“What about my uniform?”
“Don’t worry,” I say. “I’ve got it. Let’s just plan to meet at the stadium. You can change in the restroom there, can’t you?”
She complains about this, but I tell her it’s the best I can do. “Do you want me to just leave my poor grandmother right now?”
“Well, no.”
“Good, because she is having a hard time of it, Jocelyn. This place is a nightmare and I don’t think the nurses even do their jobs.”
“Oh. Sorry.”
“See you later,” I say as I walk to my car. “I need to go help my grandmother with her dinner now.” That old “liar, liar, pants on fire” rhyme runs through my head as I drive toward home. And although I try to rationalize this, my conscience is really starting to bug me. Still, what can I do? It’s like this thing is already in motion, and Kendra would get mad at me if I backed out at the last minute. I remind myself how Kendra promised to replace Jocelyn’s outfit if anything goes wrong. That’s worth a lot. Even Jocelyn would be happy with that little arrangement.
I’ve never been much of a prankster, and for Kendra’s sake, I just hope I don’t blow it tonight. I push thoughts of the prank to the back of my mind as I get dressed for the game. Glad that Mom’s not home yet, I crank up my CD player and lose myself in the music. Fortunately it’s not loud enough to block out the doorbell.
“Here are the goods,” Kendra announces when I answer the door. She hands me what looks like a perfectly normal cheerleading outfit, neatly hung on a wire hanger and encapsulated in clingy dry-cleaners plastic.
I don’t know what to say. My mouth feels dry, and everything in me is shouting, Don’t do this!
“By the way,” says Kendra, “that Jocelyn is a little liar. She hadn’t paid a cent for the alterations. The woman told me they never charge until you pick it up and approve it. I had to pay for it myself.”
I just shake my head and feign surprise. “Man, Jocelyn must’ve thought she was going to stick me with the bill. Really nice.”
“Well, I didn’t really mind paying for it.” Kendra laughs now. “Just as long as I get my money’s worth.”
“I’m sure you will.” I suddenly notice that she’s really dressed up. “Wow, you look great, Kendra.” That’s when I remember she’s part of the homecoming court. Try to keep up, Reagan. Kendra has sort of played down this event and claimed they don’t get too dressed up. Nothing like my old school — I was homecoming princess for the sophomore class last year and had to wear a formal.
“Thanks.” She holds out a foot, showing off a gorgeous high-heeled Christian Dior that I happen to know was expensive. “You think this outfit looks okay with these?”
“You look absolutely fantastic and those shoes are killer! I’m sure you’ll be crowned queen tonight.”
“Oh, you’re too sweet,” she calls happily. “See ya at the game!”
I do a little more primping, waiting until the very last minute before I go out to my car. I’ve barely pulled onto the street when my cell phone starts ringing. I check my caller ID to see that it’s Jocelyn. It figures.
“I’m on my way right now,” I say in a rushed voice. “I barely had time to change my clothes.”
“Well, I’m waiting in the restroom,” she says impatiently. “Hurry!”
I can hear the pep band warming up as I park my car and head toward the stadium. My arms are loaded with my duffle bag, purse, and Jocelyn’s uniform, and my heart is pounding as I walk into the bathroom. My plan is to appear hectic and slightly frantic.
“It’s about time,” says Jocelyn.
“Yeah,” snips Sally, who is checking her makeup in the mirror. “We thought we were going to have to raid the girls’ locker room with the away-team football players still in there to get Kendra’s uniform.”
I breathlessly shove the outfit toward Jocelyn. “Sorry, but I have a lot on my plate. It took extra time to go to the cleaners for you, and I have that barbecue tomorrow, and on top of this my grandmother’s not doing very well …” My voice breaks slightly, adding a touch of realism.
“Poor Reagan,” says Meredith as she helps Jocelyn into her outfit.
“Watch out for my ponytail,” warns Jocelyn. “I don’t have time to redo it.”
“Wow, I can’t believe that’s the same outfit,” says Sally with an approving smile. “It really fits you now.”
“It’s a little tight,” says Jocelyn, tugging at the top.
“No, it’s perfect,” Meredith assures her.
Jocelyn sort of hops up to see herself in the waist-high mirror. “Really? It’s not too tight?”
“It’s no tighter than mine,” says Sally.
“You look great,” I tell her. And that’s the truth. I’m actually wondering if Kendra really did anything. Maybe this prank is really on me. And that would be fine. Maybe Kendra was testing me, curious to see if I’d go along with something that crazy. Whatever the case, I can’t see that there’s any problem. That is, until Jocelyn turns around to stuff her other clothes into her duffle bag. That’s when I notice that her top has a seam down the middle of the back — not a very neat one — and it’s a seam that our tops don’t have. The skirt has the same sort of thing. I swallow hard, step back, and bite my tongue. This has got to be Kendra’s workmanship.
“Well, I’m going out there now,” announces Sally. “You guys ready?”
We all follow her out there, and once we’re on the field, I can tell that several of the girls are in on the joke and trying not to laugh. I mostly just try to keep my distance from Jocelyn. I don’t want to blow it. We do our regular warm-up chants as the stadium fills up. The goal is to get the crowd pumped up and excited. And then, as our football team enters the field, bursting through the butcher-paper banner stretched between the goalposts, the pep band begins the fight song and we begin our dance routine. As usual, Jocelyn and I are in the center of this routine because we’re the shortest. And when we finish up the routine, Jocelyn will be at the top of the pyramid. I consider the irony of this and how she fought me for this position at practice today.
“Reagan is always on top,” she complained to Falon. “She and I are about the same size, so why can’t I be on top for a change?” Falon reluctantly agreed, I think just to shut her up.
The band is still playing enthusiastically as we quickly get into the pyramid formation and Jocelyn climbs on top. Her shoes dig into my shoulders as she stands up straight, and I’m thinking she probably weighs ten pounds more than me. I see her spread her arms in a wide V, teetering just slightly. We hold the pyramid for the usual few seconds and then I feel Jocelyn going into the jump dismount now, performing a flip as she goes down and is caught by one of the guys. And the crowd cheers.
I’m concentrating on my own stunt now, a smaller flip that lands me soundly on my feet. And, just as I’m about to go into a handspring, I hear hoots of laughter from the stands and I see Chad staring to my right with a totally stunned expression. I turn to see what’s up, and that’s when I notice Jocelyn is standing still with both hands clasped over the front of her chest, covering her bra, which isn’t even a sports bra. Ben is standing a few feet away, holding her blue and white top and looking slightly amused.
“Give it to me!” Then she screams a word at him, one that will get her into trouble as far as the cheerleading contract goes. He tosses her the top, which is split down the back, but when she reaches out to catch it, bending down and leaning forward, her skirt, which was already hanging low, bites the dust. And now she is standing in front of the stadium in her underwear, not even pretty underwear. The crowd roars like they think this is the pregame show.
In that split second, Jocelyn tosses me a glance that I think could maybe kill. Then she gives me and everyone else the old middle-finger salute, grabs the pieces of her uniform, and like a flash (or a flasher?) tears out of there, running past the entire football team lined up and ready for the announcer to begin. But they just laugh and wave at her as i
f they’re enjoying the entertainment too.
Falon is the only cheerleader who isn’t laughing. She’s not even smiling. She looks shocked and angry and I can tell we’re in trouble. The announcer makes a comment about cheerleading outfits not being as sturdy as they used to be, eliciting another good laugh from the audience, and then he starts announcing the players.
With only seven girls now, Falon makes an adjustment in our lineup for the yells and routines. Being tallest, she takes the center, putting the shorter girls on the ends. No one argues with her. It would be pointless. It feels like it’s going to be a long night.
Fortunately, things seem to get back to normal by halftime. Oh, people are still talking about the “stripper” cheerleader. And Jocelyn never does come back. Falon says, “That’s fine, because if she did come back, I’d send her home anyway. She broke her contract.” This makes me feel bad, since it’s not really her fault. I mean, sure, she should’ve watched her mouth. But I feel guilty about helping to sabotage her. I know that was wrong. And it takes a lot of the fun out of the game for me.
I’m a little surprised when Kendra is crowned homecoming queen. Oh, I knew she had a good chance, but I actually thought Falon was going to win. I overhear someone saying that Kendra got the sympathy vote because she didn’t make cheerleader this year. I’m wondering what kind of vote she would’ve gotten if everyone knew she was behind what happened to Jocelyn tonight. Or maybe they wouldn’t care. They did seem pretty entertained by the whole thing.
I can’t admit this to anyone, but I don’t really care when our team loses the game. In some ways, I think we deserve it. But I pretend to be bummed, just like everyone else. I just want to go home and forget this night.
“You are coming to the dance, aren’t you?” asks Kendra as we’re gathering our stuff.
“Oh, sure,” I tell her, although I’d rather not go.
“Good.” She gets close to my ear now. “Because I just told Jonathan that I wanted to hang with you and him and Logan tonight, and he seemed to like that idea. He’s going to talk to Logan.”
“Cool,” I tell her, forcing a bright smile. But as I take my gear out to my car, I’m thinking I should feel a whole lot happier than this right now. I mean, here I am, barely one month at my new school, and I made varsity cheerleader, I have a cute and popular guy who really seems to like me, and my almost-best friend is homecoming queen, rich, and beautiful. Really, isn’t that about as good as it gets?
Instead, I feel totally miserable. What is wrong with me?
fifteen
DESPITE FEELING TORN AND GUILTY, AND UNABLE TO GET RID OF THAT IMAGE of Jocelyn’s face tonight, I put on a good show when I get to the dance. I’m sure no one could possibly suspect that I’m feeling so bummed. After a while, my mood begins to change. I lighten up and before long, I’m actually having fun. Jonathan is a good dancer and I can tell he likes me, and I think I want to get to know him better. Kendra is sort of playing hard to get with Logan, which seems to be working for her. She takes turns dancing with several guys, including Jonathan, but during the last few dances, Logan moves solidly in and takes control. By the end of the evening, Kendra seems happy.
As I drive home, I wonder if she feels any guilt for what happened to Jocelyn tonight. I also wonder how it will all pan out. Knowing Jocelyn, she probably won’t take this lying down. I’m not sure if it’s that red hair or something else, but I know the girl is a scrapper. And I’m guessing tomorrow’s barbecue will be interesting.
***
As usual, Mom is working even though it’s Saturday. She actually offered to stay home and help with the barbecue, but I assured her that I’d be fine and that Kendra would be here before too long. Kendra offered to handle all the food today. At first I said, “No, that’s too much.” But she insisted. “That’s what friends are for,” she assured me last weekend. And then I agreed.
“I hope to get back to a normal work schedule in a month or so,” Mom told me as she left this morning. I nodded, although I seriously doubt this. Among other things, I’m pretty sure my mom is a workaholic. I remember hearing Nana say that word once, back when I was too little to understand the meaning. But now I get it. And I think it’s true.
“Everything looks very nice,” says Kendra as she helps me to get things ready for our guests. “Your mom has good taste in interior design.”
“Thanks,” I tell her, but I know she’s just being nice. I’ve seen her house and it’s like something out of Architectural Digest, a magazine I’ve only seen at the doctor’s office.
“Do you think Jocelyn will come today?” She slides a big bowl of some really scrumptious-looking potato salad into the fridge. Her caterer made it, as well as a bunch of other things.
“I have no idea,” I say as I set one of her boxes on the counter. “But I know she’s a fighter and I sort of think she’ll make an appearance.”
Kendra laughs. “That was so funny last night. I think I’ll be laughing about it for weeks to come.”
“Too bad she had on such ugly underwear,” I say, then wish I hadn’t.
Kendra laughs even louder. “Well, at least they weren’t granny panties. That would’ve been really bad.” She pulls out an apron that says Kiss the Cook and ties it on. Then she takes out a goofy-looking chef’s hat and puts it on. “If you don’t mind, I’ll take care of the barbecuing.”
“Really?” I can’t believe my luck. “You’d do that?”
“I would for you, sweetie.” Now she frowns. “Unless you think the others will mind me being here. I am, after all, just an alternate.”
“I don’t think anyone will mind. Well, except maybe Falon, but she’s outnumbered.”
“Jocelyn might mind.”
I shrug. “I have a feeling Jocelyn will have her sights set on me today.”
“Then you’ll need me here for moral support.”
So it’s settled. Kendra is staying. And I can’t believe how much better this makes me feel. Especially when Jocelyn arrives thirty minutes early. She stands at my front door with her ruined cheerleader uniform in her hand and the angriest expression I have ever seen on her face. Seriously, if the girl was armed, I’d think this was about to turn into a Lifetime movie.
“Why did you do this?” she asks in a voice that is seething with anger.
“I didn’t do that,” I say, opening the door wider so she can come in. Of course, this could be a mistake. Maybe I should slam the door shut and lock it. But between Kendra and me, we should be able to keep this girl in line.
“Oh, hi, Jocelyn,” calls Kendra from the kitchen. “Want a soda? I’ve got these really great organic — ”
“No, I do not want a soda,” snaps Jocelyn. She glares at Kendra. “Man, you don’t even wait until the body’s cold, do you?”
“What?” Kendra gives her an innocent look.
“Oh, don’t tell me you didn’t hear the news.”
“What news?”
“Falon called me this morning to tell me that I’m on probation.” Kendra shrugs. “Well, that’s not much of a surprise, is it? I mean, you obviously broke the contract last night, in front of like hundreds of people too.”
Jocelyn holds out the uniform, shaking it in front of us. Then she turns to me. “I know you did this, Reagan.”
I hold up my hands in a helpless gesture. “Did what?”
“You messed with my uniform.”
I just shake my head and look her straight in the eyes. “I swear to you, Jocelyn, I did not mess with your uniform. All I did was deliver it to you. I thought I was doing you a favor.”
“Yeah,” says Kendra. “That’s not very nice to accuse Reagan of something like that, Jocelyn. Your alterations person obviously needs to go back to sewing school.” She sort of laughs. “Although how she ever shrunk that giant uniform down to a small size seemed nothing short of miraculous. Well, until it fell apart.”
“You expect me to believe the alterations person did this?” She shakes the uniform under K
endra’s nose.
Kendra steps back, stands up straighter. “What other explanation could there be?”
Jocelyn points to me. “She did it. And I know why she did it.” She points at Kendra now. “For you. Admit it. You’re both in on this.”
I actually put my hand on Jocelyn’s shoulder now, a little trick I’ve picked up from Kendra. “Look, Jocelyn, I swear to you that I did nothing to your uniform. I was at Nana’s nursing home all afternoon. Sheesh, you could even go over there and ask if you don’t believe me. Don’t ask Nana, since her memory’s pretty bad. But you could ask at the front desk. You could look at the book. I signed in.”
Jocelyn narrows her eyes and looks directly at me. “You swear you didn’t do this?”
I hold up my hand. “I swear!”
Jocelyn cusses now.
“Hey, girlfriend,” warns Kendra, “you’re going to have to clean up that potty mouth if you want to keep being a cheerleader.”
“Forget it!” she yells. “I’m finished. It’s not worth it.” She’s on the verge of tears now. “I can’t afford another uniform, and this one will never work.” She looks at Kendra, then at me. “I’m sick of cheerleading.”
“I’m sorry,” I say, hoping to sound as sincere as I actually feel, because I really am sorry.
She looks at me with watery eyes. “You really didn’t do this?”
“No, I didn’t.”
She nods sadly. “I didn’t really think you could be that mean.” Then she turns like she’s going to leave.
“Aren’t you staying for the barbecue?”
She sort of laughs. “Are you kidding?”
“Come on,” urges Kendra. “Stay. We have a ton of food. Just stay. You’ll feel better if you do.”
She turns and faces us. Tears are streaming down her cheeks now. “Falon told me that probation means I don’t do anything with the cheerleaders for two whole weeks. No practices, no games, no uniform, no barbecue, nothing. Not that it matters, since I really do plan to quit. I’m so done with this.”
Harsh Pink with Bonus Content Page 13
