Half a Heart

24. So Much For Being Just Friends

When we got there, we looked at the building in awe. This was really happening. Our school hadn't been to state in over ten years. Now here we were. I was so ready.

We went in and the boys went to the locker room to put all their stuff away. Us girls and what male cheerleaders we had, went and got set up on the sidelines. I was thankful for our four guys because they were the ones who made the stunts happen. They were strong enough to handle the flyers themselves. It just worked.

At three, we were ready to start. We had played this team five times this season. We had won the majority of the five but that didn't matter now. This was the game that counted.

The teams lined up at half court for the national anthem. We all held our hands to our hearts and faced the flag. I loved this part of every game. The teams and fans all come together to remember what got us to where we are. The anthem always made me tear up a little bit. After it was finished, the teams went to their benches and got ready for the names to be called.

The guys who were not starting made a tunnel and for our team, Peter stood at the end. He had handshakes he did with each of the starters.

"Bryson Harris, 5'11 senior guard!" was the first name over the loudspeakers.

Valley fans cheered loudly as did we.

The next person was from Greers. I didn't know them but he was the tallest player on the court at 6'5.

"Blaine Mayberry, 6'2 senior!"

"Gage Luna, 5'10 senior!"

"Auston Harris, 5'10 senior!"

"Finally, Mason Harris, 5'11 senior!"

Valley and Greers switched as they called out starters. The fans were very loud on both sides. It was time for the tip-off. Blaine tipped it off to Gage and the game began. It got passed around several times before Mason decided to shoot. It was missed and Greers got the rebound. Greers gets a score and Blaine passes it to Gage. Gage sprints down the court ready to get some points on the board.

Gage shoots and misses. It's picked up by Auston, who passes it to Blaine. Blaine is fouled and gets to make free throws. He makes one giving us our first point of the game. Greers can get past our defense and shoot and make another basket. By the end of the first quarter, Greers was in the lead a 14-8. Valley had four turnovers and Greers had six. Peter came in the last two minutes of the quarter and Mason went out. Blaine had one point, Bryson had five, and Mason had two. In the second quarter, Valley scored twenty more points while Greers scored eleven more. That brought Valley up to the lead with 28-25. Mason was the lead scorer with ten points, followed by Bryson with eight, Gage with six, and Auston with three. That was the first half and it was time for us to perform.

Greers' cheerleaders went first because they were on the visiting side. Their routine was good, but I was confident that ours was better. They performed a song by Carrie Underwood- The Champion. I had chosen to do Jack Harlow- What's Poppin (Remix). It was great. When Greers' cheerleaders left the floor and went back to their side, we made our way onto the dance floor. Valley fans cheers as we ran and waved, some even did kicks. Everyone had a partner. I had the new guy. He had come during January and he was a quick learner. I liked him because he had a good personality.

As our song started, I started to flow. Zach was like that too. He had been a cheerleader at his old school as well. The routine went smoothly and even Greers' fans clapped for us. It went well. At the end of the routine, Zack and the other guys lifted up their partners while the other girls were the support. I flew up and flipped while holding my toes. We stuck it and the girls who were good flippers flipped. The crowd cheered loudly and we made our way back to the sidelines. There were still two minutes until halftime was over but the boys should make their way out in about a minute or so. We drank water and gave each other silent high fives.

The boys made their way back out and began to shoot around for the remaining minute. They were all sweaty and gross. At the end of the game, Valley won with a 62-47 lead. Mason had scored 18, Bryson had scored 16, Gage had scored 13, Blaine had scored 9, and Auston had 6. Peter didn't play but for three minutes the whole time. He was the last person to have possession and he held it for the last 8 seconds before throwing it down at the buzzer. The team dog piled and the cheers were deafening. When everyone stood up, Greers was given the runners-up trophy. They took a picture for a moment before announcing Valley the 1A State Champions of 2021. They got pictures of just the team and the team and the cheerleaders. As soon as they were finished, they announced the MVP of the year.

"Now for the player that put out the most work, showed the most sportsmanship, and was the overall most valuable player... Mason Harris!"

I screamed and he smiled so widely. I was so happy for him. He got his award and walked over to where I had been standing with Jae. He surprised me by grabbing me and bringing his lips to mine. I was in shock for a moment before I began kissing him back. He was a sweaty hot mess and it was one of the better kisses I've had. Woah, so much for being just friends.

He pulled away and winked at me before going back over to the team. I couldn't stop smiling. Out of the corner of my eye, Peter was glaring at him. Savannah was glaring at me. And you wanna know something, I didn't care. 

A/N: This game really did happen and I just rewatched the whole thing to get the stats accurate. This is only halfway edited because I'm hungry and haven't eaten in 24 hours so I'm going to go do that. Have a good day and expect a ***possible*** Made to Fly update!!!