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Hunched over in the blazing sun, Evie wiped the sweat off her forehead with her arm and prayed for a reprieve. A cool breeze. Cloud cover. Anything. She scanned the field and noticed Allie lose the ball to the opposition and growled, realising that it was up to the defenders to save the game now. She glanced up at the scoreboard nervously, chewing at her nails. . . They were still tied and there were only five minutes left. A striker on the other team punted the ball into the goal, which was narrowly caught by the yellowjacket's goalie. "Go Van!" Evie called out, watching the redhead boot the ball in the air. Taissa quickly ran after it, dribbling while the other team were trailing behind her. One girl went to kick it from out beneath her, but she managed to tactically move it and kick it in Shauna's direction.
Shauna was currently being shepherded by the opponents but managed to shove them out of her way and grab the ball, avoiding the two girls blocking her by spinning and bolting for their goals. Evie perked up, realising that the ball was finally in her direction and started waving her hands in the air and trying to get Shauna's attention. Noticing how free Evie was, some of the defenders in the other team made their way over to her—forcing the striker to have to move for the ball.
"Shauna! Over here!" Evie cried, waving her hands in the air and running towards her teammate. The opposition was hot on her heels, so she knew that if she wanted that ball she'd have to lose the girl chasing her. The stakes were high, as the two teams were currently tied and there was only a minute left on the clock. This game was the be-all or end-all since it was the qualifier for nationals and many of the girls' last year at Wiskayok High—Evie prayed they would win, it couldn't end this way after such hard work from all the girls in the team.
The girl was gaining on her, and Shauna had no choice but to pass the ball on; she smashed it with her foot, heading straight for Evie, pressuring her to make a quick decision. The girl hooked her leg around Evie's, but she took it in stride, circling the ball with her foot and moving it out of the way. Sneakily—because the ref was looking—Evie dug her studs into the girl's shins, causing her to hiss but back up, allowing Evie to sprint. Hearing her name shouted by the team captain, Evie knew she didn't have any other options than to kick and hope; her foot collided with the ball, sending it high in the air, but most importantly, in Jackie's direction.
Jackie head-butted it into the goal, and the goalie leapt for it—but it was in vain. The ball hit the back of the net and everyone stared in shock for a moment, before Jackie covered her mouth with her hands and Shauna hollered for her. The Yellowjackets ran towards their captain, engulfing her in a group hug and cheering. Evie looked for Lottie, who gave her a wide grin before rubbing her face in relief; Evie laughed, feeling the same way. The girls began jumping up and down in a circle, chanting to celebrate their win. They were going to nationals! Evie quickly found herself by Lottie's side, as the taller girl enveloped her in a bear hug.
In the locker rooms, the celebrations didn't end. Someone pulled out a speaker and began blasting music while the girls danced along; Evie threw her hands in the air and began swaying her hips to the music. She felt someone behind doing the same and turned around to dance with them, feeling the bridge of the song coming up—her favourite thing to do was scream the lyrics with someone. Lottie bent down slightly, coming eye level with Evie, their faces were inches away from each other's as they began shouting in unison, "I wanna push you around! Well I will, well I will!"
