Free Pretenders by Lisi Harrison

Coops sideswiped Logo’s fist with some brown-belt karate action.
    COOPS: Keee-ai!
    He landed like he was straddling a toilet.
    COOPS: Prepare for epic battle.
    Logo pushed Coops into a locker and grabbed Hud’s uniform for the second time. He flicked the sponsor’s name and said: explain
that
.
    HUD: First Rate Real Estate?
    LOGO: Isn’t that your daddy’s business?
    HUD: So?
    LOGO: So? You sweat freshman piss in basketball but for some straaaaange reason you’re on the Flames and I got cut.
    COOPS: He’s better than you.
    LOGO: Come here and say that.
    Coops stepped right up to Logo but instead of saying: he’s better than you, he shouted Keee-ai! and round-housed Logo in the shin. No one saw it coming. Not even me and I’ve known the guy since first grade. It was sick! Until Coops tried to run and wiped on the wet tiles.
    He has to wear one of those black Darth Vader boots for seven weeks, maybe more. So he’s out for the season. Logo got his spot.
    That
    was
    a
    down
    day.
    The rest of the week was about drills and schedules. Bammer said we’d be closer than brothers by the end of the year. I said cool because I’m sick of sisters. Everyone laughed. Logo cracked his knuckles.
    Feeling = Over that guy.
    Other than Logo, everyone seems cool. They know Hud and I have skills and keep saying how the Noble Flames aregoing to dominate this year. Greg, one of the seniors, even offered to drive me to practice and stuff so I don’t have to deal with my parents. The way he said it made me think he has annoying parents. I like mine and normally I’m cool if they want to take me to games but Mom has been stressed lately so I said okay.
    Like Wednesday after practice. I was in the kitchen swigging chocolate milk from the carton when she showed up. Carrying a laundry basket! Normally she freaks when I drink from the carton but she didn’t even notice. All she cared about was my uniform which I guess she had just washed.
    MOM: Hudson’s parents are sponsoring the Flames?
    ME: Yeah.
    MOM: Since when?
    ME: Dunno.
    MOM: Does your father know?
    ME: Dunno.
    MOM: Well, what
do
you know?
    ME: I dunno. What’s the big deal?
    MOM: The big deal is it costs money to sponsor a team.
    ME: So.
    MOM: So, I guess they’re having a good year.
    ME: Maybe you should get Rosie back.
    MOM: Rosie? What does Rosie have to do with anything?
    ME: You seem kinda… I dunno. Maybe you need help or something.
    MOM: You’re right.
    So you know what she did? She handed me the basket and told me to put the clothes away. Then, after tripping over our nameless dogs and shouting the s-word, she went upstairs to take a bath.
    I put the basket in Mandy’s room with a note that said, Mom wants you to put these away. Then I played DS.
    Feeling = If she wants to wear slick designer clothes she should put them away herself.
    Today Coach Bammer sent us home with the parents’ packet. We have to bring it back Monday with everything signed and paid for or we’re off the team. Varsity is that serious. I gave it to Dad right when he got home. He was in my room ten minutes later.
    ME: That was fast. Thanks.
    He dropped it on my bed and asked if I wanted to go fly-fishing.
    ME: When?
    DAD: Now.
    ME: It’s Sabbath.
    DAD: We’re not Jewish.
    ME: Oh yeah.
    Feeling = Either my parents are dying or they’re getting divorced.
    Dad and I have been going on these awesome guys-only fly-fishing trips since I was six. With Varsity we probably won’t have time for them so I brought my journal. I thought itwould be good to take notes so I could remember the good times, just in case my last feeling comes true.
    Feeling = It better not.
    We listened to the Yankees game for most of the drive. They were down by three in the last inning. Dad turned it off.
    ME: Why’d ya do that?
    DAD: I’m tired of losing.
    ME: I hear ya.
    I had no clue what he was talking about.
    We pulled off the highway and onto the dirt road that led to our campsite. Twigs snapped under the weight of