The Folded Jerseys
A free B1-level English story for language learners, readable online in English, with an option to listen via the free Storyteller app.
Lachlan investigates why the soccer team's jerseys are always folded and clean before every game, and stays late with a teammate to find out.
Lachlan is the captain of the school soccer team, and lately he has noticed something odd. Every game day, someone has folded the team jerseys neatly in the locker room. Nobody remembers doing it. At first, he assumes the coach is doing it quietly. The team has had a strong season so far. Nobody wants anything to disrupt their rhythm before the playoffs.
He asks Coach Reyes directly after practice one Thursday. She looks just as confused as he is and says she hasn't touched the laundry all season. Lachlan starts to wonder if someone on the team is doing it as a joke. Maybe the equipment room has a new schedule that nobody told them about.
His teammate Xander suggests they stay late after the next game to watch the locker room. They hide behind the supply shelves, trying not to laugh at how ridiculous the plan sounds. Xander brought snacks, insisting a good stakeout always needs proper supplies. Around six o'clock, they hear the door open and careful footsteps cross the room.
It's Rune, the school janitor's daughter, who graduated from the same soccer team two years ago. She used to captain the team herself. She still has a key from her old part-time job at the school office. "I just like keeping things tidy," she admits, a little embarrassed to be caught.
Lachlan realizes she has done this quietly since the season started, without asking for any thanks. He tells her the whole team would love to know who has helped them. From then on, Rune joins the team for pizza after home games, no longer a secret at all.
