Chapter 2: Barely A Beginner


Even though she had heard the rumors about how tough Coach Sylvester was, Lindsay was excited for her cheering try-outs. Finally, she was able to prove to her family that she was a jock like them and that she belonged. Besides that, being a cheerio at McKinley High never hurt anyone's popularity. She had been training and asking her brothers to help her all summer just to get a spot on the team. But still, looking down the line of pretty girls she had to beat for that spot, she couldn't help but feel a little bit uneasy.

It's not all about looks; skills matter too.

She kept telling herself to calm her nerves. Marissa and Lindsay spent the whole last night talking on the phone, planning what they were going to perform but when Lindsay turned her head to look at her best friend, she seemed just as nervous. It was cruel of Coach Sylvester to make them watch while the other students were auditioning; it put pressure on both sides.

First off, head cheerio Quinn Fabray performed what seemed like a technically difficult routine with so much grace and ease that they all just stood and watched in awe.

"She's so gorgeous," Marissa whispered to Lindsay and she indeed was.

"Great, just another thing to bring down my confidence," Lindsay thought. In that moment she totally envied Emily who didn't have to tryout because she already got her spot on the team from training with the Coach over the summer.

However, her mood was lightened a bit when a nerdy looking redhead with glasses was about to try out and Sue Sylvester immediately yelled "No freaking way, Jacob!"

From that on it seemed like everyone who wasn't able to perform backflips, cartwheels and splits with perfect precision without missing a single beat, receive an instant No from Sue Sylvester.


Marissa and Lindsay were the last two to tryout. Before them, only four other girls and one boy made the cut and they all looked like they could have been professionals. As Marissa stepped up to perform, Coach Sylvester didn't turn on the music just yet. Instead, she intensely looked the young girl up and down, checking every feature of her appearance. Marissa bit her lip nervously and stared at the ground as she waited for what seemed like an eternity, for the coach to turn on the music. The moment she finally did do so, Marissa quickly performed her routine and to her surprise, she had to admit that it was going quite well.

"You're the first ginger that isn't ugly and looks like a circus freak," Sue Sylvester said with furrowed brows. "Congrats, you're in."

Marissa wasn't sure to feel insulted or excited so she just quickly thanked Coach Sylvester and walked back to her spot in the line.

The last one to tryout was Lindsay who by now felt like her mind was completely blank after seeing the routine over and over again. But to her relief it all came back as soon as she her the song playing. In her head she was acting out a role, pretending to be a character that was pretty and popular and talented, someone who had the potential to be head cheerio. It gave her the confidence she needed to perform in front of all the other students and of course, Sue Sylvester.

"The beginning was sloppy but at least you're less miserable than those lazy, washed down losers standing back there," said Sue. "Be at practice tomorrow at 4pm."

"Thank you, Coach Sylvester," Lindsay said before running back to hug Marissa. They couldn't believe that both of them made the team. However, they also couldn't help but notice a few envious and angry stares from the students that didn't make it. Once they returned to the locker room to get changed, it didn't get any better. They heard some girls whispering about how the two friends really weren't that good and how they didn't understand why Sue Sylvester chose them. Others were talking about how much prettier they were than them.


"I mean look at her, she's so pale she could pass as a ghost," one girl said and the others chuckled.

"And the other ones a ginger but with black eyebrows? What the hell?" another girl said as the laughter got louder.

Lindsay understood that Marissa and her weren't as good in cheerleading as the others who were able to make the cut but it still gave them no reason to say those things.

"Imagine them on the team, cheering next to Santana Lopez and Quinn Fa-" a girl said laughing but got interrupted by the sound of the door opening.

Then, the room went suddenly completely silent. Standing in the doorway was Quinn Fabray, dressed in the cheerios uniform with her blonde hair in a high ponytail.

"Congratulations to those who made the team. You're now a cheerio and as the head cheerleader you're under my protection," she announced, looking around the room as those who were laughing just a moment ago quickly stared at the ground. "I'm looking forward to seeing you at practice tomorrow," she said with a smile as she turned around and exited the room again.

Lindsay wasn't sure whether or not it was all an act but Quinn Fabray did genuinely seem like a nice person. At least she was different from all those other cheerleaders who only cared about their looks and bullied those who were at the bottom of the food chain. But then again, Lindsay wondered if she was really that different from them…


Her train of thought got interrupted when she heard Marissa squeal as she ran up to hug Emily in the hallway.

"We made it! We both made it on the team, can you believe it?" the redhead said happily.

"No way! All three of us are cheerios now," Emily said, jumping up and down and flipping her hair excitedly.

"This is going to be the best school year ever," Lindsay said as she joined her best friends in their hug. "At least for the three of us," she added when she saw Cameron struggling to put the stack of books in his hands into his locker.

Next to him stood Damian who desperately tried to help his friend balance the books. Lindsay remembered someone saying that Damian had moved to Lima over the summer break and she couldn't help but feel sorry for him. He probably didn't know any better than to befriend Cameron Mitchell, which then of course put him at the very bottom of the social pyramid.

Not only did Cameron look and dress like a complete nerd, he had two left feet that made him unable to even walk in a straight line and he was way taller and way skinnier than the average boys his age. And on top of that, Lindsay was absolutely confident that he was gay. During the time when she, Hannah and Cameron had been friends in middle school, she had noticed that he'd never talk or even show the slightest bit of interest in girls.


"Linds, stop staring at Cameron. It's not going to make his life any less miserable," Emily said giggling.

"You guys really need to stop being so mean to him. He got one week detention because of you Linds," Marissa said.

"I didn't ask him to help me," Lindsay sighed. "If he didn't want to get into trouble, he should have stayed silent instead of playing the hero."

"You need to stop getting other people into trouble," said an amused voice behind them. Lindsay turned around to see her best friend leaning against the lockers with a smirk on his face.

"Sam! I haven't seen you in forever!" Lindsay exclaimed as she happily hugged him. "I had to spend History alone with Cameron yesterday, do you know how awful that was?" she pouted as Samuel laughed at her over-dramatization.

"You know, you really should have been there yesterday," Emily chimed in. "Because of you little Miss Pearce here decided that it was a good idea to smoke in the classroom."

"Guys, I'm sorry! I already told you that I had this really big gig last night and it took me all day to practice for my performance," Samuel said. "But why am I not surprised that you manage to get into trouble on the first day of high school, Linds," he continued and all of them couldn't help but laugh.


A/N: Please rate, comment & review (: