he leaves now he can get in some shooting practice With the basketball season over he will do just about anything to get some time on the court including waking up at the crack of dawn Just a second he says After saving his article he is out the door Mac’s mom drops him off in the school parking lot which is mostly empty at this time of day toward Remember I’m covering track tryouts steers his tonight Mac calls as he wheelchair the gym entrance Somehow his mom manages to work long hours at the emergency room while for his sake catering to Coyote Canyon’s sports schedule Not to mention reminding him to eat breakfast Mac shakes his head thinking
of the granola bar that she shoved into his backpack on their way out the door Mac’s in the hallway just outside the gym when he hears dribbling coming from the court He’s not surprised Diego Lunez is one of Coyote Canyon’s basketball players just as dedicated to early morning and practice as Mac The two often share the court in the morning with Mac on one end and Diego on the other But today when Mac opens the gym doors the dribbling stops He hears the squeak of shoes coming from the direction of the locker rooms and then nothing The court is empty More court for me Mac shrugs lines himself up at the basket and shoots Swish When Mac reaches the track after school he is geared up and ready He has his tablet
out for taking notes and videos He also brought a stopwatch Practice has already started The first thing Mac sees is a group of girls lining up for the 100-meter hurdles He positions himself in front of the stands to watch their race Mac recognizes one of the sprinters Eighth grader Cecilia Cooks or CC for short is one of Coyote Canyon Middle School’s shining track stars She finished fifth in the 100 meter hurdles at last year’s championship meet and could go all the way this year CLICK Mac presses his stopwatch as soon as one of the assistant coaches yells Go Six sprinters take off quickly finding their stride Two take the lead One of them is CC But Mac’s attention falls on a different runner a tall lanky girl who is on CC’s heals Her dark hair is tied in a braid that bobs against her
neck as she sprints toward the first hurdle Mac is sure he hasn’t seen her before so she must be new to the team Possibly even new to the school He is surprised that she is keeping pace The girls hit the first hurdle They are up and over hardly breaking stride Mac counts their steps as they race One Two Three Four Hurdle
