Page 94 of The Keeper
“Bingo.”
I smiled, feeling a lot more in control of things and a little more sure-footed than I felt when I arrived.
The slamming of the gym door snaps me out of my memory of the morning and the fantastic conversation I had with Regina. I look over to my right and see Gina storming across the room towards me, anger rolling off of her in waves.
“You fuckingbitch,” she seethes as she gets closer.
I quickly stop my treadmill and hop off. Looks like she was bumped from starter today. I stand without a defensive posture, trying to remember the prep conversation I had with Coach J about how to handle the inevitable fallout.
“What can I do for you Gina?” I ask, keeping any malice from my tone.
“Don’t act like you don’t know what just happened,” she spits. “I got bumped from starter and your little minion is taking my place!”
“I’m aware that decision had been made,” I respond. “Did you have any questions or concerns about it that Coach J was unable to answer?”
She growls at me, her hands clenching into fists.
“This is all your fucking fault, you stupid fucking cow,” she screams, causing other athlete’s heads to turn our way.
“Gina, I made the recommendation that Piper should be moved to starter for multiple reasons, which I am sure Coach J reviewed with you. Mack said they wanted to give you another two games to demonstrate that you were the better player and that you were capable of working effectively in the team. You failed on both, which is why Piper has replaced you.”
Gina’s face is bright red and her body practically vibrating with rage.
“You are going to pay for this,” she hisses, before storming away from me and out the door.
I breathe in deeply and exhale, trying to remain calm. That girl has a way of getting under my skin like no one else can.
But I have to admit to myself, as a slow smile creeps onto my face, seeing her skin turn that particular shade of red was incredibly satisfying.
Chapter Seventeen
At the crack of dawn the following morning, a Friday at the beginning of November, our team packs up into a bus and shuttles down to San Diego again, this time for the Southern California Small College Tournament, affectionately called the SC2.
Being a smaller school means women’s teams get the shaft on funding to cover team-related events, so it’s a big deal that the athletic department is supporting our trip down to San Diego. The women’s team has made it to this very important tournament for the first time ever, though, so they were kind of obligated to pretend they cared.
The games we play this weekend will determine if we get to play in the College Cup in December. The men’s team has made it before, so it’s pretty much a given that they will attend this year. Our chances are still a bit more uncertain, and the pressure we all feel to perform this weekend is high.
The joint bus ride with the men’s team and requirement to play in multiple games over several days also means we need to stay overnight in San Diego, so the athletic department also splurges on hotel rooms for us. Shitty hotel rooms, with cigarette burns in the horribly stiff bed spread. But still, it’s a trip out of town for a bunch of healthy, energetic college students to meet and interact with other healthy, energetic college students.
It’s disgustingly exciting and I’ve heard it’s like a mini-Olympic village. Lots of sex and drinking and debauchery once each team is done playing. To say all of it makes me terribly uncomfortable would be an understatement.
“Think we should get out that blacklight before we crawl under any covers?”
I snort out a laugh and throw a shin guard at Piper.
“God, no. I’ll sleep in filthy, ignorant bliss over finding out the sheets are diseased.”
Piper giggles too.
“Blurg. So gross.”
And yet she still crawls onto her double bed and splays her body out, face down into that same bed spread.
“Don’t get too comfy, missy. Coach said we needed to go on a 4 mile run in our own time since our first game isn’t until tomorrow morning. Some of the girls are meeting downstairs in about an hour.”
When all I hear is a groan muffled by the bed, I lean over and smack Piper’s butt.
She yelps.
