Short of Guts

Chapter 10

"Hey girls! What's up?" Holly smiled and greeted the other cheerleaders as she joined them for lunch at the lunch hall. "Hey Holls!" Andrea and Renee said in union.

"Ugh, there were only chicken burgers left." Holly sighed.

"Let's trade!you can have my tuna sandwich plus I loveeee chicken burgers! Why didn't I see them just now?" Andrea cried.

Although Andrea could eat she looked as thin as a stick. Holly laughed and pushed her tray towards Andrea, while she passed over her tuna sandwich.

"So how did you find Mrs.Smith's test?" Holly asked while munching her sandwich.

"Oh, it was alright," replied Renee

Holly and Andrea exchanged a wry look and both declared simultaneously

"It's an "A" then."

Embarassed and shy, Renee just looked down at her own tuna sandwich and ignored her two friends who liked to tease her sometimes. Renee Hastings was a straight As student and everybody knew that especially the teachers who doted on her to her mortification. It was only with Holly and Andrea's help that she came out of her shy nerdy shell but it was Sam who discovered her. She had such a major crush on Sam 2 terms back when she was still in horn-rimmed glasses and braces and of course, Holly found out about it and she and Andrea forced her into a makeover. She was no longer invisible to Sam after that.

"Why does this chicken burger stink?" wailed Andrea after her first bite. Before Holly could finish her half eaten sandwich, Andrea had snagged it away from her. Used to her antics, Holly just sighed, rolled her eyes and bit into her apple instead.

Unlike Renee, Andrea Bee was eccentric and given to unpredictable behavior that riled just anyone. She wasn't great at her studies but an A for art was a sure thing. Nobody especially Renee and Holly could fault her on her loyalty and fun. Any outing without Andrea is no fun and boring. The three of them have been friends since 7th grade where they learnt how to swim, bicycle and made costume jewelry together. They shared everything; from their first crushes to their co-curricular activities like being in the cheerleading team.

"Hey, you've got mayo on your nose" Renee lied to Andrea who promptly swiped her nose with her fingers that dripped with tuna making a mess.

"Hey!" Andrea threw a chip at Renee who was laughing at her foolery.

"Oh it's on! Like Donkey Kong!" Renee cried.

"Hey! Stop! I see Eugene there!" Holly said putting her hands between them. Andrea instantly sat down and smooth her denim skirt and her yellow T-shirt that said 'I like unicorns!'

"Common Andrea you fell for it AGAIN?" Holly said laughing at Andrea's flushed cheeks. This is what they usually did pulling each others legs and fooling around.

Suddenly they stopped laughing when they heard the radio.

"Good morning students of Cleveland high, this is Hits.fm! Today we have a special dedication to Miss Holly Schuster!"

All eyes in the cafeteria turned toward Holly whose mouth hung open in surprise. Andrea froze in the act of retaliation with her chips while Renee choked on her soda.

*Here is 'What Makes You Beautiful' song by One Direction! From Sucker to Holly with the message" I hope you like it".

You're insecure,

Don't know what for,

You're turning heads when you walk through the door,

Don't need make-up,