Free CRAVING U (The Rook Café) by Llàrjme Page B

movement on the ball from the way it was kicked – straight
on, from the side, with only the three middle toes – and where it was kicked – on
the smooth side, against the air valve, or with the stitches.
    The spectators were on edge.  Even Marika’s
friends had stopped chattering.  Then the referee’s whistle broke the silence.
    Matteo took three steps and made a perfect
shot, sending the ball right into the upper corner.
    “Goooooooal...” the announcer yelled in
his best imitation of a South-American cadence, joining the raucous cries of
joy rising from the stands, which had suddenly turned into a Sambadrome after
such an exhausting and long-awaited victory.
    As he always did after scoring, Matteo
pumped his right fist into the sky and performed an airborne pirouette before
being tackled and submerged under his teammates.
    2 to 1, Brenta .  The referee
whistled the end of the game.  Everyone to the showers!
    The Dogado team argued with the
linesman for calling the foul against Matteo, while the Brenta team dragged
out its celebrations.  “ La la la la la la la, Go Brenta go, Go Brenta
go! ”
    Applauded by his coach and the remains of
the crowd, Matteo headed toward the locker room through the tunnel under the
central stands.  Most of the spectators had headed toward the snack bar to
debate the results and performance of the team; only some parents and Matteo’s
group of friends were still in their seats.  He quickly scanned those remaining
until he found what he was searching for, those soft, pistachio-colored eyes. 
His mouth spread instantly into a wide smile, which she matched, under the
watchful gaze of both friends and enemies.
    The look between the two of them could not
go unnoticed, especially by those harpies who envied their relationship, and it
set off a firestorm of gossip and bitchiness.  “She’s such a stupid chick,”
Lucrezia commented furiously.  “She truly believes that Matteo likes her.”
    “She’s always telling us that they’re just
friends,” Livia added, glad to join in against Marika, “when in truth she’s
been drooling over him for years.”
    “Yeah, like a dog in heat!” Lucrezia
added, cruelly, her nostrils flaring.
    “She doesn’t get it that he’s just leading
her on.  He only thinks of her as a friend... a male friend at that!”  Their
vicious laughter rippled over the noise of the cars leaving the parking lot.
    In the locker room, meanwhile, the team
was awaiting only Alessio, the central defender of the team; he had been
delayed by his responsibility, as team captain, to help the manager escort the
referee out of the stadium and make sure that he was not assaulted by angry
fans, as was especially possible when late goals were scored.  The number 2
entered the lockers to the sounds of ecstatic shouts and yells, and lowbrow
jokes about the opposing team.
    “Olé!  Olé!  Brenta ... olé!”
    The kidding around only ended when the
coach entered and raised his gruff voice above the decibel level of his
celebrating charges.  “Quiiiieeeeet!”  Esposito slammed his metallic clipboard
against the wall, chipping off a piece of moldy plaster.  “You were just lucky
today.  We’ll talk about it more on Tuesday.”
    When he left, one joker chucked his shin
guards toward the closing door, and then they all started stripping off their
uniforms and heading to the showers to relax under the hot water.  “Pass me the
soap,” Marcello said from underneath a cloud of steam to Albano, who was
rifling through his gym bag.
    Sheepishly, the goalie pulled out a
gigantic half-gallon jug of discount liquid soap of a strange lime green color
and handed it toward his teammate.
    “Hey guys, check out Puccio!” Marcello
ribbed him, calling everyone’s attention to the huge plastic container.  “He
brought enough soap for a car wash.”
    Everyone turned their eyes on the
unfortunate butt of the joke, grinning good-naturedly and trying to press the
maxi-bottle