Page 88 of The Masks We Wear

My heart knew way before my head. But now that they are on the same page, there’s no going back.

William stops at least four times to pick up a few numbers before we find our way to the front. Lily’s aunt Mina stands, waving us over. “Where in the hell have you guys been? They’re up.”

Will tenses beside me, wide green eyes stuck on Mina. He has no shame as his gaze trails down the length of her black sundress, then finding its way to her lips.

“Oof.” He huffs as I jab him in his side.

Mina ignores him altogether and sits, tugging on my shirt sleeve to follow.

Even though our circumstances weren’t ideal, it’s been nice getting to know her. She’s always been kind when she’s had to turn me down from seeing Lily.“She’s not ready. Just give her some time. She has to figure it out herself. She needs to know without a shadow of a doubt, or else it will be forced. She’ll come around.”

I lean forward, resting my elbows on my knees when the announcement is made.

“Three-time reigning Regional Champs, Emerald Falls High School.” The announcer booms and the entire stadium erupts. The bleachers shake, my ears pop, and our bodies vibrate with palpable excitement.

The Emerald Falls cheer squad exits from behind a hidden curtain, trialing in military-style. Each step is perfectly in tune, matching that of the person in front of them. The three in front carry black and gold pom-poms, one of which is Lily.

My heart stops, just as the noise around me fades. It’s only been a few days since I’ve seen her, but it feels like a lifetime. I clench my teeth, fighting the burn prickling at the back of my eyes.

Every nerve in my body is pulling me toward the sizable blue mat.

My leg shakes at my side until Mina places a tender hand on my knee. “It’s going to be fine. Just got to hold fast.”

I look to her, my nostrils flaring with a burn coiling in them. Her ruby lips curl into a soft smile before she pats my leg twice.

Before I have time to think, the music starts.

The girls break off, moving in unison before bunching up in groups and lifting another, tossing her in the air incredibly high. The flying girls twist, some flip, but they all land to their feet with unbelievable grace.

After that, stunts are done, one after the other, in unison that reminds me of those synchronized swimming competitions. Everything is fluid, as if their muscles have the memory of every move they’ve ever practiced, and their bodies are on autopilot.

It’s incredible to watch. And Lily is a fucking masterpiece. She commands the mat, and though her eyes are facing the front, I catch the small orders and compliments she gives each of the girls when they move and rotate.She’sincredible.

My gut twist. This is the first time I’ve ever seen her in her element. And now, I regret all the missed time I could have seen this. Seen how absolutely made for this, she is.

No more wasted time. Ever again.

Lily sticks the final landing of an outlandishly high jump, and the crowd erupts. Even William stands to applaud.

After everything calms, groups of other teams file out onto the floor, all clustering up. Some sit in tight circles, others are in loose staggered sitting groups.

“This is for the winners,” Mina whispers in my ear.

“This soon?”

She nods, raising her eyebrows and bunching up her shoulders. “I’m so nervous.”

I’m not. Even though I didn’t get to watch any of the other teams, there’s no fucking way EFH didn’t win. They fucking killed it. My eyes find Lily standing on the outside of their circle. Their hands are interlocked, and she’s speaking to all of them with their heads inclined toward her. I make out the wordsproudandphenomenal, and I couldn’t agree with her more.

The announcer’s voice echoes through the stadium with his announcements. “First, we would like to give a round of applause for all the performances here today—amazing job, ladies and gentlemen. We would also like to thank our sponsors for making this event possible and continuing to support the cheerleading community. At this time we would like to announce or third place winners... Astigo Valley High. Nice job, ladies.”

The team with sea-foam green stands, waving at the crowd before moving to the front of the mat to accept a pretty impressive trophy.

“Our second-place winner… Coentuga High. Great job, ladies.”

This time a red team stands, bouncing to the front to accept an even larger trophy.

My eyes leave the red team and snap back to Lily, whose eyes are on me. Her face is impassive, and while that scares the shit out of me, I don’t care. I mouth it anyway because I want her to hear it from me first. “You won. Congratulations. You killed it.”

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