The Healing Powers of Soccer

Chapter 2

After an hour of drills, Coach Brian finally, let us scrimmage. I was on a team with Sam, Maddie, Olivia, Maya, Allie, and Isabella. Allie and Maya played fullback or defense, while Maddie, Olivia, and I played midfield. Isabella was our forward or striker, and Sam played goalie. We all played at our best and I even scored 2 goals! At the end of practice, the two teams were tied, and we all walked to our bags on the side of the field. Everyone drank water, took off their cleats, and put on slides or flip flops. The crisp autumn air felt good on our fevered skin.

When I got home there was a plate of rice and curry waiting for me on the dining room table. My mom was working late, meaning that there was no one home. 

After eating and cleaning up I went downstairs to my room. Our house is on the side of a cliff and when you enter the front door you are upstairs with the kitchen, dining room, living room, bathroom, and guest bedroom. Downstairs is another bathroom, my mom's room, and the den. If you keep walking down the stairs you come to my room, with its own private bathroom. Across the hall from my room is my mom's gym, which I also sneak into when she's at work. We have a huge house for just the two of us, but my mom works extremely hard 6 or 7 days a week as a labor and delivery nurse so she's earned this house.

I went down to my room and facetimed Chloe. Her brother, Ben, picked up her phone. Because I'm an only child, Ben is the closest person I have to a brother and he's annoying alright. 

"Ugh, give Chloe her phone back."

"Fine," he's a grade above Chloe and I, in ninth grade. He handed Chloe the phone and I flopped onto my bed, ready for some girl talk.

After talking for half an hour or so Chloe had to go and shoot her most recent music video, which could only be filmed in the evening, due to the lighting outside.

I didn't mind, because I had homework. I grabbed my backpack, taking out my laptop. After finishing my math homework, I took out my project notebook. I had to do a presentation on the thing that makes me the happiest, so of course, soccer!

Here's what I had already written:

The thing that makes the happiest is, without a doubt, soccer. I live and breathe soccer and nothing gives me the same feeling as walking off the field after another amazing game. Soccer keeps me grounded and sane and nothing beats the smell of freshly cut grass and sweat. For some people, religion and spirituality help them learn about themself and better themselves, but that's how soccer is for me.

And it was true, all if it. I slammed the notebook shut and dropped it on my bed, getting up and going into my mom's private gym. I needed to stop thinking about it, and the writing would flow out better. I wasn't a writer, so these assignments were especially hard for me. I began thinking about how I planned to do my presentation wearing my soccer jersey. Ugh, I was thinking about it again. I got on the treadmill and began to run, one of the things I enjoyed doing outside, but it was too dark.