Soccer Queen
by Andrew ( anr )
Chapter 12

As the car pulled out of the practice field parking lot, David took the towel out of his sports bag and started rubbing his face. He dried himself as much as he could, then passed the towel to Samantha.

"Can we go home first, Mum ? I'm all hot and sweaty, and so is Sam."

Samantha wasn't sure about the contraction of her name and said in a firm voice, "Samantha."

"OK, Samantha," responded David. "We're still hot and sweaty."

"We'll return home for lunch, then go to the shopping centre to buy your new strip for you" said his mother. "After that, we can visit your father."

*Oh, joy,* thought David. *Now Mum's getting the shopping bug again.*

When they reached their house, Samantha dived out of the car and ran into her own house, calling "I'll see you in a wile."

David and Gail entered their house, with David heading for his bedroom to collect a change of clothes. While he was there, Gail dived into the bathroom and started her own shower.

David approached the bathroom and heard the shower running. He got mad at his sister for stealing the first shower and started shouting imprecations through the door at her. She just laughed and told him to wait until she was finished.

Eventually, David got into the shower just as Samantha entered the house after showering and changing herself. Now dressed in a casual pair of shorts and a tank top, she laughed when Gail told her what she'd done.

A fuming David eventually finished his shower, and appeared in just bra and panties to berate his sister. He saw that he was getting little sympathy from Samantha, and included her in his complaints.

Both girls laughed in his face, and he couldn't keep nagging at them. He eventually saw the funny side of the situation, standing in his underwear berating his sister and friend, and started chuckling as he left to finish dressing.

When he was ready, his mother drove them to the 'Outlet' mall on US 101 to buy David's new strip. They found a sports shop which sold cheap clothes and started looking for the Gazelle's strip.

The selection in the store was vast, and they spent a lot of time looking until they found the correct green top and white skirt. Green socks were easier to find, and they got three pairs.

While Gail and David were looking at the clothes, Samantha gravitated towards the roller blades. She called them both over when they had selected the clothing.

"Can you skate ? So you have blades ? We'll skate this afternoon if you do."

Gail's face turned a light pink as she asked "Are these like ice-skates ? I can ice-skate a bit."

David looked at his sister and said "Hark at her! She was placed in the under-14 xhampionship at Murrayfield, our local ice-rink."

Gail was really getting embarrassed as Samantha replied to her question. "It helps, but the ground is bumpier than ice. You tend to land on your butt more often. That's why skaters usually wear cycling shorts - the padding softens the fall."

David and Gail turned to their mother with pleadinglooks on their faces. She looked at them and sighed.

"OK, but only if you buy all the safety gear, too."

They both squealed and asked the assistant for help in selecting the right skates and accessories. Both also got cycling shorts, as Samantha had recommended. David knew he was going to be landing on his butt a lot; he always fell whenever his sister dragged him to the ice-rink.

Gathering up their goods, they took them to the checkout to pay. David was rather shocked at the total cost of his new strip; he had expected it to be much more expensive. The price of the blades and accessories caused his face to blanch. He *really* hoped that they could afford all this.

After loading the car, they proceeded to the hospital where David and Gail ran to their father's side and held his hands. They proceeded to talk to him, describing their day and the previous evening.

Samantha and Mrs. McCall stood at the door, looking on. Mrs. McCall walked over to the bed, and leaned over to kiss her husband. Samantha just looked on, feeling real sadness for her friends and frightened at the array of equipment around their father. Eventually, she went to the vending machine and returned with cokes for herself and her friends and a coffee for Mrs. McCall.

To a chorus of thanks, she distributed the drinks and pulled another seat up to the bed. She laid her head on David's shoulder and hugged him. David responded by holding onto her arms as they encircled his neck.

While they were there, two men turned up. They both looked in and asked "How's Bob ? We're colleagues of his at HP, and we met during that emergency last week. He seemed to be really competent and we hope we don't lose him."

Mrs. McCall replied "As you can see, he's in a coma just now. The machines are keeping him alive; we hope he will recover soon."

The two men gave their condolences and turned to walk out. As they were leaving, Mrs. McCall called "See you Monday."

They turned to her with puzzled expressions on their faces, that cleared when she explained that she would be starting work as a receptionist on Monday. With that, the men left the family with their husband and father.

Visiting time ended all too soon for the children, but they were chased out by the busy nurses. Returning to the car, Gail and David had tears running down their cheeks.

In the car, Samantha turned to David and Gail and asked if they wanted to do anything that night. When they replied that they would be delighted, Samantha said she would call the boys and Becky to see if they were free.

When they got home, Samantha dived out of the car and ran into her house to phone her friends and get changed into skating gear. Gail and david followed their mother into their house and also began dressing for skating.

The three met outside Samantha's house, with Gail skating easily and taunting David. His face was red as he stumbled along, then falling heavily on his butt.

Gail took pity on him and skated over to him. She pulled him up, then held onto his hands as she skated backwards to give him balance.

She narrowly avoided a nasty fall when her skate hit a manhole cover in the middle of the pavement. *Silly place to put that* she thought.

Samantha laughed and called out "Watch where you're going! The sidewalk has many of these covers on it; that's why we are heading for the skating park."

Being more careful of where her own skates went, Gail guided David along the street beside Samantha.

Samantha guided them to the local skating park, which was much flatter than the road and easier to skate on. The park was filled with teenagers practising jumps, rail-riding and other tricks.

Gail led David to the beginners area and sent him off "to learn the basics". She immediately turned into the smoothly paved area and began practising figures.

A large crowd gathered round her as they noticed what she was doing. Gail was oblivious to this as she started the routine that had won her a place in the championships at Murrayfield.

There was a burst of applause as she executed a perfect double axle. Gail was surprised and forgot to stop, crashing into wall at the end of the park. This caused everyone to dissolve in laughter, Gail's probably the loudest of all.

With a very red face, she resumed her routine. Ignoring the noise from the on-lookers, she continued the figures and jumps she remembered.

As she finished, she noticed David looking at her with an envious expression on his face. She skated up to him, hugged him and said "You've got your football; leave me the skating, please."

David nodded and hugged his sister. She was right. He could play football and she could skate. That seemed an equitable arrangement to him.

As tea-time approached, David looked at his watch and gasped. "We'd better get back if we're not going to get in trouble."

They called to Samantha, who decided that she had better go as well to get ready for going out. She reminded her friends that they were going out with the boys that night, and were being picked up at 8 pm.

David demonstrated the skills he had learned that afternoon on the way home. At least now he could skate in a straight line without falling on his butt every ten yards.

When they separated outside Samantha's house, it was with shouts of "Later", and "See ya".

David and Gail returned to their house to get changed again, into something more suitable for a date. In answer to their mother's query of "What would you like for tea ?" they replied that they were going out that night with the boys, and expected to be fed again.

Nrs. McCall chuckled to see her children both getting excited about the prospect of dinner paid for by the boys. She shrugged and told them that there would be no midnight feasts if they were not fed by their dates.

A fight began to see who would get in the bathroom first. David won by unfairly reminding Gail of what she had done that afternoon.

In his bath, David made sure to shave all the stubble starting to grow on his body. Ensuring that he did not get his hair wet, he used the shower to wash off the remaining shaving soap.

When he was finished, he walked to his room, ignoring the call of "Finally!" from Gail. He looked in the wardrobe and selected a casual look for that night. Once he was dressed in his underwear, he used his makeup sparingly to create a smart but casual look.

A sleeveless black top with a rainbow motif over the breasts made a great combination with a yellow miniskirt. Tan panty- hose, as Samantha called the tights, made his newly shaved legs look incredibly sexy.

He looked in his jewellery collection and selected three bangles to put on his right wrist and two rings for his left hand. He replaced the gold posts in his nearly healed ears with large hoops. Adding the heels, he was ready for a night on the town.

As he was finishing, he heard Gail starting to dress. He looked at the time, and realised she had only fifteen minutes to get ready. He hoped she made it.

More Soccer Queen Coming Soon!