Going Wild by Lisa McMann Page B

Maybe this weekend she could look for a battery for it. Then she slipped the bracelet back on. Top athletes used these, and now so did Charlie. She was going to be like Alex from the US women’s team and show everyone she had the right to wear it. This bracelet would help her keep her mind focused on being the best player she could be.
    But Kelly’s words still bothered her, and she had to work hard to push the doubts aside. If only she could stop feeling so jittery.

CHAPTER 10
Tryouts
    A fter school Charlie sped to the locker room to change. She wanted to arrive at the field as soon as possible so she could get in a few kicks and dribbles and maybe calm her nerves a little. She waved to Maria as she left the locker room and made her way past the athletic storage building, which several guys in hard hats were working on, and across the track to the grass, where some orange cones and a mesh bag full of balls sat. Charlie grabbed a ball, did a few stretches, and began a slow dribble up the field before coming back and stretching some more. This would be a bad time to pull a muscle. As she held her stretches and listened to the steady pounding of hammers nearby, she pulled up her sleeve and used her bracelet to keep her focus strong.
    When Kelly, Maria, and a bunch of other girls reached the field, Charlie was all business. She nodded politely but didn’t join in the joking and laughter. Instead she went over her best moves in her mind and began to jump in place, warming up and trying to get her new shoes to bend and give a little more. The bracelet slid around on her wrist, and Charlie shoved it up her arm to secure it.
    Soon the coach joined them. “Gather around!” she shouted,and clapped her hands a few times. The girls moved to surround her.
    Coach was young and tall and muscular, with blazing black eyes and hair, and dark-brown skin. “It’s great to have you all back again,” she said. “And nice to see some unfamiliar faces, too—I look forward to getting to know you. For those of you who are new, I’m Coach Candy.”
    Charlie felt a wave of relief—apparently she wasn’t the only new face. And then she spied an athletic bracelet on Coach’s arm. Cool!
    Coach explained how the tryout would go. She laid out her high expectations, making individual eye contact with the girls as she spoke so she could be sure they understood. “Everybody starts at the same level today, whether you’ve played on the team before or not. This is not a time to be shy with your abilities. I want to see how you move the ball, how you share it, and how you attack the goal or defend it,” she said. “Is everybody clear?”
    â€œYes, Coach!” shouted the girls who’d been on the team before. Charlie missed the cue, but she vowed to get it next time. She felt intimidation creep in again. Despite what Coach had said, Charlie worried that the other girls knew her so well that they’d have an advantage.
    When Coach Candy caught Charlie’s eye to make sure she understood, she nodded emphatically.
    Coach Candy split the girls into two teams and handed out redscrimmage vests to one team and blue to the other, then sent them to opposite ends of the field for some warm-up exercises. Charlie was on the blue team, and she noted ruefully that Kelly and Maria were together on the red team.
    As she ran suicides and dribbled through the cones, Charlie fought her nerves and tried to let her instinct take over, but she couldn’t stop thinking about what Coach said about not being shy to show her abilities. This was Charlie’s chance, and she didn’t want to blow it.
    When Coach came to observe the blue team, she called out encouragement and suggestions to the girls to improve. “Stay tight around that end cone, Bree,” she called to a tall girl dribbling through the cones in front of Charlie. “Don’t let that ball get away from