Two kids were in a bet over who could catch the most M&M’s in their mouth in less than a minute. I was tempted to join them, but I needed to stretch my legs. Quinn got ten in her mouth. I could do three more than that, at least. My brother Tim and I did contests like this too, and one where we tossed things into a jar. I’m pretty good. 

Jen, focus! I needed to keep saying that to myself. Focus and you’ve got this! 

I tried to tune the rest of the kids out as I focused on my leg stretch. I stood with my legs out wide and then tapped my feet. I counted to twenty and then switched. Next, I'd do my shins. Shins were important for soccer. 

Today was the day I had been thinking about for months: soccer tryouts. The team was for sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-graders. Most of the time, sixth-grade kids, like me, didn’t make the team. But I was fast and strong. I was tall too, and I looked more like a seventh grader than a sixth grader. I was going to make the team. 

I bent down again to stretch my back, my hands extending all the way to my feet. I held my pose for ten seconds before lifting my hands up to the sky. 

My gaze went from my toes. But before I got to the sky, I met a face right in front of me. A face I knew: Tess Hill. Her eyes locked on mine, and her grin was wide. The grin did not say she was glad to see me. It was more of an I’m going to beat you, bad kind of grin. 

“Hi, Jen!” she started. 

“Hi, Tess Hill,” I said. 

Last year, Tess had said that she did not like it when kids called her Tess Hill. She said it sounded too much like “tassel.” 

“How was your summer?” I asked.

“It was good. I spent the summer at soccer camp. We ran six miles a day,” she said with a smirk. “Then we did drills. I had to sleep for ten hours. I was so wiped.” 

Tess was in sixth grade too. Her hair was up with a red hair tie. I knew this was her lucky one. I had on red socks for luck too. Our Coach’s name was Coach Red, so we all wore red to get luck and Coach’s attention on the field. 

Tess used to come to my home to play soccer. The last time she came over, I made us both chocolate milk and the best snack. But Tess got sick. It was not an allergy, but a “milk problem,” she called it. She had to leave early, and we did not get to play much that day. Soon, we drifted apart. It was fun being pals at first, but then we both wanted to be the best on the team, and it was like we forgot to be pals too.

“Did you do six miles a day?” Tess asked me. 

All of a sudden, the crisp fall day felt chilly. I spent my summer at Camp Green Lake. It was a pretty good summer. A couple of stunts almost got me kicked out, but it was fun. At camp, we were not running six miles a day or doing sprints. But I was swimming and playing sports most days. 

I stood up a little taller. 

“Ten miles a day, Tess Hill,” I lied. 

I could see Tess’s gaze shift to her feet and then back up to me, trying to see if I was bluffing.

“Okay, kids, come here!” Coach Red called us in. I smirked at Tess Hill, and we both ran up to Coach. “It’s so much fun to have you all back! Let’s get pumped for this team and all of our time together. Let’s make it a good one!” 

We all cheered.

“Today, we will do some drills and small games and then get you sorted into teams. This year we will have Varsity and JV teams.” 

The kids next to me started to murmur to each other. Coach Red put a finger to her lips to say “shh.” 

“Each team gets to play lots of games this fall. I will sort you on teams so that you will get lots of play time. But today, let’s just have fun.” 

When Coach Red says, “let’s have fun,” most of the time it means I need to try my hardest. I scanned the kids around me. There were a lot of strong players. But I bet I could still make the Varsity team, even as a sixth grader. 

My brother, Tim, who was five years older than me, was on the Varsity team when he was in sixth grade. I told him this morning that I was going to make Varsity too. Tim was the best brother and I always wanted to impress him. He always played with me after school, and I wanted to show him that his help paid off. He would be so proud of me if I made Varsity. I had to make it somehow. 

“Okay,” Coach Red said, “let’s start with three laps!” She clapped her hands, and we all got up and started running. 

I rushed to get to the front of the pack, to show Coach Red that I was here to play. I got in the zone and then saw that Tess was right next to me. She lifted her hand with a wave and then passed in front of me. 

It’s okay, I thought to myself. I don’t want to burn out too fast. I needed to save my real speed for when it counted. 

We ended the laps and met back with Coach Red. She put us in two lines and we started with lots of drills. We dribbled as we passed by cones, we dribbled and kicked, we shot on the goal. 

I was feeling good and keeping up with the sixth graders. But Tess was the star. It was clear that she had been doing drills all summer. She was fast and her moves were sleek. 

After a bit, Coach Red called us in for a snack and water break. 

I went up to Tess. “How are you feeling?” 

“I’m feeling fine!” Tess said. “Just getting started.”

“Take five and then we’re back!” called Coach Red. “Last drills of the day!”

“I’m going to run to the bathroom really quick!” Tess said. She left her water bottle in her bag and jogged off. 

I checked my bag and saw that I had a carton of chocolate milk. It was my favorite drink to have after soccer. Tim read that it helps your bones stay strong. I said that as long as I get to drink chocolate milk, I’ll be fine! 

I thought back to that time Tess came to our home and had the problem with the milk. 

What if I just…

The thought passed through my mind quickly but strongly. I couldn’t… but what if? 

Just do it! Just do it! Just do it!  

Without more thinking, I grabbed my milk. I went to Tess’s bag and picked up her water. I spilled out a bit of her water and filled it with the milk. I shook it up and then dropped it back in the bag. I felt lucky that her bottle was black and not clear. 

I went back to my bag and did some more stretches. Tess jogged back from the bathroom. She picked up her water. 

“Let’s line up!” Coach Red called from the field. 

I went up to Tess and took a big drink of water. 

“See you on the field!” I said. I clinked my bottle to hers like we were toasting. “Good luck!” 

“Cheers!” she said back. She took a few big swigs of her water and then frowned. “The tap water here has an odd taste.” 

“I know!” I said. “But it’s best to drink before the game!” I dropped my bottle and jogged off to the final drill. 

     Ten minutes later, Tess needed to excuse herself from tryouts. I felt a wave of relief to see her run off the field, but then I started to feel bad. I know she trained this summer too, but I wanted to get on Varsity and make Tim proud. 

What did I just do? 

Just like some stunts at camp, I can often get an idea in my head and not always think it through. 

But it was still tryouts. I pushed Tess out of my mind and kept playing as hard as I could. 

Later that week, Coach Red posted the list. 

 I was the only sixth grader who made Varsity. 

“Try and block this one!” Tim called.

I was standing in the goal in our yard. I did not usually play goalkeeper, but I loved any excuse to play with Tim. Some older brothers did not want to play with their sisters. But Tim did. He also kind of thought of himself as my coach. 

Tim wanted to be a teacher and was on staff at a summer camp. He liked helping and teaching. My mom and dad also both worked late, so lots of days it was just Tim and me until they got home. 

We had a sweet setup in our backyard. There was a lot of grass and then we had a goal. Our yard had a small stone wall that broke up our yard and our neighbors’. Their yard was also big and grassy, so it felt like we had lots of space to play. 

Most days after school, Tim would do drills with me. Even after soccer, running with Tim helped me to let off steam at the end of the day.

Tim beamed when I told him that I’d made the Varsity team! It made me swell with pride. He gave me a big high five and patted me on the back. It made me proud to make him feel proud. 

I did not tell him about Tess and the milk. I tried not to think about Tess and the milk. I knew that Tim would not be proud about that. 

Back in the yard, Tim kicked the ball hard. His strong kick sent the ball flying. He hit with too much power and the ball went over the goal, passed beyond it, and went into the neighbor’s yard. The ball hit with a thud. 

“Ow!” 

A cry came from the neighbor’s yard. Did he hit someone? 

“My game!” the same voice wailed. 

We had not seen anyone in the yard for a long time, so it was a shock to hear someone yell. 

Tim quickly ran toward the scream. I went after him. We jumped over the stone wall and landed in the neighbor’s yard. We jogged over to a blonde girl who was playing a game of chess by herself under a tree. 

“My game is all messed up now!” she said. “Your soccer ball hit it and it is a mess!” 

She seemed like she was ten, like me.

“I’m so sorry!” Tim said. “Can we help you fix it?” 

That was just like Tim. He didn’t try to dismiss the blame if he did something. He said sorry and then found a way to fix what he did. Not me… I tended to get upset.  

“Well, I lost where I was in the game,” she said. Her chess pieces were in a pile on the ground next to her bench where she had it set up. 

“I bet you can kind of remember where they were,” Tim said. “Or if you’d like, I can play a game with you!” 

Tim wanted to play a game with this girl? What about soccer? I wanted to yank him from the yard to go back to drills. 

“You know how to play?” she asked. 

“Of course,” Tim said.

“Really?” I asked him. 

Why would Tim know how to play chess? Chess was a game for nerds. He should just know how to play soccer, like me. He had not once said anything to me about chess. 

 “I was in the chess club,” he said. 

He was? I didn’t know that. 

“And I did some chess at camp this summer with the kids.” 

“I’d play a game with you,” the girl said. 

Oh great, this was just perfect. I bet she would just love to play a game with Tim. 

Last summer, the campers loved Tim. They all said he was the best counselor-in-training. I knew he would be a great teacher, and wanted his students to like him. But we were not at camp or school. Last time I checked, Tim was my big brother and not this random kid’s! 

“I know how to play,” he said. “But I bet you are better than me!” 

Ugh, this was so annoying. 

“I am getting good,” the girl said. She grinned for the first time since the ball hit her game. 

“Um, Tim, we have to go!” I said. I had to get him far from this yard and chess and back to soccer. 

“I’ll be there soon,” he said. “I need to fix the mistake.” 

I gave a big groan. 

“What’s your name?” he asked her.

“Nell,” said the girl. 

What kind of name was Nell? It sounded fake. 

“Nell,” said Tim. “What a cool name! I had a camper named Nell this summer.” 

Oh, so now Tim knows all the Nells. 

“When did you move here?” he asked.

“It’s been two weeks,” Nell said. 

It made sense that we missed the move. We could see the back of the home, but the front and street were not in our view. It would be easy to miss a truck. 

“That is so cool!” said Tim. “I’m Tim and this is my sister, Jen.” 

I waved, but with a stern look. I did not need a new pal and I did not need this Nell kid to take over my end-of-day plans. 

“I’m going to go,” I said to Tim. I wanted this to be a big hint that he should come too. Most of the time, he did not let me go without him.

“Okay,” he said. He did not get the hint. “When Mom and Dad get home, tell them I'll be there soon.” 

Ugh! 

I picked up the soccer ball, ran back, and jumped over the stone wall, wishing that we’d never crossed it in the first place. When I got back to the yard, I dropped the ball in front of my foot and kicked it as hard as I could.

One day of chess turned into three, which turned into a week, and now more. Tim was always playing chess with Nell. Each day after school, Tim wanted to get a game in with Nell. It was like he forgot about me.

“She’s got a real skill,” he said. “I think she can go far!” 

That was what he said to me about soccer. I did not like hearing him say it about her. 

“There is this contest for her chess club in five weeks, and the winner gets a cash prize,” Tim said. 

Nell was on the young side of the contest, but she was very good. I did not want Nell to win. I wanted her to stop playing chess with my brother and go back to where she was before she moved to our backyard. 

Nell? More like Smell! This nickname made me smirk. 

Tim would still find time to play with me, but not as much as before he was helping Nell. So most days after school, I was stuck playing solo, shooting at the goal.

The next day, I was doing drills in the yard and I could hear Tim and Nell playing chess. 

“Good move,” Tim said. 

It sounded like Smell was just so good at chess. Ugh. 

“But here is my queen,” he added.

I did not get why Tim was so into playing with her. He said she was a chess whiz and played like someone six years older! 

I heard some more laughing from the yard, which really made me mad. So mad that I took my ball and kicked it as hard as I could into Smell’s yard. It was a very strong kick.

 It went to the yard, yes, but landed in the tree. I waited for the ball to fall down into the yard, but it was stuck in the tree. Fine, I could still go get it.

I jogged to the yard. Tim and Smell did not seem to see me, so I stomped my feet as I ran. 

“Hey, Jen!” Tim said. “Let’s play soon, Nell and I are close to endgame.”

“That’s okay,” I said. “I just need to get my ball from the tree. My kick was so strong it went past the goal.” 

This did not seem to impress Tim. He was too into the game. 

“I said, I kicked it so hard it went into a tree,” I said again. “But I can get up there and get it!” 

This made Tim perk up. “Do you want some help?” he asked me. “That’s a tall tree.” 

The tree was tall, but not so tall. I’d gotten to the top of taller ones. 

“I’m fine,” I called back. 

The tree had a low branch that I could grab, no problem. The ball was not that far from the ground. It was stuck on a Y-shaped branch.

“Let me help,” said Tim. “I don’t want you to fall.”

I reached for the first branch and stepped up. This was no big deal. 

“I’m fine,” I said again. 

The ball was just two branches up. I grabbed onto the next branch and hoisted myself up a bit. The ball was close now.

“Be careful!” Tim called to me. “Jen, that’s a tall branch!” 

Why was he freaking out? I was fine, and I knew how to get to the top of a tree with no help. There was just one more branch until I got to the ball. I looked down and Smell and Tim looked so tiny. The tree was a bit taller than I had first thought. 

I stepped up to the next branch, now about ten feet or so off the ground, and could just start to grab the soccer ball. It was just out of reach, so I got on my tiptoes. My fingers grabbed the ball.

“Be safe!” Nell called up. 

Ugh! As if I needed her help and support. 

“I’m fine!” I grabbed the ball and turned to her, twisting my body. “See, I have the—“

The twisting with the ball threw me off. I tried to find footing on the branch, but my feet were slipping. All of a sudden, I was… 

Falling.

Falling.

Crash.