Football

"You don't have to be female to be a feminist." - unknown source

*

"Can Allie come with me?"

Joe's father looked up from his newspaper to stare at him. "Why would you want her to do that?"

"She wants to. I said it was fine."

"Well, I don't say it's fine." The expression on his father's face was thunderous, and Joe couldn't understand it.

"It's only tryouts, Dad. Allie's really interested."

"I don't care if she's interested. This is your hobby, not hers. She doesn't need to be there."

Joe frowned, genuinely confused. He may have only been sixteen, but he couldn't see the logic in his father's words. Allie was his sister, and he wanted to support her wishes. Even if he had to grab her hand and sneak her away to do it. "Just let her do what she wants to, Dad. Please?"

From that point on, his father replied only with silence, and Joe was forced to prepare for tryouts without knowing if he could take his sister or not. It was quarter to six when he was almost ready to leave, and Allie came running into his room with a smile on her face.

Dressed in the football kit he'd bought for her.

"Are we going soon?"

Joe paused to check the hallway for any sign of his dad. Then he winked at his sister. "Yeah, we'll go in a minute."

She hopped on the spot, her blonde hair bouncing against her shoulders. A rebellious excitement filling his lungs, Joe pulled his trainers on, ignoring the dirt left on the soles, threw a bag over his shoulder, and grabbed Allie's hand. He deliberately slammed the front door once they'd left, hoping his father heard it.

As long as he saw his sister smiling, he'd be happy.