Rise by Stefne Miller Read Free Book Online Page A

room while Riley and I sat perched on the couch waiting for my uniform nightmare to be solved. “It seems we have a confusing situation on our hands. Coach Tyler said that there must have been a miscommunication when your measurements were taken because the order that was shipped perfectly matched the order that was placed. So either someone took the measurements wrong, or it was written incorrectly on the order form.”
    “Was anyone else’s uniform wrong?” Riley asked.
    “No, just Attiline’s. Who took the measurements?”
    I thought back to the day that the team had their measurements taken. “Coach Tyler.”
    “And did she write the measurements down as she took them?” he asked.
    As if a light bulb went off in my head, I knew exactly what had happened. “No, Tiffany wrote down the measurements as Coach called them out.”
    Riley jumped off the couch. “That girl has no limits. She did this on purpose.”
    “What are you talking about?” Pops asked.
    “She’s been jealous of Attie since the day she got here. Remember that night I came inside after the camping trip and you asked who I’d been talking to?”
    “Yeah. You said it was Tiffany.”
    “She came to confront me about Attie. She came on to me, and when I turned her down, she started calling Attie all kinds of names and stuff. She treats Attie like crap at school and practice.”
    Pops looked over at me. “Is that true, Attiline? Is Tiffany causing you problems?”
    “She’s trying to, but I’ve ignored most of it. When I noticed that she was taking the measurements, I got a weird feeling about it. I should have double checked the list.”
    “If there’s one thing I hate about being the principal of a high school, it’s the way the girls treat each other. They can be downright vicious.”
    Riley sat back down on the couch. “Tiffany is one of the worst, no doubt about it. I just never dreamt she’d do something like this.”
    “Tomorrow I’ll call her into my office and see what she has to say about this. I’m sure she’ll deny the entire thing, and honestly, I have no way to prove that she did it on purpose.”
    “So what do I do about my uniform? I can’t cheer on Friday night.”
    “Coach said that you guys could wear the regular tops with your lightweight sweatpants.”
    “It’s going to be one hundred degrees outside!”
    “I guess it’ll teach someone a lesson then. I’ll go call Coach Tyler.” Pops made his way toward his bedroom and left Riley and I to stew on the couch.
    Riley stood up and walked to the other side of the coffee table. “Girls amaze me. I just don’t get it. Why can’t they just have a disagreement and get over it? Punch each other if they have to. This kinda stuff is just nuts.” It was as if he’d taken Pops’s job of pacing the floor. As he spoke, he followed the same path his father had, only Riley also agitatedly ran his hands through his hair.
    “Like Pops said, girls are vicious. Especially ones like Tiffany. I’m afraid to even guess what she’s gonna do next.”
    He finally stopped pacing and turned to face me. “Are you all right?”
    “I could be better.”
    “What can I do to help? Do you want me to hit her?”
    “Yes.”
    He laughed and his anger dissipated.
    “I want you to hit her extra hard. Hit her into next Sunday.”
    “I’m all over it.” He threw a fist into the palm of his other hand and pounded it several times.
    “Actually, I should sic Tammy on her. It would make her day to get to knock the soup out of that girl.”
    “Naw, Tammy would enjoy it too much. At least I’d show some remorse … maybe.”
    “Wouldn’t that be a sight?”
    “I’d buy a ticket to that show,” he said.
    I sank back into the couch. “Oh boy.”
    “What?”
    “How much do you wanna bet I’ll be getting a serious lecture from Jesus tonight? All about forgiving my enemies and praying for my enemies. Yada yada yada.”
    Riley sat on the coffee table in front of me. “I don’t