We finished the scrimmage. I was having a hard time playing with my team. The only people I could rely on was Morgan Brian and Carli Lloyd. I assumed Carli was the captain because her, along with Becky, closed out practice. They led the cool down too. Carli also assigned me to the other team to replace Arry. I wasn't sure if the teams meant anything but I knew that one side had really strong offense and the other had really strong defense.

We all went into the locker room. Half of the scrimmagers crowded into the row Arry's locker was in which was the closest to the door. "So? How'd it go?" The forward I found out was named Mallory asked anxiously. The girls hushed each other to hear her answer.

Arry slumped in her seat. "Suspended for a month," she said. She kicked the wall.

The defender from the other team said, "If you keep kicking things, you'll be out with an injury."

The devastated player looked up at her teammate with wide eyes. "You and Carli are captains. Can't you tell Jill to reconsider my suspension? Maybe even shorten it? Please," she begged wrapping her arms around the defenders neck and peering up at her.

Her teammate looked to the captain with a questioning expression. You'd have to watch very closely, but Carli definitely shook her head. The captain removed Arry and faced her. She said, "I agree with Jill. You have to learn you can't do things like that."

Tobin stepped in front of Carli. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. You act like my sister goes around throwing punches left and right."

Carli doesn't back down. "I didn't say that. Hinkle and her have been at it since Arry made it freshman year and she didn't. I didn't feel the need to get involved since I'm the captain of the soccer team. Not conflict patrol," she said sternly. "That was until things started happening during my time on my field."

She turned to Arry. "I don't care if you can't stand someone. That stays outside of the lines. Inside you are teammates striving for the same goal," she stated firmly. "Do you understand?"

She sighed but nodded. The crowd started to disperse. I sat beside Arry. On her other side was her sister. She seemed lost now that school soccer has been taken away from her for a month. "You okay?" I finally asked.

She swallowed and nodded. She said, "I'll survive. Sorry this all had to happen on your first day."

I smiled softly. "It's fine. You don't have to apologize," I said, my feet fidgeting on the cement floor.

We were silent. Tobin suddenly said, "I should've told her to knock it off."

Arry's head shot up. She stared at her sister, but all I could see was the back of her head. "It's not your fault Tobin," she said. "You're not the one who punched her."

"But I'm your sister. Your older sister. I should be looking out for you and . . . and defending you," she said putting her face in her hands. "Now you can't play for a whole month." I smiled sadly at the obvious care Tobin had for her sister.

Arry leaned back. Her position was relaxed and at ease. She smirked. "The world doesn't revolve around you." Tobin chuckled lifting her head to look at her sister. She shook her head and bumped their shoulders.

I had heard a little bit about Tobin from some of the other players. I had commented on her footwork when we were resetting. The forward I had played with was a junior. She immediately told me to stay away from her. They were in the same grade and had a few classes together. She described her as soccer obsessed and overbearingly studious. She didn't care about anyone or anything but her grades and soccer. In fact, a lot of players on my scrimmage team had agreed.

Looking at her now was seriously confusing me. I pushed it to the back of my mind and checked the time. I had a ride to catch. I said, "Thanks for helping me out today. Sorry about your suspension. I've got to get going but I'll see you around." I looked to Tobin. "It was nice to meet you."

She smiled. Her grin was like a bucket of ice being poured over me. My skin felt numb and tingly. I quickly moved out of the row of lockers with my bag and started heading to the door. When I passed by the second to last row, a voice called, "Nice job at practice. Jill and I talked. We think you'd be a great addition to our team."

"I made it?" I smiled. She nodded. "Thank you so much."

She gave me a small smile. She went around me so she could go into the depths of the room. Probably to her locker since it was located in the back. The lockers were assigned by number and she was ten. I turned and called, "Carli."

She turned to face me. I fidgeted. She was built strong. She was intimidating to stand in front of. "I-is it true that Tobin Heath . . . " I trailed off. The more I repeated the phrases in my head, the harsher they sounded. Soccer obsessed, overbearingly studious, self centered.

She raised her eyebrows expectantly. "That Tobin Heath what?"

I licked my lips. "Some of the girls said that she's obsessed with soccer and grades and herself," I finally said.

Her eyebrows remained raised. She crossed her arms over her chest. She didn't seem angry though. Her expression was thoughtful. "Do you believe that?"

"I-I don't know. I find it hard to believe," I stare at the ground.

She asked, "Who told you these things?"

"I don't remember their names. They were on our scrimmage team."

She nodded slowly. "People sometimes mix the words obsessed and dedicated. You're going to need to find out for yourself." With that she turned and walked down the hall. Before I could walk out the door, I heard her say, "Those girls know her about as well as you do."

That eased my brain. For some reason, knowing whether she was a jerk or not was something I cared about. Her being a terrible person hurt me and I wasn't sure why. Maybe because her sister was such a nice girl? I wasn't completely sure.

+ + +

It was more than a week after my first practice with the Drifton Wolves. Arry and that other girl still practiced, but they were excluded from games and scrimmages. I was getting to know the team better. The girls were really close. They seemed to know each other really well.

After practice on a Friday, the girls were rowdy as they crowded into the locker room. "Party at my house!" Megan Rapinoe shouted from Sydney Leroux's back. The forward whooped as the midfielder spun her shirt over her head. Her strong arms and abs were fully visible. No one seemed to think much of it. I was the only one appalled with the fact that she and stripped her t-shirt off.

Everybody went to their lockers to get ready to go home. I had gotten my own locker in between freshman Morgan Brian and junior Christen Press. I opened my bag and threw in my wet t-shirt.

Ali, a defender two lockers down, was taking her cleats off when her girlfriend sauntered into the row. She looked like an average surfer girl. Apparently, they had been together for three years. Ashlyn kissed her, causing her to giggle against her lips. Morgan rolled her eyes at their display of public affection. Meghan Klingenberg came up behind her and scared her. Morgan yelped and pushed her away.

I zipped my bag and slung it over my shoulder. I stood up to leave. Morgan said, "Alex! Good practice." I set my bag down.

I turned and thanked her. She gave me a smile. Meghan's arms were around her. She must've said something funny because Morgan laughed again and pried her arms off.

Arry turned into my row and slid across the bench. She rested her arm on my bag and asked, "You going to the party tonight?"

I bit my lip. "Probably not," I said.

Her eyes widened. "You have to!" She exclaimed. "Everybody goes! It's wild and so much fun!" She motioned around the room with a grin.

I didn't want to. It wasn't a good idea to go to a party with people you didn't know. I trusted the girls but I hadn't really been to a party. This would be my first high school party. I had heard that these kind of parties involved alcohol and illegal things. "Thanks for the invite, but I have a ton of work."

She rolls her eyes. "It's Friday Alex. Loosen up a little. You don't have to stay for long. Just come for a little," she pleaded.

Tobin walked into the row. Over the course of the last week I had gotten to know her a little better. The more I saw her, the more the rumors seemed true. But the brief interactions she had with her sister and select teammates showed a different side of her.

She was caring, competitive, and had this drive to be the best. She wanted to be the best student, best athlete, best sister. "Hey," she said. Her voice was chill and laid back. Her signature snap back was on her head, and she was carrying two bags.

Staring at her, a thought creeped into my head. Does she like girls? I paused. Why do I care? Why did that randomly pop into my head. Thankfully, Arry derailed my train of thought by saying, "Tobin, Alex doesn't wanna go to the party. Tell her she has to!" Tobin rolled her eyes with a smile and turned to me. A part of me wanted to know if she was going. A part of me wanted her to tell me to go.

She stuck her hands in her pockets. "Don't listen to her. If you wanna go, go. If you don't, don't. But the parties are always fun. It's a great way to bond with the team," she said. She faced Arry. "Come on squirt. We have to get going or we'll be late." She put her arm around her younger sister and led her out of the locker room. I watched as they left and a small part of me wanted to leave with them. I sighed and sat back down.

+ + +

"Thank you Harold," I said as I opened the car door.

He smiled at me, his wrinkles deepening. "My pleasure Ms. Morgan."

"Alex," I corrected before I shut the door. He gave me a final wave which I returned politely.

He waited till I was on the walkway to follow the circular path. He left the premise, winding down the mile long driveway. I made my way to the doorway ringing the doorbell. The door opened and Genevieve answered promptly. "Ms. Morgan would you like me to send your bags to your room and have your soccer stuff washed and dried for tomorrow?" She opened her arms for me to hand them to her.

I shook my head. "It's alright. I can take my bags myself," I said. A blush warmed my cheeks. "But . . . Do you mind having my stuff cleaned? Then just have it sent to my room. Is that too much trouble?"

Genevieve laughed, her greying red hair bouncing with her body. "Trouble? You're quite a character Ms. Morgan." She took my soccer bag and scurried off before I could correct her. I had asked my mother to comment on the use of my first name, but she had scoffed at me.

James dressed in his usual suit crossed the front room. He was the youngest live in we had. "James," I called. My voice echoing off the grand ceiling. He was also the most recently hired.

His eyes went wide at being addressed. He stopped walking and rubbed his gloved hands together. "H-How can I assist you ma'am?" He stuttered, fidgeting.

I smiled softly to try and relax him. I said, "I just wanted to know if you knew where my mother was."

He nodded vigorously. "She's out back having tea with some company. You're father is in his office," he said. "Is that all?" I nodded. He was gone before I could thank him.

I made my way through the house and to the back door. She was in the gazebo in the center of the garden. I made my way through the cleanly cut hedges. She sat around a table with three other woman. She saw me over the porcelain rim of her cup. She set it down with a smile. "Alexandra! Come, come. Introduce yourself to our wonderful guests," she smiled waving me over.

My legs were stiff as I climbed the gazebo stairs. I stopped beside my mother's chair. I forced a smile. "I'm Alex . . . " My mother gave me a stern look that she concealed from the other women. " . . . Andra. Alexandra Morgan. It is a pleasure to meet you all." I folded my hands in front of me.

One of the women smiled up at me. She turned to my mother and said, "Such a nice young lady. Pretty too." She winked.

Another woman cut in. "Yes, yes. Much too pretty and smart to be going to a public school. Much like my daughter Jaelene. We would send her to a private school if Drifton didn't rank higher than the wannabe high end academies we have in our district," she huffed. She took a sip of her tea.

The last woman grabbed herself a cracker with cheese. She chewed and swallowed before she said, "Speaking of Jaelene, I heard she was suspended from the high school soccer team."

Ms. Hinkle's jaw dropped slightly and she flinched back. "You heard?" She gasped. "From who? Who'd gossip about such things?"

"Oh I've heard it to," my mother confirmed. She looked to me. "You validated the claim last week didn't you?"

Before I could answer, Ms. Hinkle said, "My daughter was a victim! In fact I have emailed the coach and we have set up a conference time. I want her off the suspension. Those Heath girls are uncontrollable. Especially the younger one."

"They were just protecting themselves," I snapped. My eyes widened. My mouth was agape. I never spoke out of turn. I was surprised the words had even crossed my mind.

"Alexandra!" My mother exclaimed.

Ms. Hinkle whipped her head to stare into my eyes. "You haven't been talking to these girls have you? They will feed your head with lies. They are like wild animals. They have no adults to discipline them. They do what they want, when they want," she snarled. "I don't blame them for their nature. It wasn't their fault. Poor girls. But it is what it is. Don't go near them."

I felt my face heat up and my fists clench at my side. "All due respect ma'am. I can choose my friends for myself," I stated through gritted teeth.

My mother shot me a withering glare before she turned to Ms. Hinkle. "I apologize for my daughter's insolence."

She turned to me. "Alexandra. Go to your room. What you've said was out of line and completely out of character."

"Mother," I protested.

"Now."

I took a deep breath and turned with a straight expression on my face. I left the garden, the chatter of the gossip girls acting as background noise. "I'm going to a party tonight," I called over my shoulder but my mother said nothing. I'm going to a party. My first party.