Switching Sides | A Jamie Johnson FanFiction

• Part 3

I didn't really know how well I could play football when I got to tryouts. I knew I could kick a ball at least, and I knew the rules, but anything else I had no idea on my abilities.

Being there without anyone I knew was a bit daunting, but I recognized the football coach: he'd said well done to me in PE once. According to Callum, by joining the football team, or at least trying, I was 'completely ruining my life because it meant having to work with Jethro' which was apparently why Callum had never stepped foot on a pitch before too. Ruby seemed adamant that she wasn't going either, so I was on my own.

To start the coach made a huge speech about 'having to have a good attitude of you want to be on the team' and 'he will not tolerate any bad behavior from anyone'. As he emphasized the word 'anyone', he gazed at Jethro and I wondered if his bad behavior continued even in a sport he enjoyed.

Then the coach stopped talking and grabbed some footballs from the store cupboards, passing one to every one of us.

"Ok. Penalties. Then a 5-a-side match." He said quickly, and everyone stood up, so I followed. Each one of us stood in a line, the front person putting down their ball on the penalty spot and taking a shot. In the goal, there was no goalie, instead a sheet of plastic or something with different holes as targets. The first boy, (Jethro unsurprisingly) blasted it straight into the top corner, earning him a small round of applause from the onlookers. After Jethro was his mate Alex, who blasted it straight into the other corner, obviously not wanting to upstage Jethro by equaling his shot.

As the line got increasingly shorter, I tapped my foot at the back of the queue, thinking about how embarrassing it would be if I missed. Eventually, it got to me, and I put the ball down on the spot and took a couple of steps backwards, and slightly to the left as I'd seen many footballers do on TV.

A few others had missed before me, but the pressure was still on as literally everyone was watching, including Jethro.

I struck it but it wasn't anywhere near as good as Jethro's or Alex's. It did go towards the target in the lower left hand corner, but just missed it slightly.

I saw Jethro and Alex smirking, but I didn't know what at.

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When I got home, I saw Indira waiting on the steps reading a magazine. "Hey." she said.

"Alright?"

"Why are you home so late?"

"...I was trying out for the...football team." I said cautiously and I saw her eyes widen.

"But you can't play football."

"Says who?"

"Says you! Bella you don't like football!" she said incredulously.

"I do! Of course I do." I said, but wondered if it was true. "So how was Kingsmount?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Alright I suppose." she said, but I could see she was hiding a smile.

"Let me guess, you're one of the popular ones who everyone loves?" I asked, and she smiled.

"Maybe, I suppose." But I knew she was lying. Indira was always popular.

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