Above All Else (3 page)

chapter five

Our town's skate park is massive and seems to grow every year. It was built for this kid who was training a movie star for some film that, as far as I know, was never made. There had been a bunch of complaints about it too, since it sat right next to the beach and “ruined the atmosphere.”

We walked around the whole mess once while Riley regaled me with tales of how he'd managed, or not, to land certain tricks in certain areas. We were behind the half-pipe when a girl came out of nowhere and punched him on the arm.

“You,” she said.

“Oh, hey,” Riley replied.

“Oh, hey yourself, we've been here for two hours. Where have you been?”

“I didn't know we had decided on a time to meet or…”

“We didn't? I totally thought we had.” The girl was, as advertised, cute. She had wavy blond hair and clear blue eyes. Her clothes were fashionably torn. It seemed like she was wearing more makeup than a girl typically would for a night out at the skate park. But what did I know? Maybe that was how people always dressed here.

“This is Kira,” Riley said. “Kira, Del.”

“Oh yeah, for Elsa.”

“For?” I said. Riley opened his mouth to speak, then just stood there silently. It was obvious that he was out of his depth with this girl. She was spontaneous, outgoing, the center of attention. Riley was more comfortable in the shadows.

“Well, not
for
. It's not like she's some kind of
gift
. I mean, get your mind out of the gutter. She's a fourth so you're not a third.”

“A third?” I said.

“A third wheel.” I looked at Riley again. I suddenly felt totally out of
my
depth. “Just wait a second,” Kira said, and then she took off.

“What just happened?” I said.

“She's kind of all over the place.”

“You think?”

Kira came out of a crowd of kids, whispering to a girl with dark-brown hair.

“Guys, this is Elsa,” Kira said. “Elsa, this is Riley and
this
is Del.”

“Hi,” Elsa said. Elsa was taller than Kira. In fact, she was as tall as me, which kind of freaked me out at first because I tend to be taller than most people my age. She had a totally different look from Kira. Little makeup and not one piece of torn clothing.

“Hey,” I said.

“So, listen,” Kira said. “Let's go. There's this guy who has been watching me all night and it's getting creepy.”

“Which one?” Riley said, as if he had been called upon to defend her honor.

“It doesn't matter. Just this guy. Come on.”

We started walking back down the beach. Riley had the soccer ball beneath one arm. Kira was talking an endless stream, but Elsa and I were just far enough away that we couldn't clearly make out what she was saying.

“So, how do you know Kira?” Elsa finally asked.

“I don't. I mean, I just met her now.”

“Oh.” This ended our first conversation. We listened to the noise of Kira talking for a few minutes before I came up with, “It's a nice night out.”

“Yeah. Warm. But not too hot.” We both nodded in agreement to this statement. It was indeed warm but not too hot.

So you get the general idea of exactly how smooth I am with girls.

Kira gave Riley a shove, and he dropped the soccer ball. I darted down the beach and flicked it up into my hand before it rolled into the waves.

“Wow, fast,” Kira said. “Do you play?”

“Soccer?” I asked.

“Obviously.”

“Yeah,” I said, then pointed at Riley. “We both do.”

“What position?” Elsa asked.

“Striker.”

“Defense,” Riley said.

“We play too,” Kira said.

“Yeah?”

“Both of us are midfield, but I sometimes play defense,” Elsa said.

“So you are the guys Del flies by, then,” Riley said.

“Um, I doubt it,” Kira said. “Our team is number one.”

“Which school?” I asked.

“We don't play on the school team. Our school team sucks. We play for the Furies.”

“Impressive,” Riley said. “But I still bet Del would blow right past you. He's pretty much the best player on our team. In fact, there's a
scout coming next week to check him out.”

“A scout. Wow, impressive,” Elsa said.

“How much do you want to bet?” Kira said, taking the ball.

“Bet what?” Riley said.

“Ice cream,” Elsa said. “I want some ice cream.”

“What?” I said. These girls were confusing. It was obvious they spent a lot of time together.

“Del gets five goals on us and we buy the ice cream,” Kira said. “We stop him five times, you guys buy.”

“And what am I supposed to do while all this is going on?” Riley asked.

Kira grabbed his arm. “You're keeper.”

“I am a horrible keeper,” Riley said.

“Well, you'd better get good fast.”

We went to this crappy field Angelo had in the lot next to his restaurant. It was a community field that Romano's dad had put together, then immediately abandoned. As we passed by the restaurant, I saw that Romano's car was still in the parking lot. There were people inside too, but the lights had been dimmed and I couldn't tell who any of them were.

The field was all chewed up, and the goals didn't have nets. But that's the beauty of soccer—you really don't need anything other than a ball.

Riley set himself up as goalkeeper.

“Hey, wait a minute. Why would I try and stop anything if in the end I just have to buy you two ice cream?”

“Because,” Kira said.

“Because why?” Riley yelled back.

“Just because.” The field wasn't lit, but the streetlights cast enough of a glow for us to see.

I set the ball at center field and put my foot on it.

“So, five goals?”

“Yeah,” Elsa said. “But you have to get around both of us before shooting. No trying to just flip it in or blast one.”

“Okay,” I said. “And what counts as you stopping me?”

Elsa and Kira looked at one another.

“The ball going behind you,” Kira said.

“All right.” I looked at the ball, then at the girls. Everything was a little hazy in the half-light. “Can I go?”

“No, wait,” Kira said. She took a few steps toward me, then began running. “Now you can go,” she yelled, when she was a few feet away. I rolled the ball to one side and flicked it over her foot. She went flying right past me. I started up the field. Elsa was moving sideways, trying to block me off.

“Take left!” she yelled to Kira. I went straight down the right line, then stopped just short of where Elsa was and darted toward center. Elsa slid and started laughing as I rolled past Kira again and shot the ball between the posts. Riley didn't even try to stop it.

“Riley!” Kira yelled.

“Sorry, I didn't see him coming.”

Elsa ran up beside me and said, “You
are
good.” Riley hoofed the ball back out to center and we started over again. This time, both girls came straight at me. I tried to move to the left but looked up into Elsa's smiling face and got kind of distracted. She kicked the ball away, sending it to roll over center field.

“Nice!” Kira yelled. They high-fived one another.

“One–one, sucker,” Elsa said.

“All right, all right,” I said. I took the ball back and waited to start again.

“Hey, guys,” Riley yelled. “I forgot my backpack in Angelo's. I'm going to run in before it closes.” There was a line of trees and a giant hedge separating Angelo's from the field. Riley darted between two of the trees and disappeared into the hedge.

“You lost your keeper,” I said.

“That's all right—he sucked anyway,” Kira replied. “Bring it on.”

I pretended to hesitate and then drove quickly out to the left line. The girls scrambled but were on me fast. I stopped up short and felt Elsa's hands grab at my arm. Kira was kicking away at the ball beneath me. I rotated back around Elsa, and she grabbed on to my arm and tugged me sideways.

“Hey, that's a foul.”

“Not in this league,” Elsa said. I managed
to keep the ball away from Kira and yanked my arm away from Elsa at the same time. Then I started running toward the goal. Kira fell as she started after me.

“Get him, El!” she yelled. “Take no prisoners!”

I slowed up a little, though I didn't need to. Elsa was really fast, and soon enough she was tapping the ball from beneath me. She spun around and kicked it, but it just bounced off my shins and rolled away from us. We both ran for the ball and, at the same time, grabbed one another's arms.

“Come on, El!” Kira yelled again. She was up and brushing herself off. Elsa kept laughing.

“No. Way. You. Are. Getting. This. Ball,” she said.

“I so am.”

“You are so not.” We spun around again, still holding on to one another. Then Elsa's grip slipped and we were holding hands, doing a kind of awkward dance around the ball. I rolled it slightly to the left, and she kicked it hard. Kira scrambled after it and kicked it away. As I went to let go of Elsa's hand, she squeezed mine once, then again, before letting go.

“Told you you wouldn't get that ball,” she said.

“Next one's mine,” I said as I started running toward center field. I had gotten about halfway when we heard a car tearing down the street followed by Riley screaming for help.

chapter six

We ran through the trees and into the restaurant's parking lot. We couldn't see Riley at first. We could just hear him screaming “help” over and over again.
We found him down beside the driver's-side door of Romano's car.

“Call an ambulance or something,” Riley said. “Someone took Romano out.”

“What?” I said. Elsa already had her phone out and was dialing. It was then that I spotted Romano on the ground.

“I just found him here. The front door of the restaurant was locked, so I went around back to get in. But the back door was locked too, so I came back and here he was.”

“Who would have done this?” I said. I was frozen.

“I saw a car take off right after I found him. It was an old black muscle car. Tell the police that.”

Elsa was talking into her cell. “Police—I don't know, ambulance too? There's been an attack.”

I finally got a grip on myself and went down on one knee beside Romano. He was completely out. For some reason I put my hand on his forehead, as if I were checking to see if he had a fever. He instantly startled and sat up straight, his eyes shooting open.

“What?” he gasped.

“You're all right,” Riley said, grabbing him by both shoulders. “It's cool.”

Romano reached out and grabbed at his ankle. “Ahh, what the hell happened?”

I looked at his ankle. It was bulging, and his sock was bloody.

“I just found you here,” Riley said. “Do you remember anything?”

“Someone came up behind me while I was getting into my car and choked me out.”

Riley said, “Who would do that?”

“I don't know,” Romano said. “I didn't see him.”

The door to the restaurant opened and Angelo came running out. “Romano, what happened?”

We dealt with the police, answering the same questions over and over again. “What did you see?”

“Nothing.”

“What did you hear?”

“A car peeling out.”

“Who could have done this?”

To which we had no answer. Not then anyway. It seemed totally random. But then,
it couldn't be. That kind of thing just doesn't happen in Resurrection Falls.

The next morning, Saturday, we were all seated in the locker room, examining Romano's busted ankle. Maybe not busted, but messed up in countless ways. Whatever he'd been hit with had cut deeply into his skin. Romano was going back to the hospital that afternoon for another X-ray. But no matter what happened, he would not be playing any more soccer that year.

“That is bullshit,” Jared said. “Man, I should have stuck around longer.”

“No one expected someone to take me out in the parking lot of my father's restaurant,” Romano said.

“Yeah, but we had to know those Roland Hills asshats would retaliate. Damn it, I should have stayed, man.” Jared was really getting worked up about it.

“We don't know that it was them,” Oz said.

“No? Who then?” Jared demanded. “Who?”

Coach came into the room with a mug of coffee steaming away in one hand. “All right, lads, let's all take a seat,” he said. He walked over to Romano and put a hand on his shoulder. “I was sorry to hear about what happened. How are you?”

“Shitty,” Romano said.

“I understand that the police have opened a full investigation,” Coach said. He looked at the rest of us. “So we'll let them do their job. Okay? Our job is to get back on the pitch and play hard.” He squeezed Romano's shoulder. “We need to do it for Romano here.”

“It was Doug Richards,” Jared said. “I know
it. He even owns one of those stupid muscle cars.”

“Who?” Riley said.

“It doesn't matter,” Coach interrupted. “If this young man had anything to do with the attack, he will most certainly be caught and brought to justice.” He let go of Romano's shoulder and turned to address us. “I don't want any of you to get involved with this. We suffered a disappointment yesterday. But I believe that when you fall down, you get right back up. That's why we're here today. With Romano gone, we're down to one substitute. The rules state that once the playoffs begin, no team is allowed to add any new players. I've put a call in this morning to see if there might be a way for us to work around this rule and bring a new player in.”

“Who?” Oz asked.

“I don't know. I suppose we'll have to bring someone up from the junior team. But as it stands at the moment, you will all be playing each and every minute of every match. That will be a challenge, and it doesn't leave any room for injuries. So, I want you to get out there and practice today. Practice hard but smart. I don't want anyone else getting hurt. Understood?”

There was a grumble of agreement in the room.

“The first round has been set. We start on Monday against Central West. I know we beat Central West by a fair margin during the season.”

“Seven to nothing, right?” Oz said.

“Right, exactly. But I don't want any of you to take this team lightly. We need to play them hard. We need to show that we have the intensity and winning spirit necessary to go all the way. We're not just playing Central West on Monday, we're sending a message to all of the teams that we are winners. That we are the best team.”

“Damn straight!” Jared said.

“So, play hard, play smart, play to win. Let's get out there.” Everyone jumped up and started for the door. “Riley, Del, Romano, could you hang back a moment?”

The rest of the team streamed out the door. Coach took a long pull on his coffee, then said, “What happened last night, lads?” Romano and Riley went through the story again.

Coach looked at me. “What did you see, Del?”

“Nothing,” I said.

“Did any of you see this Doug Richards kid last night at all?”

“No,” Romano said. “But everyone knows my father owns the restaurant and that we all hang out there after games. He could have just been waiting for me to come out.”

“Right. Well.” Coach slapped a hand on Romano's shoulder again. “Let it die there, all right? What's done is done.”

Romano nodded.

“I'm sorry you won't be able to play. We really could have used you. But know that whatever victories we enjoy now are in large part because of you. You've played hard all year.”

“Thanks, Coach,” Romano said.

“Are you going to stay and watch practice?”

“I have to go see a specialist.” Romano stumbled forward on his crutches. “But I'll be at the game on Tuesday.”

“Of course you will,” Coach said. “We'll have you on the bench.”

“Thanks, Coach,” Romano said as he hobbled out of the room.

Coach took another long pull on his coffee while staring at the far wall. “You two really didn't see anything?”

“No. I wish I had,” Riley said. “Just the car taking off and Rom on the ground.” They both looked at me.

“I was on the other side of the trees. So I didn't see anything either.”

“What about this car? Did you hear it too?”

I thought back. There had been a noise right before Riley yelled. It could have been a car taking off. “I might have heard a car leaving the parking lot. I don't know for sure.”

“It was a black muscle car. I know Doug Richards has one.”

Coach nodded. “Well, like I said, the police will investigate. You two keep your mind on the upcoming games. It's not going to be easy.”

“Will do, Coach,” Riley replied.

We ran drills for three hours that morning. It was excruciating and hot, and everyone seemed a little down. I have to admit, I wasn't
really paying that much attention to practice. Because after all the police and paramedics and everything had finished the night before, I'd walked Elsa to the bus stop. We'd sat and talked for a while, and by the time her bus finally came, we had agreed to meet up the next afternoon.

So as much as I loved shooting penalty shots and running endless laps around the track, I was already seeing myself with Elsa again. On a date.