You First (13 page)

The temperature plummeted nineteen degrees between Saturday and Sunday, which meant that most of the people watching the Sterling Middle School Songbirds play their first match were wearing coats and drinking hot chocolate that the band was selling for a dollar a cup.

“Smart kids,” said Gigi's dad when they arrived and saw the long line snaking around the stand. “They're going to make boatloads of money today. Nance, you want a cocoa?”

Gigi joined her team, half of whom had already arrived and were jogging in place. Coach liked a good twenty-minute warm-up—knee raises, stretches, the whole nine. Gigi was jealous of the cocoa-fueled warming-up her parents were doing in the stands.

For the season opener, the Songbirds were set to play the Bunting Bumblebees. Gigi knew a couple of the girls from her time in the intramural league, and there was friendly waving. It seemed funny to Gigi how little real sports resembled the stuff you saw in the movies, where there seemed to be a lot of nail-biting and last-minute scoring to win the big game. Her soccer games tended to be way more boring.

When the girls were sufficiently warmed, Coach Wedderburn said, “All right, ladies. We're playing eight on eight today, which means two of you won't start. But everybody without an injury plays, so stay focused on the game and be prepared to get called in.”

Coach started tapping girls' shoulders, to indicate they should take the field. In the end, Gigi was left standing with Kionna, who'd actually twisted her ankle earlier in the week and wasn't going to be playing anyway.

Gigi felt defeated as she and Ki took their seats on the cold metal bench.

“The longer you pout, the longer Coach will keep you benched,” Ki advised. Gigi forced her face into a neutral position.

The first half rolled by uneventfully. There was scoring, of course, but it was almost like the teams were taking turns letting the other get the goal. Then, six minutes before halftime, the Songbirds woke up. Finley streaked across the field and shot a clean goal. Then she expertly stole the ball back from the Bumblebees and scored again. Just before the whistle, she made a third goal.

With the Songbirds firmly in the lead, Coach put Gigi in at midfield to start the second half. Gigi looked over to her dad and waved but saw that he and her mom were deep in conversation with Finley's parents. She was staring at them, trying to figure out what they were saying, when the first ball sailed right past her and into the Songbirds' goal.

“Look alive, Prince!” Coach bellowed. This, in addition to Gigi's benching during the first half of the game, made her a prime target for the Bumblebees. Gigi's defense was weak, and she let another player sail by, setting her up for the goal.

Coach called time. Gigi knew even before she said the words that she was getting pulled from the game.

But then Coach said, “Nguyen and Kirby, I want you to stick by Prince. The rest of you, keep doing what you're doing.”

“You want us to guard defense?” Kelly Kirby asked.

Coach said, “You heard me.”

Now that Gigi was protected by two seventh graders, the Bumblebees seemed to lose interest in her. She spent the majority of the second half standing there, half wishing the ball would come to her and half praying that it wouldn't.

The Bumblebees scored again, tying the game seven to seven. Coach called the girls in for a huddle.

“They're putting too much heat on Stewart,” she said. “Nguyen, you cover her. Kirby, you stay with Prince. Let's go, girls. I'm confident you can take the win.”

This time, when the Bumblebees came after Finn, she had extra protection from Sunny Nguyen. But it still wasn't enough. The Bumblebees wouldn't let Finn anywhere near the goal. So instead of losing the ball, Finn aimed it right at Gigi.

Gigi's muscles took over when her brain froze at her only thought:
Oh no.
I have the ball!

She dribbled downfield, past the defensive line. A couple of Bumblebees stood right in her path! Gigi looked right. Kelly was in the clear. Gigi kicked. Kelly caught the pass and drove the ball farther towards the goal. By the time the Bumblebees figured out where the ball was, Kelly had passed it back to Finn, who sank the ball deep in the net.

GOAL!

The crowd went crazy. Everyone spilled out onto the field to congratulate Finn. Gigi half expected them to lift her up and crowd-surf her back to the bleachers. Either that or dump a cooler of Gatorade over her head.

Neither happened, of course. Instead, after the initial melee died down, the Songbirds lined up for the postgame handshake with the Bumblebees. Then people started to peel off and head home. Gigi was trying to find Finn when her dad came up from behind and startled her.

“Nice showing out there, kiddo,” he said.

“You know, I wasn't half bad, was I?” Gigi smiled. She wasn't as
naturally
good at soccer as she was at some other things, but trying hard at something and not giving up, even when it was tough? That was pretty satisfying.

Gigi finally spotted Finn talking to her parents and Coach. She didn't want to interrupt, so she waited, watching. She was surprised to see Lauren Avila and her mother approach the group. Had they been in the stands the whole time?

Finn got lost in an ever-growing circle of admirers, and Gigi, still bruised from the game, gave up. She'd have to mend fences with Finn another day.

The game had wrapped around three thirty, too early for dinner but prime time for a snack. A lot of the kids headed to the Charcoal Pit for french fries and milkshakes, but to Gigi's relief, her parents were still full from all the cocoa they'd drank in the stands. They headed home instead.

At home, Gigi went up to her room to change. She thought about calling Miranda but figured it could wait. She didn't really feel like talking to anyone anyway.

It wasn't so long ago that Gigi had loved spending time in her room, what with her cozy loft bed, snuggles with Glamour Puss, and the Wall full of memories. But these days, Gigi felt like the Wall was fake. Maybe her dad was right about needing to hit the reset button. Maybe it was time to take down the Wall and start over fresh.

Gigi and her parents settled in to watch a DVD in the family room. Gigi's mom suggested
The Wizard of Oz
, to help Gigi prepare for her audition next week. They made a huge bowl of olive oil popcorn, which they shared back and forth while nestled under a large plaid blanket.

Dorothy had just landed in Oz when the doorbell
rang. Gigi's immediate thought was that Miranda had talked her mom into bringing her over to surprise Gigi. Only it wasn't Miranda on the other side of the door; it was Finn.

“Hi,” she said, almost shyly. “Can I come in?”

“Who is it?” her mother asked.

“It's Finn,” Gigi said.

“Finley!” Gigi's dad bellowed. “You're just in time. We're about to meet the Munchkins. Pull up a seat.”

Gigi expected Finn to make some excuse or another. Instead she said, “That sounds great, Mr. George. Let me just call my mom and let her know.”

Finley took her usual family movie night spot next to Gigi, pulled the blanket up to her chest, and said, “Can you please pass the popcorn, Ms. Nancy?”

Gigi was stunned. What was going on here? Why was Finn acting like nothing had ever happened? The whole thing left Gigi feeling slightly uneasy, even as she tried to settle into the familiar favorite.

They clapped at the end, just like they always did. Then Gigi's parents headed into the kitchen to order from their Chinese takeout place. “Want to stay for dinner, Finn?” Gigi's mom asked.

“Um . . .” Finn looked to Gigi as if seeking her approval.

“Yeah,” Gigi said. “We're going to head up to my room now, okay?”

For some reason, Gigi thought she'd magically know what to say once they went upstairs, but of course she didn't. She offered up a lame “You played a really great game today.”

“Thanks,” Finn said. “That's actually why I came over.”

“Oh?”

Finn took a deep breath and, with her eyes pasted on Gigi's penguin slipper socks, said, “Coach is moving me up to varsity starting next week.”

“Whoa,” Gigi said, duly impressed. “As a sixth grader?”

“Crazy, right? Lauren says there hasn't been a sixth grader on varsity—besides her and me, I mean—in at least five years.”

“That's really awesome,” Gigi said, and meant it.

“That's not even the best part. Coach is sending four girls to Florida this summer for an elite two-week training camp, and she said that
I'm
going to be one of them. It's in Orlando, Gee. Right near Disney World!”

Finn's happiness was contagious. Without even thinking, Gigi gave her a BFF hug.

“You totally deserve it,” Gigi said.

“You mean it?”

“Yeah, of course.”

“It's just . . .” Finley sighed. “I'm really sorry about what I said on Friday. I didn't mean it. I was just—”

“Mad,” Gigi finished for her. “I know. Me too.”

“Do you think we can get past this?” Finn asked.

Gigi paused. “Here,” she said, “let me show you something.”

Gigi went over to her closet and pulled out the plastic bin that held all of the things her dad had brought back from Italy. She sat on the floor and started laying them out around her in a half circle.

“What is all of this stuff?” Finn asked, smiling. She knelt down on the carpet with Gigi.

“This,” Gigi said dramatically, “is our twelfth birthday party. Or at least what I hoped would be our twelfth birthday party.”

Finn looked puzzled. “I don't get the theme. It's what? Soccer and lip gloss?”

“Lip balm,” Gigi corrected. “And not just any lip balm. Special
Italian
lip balm.” She waited patiently for Finn to make the connection. It took a few beats, but then her best friend's face lit up like a Christmas tree.

“Italy! The theme is Italy!”

“Yes!” Gigi said. “I want to create a mini Italian festival in the backyard, complete with soccer and spaghetti, football and fashion.”

“A little bit me, a little bit you,” Finn said.

“Exactly.”

“You thought of this all on your own?” Finn asked.

“More or less. I realized it didn't have to be a big battle over who likes what. We just had to find something we both enjoyed. Equally. Even if it wasn't for the same reasons.”

Finn smiled. “Does this mean we're not fighting anymore?”

“I don't know,” Gigi teased. “What part are you going to try out for in
The Wizard of Oz
? Because if you say Glinda, I'm officially not speaking with you again.”

Finn's face fell just a little. “None of them,” she said. “Rehearsals are at the same time as my new varsity practice schedule.”

“Oh, right,” Gigi said. “We won't have practice together anymore.”

“But I'm going to come to all of your games,” Finn said. “I promise.”

“You really don't have to do that.”

The girls were silent for a minute. Then Gigi said,
“It's just going to be so weird. We used to do everything together. Now it's like we're not doing
anything
together.”

“I know what you mean,” Finn said. “But you know what? It doesn't change the fact that you will always,
always
be my bestie. I mean, you're like my sister, Gee. We don't always need to be in the same place at the same time doing the
same exact thing
to be connected. Do we?”

As she said the words, Gigi could feel how much Finn meant them. They were true for her too. It was hard for her to let go of the way things had always been, but maybe that was just growing up. It didn't have to mean the end of the world.

Gigi pointed to the Wall. “I think it's time.”

“Time?”

“To hit the reset button.”

For the next half hour, Eff and Gee carefully took down each and every scrap of paper from the Wall. Gigi placed the pieces into two giant manila envelopes and gave one to Finn. “What came before was great, but we don't need to be tied down by the past. From now on, let's focus on being good friends to each other
right now
and making some new memories.”

Finn nodded. “Sounds good. Long as I can still come over for our regular Saturday-night slumber parties.”

“Uh, you better,” Gigi joked. “Or I'll sic Fred the Freckle on you. He'll whisper words of guilt in your ear while you sleep.”

“Deal,” Finn said. She peeked in her envelope and pulled out the snapshot of the two of them on their first day of pre-K. “We need to make a new addition. Go get your camera.”

Gigi handed it over to Finn. “What exactly are we adding?”

“A new one of these,” Finley said, shaking the preschool photo at Gigi. “In celebration of the new us.”

Finn put her arm around Gigi and crouched a little to be closer to her friend's height. Gigi had to stand on her toes to get their faces to line up.

They weren't the same height anymore, they weren't wearing the same clothes, and they didn't like all of the same things, either. But the one thing that hadn't changed—the one thing that would never,
ever
change, Gigi thought, was the love between them. Gigi knew that now. She wished she had believed in it all along.

Finn extended her arm, the camera's lens pointing towards them.

“Say it, Gee,” Finn commanded.

Gigi said, “No, you first.”

“We'll say it together. On the count of three.”

One.

Two.

Three.

“Long live Eff and Gee!”

SNAP!