The Cheerleader's Guide to Roller Derby

Chapter Twenty Seven: Kind of Like the Hunger Games

I totally blew Mr. Phillip's Science quiz last hour. I couldn't wrap my brain around the difference between solutions and suspensions. The only solution I could think of was the one where I showed that asshat, R.J.. what's what. I'd have a prom date lined up within twenty-four hours; you could count on it. But first, I had another sort of date to worry about. In T minus 4.5 hours I was meeting Todd Emerson, and possibly three of the four derby teammates who hated me the most, at Pop's Skating Rink.

I spent so much time deliberating on who I might pick as a prom date that I barely had time to fix my hair and touch up my makeup before leaving for Wauseca. And yes, I was just meeting Todd, so maybe it didn't matter what I looked like. Still, a girl's got standards.

I pulled into the skating rink's lot with just a couple of minutes to spare before seven o'clock. Todd's SUV was already there. Absent though, was Abby's ancient Honda. Maybe I'd managed to convince them that I wasn't crushing on Todd after all.

Once inside, I was surprised to find Todd already out on the floor, and ... skating? He wasn't too bad. I laced up my own skates and caught up to him. "Hey," I said. "I thought you needed me to teach you how to do this?"

He took the turn at the end of the oval smoothly. I, on the other hand, had the bad luck of a little kid falling, splat, right in front of me as he tried to negotiate the curve. I had to think quickly -- could I stop in time, or should I just jump over him? I jumped. My landing wasn't the most graceful in the history of roller skating, but it did the job.

"No," Todd said, "I can skate. My dad is a sports fanatic and, in case you hadn't noticed, this is Minnesota."

"Huh?"

"Hockey. Every Minnesotan of the male gender is obligated to learn the game. It's a district requirement. Kind of like the Hunger Games, but on ice, and not as many people actually die."

I had to laugh. "Will there be cannons at midnight?"

"Either that or one of us will turn into a pumpkin. But really, the other day I wasn't asking you to teach me how to skate. I wanted you to teach me how to skate like that."

"Like what?"

"Like when you jumped over that kid like he was a speck of dust. I want to know about roller derby too. The rules, how the scoring works. I've done a little Googling but it's kind of complicated."

"Even for a genius like you?" I asked.

"Even for a genius like me."

We skated a while longer. I showed him how body position could help with both balance and speed. Conor skated up to us and, after introductions, he helped me demonstrate a few stops and blocks. We stopped for a break and while Conor tended to the hot dog machine. ("They're fresh tonight. You should take advantage of it!") Todd and I grabbed a Coke, cashed in our free popcorn tickets, and took a seat at one of the tables.

I'm not sure how the subject of our conversation switched from derby strategies to prom, but it did. Todd, apparently, wasn't a big fan. "Have you ever watched one of those nature shows on PBS?" he was saying. "Prom is like our species' mating display. It's positively primitive."

"So you're not going to the dance?" I asked.

"Oh no, I'm going. My mom has her heart set on seeing me in a tux and boutonniere and my dad has his heart set on seeing me as uncomfortable as possible."

"Have you asked someone already?"

The light in the snack bar was dim but I swear Todd Emerson blushed. Here was my chance. If I were the type to use cliches (I'm not) I'd say the opportunity had presented itself to kill two birds with one stone. Todd obviously needed my help to procure a date for prom, and I was pretty sure I knew someone who would leap at the chance.

Hadn't Ima once said she thought Todd was cute? Hadn't she gone on and on about how funny and smart and everything else the guy was? And seriously, if she wasn't crushing on the kid, why did she seem to care so much if I spent time with him?

Yes! Hooking the two of them up would get her off my back and they'd both owe me a favor. Plus, Ima could be the one to educate him on derby, cutting out the need for him to address me, publicly, in front of the cheerleaders and shutting down that particular line of gossip. It was a perfect plan.

I was reveling in the glow of future success when I realized Todd had spoken. "What?" I said, noticing that he was blushing again. Either that, or it was the nearby pinball machines giving off a rosy glow.

"There is someone I was thinking of asking."

"Oh."

Conor's voice cracked over the sound system then, announcing the pizza box relay. I needed time to work out the rest of the plan, just in case Ima Bruiseya was not already the girl of Todd Emerson's dreams. "Come on," I said. "Let's skate."

After winning the relay, we stayed out on the floor. The talk turned to other things, like RPG games, competition in general, college plans, life goals. I was surprised to find that we had so much in common. I was even more surprised to find that I was actually enjoying myself.

The lights dimmed and Conor's mom called for a couples skate over the sound system. It should have been awkward. I mean, come on, I was skating beside Todd Emerson. That old 'oil and water' thing; if cheerleaders and derby girls didn't mix, cheerleaders and geeks were an even more toxic combo. At least that's the way it was supposed to be.

But with the disco ball glittering and the opening notes of an old PaperKut song beginning, when Todd glanced down at me and held out his hand, I took it. Halfway through the song I held out my other hand to him. When he grasped it, I twirled to face him. It had been a long time since I had skated like that with my dad, and he had always been the one to skate backward. But still, when Todd smiled at me and the corners of his eyes crinkled, and his Mane and Tail product gave up for the day, so that his hair took on this wild life of its own ... it felt normal, natural ... and ... nice?

The song was coming to an end when he asked, "Are you ready for the big finish?"

"What?" I said back to him.

"Trust me."

Trust was something that didn't feel normal, or natural. Or nice. I felt myself tense. He squeezed my hands.

Oh, what the hell? I thought. Why not?

Todd shifted so that he was skating beside me again. As the very last note of the song rang out, he placed a hand against my back. He was still holding my other hand, which he lifted above my head. The hand on my back applied a gentle pressure ... and I was twirling in his arms. He caught me from behind and pulled me close to him just as the lights came on. 

And just as Conor stopped in front of us, with a hurt look on his face, and a message ... from Ima, Abby, Moni and Cara ... who were standing at the rail ... their faces a mix of anger and disappointment.

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