Benched (4 page)

Ben jutted his chin toward Larry. “That’s exactly what
he
said. Why does everybody have to rub my face in it?”

No one said anything more about it, but Ben could see his parents and Larry swapping
amused looks. The past few days had been dismal, and the week ahead didn’t look any better. No four square allowed, and no chance to play soccer on Saturday.

And what was going on with his parents? Too many arguments this week, and now they were skipping their usual family night at the restaurant.

Things weren’t looking good.

So why was everybody laughing but him?

—————

Ben wasn’t sure if he was allowed at practice, but he went anyway.

“Yes, you can practice with us,” Coach Patty said. “The penalty is only for the game.”

For once, he didn’t feel like practicing, though. After getting kicked out of that game, he didn’t even feel like part of the team.

Erin smacked him on the shoulder and said, “Welcome back.” She always knew how to
make him feel better. Ever since way back in first grade, she could usually make him smile.

But then he remembered that he’d have to sit out an entire game before he could play again for real. “It’ll be a drag to sit on the bench and watch you guys on Saturday,” he said.

Jordan said, “Keep your head up, Ben. It’s only one game.”

And Kim added, “The time will fly by like nothing.”

But then Ben lined up for a one-on-one drill against Mark. Ben had the ball, and he was supposed to keep it shielded from Mark while dribbling through a set of cones. Mark kept his voice low, but he was hounding Ben the whole time.

“Come on, Mr. Red Card,” Mark said. “Watch out for that cone.”

Ben had had a number of run-ins with
Mark. Their rivalry had hurt the team early in the season, but lately they’d been playing well together. Now Mark was back to his old ways.

“Watch that elbow,” Mark said as they approached the last cone. “Red card … red card … red card.”

Ben circled around the last cone and gave Mark a shove with his hand. “Shut up!” he said.

Mark just laughed and ran back to the start for his next turn.

I can’t let him get to me
, Ben thought. He knew it was important to stay calm in a game, and that opponents would often try to taunt you. Losing his cool had resulted in that red card.

When the team began scrimmaging, Ben felt more like his old self. He was sweating as they ran the length of the field, and he could feel his heart beating harder. He stole the ball
from Jordan, then made a nice pass to Erin and raced toward the goal.

This was more like it.

Here came Erin’s pass. It was soft and high, floating toward Ben as he stepped toward the goal. It was at a perfect height for him to head it into the net, and Ben squared his shoulders and jutted his forehead toward it as he jumped.

But Mark was there, too, and he managed to jump higher. Mark was the one who headed the ball, and he sent it down the field, away from the goal. Ben and Mark collided, and they both fell to the grass.

“Illegal!” Ben said.

“No way!”

“You can’t knock me down like that!” Ben yelled.

“I didn’t,” Mark said. “You ran into me.”

Ben scrambled to his feet and chased the ball.

“Mr. Red Card,” Mark said again. “You never learn, do you?”

He’s still a jerk
, Ben thought.
If anybody deserves a red card, it’s him
.

The ball flew back and forth, but neither side was controlling it for long. Finally, Ben took a long pass from Erin and headed up the sideline. He dribbled quickly, but he could see Mark coming toward him. Ben ran harder, but Mark was faster, especially since Ben had to keep control of the ball.

Ben was nearly all the way up the field, but he was close to the sideline. None of his teammates were open. Mark was blocking his path to the goal and coming closer, trying to force him out-of-bounds.

“Red card,” Mark said softly. “Red card.”

Ben stopped short and kicked the ball as hard as he could. He didn’t care where it went. “Shut up!” he yelled again. He lunged at Mark, swinging his fist but only hitting the air.

Coach was blowing her whistle, but Ben didn’t stop. He dived at Mark this time and wrapped both arms around his waist. Mark spun and they fell to the ground.

Mark broke loose and took a few quick steps away. Jordan and Omar had Ben by the shoulders and were holding him back.

“What’s the problem, Ben?” Coach said sharply.

“He won’t stop saying ‘red card.’ ”

Coach turned to Mark. “That’s very poor sportsmanship,” she said. “Ben is your teammate.”

But then she turned to Ben. “If you threw a punch like that in a game, it would cost you more than a red card,” she said. “You’d be out of the league for good.”

Ben let out his breath. He shook his shoulders free from Jordan and Omar and put his hands on his hips. “He wouldn’t shut up.”

“Athletes have to stay focused,” Coach said. “They can’t let
words
throw them off their game. Did Mark trip you?”

Ben looked at the ground. “No.”

“Did he elbow you?”

Ben shook his head.

“I didn’t think so. All he did was talk, right?”

Ben bit down on his lip and nodded. “Yeah. He’s a big talker. And a big jerk.”

Coach looked around at the team. “You have to block that stuff out and just play soccer,” she said. “The other team, the spectators, sometimes even the other coach, might say something to try to upset you. Don’t let it get to you. Stay focused on the game.”

Ben looked at Mark, who had a mean smile. He
did
get to Ben, and he knew it.

“Mark, take a seat on the bench,” Coach said. “You need to think about being a better teammate. Ben, you should go home. You need to cool off. A lot.”

So now he’d been kicked out of practice, too. Ben walked to the sideline and stared at the field as the players began scrimmaging again. It was just three against three. Mark was on the bench with his feet stretched out.

Ben’s sweatshirt was on the ground by the bench. Right near Mark.

Ben waited for a minute, then walked over to get it. This time, fighting hadn’t made him feel better at all. He felt miserable.

Mark kept looking at the field, but he spoke to Ben. “I was just joking around,” he said.

“No, you weren’t,” Ben replied. “You were trying to get me mad.”

Mark shrugged. “Yeah. I guess that’s fun.”

Ben shook his head. “Grow up.”

“Look who’s talking. I’m not the one who keeps getting kicked out.”

Ben laughed slightly. “No? Then why are you sitting on the bench?”

“This is temporary,” Mark said. “I’ll be back on the field in two minutes. But we’ll be in trouble on Saturday because of you.”

“Because I won’t be playing?”

Mark nodded. “Just when we’re getting good enough to beat the Rabbits, we have to play without … you.”

Ben let out his breath and pulled his sweatshirt on. Out on the field, Jordan was making a breakaway toward the goal. He shifted right, then left, and skillfully shot the ball into the net.

Mark clapped and called, “Nice move!”

With the break in the action, Coach looked over toward the bench. Ben started to walk
away. She’d told him to leave, and he didn’t want to get in deeper trouble.

“See you at recess,” Mark said.

“Yeah,” Ben said glumly. “Good luck on Saturday.”

“We’ll need it.”

“I’ll be there. On the stupid bench.”

Ben didn’t turn around until he’d left the park. Mark was back in the scrimmage.

He could blame Mark for today’s trouble. He could blame Loop for that fight they’d had at recess last week. And he could blame his parents for the way he’d been feeling, since he was upset about the arguments they’d had.

But he knew who was mostly to blame. He was. And that didn’t make him feel any better.

—————

“You’re home early,” Mom said as Ben entered the kitchen. “Short practice today?”

Ben shrugged. “Yeah, I guess.” He opened the refrigerator and looked for something to snack on. He moved a carton of milk and found two leftover chicken legs. “Can I have one of these?”

“Okay, but take it outside. Then wash your
hands so you don’t get grease on anything when you come in.”

“Who cares about a little grease?”

“
I
do,” Mom said. “I’ve been working extra hours at the bank recently, in case you haven’t noticed. So keeping this house clean is a priority for all of us.”

Ben went outside and sat on the back steps.
She sure is grouchy lately
, he thought. He bit into the chicken and chewed it slowly, enjoying the salty flavor.

Larry came into the yard. “Hey, squirt,” he said. “I thought you had practice today?”

“I did.”

“Not us. We’ve got a race tomorrow, so Coach said we should just jog a little on our own. You want to come?”

Ben thought about that for a second. He was keyed up because his practice had been cut short. “Okay,” he said. “How far?”

“Just a mile or two. Nice and easy.”

Larry was on the junior high school cross-country team, and he was one of the team’s fastest runners.

“I’m all set,” Ben said. “I just came from soccer.”

“How’d it go?”

Ben grimaced. “Not good.”

Larry laughed gently. “I’ll be out in five minutes.”

They ran slowly down the block and headed to the park where Ben’s soccer games were played. There were kids tossing a football around on the field, and other people walking dogs or jogging.

“Just a few easy laps,” Larry said. It was the first thing either of them had said since leaving the house.

“So,” Larry asked, “what happened at practice?”

Ben stared straight ahead. Suddenly he felt like running a lot faster, but he kept pace with Larry. “Another fight.”

“Wow. We’d better get you some boxing gloves.”

“This kid just wouldn’t shut up about my red card.”

“One of your teammates?”

“Yeah.”

Larry let out a whistle. “That’s bad. Teammates have to support each other, especially when things aren’t going well.”

“He doesn’t know that.”

“Do you?”

Ben frowned. “Yeah.… But maybe I don’t always do it.”

They continued on a wide circle around the field, crossing a bike path and avoiding a muddy area. “Who swung first?” Larry asked.

“I did. But he swung back at me.”

“Oh. Is that why you were home early?”

“Yeah. Coach made me leave.”

“What about the other kid? Was it that guy Mark?”

“Yeah. She made him sit out for a while, but
he didn’t have to leave. We talked on the sideline a little after we calmed down. It was okay.”

They left the park and ran on the street for a few minutes until they reached the junior high school. The boys’ soccer team was playing, so Ben and Larry stopped by the fence to watch. The team’s mascot was dressed in a bear costume and a large green soccer jersey that said
LINCOLN
. He was dancing and waving his arms, leading the small crowd in a cheer.