Chapter 12: Vulnerable

Ander couldn't remember much about the cliff jump.

All he recalled was how for one moment, he felt free as a bird, suspended against a blue sky canvas. And then the next thing he knew, he was surrounded by murky green lake water.

He was supposed to push to get to the surface. But which way was up?

It took a few seconds to notice the glinting sunlight piercing through Vicalvaro Lake's waters, but once the direction was clear, Ander went on full throttle.

Kicking his strong legs into motion, he broke through the water surface in almost no time.

The first intake of air felt both invigorating and painful. It was as if his lungs had forgotten how to process oxygen.

"COME ON, ANDER! MOVE! YOU CAN DO IT!"

Spurred by the sound of Christian's yelling voice, Ander sharpened his focus and began swimming furiously toward the shore.

As his arms continuously sliced the lake water, he could hear another male voice – presumably Eric's – that was cheering Matteo on.

"Go Matteo, go! Almost there!"

Was Matteo still ahead of him? It was difficult for Ander to see. All he had was Christian's figure as visual guidance for the end point to this challenge.

It felt like an eternity before Ander's fingertips brushed against solid land. He gasped in exhaustion as strong arms gripped his own arms and pulled him out of the water.

"Ander, you okay man?"

"God, he weighs a ton. Help me pull from this side, Polo."

"Oh no, he's bleeding. I'll go get some gauze pads and band-aids."

A flurry of different voices flew around Ander. A few moments later, he found himself lying on the ground with a fuzzy terry cloth towel wrapped around his shoulders.

"Ander?" Lu's face hovered over, her eyebrows knitted in deep concern. "How are you feeling, honey?"

Ander squinted his eyes. "Like roadkill. It feels like the drinking challenge at Club54 all over again, with all of you staring down at me this way."

Carla, who was standing next to Lu, had to stifle a giggle. "Come to think of it..." she mused.

"It's not funny," Lu remarked impatiently. "How many times does Ander need to put his life in danger for some stupid dare from big-time jerks that we don't even care about? And he didn't even win –"

"I didn't?" Ander tried to sit up but immediately regretted it, wincing as several body parts began to ache – particularly his ribs.

"Easy, buddy," Christian said, bending down and placing a hand gently on Ander's shoulder. "You probably bruised your ribs when you hit the water. You've got some cuts on your arms and one above your eyebrow too."

"So Matteo won?" Ander asked flatly.

Guzmán crouched down so he could look at Ander on the same eye level. "Yeah, he did. Tough luck. It was really close, according to Christian."

Ander shook his head and groaned. "So I'll have to become a cheerleader at the next San Patricio sports game?"

Before the challenge had begun that day, Eric had informed Ander and his friends about the new punishment for the loser. Ander wasn't crazy about the idea of short skirts, pom-poms and cheering on for a bunch of useless jocks that didn't even go to his school – but Guzmán and Polo had gotten pretty excited. And they were confident in Ander's athletic abilities. So they agreed to it.

"Guzmán and I will do the punishment with you, Ander," Polo declared. "We're in this together."

"Well count me out, boys," Christian said quickly. "My legs don't look good in a mini skirt."

"Traitor," Lu accused Christian, rolling her eyes.

Ander shook his head in utter disappointment at himself. "I had the lead but then I lost it. I'm a dumbass."

His mind replayed the scene where he burst out of the woods, on a runner's high, with Matteo panting behind him. He'd been on track to win, but then...

Something happened. But what, exactly?

Reina.

The instant Ander's eyes had landed on her face, he'd been seized by the strangest sensation. It was the kind of electricity that amped all of his senses and yet brought everything crashing down the next second.

Ander saw golden before the darkest black took over.

And that was when he lost focus, stumbled and almost fell.

"Yeah, what happened back there after the woods, Ander?" Polo questioned with curiosity.

Rubbing his face in frustration with one hand, Ander muttered, "I honestly can't explain it."

"Ander, why are you at school today? You should've taken a few more days off to recover," Guzmán chided as he saw Ander strolling slowly up the steps that led to Las Encinas's entrance.

Ander shrugged his shoulders. "I'm fine. The ribs are still sore but bearable. And I got bored of staring at my bedroom ceiling the entire day."

"Do you need to get the ribs checked by a doctor or something?" Guzmán asked, worried.

"Nah." Ander cracked a small grin. "And at least my injury is getting me out of tennis for the time being."

"I must say, I don't quite understand that." Guzmán studied Ander's face. "You're a talented tennis player. Why throw it away?"

"Simple. I don't want my dad to use it as a way to control me."

Judging by Guzmán's perplexed look, Ander knew that his best friend of over 10 years could never relate to what he felt in this particular aspect. Guzmán had a strong bond with his family, and thought the world of his father especially.

"Good morning, gentlemen," Christian greeted from behind Ander.

Ander and Guzmán turned to see Polo standing next to Christian.

Christian continued, "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but..."

"Then don't be," Guzmán told him curtly. "Nobody is interested in whatever you have to say."

"No, you two want to listen to this," Polo insisted, backing Christian up.

"All right, what is it?" Ander asked with a sigh, bracing for the worst.

"It's about the cheerleading punishment," Christian revealed. "Kate just told me that it'll take place two weeks from now at their home game against the Academia El Pilar football team. And they've kindly provided the cheer song mix too..."

Guzmán covered his face with both hands. "Please don't tell me there's Britney Spears in the mix."

"No, but there are Destiny's Child, Katy Perry and Demi Lovato..."

Polo and Ander groaned at the same time.

"By the way, Ander, I hope you're not still hooking up with Reina," Christian said.

Ander looked at Christian, careful to maintain a neutral expression. "No... Why?"

Christian looked back at Ander. "According to Kate, the cheerleading punishment was Reina's idea. In fact, she was the one who came up with the entire challenge – the sprint in the woods and the cliff jump. Her parents own a lake house nearby and she probably gave Matteo all the tips he needed to win."

"What the hell? Doesn't that count as cheating?" Guzmán exclaimed.

"It's definitely playing dirty," Polo said with a frown.

Ander shifted his gaze to a random point in the distance as he took the time to process Christian's words.

He shouldn't have been this shocked about Reina.

This was after all a girl who had made it clear about how competitive she was, and how loyal she was to her school. She cared only for her own interests and could never be trusted.

Guess I was a big old fool.

Only fools allowed themselves to be used.

To be toyed around.

To be manipulated.

To be vulnerable...

And to be hurt by someone who was incapable of feeling hurt themselves.