Free The Birthday Party of No Return! by R. L. Stine Page B

burst in, and we almost collided.
    â€œGood game,” he said.
    â€œYou, too,” I said.
    We bumped knuckles. And I trotted out to the field.

Coach Taylor divided us up into Team Offense and Team Defense. After ten or fifteen minutes, we switched teams.
    Cory and Laura played on Team Offense at first. I was on Team Defense.
    I readied myself. Clenched my jaw. Tightened every muscle. I was totally psyched.
    I leaned into position and stretched my arms out at my sides. No one was going to get past me. No one.
    Cory started as quarterback for Team Offense. On the first play, he handed the ball to Gray Haddox. Gray burst through the line for a few yards. Then he was swarmed on and tagged by three or four players on my team.
    On the next play, Cory dropped back to pass. I shot through the line, waving my hands above my head. I grabbed him around the waist. “You’re tagged.”
    Coach Taylor blew his whistle. He pointed at me. “No tackling!”
    I shrugged my shoulder pads. “That was a tag,” I said.
    I felt good. Taylor saw how enthusiastic I was. And he saw me make a really good play on Cory.
    One point for Lee Hargrove.
    The coach whistled for us to start play again.
    This time, Cory kept the ball and ran to the other side, away from me. I rocketed across the field. Reached out for him … reached…
    â€¦And just missed him.
    He ran for a touchdown.
    Score one for Lucky Duckworth.
    Cory’s team took the ball on offense again. Some kids had gathered on the sidelines to watch the contest.
    I leaned into my defensive stance. I readied myself. Focus , I told myself. Stay alert. Focus. You can do this. You can win this.
    Cory tossed the ball to Laura. She tore through the line, zigzagged like crazy, and ran for about twenty yards.
    Not bad. Especially for a girl.
    There were four girls in the game. Four girls trying for the scholarship. All of them had done pretty well in bowling and tennis. But Laura was the best of the four.
    Did she have a chance to win and go to Sports Camp?
    Well, yes. She had a chance. Of course, she had a small chance.
    Did I still have a chance? If I made a few more really awesome plays, the answer would be yes.
    I’d score some points with Coach Taylor for playing well. And if I could score enough sportsmanship points and Most Improved points, I could definitely win the prize.
    I tensed myself. Forced myself to breathe slowly, steadily. Kept my eyes moving.
    Superstar time. All-pro time. KILLER time.
    On the next play, Cory kept the ball. He cut left, then cut right. He had the ball tucked tightly under his arm and his helmet lowered. And he was thundering in a straight line — right at me!
    I stuck out my arms. Lowered my helmet. Tightened my stance.
    Ready to tag him. Ready for him as he ran toward me. Ready.
    â€œOWWWWWWWWOOOOOO.”
    Was that me shrieking like that? Did I hear him shrieking, too?
    The pain rocketed from my head down my body. A tidal wave of throbbing, hammering pain.
    Everything went black even before I hit the ground.

“What happened?”
    My voice came out in a hoarse whisper. I struggled to see but everything was a blur. It hurt to raise my head. I lowered it to the grass.
    Someone had removed my helmet. It lay a few feet away from me.
    â€œAm I alive?” I croaked.
    Coach Taylor appeared above me. “I think you’re okay. Let’s try to sit you up.”
    He pushed me from behind. I groaned. But the pain was starting to fade.
    The ground tilted down. The trees beyond the playground wouldn’t come into focus.
    I saw Cory sitting across from me, his legs spread. His helmet was off, and he kept shaking his head.
    â€œWhoa,” he murmured. “Whoa.”
    â€œWhat happened?” I asked Coach Taylor. “Was it an earthquake or something?”
    â€œYou two butted heads,” Taylor said. “You went down and Laura picked up the ball and scored a touchdown.”
    I squinted past