Page 7 of The Handoff

The music started playing and for a brief second, Tanya wiped out the nerves that shot out as Fiona barked at her, and she closed her eyes before moving to the beat. I could tell by the way she moved with confidence, with a bright smile on her face as her ponytail swung toward her moves, that she was good. Tanya was what the team needed because she would be light, and she did a backflip as if she was born to do it. She had confidence written all over her face as she reached her arms up in the air. The music and the beat did what it did to everyone who heard it—they started clapping to it. Moving to the beat, it was contagious. Tanya swung her hips to the side, keeping her composure. Her height, which Fiona had teased her about, didn’t stop her from completing her routine. She had grace as she went across the gym, and she didn’t stumble as some cheerleaders tended to do as they focused more on the routine with concentration written all over their faces. She jumped, then kneeled, and each time, she never took her eyes off Fiona, making sure Fiona’s frown didn’t deter her from giving a brilliant performance.

The squad was good but having someone like Tanya on the team would help them a lot. The other squads had outshone them in the last couple of games. They lacked the spark, and their routines were tired and needed renovation. That was the real reason for the tryouts. That and the fact that a couple of girls had left. They couldn’t take Fiona being so demanding all the time. I knew the real reason why she was hard on them; it wasn’t because of their moves or anything, but her frustration with her parents’ lack of interest in her at all.

As Tanya lifted her arms once again in the air, she did a crab. I thought like everyone, her routine had come to a halt. She did a handstand with both arms, then one arm suspended, then both legs back on the floor to do a backflip. Her moves were graceful, and she did them with ease, as she gently did a full split, and put her hands on her hips, her head high, indicating the end of her routine. The smile she presented at the beginning of the routine was still on her face as everyone clapped. I went a bit overboard and stood on my feet and cheered for her. She was good, really good. Fiona gave me a look of disapproval, so I sat back down.

“Well, Tanya, that was interesting. We’ll let you know.”

Penelope was loud enough for us all to hear. “Good? She was excellent. There’s nothing to say—”

“Yes, there is. I’m captain, and I said we’ll let her know.”

Fiona was even more rattled today than normal. The situation with her parents couldn’t have her this upset. I would have thought she would be used to it by now. I knew the feeling too well.

“I don’t know. I don’t like how everyone’s turning against me,” Fiona whispered in my ear. I’d seen her uptight, but nothing like this. This was a whole new level.

“I’m here. I think I’m the last one,” a girl with twinkling blue eyes said, and it was then that it all fell into place. Why Fiona was so uptight and who had caused it.

She must be Lisa.

Lisa had full lips, blond hair, and a slight tan. She must have moved here from somewhere like Boston or something because she wasn’t glowing, not like Tanya.

She had her hand on her hips, and she wasn’t asking if she should start, but telling Fiona.

“Fine, go ahead!” Fiona waved at her as if she was dismissing her. I didn’t want to appear eager and could have pretended that I wasn’t interested, but the way Lisa took to the stage in her tight leggings and short crop top—which neatly hugged her body—had my attention. Even the damn janitor paid attention to her. We all did. She had the type of presence that just stuck, and the crazy part was that I’d seen her face before. Those eyes were unmistakable. But she was a freshman, so maybe I’d seen her around campus.

“Hit it!” She smiled, and it was such a dirty smile that I knew she was going to smash it.

As soon as the song started playing, I knew she was more than interesting, and I could see why David wanted her on the team.

Girl like me, by Shakira and The Black Eyed Peas started playing, and Lisa lifted her leg and her hand held on to it as she went up on her toes.

So fucking impressive.

She slowly put her leg down, spun around and did the same thing with the other leg.

Each time, smiling and capturing not only Fiona’s attention, but everyone else’s as she moved her head, making sure all eyes were on her.

Then, she claimed the gym floor as if it was her own as she started moving around it, moving to the beat, swinging her arms with such determination, and striding with confidence as she moved and swung her arms to the beat. No one clapped like they did with Tanya; no, Lisa was going to give us a different type of performance. One which we would clearly never forget as she picked up the momentum and did a somersault, not just one or two, but three. She paused for a second to get her breath back, but it didn’t take long for her to do a no arm flip, end up in a split, jerk her head from side-to-side, and she repeated the routine, not only one more time, but three more times.

Each time, with a little twist, a leg kick one time, then a backflip. It was as if she moved effortlessly as she did it, while winding her hips and hearing her own music. Before she even finished, Penelope stood and started clapping. Shit, we all did. Well, not all of us. Fiona stood firmly down, as if she was dying for the experience to finish. Lisa wasn’t good or just above average; she was fucking fantastic. Lisa was exactly what the team needed. As she finished her routine and bowed, she thanked everyone for applauding. She seemed to have not only the kindness, but the type of attitude that could get everyone working together—not at all the type that Fiona possessed, which usually resulted in everyone arguing and some members leaving.

“Not you, too!” Fiona scoffed as she threw the clipboard onto the table. It was at that moment I realized that I’d been so lost in Lisa’s performance, I’d forgotten not to be interested in her.

Shit, I was a quarterback, not an actor.

There was no way I could pull it off and pretend that her performance didn’t blow me away.

“Maybe it’s time that we looked for a new captain. What do you think, Dane?”

I nodded at Penelope’s question. Fiona’s parents treating her like shit didn’t give her the right to do the same to everyone else. I wasn’t that interested in the cheerleading team, but somehow, Lisa just made me interested.

She’d sparked my interest a lot.

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