by Alex Morgan
When I turned a corner ten blocks away from my house, I noticed a familiar strawberry-blond head bobbing up and down ahead of me. It was Zoe! Looked like I wasn’t the only one who was training extra hard.
“Hey, Zoe!” I called out, excited to see her. It would be nice to have someone to run with. It might even help me take my mind off my legs, which were begging me to stop.
I saw Zoe’s head turn slightly at the sound of my voice, but instead of stopping or turning around, she began to run faster. I could have sworn she saw me out of the corner of her eye.
“Zoe, wait up!” I yelled again, in case she truly hadn’t seen or heard me. I sped up to catch her, but she went down another street. By the time I caught up to the corner where she had turned, Zoe had disappeared from sight.
Did Zoe see me and ignore me on purpose? I thought. I knew Zoe was uncomfortable competing against me, but did that mean we couldn’t even hang out anymore? Things were really getting so strange between us. Yet I couldn’t let it bother me. I had a game to win on Saturday!
• • •
On Saturday morning I woke up early, ready to get onto the soccer field and fight my way into the semifinals.
As I ate my breakfast of oatmeal, a banana, and whole wheat toast, I looked out the window. The sky was dark and cloudy. We’d been experiencing a drought in California, and I knew we desperately needed rain. But why did it have to be today?
My dad noticed my concern. “You can still play in the rain, Devin,” he said. “In fact, it might even give you an advantage. You’ve played in the rain a lot more in Connecticut than these California girls have.”
“Good point, Dad,” I said. He always knew how to look on the bright side.
Then he handed me a glass of orange juice, and I thought of Zoe. When I’d been in my soccer slump, she had helped me out of it. One of her tips was to drink orange juice before a game to help keep me calm. I felt kind of sad thinking about her. After my run on Tuesday, I hadn’t gotten a chance to talk to her about what had happened. She’d been eating lunch all week with the Gators. The whole situation was awkward. I couldn’t dwell on it now. I had to get my head in the game and keep it there.
I went upstairs to put on my uniform. The pink, white, and blue went perfectly with the pink headband I wore at every game. My headband was a tradition I’d brought with me from Connecticut to California. I believed it brought me luck on the field. I was ready to do this!
I felt the butterflies doing the cha-cha in my stomach as Dad pulled into the Pinewood Recreation Center parking lot. If we lost this game, the season would be over for the Griffons.
As we got out of the Marshmallow, I got hugs from my family. They were all wearing Griffons pink, even my dad, who had bought a pink polo shirt just to wear to our games.
“Good luck, Devin!” Maisie said as she gave me a big hug. I couldn’t help but think of Jamie. I was so lucky to have my family’s support and encouragement.
“Bye!” I said to them as I raced toward the field. I saw that some of the other Griffons were already there, warming up.
“Devin, don’t forget to hydrate!” Mom reminded me. She was always telling me to drink more water. I held my water bottle up so she could see it.
“Got it, Mom!” I said.
I tossed my stuff onto the sidelines and caught up with the rest of my team, who were eyeing the sky nervously as they stretched and kicked the ball around.
“I thought I heard thunder,” Jessi said as she walked toward me. “They might cancel the game!”
I groaned. “Oh no, I hope not! I’m all pumped up for this game. If it’s rescheduled, I’ll have to get pumped up all over again.”
“They won’t let us play if there’s a lightning threat,” Tracey chimed in nervously. “It’s really dangerous, you know.”
I looked up. Black clouds were chasing one another across the sky. It definitely looked like it was going to do something.
Coach Darby clapped her hands.
“All right, girls, don’t let a little bad weather get to you!” she said. “If there’s a game delay, we’ll know soon. Until then let’s focus on what we want to accomplish today. You’ve been giving me your all at practices. I’ve been impressed with what I’ve been seeing on the field. You are ready to claim your place in the semifinals. You’ve earned it!”
It was the most encouraging speech she’d ever given us. It made me feel proud to be a Griffon. Then . . . Boom! Thunder exploded overhead. Everyone jumped, even Coach Darby. I’d thought that nothing scared her!
“That sounded close,” she said as the ref walked over to her.
“Clear the field,” he told her. “We’re clearing the stands, too. We’ve got a lightning delay.”
Ugh! My legs twitched. They wanted to be on the soccer field, scoring. But instead they had to march inside to the locker room. I waved to my pink-clad family as they moved with the crowd into the rec center.
“Don’t lose focus,” Coach Darby reminded us. “Once it’s clear, we’ll be back on the field.”
As our team nervously milled around inside the locker room, the tension became unbearable.
“Hey! There’s not enough room to do our cartwheels in here, but let’s toss the soccer ball around,” I said, figuring it might give us something to focus on. I grabbed a soccer ball out of one of the lockers. “We’ll do it the same way we do the cartwheels. Call someone’s name before throwing them the ball.”
Everyone eagerly gathered around in a circle, except for Jamie, who was sitting on a bench and didn’t get up.
“Jamie?” I asked, but she just rolled her eyes at me and shook her head.
I shrugged. I wouldn’t let her bring us down.
“Courtney!” I said as I tossed the ball to our goalie. We all threw the ball back and forth and began joking as we did. We even began to make up silly nicknames for one another as we threw the ball.
“Sasha Fierce!”
“Awesome Amanda!”
“Devin the Destroyer!” (I really liked that one.)
Then the ref came in and told us we could get back onto the field. The lightning had moved away, and the game could begin.
Outside, it was still cloudy, but there were breaks in the clouds where you could see the sun. I took that as a good sign.
The Giraffes won the toss and chose to receive first, but Jessi quickly got possession of the ball. As she dribbled down the field, three Giraffes charged her. I saw the panic on her face.
“Jessi! I’m open!” I called, which brought a Giraffe running over to try to intercept the pass Jessi sent my way. But all my running had paid off. I was simply faster than the defender. I got to the ball first and moved it closer to the goal before taking a shot. The ball bounced off the crossbar and right back at me. I jumped up into the air to meet the ball and headed it into the goal. It all happened so fast that the goalie didn’t see it coming.
“Devin!” Jessi came over and high-fived me, as did a bunch of my other teammates. “That was spectacular!”
Even Jamie gave me a grudging nod. “Good job,” she said gruffly.
Scoring only a minute into the game set the tone. The Giraffes, already thrown off by the lightning delay just as we had been, lost even more confidence after our goal. Meanwhile, it gave the Griffons a ton of confidence, and we were the clear aggressors for the rest of the game.
At the half it was 3–0, Griffons. After the break it was clear the Giraffes had gotten some of their self-assurance back. A few seconds in, one of their midfielders intercepted the ball and dribbled it down, passing it to one of the forwards. She shot it right into the goal.
The Giraffes got possession of the ball a few more times, but our defense kept getting the ball back and eliminating any scoring threats. We were on fire!
At the end of the game, it was 3–1 in favor of the Griffons.
“We’re going to the semifinals!” Jessi cheered, and we hugged each other, jumping up and down.
“Okay, so we
need to get started right away. We’ve got a lot to go over,” Frida said on Monday at lunch as Jessi, Emma, and I sat down. “Did everyone bring food, like I asked, so we don’t waste time waiting in line?”
“I always bring my lunch,” I said, unwrapping my hummus-and-sprouts pita wrap. “My mom says that cafeteria lunches are a nutritional joke.”
“Maybe, but tater tots are delicious,” Emma said with a longing look at the menu board. “I love tater tot day!”
Jessi looked at Emma’s fancy cloth lunch bag. “So, what did your mom pack you?”
Emma looked inside. “Ham and brie on a baguette with honey mustard; fruit salad; and carrot sticks with tarragon dip.”
Jessi’s eyes got wide. “And you’re wishing for tater tots? Seriously? Tell you what, you can trade it all for my PB&J and squeezable yogurt.”
Emma shook her head. “No way. I may have to give up tater tots, but I’m not giving up my brie.”
“Can we focus, please?” Frida asked. “This is exactly the kind of thing I wanted to avoid. I’ve got a lot of planning to do for this movie premiere and my party, and I need your help.”
She pulled a notebook and a stack of magazines from her backpack. “I need a menu, and a red carpet dress, and a dress for my party, and—” She stopped. “Hey, where’s Zoe?”
I scanned the cafeteria. Zoe and some of the Gators were sitting at a table in the corner.
“She’s over there,” I said with a nod.
“But she must have gotten my text,” Frida said. “This is important. She’s the only one of you guys with any real fashion sense!”
“Hey!” Emma protested, and Jessi and I just shook our heads.
“Well, it’s true and you know it,” Frida said. “No offense or anything, but Zoe just really has her eye on all the trends. And my mom won’t let me get a stylist for the red carpet, so I need Zoe’s help.”
“Well, why don’t you just ask her to come over here?” I asked. That would have been the simple, sensible thing to do, right? But Frida wasn’t simple, and when she was riled up about something, she was usually not too sensible.
“I know she got my text,” Frida said, sounding annoyed. “But I guess whatever’s happening with the Gators is more important than my movie premiere.”
I understood why Frida was upset, but I thought I knew where Zoe was coming from too.
“Try to think of it from her point of view,” I said. “The winter league championships are kind of like the movie premiere of soccer, you know? So that’s where she’s focusing all her energy.”
“That’s true!” Emma said, sticking up for Zoe. “That’s all she talks about lately!”
“Well, she could have texted me and told me,” Frida said defensively.
“Frida’s right,” said Jessi. “I mean, Zoe’s kind of been ignoring us lately.”
I knew Jessi had a point. “I still think you should talk to her,” I told Frida.
Frida glanced over at the Gators table. “No, that’s fine. I can go over the red carpet dress with her some other time. You guys can help me with the menu for the party at my house. I wanted to do something fancy, but the movie is set in a mall. And caviar and malls don’t seem to go together.”
“Ooh, I know!” said Emma, bouncing in her seat. “You should serve the kinds of food you get at the mall. Like hot pretzels and corn dogs and stuff like that.”
Frida’s eyes brightened. “Hey, that’s not a bad idea! Plus my mom said there was no way she would serve caviar anyway. But she won’t say no to corn dogs.”
“Menu accomplished,” said Emma. “Can we eat now?”
“Yes, but we need to keep brainstorming,” Frida said. “Like some mall-themed beverages and a mall-themed dessert. And what color should I do the plates and cups and decorations?”
“Isn’t there a logo for the movie?” I asked. I had remembered seeing it on a T-shirt Frida had worn.
Frida showed me a picture on her phone of the words “Mall Mania” with zigzag lines and hearts around them. The logo was pink on an orange background.
“How about pink and orange?” I suggested.
“I love that combination,” Jessi said.
Frida nodded. “I could get pink and orange flowers, and pink and orange balloons . . . but then what color dress would I wear? I’d have to pick something that won’t clash.”
She glanced over at Zoe again, and I got ready for her to start complaining. Luckily, Cody and Steven walked up just then.
“Good job getting into the semifinals,” Cody said.
“Yeah, so do you guys play the Gators next?” Steven asked.
“Not yet,” I replied. “We’ll face the Grizzlies in the semifinals next, and the Gators will face the Gazelles. Then the winner from each of those games will play each other for the championship.”
“Oh, I get it!” Emma piped up.
I could see Emma picturing the whole slate in her head. “So, if the Griffons win your game on Saturday, and the Gators win their game on Saturday, you’ll both be playing each other for the winter league championship?”
“That’s right,” Jessi said.
“Well, good luck,” Steven said, and the boys walked off.
Emma and Frida exchanged glances.
“I hope you’re not worried about who to root for again,” I said. “Like I said before, it doesn’t matter.”
“Well, I guess we’ll just wait and see what happens!” Emma said cheerfully. Then she turned to Frida. “You know what would be cool at your house? A pink-and-orange carpet instead of a red carpet! You could put it in the hallway for when everyone walks in.”
Frida and Emma started talking about party decorations, and I glanced over at Zoe’s table. I had to give it to Zoe, she was superfocused on winning that championship.
But so was I.
Win . . . win . . . win . . . , I repeated over and over as I jogged around the track, my ponytail bouncing against my neck in time with the chant. Win . . . win . . . win . . .
It was Thursday afternoon, and Coach Darby was putting us through another grueling practice to prepare for our semifinal game coming up on Saturday. We would be playing the Grizzlies. We had beaten them the last time we’d played them—but no thanks to me.
The last Grizzlies game had come right after I had been shaken up by my first California earthquake. Coach Darby had started me in the game, and I’d gone offsides in the first few minutes! Right after that I had missed an easy pass that had been intercepted by one of the Grizzlies, and they’d gone on to score! I’d lost focus after that, and I’d missed another easy pass—and that was when Coach Darby had benched me and put Jamie in my place.
As I jogged another lap now, I practiced one of the techniques Zoe had taught me. I pictured the Grizzlies game in my head. This time when the pass rolled to me, I was right on it. I stopped the ball with my foot and then charged down the field, breezing by every defender who tried to stop me. The goalie’s eyes were glued to me, but I wasn’t afraid. I kicked the ball hard and to the right of her, and she dove for it . . . and missed!
“Score!” I cheered out loud, because the whole scene in my head seemed so real. Jessi, who was jogging next to me, gave me a look.
“Let me guess,” she said. “There’s a soccer game going on in your head right now.”
“Something like that,” I told her.
She grinned and shook her head. “You are so obsessed! Come on. Race you to the finish.”
Then she tore off ahead of me, and I raced to catch up. We crossed the finish line at the same time and then high-fived.
One by one the rest of the Griffons crossed the line behind us. A few girls immediately flopped onto the grass outside the track. Coach Darby had really worked us hard again.
“Good effort today, girls!” Coach Darby said. “I’m calling for another practice tomorrow, same time.”
There were a few groans, but Coach Darby silenced them with a steely glare.
I raised my hand. “
Coach, we had started to plan another team building activity for tomorrow, but we can always do it after practice.”
“Like another pizza party?” Jamie asked, rolling her eyes.
“No, I was actually thinking maybe we could go to the ice-skating rink,” I said.
“We’re not risking any broken ankles!” Coach Darby snapped. “But if you girls want to do something that will build teamwork, I’ve got a few thoughts. Leave it to me.”
I was a little surprised. We had never included Coach on our team building outings before, but of course, she was part of the team too. I was dying to ask what she had in mind, but I knew better.
“See you at practice tomorrow,” she said. “I’ll e-mail your parents about the team building once I’ve got the details worked out.”
“What do you think she has in mind?” I asked Jessi as we walked toward the parking lot.
“I don’t know. What would Coach Darby think is fun? Pounding bricks with a sledgehammer?” Jessi wondered.
I laughed. “Oh gosh, now I’m scared! What if it’s something awful?”
I was so anxious to find out what Coach Darby had planned that I bugged my mom and dad all night to see if they had received an e-mail from her. Finally, at eight fifteen, Mom came into my room when I was doing homework.
“Okay, I got the e-mail from Coach Darby,” Mom said.
I practically jumped out of my chair. “What does it say?”
“Practice is from three to four thirty,” Mom replied. “Then she’s giving you a dinner break and asking everyone to report to 123 Lavender Drive in Kentville at five forty-five. Then we’re supposed to pick you up at seven.”
“123 Lavender Drive?” I asked. “Is that where Coach lives? Does she want us to paint her house or something?”
Mom shrugged. “I guess you’ll find out tomorrow.”