Blow Out (5 page)

“Soccer practice?” Lacy mumbled. “It's okay.”

She glanced at Nita for help, but her friend's fingers were playfully traveling up Reggie's arm as he whispered in her ear. Lacy felt so awkward. Peyton wasn't Sam, whom she could flirt with and not have it mean anything. When Peyton's deep brown eyes met hers she looked away, almost afraid she might melt.

“How's your knee?” Peyton asked.

“It's coming along. I'm just…” She hesitated, not wanting to sound like a wimp.

“Scared?” he finished for her.

“Yeah,” she said, letting out a breath.

“I had an ACL thing a year and a half ago.”

“You did?”

He took another bite of his pizza. “Yeah, it totally sucked! Did you need surgery, too?”

Lacy nodded. “It was horrible. But I think the worst part was physical therapy.”

“Yeah, I felt like punching my therapist a few times. ‘Come on, give me ten more!'”

Lacy laughed.

“Scared the crap out of me to play again. Well, for a while, anyway.”

“You're not worried about it now?”

“Not really. I'm still pretty good at one-touch scoring off crosses. I don't think twice about sprinting into a crowd anymore.”

Fearless scoring had been one of Lacy's strengths too. She'd come up with creative goals no matter what was happening around her.

“I think I'm jealous,” Lacy said.

“Don't be. I've still got the same problems I always had.” He shoved the last of the pizza into his mouth. “Coach had me try a penalty kick in our last game. Overflew the net by five feet. Totally embarrassing.”

“Huh. I'm just the opposite.”

“You've got a good kick?”

“She's got a
killer
kick with a wicked curve,” Nita said. She grinned at Lacy.

Lacy felt her cheeks warm. Talking to Peyton was fun. She wanted to punch Nita for being right.

O

livia made a brilliant takeaway, stealing the ball from the opposing attacker. She dribbled and passed to Elise in center midfield. As Lacy sprinted to get into position, she glanced over her left shoulder to keep her eyes on the ball. Elise sidestepped a defender and chipped the ball to Nita. With a perfect first touch, Nita got the ball from her thigh to the sole of her foot and jerked away from another defender.

Yes!
Lacy thought. The pattern they'd been practicing was working exactly as planned.

Lacy ran across the field, and Nita tapped her the ball. Two defenders charged for it, but Lacy's timing was perfect. She had pulled her foot back to hammer the ball into the net when she heard, “I'll take that.”

Raven knocked the ball out from under Lacy, tripping her in the process. With pain surging through her right knee, Lacy fell to the ground. She saw Raven's strike float over the keeper's hands and into the back of the net as Coach Berg yelled, “Good strike, McAlister!”

Lacy sat up with a start. Sweat had soaked through her T-shirt.

Her door swung open, and the light switched on. “Are you all right?” Lacy's mother asked as she stepped to Lacy's bed.

“Yeah, I think so.”

“I was walking down the hallway and heard you shout.”

Instinctively, Lacy touched her knee. The nightmare had felt so real. “I … I'm okay.”

Her mother sat on the edge of the bed and brushed the hair off Lacy's forehead. “You're perspiring. Do you have a fever?”

“No, Mom. It was just a bad dream. I'm fine. Go back to sleep.”

“What was the dream about?”

Lacy wanted to tell her about the nightmares, but she hesitated. Her mother was not Carrie. Her sister would have figured out that the episode was triggered by Lacy's upcoming scrimmage. Her mother didn't have a clue. “Nothing. I don't remember.”

Her mother's eyes narrowed. “Did it have something to do with your soccer problems?”

Okay, maybe she had more of a clue than Lacy thought. Lacy sank back onto her pillow. “I told you, I'm fine.”

Her mother murmured, “I'm worried about you. Don't you think this has gone on long enough?”

If she'd asked the question harshly, Lacy would have immediately tuned her mother out. But the caring in her voice made Lacy want to cry. Part of her agreed. It would be easier to quit soccer. Fighting a lump in her throat, Lacy said, “I don't know.”

Lacy's mother sighed and folded her hands in her lap. “Anxiety is a part of life, Lacy. When you're an adult, you'll have to decide for yourself if whatever is stressing you is worth working through. But you're not an adult. And I'm your mother. I don't like seeing you in this much pain.”

She patted Lacy's head and rose. “I've found you an adorable dress for the Belle League luncheon.”

“Mother—”

“It's really fabulous,” she said, and winked. “I think you'll be surprised.” She walked to the door and turned. “The league is not just a social club, you know. We do wonderful work for Fraser. Who do you think is funding the hospital's new maternity wing?”

She paused with her hand on the doorframe. “It's a legitimate future for you, Lacy. A husband, children, community service. Think about it.” She shut off the light and closed the door.

Lacy lay in the darkness. The Belle League. A husband and children. Those were things her mother wanted for her. But did she want them for herself? She hated thinking about her future.

Lacy didn't like thinking about her present, either. She wanted to go back ten months to last year's regionals, when she was playing at the top of her game and life was perfect. No past, no future, just
now
.

She sighed and rolled over. She wanted that feeling back. Of running fearlessly and making goals. Like in the dream she'd just had, before it turned into a nightmare. And she
could
have that, couldn't she? Her leg was fine. She was playing on it, falling on it. Nothing terrible had happened.

She thought of telling Coach Berg about what Nita had found out about Raven. But there was no proof, only allegations. If Lacy tattled, it would look as though she was trying to get her position back without doing the work. No. If she wanted to play left forward, she had to earn it. That meant she had to impress Coach Berg more than Raven did. At tomorrow's scrimmage she had to outplay Raven.

N

ita and Lacy stretched together on the field.

“Reggie said he'd try to make it,” Nita said. “Let me know if you see him.”

“You are totally hung up on that boy.”

“Um … maybe. Yeah. As long as he doesn't disrupt my game.”

Lacy glanced into the stands. Since it wasn't a regular conference match, only a few people were there to watch, including some parents and freshmen with nothing better to do on a Friday afternoon.

Win or lose, the score of this match wouldn't count toward in-season standings. But for the girls fighting for a position on the team, it was a very big deal. Coach said the game would sway his choice of starters for the rest of the season. If Lacy were to grade her practices since her meltdown after Raven's tackle, she'd give herself a B+. Raven, on the other hand, had been playing at A-level. Lacy took a deep breath.

“Hey, loosen up,” Nita said. “You could crack walnuts with that jaw.”

Lacy gave her a tight smile.

“You've got the experience, Lace. You're the better all-around player. He's going to start you.”

What Lacy didn't tell Nita was that after last night's nightmare, she wasn't sure she wanted to start—or to play at all.

On the sidelines, Coach Berg cleared his throat. “Okay, listen up for today's roster.” He looked down at his clipboard. “Defenders: Williams, Morris…”

Lacy stopped breathing as he continued through the list.

“Right forward: Frey. Center forward: Ortiz. Left forward … McAlister.”

Lacy's heart sank to the bottom of her chest. Nita muttered a slew of curse words and added, “You're going to play today, Lace. One way or another.”

“Don't worry about me. I'm okay,” Lacy said.

Coach Berg continued, “I want to see good performances. Get out there and win!”

Lacy stayed on the sidelines as Nita and the other Copperhead starters took the field. She'd rarely watched her team's matches from the bench. While her ego felt about the size of an insect, it did give her a chance to watch the players from both sides. Lacy noticed that the Norcross defenders were aggressive, but their ball control was a little sloppy. One defender in particular, a tall girl with black hair, had a good shoulder charge. But she didn't move the ball well once she stole it.

As for their own team, Raven had two chances to score in the first half. One shot, a header off of a blistering pass from Elise, cruised into the upper corner of the net. Even Lacy had to admit it was a brilliant play. Raven's other shot looked like it would score, but the Norcross keeper got her fingertips on the ball and slapped it away.

Raven was clearly showing her talent at striking. She was also hogging the ball. Twice, she didn't pass to Nita or Dayton even when they had better looks at the goal. She also kicked a player, but the ref must not have seen it clearly, because she let the team play on. Even so, Lacy knew Raven must be close to a yellow card.

At halftime, the score was tied 1–1. Nita hopped off the field, grimacing. She fell onto the bench next to Lacy, grabbing her ankle.

“Ouch! Holy crap this hurts!”

“Nita, are you okay?” Lacy asked.

Coach Berg strode over.

“That big defender stepped on my ankle. She has elephant feet and weighs a ton.” Nita winced and looked up at Coach. “It really hurts. I don't think I can play the second half.”

Lacy was surprised. It wasn't like Nita to make a big deal about an injury. The ankle didn't even look swollen. Then, suddenly, Lacy knew exactly what Nita was up to.

Coach must have had his suspicions, too. He raised an eyebrow and stared at Nita for a second. “Okay.” Then he glanced at his clipboard and at Lacy. “You're at center, Sheridan. Warm up.”

Lacy jumped off the bench. “Thanks, Coach.” When he was gone, she whispered to Nita, “I can't believe you did that!”

Nita's eyes widened. “What? I am truly in pain.” She gave Lacy a wink.

Lacy sighed. “You better not get caught.”

“Play your heart out, girl.”

As she jogged out to the field, Lacy could see Reggie and Peyton watching from the stands. Peyton smiled at Lacy and gave her a thumbs-up. Also in the stands was a man with a red face, gesturing angrily at a Copperhead player—Raven. She stood in front of him with her head lowered. Then she nodded and jogged back to the field. She passed close to Lacy, giving her a penetrating stare. Lacy shook her head to clear the chill Raven's look gave her.

Who was that guy? If Coach saw him, he wouldn't be happy. Coach Berg hated when parents or club coaches got involved in Copperhead matches.

Although Lacy didn't like how she had ended up in the match, she didn't want to blow the opportunity. Raven was making some great strikes. Lacy had to find a way to outplay her. Whenever the ball came Lacy's way, she handled it quickly, taking control and passing.

A few minutes into the half, the tall Norcross defender stole the ball away from her with a shoulder charge. But Lacy was ready. She immediately went after the slower-moving player and stole the ball back. With the defender between her and the net, Lacy didn't have a clear shot. She kept her eyes up and open while protecting the ball. Suddenly, Dayton broke free. Lacy sent her a high chip. With a perfect header, Dayton flicked it into the net. The goal put the Copperheads up 2–1. The Fraser High sideline erupted in cheers.

After the score, Raven trotted by Lacy and said, “I was open! Why didn't you pass to me?”

“We got the goal, didn't we?”

Raven rolled her eyes. Lacy decided the idea of teamwork must not mean much to Raven. But it didn't matter—Lacy knew she was right to pass to Dayton. Raven had
not
been open. She only hoped Coach had been watching.