7/19/12
Hey guys! I'm back with another chapter and I've got one almost finished, it should be up in a couple days! Europe was FANTASTIC, and I apologize for putting this chapter up almost a week late! (You guys still love me, right?) I was on an American Music Abroad Burgundy tour as a soprano 1 and had the most amazing experience in the world! I spent the first few days of the trip rehearsing at Franklin & Marshall college in Lancaster, PA and then the rest of the trip consisted of tours in Switzerland, Austria, Germany, the Czech Republic, AND Slovakia! It was ana amazing experience! I wrote this chapter on the seven hour flight from JFK to Zurich so I hope you guys like it!
"Where are we? What the hell is going on?
The dust has only just begun to fall,
Crop circles in the carpet, sinking, feeling.
Spin me round again and rub my eyes.
This can't be happening.
When busy streets a mess with people
would stop to hold their heads heavy."
~"Hide and Seek" by Imogen Heap
It was blistering hot outside. June couldn't help but lower her arms in the middle of every other cheer to wipe the sweat from her eyes. It had to be at least 95 degrees outside and the new uniforms they had been given just hours before were more well-insulated than the ones from last year.
"Liz," she pleaded as the girl currently twirling in the air landed gracefully in the squad's arms, "Can we have a break? We're practically dying!"
Their coach, Lizzy, an alumni of T.C. Williams with frizzy red hair and freckles that dotted her entire body, shrugged and nodded, biting her pencil as she walked back to her bench. June sighed, lifting her ponytail from her neck to let the summer breeze cool her skin. Cheerleading captain tryouts had been going on for the past four and a half hours merely because Liz couldn't make up her mind about which one out of the five four-year-seniors would become captain for the upcoming season.
"Liz..." one of the girls, Kelly, said softly, her brown eyes wide.
Three or four black girls were marching towards the squad across the field with Mrs. Hudgens, the woman how had previously taught English at the black school. The woman was large with dark curly black hair and full lips that were made for lipstick commercials. Her stance was strong and sure and even white men feared her when she had a reason to argue back. As she came closer, Liz's face grew pale, bringing out the freckles that dotted her cheeks. The girls in the squad all stared with their mouths slightly open as the parade of girls crossed onto the track and stood opposite of them, arms crossed and eyes narrowed. They hadn't even spoken to one another but the tension surrounding all of them was incredibly high. June put her hands on her hips, coming to Liz's side as an amused smile broke across Mrs. Hudgen's face.
"Can we help you?" June asked, trying to sound fierce but her voice broke, causing her face to flush in embarrassment. One of the colored girls bit her lip to keep from smiling and June shot her a dirty look, causing the girl's expression to darken.
"Yes," Mrs. Hudgens said, her voice firm and biting. "These girls are here to try out for the cheerleading squad."
Liz frowned. "Auditions aren't until next week."
A smirk crossed Mrs. Hudgens's face, almost as if she was laughing at what had just been said. "No, honey, the cheerleading captain tryouts. These girls are the most qualified in our phys ed department. They all received the presidential fitness award."
Liz laughed, tossing her fiery red hair over her shoulder. "Where are their records? I highly doubt the school district has been keeping track."
Mrs. Hudgens frowned. "The district has integrated all the extracurricular sports, including the cheer squad... unless you don't consider that a sport."
That had done it. Liz's face had turned as red as her hair and she stuttered around to find the right words. The colored girls held back their laughter before she finally grumbled, "Fine."
June's jaw dropped as Mrs. Hudgens shoved a stack of papers into Liz's hands. The colored girls gathered together, laughing and looking over their shoulder at June and Kelly who stood side-by-side with their arms crossed. Mrs. Hudgens looked around, satisfied with the situation, before hiking up her long skirt and marching off the field. However, almost immediately as she left, the colored girls' smiles disappeared as they looked at the number of white girls outnumbering them. Suddenly, June didn't feel so sure they were laughing at them. Maybe that was the only way for them to hide just how afraid they really were.
Liz glanced around, unsure of what to do. She looked at the stack of papers in her hand before chewing on her bottom lip and sitting back down on her bench.
"Well girls, looks like we're going to have to start the audition process over now that there's more... competition." She had a hard time getting the last word out, and the girl who had previously laughed at June shot another scowl Liz's way. She scowled right back, before putting a hand to her forehead, as if not sure how she was supposed to handle all the tension surrounding them.
"Come back tomorrow morning, bright and early. I'll have a routine worked out for auditions."
As she began packing up her things, June curiously looked over her shoulder at the group of colored girls once more. They all looked well built, with toned legs and strong arms. A couple of them had already done backhand springs and a forwards flip down the end zone, something June had struggled with until last fall.
"June!" Kelly called, her long brown hair already out of its ponytail. "C'mon, I'll drive you home! It's too hot to walk anyway."
She nodded, grateful that she wouldn't have to endure the embarrassment of walking home with the other girls. The two of them walked to Kelly's car, trying to make small talk while they thought about the possibility of a colored girl becoming captain. But June shook these thoughts from her head. It would never happen, she'd known Liz since before she was a freshman.
As she threw her bag in the backseat of Kelly's car in the parking lot, she spotted something out of the corner of her eye. Two of the colored girls were coming their way, the one with the scowl in the lead. Kelly, who was already in the driver's seat, glanced at June with wide eyes before starting the car and motioning for her to get in.
"Hey," the girl said as June began to climb in. "Can we have a lift?"
June scoffed at the request and shut her door quickly, leaving the colored girl surprised with her reaction. She walked up to June's rolled down window, getting so close that she could see the sweat dotted across her forehead. She was wearing a shade of lipstick that was too bright for her and her jet black hair was coming out of her clips. Kelly was trying to hold back another laugh and June held hers back as well before putting on a serious face.
"Sorry," she said, flipping her blonde ponytail back over her shoulder. "Our stuff is in the backseat and frankly, we don't feel like moving it."
She couldn't help but release her laugh when she saw their expressions as they drove away.
