A Certain Romance || Ashton Irwin

Unwanted Guest(s)

The Monday's after a huge football win were equally as crazy as Friday's. The football team was still running on the high of winning, trying to exert that energy into practicing their asses off for the next game. The cheerleader's gushed and squealed about how hot Calum looked while he was playing. And a few leftover remnants of Friday's game were still hanging on the hallway walls or being thrown at you by the student's who were only sent here because their parents found out they worshiped the devil. (Michael was not one of those kids, I promise.)

"Coach said he's putting me on defense." Michael had been boasting throughout lunch and forward about his success at joining the football team this morning.

He and Luke got to the school at 5 in the morning (surprisingly), both energized and ready to hand Calum's ass to him.

While Michael was confident and happy with his results, Luke had kept his mouth shut, making me wonder if things didn't go according to Michael's plan.

"Good, because you sucked at offense." Luke shot a glare to someone who ran into him as we managed our ways through the halls with the given 6 minutes we had to get to our next class.

"What was that?" Michael cupped a hand behind his hear.

"I said coach made me first-string wide receiver." Luke blurted, slapping his hand over his uncontrollable mouth. His wide eyes expressed surprise and worry within himself.

"Excuse me?" Michael's laugh lacked any amusement and sincerity. He was shocked. Once his face went straight he looked as though he had seen a ghost. Michael sometimes had a difficult time accepting that people were going to be better at things compared to him. But he should've known his place on the team before even trying out because he had never ran a day in his life nor could manage the sight of someone else doing a sit up.

Luke occasionally when for brisk power walks around his neighborhood and sometimes went to the gym to make sure he looked somewhat decent to himself and others.

"You're excused?" Luke questionably retorted.

"How did you manage to knock Calum off his high horse so easily?" The warning bell rang, reminding us we had 2 minutes to get to class, but that didn't stop Michael from pausing and making Luke and I stop with him as well.

"Who knows!" Luke scratched the back of his neck as we all ignored the glares coming from a few teachers because we were not only making ourselves tardy, but everyone else behind us as well. "The point is that I'm starting in the game on Friday!"

"Congrats Luke," I patted his shoulder, leaning in for a one-armed hug. Being the supportive friend had kinda always been my thing. "Can't wait to see you trip and bust your chin open." Luke narrowed his eyes at me, not liking the comment I had made as he always felt that negative comments ended up coming true and that scared him.

"How did the cheer tryouts go?" Luke flicked my forehead for congratulating him, but wishing death upon him. "Did you learn anything?"

I was still upset that I agreed to tryout. Add 50 times to that negative feeling and you had how I felt about having to skip lunch for tryouts. At the same time Michael and Luke were stuffing their faces with their mom-made lunches and gossiping about whether Calum's dress shoes were Prada or not, I was in made-for-wedgie black booty shorts and a t-shirt with the school logo, cheering off any amount of dignity I had left. Cheering for a school I couldn't wait to get out of and didn't give two shits about wasn't thrilling to me.

I was anxious about the results to come in tomorrow, hoping I wouldn't snatch a place. I tried to half-ass the entirety of my tryout, dancing awkwardly enough to make the others trying out grimace and become uncomfortable. Though, somehow the team new there was some amount of hope within me so they made me learn a routine and my true cheer colors that I never knew I had, had come out.