Broken Promises

• F I F T E E N •

~ a l i ~

It was 5:00, and practice had just ended. I was in the locker room changing, preparing myself for the lecture I was about to receive.

"Dude, have you seen my shoes?" Reed appears next to me.

"You put them in your locker," I answered.

"Oh right," he says, going to open it.

"Ali?" I hear to my right.

I turn around to find Connor looking at me with guilt. "What's up?"

"Uh..." he hesitates.

"I don't have all day, Connor," I say playfully.

"Um," he gulps. "When Coach talks to you, can you promise you won't be mad at me?"

I immediately knew what happened. "I can't be mad at you." I close my locker and grab my bag.

Connor shifts nervously, still looking guilty.

"Connor, I'm not mad. I saw it coming. Congrats, by the way." I reassure him, clapping him on the back before making my way out of the locker room.

I knew Coach was going to pick Connor. He would be the best choice. He was good at playing, and everyone got along with him. Not to mention he's passing. Even though I had to admit I was upset, I was still happy for my friend.

"Ali," Coach hollers from across the gym. "Come with me."

I throw my bag over my shoulder and follow him silently to the principal's office.

Mrs. Rockwood was sitting at her desk with her arms folded in front of her. "Come on in, Ali," she says. I sat down along with Coach, who sat down in front of me. "I'm sure you know why you're here."

I just nod silently.

Coach sighs, "Ali, you're a great player, and you always manage to keep the team together. The team loves you, but Mrs. Rockwood and I decided."

I force a smile, "mhm."

"Ali, your grades have been dropping dramatically. You're failing all of your classes. You have been brought up to my office twice for sleeping in class. You also have been late multiple times and already have over 5 lunch detentions. You're a very bright student, and have kept all As and Bs for the past three years, but I don't know what's gotten into you this year. If something is wrong, you can tell us. We are here to help you in the end. Is everything okay at home?" Mrs. Rockwood asks.

I nod stiffly.

"Your sister is doing as great as ever," I smile softly at that. "But I don't know about you. Are you possibly hanging out with the wrong crowd?" I shook my head. "Are you sure nothings going on?" I nod again. Mrs. Rockwood took a deep breath, shaking her head. "Well if everything's going good, then you have no excuse for this. I'm sorry to do this, and I know how much you've worked for this, but you can no longer be captain of the football team until you improve your grades and behavior."

"I can still be on the football team, right?" I ask hesitantly.

Coach looked at me sadly, "Ali, I'm sorry. I tried to keep you in your position because you are an important factor for the team and are one of the best quarterbacks I've had. But as a quarterback, you can't miss practices, and we don't want to add any pressure on you."

My eyes widened, "what? You mean I'm no longer quarterback?"

"Sadly, but we have agreed to keep you on the team, on backup though." He clarifies. "For now, our backup quarterback will take your place, and you will take his. Meaning you most likely won't play in the games, and since we don't want to pressure you, you can choose what days you want to come to practice." Coach explains.