The End of Athletics Day

"Wow, and they say us girls smell," Heather remarked in amusement. "You sure did at that race."

I sure wasn't going to let her get away with that, after how hard I'd tried!

"So I lost!" I flung back pettishly. "Like it even matters!"

"Aw, blushes," Heather sang, and giggled. I just made a face, so not wanting to have to put up with her right now.

"I said at the start, may the best boy win," teased Heather. "Looks like he did!"

Fuming, the only thing I could do was stalk off. She however danced after me.

"Betcha you wouldn't even win if we had a race," the girl declared. "I'd so love to see those blushes!  All you'd see though would be my panties, way ahead of you."

She skipped ahead, light and quick on her bare feet where I was clumsy and slow, her gym skirt jumping prettily. It was a frightening feeling for me to suddenly believe everything she said about what would happen if we had a race!

Trying to put this thought, and everything else that had happened today firmly behind me, I wandered to the netball courts where I was meeting Ellie. Apparently she had one last match against a boy from her grade, so I sat down with the other spectators to watch. She was a vision in blue halter top and shorts, both shades clashing with her straight silky butterscotch hair.

She and the boy jumped for the first ball, which Ellie caught. She sped away with it then stopped.

"Come and get it," we all heard her invite her opponent.

How embarrassing for him, in front of everyone! Of course, she tempted him into trying but as soon as he was near, neatly outstepped him so he tripped.

"Waah!"

The boy landed with a crash and sat there on the court, gaping-mouthed in gym shorts, gazing after Ellie as she skipped off.

Next second though he was up again and hurrying after her indignantly. As he closed in on Ellie she slowed down for the net, all ready to score. One boy looked hotly determined she wouldn't! But was Ellie slowing because she knew he was there? Somehow she seemed to be timing it...

Then just at the right moment she hopped straight up on the toes of her sneakers, so that her shorts were pushed straight in the boy's hapless face. She shot at the same time and scored, but I'd never seen any girl do that so cheekily. I thought right away of what Heather had said, and suspected that if we ever did race, I'd end up feeling just like Ellie's opponent was presumably feeling now!

At the end of the game, she blew a kiss into his blushing furious face as she sauntered off the court.

"Keep trying and maybe you'll get good enough to beat a girl!" she sang.

She strolled off, carelessly swinging her bright blue lycra butt. I watched the boy glare at the back of that butterscotch head, and after my encounter with Heather I knew just how he felt. Fond as I was of Ellie, I couldn't help feeling for him!

Ellie and I waited at the bus stop together. Neither of us had felt like a shower, so there we stood, smelling in our dingy gym clothes.

"You were up against one of the best runners in his year," she murmured to me at length.

I just sighed, so not needing a reminder right now that my opponent's year had been one below mine.

"Don't think of this as having lost," Ellie went on, gently.

I knew she was trying to be nice, but I just couldn't see any other way to look at what had happened.

When the bus came we clambered on board. I did notice some of the younger passengers holding their noses as we went by! We sat down together and set off home.

"Big win for me today," put in Ellie, who still didn't seem to have noticed I wasn't in the mood for a conversation.

When I said nothing, but just smiled at her bravely, Ellie continued in her usual way: "And you notched up quite a respectable middle-of-the-road time. Almost a personal best! I'll give you a special prize later, just for you."

At least two of the small boys who'd held their noses turned round in their seats and blinked at us!

Still Ellie smiled, starting to blush slightly. "And it'll be more than a runner-up ribbon to pin on your little shorts," she promised.

I had to say, this was the kind of spectator-sport I preferred! It was great being the envy of our little audience. I murmured to her that I was looking forward to that. We were both fidgeting a bit on the bus seat by now, even though it wasn't allowed, drawing closer and closer together, awkward and a tiny bit giggly.

"I deserve a prize too, because I won my match," Ellie affirmed.

"That can be arranged," I panted back.

"Smells having to play boys from other years," she complained.

"At least you won against yours!" I exclaimed.

"Still smells," she replied primly. "Because there's only one boy I like playing with."

I wanted to kiss her, but that really would have got us thrown off the bus. So instead I just mentioned it, and Ellie agreed that that was one of the things we could try.

"As soon as we're home," she added, looking straight at me with large eyes. I nearly fainted!

We stepped shyly into Ellie's kitchen, but no-one else seemed to be about. She opened the fridge and kindly poured me out a glass of lemonade, then handed it to me with a smile.

Glugging Ellie's homemade brew was like heaven. It tasted as if she'd put orange juice in there, and maybe even some squeezed cherries. The long exhausting day had left me thirstier than I'd realised, and gratefully I downed the whole glass in one go. Next second Ellie was in the chair right beside me.

"Do you know," she murmured intimately, "what the secret to my lemonade is?"

I was suddenly struggling for words.

Her lips were before mine. It was almost as if she wanted to sniff at the freckles on my nose.

"Pear juice," was her whispered reply.

Then with lowered eyelashes she nuzzled her own perfect nose in alongside mine.

THE END