Shoot to Win Read online

  Very discreetly Jamie dug his nail as far as he could into his own skin. He had to check that it hurt. He had to check that this was actually real. He’d only believe it was if he saw blood coming out of his. . .

  “Well?” said Jamie’s dad. “Are you going to give the man an answer?”

  “Yes,” said Jamie, softly at first, still trying to take in everything that was happening. “Yes! A thousand million yeses! I’d crawl all the way up the motorway to play for Foxborough!”

  Jamie was bouncing around now, hugging his dad and Steve.

  “Great,” said Steve. “I’m glad. You’ll move up and we’ll put you on a Scholars contract. Then, assuming you’ve done the business, you’ll turn pro when you’re sixteen.”

  The words seemed to fly like spirits in the air. They were too precious for Jamie to touch. But he could hear them and he could understand what they meant.

  At first his legs went weak and he thought he might faint but then his energy came rushing back. He felt like dancing. He felt like running down the street and kissing everyone he met! He could never have believed when he woke up this morning that his day would end like this.

  “Congratulations, Jamie,” said his dad. He looked almost as excited as Jamie did.

  They hugged for the first time in nine years.

  From over his dad’s shoulder, Jamie could see a bundle of dreadlocks running towards him.

  It was Jack! She must have taken the bus here after her game.

  Jamie’s face lit up when he saw her. Without Jack, he might never have got on the team coach today. And that would have meant he wouldn’t be standing here now, with his dad and Steve Brooker.

  Jamie could see Jack was holding something up for him to see. It was a medal! She must have won her Cup Final!

  Jamie couldn’t say the same. He hadn’t won this Cup Final. He didn’t have a winner’s medal today. But he had something else; something completely different.

  He had the future ahead of him that he’d longed for his entire life.

  Jamie Johnson was going to be a professional football player.

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  First published in the UK by Scholastic Ltd., 2008

  This electronic edition published by Scholastic Ltd., 2012

  Text copyright © Dan Freedman, 2008

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  eISBN 978 1407 13531 1

  A CIP catalogue record for this work is available from the British Library.

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, incidents and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

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