chapter 16
Lily searched the library and Starbucks but didn’t see any sign of Tabitha until she spotted the sleek black car parked outside the deli.
“Hey, Rini,” Lily said.
“Hello, miss,” he replied with a big smile. “How is the next Mia Hamm doing today?”
Lily cringed. “I’m fine. But I’m pretty sure Mia Hamm never got suspended.”
“That’s a good point,” Rini said. “But you have a special fire inside. I am sure once you learn to handle it, you will be back better than ever.”
Lily nodded. She certainly hoped so. “Um, I’m looking for Tabitha.”
“She’s at the beauty salon.” Rini pointed to the small shop on the corner.
“Oh,” Lily replied in a tone that made clear a beauty salon was pretty much the last place she wanted to be.
Rini laughed. “She will be finished in an hour or so, I am told.”
Lily dreaded the idea of approaching Tabitha with all her gossipy school friends. But she really needed to talk to her.
“She’s right inside, miss,” Rini urged.
Lily scrunched up her face, and Rini seemed to understand her dilemma. “She’s at the salon alone today.”
Lily glanced inside the beauty parlor window but couldn’t see her friend among all the flowers, blowers and tin-covered heads. She steeled herself, took a deep breath and ducked inside as quietly as possible. Bells on the door jangled, announcing her arrival to anyone in a fifty-mile radius.
“May I help you?” a woman asked while looking Lily up and down.
Lily grabbed her ponytail and shook her head no. “I’m just here to talk to my friend Tabitha.”
“Ah, yes. Miss Gordon.” The woman looked relieved and pointed to the back.
Lily slunk back to the sinks. The whole place gave her the creeps. Lily hated the chemical smells and the prissy women who had certainly never won a drop ball battle in their lives. Lily’s mom cut her hair (if you could call battles over half-inch trims haircuts). What was the point of getting your hair done when it was going to get sweaty at practice anyway?
“Hey,” Lily said, walking up to the sink.
Tabitha was looking up at the ceiling as a thin pale man massaged her scalp. She glanced out of the corner of her eye. “LJ? What are you doing here?”
“I wanted to talk to you about the game.” Tabitha closed her eyes. “Listen, LJ, I appreciate it, and it’s been fun hanging out and all, but I’m pretty sure I’m done with the whole soccer thing.”
“What? Why?” Lily asked.
“You know why. I pretty much am the worst player, and let’s face it, I’m not exactly used to being at the bottom of any ladder. Soccer was fun, but my future is as a dancer.”
Lily could hear defensiveness in Tabitha’s voice that worried her. The queen was in court today.
“You can’t quit, Tabitha.”
“Of course I can. Why not?”
“Because ...” Lily tried to think of an answer. “We’re a team.”
“Oh, that’s a good one, coming from the girl who got suspended for being selfish.”
“I was wrong. I know that now.”
“Maybe I just don’t like soccer. Not everyone is obsessed like you are, you know?”
“But you do like soccer, Tabitha, I know you do.”
The skinny technician gathered Tabitha’s hair in a towel and directed her over to a cutting station. Lily followed and watched as he began to comb out the knots.
“Tabitha, I can help you. When I was on the bench the other day, I was watching and I think I know what’s wrong.”
Tabitha’s eyes narrowed. “LJ, I’m trying to relax and get my hair done. I certainly do not want to think about that game anymore.”
“I’m sorry... I just thought that maybe what you wanted to ask me the other day was to help you a bit?”
“Well, you’re too late. You know what would really help me?” Tabitha asked in an obnoxious tone. “Layers. That’s what I really need. Isn’t that right, Seth?”
“Absolutely.” He laughed. “And an organic deep conditioner.”
Lily wouldn’t give up. “Remember when we were in your basement and you showed me how to do a pirouette? You just walked up and did it. Without thinking. Without worrying. And it was perfect. You know why? Because you already saw it in your head. You believed.”
“Yeah, so?” Tabitha asked. “What does ballet have to do with soccer?”
“It’s the same thing. You know what to do on the field. You just don’t believe you can do it.”
Tabitha’s haircutter arrived with the perpetually annoyed look of someone convinced the styling of hair was of vital service to the world.
“What are we doing today, Tabitha?” she sniffed.
“Anything,” Tabitha answered.
Lily tried one more time. “I heard your dad at the game. I saw him leave after the Tigers scored.”
A sad look crossed Tabitha’s pretty face. A silence hung between the girls as the stylist held her scissors aloft, waiting for a cue from Tabitha. Lily looked eagerly at her friend. Tabitha pursed her lips and reached for a tattered tabloid.
“My dad had to talk to my brother’s coach. That’s why he left the game early,” she said. “Look, I just don’t feel like playing anymore. Give it a rest. I mean, you really think a girl like me needs tips on confidence from someone like you?”
chapter 17
Lily slowed her and stopped halfway between the salon and the restaurant. Standing toe to toe with her reflection, she brushed past freckles and locked onto her own gaze. She pushed in closer. So close, her breath clouded the glass.
Lily didn’t believe Tabitha for a second. She wanted to be better at soccer. She actually liked the game, Lily was sure of it.
“Shouldn’t you be washing windows?” a voice asked.
Lily spun around to find G-4, Mark Gordon and his buddies straddling their bikes in a semicircle on the sidewalk. With echoes of her mother’s voice ringing in her head, Lily moved away, walking quickly and quietly down the street. Katerina’s was close by. G-4 got on his bike and jumped the curb, following Lily from the street.
“Late for work? Or is today dish-washing day?” Lily felt the heat of anger building at the base of her neck. Keep quiet, she warned herself. Lashing out at this jerk is what got you into so much trouble in the first place. The familiar awning was in her sights.
“Not feeling so tough today without your weapon, huh . . .”
She stopped in her tracks and glared at G-4. The smirk on his face was proof enough to her that he was the one who broke the sign. Lily had no doubt at all. She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry I kicked the ball at you. That was wrong.”
Her apology threw Griff off. He was silent for a moment, and Lily resumed walking.
“Let’s go.” Mark Gordon was suddenly beside Griff. “We’ve got practice.”
Lily mentally thanked Tabitha’s brother for moving him along, but she didn’t say a word. It felt strangely empowering to keep her cool, a new experience, to be sure.
But G-4 shrugged off his friend. “What’s the matter?” he said. “Getting kicked off the team has made you soft?”
Lily faced Griff and saw the determination in his eyes. It was then that she knew. He wanted her to fight back. He was desperate to show off in front of his friends, and the more she kept her cool, the more foolish he knew he looked.
So she did the one thing she knew would fluster him the most.
She smiled.
Then she turned and walked away.
Lily could hear the boys follow her and was relieved when she arrived at the door to Katerina’s. She swung it open and left G-4 behind her.
She headed straight for the kitchen.
“Hi, LJ.”
“Is Vee here?” she asked her father.
He looked back and nodded. “She’s here, and she’s got some great news.”
“I know,” Lily said. “It’s so amazing.
And she totally deserves it. You know the best part? Soon everyone in Brookville is going to be talking about the great Vee Merino.”
Liam came back and gave Lily a hug. Over her father’s shoulder, Lily saw the kitchen door creak open. A petite black-haired girl walked out and locked eyes with Lily. Lily wondered if she’d been listening.
“Dude!” Vee shouted as an electric grin flashed across her face.
chapter 18
Lily’s father granted the girls a ten-minute make-up reprieve, so she and Vee went out to the lot behind Katerina’s. Vee kept smiling, and the two automatically spread out, taking their favorite spots between the extra parking and the small patch of grass. Lily put the ball on the ground and passed it gently to Vee. It had been too long since it was just two friends kicking around. Vee tapped it back.
“I’ve been a jerk,” Lily said mid-trap.
Vee nodded in agreement. “Did you mean what you said back there?” she asked.
“Of course I did,” Lily said. “I’m really proud of you.”
“That’s funny, because I thought you were mad at me.”
“I guess I was just jealous,” Lily answered truthfully, passing the ball back. “None of this was your fault. I’m sorry, Vee.”
Vee was still smiling, but she looked at the ground now. The ball stopped at her feet. “Well, I’ve been a little jealous too.”
“Of what?”
“Tabitha. I don’t have all the stuff she has. I don’t have a driver and expensive games or anything like that.”
“Believe me,” Lily said, “you have no reason to be jealous of Tabitha. If anything, she should be jealous of you. I think maybe she is.”
Vee kicked the ball back.
Lily lifted her leg and the ball landed on her sneaker like it was made of Velcro.
“Man, I sure wish you could play this weekend,” Vee said. “We’re going to need you bad, dude.”
“Me too,” Lily said. “But Coach has his reasons.”
The back door to the restaurant opened and Lily looked up, expecting to hear it from her father. The ten minutes were certainly up. She was surprised to see Tomás instead. “Ladies, there is someone here to see you.”
Lily and Vee waited to see who it could be. Tomás opened the kitchen door, and out walked Tabitha Gordon.
“Hey,” Tabitha said.
“Wow,” Lily whispered, a little unsure.
Tabitha came down the back stairs, hesitating a moment when she reached the garbage cans near the bottom step. Tension hung in the air. Lily held her breath but relaxed as Vee made her move in the unspoken lingo of soccer: she passed Tabitha the ball.
The three girls knocked it around for a while, and Lily was surprised to see that Tabitha was doing really well. Good, in fact. Then Lily and Vee’s jaws just about dropped to the floor when Tabitha rolled the ball up her foot and started to juggle. She used both feet and even did a few thigh taps. Plus, she had perfect hair. Vee and Lily were blown away.
“Wow!” Vee cheered. “That was great!”
“Where did you learn to do that?” Lily asked.
“I’ve been practicing a lot in my basement. With Rini,” Tabitha answered with a grin. “My dad thinks I’m doing pliés.”
Lily couldn’t believe it. “What’s your record?”
“Oh, I think like thirty?” Tabitha said.
“Thirty!” Vee and Lily looked at each other, impressed.
“Uh, so why can’t you do anything like that during the games?” Vee asked.
Tabitha looked down. “I freak out, I guess. I try to tell my feet and legs what to do, but they just don’t seem to listen.”
“Well, if you can juggle like that, then you can pretty much do anything,” Vee said.
Tabitha shook her head. “No, I can’t. I’ve tried to tell myself I can, but nothing works. LJ, I’ve wanted to ask you for help for a long time. I just didn’t know how to ask. You know, everyone seems to expect ... certain things from me.”
“Like your dad?”
Tabitha nodded. “It was such a big deal for him to let me play this year. Then, in the one game I got real playing time, I totally choked. He’s the one pressuring me to quit soccer and focus only on ballet. I wasn’t sure at first, but when I saw how amazing you and Vee are, I realized I don’t really want to quit.”
“Vee got picked for the State Select Team,” Lily said.
“That’s awesome, Vee.”
Lily and Vee’s eyes met. “We can help you,” Lily said.
“Really?”
Lily and Vee answered together, “Of course!”
Lily thought for a moment, then jogged over to the garbage can goal and counted twelve paces. “Here,” she said firmly, and marked the spot with a rock.
“What’s she doing?” Tabitha asked Vee. Vee shrugged.
“Soccer is a game of confidence, right? You have to believe you can do it. You have to see it in your head like it’s really happening.” Lily ran to get the ball and dropped it on the spot.
“Vee, can you play goalie for a second?” Lily asked. “Tabitha, you come over here.”
Vee understood right away and jumped into position in the goal, which was really just two garbage cans fifteen feet apart.
“The only thing that’s holding you back is this,” Lily said, and she pointed to Tabitha’s head.
“My haircut? I thought it was pretty happening.”
“Yeah, right, very High School Musical 25,” Lily said. “I meant your brain. It’s all in your head.”
“Tell that to my feet.” Tabitha laughed.
“Remember at the salon when I tried to tell you about doing a pirouette? You can do one with your eyes closed, right?”
“Sure, no problem.” Tabitha closed her eyes and executed a perfect twirl. Vee whistled from the goal.
“See? You know you can do it. You can see where you want your arms, your head, your legs. It’s all up here. You see it first and then you do it. Easy.”
“So if I see myself making great plays, I’ll actually make them?”
“Trust me, it’s all the same thing. You have to believe it before you can make it happen, and in soccer there’s one time where it’s true more than any other.”
Lily looked at Vee.
“Penalty kicks!” the two friends said together.
“Chris would never let me take a penalty kick,” Tabitha said.
“It doesn’t matter if you take them or not,” Lily replied. “But practicing them will teach you to believe because when it comes to penalty kicks, there’s no looking.”
“No looking?” Tabitha asked, shocked. “How are you supposed to take a shot without looking?”
“Watch,” Lily said. She set up the ball and backed up a few paces. “A penalty kick is just you, the ball and the goalie. As soon as the referee blows the whistle, you get one kick and one kick only, right?”
“Right ...” Tabitha was confused.
“I know exactly where I’m going to kick the ball. It’s my little secret. I see it in my head. It’s going in. The goalie, Vee in this case, won’t have a chance.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I see it happening. I see it right now. I know how I’ll approach the ball. I know where it will go. I knew it this morning when I woke up and today at school. I know it now because with a penalty kick, you can never ever look.”
Tabitha graduated from confused to bewildered. Lily explained some more. “See that goalie over there?” Vee waved happily. “She’s going to watch your every move. She’ll watch your eyes. Usually you want to look where you’ll shoot, but not now. You can’t look. Goalies watch and if you look, you’ve lost. They’ll jump that way, and in a penalty kick, if the goalie knows where you’re going, you’ve already missed. So you have to keep it a secret. A secret only you know. A secret you really believe.”
Lily lined up to shoot but kept her eyes on the ball. She never looked at Vee, who was watching her every move. Looking for any clue.
Without even lifting her eyes from the ball, Lily stepped forward and fired into the lower-right corner and the inside of the garbage can. It hit so hard the dented lid went flying backward. Goal. Vee never had a chance.
“You see? I didn’t look. I didn’t have to. I only had to see it in my head. Now you try.”
Vee shagged the ball and sent it back. Lily put the ball back on the mark and Tabitha got ready to shoot. Lily watched from the side and made a beep sound for the referee’s whistle. Tabitha kept her eyes glued to the ball, took a deep breath and moved to shoot. She stepped forward, head down, face full of concentration. But then she lifted her head at the last second and gave herself away. Vee moved to her right and easily stopped the shot.
Tabitha looked deflated. “See? I can’t do it.”
“Yes, you can. It takes practice. You didn’t learn to do a pirouette in five minutes, did you?”
Tabitha shook her head.
“Well, believe me, I didn’t learn to take PKs in five minutes either. Now close your eyes,” Lily said.
“Close my eyes? I can’t do it with my eyes wide open.”
“Trust me. Just close your eyes.”
“Okay,” Tabitha said, shutting her eyes.
“Now in your mind, line up the ball.”
“Okay. Got it.”
“Pretend to hear the whistle.”
“Beep.”
“Take the shot.”
“I feel really stupid.”
“Do it!” Lily laughed. “You need to see it happening. You need to believe you can do it.”
“I can’t,” Tabitha said.
Lily was getting frustrated.
“Wait!” Vee called suddenly. “I have an idea!” She ran over to Tabitha and whispered in her ear. Tabitha smiled and nodded.
“LJ, you’re goalie,” Vee said. Lily had no idea what was going on but took her place on the goal line.
“Okay. Here goes nothing,” Tabitha said, closing her eyes.
Lily waited for Vee’s beep. She waited for Tabitha’s eyes to give her shot away, but they didn’t. She didn’t look up. She didn’t keep her eye on the ball either, though. Lily couldn’t believe her own eyes when Tabitha took the shot. She’d never seen anything like it before in her life. She’d never imagined anything like it in her life. She certainly never believed that could be done. But Tabitha did it all right, and Vee screamed with victory as the ball banged into the garbage can. Lily never had a chance.
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