Page 42 of Playing with the Heartbreaker

It has nothing to do with the fact that his hands are still on my arms even though my feet are both firmly planted on the ground, and I’m in no danger of injuring myself.

“Yep. All good. Except for the fact that you got the ball.” I could step back now that I’m balanced. But I don’t.

“Hmm, well I must have had a good tip from a hot instructor.” His face reddens, which I’ve never seen happen before when he’s flirted. “I mean, a hot tip from a good instructor.”

I laugh and roll right over that with my natural sarcasm. “Yeah, well, my instructor must need some work.”

“Go again?” he asks.

“Yeah. But first, you have to tell me what I did wrong there.”

He passes me the ball, and I trap it at my feet. “Let’s arrange ourselves how we were right at the end there, before I stole the ball.”

We do.

“I feigned trying to force you right, but I knew you wanted to go left, so I left it open for you⁠—”

“Wait, how did you know I was going left?”

“I told you. I can see your mind analyzing. Your eyes get this focused look. And you twitch whichever hand matches the side you’re heading for.”

“I do?” Literally no one else has ever said that to me. Not my dad, not any of my coaches. Not even Teagan.

Rhoads nods. “Yeah, so pay attention to that. This next time, don’t try to plan it out. Just go with your gut. Whatever it tells you to do in the moment. Don’t try to anticipate what I’m doing.”

“Go with my gut. I can do that.”

“Good. Now, come at me again, but don’t think. Just do.” He gets into position, and so do I.

I take a deep breath. And then I streak down the grass, not giving myself time to think. Rhoads approaches cautiously. I take one touch with my left, cut back to my right and use the inside of my right foot to kick the ball toward the net.

It rolls into the right corner.

“Yes!” I jump up in the air.

“Nicely done.” Rhoads high-fives me, his face cracked into a wide grin. “How did that feel?”

“Amazing. I didn’t even know what I was going to do until I did it. It was like I put my feet on autopilot.”

“And that’s why I was one step behind.”

“Are you sure that’s not because I’m the better player?” I laugh as I retrieve the ball from the net.

He shakes his head, still smiling, but a little more shyly. “Oh, I have no doubt you’re the better player.” He runs a hand through his hair. “Best three out of five?”

Eighteen

RHOADS

Iforce myself to focus on soccer. Which is really hard, considering how distracting Chloe is. She’s graceful and strong, and I’m not going to even try to deny that I love playing one-on-one with her.

Once she gets a bit of confidence controlling the ball on the dribble, she really lets loose, and her personality tries to break through the tough exterior she’s built. I promised to help with her game, and that’s what I’m doing. We keep it focused but fun, and I hope she’s enjoying our time together as much as I am.

But I’m also on the lookout for any small moment to connect with her on a deeper level.

Dionne’s Halloween party is coming up. Is she going? I’ve mostly stayed away from those functions since freshman year, but I’d go if I knew she was going to be there.

Earlier, Jenson told me I should ask her to do a coordinating costume with me. He—like Dillon and Jake—is not at all impressed with my slow progress, especially after hearing me whine for the last two years. He said I should bring her to the hospital so he could officially meet her.