Make Or Break

• Ethan Smith, Grade 9
• Short Story
• 2018

This is it. It’s go time. All the criticism, all the judgement, everything. It all comes down to this.

It is the 90th minute, and I had to score the free kick we just got after the other team kicked our player. This was our last chance to win this game. I thought about what I was told when I was younger. Get your body over the ball, picture where you want it to go, and take the shot. I repeated it in my head over and over.

I could feel the expectation of the team bearing down on me. The ball stared back up at me. I knew that if I didn’t score, all of the critics would be right. I would be a failure.

I could feel the sweat dripping down my brow as I contemplated how I would attempt this shot. The goalkeeper’s smug grin set me on edge as he took notice of my nervousness. I looked around, all eyes were on me. This is it. I held my breath, put my head down and took the shot. Everything stopped, as my boot hit the ball. It was as if the whole world had gone into slow motion. All except the ball as it soared through the air. It inched closer and closer to the top corner. The goalkeeper jumped, his fingers just scraping the ball. The crowd was so silent that you could hear a pin drop. Much to the other teams horror, the ball slammed against the upright, it felt like days, before it hit the back of the net. The crowd went wild, chanting my name as my teammates tackled me to the ground. I couldn’t believe it. I was in complete, shock and disbelief as people flooded the field. I felt a smile form on my face as my team lifted me up. For the first time in my life, I was a success, a winner, and nobody could ever take this moment from me.