Chapter 20: Victory Aftermath

As Ron returned to the sidelines after his victory, several of his teammates picked him up and carried him off of the mat. Kim wondered about this but since nobody else seemed worried about it she didn't make anything of it. She watched the rest of the matches with less interest. At the conclusion of the heavyweight match, Middleton had managed a twelve point team victory. The wrestlers from both teams came out on the mat and everyone shook hands with everyone on the opposing team. Then they all started to head in the general direction of their Locker Rooms, chattering with each other on the way. The Middleton 'B' wrestlers came out and started to put away the chairs, warm up mats, and the main mat.

Kim, Monique, and Felix headed down to the main floor. Felix had a special crawler attachment on his wheelchair that took the stairs almost as fast as someone walking, so the two girls were only slightly slowed by waiting for him. Felix zipped off immediately to deliver the camera to Coach Winters. Kim spotted Ron speaking to his parents, Oscar, and a man who must have been Oscar's father. Kim decided to give her friend a few minutes with his 'rents so she went to chat with Cindy, the head of the wrestling cheerleaders.

Technically Kim was the captain of all of the Middleton Cheerleaders, which included those who cheered at the wrestling matches. Kim, however, didn't pay very much attention to this squad. The large wresting mats took up so much space on the floor that the cheerleaders didn't have enough room to perform the acrobatics and towers that Kim associated with cheering. Instead this squad spent most of their time kneeling on large cushions next to the mat leading the crowd's cheers. Cindy had just finished chatting with one of the opposing team's cheerleaders when Kim caught up with her.

"Oh, hi Kim." Cindy greeted her, "come to check up on how we're doing?"

"Not really," Kim replied, "I know you have it covered." Cindy grinned. "You've cheered at wrestling matches since you were a freshman so you know good wrestlers. Just how good is Ron?"

"I've seen all of his matches so far. He's good, but he isn't very polished yet. He's got good strength, great reactions, and almost unbelievable speed. His biggest problem is that he doesn't have much experience. He hasn't gotten to the point where he just reacts with the proper move rather than thinking it through. He won this match easily but he has problems with opponents who have more experience and are quick enough to counter his speed."

"Would you say that he's an asset to the wrestling team?"

'THAT'S an understatement. He's good right now. Considering that he only started a couple of months ago, he's amazing. He's going to get better. Why?"

"I'm just trying to make myself feel better. He gave up being our mascot for this and I wanted to see it was a good call on his part. By the way, what was with him getting carried off of the mat?"

"Tradition. You get carried off when you get your first varsity pin. One of us will also decorate a safety pin for him to wear on his sweats. They get one for each pin they score."

"A pin for each pin, cute."

By now Ron had finished with his parents and he and Oscar were heading for the Home Locker Room. Kim headed to intercept them. She saw Felix, Monique, Tara, Hope, and Marcella just ahead of her, intent on the same thing. The six of them converged on the two wrestlers. Felix, Monique, and the cheerleaders all congratulated Ron on his victory. Oscar stood there for a few minutes, looking out of place. When he turned to go to the Locker Room Ron introduced him to the others.

"So," Kim said after the introductions were over, "I understand that we have YOU to thank for our mascot leaving us." Oscar looked very uncomfortable. He made a few attempts to say something but couldn't seem to find anything to say. Finally Monique came to his rescue.

"Kim, you're evil." She said, "country gentlemen take strangers at their word. Oscar, she's messing with your head."

Kim grinned. "Sorry Oscar I just couldn't resist. Seriously though, Ron tells me that you've really been working with him." Then she looked at Ron, hoping to put a major apology into a single glance. "We didn't really appreciate his hard work when he was our mascot. It's good to see that you guys seem to appreciate his hard work and are helping him succeed."

The rest of the squad agreed with Kim. Hope, Marcella and Tara all had sad expressions. Seeing this, Ron chimed in, "Ladies, we won the match! Why are the state's finest cheerleaders moping over a victory? I'll be sure to be watching you tomorrow."

THAT cheered up the squad. They were just leaving the two wrestlers when Sue appeared out of nowhere. "Good job," she said to Ron, then gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Are we still on for Algebra homework tonight?"

"Just give me five minutes to shower and I'm all yours!" He happily declared. "Felix, ladies, if you don't mind, I have some homework to take care of."

Hope, Marcella, and Tara all had stunned expressions. Yet the three, with Felix, Monique and Kim all nodded. Ron and Oscar hurried to the Locker Room. Sue found a seat on the nearby bleachers. Monique and Felix excused themselves and left.

And the rest of the cheerleaders subjected Kim to a severe grilling as soon as they got away from Sue.