One Goal

by N. J. Corbo

  She walks up behind him, bends forward, and wraps her arms around his chest, putting her face next to his so that their cheeks are touching. It’s this weird little thing they do every morning.

  “I love you to the moon and back, Richie,” she says.

  “Jen, I love you twice that distance and more,” he replies. Then they kiss.

  “Ugh,” you groan. “Do you guys have to do that in front of me?”

  “Listen, buddy,” your dad says, “when you find the person you want to be around every day, you never let them forget it.”

  “Fine,” you shrug, shaking your head. So much for getting your mind off Autumn.

  After a couple hours of drills, you’re beat, and a little bored with being alone, so you decide to head down to the soccer field to check out the co-ed practice . . . just to see if you’re missing anything.

  Walking toward the clubhouse, you see a red truck with some guys from the Densen Soccer Club peeling out of the parking lot. You recognize Shawn Scarver. He’s the only person who consistently steals the ball from you. It’s not like you never lose the ball, but Shawn can always unstick your glue and it drives you crazy. What were they doing here?

  The co-ed practice is ending. Autumn spots you and waves. She seems totally normal now, and even asks you to walk with her. “I’m sorry I acted so weird,” she says. “I just didn’t expect you to say that, but . . . ” she hesitates, “it’s cool, and, well, I was wondering if you’d go to the dance with me tomorrow.”

  You say yes, definitely.

  Unfortunately, late the next day, Coach Duncan calls. He tells you that the championship trophy was stolen from his office. You know exactly who did it. Of course that’s why they were there. The rivalry between Weston and Densen is legendary, and that trophy has been stolen a million times. You were so focused on Autumn, it hadn’t even occurred to you. But what should you do now?

  GO TO PAGE 23. You want to steal the trophy back, but that will make you late for the dance. You hope Autumn will understand.

  GO TO PAGE 32. You want to go get the trophy, but you don’t want to blow your big chance with Autumn. You tell Coach Duncan, knowing he’ll take care of it.

  You hope this won’t be the only time the guys ask you to hang out with them, but you can’t miss Bowie’s birthday. Your best friend only turns 15 once.

  In the car, Sam tells you she needs to pick up Joey first.

  “Geeze, Sam,” you complain. “I just gave up hanging out so I wouldn’t be late.”

  “Chill, twerp. He’s on the way.” She eyes you for a minute, then her voice changes. “What’s going on with you? Why so edgy?” It’s her I-really-do-care big sister voice. She only uses it when she’s being nice to you.

  “I’m not,” you start to deny, but then you end up spilling it all. You tell her you don’t even know if Autumn still wants to be friends with you.

  “Well, you can’t really blame her for being mad,” Sam suggests.

  “I know,” you concede, “I just needed Chuck to back off.” You don’t want to talk about it anymore, so you ask a random question. “Hey, why did you quit soccer for Joey?”

  “What? Way to change the subject, and I didn’t,” she says. “I quit soccer because I want to run track.” She raises her eyebrows at you. “You know, you shouldn’t assume – it’s better to ask. And as for Autumn, she’ll come around. Tell her why you acted like such an idiot and apologize.”

  Sam’s right; you need to talk to Autumn. You probably should have just done that in the first place, but there’s no going back now, so you’ll just have to see what happens.

  THE END

  You’re worried that your parents won’t even let you try out, because they won’t want you to go abroad for soccer camp. They wouldn’t let Sam go to Spain her freshman year, so why would they let you go to Holland?

  Still, even if you went to the tryouts without permission and made it, are you going to sneak away to Holland too? You’ll have to tell them, you just don’t know how. Maybe Goda and Poppy can help.

  You call and ask Poppy what he thinks. He suggests that you get prepared – have as much information as you can, and maybe even have your coach talk to them too.

  “Now, tell me what’s going on with your sweet friend, Autumn. Did you tell her how you feel?” he asks.

  “Yeah,” you say, “but it didn’t go very well, and I think I’ve messed it up even more with another girl.”

  “Oh, son,” he chuckles, “I’m sorry. It sounds like a real pickle.”

  You hear Goda in the background, scolding him for laughing, and demanding the phone.

  “Kevin, honey?”

  “Hi, Goda.”

  She wants all the details about what happened with Autumn and, even though you’re embarrassed and don’t really want to tell her everything, she gets it out of you.

  Goda tells you to stop messing around with Katrina and talk to Autumn. You’re just not sure Autumn will want to talk to you.

  When you hang up, your dad calls you to the living room.

  “What’s up, Dad?” you say as you enter the room.

  “We heard you on the phone,” he says. “It sounds like you might want to talk to us.”

  Oh, no, you’re not prepared at all. This is not happening. “No, uh,” you stutter, “um, I’m not ready yet.”

  “Look, if you need help talking to Autumn, we’re here for you,” your mom offers.

  “Wait, what?” you say, confused.

  “We heard you telling Goda and Poppy about things with Autumn,” your dad says.

  “Well, yeah, but that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about.”

  “Oh, okay. Well, what did you want to talk to us about, then?”

  “Well, um . . . ” You’re stuck now. “See, there’s this soccer camp, and it’s only for elite players, and there would be world-class coaches, and players from all over the world, and . . . ”

  “Okay, Kevin, get to it.” Your dad interrupts you. “What don’t you want to tell us?”

  “Well,” you sigh, “it’s just that the camp is in, um, Holland.”

  At first they both say no – no way – but you keep your cool. Luckily, the camp is only two weeks long. They said no to Spain for Sam because it would have been three months, and they think 15 is too young to go away, let alone abroad, for that long.

  “You know,” your mom says, “it would show a lot of maturity if you were to talk with Autumn. That’s the kind of maturity a world-travelling soccer player would exhibit.”

  “Aw, mom,” you say, but you know that she and Goda are right.

  The phone rings forever. Then, just before it goes to voicemail, Autumn picks up.

  “I didn’t think you were going to answer,” you say.

  “Neither did I.”

  “Listen, I just called to say I’m sorry,” you offer.

  “For what exactly?” She still sounds a little cold, but curious too.

  “Well, you know.”

  “Say it,” she challenges.

  “I just,” you stumble, “I’m sorry if I made you feel bad . . . or weird . . . or whatever. You’re my best friend and I didn’t mean to.”

  You’re surprised and relieved that she forgives you almost immediately. You start to tell her about the soccer camp tryouts, but she already knows. She’s trying out for the girls’ team. You talk about the conditioning drills they’ll have you do and how they’ll look at your touch on the ball. You fall into an easy rhythm, a familiar space with someone you trust. She doesn’t bring up the idea of being your girlfriend, and neither do you, but you know it’s not the last time you’ll talk about it. For now, you’re going to focus on being a good best friend and getting to Holland for soccer camp.

  THE END

  You’re flattered that Katrina wants to practice with you, but you really want to see if things are okay with Autumn. Laini even encourages you.

  “Hey, Kevin,” she says. “Autumn may be a little confused about some t
hings right now, but she’s not going to avoid you when it comes to playing soccer.”

  You tell Katrina no thanks. Still, a little part of you feels excited that she offered.

  It doesn’t matter though, because Laini was right; Autumn says she’ll be your one-on-one partner. It’s a great practice too. Autumn tells you that she’s been working on her flip throw. She has the flip part down, since she’s a gymnast, but her aim is inconsistent. You explain that it’s how she’s lining up for the flip and help her work on it. Somehow, over the course of the practice, it seems like things have gone back to normal. You think it might be just as well anyway. Maybe you’re better as friends.

  As Autumn lines up to do another flip throw, a ball comes out of nowhere and she gets beaned in the head. It practically knocks her off her feet. You grab for her as you look around to see where it came from. About 20 yards away, Katrina is waving at you.

  “Sorry,” she calls out.

  “Oh my gosh,” Laini yells as she runs over. She glares in Katrina’s direction, “I can’t believe she just did that! And right after your concussion from the car accident too.”

  “Did what?” Autumn wants to know.

  “Katrina likes Kevin and she aimed for your head,” she says very matter-of-factly.

  “What?” Autumn says, looking at you.

  “What?” you echo. “She just offered to be my partner for practice.”

  “Nope, I saw it,” Laini insists.

  “That’s messed up,” Autumn says, rubbing her head.

  Laini and Autumn start to get really mad at Katrina. They’re ready to march over and confront her, but you’re still not sure if it was intentional, so you offer to talk with her instead. Katrina seems a little high-energy and maybe even a bit mischievous, but outright mean? You’re just not sure.

  You’re not sure of a lot right now. You’re not sure if you should put all girlfriend thoughts of Autumn out of your head. You’re not sure if you should start thinking about Katrina. You’re not sure if coming to co-ed practice was the right choice. Here are the things you are sure of: Soccer is awesome, you will work crazy hard to get to the Olympics, and girls are really confusing.

  THE END

  You are super nervous to talk to Autumn, but she’s been your friend your entire life, so what’s the worst that can happen? Well, you guess the worst would be that she doesn’t like you back, but there’s only one way to find out. You try to look at the whole thing the way you’d look at a play for a game. Choose an appropriate formation to meet your opponent. Line up in position on the field. Execute. This situation requires a “change to attacking” formation, and the player you’re going to sacrifice is Chuck.

  You call Autumn and ask her to meet you at the park. She’s sitting on one of the swings when you get there, gently kicking the ground and letting the swing carry her from side to side. She’s got a slight smile on her face and looks as though she’s lost in a daydream.

  “Hey,” you say as you walk up to her.

  “Hey,” she responds, snapping out of her daze.

  You sit on the swing next to her, but you find it hard to make eye contact.

  “Autumn,” you begin, “we’ve been friends for a really long time, and, um, well, can I tell you something?” you say awkwardly, then change it, “I mean, ask you something?”

  “Yeah, weirdo, you can tell or ask me anything,” she says, laughing lightly.

  “Well, I was wondering about Chuck,” you say, “I noticed that he was, I don’t know, you know, kinda flirting with you.”

  “What?” she laughs, “Are you crazy? He’s a senior.”

  “What if he did . . . you know, like you?” you ask.

  “Wait,” she says, planting her feet on the ground, “Did he say he likes me?”

  Great, now you’re Chuck’s wing man. This is not going well at all.

  “No, no,” you say, trying to regain control of the conversation. “I just think he’s kinda creepy to flirt with you. I mean, he’s almost 18.” She just shakes her head, like what you’re saying doesn’t make sense. “Besides,” you go on, “I think I like you.”

  “What?” she says. “You think you like me?” Now she’s standing with her hands on her hips. “What does that even mean, ‘you think you like me?’ Why were you talking about Chuck then? And when did you start thinking you like me?” She’s firing questions faster than your brain can take them in, and you don’t know what to say. You didn’t know how this would go, but you definitely didn’t imagine it going like this.

  “I do like you,” you say. “I do.” Now you’re standing too. You still can’t look her in the eye, but you see the look on her face change, like she’s realized something. Suddenly, she starts crying.

  “This is just . . . I just . . . you’re my best friend,” she says, and with that, she turns and runs away. At first, you want to run after her, but your feet feel like they’re cemented to the ground and your stomach is churning. You just sit back down on the swing and stare at the ground.

  That night, you try calling Autumn three or four times, but her phone just goes to voicemail. Then, the next morning, she doesn’t show up to walk with you, so you ask Sam for a ride.

  Joey usually picks up Sam with his sister, Meghan, and her boyfriend, Evan, who also happens to be on the soccer team with you. Evan is calm, focused, and soft spoken, unlike Chuck, who sounds like a WWF wrestler. He’s been really nice to you, and didn’t even join in on the “kid” jokes at practice. You like Evan.

  In the car, he confides in you that he feels like some of the guys block him out in favor of the other forwards so, even though he gets out on the field, he doesn’t often get an opportunity to shine. You think that stinks and wish you could help. Who knew your chance would come so soon?

  It’s your first varsity game, and there’s a scout for the Boys’ National Team. Coach says he wants to see what you’ve got, so he starts you, but you don’t see much action. At the beginning of the second half, one of the Redmond attackers boots it out over a sideline. You grab the ball and back up for your legendary flip throw. Scanning the field, you see that Evan is open, but so is Darby. You really want to make the right call. What should you do?

  GO TO PAGE 51. You want to help out your new friend. He’s a solid player, and he deserves a chance to shine too. You throw in to Evan.

  GO TO PAGE 9. The team’s top scorer, Darby Morris, is open. You want to help Evan, but this isn’t the time. You send it to Darby.

  You can’t believe Shawn Scarver and his crew stole the trophy right in front of you. You don’t mention anything to Coach Duncan, because you’re going to get it back. Now, you just need to make a plan. First, you have to call Autumn. Maybe she’ll want to blow off the dance and come with you.

  Autumn’s mom answers her mobile phone.

  “Oooh, hi, Kevin,” she says, sounding ridiculously excited. “Are you getting ready for the dance?”

  “Um, yeah,” you lie. “Um, could I please talk to Autumn?”

  “One minute, sweetie, she’s curling her hair.”

  Curling her hair? Since when does Autumn curl her hair? This is not a good sign. You don’t think she’s going to want to come, and now you’re wondering if you should even tell her what’s going on.

  “Hey, Kev, I’m so psyched for tonight. What’s up?”

  “I, uh, I,” you trip over your words, “I have to meet you there,” you manage.

  “Oh,” she says sounding disappointed. “Well, how come? Is everything okay?”

  “Yeah, no,” you say, which isn’t confusing at all. Then try to make up for it. “Um, yeah, it’s just that Sam’s driving and she has some errand to run before we can go.”

  She accepts your lame excuse, but sounds pretty bummed. You hate lying to her, but you can tell that she’s really into the dance, and you don’t think the mission will go too late.

  Now, you need a team to help execute the retrieval mission. Of course, you call Bowie first.

 
; “Hey, Bowie man, how’s it going?”

  “Hey, Kev. How are you?”

  “Well, first of all, were you planning on going to the dance tonight?”

  “There’s a dance?” he says.

  “Okay, perfect. Listen, I’m putting together a team to retrieve a stolen item. It’s very valuable, and there may be some danger. You in?”

  “A real mission?” he asks. “Of course I am. I have some new gadgets too.”

  “Sweet,” you say. “Well, gather together anything that could be useful for retrieval and I’ll be over in a little bit. I just have to find us a ride.”

  Now, who can be your driver? Sam’s out. She’s definitely going to the dance, and you just hope she doesn’t get there earlier than you. Normally, she and her friends meet up before dances so they can all get ready together. It takes forever and they’re never on time. You know this, because sometimes you’re unlucky enough to have them all gather at your house. The only other person who’s not a grown-up – but has access to wheels – is Joey, Sam’s boyfriend. Hopefully he doesn’t have anything else going on while he waits to meet up with Sam and her friends.

  Joey jumps at the idea. He’s pretty crazy, so tracking down a stolen trophy, possibly breaking into someone’s house, and retrieving the trophy sounds like a lot of fun to him.

  You pack a bag with your clothes for the dance, a flashlight, and your army knife. Joey meets you down the street, so as not to raise any suspicion, and you sneak out by telling your parents that you’ll get ready at Autumn’s. They are as ridiculously giddy as her mom about you two going to a dumb dance, so you use it to your advantage.

  When you get in the car, Joey does his signature hair-toss introduction of himself, but instead of yelling “Jo-aaay,” he whispers it, and says he’s being covert. You crack up, feeling very lucky that your sister has such a cool boyfriend. You also feel lucky that Bowie is a master inventor.