“Well, I don’t want to be on a team with someone dating that loser. You know he and that freak friend of his go to Oakson Lake every weekend? What if they’ve brought over something from there and that’s why you’re acting like a complete weirdo?”
All the girls laugh, which helps calm the storm brewing under my skin. “If you don’t want to be on a team with me, you don’t have to be. Get your stuff and leave.”
Her eyes bug out. “What?!”
“You’re off the squad until you can reflect upon your bias and try to move away from following in the footsteps of our parents. Maybe then, you can return, but not before,” I say firmly. “Go on.”
Nobody objects. All the girls and I simply watch as Trixie collects her stuff, throws her bag over her shoulder, and stomps away. Vera lets out a laugh and steps forward. “Alright, now that’s taken care of, what’s first on the agenda, Cap?”
The smile that blooms over my face can’t be contained. Now, I look at my teammates and see actual support. Analliance of beautiful warmth rather than an army of mean girls prepared to antagonize me at any moment. I feel that realization stir deep inside my stomach, how I did more than protect myself when I had on the mask all these years. I also kept anyone worthy at arm’s length, afraid they would bite me if I let them get too close.
I discreetly wipe the tear under my eye away and clap my hands together. “What cheer do you guys want to start with?”
I walkinto the courtyard full of my peers with my head high, ready to take on anyone, knowing my squad has my back.
Axl isn’t here yet, so I venture to an empty table. People watch me as I walk by, quiet whispers washing away as I make my way through the many groups of students eating their lunches. My eyes collide with a freshman I’ve never spoken to before and she smiles at me. It isn’t malicious either. It is sincere and bright, so much so that I find myself smiling back before getting to my seat.
The confidence I rebuilt from being backed by my squad does wonders for my mood. I start eating my Caprese sandwich, which I made for myself this morning as a reward for mustering up the courage to eat in the courtyard. But it’s surprisingly easy, like nobody cares I was hiding behind a mask.
I wonder how thick that mask actually was. Perhaps people could see who I was all along, but I was too self-important to consider it.
I must admit, sitting by myself feels weird, but I welcome it as the minutes go by, but then another body is there, scooting onto the marbled stone beside mine as she drops her lunch onto the table with a soft thud. When I see the braided light brownhair and the freckles splattered across her cheeks, I smile in surprise.
“Whitney,” I greet her, putting my sandwich down and wiping my hands. I look around, curious. “Is everything okay?”
“Just swell,” she responds, her alto voice low but bubbly all the same. “I’d just thought maybe we could sit together. Is that okay?”
My brows scrunch inward. “Of course it’s okay, but why do you want to? I’m kind of the town pariah right now.”
She lets out a hearty laugh, the sound much more animated than I expected from my shy classmate. “You’re telling me. My father is in shambles with how the meeting went yesterday.”
I wince but ask the sarcastic question, “How is the mayor holding up?”
“As good as he can be,” she grumbles, her fork sliding over some fruit in her bowl. “He’s an asshole. Don’t worry about him. He could use some discomfort in his life.”
I can’t keep the surprise off my face. I don’t think I’ve ever heard Whitney cuss before, but it’s refreshing. Her smile, the way she’s laughing about her father’s distress, it’s such a different picture from the previous one I had of her.
“Anyway,” Whitney carries on. “I know we haven’t exactly been friends, and we don’t know each other much despite going to school together our entire lives, but I saw you sitting alone and decided to say‘fuck it.’What you did yesterday was cool. Fighting back, not letting anyone make a mockery of you. It was awesome to witness.”
Something about that honest speech hits me right in the chest. “Thank you,” I say, feeling slightly guilty. “I’m sorry we didn’t get to know each other before.”
“Friendships are two-way streets,” she says firmly. “Don’t worry about the past. Want aMonster? I brought an extra one by accident.”
She pulls out the energy drink from her lunch box and hands it to me. I can’t help the smile that blossoms as I stare at her extended hand, a literal peace offering lingering between us.
I take it. “Thanks. Practice was murderous today.”
“I hope your fellow cheerleaders didn’t give you any issue.”
“None, actually. Well, there was one girl, but the others stood by me. I should have known they would.”
“We’re a generation born from the sheep before us,” she mutters poetically. “Sometimes, it’s easier to be brave in numbers.”
We continue to talk about our favorite things. She tells me about the art she does in secret because her dad won’t let her study it, how there’s this shop she wants to visit in Oakson Lake, but her father would have an aneurysm if he found out she crossed the bridge. I tell her about how my mother is making this situation about her, and Whitney sympathizes. It’s one of the nicest conversations I’ve had in a long time.
Hannah joins us, her clementine scent brighter than it’s been in a long time, and my smile can’t be contained. I’m happy to see her, glad to know she isn’t afraid to be seen with me. She sits down like it’s any other day, completely unbothered by the fact Gabby and Quinn will probably have something to say about it when they see her.
“Looks like you’re having a party.”
