Falling Hard

by Megan Sparks

  “I hope someone caught that on video,” Carmen said.

  Sharmila picked at the cookie crumbs left on her plate. “I’m sure my baba did. He videos everything any of us does.”

  “Where did you learn to do that?” Tashi asked.

  Annie didn’t know what to say. At that moment it had seemed like the most logical way to get past the pack. Now just the thought that she had done a handspring on skates, over a human, made her wonder if she should get her sanity examined. Still, she couldn’t change how amazing it had felt.

  “Let’s just say, I was really, really lucky to pull that off.” Annie grinned as she licked the icing off her cupcake. Annie knew that if she’d touched any other player while her feet were air in the air, the daring move would have got her a major penalty.

  “Well, we’re really lucky to have all of you on the team,” Liz said, determined not to play favourites.

  “Watch out, Holly, Annie just might take your place as the team’s best jammer,” Sharmila said as she hid her face behind a mug of sweet tea.

  Holly stuck her tongue out at Sharmila good-naturedly but Annie had the feeling the comment stung more than she was willing to admit. “Just you wait,” Holly retorted. “I’ll do a double axel over the pack one of these days. You guys don’t need your heads, right?”

  The team booed at Holly who laughed and playfully threw her napkin at them.

  Liz raised her glass of the “champagne” Dad had mixed up: white grape juice and fizzy water. “Here’s to the best team Liberty Belles has ever had. We couldn’t have won today without any of you.”

  “Here, here!” They all cheered and laughed. Annie couldn’t help grinning. It had been a long time since she’d been part of a crowd that really made her feel like she belonged. She doubted the cheerleading squad would have been as welcoming, not with Kelsey as queen bee.

  “Ooh, check it. The whole soccer team is walking by.” Sharmila pointed out of the window.

  Annie jerked around so quickly, she knocked over her glass. Thankfully it was empty and it didn’t break. Sure enough, there was Tyler walking by the café with some of his teammates. He looked like he’d just got out of the shower, comb marks still visible in his wet hair. Annie wanted nothing more than to mess it up.

  Of course. There had been a game tonight. By the cheers the roller girls could hear from outside the café, the soccer team must have won. There were some girls laughing and hanging out with them too. Cheerleaders mostly, Annie recognized them. Including Kelsey.

  Not that it mattered. Tyler turned at that very moment. His green eyes landed on her brown ones and he burst into a huge smile.

  “Yo, Ann-nie!” He held out a hand and waved from the other side of the glass.

  Everyone – roller girls, soccer players, and cheerleaders – turned to stare at Annie. Any other time she would have ducked under the table and not come out until she was twenty. But not tonight. Tonight she had vaulted over the pack and helped win the game for her team. Tonight was her night.

  She waved back and even though her cheeks were a bit pink, she sent him a smile that matched his.

  The cheerleaders gave Annie a dirty look as the soccer team hooted and dragged Tyler away. Before they turned the corner, Tyler looked over his shoulder and waved one last time.

  Annie’s teammates, who had been watching the exchange in silence, burst into wild giggling. Dad poked his head out of the kitchen with a blob of dough in his hands before rolling his eyes and retreating back to the safety of knives and hot ovens.

  “Yo, Ann-nie,” Sharmila imitated Tyler’s tone exactly. “Will you marry me?”

  “Dang, girl. He’s only the hottest guy in school,” Carmen teased.

  A few other girls started making kissing noises.

  Annie blushed more now than she had when Tyler had called her name loud enough for the whole street to hear. “Oh, shut it.”

  “Whatever, you love it.” Holly flicked some of her crumbs in Annie’s direction.

  Annie swatted them away and grinned sheepishly. “Yeah, I kind of do.”

  “You’re so lucky. I’d give anything to go out with him,” Cookie sighed.

  Annie saw her moment. Even though Cookie seemed to think it was a done deal, Annie had to know for sure. “Isn’t he going out with anyone, then?”

  “Who would?” Lexie mumbled.

  “Not me.” Lauren folded her arms over her chest.

  Annie narrowed her eyes. Of course Lexie would say that, she hated jocks, but Lauren grew up in a family of jocks. Annie brushed it away. That wasn’t important right now. Not when Carmen answered her question.

  “Tyler broke up with his girlfriend over the summer.” Carmen looked at Annie with a smirk. “Looks like you’ve got a chance.”

  The girls cheered and continued to tease Annie. Who cared? She had a chance with Tyler. A few weeks ago, she would have never thought it was possible.

  I love it here!

  * * *

  Dad put the kettle on when they got home while Annie rushed to the computer to see if there was any chance Mum might still be awake. The Skype icon said she was and Annie called her right away.

  “Aw, Mum, you should have been there, it was brilliant. It was the first time they played me as jammer. There was no way around or through so I had to go over with a handspring. You should have seen the looks on the other team’s faces when I flew over them.”

  Mum pushed up her glasses and frowned as she stared intently at the screen. “What do you mean you did a handspring over some girl’s back? Didn’t you tell me roller derby is played on skates?”

  “Yeah—” Annie started but she was cut off.

  “That sounds very dangerous, sweetheart. You shouldn’t take such risks.”

  Annie sighed. Doing front tucks on the balance beam had been OK but vaulting on skates was dangerous. “It was fine. Really.”

  Mum shook her head. “I worry about you. If something happened to you being so far away, I... Why don’t you come back? It would be so nice having you here again. Your room is just how you left it.”

  Annie looked around Aunt Julie’s old room. She had finally started to make it look more like a modern teenager’s room with posters of her favourite bands, some artwork by Lexie, and the team photo of the Illinoisies she had printed off the internet. On the bedside table was a picture of Dad, Mum, and herself laughing. It had been a great day, but it was a few years old; Annie must have been around ten. Realistically, she knew her parents probably wouldn’t get back together. “I’ve had my ups and downs, I know, but I’m really starting to fit in. Besides, I’m not a quitter, Mum. I got that from you.”

  Mum smiled a mixture of pride and sadness. “I guess I did something right, then. Well, I’m off to bed.”

  “Night, Mum.” Annie moved the mouse to end the call when Mum spoke up again.

  “Oh, Annie?”

  “Yeah?”

  “That room is a mess. Please pick up those clothes I see on the floor.”

  Annie rolled her eyes and laughed. “Love you, Mum.”

  “Love you too.”

  Annie sat by the computer for a couple of seconds, looking around the room some more. She wasn’t just saying it. She did like it here. Very much. With a smile, she threw her clothes into a pile in the corner and went to the living room. She found Dad waiting for her with a cuppa.

  “I liked your teammates. They’re a good bunch.”

  Annie let the steam rise over her face as she breathed deeply. Dad had broken down and bought good quality tea for the house. “I like them too.”

  Dad’s eyes glowed as he mimed Annie’s handspring with his hands. “And you were so amazing out there. Now I can see why you like roller derby so much. I’m really proud of you.”

  Annie set down her tea and smiled at him. “I’m proud of you too, Dad. I mean look at Rosie Lee’s. It’s your dream and it’s come true.”

  “Indeed, indeed.” Dad stretched out on the couch and closed his eyes. Fo
r a second, Annie thought he’d fallen asleep, until he said, “Yup, I do think this derby thing is not that bad after all.”

  Annie couldn’t resist the opportunity to tease Dad. “Does your change of heart have anything to do with how pretty Coach Ritter is?”

  Dad opened his eyes and feigned innocence. “I didn’t even notice.”

  “You were totally checking her out,” Annie teased.

  Dad sat up, his cheeks a rosy pink. He so rarely got embarrassed that Annie realized she was right. “Listen to you sounding all American.”

  Now it was Annie’s turn to blush. She hadn’t intended to sound American, it just came out that way. Still, she could work with that for now. “Shucks. Sure looks like it, partner. Might jus’ have to stick round these here parts, keep you in line.”

  Dad laughed and clinked his mug against hers. “We make a good team, String Bean, don’t we?”

  “The best!”

  All about Roller Derby

  RULES OF THE GAME

  A roller derby game is called a bout. A bout usually lasts sixty minutes and is divided into two-minute jams. During a jam, each of the two teams have five players on the track, all skating in the same direction. The blockers and pivots form a tight pack. The two jammers start behind them and race to break through the pack. The first jammer through the pack is designated the lead jammer. However, no points can be scored until the jammer passes the pack for a second time. The jammer then scores a point for every opponent that she overtakes, provided she passes the player in bounds and without penalties. Both jammers may score points for the duration of the two-minute jam or until the lead jammer calls off the jam. A jammer typically scores four points every time she makes it through the pack. If she overtakes the other jammer she scores a fifth point, and this is known as a Grand Slam. The team with the most points at the end of the bout wins.

  SKATER POSITIONS

  Jammer

  The jammer wears a helmet cover with a star and is the only player who can score points. To score points, a jammer must break through the pack once and sprint around the track. A jammer scores a point for every opponent she passes on her subsequent passes through the pack.

  Lead Jammer

  The lead jammer is the first jammer to break through the pack and pass all the opposing blockers and pivot. The lead jammer may choose, at a strategic time, to call off the jam to prevent the opposing jammer from scoring. She does this by putting her hands on her hips.

  Pivot

  The pivot acts as a pacesetter for the team and is designated by a striped helmet. The pivot calls out plays and provides guidance for the rest of the team. The pivot typically stays in front of the blockers.

  Blocker

  Each team has three blockers on the track. The blockers play both offensive and defensive roles. They help their jammer get through the pack, while trying to prevent the opposing jammer from getting through.

  PENALTIES

  There are many rules in the sport of roller derby, enforced by referees and non-skating officials (NSOs). If a skater commits a major penalty, she is sent to the penalty box, also known as the sin bin, for sixty seconds. If a jammer is sent to the penalty box, the opposing team’s jammer scores a point for the missing player if she passes through the pack. If both jammers are sent to the penalty box, the first jammer is released as soon as the second jammer reaches the box.

  Offences resulting in a major penalty include:

  Tripping an opposing player

  Back blocking

  Using elbows to the chest or face

  Swearing at another skater or referee

  Blocking twenty feet ahead or behind the pack

  Deliberately falling in front of another player

  Grabbing, pulling or pushing an opposing player

  HISTORY OF ROLLER DERBY

  Roller derby was first played in the 1930s and quickly evolved into a popular spectator sport, thanks to staged crashes and collisions. By 1940 it was watched by about five million spectators, but by the 1970s the sport had faded into obscurity. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, a roller derby revival began in Austin, Texas and soon spread to many other cities and countries.

  Modern roller derby has focused on athleticism rather than showmanship. It is the fastest-growing sport in America, and is under consideration to become an Olympic sport at the 2020 games!

  Read on...

  ...for a sneak peek at the next Roller Girls book.

  Hell’s Belles

  3x - 7 = 2x - 2 Solve for x.

  Annie sighed. She had no idea how to solve for x, but there was a lemon tart in the display case that would help solve the growling in her stomach.

  She swept her long brown hair into a messy bun, closed her maths book and thought up her own equation: Annie + a steaming cup of chamomile tea = heaven.

  Pushing aside her homework, she rose and crossed the black and white checkerboard floor of Rosie Lee’s, the café she and her dad had recently opened in his hometown of Liberty Heights, Illinois. It was hard to believe that a few short weeks ago, the shop had been filthy and covered in cobwebs. A lot of hard work had gone into transforming it into the cosy place it was now, but it had been a labour of love – the shop was Dad’s dream.

  Although from the frown on his face as he bent over the spreadsheets arranged on the counter, the dream looked like it had become a nightmare. Annie guessed that he was having some maths trouble too.

  “I must take after you,” Annie joked, reaching into the case and removing the cream-topped pastry. “No head for numbers.”

  “You can say that again,” Dad grumbled. He dropped his pencil and ran a hand through his brown hair. “I can measure out baking powder with the best of them and calculate the proportion of butter to flour with my eyes closed. It’s subtracting monthly expenses from income that trips me up.”

  Annie glanced around the empty shop and grimaced. Things had got off to a good start, but lately the only foot traffic in and out of the shop consisted of people popping in to hang notices on the “community bulletin board” Dad had installed. The people had been grateful for the advertising space, but once they’d pinned their flyers to the corkboard, they’d hurried off to finish distributing their materials. The guy who’d posted an index card advertising a “2003 Toyota Camry with low mileage” had bought himself a small coffee to go, but other than that, none of the bulletin board people had purchased a thing.

  “So has there been any?” Annie asked. “Income, I mean.”

  Dad hesitated, as though he might be about to fib. Then he showed her the number on the calculator screen. “Not much, Beanie.”

  Annie rolled her eyes at the use of his nickname for her. Beanie was short for “String Bean”, which referred to Annie’s long, lanky frame. She’d shot up nearly a foot last year which had sadly put a swift end to her gymnastics career. On the upside, she now had the tall, slender figure of a model. She really didn’t mind the Beanie thing. It was so Dad – cute and a little bit silly.

  What wasn’t silly was the money issue. Nothing cute about “not much income”. Annie had been afraid that would be the case. When they’d opened the British eatery they’d both had high hopes. Dad’s baking was superior and the space was warm and welcoming. It had seemed like a no-brainer to Annie – they were going to be a big hit. But here it was, four weeks later on a crisp, early autumn afternoon; customers should have been flocking in for hot tea and cinnamon scones warm from the oven. Instead, the cheery little place was utterly deserted.

  As though he were reading her mind, Dad motioned to the empty tables. “I must be doing something wrong, but for the life of me, Annie, I can’t imagine what it is.”

  His voice was a mixture of confusion and disappointment. It made Annie’s heart sink.

  “Don’t say that, Dad,” she said, placing the tart on the counter and throwing her arms around him. “You’re doing everything right. The food is brilliant, the shop is the cutest place in town, and ... and..
.” Unfortunately, she didn’t have a third “and” to add, so she just hugged him tighter. “It’ll be fine. It takes time for a place like Rosie Lee’s to catch on. But once it does, we’ll have customers queuing round the block.”

  Dad pressed a kiss to Annie’s forehead and chuckled. “Now I remember why I dragged you here all the way from London. To be my own personal cheerleader.”

  Annie winced. Sore subject. She’d been chosen for the Liberty Heights High School cheerleading squad, but had had the audacity to turn them down. That decision had pretty much made her Public Enemy Number One in the eyes of Kelsey Howard, the most popular girl in school. Instead of picking up a pair of pom-poms, she’d stepped into a pair of roller skates and joined Liberty Heights’ junior roller derby league.

  And derby girls, it seemed, were always hungry.

  Tummy grumbling, she picked up the lemon tart, then pointed to a gorgeous chocolate-frosted cake under a glass dome on top of the display case.

  “Gather your rations, sailor,” she commanded, doing her best Navy Admiral impersonation. “Then muster at our usual table.”

  “Aye, aye, captain,” said Dad, snapping her a silly salute. He punched the off button on his calculator and grabbed a knife.

  Moments later they were seated by the large window, bent over their desserts. Annie tasted Dad’s cake – it was beyond delicious. And the buttery crust of her lemon tart was so delicate that it actually melted in her mouth. If only people would try Rosie Lee’s, she was certain it would become their favourite place in the world.

  “You really outdid yourself with this batch,” she told her father, using her baby finger to mop up a smear of lemon filling from her plate. “Who cares if you’re hopeless with numbers and spreadsheets. You’re an absolute wizard in the kitchen.”

  Dad gave her a grateful smile. “I appreciate the rave review, Beanie, but the fact remains: we need customers if we’re going to stay afloat.” He put down his fork and stared at the mural on the wall behind Annie. It was a red double-decker London bus filled with remarkably lifelike portraits of some of Britain’s most celebrated citizens. And the best part was that it was custom-designed and hand-painted by Annie’s best friend, Lexie.