Greyscale [✓]

Chapter 03

CHAPTER THREE

After school, a bunch of them trailed off to the local shopping centre, chattering about their day as they walked around.

"You know I was thinking," Ash started to say, taking a delicate sip of her Soy Latte. "It would be awesome to start cheerleading in our school! Just like the way they do it in movies, don't you think?"

All three of the boys ignored her, too busy looking at some Facebook photos from the party that Catherine was showing them on her phone. Hannah just scrunched her eyebrows up a little, confused with her best friends random thought. "What do you mean?

"It would be soo cool! The two of us would defo be the team captains and we'd make up sexy routines and everyone would love us!" Ashlyn exclaimed, a twinkle in her eye as she twirled a perfect pirouette in the middle of Starbucks.

Finally paying attention to what they were talking about, Mohammad pushed a hand through his thick curls. "Everyone already loves you innit though, so what would be the point?"

Cameron grinned as he leaned forward to take a gulp of Hannah's white chocolate Frappuccino. He snorted, somehow managing to do so attractively. "Plus Hannah's way too clumsy to be a cheerleader!"

Hannah slapped her cousins arm at his remark about her clumsiness but silently agreed with him; Ashlyn already was the practically the leader of the school, what more did she need? She blushed as Cameron started to go into a detailed description of the time she fell out of the apple tree in his back garden when they were eight but was cut off by Gabriel sighing. Wrapping an arm around her, he chided his girlfriend. "Honeybee, you got to try to be more graceful you know? A true woman."

She opened her mouth to retort – a quote about misogyny she read on a Social Justice blog on Tumblr – but was interrupted by Mohammad. If there was one thing about him that stood out, it was definitely his ability to calm people down and stop arguments from occurring. A gift, as Cam always joked.

"Hang on a minute, who would we cheer for? We don't have those dudes in tights like on TV so...?" Mohammad asked, his thick eyebrows raised a little in confusion.

Cameron nodded enthusiastically in agreement, shoving the rest of his sandwich in his mouth. "Mhm, this aint America Ash," he managed to say, through mouthfuls of Prawn Mayo.

Hannah stifled a laugh at Catherine's face; she was obviously disgusted with his complete lack of manners but somehow he still attracted every girl within a five mile radius. How was that even possible?

Ashlyn stomped her stiletto clad foot on the ground daintily, her arms crossed. She wanted nothing more than to be crowned School Queen in their school's Winter Ball, a title all the women in her family had gotten. And being as popular as possible was the key to that. Cheerleading would help her; it would ensure all eyes were on her whilst preforming, a feeling she revelled in.

Before Ashlyn could start listing reasons why a school cheerleading club was a brilliant idea like they knew she was going to, Mohammad faced Hannah. "Didn't you only come along cuz you was gonna buy a present for someone?" he asked, his nose scrunched up in confusion.

Hannah slapped her forehead dramatically, wincing when it hurt more than she expected. "Yes! I need to get my aunt a birthday present, cheers for the reminder!" she exclaimed, glaring at Cameron when he sniggered at her. She muttered a quick 'see you later' to everyone and dragged her cousin by the arm, pulling him towards the lifts.

"C'mon you loser," she grumbled. He was too heavy to pull along to Paperchase but he walked so slowly, she tried all the same. Hannah wasn't the sort of person to keep a diary or adore stationary, but there was something about Paperchase that made her heart flutter. Maybe it was the adorable ways to make memories – wedding albums, baby cards, personalised letters – or maybe it was the fact that the shop always reminded her of Aunt Sara.