Number 12

Chapter 5

Jake’s POV

Watching Sam and Michael was strange. I had never seen Sam act like that especially around boys. Michael seemed to be a nice guy but I have no idea how he managed to get Sam to open up to him. He was joining our team too. If he could get Sam to trust him he must me a genius.

Sam was already in Health when I got there. She was talking to Cody behind her before Ms Wilson came in silencing all talk.

‘You must ask your neighbour what their favourite number is’ she told us.

‘Mine is 17’ I told Sam.

‘Mine’s 12’ she smiled.

‘Miss Anderson what is your favourite number?’ Ms Wilson asked.

‘12’ she replied.

‘Why?’ Ms Wilson asked.

‘It is the number on my football jersey and has been since I started. I got asked to join the Johnsonville Jaguars when I was 12 and I last saw my family at 12:00am so midnight on 12 avenue’ she explained.

Lunch was disaster. I was campaigning for Class President when I saw Sam arguing with a boy. At first I thought it was Michael but he was taller.

‘You failed senior year twice’ she said.

‘It’s hard when you have a sister like you. I used to play football but when I saw you got accepted for the best team in the country at the age of 12 I gave up’ he snapped.

‘At least I went to the funeral and I found out one of them wasn’t my parent’ she retorted.

 He shoved her against the lockers. She was the same height as he was but he held her arms to her sides and was punching her in the ribs. One punch hit a different place and she collapsed on the floor screaming in pain. Michael ran up and supported it. I wanted to help but Michael waved me off with a talk to you later look.

Sam’s face saw sad to look at. I gathered up the rest of the football team to talk and try and see what we would figure out about Sam and her past.

‘She has lost her family’ Cody said first.

‘But that boy in the hallway was a brother or half-brother’ Zac added.

‘Michael knows the truth’ Nathan said.

Michael was already in the locker room when we got there and he pulled me aside.

‘I know you want to know but it isn’t my job to say. Sam will tell you when she is ready but she doesn’t trust you completely yet. Don’t worry it took me almost six weeks for her to trust me. if that ever happens you have to call me’ he said before going to  get changed.

Sam was already out there.

‘Are you ok to train?’ I asked her

‘Just because I fall over in the hallway doesn’t mean I can play’ she snapped joining Cody.

Today was a fitness day and half way through the session everyone was coated in sweat. Sam pulled her shirt off to wring it dry. She had a white bandage wrapped around her midsection. She noticed me looking and she pulled her shirt back on. The weather was unbelievably hot for October so invited some of the team around to play in our pool.

Sam refused to get in the pool. I knew she had a bikini on under her football shirt but she sat on the side dragging her ankles in the water.

‘Come on’ Michael called. I took it into my own hands and picked her up.

‘Jake Daniel Anderson, put me down’ she yelled.

‘You are in trouble man of she pulled out the full name card’ Cody said. I dumped her in the pool and she disappeared below the surface. She must have pulled her shirt off as when she got up she tossed it at me and it got me soaking wet. She pulled herself out and sat on the edge.