Faking It

Chapter 46: Slide-Tackles, Sweatbands, and Hope

It was so cold on Saturday that I regretted agreeing to watch the boys' varsity final. But I went anyway, huddled between Audra and Gyeong-Ja, all bundled in a jacket with my hood pulled up against the wind.

"I hope it's going to be warmer tomorrow," Gyeong-Ja said, pulling on a pair of mittens midway through the first half. "As much as I love you both, I don't think I can do this two days in a row."

"It will be," Audra said through chattering teeth. "I'd—"

She was cut off as the ref's whistle pierced the air, calling yet another foul on the opposing team.

"Are they always this dirty?" I asked, while one of our midfielders lined up for their third free kick in just 20 minutes.

"Always," Audra muttered darkly. "JJ actually debated doubling up his gloves because they're notorious for stomping goalies' hands."

"Rude," I muttered.

"I wish the boys weren't playing like absolute turds," Audra said, then raised her voice to shout, "Oy! Wake up, sweeper! Don't let that mess near the net!"

JJ emerged from the scrum with the ball this time, but the past two times he hadn't. The opposing strikers were playing circles around our defenders, and it was only thanks to some stellar goalkeeping from JJ that they boys weren't down by more than two. Unlike in all the other games I'd watched, they hadn't managed to put any points on the board yet, either.

My eyes followed the arc of the ball as it sailed off JJ's foot, deep into the neutral zone. One of our midfielders controlled it, and then, to the sounds of cheering from the crowd of home fans, lobbed it up for a chip and run to Theo.

"Ellerby needs to wake the hell up," Audra muttered under her breath, and she was right. Theo had been off all game, losing the ball in cheap giveaways and messing up crosses that should've made for easy goals. This time, he controlled the ball, but didn't manage to shake the defender tailing him.

Audra leaned forward. "Shoot the bloody—"

The defender slid low into a slide tackle and slammed Theo's leg out from under him.

"What the hell!" Audra and I shouted in unison, leaping to our feet. My hood fell off, and I shoved my hair out of my face as the ref's whistle sliced through the air again. I only sat down when Theo pushed up from where he'd tumbled to the ground and shook himself out, apparently unharmed by the dirty play. It wasn't the first hit he'd taken, and I still held my breath every time he went down. Just because we weren't a thing anymore didn't mean that I wanted to see him hurt. But it did mean that I wouldn't be first in line to see if he was okay after the game.

Jaw working, my traitorous eyes settled on Madeleine's bright white coat, five rows below us. Just like all the other times when Theo had gone down, she hadn't even looked up from where she was chatting and laughing with her friends. Almost as if she were here just to be seen and not because she actually gave a damn. I swallowed the bitter lump in my throat and focused on the game. Thankfully, the ref held up a yellow card to the defender, then gestured for a direct free kick from just outside the 18-yard box.

The opposing defenders set up a wall, with two of our mids jockeying to shove themselves in the middle of it. Theo jogged to the opposite side of the net, hovering level with their sweeper. For the barest of moments, I could've sworn he looked right at me before I ripped my eyes away, back towards the ball.

"All right, here we go." Audra rubbed her hands together.

"They've left him wide open," Gyeong-Ja said.

And they had. When our defender punched the ball up and high, Theo was already sprinting towards the goalie. They jumped at the same time, and Theo managed to get his head on the ball before the goalie could reach it.