Cloud 69

9:

A week later, the entirety of the soccer team, both girls and boys, had gathered in the gym to finally vote for the guys' captain. I got to the gym ten minutes early, but the room was already pretty full.

I recognized mostly a bunch of the underclassmen from my team, and couldn't make out Becca anywhere in the crowd. Carson and Dylan were standing up at the front, opposite of the ballot box, so I decided to join them, at least until Becca showed. 

"Hey," I greeted half-heartedly, tucking my hands into my sweater pockets. Dylan smiled, pulling me into a side hug, allowing his arm to rest around my shoulders.

Carson looked visibly displeased with my presence, and less than a minute had passed before he announced that he was going to go find Shane, another junior of the boy's team. I rolled my eyes as Carson separated from us and walked off.

I knew Dylan took notice of it too, and he shook his head, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he shook the arm that was around me and gave me a weird smile. "Guess what?"

Whenever Dylan says 'guess what,' it usually ends up being something I don't want to know about. Although he is usually pretty tame, he tends to lack a filter, if you don't stop him before he starts.

"What?" I asked hesitantly, already prepared to have to scrub my ears with bleach. 

"Last night, the L-Squad-"

"Dylan, stop. Please stop, ew."

He laughed, "You don't even know what I was gonna say."

I gave him a look. "I beg to differ." He chuckled, but did not try to progress any further in his story. He gave me a few minutes of peaceful silence before trying to talk to me again.

"So, who are you voting for?" He asked, nudging my shoulder.

I smirked, deciding to toy with him. "I can't tell you. That's against the rules."

I was obviously very set on voting for him, and he definitely knew that, too. Still, it's still fun to mess with him from time to time.

"I won't be mad if you vote for Carson," he said. "Really, I won't. I just... I think you should know that."

I stared at him, waiting for the sincerity on his face to go away. But it didn't. Which meant he wasn't kidding. 

Another silence fell on us. I hadn't even thought about voting Carson. I mean, he was the best on the team and he would be a good team leader. But Dylan is my best friend, and Carson... Carson is anything but my friend. 

"Dylan, I was just joking. You know I wouldn't-"

"I know, Maddie. That's why I'm saying it." I stared at him in confusion as his arm slipped from around my shoulders. "Think back to when you were elected. How did you become captain?"

"I got nominated?" I supplied. Clearly, that wasn't the answer he was looking for because he rolled his eyes at me.

"I meant why," Dylan explained. "Why were you chosen to be captain by your teammates over the other candidates."

I shrugged, "Maybe I looked pretty that day? I'm pretty sure my speech was really funny, too."

Dylan looked frustrated with my answer, and shook his head. "They chose you because you're the best suited for the role. Whether or not you want to say it."

"Fine," I conceded. "That may have been the reason. Continue."

"Maddie, you know what it takes to make a good captain. You know it because you are one. It's not skill, it's not popularity, it's not bias– it's leadership."