The score was tied 0–0. It was the second half, and none of the middle schoolers had been called in. But at the next throw-in, Coach Naranjo signaled for a substitution.
“Kahn, get in there,” Ms. Perez called.
Nora jumped up from the bench. As soon as Jana crossed the sideline, she took the field.
“Go, Nora!” Melina shouted to her new friend.
“Great job, Jana,” Prissy added to the older player as she walked over.
Jana didn’t glance at Prissy or Melina. She hadn’t even slapped Nora’s hand as they passed each other. She just stepped behind the bench and went straight for her water bottle.
Melina exchanged a glance with Prissy, then turned her attention back to the game. The Bulls were driving past the center line.
Nora was wide open down the field. Ivy kicked the ball toward her. But as it sailed over to Nora, Rose jumped in front of the ball. She trapped it with a chest bump and then went left.
“Wow, she just stole Nora’s pass,” Prissy muttered to Melina.
Nora caught their eyes from the pitch for an instant and then ran to the box to join the play. Rose took a shot on goal. It knocked the post and zoomed out of bounds.
“Good shot, Rose!” Jana yelled.
Melina and Prissy shared another glance, then clapped along with their teammate. But this time, they didn’t feel it quite as much.
* * *
At the next throw-in, Ms. Perez waved in Melina and Prissy as Nora and Ivy left the field.
Melina’s heart leapt into her throat as she took her spot on the pitch. She felt nervous and excited and terrified, but overall it was thrilling. This was her first time playing in a real JV game — a real high school soccer match.
But Melina quickly focused on the action on the field. She hovered at the center line as Prissy and the rest of the Bulls defense tried to clear the ball away from the goal.
When a Bulls defender rushed forward, the Dragons striker took a flimsy shot outside of the box. The keeper easily grabbed the ball and punted it high.
Melina ran with the ball, watching as it flew down the field. A girl in green got to it first. She kicked it back toward the Bulls goal.
But Rose stuck her foot out and trapped the ball. She started dribbling down field. Dodging around the Dragons defender, she passed to the open left winger, Kayla Thomas.
All three Bulls strikers moved into the box. Melina found herself open right off the post just as Kayla sent the ball across to Rose in the center.
“Torrence!” Melina called. “I’m open.”
From the sidelines, she heard Nora and Prissy calling to Rose too.
“Get it to Stern!” Nora yelled.
“Look right, Torrence!” Prissy shouted.
Rose passed left instead, back to Kayla. Kayla shot, but the Dragons keeper was immediately on top of her. She easily snatched the ball and sent it back up field.
“Keep your eyes open, Torrence! You had open teammates,” Coach Naranjo called out.
Rose gave a quick nod to the coach, but Melina saw her roll her eyes as they jogged from the goal.
Melina frowned. Being a bad sport in practice is one thing, she thought. But if the high schoolers don’t start playing like a team, we’re going to lose this game!
Before long, the Bulls defense got the ball back downfield. A midfielder headed it along the right sideline. Melina took the ball, then passed to Rose.
Rose dribbled strong up the middle as Kayla got open to her left. The three strikers moved into the box. Rose and Kayla were on the left, and Melina was on the right.
Rose drove to the goal. Kayla was tangled up with a defender, so Melina dropped back to the bottom corner of the box. The Dragons keeper was covering the left half of the goal as Rose approached.
“Behind you, Rose,” Melina said. “I have the shot.”
But Rose ignored her. She fired a line drive straight ahead — right into the keeper’s arms. The Dragons keeper punted the ball high and long, clear across center line.
Melina blew out a frustrated sigh. They were still tied at 0–0, even though she had had two open shots on goal. If only Rose had given her the ball.
* * *
The game ended in a tie — neither team managed to get a goal, despite Coach Naranjo putting in all the starters for the final minutes of the game.
In the locker room, the team changed silently and was quickly filing out. No one seemed to be in the mood to stay and talk. But Melina hung back, sitting alone on the bench in front of her locker.
As Melina pulled off her shin guards, Coach Naranjo stuck her head into the locker room. “Rose, can I talk to you for a moment?” the coach asked.
“Sure thing, Coach,” Rose replied, lifting her duffel bag onto her shoulder.
They went out of the room, but they must’ve stopped just outside of the door. Melina could still hear them talking.
“What were those missed two scoring opportunities about?” Coach Naranjo asked. “Why didn’t you pass to Melina?”
“I swear I didn’t see her, Coach,” Rose insisted. “Both times I thought I had a good shot, so I took it.”
Melina rolled her eyes at the captain’s excuse. She didn’t bother paying attention to the rest of their conversation. Instead, she thought about the game.
Melina wasn’t disappointed they hadn’t beaten their cross-town rivals. She wasn’t even disappointed that she’d spent most of the game on the bench.
She was disappointed that the high schoolers weren’t treating her like a teammate — on or off the field. Melina stared into her locker, thinking about what she would do if she were the team captain.
After a moment of thought, she set her mind to it and changed out of her uniform. A determined smile spread across her lips.
Just because I’m not the captain doesn’t mean I can’t start acting like one, she told herself. At least a little bit.