Fourteen #2
I smiled as I shimmied through the long row of people blocking my path and hopped off the side of the bleachers, dashing into the girls’ locker room.
As soon as I opened the door, I was greeted with pure mayhem as several girls rushed around frantically, flinging their clothes and spraying more perfume than my senses could handle.
I let out a string of sneezes as I crinkled my nose.
My nostrils were on fire. I mean, the scent was better than putrid sweat, but— damn —perfume is fucking strong and all those incohesive fragrances mixed together were more disorienting than riding on one of those stupid spinning teacup rides at the fair.
The minute my eyes spotted Meredith and Kendra, my heart became palpable in my throat.
I walked toward them, tossing my bag on the floor, not bothering to find a locker. “You guys, ready for this?”
Kendra shrugged, her eyelids heavy as she leaned against the wall. “Sure.”
“Born ready.” Meredith nodded.
“This is my favorite cheer event of the whole year!” Luna, a bubbly sophomore on the squad, beamed.
Meredith scoffed at her, crossing her arms over her chest. “Nobody asked.”
“Sorry.” Luna frowned, her figure dissolving into the background as she hid behind some of the other girls.
“Would it kill you to be nice for once, Meredith?” The words escaped my mouth in an exasperated tone before I had the chance to process them.
All the blood drained from my face at the realization of what I had just said. It would never cease to amaze me the way that standing up for myself often made me feel like I was having a heart attack. Kendra’s voice dripped with irritation as she spoke.
“You’ve met her, right? I’m pretty sure it would.”
Some of the girls chuckled with amusement, their laughter almost contagious.
I would’ve joined in if my nerves weren’t gripping my entire being like a snake coiling around my ribs, squeezing the air out of my lungs.
“Shut up, Kendra!” Meredith snapped, her voice sharp enough to cut through the chatter.
“Whatever,” she mumbled back.
I sighed before speaking again. “Okay, everyone, ready up! We have one chance to get this right, so don’t fuck it up.”
I ripped open my bag and threw on my uniform, trying to push aside thoughts of imperfection and self-doubt.
It was a pretty impossible task, though, as my mind flooded with more improbable scenarios that, at that moment, seemed all too plausible.
Game day—or in this case—pep rally day, was always the fucking worst.
As several girls came in and out of the locker room, my eyes were locked onto the horrifying sight just beyond the door. With every squeak of the hinges, the door swayed back and forth, each time painting a clear picture of what was waiting on the other side.
So many people. So many eyes. So much pressure. So many differing opinions. So many expectations. So much fear.
My hands started to tremble. I ran them through my hair and tried to hide my unsteady fingers.
All of a sudden, my legs began to lose feeling.
With minutes left to spare, I excused myself, rushing to the nearest stall to avoid being caught looking like a jittery ball of nerves.
I took a few steadying breaths as I stared up at the ceiling.
A sharp ringing grated against the inside of my skull, sawing through my inner ear, causing me to lose focus.
It was the sound of a muffled sob slowly fading into the foreground that pulled me from my panic.
There was crying coming from the stall next to me.
“Hello? Are you okay in there?” I ask.
“Clarke?” I heard Camryn’s broken voice reply. “Is that you?”
“Yeah. Are you okay? I just thought I heard—”
“Yeah, no, I’m fine.” She coughed while clearing her throat. “I just think I’m getting a cold or something.”
I nodded while rubbing my hands on my uniform. The rise and fall of my chest slowed. I squeezed my eyes shut.
“You sure?”
“Mm-hm.”
“Okay. Um, I’ll see you out there, yeah?”
“Yep.”
When I stepped back into the world of chaos and perfume-masked body odor, my mind held a thought that differed from the previous fears that had occupied it before.
What was going on with Cam?
I didn’t have time to ponder the question for long as Coach Smithson rushed to give us a few last-minute pointers before ushering us out into the gym.
It all happened so fast. I tried to keep steady as we rallied into groups, breaking out into the proper formation with all eyes hyper-focused on our every move.
My eyes flicked from face to face in a never-ending sea of students occupying the bleachers.
The room began to spin, my vision becoming blurry.
Then, I saw Elliot . His arms were high in the air as he gave me an emphatic thumbs-up.
A smile tugged at my lips as I took a deep breath.
I glanced at the other girls, making sure we were aligned properly as we all stood side by side in a straight line.
The routine started with me calling out a single cheer.
“We buzz, we sting, we never fall, the Honey Bees will rule them all!”
Without missing a beat, Meredith and Kendra simultaneously yelled, “Five, six, seven, eight!”
All twelve of us sliced the air with razor-sharp arm movements while stepping in sync with one another as we chanted, “We are the Honey Bees, we’ll take you down with ease! If you fight us back, we will attack! We are the Honey Bees!”
Switching up our formations, we moved seamlessly between each other, weaving our bodies through gaps until we rearranged ourselves into three groups, each one organized in a diamond configuration.
Just as Meredith and Kendra were hoisted into the air by their supports, my group in the center performed a jump split, which transitioned into a backflip the moment our toes touched the ground.
Once we stuck the landing, I bounced on my heels as Camryn and Kalani raised me onto their thighs while Emory acted as spotter.
I threw my arms above my head, executing a double-thigh stand in the center, flanked by two thigh-stand hitches from Meredith and Kendra, their legs angled toward me to complete the formation.
Being thrust higher, the flyers—including myself—switched into an elevator stunt, as the girls supporting Kendra and Meredith rotated them 180 degrees, keeping them raised in the air as they slowly pivoted to face the opposite direction.
As they spun, I transitioned into an arabesque, balancing on a single leg, before easily flowing into a scorpion, pulling one foot behind me and stretching it to my head.
Once fully rotated, Meredith and Kendra called out, “Let’s go, Honey Bees, let’s go!
” Clap, Clap. “Let’s go, Honey Bees, let’s go! ”
The final basket toss was an X-out formation, as we twisted our bodies mid-air with arms outstretched before landing back in the arms of the bases. By the time we were lowered to the ground, the crowd was going wild. My cheeks felt heavy as I held a stiff smile.
The girls and I jogged toward the locker room just as Elliot screamed, “Yeah, Clarke. Fuck shit up!”
Disingenuous happiness shifted into amusement as I chuckled at his enthusiasm, waving to him as I ran to catch up with the other girls.
I allowed my face to fall flat once I was away from the prying eyes of strangers.
Placing one hand on my heart, I exhaled calmly.
It was over. I walked over to where I had left my bag, scrunching my eyebrows as I peered down at the ground. It was gone.
“Clarke,” Meredith beckoned. “You left your bag on the floor.”
I snapped my neck in her direction, spinning around to face her. She held up my duffel bag with one hand, eyeing it suspiciously. While leaning to hand it to me, the contents of my bag spilled onto the floor through the open zipper. The fluttering in my chest ramped up.
Did she do that on purpose?
Meredith frowned as she knelt down to pick up the fallen objects. Her hand froze when she went to retrieve my journal.
“Umm, what’s this?” Palming my journal in her hand, she plucked out the small piece of paper tucked between the pages.
I leapt forward, snatching my journal out of her hands, but she still had Elliot’s drawing.
“What’s with the weird anime drawing?”
Some of the other girls walked over to her, glancing over her shoulder and inspecting the paper suspiciously.
I pursed my lips, nostrils flaring as I glared at her. Yanking the drawing out of her hand, I slipped it back inside my journal while crouching to pick the rest of my stuff off the ground. I angrily shoved my belongings back inside my purse while fuming. “None of your business.”
She cackled, her laugh full of animosity. “Did Elliot draw that?”
“Yeah. So what?”
“If you think some lame drawing is gonna win you Prom Queen, then you’re even dumber than you look. And was that a diary? Come on, Clarke. How old are you?”
I slowly rose to my feet while grinding my teeth.
Cocking my head to the side, I sneered at her.
“Me, stupid? Have you seen your grades?” I spat.
“And last time I checked; I won Homecoming Queen which means I have a better shot at winning Prom Queen than you, so how about you worry about yourself and stop touching my shit?”
I pushed past the girls, barreling out of the locker room and through the gymnasium as I rushed into the hall.
My chest was heaving as I stood alone in the empty corridor, dropping my bag onto the floor and kicking the lockers with my foot.
The metallic clink echoed off the walls.
The sun faded, leaving my world devoid of color as the light diminished to gray.
My breaths were labored, coming out short and uneven as I cupped my face with my hands.
I paced back and forth, trying to remain calm, but as my thoughts heightened, so did my heart.
Then everything slowed to a stop. My steps faltered as an idea hit me like a semi going ninety.
Throwing the strap of my duffel over my shoulder, my feet picked up speed as I ran past several rooms until I saw the one I was looking for.
The computer lab.
I swung open the door and walked up to the printer, grabbing Elliot’s drawing and placing it on the scanner. I jabbed at different buttons, turning on the machine and hitting the copy button.
“Princess?” Elliot was standing in the doorway. “What are you doing here?”
“Showing Meredith I’m not ashamed of you,” I said, my eyes still glued to the printer.
“What?”
“Meredith!” I screamed. “She saw the drawing you gave me and started to…she was making fun of it and she was making fun of me. I can’t—I won’t let anyone bully me!”
“Hey, it’s okay.”
Elliot placed his hand on my shoulder, calming me with his touch. I clasped his hand with mine and took a steadying breath. My eyes drifted shut.
“You don’t deserve that,” I whispered. “And neither do I.”
“So, what are you gonna do about it?” he asked, his words sounding like more of a challenge.
“She thinks these drawings won’t help me win Prom Queen, but maybe they can. I’m going to put them up around the school.”
“That’s my girl,” he spoke in a hushed voice, the corner of his lip curling upward. “Want some help?”
“Yeah.” I breathed a sigh while clutching the printer. “Yeah, I would.”
He moved his free hand to my waist, spinning me around to face him as the other cupped the side of my jaw. His eyes flicked toward my lips, and mine followed as I stared up at him. What was going through his mind? Because I knew what was going through mine.
“Then I’ll help.”
I cleared my throat, averting my eyes from his. “Like, right now or…?”
“One thing I need to do first.” He pulled my face toward his as our lips connected once again.
I ran my fingers through his hair as our tongues collided in a heated battle. It was more tender this time. More passionate . I clawed at his shirt, pulling him closer. I felt like putty when I was wrapped in his embrace. He squeezed my waist before separating us.
“W-what…” I stuttered apprehensively, swallowing to regain control of my mouth. “What was that for? Did you see Ryan?”
“Nope.”
I shivered as he swiped his thumb along my lower lip, then took the stack of posters that had just been printed and left.