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Tina looked down at the next name on the list. Tori. A smiling girl with almond eyes in a yellow t-shirt with a Dawlphins transfer on it, much too big for her size, and braids that made her look exotic, made her entrance. She smiled a bit too hard, but she was kind of cute. She looked athletic and lithe but much too young for the part and was what? 13 years old max? They were in college but this one looked like she had been admitted because of her nerdiness and good grades. The squad consisted of more mature people and she was not looking for Kindergarten children who were emotionally not there yet. There was no way that girl would get into the squad with her overly giggling and immature behaviour. Tina knew she would need little bitchiness disguised as diplomacy and she little girl would postulate next year again.
“Before we begin, I would like to tell you that you already won because of the routine you’re going to perform.” The girl giggled again. “Unless you perform so miserably you fail and you’re no use for us.”
There. Little pout, lips turned down in a lopsided smile.
Hard not to smirk, but she had a lot of training.
“I begin with cartwheels.”
“No. No-no-no, I was thinking more of a backward handspring, forward handspring. Forward handspring, backward handspring, backward handspring, forward handspring. Cartwheel. Forward handspring, backward handspring...” Tina repeated the sequence as often as she pleased.
The girl performed. Admirably. And yet, she was boring.
There was no point in making this last.
“Okay-okay-okay-okay-stop it,” Tina said, after a while, bringing her clapped hands to her mouth. “Thank you for the show. You can leave now. Tell the next one to come in.”
The girl’s face started to crumble. Then she puked. Tina smiled curtly, eyes unwavering. “Thank. You.”
After the place was empty, Greg turned to her. “That was hard. Even for you. She was kinda performing well.”
Tina scoffed. “’Kinda’ is not what we are looking for.”
“Yeah, Greg, Tina’s right. How can we perform to our best if we don’t get to recruit the best of the best?” Marni smirked.
Tina turned her head slightly to her right. The fake blond girl wearing pearls and manicured fingers was busy operating a Polaroid camera. Of course she was in favour of what Tina said. She was always in Tina’s favour. It was alright as long as it served her own purposes, and for the time being, it was exactly what Tina needed: a puppy that didn’t question her deeds nor tried to shove her from her pedestal. One more year and she was ready with college, and then, Marni would take over.
The door opened and a girl with pearls like her and a yellow cropped top with a dark blue skirt came towards them. She tripped once over her feet on her way and introduced herself.
“Hi, my name’s Susan,” she started, moving her red coloured lips in a way Tina wanted to stand up and sweep the lipstick off her face, “and I want to be in your squad because I love cheering so much! My friends call me Cheery Mary, I don’t know why but-“
“Okay-Susan,” Tina spoke lightly, “just start.”
“Okay.” Susan planted her legs firmly on the ground. “Hey! Give me an S-S, give me a T-T, give me an L-oh shoe, let me try again.”
O.M.G.
Tina looked left then right. She let Susan repeat and fail three times until she clasped her hands. “AL-right. We’ve seen enough. Thanks for your time. Now get out and let the next one in.”
Greg just sighed. “Is it getting any better?”
Marni snorted, fanning her face with the last Polaroid photograph. “Let’s hope so, but I’m not so sure.”
The next candidate was a young man, 18 years old and quite nervous like in: he wasn’t able to stay two seconds on one spot. That was obviously the only thing he was able to do: break-dance and bounce around. He started dancing.
“Oh dear Cheer Goddess, hear my prayer...” Tina murmured under her breath, hands to a clasp in front of her forehead. “Let this torture end...”
But then he changed his moves and performed like a real dancer. Tina smiled appreciatively, Greg and Marni were equally positive.
“Okay man, and do you have a showdown?” Greg asked, openly supportive.
“Yeah, I have a showdown man, totally!” He tilted his head, grabbed his balls and pointed two fingers of his right hand as a gun to the jury. “HEY HEY HEY and run away!” And with that, he just left the place. Running as if somebody was pursuing him.
“Woops, another unsuitable candidate, again...” Tina’s eyebrows went up while she turned to Marni, who looked kind of flushed. “You alright?”
“Me? Yes, of course. I mean, have you seen how quick he was?”
Greg smirked. “Well, I checked his hips moves and they were hot. I’ll give you that.”
Tina frowned and smiled at the same time. “And that’s the problem: no obscenity, these are the rules. Come on. Who’s next?”
The door opened and a tall dark skinned, very athletic and obviously much disciplined girl entered the gymnasium. She oozed a ton of ambition and enough confidence for three, and her muscles could literally take it up to Greg’s.
“Alicia. Please. Just start.”
A white smile flashed on the young woman’s face and caught Tina’s attention. Wow. Her toned muscles glittered under the light of the gymnasium like bronzed chocolate. She was incredible. She had control of her movement, the right looks, a catchy smile, the want, and the need. All in the right proportions.
Tina smiled genuinely, checking in the box on her list.
The next candidate was a wiry guy with a sun yellow cropped top of the CSC Stingers. He had... some interesting moves but not a real asset for any cheer squad. She wrote down he could be performing well in the ballet club though.
They took a break and a gulp of water.
“Snickers bar?” Marni asked.
“No, thanks.” Tina answered deliberately slowly. She noticed how Marni started unpeeling her chocolate bar to leave it on the edge of the table, untouched.
The last candidate got through the door, like every single one until then. But this time, something was in the air that hadn’t transpired before. There was pure electricity and versatility in the room as if the climate had changed.
Tina’s eyes focused on the apparition walking under the pale lights of the spots. It was a young woman, 18 or 19 years old, with broad shoulders, and strong, juicy, fleshy muscles wrapping around her body. She wore nothing but a stretch yellow top with three dark blue stripes running over her chest and dark blue short with three yellow stripes running sideways. A classic combination of the sportswear department for low classes, first choice, no fretting there.
It took Tina every ounce of hard training and self-discipline not to lean forward and drool on the table though. The fingers of her right hand crisped around her pencil while she had to scratch her neck with her left hand.
“And the last one, Smith comma Whittier,” Marni announced.
“Okay, so I will-”
Tina couldn’t clear her voice. So she just got louder instead. “Wait.”
“What’s the problem?”
“That... thing...” Tina vaguely waved with her hand. “That disgusting glittery thing, in the middle of your midsection...”
“It’s a belly button piercing!” The girl explained, smiling proudly.
Outch. She was cute when she beamed with pride. “Take it out. Now,” Tina commanded, soft-spoken.
The girl looked taken aback.
Good.
She did as ordered.
Even better. So, she could follow.
She tried to take the ring out. She failed. Thereby she displayed so much muscle mass on her arms that Greg sank in his chair, trying to conceal the bulge in his shorts. Tina smiled inwardly, happy to be a woman.
It took Whittier some time to get the thing off. Out. Whatever, it went flying. Both parts.
“Sorry.”
Oh, how not to bite her bottom lip at this impossibly soft confession? Tina needed a cold shower by now. Even Greg tried to take a sip of his ice tea before placing the mug against his crotch. She couldn’t do it but she understood. That girl was – fire.
“Okay... can we begin?” Whittier tried, shyly.
“No, you ask: can I begin?” Tina mentioned, scratching her nose and concealing her blush. How come that girl was so hot and did not even know?
“I think so. Music please!”
She started with a cartwheel, then a forward handspring, a backward handspring, some handstands and a few forward handsprings and backward handspring. She went on with her routine with the confidence of someone who had years of practice.
She flipped a few times around, and steadied herself in the end. She was an accomplished gymnast, that was plain to see.
“Alright?” Whittier asked genuinely. Her necklace glimmered softly in the light. Was it a heart? How cute. And so cliché. But cute.
“Thank you.” Tina felt her heart pound faster in her chest and yet the words left her blood red glossed lips with the grace of butterfly wings.
Whittier turned slowly to her left, a bit like a robot, not sure what to think of the obvious silence and nonplussed about the whole show. Finally, she left the hall and Tina turned to her partners. Marni frowned which was a sure sign she sensed competition. So, the girl was good. Greg had turned red on his face, his right hand clutching the mug on his thigh. So, the girl was that good.
Tina could not conceal her smile anymore and wrote her verdict on her list as she absent-mindedly bit her bottom lip. One word sufficed. The best of all.
WOW
She had finally found her.