Extra Credit | Ongoing

this book and gave it a chance, and

self-discovery, diversity, and relatable characters, I

have no internet access. When you have internet acces

boot: 27 Se

d:

ames, characters, places, or incidents are products of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual events, locations, persons, etc., is merely coinci

S DALLAS AD

bought her at age 5, then enrollment in tailored swimming classes at age ten. Her dad bought her a copy of Swim Speed Secrets for her sixteenth birthday. A large glass case i

now. It was all she knew, all she could think of doing, all she could think of being. At age sevent

for a while, taking in the long stretch of water that lay before her, the pool that was rippling and buzzing with chatter from members of the swim team just ten minutes ago. Red and blue land dividers sprawled across the stre

ocusing her attention on the pool once again. One more deep breath and she snapped her blue and white goggles over her eyes and checked her cap for the umpteenth time

, two

ng her already aching muscles, but she pushed herself, swerving through the water until she reached the horizon, where she found her stroke. Freestyle, fast, the water seemed to cheer her on as it broke apart before past her streamlined figure, clearing h

roused waters. As the water gently pushed back and forth against her still form, she lifted

9 se

ood e

the title of one of the strongest swimmers at Ridge Walk High. Now, she was whisked away into the mass of other

ody sink into the chlorinated water with a low splash. Her lungs screeched for air within seconds of sitti

as she floated, lazily paddling herself along with her hands underwater. The noise on her head stilled just for a while as she

of feet tapping against tiles,

lla

ed into its usual tight frown as she stared down at the clipboard in her hands. Her blonde hair was tied into her standar

ice." Coach Asia tersely instructed before she spun on her heels, t

, polished rails and pulled her tired body out of the water, immediately fetching the purple towel she'd left by the bleachers. Sliding her goggles over her head and letting them dangle fr

showed off her gleaming naval piercing. After locking her black choker around her neck, next was the part she dreaded most: her hair. Pulling off the cap and seei

s perfect. Her look was almost perfe

n twisted D

ulders, laced with snags, fairy knots, and death. Innocently, challengingly, her hair

irror, struggling with her hair, mainly because she di

form of hair milk, her efforts were like getting blood out of a stone. In the end, she ended up using a thin strand of her hair to tie up the mess and tuck it away into a messy puff at the back.

k up at the sides, and after that, Dallas didn't even have to think; hat it was

at. She flipped off the lights and slung her heavy gym bag over her sho

. On the coach's grey desk sat an Apple laptop and a stack of papers sitting under a turtle-shaped paperweight, and two black swivel chairs stood at either side of the desk, one of which Coach Summers occupied. The woman gl

Asia S

rwise bland desk. A framed portrait of the coach and her mousy-haired

oach to drop whatever she was doing to address her. Dallas shifted in her seat as impatience made its grand entrance

ointment to make with her hairdresser to get her hair straightened, but now she had to add a nail technician to the list. Dallas sigh

outh, followed by the tapping of the pencil against the desk as she laid it down. Sweeping her short hair out of her face and tuck

lla

na

om her nails, meetin

es

re you

sia, one of the most ruthless swimming coaches and feared physical education teachers in the region, approached

down to the rips in her jeans as a coil of excitement slithered in, momentarily shaking her

g feelings as she boldly spoke up, fighting back a smirk as she held the coach's stare once aga

dding. She busied herself with a couple of files on her desk, shuffling around the mess until she emerged wit

a fellow team of elite schools from across the region? Or better yet, did a scout from a prosperous university take note of her o

ou're off

n, leaning towards Coach Asia. The words playfully skipped around her mind like a distant echo, one

hat made her a bit more youthful and childish, to the point she decided to play pranks on her athletes. Not that Dallas was com

few minutes. The coach sat behind her desk with her fingers knitted toget

f the situation making her scoff. "Did yo

Addison.

're not

expression deepened. "When have you ever

into her, chasing all hints of mirth or revelry out the window. Tucking a loose strand

unjammed. "I'm the best swimmer on the team. And I rank

o get scouted by any university, you have to have at least a sixty percent average on your report card," she pulled up a sheet of paper and placed it before Dallas. It was the list of all forty me

Asia tapped her finger on the avera

he shiny white floors, her new pair of airwalk sneakers, then to the shelves displaying the plethora of medals the school won

to be," she tapped her finger on the list again, this time pointing to Dallas's shameful fall from grace. "You fell from 50.92 seconds to 57 in less than a mo

t a breath as she paced back and forth for a moment, cupping her face in distress. Swiveling around to the coac

cially n

r and chanted words of solace that were both embarrassing and motivating at the same time. No matter how busy work was, he always took time off work to

urling her trembling hand into a weak fist by her side. "Not yet, not when I'm almost

allas thought she would have mercy on her an

seat,

tinge of hope dwelling within

our best interest. Your future," Coach Asia said. "I won't ban you entirely from swimming becau

o you may have a hard time working back up y

s sitting inside. She pulled out a sheet of paper and flipped out a pen before she started scribbling something down on it. A few minutes of silence

late subje

t pertains to the situation, and she's more than willing to accept one more into her class before official lessons start," Coach Asia

tened even further as her eyes fe

eco

nd nut

Family Li

f paper for the coach to see. "These

s, Dallas. These are extra credit classes we offer, and that's exactly what you'll be doing to work your gra

ork through. As she flipped out her pen and reburied herself in stac

sed, Dallas. Y

became deaf to everything else as

hings, w

redit c

ﾟ･｡🍓｡

cking that ☆ at the bottom left of the page. Feel free to

k, because you all are in

n the nex