Switch Play! (3 page)

A
s the second half continued, other players subbed in for the starters. Ted wished he’d be put back in, but the game ended
with him still on the bench.

The ’Cats won, 5–1. Ted felt good knowing his assist had helped their score. For the first time in days, he was friendly to
his sister, even helping her find a misplaced shin pad.

Their mother had been at the game, but she had to stop at the grocery store on the way home. The twins decided to walk home
instead of going with her.

They hadn’t gone more than a block when they heard footsteps running up behind them. It was Stookie.

“What were you trying to prove out there?” he demanded, staring at Ted.

Ted stopped. “What do you mean?” he asked.

“You know what I mean,” Stookie said angrily. Before Ted could respond, Stookie added, “You’re a fullback, Ted. Usually you’re
a good one, but today, sheesh! It was like you were hoping the coach would put you in as a halfback. If I didn’t know better,
I would have said you were even trying to take over my position!” He barked out a short laugh. “Well, I’ve got news for you.
There’s no way you’re getting my position, bud. In fact, you’ll be lucky to keep your own position with the way you were playing
today!” With that, Stookie spun on his heel and stormed away.

Ted turned, open-mouthed, to Lisa. She was looking at him thoughtfully.

“What?” he said. “You think I was lousy today, too?”

Lisa shrugged.

Ted blurted, “I was just doing what the coach taught us in practice! And it worked, too, didn’t it? I made an assist for the
first time in my life! But did anyone care about that? No! They were too busy cheering for Stookie and his stupid goal.” Fighting
back tears, Ted took off down the street, leaving Lisa to stare after him.

T
ed didn’t say much at dinner that night. Mrs. Gaddy and Lisa, on the other hand, talked about the game all through the meal,
filling Mr. Gaddy in on what he’d missed.

“Oh, and you should have seen Ted!” Mrs. Gaddy said with pride. “You made an assist, didn’t you?”

Ted nodded, feeling a little spark of pleasure at the memory.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you dribble that far downfield during a game before,”
Mrs. Gaddy continued. “Why did you do it in this game? Was it a special play or something?”

Ted was about to explain about switching and his hopes of making a goal when he realized Lisa was watching him closely. Suddenly,
he didn’t feel like sharing his secret.

“Uh, no,” he said quietly. “I — I just didn’t see any open players on the field so I kept going.” He turned his attention
back to his dessert, hoping no one would see his red face. He finished as fast as he could, then excused himself. When he
reached his bedroom, he closed the door and leaned against it.

Why didn’t he want Lisa to find out his secret plan? Was it because he’d feel foolish if it didn’t succeed? Or was he afraid
she’d think it was silly that he wanted people to cheer for him?

“She wouldn’t understand,” he said out loud. “People clap for her all the time. I just want a turn, that’s all.”

Later that night, Ted came into the kitchen looking for a snack. As he rummaged around in the pantry, he saw that the cordless
phone wasn’t in its cradle. That’s when he heard Lisa whispering. She was standing in the hallway, her back to Ted.

He held his breath and listened.

“Great, so you’ll talk to him about Ted’s switching?” she murmured into the phone. “Thanks. Good night.”

Before Ted could move, Lisa turned around and saw him standing there. A look of alarm crossed her face.

“What was that all about?” Ted asked, narrowing his eyes.

“N — nothing!” Lisa stammered. She hung up the phone and disappeared up the stairs before Ted could quiz her further.

Ted looked at the phone. An idea struck him. He picked up the receiver and hit the
redial button. In another moment, Ted would know whom his sister had been talking to.

“Hello, this is the Neel residence. Bundy speaking.”

Ted quietly hung up the phone without saying a word.

T
ed lay awake in bed that night, wondering about Lisa’s phone call.

Bundy was the captain of the team. One of his responsibilities was to talk to the coach about team problems.

So if Lisa asked Bundy to talk to the coach about my switching
, Ted thought,
then she thinks it’s a problem. Why would she think that?

He sat up.
She must have guessed my secret! And I’ll just bet she doesn’t want me to get the chance to make a goal!

He flopped back down in the bed. “Man,
my own sister, out to get me,” he said to the darkness. “I don’t believe it.”

Yet the more he thought about it, the more it seemed like the only explanation possible.

Ted didn’t sleep well that night. When he got up the next morning, he was grumpy. When he saw Lisa, his mood darkened even
more.

So you decided to ruin my plans, huh?
he thought angrily.
Well, two can play at that game.

Halfway through breakfast Lou Barnes called to see if the twins wanted to meet him at the town pool. Mrs. Gaddy gave her permission.

Ted and Lisa hurried to get their swim gear together. Ted finished first and went back downstairs.

“Ted, could you grab my pool pass from the kitchen drawer?” Lisa called from her room.

Ted didn’t answer. He pulled the drawer
open and rummaged through the pens, pencils, and other junk until he found the envelope with the pool passes. He stuck the
one with his name on it in his pocket. After a moment’s hesitation, he slid the others back into the envelope and closed the
drawer.

Mrs. Gaddy dropped them off at the pool five minutes later. Ted showed his pass to the guard, who waved him through. Ted started
toward the locker room.

“Hey, wait!” said Lisa. “Where’s my pass?”

Ted looked at her innocently. “Didn’t you bring it?” he asked.

“No! I asked you to get it for me! Didn’t you hear me?”

Ted shook his head. The guard shrugged. “Sorry, miss, but I can’t let you in without a pass. Pool rules.”

“Aww, too bad, Lisa.” Ted tried not to see the disappointed look on Lisa’s face as she slumped into a chair outside the gate.

* * *

Later that day, Ted decided to walk to the library. There was a new book on spaceships he wanted to check out.

On his way there, he passed Lisa on her bike. When she learned where he was going, she asked him to pick up a book for her.
“It’s the next one in this series I’m reading about girl adventurers,” she said.

Ted found the book he wanted at the library and sat reading it for half an hour. Then he checked it out and started for home.
He hadn’t even bothered looking for Lisa’s book.

“Oops, I forgot,” he said when she asked him for it later. He felt a twinge of guilt, but tried to ignore it.

Lisa gave him a funny look, but didn’t say anything.

After dinner, however, she finally exploded. The twins had heard the tune of the ice-cream truck and knew it was heading to
their street. They were allowed to get a treat but had to pay for it with their own money. Ted had a
dollar in his pocket, but Lisa had to run upstairs to her piggy bank.

“Ask the ice-cream man to wait for me, okay?” she hollered. But when she ran out into the yard, clutching her dollar, all
she saw was the back of the truck as it turned out of their neighborhood.

She turned to Ted, who was calmly licking his treat.

“What’s gotten into you today?” she said, fighting back tears. “You’ve been mean to me all day!”

When Ted didn’t answer, Lisa ran into the house.

“See if I ever do anything nice for you again,” Ted thought he heard her say.