at Kenzie’s side.

  The girl rolled her eyes. “Yeah, well. You’re lucky Coach likes you.”

  She skated back into place.

  “Jam five,” Mambo called. “Positions.”

  “We’re catching up,” Tomoko said excitedly as the girls returned to the pack.

  “Let’s switch things around,” Kenzie said. “Maybe you and Shelly go for the jammer this time, and Jules and I will help Bree.”

  “Why?” Shelly asked.

  Kenzie nodded her chin at the Cherry Pits jammer. “To show the other team that we’re playing fair,” she said. “We’re not lucky. We’re earning all these points.”

  “Yes, we are,” Bree said.

  Tomoko smiled. “OK, I’m in.”

  “Me too!” Shelly said.

  Bree nodded and took her place on the jammer line.

  Kenzie high-fived Jules and got in position.

  It was time to show these Cherry Pits what a real hip check looked like.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  “Jam five. Pack—go!”

  The blockers took off in a frenzy.

  Jules’s skates flew out in every direction as she scrambled forward. Kenzie worked hard to skate next to her. It had been easy to stay close to Shelly. After years of practice, Kenzie knew everything about the way Shelly skated. But working with Jules was way different. Jules skated like she was bolting from her own shadow. Kenzie sped up and slowed down, trying to stick by Jules’s side.

  Whirrrrrrrrrr.

  Kenzie and Jules glanced at each other. That was the sound the Cherry Pits jammer’s skates made. For a moment Kenzie held her breath, worried the jammer would crash straight into her as she raced through the pack. But Shelly and Tomoko snapped into action; they spread out across the track and trapped the jammer behind them.

  “Ugh!” the jammer cried.

  Kenzie smiled.

  Clack-clack-clack.

  “That’s our cue,” Jules said.

  Bree was coming fast. Kenzie and Jul
es tensed their arms. They needed to clear the way for their own jammer.

  “Shift to one side,” Kenzie told Jules. “Then release into the hip check.”

  “Like the swings,” Jules said. “I remember!”

  Two blockers from the Cherry Pits had turned to trap Bree the way Tomoko and Shelly were blocking the other jammer. But Kenzie and Jules were ready for them.

  “Excuse ME!” Jules said, swinging her hips into one of the blockers. The girl lost her footing and stumbled to the side.

  Kenzie hip checked into another blocker. Even one hit made her hip instantly sore. But it opened a small path for Bree.

  Bree raced ahead of the pack. She was like lightning. Kenzie couldn’t help staring as Bree flew around the track, the other jammer not far behind. Bree looked like she had been skating her whole life. How was she so good?

  Kenzie swallowed and turned again to the pack. The group was already bracing for the jammers to come around again. Kenzie spotted a Cherry Pits blocker waiting for Bree.

  “Not today!” Kenzie sang.

  She skated over and hip checked into the blocker. Bree zigzagged her way through the pack. Mambo blew the whistle.

  “End jam. Kenzillas: four points, Cherry Pits: two points. Final jam positions.”

  “You guys, you guys, you guys.” Tomoko was practically jumping from foot to foot as the girls gathered. “We’re tied. We have twelve. They have twelve. We can do this. We can win!”

  “Heck yeah we can!” Jules said. “Did you guys see how I landed that hip check? Blocker never saw it coming! Hit the ground and everything.”

  “I thought you hit the ground too,” Shelly said.

  “Yeah, but that’s not the point,” Jules said. “I helped Kenzie make a path for Bree, so I’m good.”

  “You are good,” Kenzie said. “We’re all doing really good.”

  “Bree especially,” Shelly said.

  Bree grinned. “So what do we want to do for the final jam?” she asked. “Same positions as before?”

  “I’m sticking with hip checks!” Jules said.

  “I . . . kind of want to hip check another blocker,” Shelly admitted. She glanced at Kenzie. “Is that OK?”

  “That would put Tomoko and me in charge of the Cherry Pits jammer,” Kenzie said. She thought of the way the jammer glared at her earlier. She pictured the jammer’s roller skates smacking into her shins.

  Kenzie flinched. “No problem,” she said meekly.

  “Let’s do this!” Bree said. The girls brought a fist bump to the middle of their circle.

  Kenzie crouched next to Tomoko and took a deep breath in, then out. Her heart slowed in her chest. The first jam already seemed like years ago. All the nervousness she had had about playing derby in real life transformed into excitement for winning the scrimmage. She belonged in derby—the whole team did. They were so close to proving it to Mambo and the rest of the league.

  As the final start whistle blew, Kenzie was determined to stay by Tomoko’s side. Luckily, Tomoko was a lot more consistent than Jules. Kenzie could hardly believe that Tomoko was so new to skating. Shelly had called it: put Tomoko in skates and “wa-bam!” She was a natural.

  Kenzie listened for the sounds of either jammer behind her, but the whirring and clacking were all mixed together. Someone was coming up fast. Kenzie’s breath hitched in her throat. Was it Bree or the other girl? The other jammer had gotten ahead every other time. Kenzie threw her arms out and spread herself across the track.

  “Argh,” Bree said as she ran into Kenzie’s shoulder.

  “Shoot!”

  Kenzie tried to pull away, but as she leaned to one side of the track, the other jammer swept past. Bree grunted and took off after her.

  “Lead jammer—Cherry Pits,” Mambo called.

  Oh no, Kenzie thought. If the other jammer was in front, that meant she could call off the jam whenever she liked. Bree would have to keep up for the whole lap.

  Bree seemed to be thinking the exact same thing as Kenzie. She kept her elbows close at her sides as she lunged after the Cherry Pits jammer.

  Kenzie got ready for the other jammer to come around again. If the jammer couldn’t pass anyone, then she’d have to call the jam off, and the score would still be tied. It was the team’s only chance.

  Whirrrrrrr.

  The jammer was heading straight for Kenzie.

  Kenzie licked her lips and wiggled her fingers. She imagined herself as a huge wall made of thick steel that no one could ever, ever get past. Maybe Kenzie would end up blocking like Jules, and go down along with her opponent. But that would be OK, so long as they didn’t lose points.

  “Oof!”

  The other jammer slammed into Kenzie’s side. Kenzie’s knees buckled. Tomoko glided over.

  “I got her,” Tomoko said.

  But Kenzie couldn’t find her balance. She was careening straight toward Tomoko.

  “Look out!” she cried. Tomoko barely saw Kenzie coming before they collided and crumpled in a heap over the track.

  The ground vibrated as the rest of the pack stampeded forward.

  Whirrrrrrrrr.

  Kenzie pulled her skates in close. She wasn’t hurt, but she felt like throwing up. She watched as the other jammer passed by Shelly.

  “End jam!” Mambo said. “Cherry Pits: three points, Kenzillas: two.

  “Bout winners: Cherry Pits.”

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Kenzie’s stomach sank down below her rib cage.

  That was it.

  All their hard work with building the team, then facing off against the Cherry Pits . . . and they had lost.

  Mambo was gathering the Cherry Pits over to talk to the other coaches. Kenzie imagined them getting stickers with the word Winner placed right next to the cherries on their shirts. Or maybe they would get brand new special jerseys to wear for official roller derby practice.

  As she watched the other team climb the bleachers, Kenzie didn’t move from where she had fallen. She could feel Tomoko scrunched up behind her. Kenzie sighed. She was the one who took Tomoko down. She lost the points. Losing the final jam was all her fault. Her heart twisted inside her.

  “You OK?” Shelly asked. She knelt next to Kenzie.

  “I wish we wouldn’t have been the Kenzillas,” Kenzie said miserably. “It was bad luck. I’m the reason we lost.”

  “Hey, I fell too.”

  Kenzie turned. Tomoko pulled herself over to the girls.

  “Of course you fell,” Kenzie said. “I ran into you.”

  “And the other jammer ran into you!” Shelly said. “Derby is really tough, remember? It’s not for everyone.”

  “It’s for me,” Jules said. She dropped down next to Kenzie. “Even though I accidentally tackled you.”

  “It’s for me too.” Bree did a running slide, wedging herself in between Kenzie and Jules. Her arm nestled against Kenzie’s shoulder.

  “I could’ve skated faster,” Bree said. “We all did things wrong. We gave it our best shot.”

  “Yeah,” Kenzie muttered. She stared down at her skates. “I just wish I hadn’t fallen at the end.”

  “But we’re supposed to fall. That’s why we have these.” Shelly nudged Kenzie’s knee pads and smiled. “It’s so we can get back up and keep skating.”

  “I’m down for that,” Bree said.

  “Me too,” Tomoko and Jules said together.

  Kenzie gave a half smile. Maybe she and Shelly wouldn’t be playing in the league . . . but they did have a team to play with now.

  “Though, you’re right about one thing,” Shelly said. “We shouldn’t be the Kenzillas. We need a better name for the whole team.”

  “Ladies!”

  The girls looked across the track. Mambo was waving both arms in the air like an airplane traffic controller.

  “Hello, Earth to skaters. We’re ready to chat with you now.”

  Kenzie slumped over. They already lost the scrimmage. Did they really need to hear all
the things they did wrong?

  “Come on,” Jules said.

  The girls lugged each other up, one by one. They skated as a pack toward the bleachers. Even if they didn’t win, Kenzie had to admit that they looked pretty great skating together as a team. Their skates clomped up the metal stairs. They reached the top row, where the two other coaches were waiting with clipboards in front of them.

  One of the coaches waved. “You ladies can call me Lo, short for Look Out!”

  “And I’m Razzle Dazzle,” the other coach said. “But I go by Raz.”

  Mambo took her seat next to the coaches and held her clipboard in front of her.

  “As Kenzie’s mom may have told you,” Mambo started, “we weren’t so sure about adding preformed teams to the league. Originally, Raz, Lo, and I wanted to help junior skaters determine positions. There’s a lot that goes into a team. The players have to work together exceptionally well.”

  Kenzie’s eyes slid to her feet again. She thought about when Jules tackled her, or when she ran into Tomoko, or when Camila hurt her wrist and had to leave. She winced.

  “I have to admit, I didn’t love the Kenzillas that first stepped onto the track,” Lo said. She tapped the end of her pen on the clipboard. “The most important thing to conquer in derby is fear, and there was a lot of fear before that whistle blew.”

  The girls nodded.

  “And if your alternate hadn’t come along, we would have a lot more concerns,” Raz said. She tilted her head at Bree, who—Kenzie nearly did a double take—blushed and smiled.

  “But we’re impressed with the way your team handled the challenges of the scrimmage,” Mambo said. “Kenzie, you did a great job strategizing at halftime. And rather than stick to the same positions, we loved that you gave each other turns. We think you make a good team.”

  Kenzie sniffed. She could feel herself wanting to cry.

  “Thanks for letting us try,” she said.

  “Try?” Mambo tilted her head. “We’re trying to tell you, you girls are in. You did it.”

  “What?”

  The teammates looked at one another.

  “But . . . we lost,” Tomoko said.

  Raz smirked. “And who said you had to win to make the league?”

  “Nobody, I guess,” Shelly said. “But the other team was so good.”