Alison threw her head back in disappointment as she heard thin cheers erupt from the other side of the field. "Jesus Murphy. That's the third goal this half," she muttered to herself.
"Coach Hendrix? Excuse me, Coach Hendrix?" she heard a small voice ask her. "What, Laura?" she answered exasparatedly. "Um… do you think I could go in soon?" Laura asked, shrinking back from her coach's snap.
"I…" Alison sighed, "In a little bit, alright? I'll check with the rest of the team, see how they're doing, okay?" Laura nodded and sat back down on the metal bench. "Uh, time out! Ref! Time out, please!" Alison called, waving her hand above her head. The referee acknowledged he request and blew his whistle. A horde of children ran to the sidelines and formed a circle around their coach.
"Alright, Thomas? Robbie? What's going on guys? You two are the defense! Without you, Danielle's all by herself! You have to help out the goalie, guys!" Alison gently reprimanded. "Yes, Coach Hendrix," they shamefully said in unison. "Anyway, nice job on that goal, Theo! Did you all congratulate Theo?" she asked cheerily. A few murmurs were heard throughout the circle as Alison sighed. She looked behind her to see Laura, sadly looking at her clean soccer cleats. "Okay, Gemma? Do you mind sitting out for a bit? I want to give Laura a chance," Alison said to her daughter. "But Mommy…" Gemma whined. "Uh uh! No whining, we talked about this. Come on, Gemma. Take one for the team, okay?" she said as she turned her daughter toward the bench. "Come on, Laura. You're going in for Gemma! Forward, okay?" she smiled. Laura lept off the bench with a grin and hastily joined the circle. "Okay, guys. Let's get back out there and score some goals, huh?" Alison encouraged the team. The kids scurried back onto the field and assumed their positions. She mouthed a thank you to the referee as play resumed.
"Thank you, Gemma. You know Laura's just been trying to put herself out there. She's been trying really hard to improve in soccer. It's good that she plays," Alison explained to her daughter. "I know, Mommy. I'm trying to be extra nice to her," Gemma smiled. Alison kissed her daughter on the head and stood up. Just as she was getting focused on the game, she saw a boy on the other team forcefully tackle Oscar. "Hey hey hey! What was that?! Ref! Hey! That is absolutely illegal! Are you even paying attention?!" Alison yelled at the top of her lungs. "Hey, cool it lady! It's a soccer game, alright? Jesus!" the opposing coach condescendingly called back. The referee blew his whistle and motioned for both of the coaches to meet him on the field. Alison huffed to the center of the field.
"I'm going to have to ask both of you to calm down, okay?" the referee quietly asked them. "I'm not calming down. That move was completely unacceptable. One of her players tackled my son!" she angrily answered. "Hey, it was a soccer tackle. If your kid's hurt by that, he needs to man up," the other coach retorted. Alison was taken aback by the woman's harsh language, as well as her dark messy ponytail and brown eyes. And how well that windbreaker fit her. "Whoa there, Ms. Childs. That's your second warning. Next one and you're gone. I'll be giving your player a yellow card, you two can go," the older man firmly warned, wagging his finger at Coach Childs. Alison harumphed in approval and made her way back to the bench.
The children continued to play, but Alison was constantly distracted. That Coach Childs. She was hotheaded. Foulmouthed. Attractive. What are you doing, Hendrix? Get it together!she thought to herself. She couldn't help but watch the way she scribbled feverishly on her clipboard, how she stood, the way she pulled her ponytail when she was frustrated. Alison couldn't tear her eyes away. As she was caught in one of her trances, she heard someone calling her, "Coach Hendrix? Coach Hendrix?" She immediately snapped out of it, "Yes? What's wrong?" The referee ushered a teary-eyed boy to the coach, "Injury." Alison clicked her tongue and brought him to the bench. "Gemma? Go in for Toby," she said to her daughter as she reached for the first aid kit. She grabbed an ice pack and helped Toby treat his hurt foot. She got back up to see the other coach watching her. Childs turned away as soon as Alison lifted her head. A small smile grew on her face as she brushed off her grass stained leggings. Alison put her hands on her hips and returned her focus to the game.
After twenty more minutes, the game ended in a loss for Alison and the Scarborough Scorpions. While Alison tried to get her teams spirits back up, she heard nothing but cheers from the other side. "Who wants to get some pizza?!" she heard Coach Childs yell. Her team screamed in agreement and stampeded into the parking lot. Alison sighed and herded the children over to the stands, where each went with their respective parent. After everyone had left, Alison began cleaning up her side of the field. "Gemma? Oscar? Please help me clean up," Alison instructed as she picked up plastic cups. Her two children reluctantly took to the ground. "Mommy?" Gemma asked, her voice timid. "Yes," Alison sighed. "Do you think… we could get pizza?" Gemma asked her looking at Oscar for approval. Alison thought, Well, there is a pizza place nearby. And we might even see the other team. "Sure. Special treat, okay?" Alison smiled as she led her happy children to their red minivan. They drove in silence, save for the whispers of Oscar and Gemma. And the thoughts of Coach Childs running through her head.
"Pizza!" Oscar and Gemma cheered as they barreled into the restaurant. "Hey hey hey! No running!" Alison scolded as she attempted to rear her children. They bolted for counter and hastily ordered their slices. "Alright, go pick out your drinks. Water or apple juice please!" Alison called to them. She stepped up to the counter and ordered a Caesar salad, sliding a twenty dollar bill to the man at the register. She hurried over to her hyper children and tried to calm them down. "Okay guys, go pick out a table and I'll wait for the food, hmm?" Alison asked Oscar and Gemma, turning them towards the booths. She stood near the counter, tapping her foot. "Caesar salad!" the chef called from behind the counter. Alison walked up to the counter and grabbed the food. Just as she was about to walk away, she felt a tug on the plastic container. She turned her head back around to find the other coach. "Oh! I'm sorry!" Alison held back a smile, pulling her hand away. "It's okay. you got here first," the woman said, pushing the salad at Alison. Just as she was about to refuse, the chef dropped another salad next to it. "I'll take this one," she smiled. Coach Childs smiled back, "I'm Beth, by the way. Beth Childs. Sorry about how I acted at earlier. I get kind of… intense," "It's alright. I'm Alison Hendrix," she introduced, holding out her hand for a shake. Beth took it and Alison felt a sudden rush go through her. "Well, would you like to… discuss some more about the game?" she asked, walking toward an open booth.
Alison giggled at the punchline, covering her mouth. Beth smiled smugly, watching the woman across from her laugh. Alison's laughs died down and she found herself staring into Beth's eyes. "Mommy? Mommy!" Oscar called. Alison broke her gaze and looked down at her children, "Yes? What is it?" "We finished, Mommy," he explained. "Oh! Yes! Oh my, I totally lost track of time. Oh goodness…" Alison hurried to get up, looking apologetically at Beth, "I had a lot of fun, Beth. Maybe we could… do this again?" Beth nodded enthusiastically, "Yeah! That would be great. I could, uh, give you my number." Alison dug into her vest pocket and grabbed her pink phone and passed it to Beth. After she had finished entering her number, Alison took it back and bid her a hasty good bye, trying to keep up with her hyper children. She looked at Beth's contact: Beth Childs :)
Alison struggled to keep back a grin as she giddily hurried to the minivan. She unlocked the car and wathed Gemma and Oscar clamber inside. She sighed happily, leaning back on the door. She sent a message, Beth? As she sat in the drivers seat, she received a reply, Yep! Great meeting you today. :) She held her phone close to her chest, smiling widely. "Mommy?" Gemma asked, "Mommy?" Alison snapped out of her daze and started the car. You're acting like a little girl. Get a hold of yourself, she thought. She shook her head and continued their drive home, with only one thing on her mind. Beth.