Almost Friends

Chapter 26- Kyle

Chapter Twenty-Six

Kyle

We should be Actual Friends

Ms. Karin, our new cheer coach, claps her hands and smiles. "That's all for today. Thanks for going easy on me on my first day."

"You did a great job, Ms. Karin," Meagan pipes up from behind me. I turn to Mia and we both roll our eyes. I know Meagan's nice, but really?

"Thanks, Meagan." Ms. Karin chuckles.

While everyone disperses into the gym locker rooms, I hang back to walk with Mia.

I feel like we've hardly had a chance to really talk to each other these days. Part of it's my fault. I've been busy with Eric, dance, cheer, singing whenever I have a spare moment, and then there's the whole forcing-myself-to-eat-actual-food ordeal.

"I have to bring E to the mall but after that do you want to hang out?" I ask, glancing at Mia as I fall in stride beside her. "We haven't talked in forever."

She yanks off her ponytail holder and shakes out her hair. "Sorry, I can't. I have an appointment right after this."

"An appointment?" I repeat. "What's that mean, like a doctor's thing or—"

"Hey! Mia and Elizabeth! Wait up!"

At the sound of the unfamiliar voice, we both turn around.

I frown at the sight of a short, wild-haired girl who can't be anything more than a freshman. She wears huge glasses and an even huger backpack as she runs towards us. Her clothes consist of an oversized flannel shirt that must have been lifted from her father's wardrobe, and faded denim jeans that scream Wal-Mart. But even worse than the lumberjack wear is the excited glint in her eyes. She's definitely got that "I just escaped from a psych ward" look.

"What even is that?" I say.

"That's Andy Moretti," Mia mumbles with a tisk. "She's been stalking me on Twitter since summer."

"Hey, guys!" The little freshman beams.

She seems so ... excited that I don't quite know how to reply. She's like a mix of Meagan's crazy-sweetness and a shark or a wolf or some other kind of predatory animal.

Andy looks from me to Mia. "I have a proposition for you. I've already talked to Mia about it. But knowing Mia, she hasn't mentioned it to you, Kyle. Am I right or am I right?"

She's talking so fast that I've lost my bearings. I take a step back. "Uh, no, wait ... what?"

"I'm a filmmaker—" Andy pauses and, frowning, she points to the locker room. "Were you headed that way? Do we need to walk and talk? I don't want to hold you up."

Mia sighs. "Yeah, Andy, be quick."

The kid looks at me as she walks sideways. "I want to make a web series about the three most popular cheerleaders at South Louisiana High: you, Mia, and E. It'll be like the Real Housewives, except for people our age. You want this because whatever you do after High School, it's going to be big. You're not going to end up going to college for accounting or working at a bank or whatever, you're going to be famous. And to get there, you need a fan base. Do this web series with me, and I'll get you that fan base right now. Here's my card. Call me tomorrow and I'll give you the shooting dates."

I'm still working on digesting her little spiel when Andy thrusts her card my way.

"A web series?" I mumble. My interest piqued, I check out the little freshman's business card.