A Mile Away

1 | Homecoming 返校

返校

It's homecoming today. One of the most stressful but most exciting days in the entire school year. It serves as a debut of both the cheerleading and dance teams, and of course the football team. In your case, today will be your first homecoming as dance team captain and choreographer.

Your freshman year was grueling, but you dedicated almost all of your time and energy into forming a proper dance team with high respect and credibility with the help of your good friend from senior year in high school, Emma Sano. Now, in your sophomore year, the grind absolutely did not stop. You have a team full of twenty girls including yourself and Emma to lead, and today will prove to be the hardest list of tasks you've ever checked through so far in your life.

"Mornin' baby." Your boyfriend Ken murmurs groggily, leaning over you to gently kiss your warm cheek. You're both snuggled up together in his dorm suite bed, as you had stayed the night in his room per his request.

You smile tiredly, turning over to face him.
"Morning."

The two of you have been together for quite some time now, a good two years and eight months. Though those years may seem significant or like a milestone, the relationship has always been stagnant. A boring, straight line. You're boyfriend is sweet, kind, mostly all of the above, yet he's just...never really been right for you. Why not break up? Well, your parents are the ones keeping you both from leaving each other. Your mom, a part of the administration of the university, and Ken's father the football coach, famous for cultivating champion players that later move on to the NFL in the states by senior year came together with the plan for you two to date.

Why not just do your own thing and date who you want? Your mom had made it clear that if you don't keep up the charade of the perfect college girl with great grades and a boyfriend with a great future, you'd be out of the school in a heartbeat, and out of dance for good. She says you need to be perfect in every way in order to gain success, especially as a dancer, and being already in a relationship will keep you from getting distracted by other guys during your four years.

Same goes with Ken and what his dad told him. In their pursuit of star students they went and "hooked you two up", completely ruining what could have been a good friendship and maybe even relationship had they not rushed it. But honestly, it's not the utter worst being with Ken, though you wish you had a say in the kind of guy you wanted for yourself. It's hard having to force out a genuine sounding 'I love you' every day, and especially, have sex with someone you don't even feel anything for. Nevertheless, two of you equally sucked it up and learned to 'love' each other.

"Big day today. You ready?" Ken grins, looking down at you with an excited smile.

"Nooooo." You groan, pulling the blankets over your head and snuggling up close to Ken's chest.

"Nah, don't say that! This is our big moment; been workin' hard for this." He shakes his head, tugging the sheets off of your head.

"I'm so nervous, and it's gonna be so hard trynna get the girls focused. You know all people think about is sex and the afterparties on homecoming." You frown.

"You're a leader, babe, they'll listen to you. It's just as important for them as it is for you. They'll tighten up when it's game time." Ken assures, stroking your bare shoulders comfortingly. You sigh, trying to bask in this moment of peace before the chaos inevitably ensues.

"Did you know I was approach by those school newspaper folks you always rant about yesterday? Allegedly, I'll be interviewed today since this is such a 'pivotal moment for the university, as the first ever dance team will be involved in the homecoming night experience'." You chuckle, doing a faux reporter voice.