Torn

Chapter 1

I could feel the beads of sweat dripping down my temples. Both my navy blue jersey and white shorts were soaked in sweat. My headband was getting so tight, I was on the urge of ripping it off my head. My legs were aching and my knee was stinging from the cut I got a while ago before halftime. Saying that I was exhausted was certainly an understatement. That did not mean that I could stop then. I had to keep going until the end.

I looked over at the scoreboard. We were tied with Northbrooke High by only one goal each. It had always been Northbrooke. We had been competing with them in the finals for five years and they were the ones who always brought the trophy home. Ever since I became the captain of the Cape Coral soccer team, it was my dream to turn things around. I was going to make sure that my team was going to leave this stadium with our heads held high, medals around our necks.

"Three more minutes," I said to myself. That was just enough time for us to make history. I signalled my teammate with a nod. She looked over her shoulder where the ball was going to be released into the playing field. It was a corner kick in our favour. We were prepared for that moment. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I could hear my heart pounding in my ears, a deafening sound that echoed throughout my whole body.

Not a second later, the whistle blew. Before anyone could even blink, the ball was already in the air. At that moment, I was sure that I was no longer breathing. I ran forward, my eyes fixated on that sphere made of polyester. With all the strength that I had left, I jumped and did a header. It happened so fast, I did not plan on how I was going to land. I lost control of my footing and fell. I winced at the pain on my ankle upon impact. Ignoring the pain, I looked up with my eyes strained from the floodlights that lit the entire stadium.

The final whistle was finally blown, signifying the end of the game.

"You did it, captain," one of my teammates yelled. "We won!" As I was being carried and supported on the shoulders of my teammates, I could finally see the view of the field clearly. There it was, the ball that was flying across a minute ago was now trapped in the netting of the goal post.

The roar of the crowd was better than any drug to me. Within the next few moments, I basked in the wonderful atmosphere. I could see some of my classmates coming out from the bleachers and running onto the field, exchanging hugs with their friends. You could hear the military band playing proudly, knowing that it was the team from home that got to bring home the gold. The cheerleaders were jumping enthusiastically as if they won the lottery.

Even though I had been wanting this dream to come true, I found it hard to believe that after five years, Cape Coral High had finally won the state championship. As I was still overwhelmed by what was happening, I was handed over the championship trophy. The screams coming from the crowd were deafening as I kissed the trophy and lifted it high into the air.

ווו×

After the award ceremony, we continued our celebration in the locker room. The level of excitement at that moment was just as insane as it was back at the stadium.

"I can't believe that is finally ours!"

"Every girl who had been on this team five years ago had been dreaming of this win. Now, this dream has finally come true," said our head coach, Taylor Beckett.

"We couldn't have done it without Quinn's amazing last minute header, though."

The girls cheered once more. It felt awesome knowing that I did not let my team down like I feared. Those last three minutes were honestly a 'make it or break it' moment. Thankfully I was able to accomplish the former.

After what seemed like hours of celebration, we finally calmed down and began to clean up.

"How's your ankle, Quinn?" asked June, Cape Coral's trustworthy goalkeeper and also my best friend since the sixth grade.