by Alex Morgan
I clicked on Steven’s number in my phone and typed “NOW.” My finger hovered over the green button, ready to send.
We could see (but not hear) Jamie talking to the other girls. She started pointing to different spots on the field, and the group of them began to move toward the center.
Jessi grinned. “Now!”
We both hit send. Nothing happened for a few seconds. And then . . .
Whoosh! The sprinklers kicked on in high gear. The four Rams began to shriek as the cold water rained down on them. Confused, they started to run off the field toward the parking lot.
Jessi ducked under the railing and took off after them like a shot. Was she going to confront them? I chased after her, and Emma, Frida, and Zoe followed me.
Jessi cut the girls off before they could reach the parking lot. She stood there with her hands on her hips, grinning.
“Hi, Jamie,” she said as the Rams skidded to a stop. “What are you guys doing here so early?”
Jamie’s mouth dropped open as the rest of us ran up to Jessi. Behind Jamie’s blue eyes you could practically see the gears of her brain whirring as she tried to think of what to say. Water dripped from her long hair, and her hoodie was soaked. The three girls with her all looked like drowned rats too.
“We were just . . . I mean . . .”
“We know what you were going to do,” Jessi said.
The other girls looked terrified, and Jamie’s face turned bright red. But she tried to keep up a tough act. “Oh, yeah? So what? Go ahead and tell on us.”
I stepped forward. “We’re not going to do that,” I said. “We can settle this on the field.”
Relief flickered in Jamie’s eyes, but it was quickly replaced by determination. “Fine,” she said.
She motioned for the Rams to follow her, and they started to walk away, but I had a question for them.
“Why us?” I called out.
Jamie turned around. “Why should I tell you?”
I thought quickly. “Well, I just might change my mind about turning you in.”
Jamie scowled. “Fine,” she said. “Listen, it’s not personal. Last year we came so close to winning the league. We lost two of our best players this year, and after a couple of games, it looked like we might have a hard time getting into the play-offs. Then you guys starting winning. . . . We just wanted some insurance, that’s all.”
Then I realized something. “Wait a second,” I said. “If you guys lose to us today, you’ll lose your play-off spot, won’t you?”
“It’s totally not fair,” Jamie said, and I noticed a coldness in her blue eyes. She wasn’t angry, or mean, or spiteful . . . just determined to win, no matter what it took. “We’re a good team. We deserve that slot. I haven’t been playing soccer since I was three to lose now.”
Jessi stepped up. “We know you framed Mirabelle for it.”
Jamie grinned like a snake. “Yeah, that was pretty smart, wasn’t it? Everybody in the league knows how Mirabelle ditched you guys for the Panthers. It was obvious. I was hoping that the Panthers would get in trouble for it, but it doesn’t matter. We’ll take care of them in the play-offs.”
“If you get to the play-offs,” I said. “You have to beat us first.”
“Right. Good luck with that,” Jamie said, and her friends giggled.
“We are not losing today,” Jessi said, her eyes flashing with anger.
Jamie shrugged. “I guess we’ll find out. See you later.”
The other Rams started giggling as they turned and walked away, and I saw Jessi’s mouth open. I put a hand on her shoulder.
“Leave it,” I warned. “It’s not worth it. We’ll show them.”
I took out my phone and quickly checked the online stats for our division. I was right—if the Rams lost the game against us, they would lose the play-off spot. But if we won, we’d be in!
“Beating the Rams is our best revenge,” I said. “And when we do, we’ll be in the play-offs!”
“Seriously?” Emma asked.
I nodded. “We’re just one game away.”
“And don’t forget, your secret weapon is back,” Zoe said. “Me! I’m cleared to play today.”
“Right! I totally forgot!” I shrieked. I hugged her. “The Kicks are back!”
The sprinklers on the field turned off, and Cody and Steven jogged up to us.
“That was awesome,” Cody said. “Those girls got drenched.”
“Just wait till the game,” I said. “We’re going to wash them out with a tidal wave of teamwork!”
Jessi grinned. “That might be the dorkiest thing you’ve ever said. But I love it.”
I smiled back. “That’s because it’s true!”
Tweeeeeeeeeeet!
The ref’s whistle blew, and one of the Rams’ midfielders raced up to the ball to make the starting kick of the game. Coach Flores had placed me, Zoe, and Megan on the forward line, and Jamie was on the Rams’ forward line, facing me. With some satisfaction I saw that her hair was still damp from the sprinklers. She darted past me as the midfielder lobbed a short pass to her, and as she dribbled forward to set up a pass to another Rams striker, I made sure I stuck to her as closely as I could. Frustrated, she gave the ball a wild kick, which sent it flying out of bounds.
Getting caught by us must have gotten to Jamie, I thought, but even though I was right, the Rams still played a good game. When Zoe threw the ball from the sideline to Grace, one of the Rams midfielders swept in from out of nowhere and intercepted it. She sprinted down the right flank with the ball as Maya tried to catch up to her from the midfield. But Frida, on defense, got to her first, and stole the ball away with a short punt that landed in the middle of nowhere. The Rams and Kicks converged on it, but Jessi got to it first and shot it downfield.
Zoe jetted up to it, got control of the ball, and then did that beautiful thing she did best, zigzagging between the defenders as she made her way to the goal. I tore up to meet her, with Jamie right at my heels, but Jamie couldn’t catch me.
Zoe floated a perfect pass to me right before two Rams defenders nearly collided in front of her. I stopped the ball with my foot and then followed up quickly with a kick. The world turned to slow motion as the ball sailed over the head of a Rams defender. Had I overshot it?
No. The ball whizzed past the goalie and bounced into the back of the net.
“Goal!” the ref cried, and the Kicks’ fans in the stands began to cheer. I jogged back to the other end of the field, grinning as I passed Jamie.
“I guess we Kangaroos can kick after all,” I told her, and she scowled at me.
That first goal set the tone for the rest of the game. The gray cloud that had hung over us when we’d played the Atoms had dissolved. Nobody was thinking about sabotage. We just played our best.
After that goal one of the Rams kicked a wild ball, and Jamie and I both went after it. As she ran past me, she pushed into me, hard, and I lost my balance.
Tweet! The ref called a yellow card on her.
“Keep doing it,” I cheerfully told her. “You’ll just be sitting out the rest of the game.”
That comment earned me another scowl, but I let it slide off me. Jamie was not going to get under my skin—not anymore.
We scored two more times in the first half—Zoe and Megan each got a goal. Jamie scored for the Rams, so we ended the half 3–1. Coach Flores put Brianna in for me at the start of the second half, so I got to watch the game from the sideline for a little while.
The Rams came back strong in the second half, and for a little while I got worried. I realized that when they were focused, they played like a well-oiled machine, moving the ball down the field with a series of controlled, orchestrated passes. And they were fast, so it was hard for our defense to anticipate their moves. Jamie ended up making two goals in the first ten minutes of the half, tying the game at 3–3.
After Jamie’s third goal, Coach Flores sent me in to sub for Megan, and replaced two of the midfielders and
one defender. With fresh energy on the field, we quickly gained momentum. Jamie charged down the field, but Frida stopped her cold, sweeping in front of her and intercepting the ball. She punted it to Grace in the midfield, who took it all the way up the left side and scored.
“Hey, I forgot—what character are you playing today?” I asked Frida as we jogged back downfield.
She grinned. “Today I’m a member of the Kicks who really wants to beat the Rams.”
I smiled back. “It’s your best role yet!”
With time ticking on the clock, the Rams started to get desperate again. One of them—not Jamie—shoved Maya out of the way as she went for a ball. The ref threw a yellow card, but it didn’t stop one of the Rams’ forwards from gaining control of the ball on the next play and shooting it past Emma, who was so angry about the flag that she forgot to watch the goal. The score was tied again.
The refs threw two more yellow cards on the Rams as the half wound down, but at least they weren’t scoring. We weren’t having much luck either, until one of the Rams sent a crooked pass sailing over the sideline. Maya threw it back in, and Jessi was right on top of it.
She charged down the field like she was on fire, blazing past the defending midfielders.
“Whoo! Go, Jessi!” yelled the Kicks on the sideline.
Alarmed, the Rams defense all zoomed toward her, but I had been keeping a parallel course with her all the way down the field. Before the defense got to her, she floated a pass right to me, and I got it. With Jamie right on my heels, I stormed the goal and slammed the ball toward it.
Once again the ball seemed to move in slow motion. The ball kissed the inside edge of the goalpost, and the Rams’ goalie made a valiant dive for it, but she couldn’t get to it in time.
“Goal!”
Jessi ran up and high-fived me. The ball went back in play, but the Rams didn’t get far before the ref’s whistle blew. Game over!
I knew what that meant, but I looked at the scoreboard to make sure. HOME: 5. AWAY: 4.
“We made the play-offs!” I shrieked. Jessi, Zoe, Brianna, and the other Kicks slammed into me, and we started jumping up and down.
“Come on. We can’t forget about the Rams,” Grace announced, and we calmed down so we could line up and shake hands. The Rams all looked miserable.
I shook Jamie’s hand last. “Good game,” I said, trying to show some sportsmanship, but Jamie just scowled at me. As I jogged away, I had a thought. Maybe if Jamie had worried more about practicing instead of sabotaging us, her team might have gotten that play-off spot she wanted so badly.
I caught up with the rest of the team off the field, and we started cheering and hugging and screaming again.
“We did it!” I squealed, hugging Jessi.
“Because you’re a great captain,” Jessi said.
“And you’re a great detective,” I told her.
Jessi smiled. “I know.”
Coach Flores raised her voice. “I’m so proud of you girls!” she said. “This means our season is extended, so I’ll see you all on Monday for practice.”
I was about to raise my hand and suggest that we have an extra practice tomorrow morning, but then Grace spoke up.
“The Kicks are all going to the carnival tonight!” she called out, and everyone cheered.
I had almost forgotten about the carnival. I knew it would go late, and we might be tired, and . . . then I remembered what my Dad had said, about how the play-offs weren’t everything. My friends were just as important.
“You’re coming, Devin, right?” Emma asked.
“Of course I am!” I replied.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
“How do I look?” I asked, spinning around in front of the webcam. Mom had bought me the cutest dress—Kicks blue with no sleeves, and a little white belt around the middle.
“Perfect!” Kara replied. “Blue looks nice on you. What shoes are you wearing?”
I held up my foot so she could see, and Kara laughed.
“Flip-flops? Seriously? I’ve already got my boots on,” she said.
I heard a horn beep outside, and I knew that was Jessi and her dad.
“My ride is here,” I said. “But I promise I’ll chat you tomorrow morning, okay? I’ll let you know everything that happens.”
“Say hi to Steven for me,” she teased, and I stuck out my tongue as I shut the laptop.
I ran downstairs and found Mom, Dad, and Maisie waiting for me by the front door.
“You look beautiful,” Dad said, giving me a hug.
“Just lovely,” Mom added. “Now don’t forget, we want you home by ten.”
Maisie rolled her eyes. “Why can’t I stay up late?”
“I better not keep them waiting,” I said quickly, anxious to avoid a Maisie scene. “See you later!”
I ran to the car and squeezed into the backseat with Emma and Zoe. Jessi sat in the passenger seat up front.
“Frida’s meeting us there,” Emma informed me.
“Cool,” I said.
My friends all looked really nice. Zoe had on a white, gauzy short dress and these really cool wedge sandals. Emma wore jeans and a pink tank top, and her jeans weren’t wrinkly like they usually were. I craned my head around the seat to check out Jessi, who had on skinny jeans and a gray short-sleeved top layered over a red tank top. She had these beautiful silver hoop earrings, too.
“This is such an amazing day,” Emma said. “We beat the Rams, the boys beat the Rams, and now we’re going to a carnival!”
“I’m glad we’re all going together,” I said. “Will everyone else be with, like, a date?”
“That’s what I heard,” Emma replied a little nervously.
“My sister Opal says that everyone says they’re going with a date, but not many people do,” Zoe reported, and that made me feel a little better.
We quickly reached the school, and Mr. Dukes dropped us off out front. The carnival had been set up in the teacher parking lot and the big grassy field next to it. Crowds of kids were already milling around.
“Have a nice time!” Jessi’s dad said. “I’ll be back for you all at around nine thirty.”
It was getting dark already, but big spotlights lit up the carnival area. We lined up to pay our admission and then looked around.
There were a bunch of booths; some of them had carnival games, and a few others sold ice cream and hot dogs and popcorn and cotton candy. On the grassy part a few rides had been set up—one of those giant inflatable slides, and a spinny thing, and even a small Ferris wheel.
“Kicks!”
Frida came running toward us, followed by Brianna, Anna, Sarah, and a bunch of other girls from the team. Everyone started talking and laughing at once.
For a second I couldn’t believe it. Just a few weeks before, I’d been brand-new at the school and hadn’t known anyone. Now here I was, surrounded by a whole group of friends, co-captain of a soccer team headed for the play-offs. Things were looking pretty good.
Then Jessi nudged me. “Look,” she said, pointing.
Cody, Steven, and some other guys from the boys’ team were standing in front of one of the games. I had to admit, it was kind of a relief to see that Steven didn’t have a date with him or anything.
“Should we talk to them?” I asked.
Jessi looked thoughtful for a few seconds. She walked off and bought a cone of blue cotton candy. Then she grabbed my arm.
“What are we doing?” I asked, but she didn’t answer.
Jessi marched up to Cody and handed him the cotton candy. “I got this for you,” she announced.
Cody took it from her. “Thanks.”
Then I knew that whatever had been weird between Jessi and Cody had been settled. Now I just had to settle the weirdness between me and Steven.
“So, I’m sorry I said I didn’t want to come here with you,” I said, looking down at my flip-flops. “I was just really stressed about soccer and everything.”
I looked up into his eyes
then, and felt my cheeks get warm. Steven smiled.
“Do you guys want to go on the Ferris wheel?” he asked.
I didn’t hesitate. I still wasn’t sure about dating, but a Ferris wheel—that was easy.
“You bet,” I replied, and the four of us walked off together.
PHOTO: M. STAHLSCHMIDT/SSP © 2013
ALEX MORGAN became the youngest member of the US women’s national soccer team in 2009 and competed in the 2011 FIFA World Cup. She was the first overall pick in the 2011 Women’s Professional Soccer draft, and landed a spot on the US Olympic women’s soccer team in 2012. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, held in London, Morgan won her first Olympic medal, a gold, with the American team. The team beat Japan, 2–1, in a match watched by nearly 80,300 people—the largest soccer crowd in Olympic history.
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Also by Alex Morgan
SAVING THE TEAM
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Copyright © 2013 by Alex Morgan and Full Fathom Five
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