Six Years Ago
"So, are you excited about playing soccer next fall?"
Passing practice in my backyard with Kenzie is the best.
"Yeah," I say, kicking the checkered ball over to her. "Dad got papers back the other day from the academy."
Kenzie doesn't care for soccer. So, why is she asking?
You don't care for psychology, but I don't see you stopping your talks with her, so she can help you. Got 'em!
"Nice!" Kenzie cheers as we go back and forth. "Bet you're great."
I can hear my head's Canter impression going off with every goal I've made in my young career that I see flashing by.
I smirk. "Nah."
"Sure! I've watched you do some of those tricks with the ball and I've seen how fast you can run. You look like a star!"
Star? All I do is play.
I can bounce the ball between my knees a dozen times or so in a row. Is that natural for a twelve-year-old? That doesn't feel like it's special. It feels normal to me. What does Kenzie know about soccer anyway? Her only experience is...this.
Stephen.
"Bet you'll make the team. How cool will that be? Then, I can go to your games and shout to every soccer mom in the stands that...that kid's my best friend and I believed in him from the start!"
Kenzie—
Whoa. Incoming!
Kenzie's making a break for it. She's heading right at me to try and score by kicking the ball against the back of the house. She's good. But, I'm better. I let my instinct kick in. The next thing I know, I slide into her feet for the tackle. She trips. The ball ricochets off my heels, skids away, and taps against the side of the garage.
I look back. Kenzie's...okay.
Clean tackle by Vaughn.
"Sorry," I say, offering her a helping hand.
Kenzie takes my hand. "See?"
"See what?"
"Can't wait to watch you really play," she says, catching her breath. "You'll win a trophy and be an all-star!"
Play, win, then dance along to "The Whip" by Locksley (that's the song that plays whenever the Fisher Cats win a game).
Yeah. Maybe I could, couldn't I?
YOU ARE READING
Earhart & Noonan: An "Us Club" Novel (#1)(NaNoWriMo15)
Teen FictionFor the first twelve years of Stephen Vaughn's life, just trying to get others around him to pronounce his first name the right way ("Stee-vehn Vawn") has felt like the hardest task he's had to try and cope with. That is, until his perfect life with...
