The Day After He Killed Himself

Chapter 15

  Angie, Scarlett, Ella, and I all stood on the half-court line in the gymnasium, along with at least thirty other girls. We were all wearing a white t-shirt and blue shorts. Everyone's hair had to be pulled back in a high ponytail and glued down, with a sparkly bow on top. I looked like a rip-off version on JoJo Siwa.

The girls at tryouts ranged from the weird outcasted who wanted to finally fit in, to borderline popular kids who just didn't make the cut last time. Though regardless of who they are, they all took it very seriously. My friends and I were just joking around and having fun.

We were only really trying out for the fun of it, but when the girls started stretching, Angie got her leg the highest. She did all her splits and got straight lines in her jumps. I knew she was a gymnast, but I never expected her to be so good.

I was so shocked by Angie already, and we were just warming up. Ava and Sofia walked over to the group of girls, and they all immediately stood up straight and made sure their hair was perfect.

"Hello, wanna-be cheerleaders." Ava Smiled at us with her perfect white teeth. "the condition of these tryouts are rather unusual, considering we had real tryouts in the summer. Of course, ever since Angelica quit, we are shirt one girl. Witch means one spot. That's it." Ava looked straight at me, and I already felt my stomach turn. There was no way I was going to be the one who makes it out if all these girls. "So, my cheer-lings, let's see what you got!" All the girls started screaming and kicking their legs, and I stood there like an idiot as I wondered what I had gotten myself into.

We started with jumps, Pikes, hurries, and toe touches. I never knew how hard it was to fling your legs in the air. Of course, Angie had perfect lines and didn't mind taking every opportunity to tell me.

"You know, if you swing your arms down and back up faster, it will be easier to get your legs up," Angie told me as she demonstrated how to do a toe touch properly. I wasn't sure if she was actually trying to help or just being obnoxious, so I just smiled and nodded.

Angie was good, no scratch that, the best. And I was the worst. I don't think there was a person less flexible and coordinated than I was. I looked like I was a bird trying to learn how to fly when it came to us being judged in our jumps.

I noticed a few girls were whispering when I went. I couldn't know for sure if it was about me or not, but with my regretted recent events, I could only assume.

How priceless must it be to watch me fail so miserably? River, the girl who no one knew, somehow ends up on popular kids' Instagrams with pictures of us at parties. Cute guys were showing me a bit of attention, and now me trying out for the cheer team. It was unthinkable that someone like me could crawl up to the top of the high school food chain. So, of course, there would be some annoying underclassmen laughing at my failer.

I heard some girl whisper about how I'm not the hot shit I thought I was. But I knew I wasn't anyone special; I was only trying out for shits and giggles, so I don't know what these girls' problems were. Did they think I was going to make it in the squad?

When it came time to do cross tumbling, I began to panic for my life. We didn't even have a good mat; it was just an old, resulting mat that was no more than an inch thick.

Regardless, people were doing round-off back handsprings, back tucks, and connections. A few people did just a cartwheel, but I couldn't even do that.

Ella did a cartwheel round-off, Scarlett did a front walker over cartwheel back step out, and the Angie did a round-off back handsprings back full! My jaw dropped along with everyone else's. If you don't know what a back full is, it's a back tuck with a 360 twist in the air. If that doesn't impress you, you should be one of these judges, because their faces were still as still as stone.