Page 1 of Dangerous Play

CHAPTER ONE

MAX

Runningthrough the damp grass and dribbling the ball between my feet felt like a walk in the park instead of what it really was, advancing toward the opponent’s goal without breaking contact with the ball. Every step got me closer to the goalie and the opponent’s team closer to losing.

We were at the end of our extra time, seconds away from moving into penalties to decide who is going to win.

But in my mind, there was no question.

The win belonged to us.

The Titans never lost.

And we weren’t going to start now.

My thighs burned from the past 99 and a half minutes I’ve spent running, but I pushed through the pain and ran faster.

The opposing team tried to catch up, their defenders doing their best to close in on me, but I broke away from them, and it was just me and the goalie.

His dark eyes widened, fearful, because his defensive players were nowhere near to stop me.

I was unstoppable.

Playing the ball between my feet, I continued to advance toward the goal without a second thought.

I kicked my feet with all the remaining strength and shot the ball, all the while smirking.

Lined straight, the ball landed in the net.Score!

Loud screams and shouts erupted from all around me, and the referee blew the whistle, ending the game.

My teammates rushed at me, jumping on top of me, their weight almost bringing me down.

“You did it, man!” my best friend, Dex, shouted, as he ruffled my hair.

“We did it.” I laughed.

Soccer was a team sport and there was no point being a captain if there was no team.

“I was worried you would let us go to penalties.” Maddox smirked. “You took your sweet-ass time.”

“Yeah, I like to keep everyone on the edge of their seat.”

“That was some fine soccer out there, son,” Coach Parker praised, clamping my shoulder. I nodded as the last of adrenaline pumped through my body.

It wasn’t just any win; I helped facilitate and made it happen. It was against our archnemesis, Westpoint University.

We beat them in their home. Because that was the Titan’s way of winning.

Our rivalry was legendary. It’d been ongoing since San Matjo was created.

San Matjo is a little city in the middle of California and the only thing besides soccer that it’s known for is the music festival. Westpoint and Hillview are the only two universities co-existing in this city and our soccer teams are going head-to-head all the time. Most Major League Soccer players come from this no-name area and gain fame.

The crowd raved at our win, which was funny, considering we were standing at Westpoint’s soccer field as we wiped the floor with them.

Oh, the irony.

Cheeks aching from my grin, I slipped into my blue sweater before I lined up with my teammates and shook hands with the opponents.

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