by Kieran Scott
“Actually, we have lunch soon,” Jordan said, checking her watch.
“That’s right! And then practice,” I said. “What are you going to do all day?”
Just then the front door to the lobby opened and a troop of ESPN crew guys in baggy jeans and skintight T-shirts walked through, carrying electrical equipment and huge lighting stands. They were all older and chiseled and they laughed and joked, checking out some of the squads that were lounging around or going over schedules. Bethany eyed them up and down and smirked.
“Oh, I think I can find something to do while you melt your brain with the blah-rahs,” she said.
We all laughed as one of the guys craned his head around to check out a gorgeous redhead and tripped himself. The awkward moment had thankfully passed.
“Come on,” Jordan said. “We could probably squeeze in some of the basics before lunch.”
“Sweet,” Bethany replied, slipping her sunglasses on again. “Lead the way.”
It was all I could do to keep from skipping as I followed them. I was actually hanging with Bethany and Jordan in the same place at the same time. And Daniel was here! We were going on a date that very night! Considering the foul mood I had been in on the bus that morning, I could hardly believe this was the same day. Things were definitely picking up!
10
“Okay, you all good?” I asked Bethany.
She was kicked back at a table in the hotel’s café, her feet up on another chair and her laptop open in front of her. She had a steaming cup of hot coffee and a chocolate éclair, and her iPod was at the ready. Basically the girl was fully in her element.
“Yeah, I just have one question,” Bethany said, eyeing my practice uniform. “What are you wearing?”
“You like?” I joked, holding out my light yellow skirt to show the baby blue pleats. “Tara picked them out herself. She wanted us to stand out.”
“Mission accomplished.”
“We call it the Tweety Bird look,” I told her. “Yellow is the new black.”
“Yeah, you keep telling yourself that,” Bethany said, rolling her eyes.
“I gotta go,” I said.
“Wouldn’t want to be late!” Bethany said. “They might take away your megaphone.”
“Har-dee-har,” I said. I turned around and headed for the larger restaurant and flashed my light blue briefs at her just to crack her up. It worked.
When I got to the restaurant, the place was already jam-packed with cheerleaders. There was so much perfume and hairspray, a girl could choke. I had a feeling my salad dressing was going to taste like a L’Oréal Vive product. For a second I thought I was never going to find my team in all the mayhem, but they were hard to miss. With all that yellow, our table was glowing like the sun.
I took a deep breath, resolved to tell Tara that I wasn’t going to be at dinner that night. I knew she was going to be annoyed, but she was just going to have to deal. A girl has to make certain sacrifices for love.
“Hey, guys!” I said, pulling out a chair next to Mindy. “What’s on the menu?”
To save time and money, I supposed, it looked like we had a set lunch. There was a heaping bowl of mixed salad, another of fruit salad and a couple of large platters of sandwiches on the table.
“You’re late,” Tara said, tearing into a turkey on wheat.
“You guys were early!” I pointed out.
“Whatever, just eat,” Tara said grouchily. “One more lateness and I’m making you do laps.”
My pulse practically stopped.
“What? You can’t—”
“Try me,” Tara said, leveling me with a glare. I swear little flames flared up in her pupils.
Wow. I had never seen her look quite that demonesque. Okay, so maybe it wasn’t the best time to tell her about tonight. It was probably a better plan to back out at the last minute. Yeah. That’s what I would do.
Chicken, a little voice in my head chided. But I had every right to be! The last thing I needed was for Tara to have one of her patented freak-outs in public. Then we’d be labeled as the psycho squad. Judges hear that kind of thing, you know.
“She’s just in a bad mood because we have to sit next to the Black Bears at every meal,” Whitney whispered, handing me the salad bowl.
I hadn’t even noticed on my way in, but now that I looked over my shoulder and saw them, I wondered how I could possibly have missed it. The Black Bears’ practice uniforms were jet-black with glittering silver straps and silver around the edging of their skirts. They kind of looked like Darth Vader’s personal cheer squad.
“So, what’s up with your old squad?” Mindy asked, taking a sip of her water.
“Oh, yeah, I’m sorry about that,” I said. “Becca can be a little rash sometimes.”
“A little?” Mindy asked.
“Well, that other girl was being seriously rude,” I replied. “Becca was just being Becca. I would kill to have the guts to do something like that.”
“You’re kidding.”
“Well, maybe not that exactly,” I said. “But, you know, at least she stood up for herself.”
“Whatever you say,” Mindy replied, returning to her lunch.
I wanted to talk about it more, but Mindy clearly didn’t. It was kind of frustrating that my old squad and my new squad seemed to want to see the worst in each other. I mean, didn’t anyone see that nothing was that black and white? Didn’t anyone trust my judgment?
I grabbed a ham and cheese sandwich and gnawed on it while I checked out the rest of the room. It looked like all the high school squads were present, but none of the younger girls, who I guessed had eaten earlier. I couldn’t help noticing that not every squad had felt the need to don matching practice uniforms today. Some of them were in shorts and matching tanks. Others looked like they had just been told to wear school colors. I caught a glimpse of the Beavers’ table. Everyone there was wearing a red baby T that said BEAVERS in gold lettering across the chest, matched with a pair of black shorts. They looked so cool and comfy. Meanwhile, the short, short hem of my skirt was digging into the back of my thighs like a dull blade.
I also couldn’t help noticing—probably because I was counting under my breath—that not all the Beavers were present. Apparently not everyone had this “cheer together, eat together, sleep together” law. Becca and Gia were the most obviously absent. The captain and co-captain. Yeah, things were a little more chill over there.
“Did you see those girls with the feathers in their hair, y’all?” someone at the Black Bears’ table said. “Like, we’re not in Las Vegas, ladies!”
I glanced across the table at Autumn. Who did these girls think they were, judging people like that? Well, okay, I guess we were all doing it—kind of—but at least we weren’t obnoxious enough to do it out loud.
“Honestly, I’m kind of disappointed,” their captain said with a dramatic sigh. “There just doesn’t seem to be any real competition this year.”
Tara looked like she was one hot sauce-swig away from that cartoon cat explosion.
“I feel bad for some of these teams,” another girl said. “They’re just so out of their league.”
“They may as well just hand over the trophy now,” the captain lamented.
“Okay, that’s it,” Chandra said under her breath, pressing her hands into the table as she stood.
“Sit!” Tara said through her teeth. Chandra dropped down instantly. Tara leaned in over her plate and we all followed suit. “We are not going to stoop to their level, okay? We are above petty posturing. Good sportsmanship is what this weekend is all about. Got it?”
We nodded determinedly and sat up straight again, going about passing the food and pouring drinks. It was all a little false and showy, though, because we weren’t paying any attention to each other. Every last one of us had tuned our ears in to what the Black Bears were saying.
“And did you check the uniforms?” another Black Bear said. “Hasn’t anyone told these people that retro is so
yesterday?”
“I think the chicks at the next table are trying to blind the competition,” the captain said, loud enough for everyone to hear. She put her sunglasses on, turned to Tara, and gave her a fluttery little wave. Everyone at the Black Bear table laughed and took out their sunglasses as well.
Tara’s teeth were so clenched, I could hear them grinding. She tried to ignore the other squad and reached for the ketchup. Instead she knocked over the saltshaker and the top fell right off, spilling salt everywhere.
“Omigod!” Tara screeched. “Everyone! Throw it over your shoulders! Do it! Throw it over your shoulders!”
Startled, we all did as we were told, which just cracked the Black Bears up even more. I looked at Mindy, my eyebrows raised. When we got out of this place, Tara was going to have to seek some professional help. Stat.
“Hey, Trott!” I shouted as we all filed out of the restaurant after lunch. She stopped and waited for me to catch up. “I like your T-shirt.”
“Thanks! I don’t like your uniform,” she replied apologetically.
“A common opinion,” I replied. “So, where are Gia and Becca?”
“I don’t know,” Jordan said with a shrug as we passed into the lobby. “I haven’t seen them since the gift shop.” She paused. “Oh, God. I hope they didn’t get arrested.”
“They just went to check out the beach,” Maria Rinaldi said with a laugh, overhearing.
“So you guys don’t all have to eat together all the time?” I asked.
Jordan knit her brows. “What are you, kidding? We have to spend enough time together this weekend,” she said jokingly.
“Good point.”
Sigh. If I were still on the Beavers, I wouldn’t have to feel guilty—or scared to even bring up—skipping a meal to go out with Daniel. There would be no laps for lateness or talk of hair dye. Of course, if I were still with the Beavers, that would mean I’d still live in Jersey and I never would have even met Daniel.
Life!
When I first walked into the ballroom where we were going to be practicing, I thought I was going to freeze to death. The air-conditioning was jacked up to a level that would have made my father proud. Goose bumps popped up all over my arms and legs and any little hairs I’d missed around my knees stood on end. But now that we were running through our routine for the third time, I understood why the powers-that-be kept it so cold. The collar of my Suzie Sunshine uniform was already wet with sweat.
“All you fans, yell ‘Go!’”
“Go!”
Chandra and Autumn pushed me up into my double base extension and I thrust the blue-and-yellow GO sign over my head, making sure to nod and smile as I shouted and pinched a penny with my butt cheeks. Man, there was a lot to remember sometimes.
Steven snapped a few pictures of us as, across the practice area, Jordan, Becca, Gia and the rest of the Beavers stopped what they were doing and lined up to observe. I saw Becca whisper something to Gia as they watched our routine with hawklike eyes. Today was all about sizing up the competition. The Black Bears and the squad from Tennessee hadn’t arrived yet, but I was sure that if they were there, they would be doing the same thing.
As for me, I was just psyched to have the chance to show my old team what my new team could do.
“All you fans, yell ‘Crabs!’”
“Crabs!”
Across from me, Kimberly held up the CRABS sign.
“Go!”
“Crabs!”
“Go!”
“Crabs!”
“One more time!” Tara shouted.
“Go!”
“Crabs!”
The music started up again, and I tossed the sign down and cradled out of the stunt. As we whipped back into our dancing frenzy, the Beavers watched us, and I couldn’t help but notice that several of them looked impressed. I caught Jordan’s eye and grinned. She winked and grinned right back.
I popped up into my last, highest throw and executed my twist in the air. I tried not to close my eyes as I went upside down, but it’s a little freaky watching the world overturn itself. Still, I knew my teammates would be there to catch me. They hadn’t dropped me once.
Well, not since the first time we tried this one, anyway.
As soon as we hit our final poses, the Beavers erupted into applause and appreciative hollers. I glanced at Mindy and shrugged one shoulder. See? My old squad isn’t all bad. They know a good performance when they see it.
“All right, ladies! Looking good!” Coach Holmes cheered as we gathered around her. True to her unity beliefs, she was wearing a bright yellow sweatshirt over light blue leggings. Somehow she didn’t even look pained about it. “I just got a call from Tara’s mom, and the parental caravan should be arriving any minute. Why don’t you guys take a break and go out to meet your parents? Good work!”
“All right, everyone! Hands in!” Tara said. We all gathered in a huddle and placed our hands in the middle. Everyone was winded and rosy. Steven climbed up on a chair and took a couple of shots of our hands from above. Very artistic! “Crabs on three,” Tara said. “One! Two! Three!”
“Crabs!”
We all clapped as we broke off, grabbing water bottles and towels from our bags. I placed my foot on a chair and was leaning down to retie my sneaker and catch my breath when Tara plopped onto one of the folding chairs next to me.
“So, Gobrowski, if we’re going to do your hair, we should probably do it now,” she said.
I dropped my foot to the floor. “Tara—”
“I’m serious, Annisa. Semifinals are tomorrow morning,” Tara said, dabbing her neck with her towel. “It’s now or never.”
“Mmmm, how about never?” I replied.
Chandra joined us and stood next to me, her arms folded over her chest. “Are we still talking about this hair-dye thing? God, Tara, why don’t you just leave her alone?”
Both Erin and Jaimee looked up and glanced at each other. They moseyed over as well, as if they sensed another chance to campaign. A few of the other cheerleaders took extra time organizing their things and stretching out, pretending they weren’t sticking around just to hear what happened. Sage blatantly stood there behind Tara, not caring what I thought, apparently.
“No one asked for your opinion, Chandra,” Tara snapped.
“Actually, I kind of like what she has to say,” I said.
“There’s a stunner,” Erin put in.
“What, you think I should do it too?” I asked, surprised.
“Well, if it’s for the good of the team . . . ,” she said, lifting her shoulders.
Unreal. I had always thought Erin was cool, but now it was like she agreed with anything and everything Tara said.
“What if we compromise?” Jaimee suggested, clasping her hands. “What about temporary dye? Or maybe just some highlights?”
“Et tu, Jaimee?” I said, arching my eyebrows.
“What are you afraid of, Annisa? Think Daniel will dump you if you go blonde? Afraid you won’t be different enough for him anymore?” Sage asked.
My toes actually curled as I glared at her. Why the heck did she always have to bring up Daniel? And what did she mean, “different enough”? Had he told her that he liked me because I was different? Did they discuss me behind my back on their secret phone calls?
But he said he didn’t call her, my shoulder angel reminded me.
He could have lied, duh, the devil piped in.
“Low blow, Barnard,” Chandra said, defending me. Sage just rolled her eyes.
“I don’t understand why you’re being so unreasonable about this,” Tara snapped. “We’re talking about nationals here.”
“And I don’t understand why you think our winning nationals depends on the color of my hair,” I replied. “Look at the Beavers!” I said, throwing out my hand. My old squad was practicing a pyramid on the other side of the room. “They’re brunette, redheaded, blonde. White, black, Latina. God, what do you think the captain of the Black Bears would say if
someone told her to dye that gorgeous hair of hers?”
“Oh, so now you’re not only rooting for your old squad, but you’re a Black Bears fan as well?” Tara asked, standing. “Whose side are you on, anyway?”
My jaw dropped. Tara was going straight-up insane.
“Look, we have until tonight,” Tara said, draping her towel over her shoulders. “Just think about it. I know you’ll do the right thing.”
She turned and walked off, followed by Sage and a few others. I was too speechless to stop her. She really thought she was going to guilt me into this, didn’t she? Did the girl not know me at all?
“She will!” Erin shouted after her. “She’ll think about it!” I gaped at Erin. This captainship thing was making everyone go bonkers. I half wanted to check the back of Erin’s head for her other face.
“What?” she asked. “I just said you’d think about it.”
“Maybe you should think about it, Annisa,” Jaimee said. “Unless you don’t want to.”
Erin scoffed and rolled her eyes.
“Come on,” Chandra said, hooking her arm around my neck. “Let’s go find our parents.”
I grabbed my water bottle and let her lead me away from the others. At this point, I was practically salivating to see my family. They may be nuts in their own ways, but at this point they were pretty much the sanest people in my life.
Scary.
11
Phoebe pushed herself away from the wall where she had been leaning as soon as Chandra and I stepped out of the ballroom. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure Tara wasn’t anywhere around.
“So, she’s still on your case, huh?” she asked.
“Like an ambulance-chasing lawyer,” Chandra said.
I snorted a laugh. “What do you think, Phoebe?”
“Well, I guess I kind of see both sides of it,” Phoebe said as we headed for the lobby. “I can tell you one thing, though. She’s never going to let it go.”
“Even I could’ve told you that,” Chandra said.
