Traveling down the dark, empty morning highway, the bus' interior—though crowded—was almost silent, save for the gentle hum of the heating, the dull roar of the road below, and the muttering of one anxious student.
By the light of her phone's screen, Pearl, a bright sophomore at Crystal Academy, was reading over her declamation script. In a low voice, she whispered the words of the speech to herself, trying to commit every word to memory.
The piece was not new to her; she had first gotten the script several weeks prior. Nevertheless, her hands shook, making it difficult for her to focus on the sentences across the page.
"You seriously still practicing, P?"
The question from behind startled Pearl, who sighed and switched off her phone. She could recognize that voice anywhere. "Yes, Amethyst." She sighed. "I actually like to be prepared for these things, unlike some of us." She turned around to face her friend, leaning over the bus seat, before she gasped.
"Amethyst, did you even iron that shirt? It looks like it's been sitting in a drawer for months!"
"It might have." Amethyst said, her playful tone of voice giving Pearl the impression that she was actually pleased with herself.
Pearl continued taking inventory of Amethyst's outfit. "Oh goodness, your slacks are even worse, and they're covered with cat hair! Just a second, I've got just the thing!" She produced a lint roller and handed it to her friend, who begrudgingly accepted it.
"Why do you even have this with you," Amethyst said as she dragged the roller across her pants, "you don't even have a cat!"
"Exactly for situations like this," Pearl responded, "and you're welcome."
"Look, it's not my fault they expect us to get to the school before the crack of dawn already dressed to the nines." She yawned for emphasis. "I need my sleep, y'know?"
"Honestly, I'm surprised that you're awake at all right now; most of the others aren't." Pearl gestured to the rest of the bus. "Well, except possibly Garnet." Pearl looked across the row. Garnet, earbuds in and sunglasses on (despite the dark of the early morning), sat completely motionless. Knowing Garnet, though, she thought, that doesn't mean a thing.
"Yeah, who knows with her," Amethyst said, "but Ruby and Sapphire sure aren't!"
Pearl and Amethyst couldn't help but giggle at the sight of the two juniors who were practically snuggling. Sapphire had fallen asleep with her head on Ruby's shoulder and a soft smile on her face while Ruby snored loudly. Virtually everyone at Crystal Academy knew the two were in a relationship, even if they hadn't said it outright.
"Y'know, we should take a cue from them." Amethyst said.
"What?" Pearl exclaimed.
"As in, I'm going to sleep," Amethyst clarified, "and you should too."
Oh. "No thank you, I'm going to continue actually preparing for the tournament."
"Suit yourself!" Amethyst said before sitting back into her seat.
Pearl looked back to her script. Her hands were no longer shaking, but that didn't mean she wasn't still nervous.
Delmarva Central was, simply put, huge. An imposing structure built out of red brick, the school seemed to Pearl more of a fortress than a school. She gulped as she gathered her belongings and exited the bus.
"You okay, P?" Amethyst walked alongside Pearl, Garnet beside her.
"I'm fine." Pearl said, despite her nerves being on fire as the trio entered through the school doors.
"Just relax," Amethyst continued regardless, "everybody does bad their first meet, right?"
"I didn't." Garnet interjected.
Pearl sighed. "Somehow that doesn't make me feel better."
"Basically, I'm in the same boat as you, and I'm not panicking, so don't worry about it!" Amethyst said.
The words did little to reassure Pearl. As the three made their way down the hall, Pearl glanced to her left at a large trophy case, filled mostly with awards for past athletic seasons, but also with plenty of ribbons, medals, and trophies for speech tournaments of previous years. She gulped at the sight, knowing fully well that Delmarva was not even their biggest competition.
A hand on her shoulder turned her attention away.
"Pearl." Garnet said. "This is just your first tournament. Your performance today won't affect the rest of the season." She smiled. "It won't be the end of the world."
Pearl took a breath. "Thank you, Garnet."
Facing a brick wall, lockers to her left, stairs to her right, Pearl found herself completely unable to move. All around her, students of various schools and events recited their programs to the walls as practice before the first round of the day, showing no hints of anxiety or self-consciousness regardless of how loud they got or who might be listening.
Pearl shivered. The first line of her speech ran through her head on repeat, her lips too afraid to let it out lest they stuttered and somebody heard.
"Hey," a voice said, "Pearl, right?"
Pearl turned to face Opal, one of the Academy's seniors, a captain of the speech team, and respected as much for her prowess in her events, Domestic Extemporaneous and Impromptu, as she she was for her gentleness and empathy. Pearl could not help but look up to her, and not just in the literal sense, though she was of impressive stature.
"This must be your first tournament." Opal smiled. "I understand why you're nervous, but you're going to do great. I saw you at the practice meet, and you've got a lot of talent."
Pearl uttered a small "thank you".
"Knock them dead, Pearl." Opal said as she walked off to her event.
Pearl felt a sense of calm wash over her as she sat down in her round's room. After her talk with Opal, her practice had gone as smoothly as it ever had. She had recited every line perfectly, precisely executed all of her blocking, and had felt no nerves during the whole piece. As her fellow competitors filed in and the judge closed the door, Pearl felt ready for anything.
"First up is contestant 1014."
Ready for anything except going first.