“That’s just wrong,” Makena said, trying to imagine sleeping above a deadly scorpion.
“No way! That’s awesome!” Will yelled. “Can I show Mom?”
“Sure, that’s why I brought it,” Val answered with a grin. Will snatched up the bag and ran into the house.
“So what did you get up to?” Val asked. “Did you get your phone finally?”
“Yeah, I got my phone,” Makena answered softly.
“Huh. I thought you’d be happier,” Val said. She knew Makena had been begging for one.
“No, I’m happy.” Makena took the folded paper into her hand and held it under the table.
“Is that it? Can I see it?” Val asked.
“Oh, this is just a piece of paper,” Makena answered quickly. “But, Val?”
“That’s me,” Val answered with a puzzled look.
Makena took a deep breath. “I’ve got to tell you something. Skylar came to stay for a few days.”
“Skylar?” Val asked, surprised. “Why did she come here?”
“We had a little pre-tournament practice, and she stayed over.”
Val didn’t say anything. Makena’s fingers fiddled with the paper. She took another deep breath.
“Val?”
“Mac, just spit it out already.”
The words were hard to get out, but once the weeks of pent-up lies and secrets started flowing, they spilled from Makena’s lips like cars going down a roller coaster.
“Skylar came to visit, and she was so mean to Chloe at practice, and then we took the bus to the city and went to an arcade, and then we lied to my mom’s face about it. And remember the last game of the tournament? Me, Jessie, and Skylar snuck out and went to the hot tub, which was awesome, but then it wasn’t awesome because the security guards busted us, and we ran away, and Skylar stole a golf cart and crashed it, and we didn’t get any sleep, and I was so tired I played the worst game of my life, and we lost, but we didn’t get caught, and Skylar says if you don’t get caught, it’s not a crime, but I feel so awful inside. I had to tell you, and I know you’re going to hate me, but…”
“Breathe,” Val said, holding up her hand to stop her friend.
Makena took a deep breath. Tears welled up in her eyes. She stared at Val, whose eyes had opened wide.
Val sighed. Makena braced herself.
Finally, Val spoke, “First of all, I would never hate you.”
Makena looked up at her, feeling the knot in her stomach loosen just a little.
“But.” Val paused and then launched into her own flood of words. “What the heck is the matter with you? You went without me? Why can’t you just say no? Don’t you know how to do that? Did you forget?”
“I don’t know,” Makena said quietly.
“Why do you always do what she says?” Val asked. “That’s just not like you.”
“I guess she’s just exciting and I went along with her. Plus she knows so much about soccer,” Makena said.
“Well, she knows a lot about cheap soccer,” Val replied. “Not my style.”
Makena squeezed the paper in her hand, and it made a sound.
“What is that?”
Makena brought the paper up. “Oh, I was thinking about our team.”
“Can I see it?” Val asked, unfurling the paper.
Makena handed over the paper. It was already pretty well worn. Next to the Soccer Sisters, she had drawn a couple of pictures of hearts and soccer balls. She had also written a few words down: Team, Fun, Sportsmanship, and the names of her teammates.
“I like the picture of the girl when she kicks the ball the best,” Val said.
“Thanks. I was thinking of coming up with, you know, some kind of rules, like when you make a club?”
“For our team?” Val asked. “That might be cool. What do you have so far?”
“Not much.”
“Well, I would definitely vote for one about sportsmanship. I really don’t like that cheap stuff Skylar pulls all the time.”
Makena immediately thought back to Skylar’s fake ankle injury. As usual, Val was right. That’s not what their team was about.
“Sportsmanship. OK, for sure,” Makena said. “Hang on, I need a pen.”
As Makena got up to run into the house, she stopped short and gave Val a tight hug. She felt so relieved to have finally told her everything.
“What am I going to do?” Makena asked.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, in Canada and at practice this week. When Skylar’s there. What am I going to do?”
“First of all, you’re going to practice saying no. Second, you’re going to remember that this is our team, not Skylar’s.”
Val grabbed the blue piece of paper and waved it around.
Makena and Val talked about the tournament until dinner was ready. They stuffed themselves with Miguel’s ultra-deliciousness. As they ate, Makena’s mom taught them about scorpions. They learned that there are almost two thousand scorpion species, and thirty or forty have strong enough poison to kill a person. Apparently people in China liked to eat them fried with a mound of ants, but you had to take out the stingers first.
Makena and Val decided to stick with frijoles.
11
Two days later, Makena and Val were happily squashed in the back of the Walshs’ minivan, bookending a duffel bag, with soccer balls at their feet and family luggage looming behind. They were headed to the Roberts Cup in Toronto, Ontario.
Makena still couldn’t believe that her mother, father, brother, grandfather, and best friend were taking a road trip together. This was a first. But here they were: Papa snoring like a machine gun in the second row, Will doing battle on his Nintendo 3DS, and her parents giggling in the front seat like they were on a date. The minivan hummed along, long stretches of highway floating by like blurry postcard pictures.
Val and Makena spent most of the drive plotting soccer strategy and looking at a picture book about Canada, a gift from Val’s father, who was watching the shop so Makena’s dad could make the trip. Papa’s doctors had given the green light as long as he didn’t walk too far, so there was also a wheelchair strapped to the roof of the van. After the tournament, they were driving over to see Niagara Falls. Apparently Papa had always wanted to visit and had heard hot dogs were cheaper north of the border.
“Why so quiet?” Val asked after a long silence.
“Just thinking,” Makena said.
“About?” Val asked.
“Oh, you know. Everything,” Makena said.
Val nodded. She knew she couldn’t say anything out loud about “everything,” so she lowered her voice and whispered with a smile, “I got your back.”
In Canada, the Breakers started off with a bang, playing their first game against a team from New Hampshire called the Firecrackers. They were duds. The Breakers easily went up 2 to 0 by halftime; the final score was 4 to 0. Val had two goals, and Jessie and Skylar scored the other two. Makena didn’t score but assisted on the last two goals.
Makena was doing her best to ignore Skylar and focus on soccer. Luckily, the night before the first game, Makena and Val stayed with Makena’s family on the road, arriving just in time to play. But tonight Makena, Val, Jessie, and Skylar were sharing a room at the hotel where the rest of the team was staying. Makena was nervous but determined to keep her distance.
During the breaks, Makena made sure to sit with all her Soccer Sisters at a big table. At one point, Skylar wanted to talk about their New York City adventure, but Makena changed the subject.
Skylar finally cornered Makena during warm-up for the second game.
“Man, you have got to see how awesome our hotel is! We stayed there last night. It has an indoor pool on the top floor, a pool table, and a huge TV room. We have to check it out tonight. You know, late nigh
t,” Skylar whispered.
Makena was tying her shoe and looked around for Val for support.
“Makena, you in?”
“Not this time, Skylar,” Makena said.
“Why not? It’ll be crazy,” Skylar said.
“Skylar, I’m just here to play in the tournament and be with my family. That’s all I’m doing this weekend.”
Makena grabbed her ball and started to move away.
“Hey, wait a minute…” Skylar called after her, but Makena kept moving. Then she decided it was time she had to face Skylar and stopped.
“Skylar, look, you are a great player, and we’ve had some fun times, but I just don’t want to get in trouble again. I’m trying to think about my team. I’m not going to turn you in or anything, but sorry, I’m just not going to sneak out again. OK?”
Skylar stared at her but didn’t reply, so Makena just shrugged and kept walking.
The second game was a lot tighter. It was against a tough team from Michigan called the Wolfpack. Neither side had much success scoring, but there were close calls for both teams. During the final minutes of the game, Makena took a pass from Skylar by the end line. It was a hard, flat delivery, and a Wolfpack defender lunged to intercept. She got her foot in, and the ball deflected off Makena’s shin and out of bounds. The linesperson raised his flag and pointed to the corner.
The referee had been behind the play and had also missed the deflection off Makena’s leg.
Skylar didn’t wait.
“Corner kick!” she yelled, running over to grab the ball.
A corner kick was an awesome scoring opportunity, and Makena knew it. The Breakers needed a goal badly. All she had to do was let Skylar kick it in.
Instead, Makena turned and said, “Referee, the ball hit my leg before it went out. It’s a goal kick. It’s their ball.”
“Thanks, number eight,” the referee replied, pulling out her pen to write something down on the little pad in her front pocket. Makena hoped she wasn’t in trouble.
“Goal kick!” the referee called, blowing her whistle.
“But, Ref, the linesman said it was a corner kick!” Skylar cried, running toward the corner flag with the ball.
“Skylar, it hit my leg. It’s a goal kick,” Makena said, turning and jogging upfield to get in position.
“Number six, drop the ball. Next time you open your mouth, it’s a yellow,” the referee said to Skylar.
Skylar didn’t open her mouth, but she did purposely throw the ball to the corner of the field. The referee immediately blew her whistle and took a yellow card out of her pocket. She called Skylar over and held the card up in the air, writing another note in the little book.
Coach Lily immediately called for a substitution and pulled Skylar off the field. Makena watched Skylar sulk to the sidelines, glaring at her.
Coach Lily kept Skylar on the bench for the rest of the game. In the final minutes, Makena and Val connected with a give-and-go outside the box. Val fired one of her trademark screamers into the upper corner.
1 to 0 Breakers.
But the Wolfpack kept up the pressure and the Breakers buckled down. Their coach yelled to collapse the defense. They only had to hold on for another minute or so.
In the team’s last attack, a Wolfpack defender made a beautiful run down the line. The girl was incredibly fast, with long, blond hair that reminded Makena of Brandi Chastain, one of her all-time favorite players. Val tracked the defender down the line and managed to corner her near the sideline. Makena moved in to help just as the ball popped loose and Val went in for a tackle.
The next few seconds unfolded in slow motion. Val lunged forward with her right leg and managed to poke the ball as she slid on the ground. The Wolfpack defender was taken by surprise but moved forward, driving the ball forward with her stomach. Val got up quickly and turned to follow but suddenly cried out and crumpled to the ground.
Val Flores was the toughest player Makena had ever seen. She was brave beyond words. She was strong. Val never went down.
Val was down and staying down.
Makena didn’t even know where the ball was. She rushed over to her friend. Val was holding her knee, crying.
“Val! What happened?”
“I don’t know,” Val managed to say through her tears. “When I turned, I felt something happen to my knee.”
Makena heard the referee’s whistle. In an instant, Coach Lily and then Makena’s parents were by their side on the ground, helping Val.
Parents are not allowed on the field during a game, even for an injury. Makena looked around, confused.
“Mom, Val’s hurt. But you have to wait until the game’s over.”
“The game is over,” her mom answered. “You won. I think you just didn’t notice.”
Makena looked up and saw that the two teams were solemnly shaking hands. Val’s injury must have happened in the very last seconds of the game.
Makena didn’t care. She was only worried about her friend.
12
“Look on the bright side,” Makena said. “At least you got a free ride in Papa’s wheelchair.”
“Great” was the only reply from a very depressed Val.
They were sitting together on a long wooden bench in the medical tent, waiting for someone to bring Val a pair of crutches. Val’s knee was wrapped in ice and propped up on Makena’s leg. Makena was a little numb from sitting in the same position for so long, but she was afraid that moving would hurt Val. Val was being her brave self, but Makena could tell she was in a lot of pain.
There had been quite a few injuries that day, including one concussion, so it was well into the evening by the time the doctor finally saw Val. Makena’s parents stayed as long as they could, but they finally had to take Papa and Will back to the hotel. Coach Lily was outside talking with an important-looking man.
Before he left, the doctor told Val she would probably need to get a test called an MRI to check her ligaments for damage, but that would have to be back in New York.
The tent flap opened. Makena felt the chill from the night air.
“How you girls doing?” A tall man with a beard and glasses approached Makena and Val. He carried a pair of metal crutches.
“We’re OK,” Makena answered. Val was quiet.
“I’m Mr. Hardin. I’m the director of the Roberts Cup,” he said in a very kind voice, sitting down next to Val and Makena. “We’re sure sorry that you hurt your knee today, Val. Here are some crutches that you can use. Your coach has the report from the doctor. Looks like it might just be a sprain, but you’ll need to get yourself checked by your own doctor in a few days. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” Val answered. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. I spoke with your father, and I know your coach has too. Make sure someone gets that report to your dad.”
“I’m sure my parents will take care of it,” Makena said. “We’re BFFs.”
“You’re what?”
“We’re best friends forever.”
“Ah, of course. What’s your name?” Mr. Hardin asked.
“I’m Makena Walsh.”
“Nice to meet you, Makena.” Mr. Hardin looked at Makena and Val with a droll smile. “You girls sure look like you could use a shower and some dinner.”
“I could eat ten cheeseburgers,” Val answered.
“Maybe twenty,” Makena said.
“How long have you been here?” he asked.
“We have no idea,” Makena answered.
“Forever,” Val said at the same time.
“You sat with her the whole time?” Mr. Hardin asked Makena.
“Of course,” Makena said, adjusting Val’s ice pack as it slipped to the side. “We never give up on one another. We’re Soccer Sisters.”
13
Makena and
Val didn’t make it back to the hotel until close to ten. Lily took them through the drive-through of a burger joint so Val didn’t have to walk around. Val said her knee was starting to feel a little better, but she still couldn’t put any pressure on it or walk. Makena and Val inhaled about six sliders each with a milk shake and fries. Now they were ready to fall straight into bed.
Makena still had to play in the championship game at noon the next day, but Val was out for a while. Coach Lily gave them the key to Room 314, said she’d see them in the lobby for breakfast, and told them to try to get some rest.
All Makena wanted to do was take a shower, help Val get settled, and dive into a nice, clean bed. After two games and sitting in the medical tent, Makena was exhausted.
Makena turned the key quietly and cracked open the door, hoping for sleeping girls and silence. Instead, Skylar and Jessie were watching TV and tossing a soccer ball between the two beds.
“Man, what took you guys so long?” Skylar asked.
Makena answered, “We’ve been sitting in the medical tent.”
“It didn’t look like much of an injury, that’s all,” Skylar said.
Val didn’t bother to reply. She just crutched her way to the bathroom and shut the door. Makena heard the shower water start.
“I’m tired. Which is my bed?” she asked Jessie and Skylar.
“Oh, we’ve been hanging out in both. Whichever one you want,” Jessie said.
Makena picked the bed closest to the bathroom to make it easier for Val.
“We’ll sleep here.”
“You guys totally missed out,” Skylar said, throwing the ball up in the air and catching it. “We were swimming in the pool for, like, hours. It was awesome.”
“Sounds great,” Makena said, fishing her pajamas out of her luggage. She didn’t want to talk about pools or hot tubs. All she could think about was Val and the fact that she couldn’t play in the morning.
“It was great. We’re going back later,” Skylar said.
Makena didn’t respond. Hurry up, Val, she thought. She just wanted to get into the shower and away from Skylar.
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