In the Zone

by Alex Morgan

  “Yeah,” I said, because it seemed like the right thing to say. “Totally cool.”

  Jessi pointed at Sebastian. “Benz Mordo, chief of the rebels.”

  Then Luke. “Lord Orfeo of the Dark Galaxy.”

  Then Mary. “Admiral Zeta of the resistance.”

  Then she looked at Isaac. “I forget. Who are you supposed to be?”

  “I am a hobalur from the Dwarf Planet Cronus,” Isaac replied. “From the second movie. A minor character, at best, but one with whom I resonate quite strongly.”

  I nodded. “Yup,” I said, not sure how to comment on that.

  “So, I hear it’s a pretty good movie,” Jessi remarked.

  “Oh, it is,” Sebastian replied.

  “You saw it already?” Jessi asked.

  Luke piped up. “Three times. It came out Friday, so we went to the Friday night show, a matinee yesterday, and then again last night.”

  “Wow, you guys are really into Star Warriors,” I remarked. I looked at Jessi, expecting for her to make some kind of joke about it, because she had never been into this sci-fi stuff before. But she was just looking at Sebastian and smiling in a goofy way.

  “We’d better go in, so we can get some good seats,” Isaac said.

  “Fine, but I need candy,” Mary said.

  We followed everyone into the theater. Jessi and I started walking toward the box office.

  “We got our tickets already,” Sebastian said, holding up his phone to show us his ticket app. “We’ll wait for you.”

  So Jessi and I got into the ticket line—and right in front of us were Cody and Steven!

  They spotted us first.

  “Jessi! I didn’t know you were coming here,” Cody said.

  “Well, I didn’t know you were coming here either,” Jessi replied. “You didn’t ask me.”

  “Yeah, well, it was kind of last-minute,” Cody said.

  “Are you seeing Star Warriors?” Steven asked. “We could all sit together.”

  There was an awkward silence for a moment. I couldn’t even meet Jessi’s eyes.

  How are we supposed to deal with this? I wondered.

  Jessi handled it directly. “That would be really nice, normally, but we came with those guys.” She motioned toward Sebastian and the others.

  “Those guys? Do they know it’s not Halloween?” Cody asked.

  “Of course they do. They’re dressed like characters from the movie,” Jessi snapped.

  I looked at Steven. “Listen, we made plans with those guys first. I hope you understand,” I said. And then I repeated what Jessi had said. “You know, if you had asked . . .”

  Steven nodded. “Hey, it’s cool. We’ll see you in there.”

  I nodded back, relieved that Steven wasn’t making a big deal of it. We started talking about regular stuff, but I noticed Jessi and Cody had stopped speaking.

  Jessi and I got our tickets, then got bottles of water and a large popcorn to split. Then we met back up with Sebastian and his friends and found seats.

  Cody and Steven were already seated, all the way up in the back row. Sebastian and the others headed for a row in the middle of the theater.

  “Optimum viewing level,” Isaac remarked, even though nobody had asked why we were sitting there.

  There was plenty of time before the movie started. Sebastian and his friends started talking about their favorite characters in the Star Warriors movies and making jokes. I found myself talking to them instead of watching the boring programming that was usually up on the screen before the previews started.

  Then my phone vibrated. It was a text from Steven.

  What’s up with Jessi? Doesn’t she like Cody anymore?

  Whoa. I wasn’t sure how to answer that.

  I don’t know, I replied. Ask Jessi.

  You’re her friend. What’s going on?

  I took a page from Jessi’s playbook. Jessi and Cody are just friends. What’s the big deal?

  His response surprised me. Are we just friends?

  My hands suddenly felt clammy, and I had to wipe them on my jeans so I could text back.

  Well, you know I can’t date, I typed, feeling grateful that I could use my parents as an excuse. The fact was, I wasn’t sure if I could handle dating Steven for real. Not right then, anyway.

  I know, he texted back. But you know what I mean.

  I didn’t know what to say. I mean, I did like Steven as more than a friend. At least I thought I did. Right then I wasn’t even sure what that meant.

  Words were failing me. I scrolled through my emojis. I chose a blushing emoji, sent it, and then instantly regretted it.

  Just then the words “DON’T TEXT DURING THE MOVIE” appeared on the screen, and I shut down my phone. Jessi turned to me.

  “Who were you texting?” she asked.

  “Steven,” I replied, and that was all I said. I couldn’t talk about how awkward everything was, here in the movie theater, sitting next to a guy dressed like a space creature.

  I was relieved when the movie started and I could forget about dating and what was happening with Jessi and Cody. The movie was good—really good—although I didn’t think I would ever be inspired to dress up like one of the characters.

  When we left the theater, there was no sign of Cody or Steven. I didn’t get a chance to talk to Jessi about the texts that Steven had sent me, because her dad was already waiting for us outside.

  “How was the movie?” Mr. Dukes asked as we got into the car.

  “Awesome,” Jessie replied.

  “Good,” I said, but inside I was thinking of a totally different word.

  Awkward!

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Thankfully, the awkward didn’t last. That Monday at school Steven walked with me from World Civ to our eighth-period English class like we usually do.

  “The movie had cool special effects,” Steven said. “But it kind of lost me on the whole evil-twin thing. I didn’t know who was who.”

  “Me too!” It felt good to talk about the movie with someone who wasn’t a total fanatic. “Did Ambassador Rowan die, or her evil twin?”

  Steven laughed. “I have no idea!”

  He didn’t mention our texts, or ask me any more questions about Jessi. We walked together to class on Tuesday, too, and everything was starting to feel normal again.

  I had more important things to focus on, anyway. Like getting Emma to Goalie-Palooza!

  My aim at lunch that day was to invite myself over to her house. I wanted to convince her to give Goalie-Palooza a try, and I figured she’d be more comfortable in her own home, instead of asking her in the cafeteria.

  “Want to hang after school today at your house?” I asked her. “Since there’s no soccer practice?”

  Her eyes brightened. “Cool! You can come home with me.”

  • • •

  After school Emma’s mom picked us up.

  “I’m glad you’re coming over, Devin,” Mrs. Kim said as she glanced at me in the rearview mirror. “I’ve got a surprise for Emma, and I think you’ll be able to help me with it.”

  “Ooohhhh!” Emma clapped her hands together. “A surprise? What is it?”

  Mrs. Kim smiled. “You’ll see.”

  I wondered what kind of surprise I could help with. I started to get a little nervous. What if she wanted me to sing or dance or something like that?

  Before I could ask, Mrs. Kim had something to say to me.

  “Devin, it was nice to hear from your mother,” she said. “It was really sweet of her to be so concerned about Emma.”

  “Yeah, it was,” Emma echoed.

  “I told her we’ve been trying to get those memes taken down,” Mrs. Kim continued, “but unfortunately, we haven’t had any luck so far.”

  I looked at Emma. “I’m so sorry.”

  Emma shrugged. “It’s, like, almost impossible to get them down once they’re up.”

  “I know,” Mrs. Kim agreed. “We reported them to the social media s
ites, but we haven’t gotten a response so far. Still, you both did the right thing by telling us about it. Devin, your mom gave me the idea to call the school, to see what we can do to make sure nobody is harassing Emma about this on school grounds.”

  “Thanks,” Emma said. “It hasn’t been so bad, really.”

  Mrs. Kim sighed. “I feel bad for you kids,” she said. “Devin, when your mother and I were growing up, it was a different world. There was no Internet, or social media, or memes, or any of this stuff. If something happened, no one was around to take a picture of it and post it publicly.”

  We drove up the palm-tree-lined driveway that led to Emma’s house. The house was so big that I guess it was technically a mansion. It had a deluxe, in-ground pool and a lavish movie room.

  “Why don’t you and Devin go up to your room?” Mrs. Kim suggested to Emma. “I’ll bring a snack up, and I’ll let you know when your surprise is here.”

  “Great, Mom. Thanks!” Emma gave her mom a hug and bounded up the stairs, with me following close behind. I was getting to know my way around Emma’s large house, but I still didn’t want to take any chances of becoming lost in it.

  Emma’s room was like the rest of her house: really fancy. It was the size of about three of my bedrooms and had a bed, a sofa, a television, and this cool hanging chair dangling from the ceiling. Emma also has a huge fish tank mounted on the wall, with lots of brightly colored fish swimming around. It was like being at the aquarium. And there were tons of Brady McCoy posters hanging all over the room. He was Emma’s favorite singer.

  I noticed something different from the last time I’d been here. Emma had a beautiful new bedspread. It had a black-and-white pattern on it, with vivid blue, green, and pink stripes running through it.

  “I love your new comforter!” I told her.

  “Thanks!” She smiled. “I had to get a new one, because my mom got me a new mattress. I wasn’t sleeping very well after those memes came out, so she ordered this fancy one from Sweden. It was bigger than my old mattress, so I got a whole new bed and blankets and everything.”

  “It’s really pretty,” I said. “Did the mattress work? Are you sleeping better?”

  Emma shrugged. “A little. I told my mom not to bother, but she insisted. I would have preferred the invisibility cloak!”

  We laughed as Emma’s mom came into the room carrying a tray.

  “Organic cherry juice mixed with sparkling water,” she told us as she laid the tray on the table in front of the sofa, “and some blueberry, pistachio, and dark chocolate bark. They are all foods that help reduce stress and fuel the body. I got them to keep our Emma going during this rough time.”

  She bustled out, and Emma looked at me, her cheeks a little pink. “My mom can go totally overboard sometimes,” she said, looking embarrassed.

  “Don’t worry. Remember that time when my family tried to get a wave started at one of our games? And nobody else would do it, so it was just the three of them going up and down, up and down? That was so humiliating!” I told her.

  We munched on the bark (which was totes delish!) and drank our cherry spritzers while we chatted. I wanted to work my way up to Goalie-Palooza.

  “Did it feel weird not being in front of the goal?” I asked her, trying to find out how she was feeling about the situation.

  Emma put down her glass of cherry juice and frowned. “It did and it didn’t,” she explained. “At first it was so weird. I kept feeling like I was in the wrong place, like I was out of bounds. Then as the game went on, I got used to it. I had the other defenders with me, backing me up if I let one of the offense get past. I didn’t feel so alone, like I can in front of the goal.”

  “What about you?” Emma asked. “How did you like being goalie?”

  “It was intense,” I admitted. “To be a goalie you’ve got to be part psychic and part gymnast. I never knew how tough it really is, Emma. But you’re a natural. You can’t give it up.”

  Emma opened her mouth, ready to tell me something, and I sat there eagerly waiting to hear what she had to say. Did Emma want to give up the goal for good? Or was she ready to get back into it?

  Before she could speak, her mother’s voice carried up the stairs.

  “Your surprise is here, Emma!” Mrs. Kim’s voice rang out. “You and Devin should come out to the back lawn.”

  Emma and I looked at each other, our eyes wide.

  “Do you have any idea what it could be?” I asked her.

  Emma shook her head. “Nada. Let’s go find out!”

  She grabbed my hand, and together we raced down the stairs and through her maze of a house to her backyard.

  There was a large, grassy area near the in-ground pool. Emma’s mother was standing there, talking to a young man dressed in yellow athletic shorts and a black T-shirt. He had light-brown skin, and when we bounded out onto the lawn, he turned and smiled at us, showing his dimples and bright white teeth.

  “Girls, this is Danilo. Danilo, this is my daughter Emma and her friend Devin,” Mrs. Kim said, introducing us. “Danilo is a private soccer trainer. He’s here to help Emma build her confidence and to get her feeling comfortable in front of the goal again.”

  Danilo clapped his hands together and gave a little jump, his brown eyes sparkling.

  “You’re going to get right back into that goal zone, Emma, and you’re going to feel great about it. Do you know how I know that?” Danilo asked her, rocking back and forth on his feet the entire time he talked. He wasn’t much taller than Emma, yet his energy level seemed sky-high.

  Emma looked at me, not knowing what to say. Instead she giggled.

  “Because when I look into your eyes, I can tell. You’ve got the fire. You belong in front of that goal. You’ve got a wall up right now. But I’m going to tear it down!” he said. “Are you ready to tear that wall down, Emma? Devin, are you ready to help her?”

  “Yes!” we both shouted, and then we looked at each other and started laughing.

  “He’s cute,” Emma whispered to me. “And funny.”

  “Laughter is okay.” Danilo smiled at us. “We’re going to work hard, but we’re going to have fun.”

  Luckily I was wearing sneakers. Emma quickly changed into her new cleats, and we got started.

  “You know how you are going to get back into that goal zone, Emma?” Danilo asked.

  “Um, kicking and screaming?” Emma said, half-joking.

  “Emma! That’s not the positive attitude I want to see from you!” Danilo said.

  “I was just kidding,” Emma said quickly. “I really don’t know how I’m going to get back into the goal zone. Last time I played goalie, it was a disaster.”

  “Don’t look back, Emma. You’re not going that way.” Danilo was full of motivational sayings. “We’re only going forward. Right, Devin?”

  “Right!” I yelled back. Danilo’s enthusiasm was contagious. I couldn’t help myself. “Onward and upward!”

  “I like your attitude,” Danilo said, smiling at me. Then he looked at Emma. “How you’re going to get comfortable is by repetition. You’re going to be getting your hands on that ball over and over again. When I’m done, you’re going to be able to catch a ball in your sleep!”

  “All right, now. Devin is the one who plays soccer in her dreams, not me,” Emma protested.

  “That’s going to change, Emma,” Danilo promised. “We’re going to start soft. Easy catches, back and forth. Stand about twenty feet apart.”

  Emma and I faced each other on the lawn and tossed the ball, pretty softly at first, but then Danilo wanted us to throw harder.

  “Now I’m going to kick the ball to you. Try to catch it,” he said as he darted around the lawn, kicking the ball at both of us from different angles.

  Emma dove one way, but the ball was aimed another.

  “When you can’t change the direction of the wind, adjust your sails!” Danilo called at her as he continued to race around.

  Next he had us lie do
wn on the ground, like we were about to do a sit-up. Danilo first tossed the ball above Emma’s head, and Emma had to sit up to catch the ball before lying back down. Then he did the same to me. It was like a crunch combined with a passing exercise.

  “Even if I never step foot in front of a goal again, I’ll have a nice six-pack after this workout,” Emma joked. At least I hoped she was joking. The Kicks needed her in front of the goal!

  Danilo had us do a few more warm-ups before launching into drills. If we’d thought he was high energy before, now he really kicked it up a notch!

  “Sprint to the center! Now back up; the ball is coming. Catch it! Now to the right! The left!” Soon we were zipping around the lawn as quickly as Danilo was. We caught ball after ball. Danilo was right. I could probably catch one in my sleep after all of that.

  “Slide to the right. Now the left!” He had us working on slide saves, high-diving saves, and backswings. We were doing every goalie move in the book.

  Whenever we would make a mistake, Danilo would shout out one of his peppy sayings.

  “If plan A doesn’t work, stay cool. The alphabet has twenty-five more letters.”

  “I love mistakes. Mistakes are proof that you are trying!”

  “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”

  He ended with, “It never gets easier. You just get better!”

  Emma and I sat slumped on the grass, panting. Danilo was tough, but he’d made it so much fun. Mrs. Kim came out with some water bottles for us.

  Emma looked relaxed and happy. Maybe this was the breakthrough she needed. I hoped.

  “So, Emma, are you ready to take back that goal?” Danilo asked, still bouncing on his feet.

  “I don’t know,” Emma admitted, and for the first time that day, I saw the smile fade from Danilo’s face. “This training was a blast and I learned so much. But the thought of standing in front of the goal again makes me so nervous.”

  “Emma, you’ve got genuine talent as a goalie. I can see it, and I’m not just saying that,” Danilo said seriously. “Your future is created by what you do today, not tomorrow. Don’t worry about the last game, or the next one. Be the best you can be right now. The future will take care of itself.”