the price of being ace

Chapter 41

"No wonder Erin chose you to have a crush on you're not too bad" Taylor says then realizes what she said
"Shit, Erin I was so focused on the game I totally forgot about the Willow situation" I say I mean what if she got free of the cops or what if something else bad happened to her
"Ace stop the spiral" cassie says putting her hands on my shoulders and staring me in the eye or well kinda since she's shorter than me so I'm kinda looking down
"Ok you're right" I say taking some deep breaths
"Focus on the game ace otherwise we're going to have to bench you and that won't be good for us" Taylor says and I nod
"You're one of our best players" n.c says glancing back at Lilly
"The best player" Lilly says picking up on what she just did
"I know I know" I say right before the ref blows the whistle to start the second set

We're 3 points up and hoping to widen the gap when they sub in a player that hasn't seemed to have played at all but seems familiar
"Sorry Im late" I hear her say to her team
"City people" one of the seniors says shaking her head
"Serve like you mean it" their captain says to her as she steps behind the line to get ready to serve
"Woah" digs says but manages to get it up
"Nice job digs" I say and she nods
"Ace" Taylor says then motions with her eyes to Lilly which means she's going to need me to decoy so I start my run up
"Block her" their coach shouts from the sidelines and that girl come all the way to the front

The ball hits the ground in an empty area and our side of the stands cheers
"Let's not let it happen again ladies" their captain says as jazz gets ready to serve
"Nice serve" i say as jazz sends it over
"They're whispering about something" I say noticing that girl and the captain whispering to each other
"Don't worry about it" cassie says
"Here comes the spike" digs says and again that girl has moved up to just behind the 10 foot line its like she's a permanent attacker no matter where she is
"Shoot they're targeting you now so you can't spike" cassie says as she spikes it towards me
"It's ok we have lots of other tricks" I say and she nods
"Play smart guys" I say to my team but I know they will anyway

Taylor makes it look like she's going to send it to Lilly but then dumps it which is the perfect move for a situation like this
"Nice one Taylor" Lilly says giving her a high five
"Hey digs when she hits it at me I'm going to jump back and you can take over you think you can do that?" I ask since we only have 2 points left to go
"Yeah I'll try" she says with a nod
"Ok Emily Make a good serve" Lilly says smiling
"Shoot" she exclaims as it goes right to their libero
"It's ok Emily" I say and she smiles
"Sorry guys" she says but now the girl who came late is in the front row same as me
"Just get ready for the receive" cassie says and she nods then I notice the captain and the girl share a look
"It's coming" I say to digs reading the court

I jump back just in time and leave just enough room for digs who takes the place where I was
"Nice move you two" Lilly says as jazz passes it to Taylor as I start my run up
"Back off" the girl says as I jump to hit it and I'm confused making me just about miss the spike before we collide mid air
"Ace you ok?" Taylor asks helping me up off the gym floor
"Yellow are you kidding me she touched me" the girl shouts and I frown
"I was going in for a spike you slammed yourself into me on purpose we are not the same" I say but the point still won't count anyway
"Don't start" the ref says to her and I smile,at least this ref knows I'm in the right

We are all battling hard and I'm starting to get tired when I see Erin finally walk into the gym and break out in a smile
"She's safe although should've got here sooner" I mutter to myself with a sigh of relief
"It's a long drive into the city cut her some slack" digs says after hearing me
"Who lit a fire under your ass? Just a minute ago you looked tired as hell and now you're good as new" n.c says after I keep a ball in play that would've gone out on us and I point to Erin who's trying to find a seat
"Took a load off" I say and she nods
"Alright guys I know it's hard but one more point and gold is ours" cassie says and I smile
"Let's go guys!" I shout ready to absolutely dominate this last point

I know it's a risky move but I whisper to Taylor the plan even though the balls still in play and she nods
"Are you sure?" She asks and I nod
"Emily needs this" I say and she smiles
"Always giving away the winning point" she says before setting it backwards to where Emily is waiting for the back row attack and it's almost as if everything's moving in slow motion as it trails towards the net

It slams just inside the back line and everyone cheers but I only have one thing on my mind so after the coaches talk I run up to her
"Ace" she exclaims then just buries herself in me and I hug back
"We won" I say then she pulls back and just kisses me
"But...but what about-" I stammer but she cuts me off
"Who cares" she says and I smile
"Are you sure?" I ask and she nods
"After what we just went through it seems small in comparison" she says and I smile
"Come on let's get out of here" I say and she nods