Count Me In Read online

  Sahar regained her balance, grinning widely as she straightened to face Abdul. ‘Pretty good, huh?’

  ‘Not bad,’ Abdul grudgingly admitted, and he retrieved the ball for another try.

  This time he dribbled the ball down the yard, intermittently faking a move to protect the ball, before collecting it again as he turned.

  Wow, he’s getting really good. I might need to learn some more of those netball moves if I’m going to keep up with him!

  The next day, Sahar walked into her maths class and saw a familiar face sitting near the window. It was Maia. She waved to Sahar to come over. Sahar smiled and went to sit next to her.

  ‘Hi,’ said Maia. ‘I’m glad I saw you. You’re the only person I know in this class.’

  ‘The same for me,’ Sahar replied.

  They both looked around the room at the other students.

  ‘There are a lot of boys in this class,’ said Sahar.

  ‘Yeah, I suppose there are,’ replied Maia.

  Both girls placed their books and pencil cases on the desk and waited for the teacher to get started.

  Maia turned in her seat to face Sahar. ‘So did I hear you right yesterday? You’ve only been in Australia for a little while?’

  Sahar nodded.

  ‘Where did you move from?’

  ‘Iraq.’

  Maia nodded. ‘I know how it feels moving to another country. Last year my family moved here from New Zealand. I guess it’s not as far away from Australia as Iraq is, though. Hey, can I ask you something? Does everyone in Iraq wear a scarf thing on their head like you do? Is it cold there?’

  Sahar laughed. ‘It’s not for the cold. It’s called a hijab. Lots of Muslim women and girls wear one.’

  I guess I’ll have to get used to explaining it now that I’m living in Australia and it’s not as common, thought Sahar.

  ‘Oh, okay,’ Maia said.

  Just as Ms Scott stood at the front ready to begin the lesson, Maia spoke again. ‘Hey, if we need to have a partner in maths class, do you want to go with me? It was fun working together in science yesterday.’

  Sahar smiled. ‘Yes.’

  The maths lesson turned out to be multiplication practice. The interactive whiteboard at the front of the room showed a stopwatch and a list of times tables next to another list of jumbled-up answers.

  Ms Scott separated the class into two teams. Maia and Sahar grinned at each other when they were put in the same one. Ms Scott then explained the rules.

  ‘One person from each team will run to the board and match as many of the questions and answers as they can in thirty seconds. Once the stopwatch reaches zero, their turn is over and the next person from the team runs up to have a go.’

  It was fast and noisy, with each team trying to outdo the other by cheering the loudest for their team member at the board.

  Sahar wasn’t worried about the task. She was good at times tables. She glanced at Maia, who seemed relaxed about it as well.

  ‘Next person. Go!’ called Ms Scott.

  Maia was at the front of her team’s line, so she jumped out of her seat and raced up to the interactive board. Soon she had matched the most answers so far in the 30 seconds that was given.

  Sahar clapped as Maia returned to her seat. She admired how quickly Maia had worked.

  She’s really smart.

  By the time it was Sahar’s turn, the competition was close and everyone was cheering even louder than before, and calling out suggestions. When the stopwatch began, Sahar stood up and ran to the board. A group of boys from the opposing team started yelling and waving their arms to try to distract her. They didn’t want their team to lose. Sahar ignored them and concentrated on matching the questions with the answers. Nothing anyone called out registered. She completed her turn and walked calmly back to her table.

  Maia was grinning at her. ‘You were awesome,’ she said. ‘You were completely focused! I don’t know how you could concentrate with all that yelling and waving.’

  Sahar laughed. ‘I just so wanted to get the maths right that I didn’t even hear them.’ She sat down happily next to Maia and they spent the rest of the class working on tasks together.

  I’m so lucky, thought Sahar. Maia is the best maths partner!

  Later that morning, Sahar stood on one of the marked courts with the rest of her sports class. The sun was bright and hot and she could feel her body beginning to heat up. Her long-sleeved top and tracksuit pants were too hot for a warm Australian day.

  The teacher, Mr Campbell, was holding a clipboard, writing down the names of students who wanted to compete in school athletics. As Sahar waited, she noticed movement out of the corner of her eye. When she turned, she saw it was Sienna. Sahar watched as Sienna approached a tower of plastic cones that were stacked near the other sports equipment. Sienna didn’t look at anyone. She bent down and prised two cones off the stack and put them on her feet so that they looked like bright, oversized boots. Sahar grinned when Sienna stood up with the cones on her feet and struck a pose as if she were a model, with one hand on her hip, staring off into the distance with her nose in the air.

  Sienna is so funny!

  Sahar strode towards Sienna and looked her over from head to toe. ‘No, that won’t do. You’re not ready.’

  Sahar grabbed one more cone from the stack and, with a very serious face, placed it on top of Sienna’s head. She stepped back and nodded.

  ‘Now you’re runway ready!’ she announced.

  Sienna responded by attempting to walk down an imaginary runway with the cones balanced on her feet and head. Sahar started giggling.

  Before she’d taken even three steps, though, Sienna stumbled, cones flew, and she crashed into Sahar before collapsing on the ground.

  Sahar and Sienna clung to each other as they laughed and pulled themselves up onto their feet.

  Sienna threw her arm around Sahar’s shoulder. ‘I like the way you think, Sahar!’

  Sahar grinned back at her. ‘I can’t say the same for you. You definitely didn’t think about practicality when you put on your cone clothes!’

  Together they returned the cones to the stack, still giggling.

  When Mr Campbell turned to face the class, the cones were neatly arranged again, and the whole class stopped talking.

  ‘This term,’ he said, ‘we’ll be exploring a number of games. Some you’ll know, some you won’t.’ He turned to indicate a bag of balls. ‘Today we’ll be getting to know the rules of netball.’

  A babble of voices broke out. Some people were excited, others groaned.

  ‘Yes!’ Sienna pumped her fist in the air, her eyes gleaming. ‘Count me in!’ She turned to Sahar. ‘What about you?’

  ‘Uh, I’m not sure. What do you mean by “count me in”?’

  ‘It means “Yes, I want to be part of it”,’ Sienna explained with a grin. ‘This is my game. Wait till you try it!’

  Sahar tried to look enthusiastic. The truth was that she was dying to try netball, especially after seeing Sienna, Maia and Lily’s skills, but she was also really nervous. She had never played an organised ball game with an umpire and teams. She’d only ever played striker or goalie in the park or the backyard with her brother.

  What if I make a fool of myself? she worried.

  ‘You all need to get into pairs. Practise throwing the ball to each other. The main rule of netball is that you can’t step with the ball, so try not to move more than one foot at a time,’ said Mr Campbell.

  Sienna rolled her eyes and grabbed Sahar’s arm. ‘What a pathetic introduction to netball,’ she said. ‘Come on, let’s get a ball. I’ll talk you through the basic rules.’

  Sahar was not only relieved to have someone to team up with, she was glad it was someone she knew and someone who made her laugh. If she was ever going to understand netball and enjoy it, she had the perfect partner.

  Before long, Sahar forgot she was hot. She forgot that she had never played an organised game of sport before and
she forgot she was in a new country. All she thought about was the ball.

  Sienna showed her how to do the different passes, and kept up a steady stream of information on rules, positions and tactics. Instead of confusing Sahar, it all made perfect sense. She found it logical that everyone on the team had a particular job to do and an area of the court to do it in. The rules, from what Sienna had told her, seemed designed to make the game safe and fair.

  After a while, Mr Campbell blew his whistle and announced that he was splitting the class into teams to play a game. Sienna and Sahar stood close together, determined to be counted in the same team. It worked!

  When Mr Campbell told them to get position bibs, Sienna dragged Sahar over so they could have first choice. Sienna showed Sahar how to pull the bib over her head so that the loose elastic holding it in place was at the sides.

  ‘Okay, you’re Wing Defence,’ Sienna explained. ‘You can go in the centre third and the goal third, but not in the goal ring.’

  Sahar nodded. ‘What’s my job again?’ she asked, looking sheepish. ‘I know you told me already, but you said so many things. I think I’ve forgotten!’

  ‘Your job is to keep close to the Wing Attack the whole time. Try to stop them getting a pass. You can even try to get the ball, if you see an opportunity. I’ll be right behind you. I’m playing Goal Keeper.’

  Sahar tugged at her bib nervously and walked over to the starting position where she’d been sent. She was relieved to see that her opponent wasn’t too tall. It was a girl about her size.

  The whistle blew before Sahar was ready. Suddenly everyone was running around and she had no idea where she should go. When she realised she was going in circles, she stopped. Sienna’s words came back to her. She had to follow the opposition Wing Attack. Sahar spotted her nearby in the centre third and stuck close to her.

  After the first ten minutes, Sahar let go of the tension in her stomach and began to relax. The game had a rhythm that made sense and she started to watch the movement of the ball more closely.

  She was chasing after the Wing Attack when she saw the eyes of the player holding the ball.

  He’s going to throw to that short boy over there.

  I can just tell!

  Without stopping to question herself, Sahar changed direction and leapt in front of the short boy, who was waving his arms and calling for the ball. She had timed it perfectly. The ball flew straight into her hands. Landing with both feet planted on the ground, Sahar fired a fast ball straight to Sienna.

  It was this intercept that gave her team another goal.

  A few minutes later, a wild pass sent the ball skittling across the court. Sahar saw the opposition Centre swinging her head from side to side, trying to see where the ball went.

  ‘Go!’ yelled Sienna from behind, and Sahar reacted immediately. She raced forward and scooped the ball up in a single sweeping motion. Looking around, she saw that her team’s Wing Attack was watching. Sahar flicked the ball to her while everyone else was still trying to work out what was going on. The Wing Attack turned and sent a long, high lob into the Goal Shooter, and another goal was scored.

  ‘Yes! Woo hoo!’ Sahar found herself cheering with students she didn’t even know.

  A bell rang around the school, signalling the end of the lesson. The class reluctantly took off their bibs and trooped away from the courts, towards the main building.

  Sienna jiggled Sahar’s arm as they walked. ‘I can’t believe that was your first-ever game! Where did you get those skills? How did you learn how to intercept a ball like that?’

  Sienna’s reaction made Sahar feel a fizz of excitement. ‘I play goalkeeper in our yard when my brother wants to practise kicking goals.’

  Sienna was still babbling. ‘Well, no wonder you’re a natural!’

  Who would have thought that soccer goal-keeping would help me in netball? Sahar smiled happily. Today was a very good day – probably her best in Australia so far.

  Sahar rushed back to her locker a second time, feeling flustered. She had taken out the wrong books for her information technology class. She scrabbled around in her locker until she had the right textbook and folder. By the time she turned to go, everyone else had disappeared, off to their own classes.

  Oh no, I don’t want to be late like I was for science yesterday. What if I miss something?

  ‘Sahar, over here.’

  Sahar looked up and saw Lily standing halfway down the hallway, waving to her. She hurried over, gratefully.

  ‘Are you running late too?’ Sahar asked.

  Lily gave her a warm smile. ‘No, I was waiting for you. I saw you going back to your locker and I wasn’t sure if you knew where this class was, so I told the others I’d wait for you. I was in the same classroom for geography yesterday.’

  Sahar’s eyes widened in surprise. I can’t believe she did this for me. It’s so kind! ‘Thanks so much, Lily. You’re right. I have no idea where we’re supposed to be going,’ she admitted.

  ‘We’d better hurry,’ said Lily, and the two girls hoisted their books further into their arms and started to run.

  Sahar followed Lily across the courtyard. Lily took a short cut up onto the brick surrounds of the circular garden bed and back down the other side. They dashed between the covered stretch of another row of lockers, their footsteps echoing on the concrete surface. They skirted around the corner of the brick science building and split as they ran around the wooden benches in the paved square. Sahar heard the bell marking the start of class and lengthened her stride as they raced together towards the new, modern tech building. In the final few metres, Lily dropped behind, so it was Sahar who reached the room first and held the door open for Lily to race in. They were both puffing heavily but were exhilarated by the run.

  ‘We made it,’ Sahar whispered to Lily as they tiptoed to the spare desks at the back of the room. Maia and Sienna were sitting next to each other near the front. The teacher was just starting to hand out temporary passwords and worksheets.

  Lily nodded but barely looked up at the teacher. Instead, she stared at Sahar. ‘You’re really fast!’

  After class, Sahar wandered back to the lockers with Lily. Sienna and Maia were already there.

  ‘Lily: rendezvous under the big tree. It’s time for your secret-agent report.’ Sienna whispered loudly for effect, not minding that Sahar could hear. ‘Don’t be late.’

  Sienna dashed off with Maia, both of them pretending to be secret agents. Sahar and Lily put away their books and retrieved their lunches, watching as Sienna and Maia hid behind lockers, trees and even small rubbish bins on their way to the big tree on the edge of the grassy area. Other students looked at them curiously, wondering what they were doing.

  Sahar laughed and then turned to see if there was anyone she could sit with for lunch. She sighed as she scanned the yard. Do I have to sit on my own? Lunchtime is boring with no friends, she thought to herself. Maybe I should go to the library …

  ‘Coming, Sahar?’ Lily asked. She stood with her lunch in her hand, waiting for Sahar to join her.

  ‘Really? But I’m not a secret agent,’ Sahar said seriously, and then they both laughed as they realised how funny that sounded.

  ‘You’ve been part of it from the start. You must want to hear how it ends?’ said Lily.

  Sahar grinned and nodded. She was curious to see if they had found their three potential players. And it would be fun to hang out with them during lunch.

  Sahar and Lily walked across to the patch of grass shaded by the overhanging branches of the oak tree. Sahar was a little hesitant, not sure if Sienna and Maia would be bothered by the fact that Lily had asked her to join them.

  ‘I hope you don’t mind …’ Sahar started to say, but Sienna interrupted her.

  ‘Come on, you two, hurry up. We have to activate the cone of silence.’

  Sahar and Lily plonked down next to Sienna, then Sienna pretended to create an invisible shield around the four of them.

&nbs
p; ‘Okay, it’s time to reveal the outcome of our secret investigation into finding three possible Gems players. We will then have to decide which one to choose. Lily, have you identified someone who is fast?’

  Sahar started eating her lunch. She realised that she probably wouldn’t know whoever the girls identified, anyway. She was still trying to work out the names of the other students.

  ‘I have identified someone who is very fast,’ said Lily. ‘She’s even faster than me.’

  ‘Ooh,’ Maia sat forward, impressed. ‘Who is it?’

  ‘It’s Sahar!’ announced Lily.

  Sahar looked up at her, stunned. She had never expected her own name to be mentioned.

  ‘Hang on, that’s who I discovered,’ said Maia. ‘Sahar is totally focused under pressure. She won the maths competition for our team!’

  ‘No, wait, Sahar is my pick too!’ cried Sienna. ‘Sahar is the perfect fit for our team. She was a natural at netball in sports class … And she laughs at my jokes!’

  The entire time Sahar stayed silent. I can’t believe this is happening! she thought.

  Lily, Sienna and Maia all stared at each other in surprise and then turned to Sahar.

  ‘Sahar, we need you. Will you join the Gems?’ asked Lily.

  ‘But I don’t know how to play netball very well.’

  ‘Not yet, but we’ll teach you,’ said Sienna. ‘And like I said before, you’re a natural.’

  ‘Fast, focused and a perfect fit for our team,’ Maia added. ‘You’re the one we need!’

  Sahar paused. She didn’t really know anything about netball other than what Sienna had told her earlier that morning during sports class. She didn’t know when and where their team played, either. All she knew was that she wanted to play.