Free Goalkeeper in Charge by Matt Christopher Page B

Tina with interest. “Yeah? How’d you do that?”
    Tina shrugged. “I don’t know, exactly.”
    “You don’t know?” The girl gave Tina a look that said, You must be weird.
    “It sounds funny,” Tina said, “but when somethinghappens really fast in a sport, you don’t think, you just do it. If you stop to think—it’s too late. It’s like your brain
     lets your body take over.”
    A boy who had overheard nodded. “I can see that. It’s the same in baseball when you swing at a pitch.”
    The girl thought for a moment. “Sure, like when I dance, I don’t think about how to move, it just happens.”
    Tina nodded. “Right. My brain shuts off sometimes in soccer.” She grinned. “Too bad it also happens when I take science tests.”
    The kids who were listening laughed. Tina could hardly believe it. She’d made a joke, and it had gotten a laugh.
    She had no idea how much time had passed when Dave said, “I have to go, it’s getting late.”
    Tina was sorry to leave, but she stood up and said, “Well, see you” to the group, who waved and said their own good-byes.
    “Hey, Teen,” said Zoe. “You want to meet for lunch tomorrow? We go to the deli near school. Bring Meg with you!”
    “Sounds great,” Tina said. And it
did
sound great.
    Riding home, Tina suddenly laughed.
    “What’s so funny?” Dave asked.
    Tina shook her head. “Oh, nothing, really. It’s just … I feel good, that’s all.”
    “Me too,” Dave replied. “That was fun. Hey, let’s go again soon, okay?”
    “Okay!” Tina agreed happily.
    The two parted at their driveways. When Tina entered her kitchen, delicious food smells hit her nostrils. She suddenly realized
     that although she’d been in the Food Court at the mall, she hadn’t eaten a thing. Now she was starving!
    At dinner, Mrs. Esparza asked, “How long until your first game? It must be soon.”
    Tina said, “Two days. You’ll all be there, right?”
    “Right!” Mr. Esparza said. “Have you thought about what color you’ll wear? It’s your choice, isn’t it? Since you’re a goalkeeper.”
    “I was thinking red,” Tina said, reaching for another biscuit. “Red is cool.”
    Sammy said, “Why do goaltenders—”
    “
Goalkeepers
,” corrected his father.
    “How come
goalkeepers
wear different uniforms from everyone else?”
    “So everyone can tell us apart from other players,”Tina explained. “’Keepers always wear different colors.”
    Mr. Esparza gave his daughter a warm smile. “We’ll get you a red outfit tomorrow. I feel good that you’re a keeper. I’d like
     to have been a keeper myself.”
    “Daddy!” Tina exclaimed. “You always say you wish you’d been a center.”
    Her father shrugged. “I’d like to have been a great scorer
and
a star keeper.”
    Mrs. Esparza said, “Your father doesn’t always make sense when he talks about
futbol
. We’ll all be there for your game. Just don’t expect me to understand what’s going on.”
    “
I’ll
be there, even though soccer is lame compared to baseball,” said Sammy.
    “How can my son say that?” asked Mr. Esparza, giving Sammy a mock scowl. “Maybe when you get older you’ll be more sensible.”
    Mrs. Esparza laughed. “It didn’t happen with you, dear.”
    At practice the next day—the day before the first game—Tina saw Meg, Zoe, and other girls with Cindy, who was demonstrating
     a new move.
    “Start with the ball on your right foot,” Cindy said as Zoe tried it. “Then step over the ball with that foot … that’s it!
     Now shift your weight so the ball’s under your left foot …
good
! Then use the outside of your left foot to dribble … you got it!”
    Tina nudged Meg. “What’s happening?”
    Meg turned. “Oh, hi. Cindy’s showing people a ‘scissor move.’ She says it’s a great way to fake out a defender.”
    “Does it work?” Tina asked.
    Meg looked exasperated. “Not for
me
. Zoe can do it, but when I tried, I tripped. Maybe if I try it in a