Under Pressure by Emma Carlson Berne Read Free Book Online

wet sand. Come on! she ordered herself. Move it! The world seemed to slow down as she focused on the black-and-white ball held in play between Dayton’s feet. Faster! She’s almost past you! Her heart hammered in her chest in its new, strange way.
    Elise grimaced with the strain, her lips pulled over her clenched teeth. She heard her pulse booming in her ears. She slowed down, getting ready to steal the ball. Almost … and then, to her horror, she felt her feet slip out from under her. Her legs gave way, and she pinwheeled her arms for an eternal second, struggling to regain her balance. She lurched forward, skidding on the turf, and hit the ground.
    â€œWhoa, there!” she heard Coach Berg shout. “Timeout, everyone.” His big hand touched her back. “Okay, Elise?”
    The muddy ground was cold and damp under her palms. She felt the mud soaking through her socks. Even her hair, half out of its ponytail, smelled like mud. Elise raised her eyes a few inches and stared at a pair of very new-looking, white sneakers. She’d fallen right at the feet of Ryan Jacobs.

E lise had never felt such overwhelming humiliation. It made her almost physically sick to her stomach. She pushed herself to her knees, but when she attempted to rise to her feet, her legs wobbled and buckled underneath her.
    â€œEasy!” Coach Berg caught her by the upper arms, concern creasing his forehead. He pressed his hand to the side of her neck. The other players gathered around. Jacobs had taken a seat on Coach Berg’s little folding stool and was writing something on his clipboard, his nose almost touching the papers.
    â€œWhat’s wrong, Elise?” Sophie asked. “Are you sick?”
    â€œShe looks sick,” someone else said.
    â€œShe’s white—look at her face,” Nita chimed in.
    Coach Berg leaned over and gave Elise a long, evaluating stare. “You’re not well, Elise. Sorry, but I think you’d better take a seat for a while.”
    Elise struggled to stand on her own. “I can keep playing, Coach,” she protested. “I just slipped, that’s all. Just slipped …” But she almost crumpled again. Sophie reached out and caught her.
    Coach Berg shook his head. “You can barely stand, much less play. You’re done for today. Come on, let’s go to my office.” He signaled to Vicki, the athletic trainer. “Finish reffing this, will you?” he asked her.
    Ryan Jacobs, who had been silent since the scrimmage started, shook his head. Elise saw him cross something out on his clipboard. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to guess what that something was.
    â€œCan I come too?” Sophie spoke up. “I don’t care about the rest of the scrimmage.”
    Elise cast her a grateful look. She caught Sophie’s eye. I’m sorry , she mouthed. Sophie nodded.
    â€œIt’s okay,” she whispered back.
    Still, Elise couldn’t keep the tears from flowing down her cheeks as Sophie led her from the field. “Done for today,” Coach Berg had said. Done forever was more like it.
    The curious gazes of Elise’s teammates only made her shame worse. Slowly, she and Sophie followed Coach toward the gym entrance. Big shuddering sobs racked Elise’s shoulders. She tried to gulp them back, but she seemed to have lost control of her emotions at the same time she’d lost control of her balance.
    The gym seemed impossibly far away despite Sophie’s supporting arm. Elise gulped down air, trying to control her wavering vision. An odd, awful light-headedness threatened to overwhelm her. What were all those black dots in front of her eyes? What was Sophie saying?
    Elise was dimly aware of shouting and the sound of running feet. But her vision dimmed as she crumpled to the asphalt path until she saw only black.

T here was a pole by her head. That was the first thing Elise saw when she opened her eyes. The thin pole, a