Better than Perfect Read Free Page A

hangs on the gymnasium wall.
    I guess going out for football freshman year was a way for me to try to connect with my dad . . . Maybe if he saw me kick enough goals he’d be impressed. Freshman year, I hoped my dad wouldcome to games and cheer me on. He never did—he still hasn’t, and I’ll be a senior in the fall. My mom hasn’t seen me play, either. I think she’s living in some high-rise apartment in New York, but I haven’t heard from her in almost a year. One day I’ll prove to my parents that they’re missing out, because it sucks feeling like your family doesn’t care if you exist.
    Luckily I have Landon.
    As Dieter winds up his big pep talk and lecture, one of the assistant coaches hands him the voting results. He reads the paper silently, nods his approval, then writes on the whiteboard:
CAPTAIN
ASHTYN PARKER
    Wait . . . what?
    No way. I read that wrong.
    I blink a few times as I feel pats on my back from my teammates. My name is clearly written, no mistake about that.
    Jet Thacker, our star wide receiver, gives a hoot. “Way to go, Parker!”
    The other guys start chanting my last name . . . “Parker! Parker! Parker!”
    I glance at Landon. He’s staring at the whiteboard. I want him to look at me, congratulate me, or make me feel like this is okay. It’s not. I know he’s floored. I am, too. I feel like the earth just tilted on its axis.
    Dieter blows his whistle. “Parker, meet me in my office. The rest of you are dismissed,” he says.
    â€œCongrats, Ash,” Landon mumbles, barely pausing as he walks past me on his way out. I want to pull him back so I can tell him I had no clue how this happened, but he’s gone before I have a chance.
    I follow Dieter to his office. “Congratulations, Parker,” he says as he tosses me a patch with the letter
C
on it so I can sew it onto my letterman jacket. Another one will be sewn onto my game jersey. “Starting in August you’ll have weekly meetings with me and the coaching staff. You’ll have to keep your GPA at or above a 3.0 and continue to lead this team on and off the field.” He talks to me more about my responsibilities and ends with: “The team is counting on you, and so am I.”
    â€œCoach,” I say as I run my fingers over the smooth embroidery on the patch. I place it on his desk and step back. “Landon deserves to be captain, not me. I’ll step down and let him take my—”
    Dieter holds up a hand. “Stop right there, Parker.
You
were voted captain, not McKnight. You got more votes than any other player. I don’t respect players who quit when they’re asked to step up by their peers. Are you a quitter?”
    â€œNo, sir.”
    He tosses the patch back to me. “Then get out of here.”
    I nod, then walk out of his office. Back in the locker room, I lean against a locker and look down at the patch with the big
C
on it.
Captain
. I take a deep breath as reality sinks in. I was voted captain of the football team. Me, Ashtyn Parker. I’m honored and thankful my teammates voted for me, but I’m still in shock.
    Outside, I hope to see Landon waiting by my car. Instead Victor Salazar and Jet Thacker are talking in front of my old beat-upDodge that needs a new paint job . . . and a new engine, for that matter.
    Victor, our middle linebacker with more sacks than any other player in the state of Illinois, doesn’t talk much. His dad practically owns this town, and Vic is expected to do whatever his father orders. Behind his father’s back, Vic is reckless and a daredevil. It’s as if he doesn’t care whether he lives or dies, which is why he’s so dangerous on the field.
    Jet drapes an arm over my shoulder. “You know Fairfield is gonna have a field day when they find out their rival is about to have a girl captain. Those motherfuckers egged Chad Young’s house the day he got voted