First Scream

“Ohh!”

The cry from one of the cheerleaders told Bobbi that her spread eagle was as spectacular as she had planned.

Up, up, she leapt until she felt as if she could take off and fly. And then she shot out both legs, raising them up until they were perfectly straight. And then in her most startling move, Bobbi kept her legs outstretched as she gracefully floated down, hands high above her head like a diving bird, into a perfect split.

Then, before her stunned audience had recovered, she and Corky were into a powerhouse chant:

“First and ten,

Do it again!

First and ten,

Do it again!

Go Tigers!”

It’s going okay, Bobbi thought. At least they’re not glaring at us anymore.

She glanced at her sister, gave her a quick nod, their signal for their big finish, and jumped.

Onto Corky’s back. A perfect pony mount.

Then one swift move. Up. Arms up. And up again. Into the shoulder stand they had practiced day after day until their shoulders and backs were red and sore.

Good, Bobbi thought, standing straight and tall on Corky’s shoulders, feeling Corky’s hot hands lock onto the back of her legs. She smiled confidently, hands on hips. Then, without losing her smile, she suddenly dived off Corky’s shoulders.

The cheerleaders gasped as she plummeted straight out. She completed a perfect flip and landed, standing on both feet. And then the sisters moved into a repeat of their double cartwheel. Corky grasped Bobbi’s ankles as Bobbi grasped Corky’s ankles, and the two girls rolled across the floor. They stood up with a final shout: “Go Tigers!”

The two sisters ran off clapping. Bobbi smiled at Corky as they leaned against the wall, catching their breath.

“Wow! They’re incredible!” she heard one of the cheerleaders exclaim.

“How’d they do that?” she heard another ask in a loud whisper.

“You’re putting on weight,” Corky grumbled, rubbing her shoulders.

♦ ♦ ♦

“Wow, that was great!” Jennifer said, smiling warmly, her dark eyes lighting up with genuine excitement.

“Thanks,” Corky and Bobbi said in unison, smiling back at her.

They were standing awkwardly in Miss Green’s office, a small glassed-in enclosure in the corner of the gym. Seated at the wooden desk, Miss Green was searching the top drawer for some forms.

The routine had been one of their best ever, Bobbi thought. Sometimes she and Corky just clicked, and that day had been one of those days.

All of the cheerleaders had been really excited and impressed. Except for the one named Kimmy and her short, blond friend. They had remained stone-faced, even when all the other girls had burst into appreciative applause.

“That was fabulous!” Miss Green had called out in her husky voice. “Of course your shoulder dive is impressive, but I also liked the height you got on those spread eagles.” She turned to the squad members along the wall. “I’d like to see everyone work on the new routines, now. I hope Bobbi and Corky have inspired you to keep your energy up. Up!”

“Let’s go!” Kimmy had yelled, clapping and running past Corky and Bobbi, avoiding their eyes as she led the squad to the center of the floor.

As the girls started to chant one of their new cheers, the two sisters had followed Jennifer and Miss Green into the corner office.

Jennifer motioned for the sisters to sit down on the folding chairs against the wall. Corky glanced quickly at Bobbi as they sat, a questioning glance.

“Do you mean we made the squad?” Bobbi asked Jennifer.

“Ah, here they are,” Miss Green interrupted before Jennifer could reply. “You’ll need to fill out these forms. This one’s a health form,” she said, pulling out a green sheet of paper. “And this one is the release form. Your parents have to sign that one.”

“We made the squad?” Bobbi repeated, to Jennifer.

“Yeah. You were amazing!” Jennifer gushed. Then she added: “I used to be the star around here. But no one’s going to notice me with you two around.”

Bobbi couldn’t decide if she was kidding or not. The girls reacted with embarrassed laughter. “We’ll show you how to do the shoulder dismount,” Bobbi offered.

“I think we can all learn something from you two,” Miss Green added, shuffling through the sheaf of forms.

Jennifer’s eyes flared just then, and Bobbi suddenly felt uncomfortable. Jennifer was making it clear that she was jealous of the Corcorans.

“Where did you get that double cartwheel thing after the dive?” Jennifer asked, leaning back against the yellow-tiled wall.

“We sort of made it up,” Corky told her.

“Some other girls were doing something like it at the state finals back in Missouri last year,” Bobbi added, “and we kind of adapted it.”

“I hope we can get to the state finals,” Jennifer said wistfully.

“With these two on the squad, it’s a lock,” Miss Green said, smiling one of her rare smiles as she handed the forms to Corky and Bobbi. As she stared at the girls, her expression changed to one of concern. “Uniforms. Uniforms,” she muttered. “This might be a problem. Quick.” She pulled a pad of paper from her top drawer. “Write down your sizes. This will have to be a rush order.”

A short while later Bobbi and Corky were thanking Jennifer and Miss Green; with the chants of their fellow cheerleaders ringing through the gym, they hurried out of the building, eager to congratulate each other.

Jennifer and Miss Green continued to confer over the low wooden desk, their expressions serious, concerned. Miss Green spoke heatedly, her eyes turning occasionally to watch the practice on the other side of the glass partition.

“The squad is supposed to be six,” she told Jennifer. “I suppose we can squeeze one more girl on. But not two. We don’t have the funds for eight cheer-leaders.”

Lowering their voices, Jennifer and Miss Green continued to discuss the problem.

“Hey—what’s going on?”

Startled by the intrusion, both the captain and the advisor whirled around to see Kimmy standing in the doorway, hands on hips, her cheeks pink, breathing heavily.

“Can you ask Ronnie to come in?” Jennifer asked Kimmy. “We can only make room for one more girl, so Ronnie will have to—”

“Huh? You’re putting those sisters on the squad?” Kimmy demanded, her voice rising several octaves.

“Of course,” Jennifer replied. “You saw how good they were. They’re awesome!”

“But I thought—” Kimmy stopped, letting the news sink in.

“We’re very lucky they moved to Shadyside,” Miss Green added with unusual enthusiasm.

“And that means—Ronnie’s out?” Kimmy asked, her voice revealing her outrage. “She’s off the squad? Just like that?”

“Kimmy—” Jennifer started.

But Miss Green took over, climbing to her feet as if prepared to fight. “Ronnie is only a freshman,” she said firmly. “She’ll be an alternate. She’ll practice with the squad. And she’ll go on if one of you gets sick or something.”

“Oh, she’ll love that,” Kimmy said bitterly. “I really don’t think it’s fair. I mean—”

“Kimmy—you saw how good Bobbi and Corky are!” Jennifer cried. “We need them. We really do.”

Kimmy started to reply, thought better of it, and uttered a sigh of exasperation. Glaring at Jennifer, she turned away from the office and called to Ronnie.

“You wanted to see me?” Ronnie hesitated in the doorway, nervously pushing back her curly red hair with both hands. She had small brown eyes, a tiny round stub of a nose, and a face full of freckles.

She almost collapsed when Miss Green told her of her demotion. Angry tears formed in the corners of her eyes, which she quickly wiped away with the backs of her hands.

“We really don’t have a choice,” Jennifer said softly.

“Yes, you do,” Ronnie snapped back, her dark eyes flashing.

“We have to think of what’s best for the squad,” Miss Green said, twirling a pen nervously between her fingers. “You’ll have plenty of opportunity—”

“Yeah. Sure,” Ronnie interrupted, and fled toward the locker room.

“She feels bad,” Jennifer said, staring through the glass as the other girls stopped their practice to watch Ronnie run off.

“She’ll get over it,” Miss Green said flatly.

♦ ♦ ♦

“I’ll never forgive them!” Ronnie cried. “Never!”

Kimmy and Debra huddled around the freshman, trying to ignore the steamy, junglelike air of the locker room. The other girls had showered and left. These three remained, talking, commiserating with one another, trying to decide what, if anything, they could do.

“Those sisters had no right to try out,” Kimmy agreed heatedly, putting a comforting hand on Ronnie’s shoulder.

“Not them,” Ronnie insisted angrily. “Jennifer and Miss Green. It was their idea to kick me off.”

“We should all get together,” Debra said heatedly. “You know. Sign a petition or something. I’m sure Megan and Heather would sign it too.” She sat down on the bench and began to pull off her sneakers.

Kimmy removed a white towel from her locker and mopped her forehead with it. “Wow, do I need a shower! Yeah, maybe you’re right, Deb. If the whole squad protests, if we all stand together, I’ll bet we could get them to change their minds.”

Ronnie groaned and rolled her eyes. “What dream world do you live in?” she muttered. “The Corcoran sisters were all-state, remember? Did you see the look on Miss Green’s face when they did that shoulder stand and all those double cartwheels?”

“She was practically drooling,” Debra said, shaking her head. “She could probably see the championship trophy on her shelf.”

“But what’s Jennifer’s problem?” Kimmy demanded, pulling her heavy sweater over her head.

“She’s your friend,” Ronnie said bitterly.

“I can’t believe her,” Debra added. “Maybe being captain has gone to her head or something. She thinks she’s such a big deal.”

“My parents are going to be very upset,” Ronnie said with renewed sadness. “They were more excited about my making the squad than I was. And now—”

Kimmy and Debra continued trying to comfort Ronnie as they undressed, tossing their clothes onto the benches. They carried their towels over the concrete floor to the shower room.

“I don’t want to be an alternate,” Ronnie complained, her voice breaking with emotion. “That’s just stupid. I’d rather—”

“If only the Corcorans would just go back where they came from,” Debra said. “With their long blond hair and their big eyes and phony smiles.” She put a finger down her throat and pretended to puke. “Yuck.”

“They’re not that bad,” Ronnie muttered. “It’s Jennifer. She had no right—”

Kimmy stepped under the chrome shower head. She turned the knobs on the wall with both hands.

The water burst out in a loud rush.

Kimmy froze openmouthed for a brief second.

Then she started to scream.

Date: 2015-04-20; view: 446