Better Than Milkshakes, Better Than Boys (girlxgirl)

[14]

"Hurry up, Alex! We're going to miss the beginning!" Gemma's voice calls out to me as we attempt to shoulder our way through the throng of bodies massing as they try and squeeze into the gym.

Tonight is the first game of the football season which means that today is pep rally day. Pep rallies at our school are loud, dramatic, over the top and are one of my favourite school events of the year. The cheerleaders put on a massive display, get the boys on the team to do a sketch, and make sure that there's lots of music and activities for us to join in with. Last year I got to shoot a t-shirt cannon that the school had rented and it was hands down one of the best days of my life. I felt so powerful. I loved it.

Our school likes to go all out when it comes to school spirit, so the pep rally for the beginning of the football season is a really big deal, and from what Faye has been hinting at, this year is going to be no exception. She's been keeping the plans for this year tightly under wraps, and I haven't been able to squeeze even the smallest drop of information out of any of the cheerleaders or the football boys. I figured whatever is going down is going to be funny, or contraversial at the very least. Perhaps the shock factor is what has so many people turning up and drumming up money for school in the form of buying drinks, snacks, or foam fingers we've decided to start selling this year.

Unfortunately, I had fallen asleep when I got home from school at lunch, with this Friday being a half day due to the pep rally and the first game of the football season, and had only woken up because Faye had rang me fifteen times asking me where the hell I had gotten to. Turns out Faye and everyone else taking part had never gone home, and she'd put a message in the group chat, one that I obviously hadn't seen because I'd passed out, reminding us to turn up an hour early to get the good seats so we didn't miss any of the rally. Faye has been in charge of it this year and has been really excited about it.

Yep, I'm a terrible friend.

Luck had been on my side in that my makeup from the day hadn't rubbed off whilst I was napping, so all I had to do was get changed into Clay's jersey, tie some ribbons in my hair and throw glitter on my face in the similar shape to that of the number 14, which is Clay's jersey number, and I was ready to rush out of the house and back to school before everyone heads downtown where our first game would be held at Archer Tech. Archer Tech is a school full of snobby rich kids who's equally rich parents pay for their private education to make them feel better than the commoners who go to public school.

Things with Clay have been good, despite the awkwardness that hovered over our every social interaction yesterday. So far the news has been kept within our group, so Clay doesn't have to deal with people constantly asking him about us and shifting his focus from playing the best game he can. Things have felt slightly easier, conversations slightly less forced, our smiles slightly more natural. Despite neither of us wanting to admit this initially, I think breaking up with each other has lifted a humongous weight of both of our chests, and we can finally breathe normally again.

Getting back to my nap, something I really deserved because I had to sit through history with Mr. Barker, and that man's voice could put the largest coffee addict to sleep. Because of my post 'horrifically dull history lesson' nap I'm now late, and because Gemma insisted she come get me from my car, she is now whining about how I've involuntarily made her late too and likes to keep reminding me every five seconds.

"You could've waited for me with everyone else." I huff out angrily as I squeeze between two members of the band waiting in the corridor outside the gym, nearly taking a trumpet to the eye as I duck quickly as the band member swings around with the instrument still in his mouth. "You could've saved me a seat."

"Then I'd have to sit and deal with the awkwardness between Raven and April." Gemma shoots a crooked smile over her shoulder as we start making our way up and towards the bleachers. Our principal is just about to start so luckily for my sanity, Gemma hasn't missed anything. "I'd rather be late."