“Yes, Heston.” It’s Coach Harrison who gives him permission to speak.
“I get what you’re trying to say,” his cocky smile makes me doubt he means it. “But that photo wasn’t taken during an official event. After we celebrated with the mayor and the whole town, we had a party on my family’s yacht. Does being on the team mean we can’t party anymore?”
Coach shakes his head. “Do you want me to take this one, Carole, or do you want to explain to this dumb ass what the point of this class is?”
“Thanks, Dan,” Carole smiles. “I’ll take this one.”
That’s probably a good thing. Carole is going to be infinitely kinder than Coach.
“If your objection to that photo being used as an example of problematic content is that it was taken during a private event,” the Cheer Director begins. “That’s exactly why you need to be in this meeting and why we’re here today. Every hockey player and every dancer in this room is over eighteen. You’re all legal adults. So technically, we can’t really tell you what to post on social media. However,when the content you post affects the image of the team, there can be consequences if what you post is deemed inappropriate or offensive.”
Vaughn insists. “But…”
“The real issue here,” Carole interrupts him. “Isn’t if that party was public or private and what you were doing. But the fact that you shared that photo. Something like that should have been kept private. Not everything you do or think belongs on social media.”
Mack raises his hand next. “So if Heston had a personal profile that was kept strictly private, he could have shared that photo without it being a problem?”
“Yes and no,” Carole sighs. “Look, as many of you will go to play as professionals, and as the cheerleading team's popularity grows, having personal profiles with airtight privacy isn’t a bad idea and something we actively encourage you to do. But I want you to ask yourself every time you are about to post something that you know isn’t PG or that could be received in a problematic way, how private is my profile? Even with the highest privacy settings, you can’t control other people’s actions. You can’t guarantee that someone you trust won’t repost or share your photos. You can’t be one hundred percent sure that a leak or a data breach won’t make private content public.”
A few people are nodding.
I guess a lot of us hadn’t thought about this stuff, myself included. And Carole is right that at the NHL level this stuff will matter even more.
Another photo appears behind Carole.
We’ve all seen it; it’s the infamous shot of Tucker and Taryn kissing at Starstruck.
“I want you to consider something else.” Carole’s gaze travels across the room. “What about a photo you didn’ttake or post yourselves? Like this one. When you’re out in public, or even at a private party like Vaughn's, can you guarantee that no one will film you and then share content you wouldn’t have wanted to see go public? This meeting isn’t just about social media; it’s also about your conduct. Keep the stuff that belongs behind closed doors truly private, and you’ll avoid yourselves and your teams a lot of problems. This is why we impose a no fraternization rule on our cheerleaders. Because if any questionable content were ever to surface online, we would rather it not involve both the brands we’re creating.”
This time it’s Tucker who raises his hand.
“Ma’am,” his cheeks pink as he addresses Carole. He doesn’t look pleased that his photo with Taryn is being shown as a negative example again. “I’m asking this in the most respectful way possible. But if you’re so concerned about our brands, why plan events with both the hockey players and the cheerleaders? If you don’t want us to be friends, why create occasions that could spark fraternization?”
“That’s an excellent question.” Carole nods. “And the answer is similar in spirit to what we just discussed. You’re becoming public figures. You’re entering a phase of your lives and careers where notoriety means that what you do and who you do it with matters beyond your own personal sphere. The right answer is that the relationship between players and cheerleaders should be friendly but distant. Professional, if you will. We aren’t the only company that has a no dating clause in our contracts. And when we say no fraternization, we want to take it even further to avoid temptation.”
TARYN
Every time Carole, Lexi, or any of our coaches bring up the no fraternization rule, I get stressed about my situation.
Making this team should be possible for me and the visibility that would give me could open all kinds of doors for a career as a dancer. But I know I can’t and won’t give up on what I could have with Colsen and Tucker. This rule has already cost me my connection with Nash, even though if this was all it took for him to walk away, maybe we were doomed from the start.
Colsen thinks that once training camp is over, without the cameras and without the proximity to our coaches, flying under the radar will be a lot easier.
I hope he’s right.
Right now, though, sitting in the auditorium, I’m questioning all my choices. Making the team isn’t guaranteed. Anything could make Carole and Lexi decide that I’m not Shooting Star material.
So maybe I’m risking my relationship with my guys for nothing. But at the same time, what if Colsen and Tucker decide that they can’t keep the status quo and keep dating me together, after all? What if they asked me to choose? I wouldn’t know what to do. I’m starting to have deep feelings for both of them, and just the idea of letting one of them go is too much to bear.
The unconventional nature of our relationship is only one of the things that could break us up. What if, once they’re back on campus, surrounded by thousands of women who will shower them with attention, they realized that they could have anyone they want? Why would they settle for sharing one woman?
The truth is that both my professional and romanticprospects are on shaky ground. Giving up either situation to concentrate on the other could still leave me kicked off the team and heartbroken if anything goes wrong.
Right now I have no solution to either of my problems, but maybe there’s something I could do to mitigate the fallout if I don’t get selected to be a Shooting Star or if I can’t keep my relationship with the guys a secret.
The level of noise in the auditorium has increased as people chime in about the implications of being public figures.
“I’m sorry,” ironically Vaughn sounds anything but apologetic. “But I’m not gonna walk on eggshells every time I go to a party. If some fucker wants to film me and post about me, why should it be my problem? So what if I’m seen enjoying the occasional pair of tits? Aren’t we all supposed to be adults?”
