Milo Skart had a terrible decision to make.
"Help me."
The pregnant teen girl stumbled into the lobby of the Atraville Hospital. Barefoot and tattered, she appeared ready to give birth.
"Help my baby."
However, the girl and her unborn child carrie...
Hock Note: Kwin keeps getting distracted by Milo and the strange happenings in Newton Hall. Coach is none too happy with her.
After Kwin missed yet another goal, Coach Logan stormed over to where she treaded air in the goalkeeper's box. Coach moved around good for a middle-aged woman, not a hair out of place.
"You weren't paying attention again, were you?"
Even though Coach didn't yell, Kwin still felt the force of her words. They were like a hurricane.
"I know Coach," Kwin said. "I can work on it. I'm good. Don't take me out."
"You missed a goal because you weren't paying attention. That's attitude. You're right, you need to work on that. I want you to sit on the bench until you decide to put your head in the game."
Coach wasn't being fair. "No, Coach. You can't do this. I'll get better-"
"Alec's coming in." Coach waved towards the bench. "Go. Sit on the bench."
"Coach I can work on it. I'm better than him. You can't take me out. I can work on it."
Coach pointed to the bench floating just off the sideline at the center of the field. "Don't argue with me. Go. Sit."
The entire team gathered around. A larger audience watched from pontoons, jets, and boards. The two pumped their legs just enough to keep them from sinking, surrounded by the red lines of the goalkeeper's box. Alec flew over, pumping his legs just behind Coach, bouncing up and down, ready to play. He had a big smirk all over his haughty face. Even his fake bionic eyes sneered at her.
She yelled back. "Coach, don't do this. I'm the best. You can't do this to me again."
"I want you on the bench."
"Coach-"
Coach didn't appear angry, at least not yet. But Kwin knew her. She would start yelling at any moment. Except she didn't.
"If I hear another word," Coach said quietly, "you're off the team."
Kwin didn't speak another word, she made sure of that. She didn't pump her legs to go over to the bench either. She simply stopped pedaling and sank slowly down to the green mossy ground. Spectators gathered around but she didn't respond to them. She didn't look at them.
"Where are you going?"
"What will you do?"
She didn't look back at Coach or Alec or any of her fans. She didn't care who jeered her.
"Kwin, don't do this."
Mischa was a mighty good friend. She was as good as friends get. As Kwin walked away from her college soccer career, Mischa touched down next to her.
"Kwin, just sit on the bench. You'll be back in again. You're better than Alec. If you walk away Coach won't let you back on the team."
Kwin didn't even turn to look at her. "I'm not sitting on the bench."
"Where are you going?"
She hadn't thought that far ahead.
"Kwin, come back."
But she kept walking. To her right were the narrow red-brick structures of Yukawa and Feynman, and on her left were the larger square Einstein and much smaller Bohr buildings. She kept walking straight to Newton. Eventually, Mischa gave up trying to change her mind. As most of the spectators returned to watch the practice, Mischa went with them, leaving Kwin alone.
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Coach sounded the whistle. She could hear the shouts of the scrimmage resuming. A warm summer breeze blew across her hot head. She wanted to think about something else. She was sure the naughty boy was with Professor Aidan. Why did they meet up there? Why did the Axion captain come to Newton Hall and why did she leave without her soldiers? Most of all, why did the naughty boy have those welts?
She wasn't thinking straight when she climbed the steps leading up to the row of glass entrance doors. She felt like doing something mighty reckless. She had never stepped foot in Newton Hall before now. Physics wasn't her thing. Sure, she knew Atraville was known for physics, but she didn't enroll in it. In fact, she avoided it. Atraville put together a good soccer squad. She wanted to win the championship. She wanted to play, study business, and get rich.
Not any more.
Once she got inside, she pulled a sheet out of her pocket and looked up Professor Aidan. Yep, the pro was on the third floor. She rode the helical escalator up and announced herself to the only door in the darkened hall at the top of the escalator.
The naughty boy answered, the welts moving across his body. She stared at him for too long, neither of them saying anything. The escalator spun behind her.
As her head cooled, she realized she had paid good money to attend Atraville for their traditional soccer program. She had spent years in strict training and harsh diets since she had been a young girl. Not only that, but she had endured numerous operations to augment her body, supplement her muscular structure, and implant the athletic modules into her brain. Now she had thrown it all away with one rash decision.
"What do you want to do?" the naughty boy said finally.
