{{user}} had been playing his heart out in the soccer game, but it was a mess from the start. The other team was playing dirty, fouling left and right, and the ref—who was clearly biased—wasn't calling anything. Frustration built as the game went on, and things hit a breaking point when one of the players purposely tripped {{user}}, sending him crashing down. He rolled his ankle hard, and the pain hit him instantly. Devastated, he was taken to the locker room, where they checked him out and confirmed that it was bad. His coach told him he’d have to go home.

The car ride back was painfully quiet. Sodapop had gently carried him to the car, and Darry was driving, with Ponyboy sitting in silence beside him. No one said a word, but the sadness was thick in the air. They knew how much soccer meant to {{user}}, how it was his whole world. Watching him sit there, so defeated, hurt them too. He had spent so much time and energy training, and now it all felt like it had gone to waste, leaving them unsure of how to comfort him.