Dead Men's Bells (gxg)

Chapter 3

Moving to Aunt Gwen's last summer had been the easiest move I'd had in a while. For a change, she'd actually invited me to move there, so I didn't even need to beg. She had a spare room since her son was at college, though I had grown used to the van and stayed in it anyway. I guess I was just too used to being disappointed and having to leave quickly.

It didn't hurt that I'd met Lila Williamson, a stunningly pretty brunette with warm brown eyes who lived down the street from my aunt, at their 4th of July block party. We spent almost every day together that summer, and she had also become my girlfriend before the start of the school year. Once school started, she helped me meet a lot of people at school, so I didn't feel like an outsider. It was almost too easy.

But it also got weird at school. Lila was a cheerleader, and now that she was back in school, all the cheerleaders came under the control of Helen Price. She was the head cheerleader and the school's queen bee. She also felt the need to control the lives of every one of her cheer squad members, and decided that I wasn't good enough for Lila.

It started with snide comments, then escalated to taunts and bullying. She never went after our sexuality, as Helen was openly bi and had dated both boys and girls equally. But my social status was fair game. The fact that I slept in the back of a van and worked at my aunt's coffee shop meant that I wasn't proper girlfriend material for one of her favorite cheer friends. When all of that failed to break us up, she went even further. It was at her Halloween party that she told Lila she was off the cheer squad if she didn't make out with Jeff, the school football team star running back.

I begged her not to, but she did it anyway. I know why she did it, and as much as I hated myself, I forgave her. I already liked her more than all of my previous girlfriends, and I knew she had no feelings for Jeff. I kept telling myself it was just some kissing, it meant nothing. It would never happen again, right?

When the winter break came around, Lila was invited to the holiday party that Helen was throwing. I pleaded with her not to go. The comments and pressure had only gotten worse since Halloween, and I knew that at the party Helen would push even harder.

But Lila was adamant. If she skipped the party, she'd be a social outcast and off the team. That was what mattered, and it was what gave Helen all the power. The holiday party was exactly what you'd expect from a bunch of high school kids and unlimited alcohol. We weren't there for even an hour before Helen struck.

"Come on Lila! Play 7 minutes in heaven with us!" she commanded.

"You know she's trying to get you baby, don't go!" I whispered to her.

"I have to! You know that!" Lila replied.

I just shook my head. "No, I don't know that. You're letting her do this to you. Is being a cheerleader worth this? What happens next year if you go to the same college? Does she own your soul there too?"

"Cristyn, you know I don't want to do this!" she cried to me.

"Then don't!" I argued back.

She just nodded. "I won't do anything too bad. I'll leave if she gets out of hand."

I just sighed, knowing this was going to be a disaster. Lila made her way over to the circle. "Perfect timing!" Helen yelled, passing the bottle over to Lila. "Have a spin!"

Lila swallowed, then took the bottle and spun it. It hadn't even made a full revolution when Helen grabbed it, pointing the bottle at Jeff, of course. "Oh, look at that! You get 30 minutes in heaven with Jeff!"