Thanks for the ride, Mrs. Tanaka,” I said, climbing into the back seat.
“You’re welcome, Elle,” she said. “It’s nice that you and Blake want to cheer on your friends.”
“Yeah, nice that Blake wants to cheer on his g—”
Blake turned around and punched my arm before I could say “girlfriend.” I figured out right then that his mom didn’t know he had one.
“—his good friends,” I finished, and then I made a face at Blake.
When we got to Spring Meadow, I repaid Blake for his punch in the arm. “So, your mom doesn’t know that Bianca is your girlfriend?” I asked.
“Well, she’s not officially my girlfriend,” he replied. “But yeah, my mom doesn’t know that we like each other. I think she might freak out. Or ask a bunch of questions.”
“She’ll figure it out sooner or later,” I told him. “Your mom’s pretty smart.”
“I know,” he admitted. “But I’m going to see how long I can go.”
I shook my head, laughing, and we walked inside the gym. The Nighthawks were warming up on one side of the court in their green and yellow uniforms. On the other side, girls in red and white uniforms—the Cardinals—took turns shooting at the basket.
We made our way to the home side of the stands. Caroline’s brother Pete was there with their mom, and he scooted across the bleachers when he saw me.
“Elle! Elle! Are you going to play today?”
I shook my head. “No, I just came here to cheer on the team,” I told him.
Pete frowned.
“Hey, we can cheer Caroline together,” I said. “Will you help me cheer Caroline?”
He nodded and cupped his hands around his mouth. “Go, Caroline!”
“Go, Caroline!” I echoed.
His sister looked up at the stands and smiled and waved at us. Then my other friends did too. Even Bianca waved, although I’m pretty sure she was waving at Blake, and not me.
I nervously tapped my foot as Coach Ramirez gathered the team in a huddle. Who is she going to put in first? I wondered. What kind of defense is she using?
The huddle broke apart and five Nighthawks moved onto the court. Coach had started Bianca as center, Avery as point guard, Hannah as shooting guard, Tiff as power forward, and Dina as small forward.
Bianca and the Cardinals center went to half court for the tip-off. The ref blew his whistle and tossed the ball in the air. Bianca shot up like a rocket and batted it to Avery.
Avery tore down the court, dodging the Cardinals defense.
“Go, go, go!” I cheered.
Avery made it all the way to the basket! She took a shot, but it bounced off the backboard. Luckily, Hannah was right there to rebound it. She grabbed it and tossed it in before the Cardinals defense could block her shot.
“Two points!” Pete yelled next to me, and Blake and I whooped and cheered.
From my seat in the stands I had a view of the team I’d never seen before—way different even from watching the game when I was benched. From the stands I could see how the whole team worked together. I could see how Dina would always aggressively go for the ball, and how Hannah always seemed a tiny bit unsure of where to be on the court. And how Bianca didn’t like to pass and always tried to take the shot herself.
It also became really clear that the Nighthawks needed to work on their defense. The Cardinals scored three baskets that first quarter!
“They need better teamwork out there,” I whispered to Blake, and he nodded.
In the second quarter Bianca helped to lessen the gap with a score from the three-point zone. But it was Patrice, who came in for Dina, who was the most surprising. She was more confident on the court than I’d ever seen her! I’m not sure if she was feeling better already, or if she was just more confident because she had talked things out with her mom. Whatever the reason, she made some really great moves.
Tiff passed her the ball and one of the Cardinal defenders was all over her. But Patrice executed a beautiful pivot and passed the ball to Avery, who had nobody guarding her. Avery sank two points.
“Aveeerrry!” I cheered. Then I added. “Nice move, Patrice!”
“Yeah, nice move!” Pete repeated.
But my biggest surprise came in the third quarter. There’s a rule that no player can play all four quarters, so I knew that someone would have to sub in for Bianca as center. I wasn’t expecting it to be Amanda!
It’s not that Amanda’s a bad player. But she’s not one of our taller players. And she’s also the least experienced member of the team.
“Woo-hoo! You can do it, Amanda!” I yelled.
To start the half, the center for the Cardinals took the ball to throw in, and Amanda ran to cover her. The girl was six inches taller than Amanda, but Amanda jumped up really high to guard her as the Cardinal passed the ball to her teammate. I literally gasped as Amanda grabbed the ball in midair!
“Whoa!” I said.
“That was pretty cool,” Blake remarked. “She was gonna get that ball, no matter what!”
“And she got it!” I said, and Blake and I high-fived.
The Nighthawks tied up the game by the end of the third quarter, 18–18. As the fourth quarter began, I realized I was on the edge of my seat. It was anybody’s game.
My right foot began to tap more furiously on the bleachers. My whole body was itching to get in there and play! Blake sensed it.
“Am I going to have to hold you back?” he asked.
“You might,” I said. I really wanted to be out there, suited up and ready to join my teammates!
When the fourth quarter started, the Cardinals took the ball down the court for an easy two points. Avery took the ball and passed it on to Patrice, who dribbled a few feet and then passed it to Caroline. She dribbled a few feet and passed it to Bianca. Three Cardinals surrounded her.
I bit my lip, watching. What would Bianca do? She could try to jump higher than all of them and make the basket. Or she could pass to Avery, who was open, but how would she get the ball past them?
Bianca faked a pass. Then she faked again. And then, while the Cardinals were confused, she jumped up and made the shot! Three points!
“Biaaaaaaaaanca!” Blake and I cheered, and Pete joined in.
The Nighthawks didn’t keep their lead for long. The Cardinals scored another two points a few minutes later. Then the two teams traded the ball back and forth until the clock started winding down.
There was less than a minute left in the game, and the Cardinals were up by a point. Bianca had the ball, and Patrice was wide open.
“Bianca, look around you!” Coach Ramirez called out.
Bianca spotted Patrice just as a Cardinals defender charged toward her. She made the pass. Patrice caught it, brought it closer to the basket, and shot it in for two points.
Seconds later, the ref’s whistle blew.
“Nighthawks win!” Pete yelled.
Patrice was beaming. She ran to her mom, who grabbed her in a big hug. I was on my feet, clapping and cheering like crazy.
“That game was intense,” I said. “So much action!”
“Yeah, it was,” Blake said. “Did you see Bianca out there? The Cardinals didn’t know what to expect.”
My heart was pounding, as if I’d been playing on the court with them. It had been an awesome game. And then I thought, if I can feel that way on the stands, could I feel the same joy again if I was on the court?
I headed down to the court and found Amanda. Her cheeks were pink from the game, making her freckles stand out.
“You played center!” I said.
She grinned. “Yeah, well, nobody wanted to do it,” she said, “and I volunteered, so Coach said she’d give me a shot. I know I can never fill your shoes, Elle, but . . .”
“You did great!” I told her. “You never gave up that ball easily. And you put your whole heart into it. That’s what matters.”
“Thanks,” she said.
Then I felt a tap on my shoulder.
“Can we talk for a minute?”
It was Bianca.
“Sure,” I said, and she pulled me over to the sidelines.
“So, Elle,” she said, and she was staring down at her sneakers. “I’m sorry if I gave you a hard time when you were on the team.”
I was surprised, even though I knew that Natalie had promised to talk to her.
“If you come back to the team, it’ll be different,” Bianca promised. “I mean, we won’t be best friends or anything, but . . . it’ll be cool this time. Okay?”
“No name-calling?” I asked, and she shook her head.
I knew this wasn’t easy for her to do. But I also felt like I could believe her.
“Thanks,” I said, and then I decided to deal with the whole reason why she’d been mad at me in the first place. “You know that I never asked to play center, right?”
“I know,” she said. “It just killed me not to play it anymore. But I’m over it. I just want us to play our best. And win.”
“I’m still not sure if I want to rejoin the team,” I told her. “But thanks. This helps.”
“We need you, Elle,” Bianca said, and then she walked away.
Natalie ran up to me. “How’d it go?”
“Good,” I replied. “Thanks for talking to her.”
“No problem,” Natalie said. “You should come celebrate with us, Elle. We’re getting pizza.”
Amanda had walked up, and she overheard. “Yeah, my mom can give you and Blake a ride home. He says he’s coming too.”
I smiled. “Sure. I’ll text my mom.”
“Nighthawks! Team meeting before you head out for pizza!” Coach Ramirez yelled.
Instinctively, I moved toward Coach with the others before I stopped myself. I wasn’t part of the team anymore. But I was starting to think that I could be a Nighthawk again. I went over the last few weeks in my head.
Trying out new things . . . check!
Bianca problem solved . . . check!
Realizing I could have fun playing basketball if I didn’t put pressure on myself . . . big check!
Working things out with Coach Ramirez . . .
The team meeting broke up, and Avery ran over to me.
“I heard you’re coming for pizza. Awesome!” she said.
“Yeah,” I said, and I glanced back at Coach Ramirez as we jogged out of the gym.
I’d have to talk to Coach. It had worked for Patrice, so maybe it would work for me, too.
And if things went well, then maybe, just maybe, I could be one of the Nighthawks again!