Changing Strides

~Chapter 18~

  I sat at the desk, my mind whirling.  All the seats around me were filled with other kids my grade.  Coincidentally, all boys  and all cheaters.  Teachers suggest putting up a folder, but I wasn't going to be one of the lame kids to act snobbish.  In fact, nobody wanted that, though their reasons weren't to stop the cheating, a lot of the girls sat by the rebellious boys.  Could I tell prom worries were hanging in the air in February?  Yes, and boy were the girls stressed, everyone wanted the hottest person, no matter the personality.
  The teacher started to explain the basic rules of the midterm, but most everyone ignored him anyways, including me.  I glanced across the room and locked eyes with Sammy.  She amazed me as she mouthed rumors from across the class.  Nobody noticed either, even as she pointed out people, not bothering to hide it.  She finishes with an eye roll to McKenzie who was deemed the hottest girl according to all the boys.
  I look around at the classroom noticing that mostly of the boys had an eye on a girl.  Quite a few boys had  their eyes on McKenzie, others had their eyes on Amanda, and other various girls in the classroom.  It sounded odd to say that Amanda was someone who boys had their eyes on, but it was true.  She looked like a goddess, her wavy blonde hair with her bright blue eyes.  It was like boys got lost in the ocean of her eyes, her wavy hair pulling them in like tides to a beach.  She even had a gorgeous tan that anyone could be jealous of.
  I also noticed one boy had their eyes on Sammy.  They actually looked like they were going to fall off their chair as if they were reaching for Sammy.  I tried to stifle a laugh, biting my lip and staring down at the test in front of me.  That's when I realized the test was in front of me.  I looked around to see everyone but that boy and I doing our test.  Then I saw someone else, I turned to the boy who was peeking at me through the corner of his eye.  I looked at the clock above the wall.  I stared at it for a moment in shock noticing that ten minutes had already gone by.  I quickly started to scribble down answers to my test.
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  I walked out of the classroom with Jordyn, glad to be done with testing for the day.  I let out a sigh that I had been holding since I walked into school, my body relaxing.  I quickly grabbed my stuff and met Jordan again and we walked down to the bathrooms to change for volleyball.
  I walked into the gym, when a feeling of loneliness overwhelmed me.  Since tryouts, Amanda and Kristen became part of the "B Team" for varsity.  Also known as, "You're not good enough, but we need people, so go practice on the other team's off days".  Jordan joined me after I had put my stuff away.  "Hey!"
  "Hey Jordyn, how was testing for you?"
  "Well, I survived!"
  "Yeah, I just wish the others were here."
  "Yeah...where's Sammy? I didn't see her during the scrimmages for the tryouts."
  "Yeah...about that."
  "Can she play?"
  "Yeah, she's fine physically."
  "Then what was wrong?  Did she lose her love for the game?"
  "No, she still loves volleyball."
  "Then what is it?"
  "She did show up for tryouts the other day."
  "Oh, did she have to leave early?  That wouldn't make sense though because I would've seen her in one of the teams then."
  "You know Coach Ally?"
  "Yeah..."
  "Didmt she seem a bit heated during tryouts?"
  "Now that you mention it...yeah, kinda."
  "Well, she was ticked because of Sammy?"
  "What?  What did Sammy do?"
  "Ally saw Sammy and I whispering about Coach Blair, so she came over and started a conversation with us."
  "Oh...Sammy showed that side of her?"  I gave a mumbled agreement as we walked to the center of the court to start practice.