The next morning I woke up to the sunlight shining through the curtains, beaming down on my face.   Of course, that would have been fine, if it didn’t happen almost an hour after I was supposed to wake up to a shrieking alarm clock.

I jumped out of bed, looking around the room for Ashley.  But I could see from the war zone that was now her side that she had already been up, gotten dressed, and left for the gym.  I threw on whatever gym shorts and t-shirt were closest to me, and darted out of the room.

By the time I got to the gym, which was at least a 10 minute run from the dorms, I was out-of-breath, sweating and looked like I had just come from practice.  I burst through the doors to see everyone running suicides* across the court.

“Miss Carlin! We’re so glad you could make it,” Coach Cooper said just before she blew her whistle and the girls stopped running. “Ok, ladies, since Miss Carlin has finally decided to show up you can stop running and start the passing drills.”

Everyone gave me a look so searing, I sunk my head down and simply stared at the floor in a desperate attempt to avoid eye contact.  I was at least a half an hour late, and I could feel in their heated glances and mumbled jeers, that these girls were going to make me pay for every minute they had to run. 

“Carlin you haven’t even been here for 24 hours and you’re already late.  I think you’ve set a new record, but definitely not one you should be proud of,” Coach Cooper said disapprovingly.  If I didn’t already feel small standing next to this 6’6" former LA Sparks center, her tone would have definitely knocked me down a few notches.

“I know Coach Cooper, but for some reason my alarm didn’t go off and –”

“No excuses, Carlin, just don’t let it happen again.  Line up and practice passing with the other girls.”

I sulked away probably more disappointed with myself than Coach Cooper was with me.  She was the reason I started playing basketball and part of the reason I signed up for the camp.  Cooper had been a huge WNBA star before a knee injury took her out of the game.  When I was younger I wanted to be just like her.  Now that I’ve grown up and discovered I wouldn’t top 5’6”, much less 6’6”, I decided I was better fit to be a point guard.  The same position as the girl who had become my top rival and was now by some perverse stroke of bad luck my roommate: Ashley Davies.