𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕊𝕥𝕚𝕝𝕖𝕥𝕥𝕠 𝕊𝕢𝕦𝕒𝕕

Cheerleading Tryouts

Dawn walked to the gym after school nervously, her hands clenched into fists. I can do this, she told herself. I can totally, totally, totally... Dawn stopped in front of the door and stopped thinking. What was she doing? What chance would she have in joining the cheer squad when she didn't have any background in sports? Immediately, she drew away and started walking back to the door, where the school bus was waiting.

The door swung open and there stood May, her cheeks bunched into a cute smile.

"Dawn! Wonderful to see you!" the brunette latched onto her friend's hand and pulled her in. It was bustling with people trying out for the cheer team, and on the bleachers were six girls and a bag, obviously where May had been sitting before.

In the center was a tall, beautiful blonde girl with honey hair cut to above her shoulders and bright blue, enthusiastic eyes. She wore the standard uniform of the cheer team, a two-piece black and white outfit. The top had long sleeves but exposed her shoulders. Her skirt was a bold mix of silver and white crossing over each other, creating an intricate weave that was incredibly pleasing and also incredibly hot, which Dawn was sure was made to be that way.

Another was also blonde, except her locks were platinum and long, braided in the front. Her glimmering eyes were the color of an enchanted forest, lush and soft green. One girl had long purple hair, tamed into curls pushed behind her ears. She had tanned skin and gorgeous eyes the color of cocoa, and her white sneakers looked significantly worn.

The girl on the right had long brown hair that was kept in a high ponytail, a slender body, and critical blue eyes. Another sitting next to her had similar features, except her hair was kept in space buns with locks of hair streaming down from them. She looked more inviting than the person Dawn assumed to be her sister. The last was a tanned, curvy girl with bright green hair and eyes to match. Her locks were kept in cute twintails, and she seemed perhaps the friendliest of them all. Serena, the cheer captain, Lillie, Iris, Hilda, Rosa, and Mallow, respectively. Dawn gulped.

"Hello! I'm assuming you're Dawn, the girl May's been going on about, right?" Serena asked excitedly. She nodded, eyes squeezed shut.

"We really want to see what you can do!" Rosa pitched in happily.

"Well... I don't really have an audition," Dawn admitted. Lillie's eyes widened, then relaxed again.

"That's fine! Just watch Chloe!" she nodded to another girl, with eyes similar to Mallow's and long purple-brown hair kept in a rustic braid. Chloe smiled at Dawn and started to backflip, then cartwheel, then tumble in the air. Dawn knew almost the moment the brunette started that she would be amazing, and it was confirmed when Serena started clapping.

"Spectacular! Welcome to the team!" she exclaimed. Dawn looked at May questioningly.

"Sere does things a different way. She accepts people on the day of the audition," she explained. On the other side of the room, Chloe smiled and ran out of the room, probably to tell her father, who worked at Crestview High. 

"Well, it's your turn, Dawn!" Mallow said, nodding to her. Hesitantly, Dawn touched the mat and did a couple of warm-ups to test the waters. When she felt she was ready, Dawn did an aerial, five backflips in a row, and attempted a tumble, which worked out pretty nicely. She landed on the floor without injuring herself, then collapsed from how surprisingly hard it had been. May and Lillie lunged off the bench and helped her up. For a long time, Serena's smile wasn't thin and impatient. It was wide and would have looked goofy on anyone else, but on the blonde...she looked perfect.

"That was amazing! And that was your first time?" Serena asked in surprise. "You know what, join us!" Dawn blinked.

"Excuse me?"

"Join us! You can be part of the cheer team because I think you have a lot of talent!" the captain enthused.

"I would love that," Dawn said shyly.

"Great!" Rosa and Hilda hugged her, but Hilda also whispered something in her ear.

"Notice something about us seven?" they crowded around together and smirked. Dawn's blood ran cold.

"You...you guys are the popular girls! The Stiletto Squad!"

"Precisely! And now that you've joined us, you're part of our squad too! Imagine it, boys wanting to be with you, girls wanting to be you! Wouldn't that be great! Haven't you always wanted to be noticed?" Serena pressed.

"Yes," Dawn answered cautiously, It was sixty percent true, but the other forty was her doubt about popularity.

"But, you have to do something about your style. May will take you shopping after the other girls finish tryouts at South Coast Plaza, okay?"

"Why do I have to change my clothes?" Dawn frowned.

"Sweetie, we aren't called the Stiletto Squad because we wear sneakers. You have to get a little bolder, a little more commanding, and be able to walk in high heels by tomorrow, or you're going to stick out like a sore thumb," Serena accentuated her last two words by narrowing her eyes in a way that said 'don't embarrass us'. Dawn nodded. It was the first day, and tomorrow would be the time when people started judging, just like her freshman year. She needed to be a new, improved Dawn in sophomore year, and this would help her gain new friends and popularity.

"Okay. When's your mom coming to pick us up?" Dawn directed her question towards May, who smirked triumphantly.

"3:30. We have to wait fifteen minutes. Come join us," she patted the seat next to her. As Dawn sat down, she felt a sudden sense of belonging. But she knew that this year wouldn't at all be like the last...

Did you like the second chapter? I know literally nothing about cheerleading, so don't blow up in the comments. I tried my best, and I'm pretty sure this is longer than the last update. Until next time!