I sighed. “Yeah, but I should have been paying better attention to where I was.”

Jessi dug her elbow into my ribs. “You are a world-famous supermodel now. You’ve got other things on your mind besides worrying about who is closer to the goal—you, the ball, or the nearest Bolts defender.”

“Ha ha,” I said sourly, not in the mood to be teased about it just yet. Was that really the reason I’d messed up our chance to tie the game?

“Come on.” Jessi threw her arm around my shoulder. “Let’s go shake hands with the other team. We’ve got to give them some mad respect—they were awesome.”

“No prince’s hand in marriage for me,” Frida chirped as we lined up. “Oh well. I’ve still got my commercial.”

Even though we had lost, the rest of the Kicks were in a good mood. We had played our best against a tough team and held our own.

“Don’t beat yourself up, Devin.” My dad knew what I was thinking as soon as I walked off the field toward my family. “That was a tough game, and you were mentally and physically drained by the end. Anyone could have made that same mistake. Focus on the good. Your throw-ins have really improved. I can see the wheels spinning in your brain as you check the field. It’s a great skill to have.”

“Thanks, Dad.” I gave him a big, sweaty hug.

As we loaded into the Marshmallow (that’s what we call our family’s white minivan), my mom shared some news.

“During the game, Ashanta called,” she told me as Maisie and I buckled up in the second row of the van. “She wanted me to tell you that the photos from the shoot came out terrific. She was really happy with them, but more importantly, the client was thrilled.”

“Wow,” I said, my mouth hanging open in surprise. “I didn’t think I did such a great job.”

“You did,” Mom said. “In fact, you did such a great job that Ashanta wants to know if you want to do another shoot for a clothing catalog this week.”

I frowned. “I don’t know. . . . When is it?”

Mom smiled. “I know exactly what you are thinking. It’s on Tuesday, when you don’t have soccer practice.”

That was a relief. I wasn’t entirely sure about the whole modeling thing yet, and if it meant distracting myself and letting down my team, I didn’t think I’d do it again. But if I didn’t have to miss practice, maybe I’d give it another shot. If it could help me afford a ticket to Charlotte’s party, it was worth it. My parents hadn’t made a decision yet, but I might as well earn some extra money while I had the chance.