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Page 33
Grace was fully cognizant of their change of heart, and spent more than
one unhappy hour over it, but outwardly she carried herself as though
unaware of the many little ill-natured stabs directed toward her. Anne,
who was completely ignored, took it philosophically, her only regret being
the fact that Grace had been dragged into difficulties on her account.
Thanksgiving had come and gone. The High School boys had played their
usual game of football with a neighboring school and whipped them to a
standstill, David had played on the team and covered himself with glory by
making a sensational touchdown. The girl chums had worn his colors and
shrieked themselves hoarse with joy over the prowess of their friend.
Miriam, secretly proud of her brother, resolved to make a like record for
herself during the next basketball game, which was to take place during
the following week. She believed that it was the last touch needed to make
her the avowed leader of her class. She even dreamed that the basketball
captaincy might one day be hers. To be sure Grace had Nora on her side,
and Nora was one of the regular players, but the other two players were
Miriam's faithful allies. That made three against two, and the second team
had practically declared in her favor. Grace would have to do differently
if she expected to keep the captaincy.
Meanwhile Grace was finding the captaincy of a team divided against itself
anything but satisfactory. The girls, with the exception of Nora, obeyed
her orders indifferently and as though under protest. It was almost
impossible to get every member to come to practice. Some one of them
invariably stayed away. On one occasion she spoke rather sharply to the
team about it, but her earnest words were received with sullen
resentment.
"What is the use of working ourselves to death simply to have our game
handed over to the enemy?" one girl had muttered.
Grace colored at this thrust, but closed her lips tightly and made no
reply. But the attitude of her team worked upon her mind, and she lost
confidence in herself. She realized that a new and injurious influence was
at work, and she was powerless to stem the tide of dissension that had
arisen.
The practice game was played on the afternoon before the contest, and not
even Jessica was there to witness it, although she had formerly been taken
as a matter of course. When invited to attend practice she had scornfully
refused it.
"No, thank you," she said. "If anything should go wrong to-morrow I'd be
accused of treachery. No one's reputation is safe in this class." At which
remark several sophomores had the grace to blush.
The day dawned bright and clear. Grace arrived at the gymnasium long
before the others. She was worried and anxious over the behavior of her
team. She was half afraid that some one of them would absent herself, in
which case one of the substitutes would have to be called, and Grace
doubted whether they could be relied upon.
Two months before, she had been certain that there were no players like
those of the sophomore organization. Now she had no confidence in them or
herself. She had a faint hope that when the game opened, her players would
forget their grievances and work for the honor of the sophomores. She
would do her best at all events, and Nora could be depended upon, too. All
this passed rapidly through Grace's mind as she waited for the team to
appear.
The spectators were arriving in numbers. The gallery was almost full, and
it still lacked fifteen minutes of the time before the game would be
called. The proverbial little bird had been extremely busy, and all sorts
of rumors regarding the two teams were afloat. The juniors were, as usual,
seated in a body and making a great deal of unnecessary noise. The members
of the sophomore class were scattered here and there. Anne and Jessica sat
with three or four of the girls who had refused to pay any attention to
the talk about Anne. A dozen or more of Miriam's flock sat together
watching for the appearance of their favorite. Occasionally they glanced
over toward Anne, whispered to each other, and then giggled in a way that
made Anne wince and Jessica feel like ordering them out of the gallery.
Grace and Nora stood talking together at one end of the gymnasium. Grace
kept an anxious eye on the clock. It was five minutes of two and Miriam
had not arrived. "Would she dare to stay away?" Grace wondered. At two
minutes of two there was a burst of applause from the section of the
gallery where Miriam's admirers were seated. Grace glanced quickly around
to see what had caused it, and beheld Miriam serenely approaching, a
satisfied smile on her face. She had waited until the last minute in the
hope of making a sensation, and had not been disappointed. Then the game
began.
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