Testing The Waters

Chapter Fifty-One

"You sure you want to do this?" Claire's wary voice echoes in the girl's locker room as she hands me her duffel bag. Her blue eyes stare at me in uncertainty.

Swallowing my nausea, I nod. "I think I kind of have to."

Opening the duffel bag, I pull out one of the items I asked Claire to bring me.

"You didn't have a full-sized shirt?" I ask in irritation, holding up the teeny-tiny red and white material.

"It's all I had!" she says, putting a hand on the hip of her red and black cheerleading uniform. "Be grateful I had anything in plaid!" she growls, scrunching up her nose in distaste.

I release a sigh but remove my t-shirt and don the plaid shirt that ties in a feminine knot at my midriff, just above my denim jeans. I pull out the boots, groaning when I see she packed her flashy, blue rhinestone cowboy boots, instead of her normal brown ones.

I swear she hates me.

I put them on, standing back for her to see the full ensemble.

She puts a hand over her mouth, trying to hide the snort.

My shoulders sink. "Is it that bad?"

"No!" she says through a laugh.

I narrow my eyes at her.

"I'm serious! You actually look really, really good, it's just... not you at all." She bites her lip, holding back her smile.

"Yeah, well that's kind of the point."

Her eyes skim over my hair. "Maybe you should put your hair up. It's a little extra right now," she says, lifting her hands up to make a "full" motion.

I frown and smooth a stray hair away from my face. "He likes the beast. It's staying down."

She makes a face but doesn't argue with me.

I chew on my finger nervously. "You sure everything is all ready to go?"

She rolls her eyes. "Yes, for the hundredth time, Bobbie Fisher is handling it, and I've already instructed my squad to keep the football players on the field."

Ugh, Bobbie Fisher.

"He's fitting you in right before they announce the homecoming court." Her smile is almost sinister. "Ashley is going to be so pissed."

I'm not going to lie; it was gut-wrenching watching them announce the Homecoming court at the pep-rally this afternoon. Despite Alex's speech in the cafeteria broadcasting his blatant disapproval of being Homecoming King, him and Ashley were still voted in as King and Queen.

Pushing the thought away, I give her a wobbly smile. "Okay. Let's do this."

Her eyes widen slightly, like she didn't actually think I would go through with it. "You're really sure about this?" she asks again, eyes pleading with me to rethink this.

It's not like I'm about to mortify myself in front of an entire football field of people.

Oh, wait. I totally am.

I pull in a long breath, trying to summon my non-existent confidence as I expand my lungs to full volume. It doesn't work, but I'm not going to change my mind. I need to do this. For him.

Decision made, I give her a nod. "Yeah. I'm sure."

Her eyes soften. "Alright, let's get you out there."

We make our way towards the field, rounding the back of the home bleachers where Bobbie is waiting for us. I can hear the roar of the voluminous crowd that homecoming game usually brings. Our team is already ahead by four touchdowns, and their excitement is felt in every rumble of the metal fixture above us.