Rising Champions

Chapter 1

I grabbed my jersey, folded it, and put it in my bag. We were leaving for Nationals in 2 hours. I was so excited! This would be the first time I ever left Maine in the 15 years of my life! Nationals were in Wyoming, don’t ask me why, I have no clue. I thought about all of this while I packed a month’s worth of clothes. Depending on how we did we could be there for up to a month and a half. Luckily, it was mid June and we would not be missing school. If we were my mom probably wouldn’t let me go. 

There are 50 teams competing in Nationals, a team from each state. No one from our small town thinks we would actually do that well, but we will show them. 

“Reagan, hurry up!” my mother called,”We are leaving soon and we still need to pack the car!”

“Okay, mom!” I holler back,”I’ll be down in a sec!”

I finish packing and look around my small room. I wish my dad were here to see me, he would be so proud. I look at his picture on my night stand and decide to slip it in my bag. It brings back memories, but that is unavoidable, what 15 year old wouldn’t remember her father’s death? It happened 4 years ago, when I was 11. He died in a plane crash. A motor on the plane failed and it ended up on the bottom of the ocean. I didn’t listen to too many details, that was about all I know. 

I snap out of my thoughts and drag my bags down stairs.

“Are you excited, honey?” my mom asks,”This is such a big deal! Who would have thought you and your team could accomplish that!”

“Gee, thanks mom.” 

“Oh, honey you know that isn’t what I meant! It is just that you girls just surprised us all with what you could do!”

I chuckle,”Alright mom, let’s get this show on the road.”

We pack up the car and start the 23 hour drive to Wyoming. I don’t know why my mom didn’t just get plane tickets, but thats okay. I don’t mind driving. I find it relaxing. We drive for about 10 hours and then pull into a hotel. We spend the night their and wake up early in the morning to complete the drive. I sleep through most of it. When we finally get to our hotel I am so excited I am practically bouncing in my seat.

I start to unpack our car as my mom checks in. I am carry three bags and struggling as my mom leads me up to our room. While we are walking through the lobby I notice an extremely cute guy look at me. 

He is tall, really tall. Over 6 feet, easy. His brown hair is hangs over his eyes in a messy way that look amazing on him. The thing I notice most about him is his eyes. They are a gorgeous blue. He starts to walk towards me and I wished that my hair was down, instead of in a messy bun.

I am a pretty regular looking girl. Fair complexion with rosy cheeks. I have dirty blonde hair that hangs halfway down my back. My eyes are a light green and pretty boring if you ask me. I am five foot six and I am pretty skinny, with no curves. Nothing too interesting.

Anyways, back to the guy. He walks up to me and says, “Hi, do you need some help? Those bags look pretty heavy.”

I smile and say,”Sure, thanks.”

Then my mom pipes in and says,” Oh look there is some of the soccer moms! Do you mind unpacking the car honey? You will find the room, number 134 on the fourth floor.”

I roll my eyes, “I guess mom, have fun.”

Then I turn back to the guy and notice that he is staring right at me. Up close I can see that his eyes have little specks of grey in them.

“I can help you, if you would like.” He says.

“Oh, you don’t have to do that” I say.

He looks directly into my eyes and says,” I want to.”