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chapter eight
REBELLIOUS GROUP
ACTIVITY
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THE TEAM BLAZERS DON'T suit anyone. As Lena looks around at her teammates and uncomfortably adjusts her own jacket, she wonders why the hell Mr. Harrington couldn't have switched them to navy blue this year. She's all for primary colors, but instead of being a bold yellow, it's more of a creamy, washed-out shade that isn't flattering even on the very stylish Cindy Moon.
The girl in question nervously fixes her pin-straight hair for the fiftieth time since they'd gathered in front of the school bus ten minutes ago. Lena has been trying to ignore it, but the repetitive action is making her hyperactive nerves go even more haywire.
"Cindy, please stop or you're gonna make me have a nervous breakdown," she says with a sigh. Her hands go to her temples to massage away an oncoming headache.
"Sorry," the girl squeaks guiltily. "I think I'm having a nervous breakdown."
"It's okay," Liz sympathizes, though her hands are fidgeting as well. She continually switches the strap of her overnight bag from palm to palm. "We got this."
"Yeah, because if any one of you clams up, I'll swoop in and save you," Flash boasts casually as he leans up against the side of the bus, its mustard-yellow color clashing terribly with his blazer. He examines his nails indifferently even as the entire team turns to glare at him.
"We're doomed," Charles sighs. When Flash hears and turns his head sharply toward the freshman, he ducks behind Sally to buffer any oncoming attacks.
Lena exhales a slow breath and shifts her weight uncomfortably. Her parents had forced her to wear something other than her usual graphic t-shirt under her blazer— rather, she's wearing a cream-colored knit sweater that creates a decent insulator in combination with the yellow jacket. Her legs are clad with black leggings for comfort on the bus ride, black Converse on her feet. The only attempt she's made with her hair is pinning a section out of her face.
"Hey, it's Peter!" Abe exclaims, making Lena's head snap up in confusion.
Her eyebrows crease upon seeing that Peter Parker is, in fact, running toward the bus at full-speed. He's not wearing his blazer — he'd had to turn it in to Mr. Harrington after quitting — and is instead dressed in a blue flannel and denim jeans. He's frazzled, eyes half-wild with urgency and apparent lack of sleep.
"Peter?" Liz questions, speaking for the entire team as she inclines her head in confusion.
"Yeah, I was hoping maybe I could rejoin the team," he speaks with his words running a mile a minute. He shifts his weight nervously as he glances at Liz, keeping his eyes firmly locked on her as if he's afraid to look at anyone else.
Lena glances at Ned, who doesn't seem the least bit surprised to see him there. She narrows her eyes in suspicion.
"No, no way," Flash protests, pushing himself off of the side of the bus and stalking toward Peter, who backs away slowly. "You can't just quit on us, stroll up, and be welcomed back by everyone."
"Hey, welcome back, Peter!" Mr. Harrington greets as he climbs out of the vehicle. Flash's eyes widen in outrage, something Lena would usually have snickered at if she wasn't filled with the notion that she'd been left out of something. "Flash, you're back to first alternate."
"What?" Flash blinks in surprise.
"He's taking your place!" Abe exclaims with an impish grin.
"Excuse me, can we go already?" Michelle questions. She's the only one not wearing her blazer, instead holding it draped over one arm. "I was hoping to get in some light protesting in front of one of the embassies before dinner, so..."
"Protesting is patriotic," Mr. Harrington agrees. "Let's get on the bus."
Annoyed, Flash slides out of his blazer and chucks it at Peter's chest.
The bus is cramped. Not so much because there's lack of room — there are several rows that are completely empty — but because Liz has them all sit in the front as they review some miscellaneous topics. Lena sits beside Cindy, trying her best to focus as her leg bounces up and down.
"Focus up, everyone," Liz announces from where she stands beside the driver's seat, notecards in hand. "Our next topic is the moons of Saturn. Which one is the largest and the first to be discovered?"
Lena slams her hand on her bell so hard that a spike of pain shoots up her palm. "Titan."
"Correct!" she praises with a grin. "Good to see you're feeling better, Lena."
It's true. Instead of going cross-eyed at the sight of large blocks of text, Lena has found it easier to read. The pounding headaches have subsided. Her ribs haven't ached as much when she walks, though she still sports some bruises on her stomach.
After a few more questions about Saturn's moons, Liz says, "Okay, we're about to start the miscellaneous round. Questions will be from various topics, ranging from all subjects and levels of difficulty. Question one: Which famous jazz singer released the hit 1958 song 'Fly Me to the Moon'?"
"Frank Sinatra!" Charles exclaims.
"Good. Next: Where did the American Civil War end?"
Flash rings his bell. "Fort Sumter."
Abe chimes his. "Flash is wrong!"
"That's where it began," Cindy corrects with a sigh. "It ended when the Confederates surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse."
Liz pounds them with question after question, making Lena's mind boggle with the constant switching of topics and trivia that keeps her on her toes. She tries not to get too frustrated when she gets a question or two wrong. After all, she can't psych herself out now.
"What is the current standard unit of—"
"Can I take this real quick?" Peter questions, holding up his buzzing phone. "I'll only be a sec."
Liz pulls her lips into a line to hide her disappointment. "Fine. Okay, moving on..."
Lena turns around in her seat and observes Ned, who sits two rows behind Abe, a bucket hat pulled over his head. He hasn't been participating in the review. Instead, he seems intently focused on something, and Peter hisses furiously on his phone. She squints her eyes and nibbles on her bottom lip. She'll have to interrogate them later— something isn't right.
Mr. Harrington has to forcibly stop Liz from working them too hard. Lena is secretly grateful; her mind feels like it's turning into butter. Even Cindy rubs her head out of stress.
Liz sits placidly in one of the first seats on the bus. She picks nervously at her nails, eyes trained on the buildings they pass but not seeming to fully absorb them. Lena sympathizes with her. She knows it's Liz's dream to win this competition, and it's something she's worked insanely hard on for months.
"Liz," Lena blurts. The older girl turns toward her sharply like she'd snapped her out of a daydream. "Thank you. You know, for helping us. You're a great leader."
Liz's lips form a genuine smile, a weight visibly lifted from her shoulders at the compliment. "Thanks, Lena."
They arrive at the hotel fifteen minutes later. It's the largest Lena has ever seen, with a towering height and a seemingly endless number of windows marking rooms. After she climbs off of the bus, she stands with her overnight bag in hand and cranes her neck up to look at the top of the massive building. She holds her hand up to shield her eyes from the bright sky.
"Everyone stick together!" Liz calls as she begins leading the team into the hotel.
Mr. Harrington immediately wanders off to join the lengthy check-in line. As the others walk through the lobby, searching for a place to sit down and wait for their room keys, Lena allows herself to look around. Decathlon banners have been hung from every available surface. She almost runs into a sign that displays the list of sponsors. Her veins thrum with excitement that she's here — really here — and nothing is going to stand in her way of winning. For Liz. For her entire team. For her parents. For her future.
"Are you kidding me?" Charles exclaims with a laugh. "This place is huge!"
Flash frowns, hands shoved in the pockets of his khaki pants. "Eh, I've seen bigger."
"There's a bird in here." Abe points to a tree, where a small robin chirps happily on one of the branches.
"Mr. Harrington!" Michelle calls as their frazzled moderator returns with a stack of room keys. "Can I go to that protest?"
"Bring a buddy with you," he says blankly, handing Lena and Cindy the key cards to their room. Michelle glances hopefully at Sally. Sally sighs.
Lena dumps her bag on the full-size bed that's farther from the window. She'd wordlessly claimed it— after two years of being roommates at every Decathlon competition, she and Cindy had worked out living arrangements long ago. She always takes the bed farther from the window because she's a light sleeper. Cindy, who can sleep through an earthquake, doesn't mind the sunlight.
The first thing Lena does is yank off the ridiculous blazer and throw it on the desk chair nearby. Their room is small but elegant, with cream-colored, plush bed sets and oak bed frames. They have a flat-screen television on the small entertainment center across from the beds. Beside it is a sleek desk with the room's landline and a notepad positioned on it. They have a sink outside of the bathroom, which has a small shower that will, hopefully, hold all of their bathroom products.
"I'm taking a nap," Cindy announces as she pulls back the covers on her bed. "Do you mind?"
"Not at all," Lena answers. "I have to go do something."
Lena pulls out her phone and enters the Decathlon Team group chat. Mr. Harrington had sent a list with everyone's room numbers in the event of an emergency, which proves to be useful for once as Lena quickly locates the one she's seeking and storms toward the elevators.
Peter answers the door and immediately stands in the way of it, jamming his foot behind it so she can't enter. "Hey, Lena."
She narrows her eyes and crosses her arms over her chest. "Don't 'Hey, Lena' me. What are you hiding?"
"Hiding?" Peter repeats incredulously, tilting his head back and glancing at whatever's inside. "I'm not hiding anything."
"Bullshit," she fires back. To prove her point, she stands on her toes to see over him, but he copies her actions so her vision is still blocked. She sinks back to her usual height and raises her eyebrows expectantly.
"Okay," Peter sighs, then lowers his voice. "I'm working on some improvements for the suit, but it's a surprise, so you can't see it until it's done. That's it."
"That's your secret," Lena says blankly.
"That's my secret," he confirms with a nod.
The older girl puffs out a breath and takes a step away from their door. "Okay, I believe you. But if I find out you're lying to me, Parker, I will not hesitate to raise you up fifty feet in the air and then drop you— without the suit."
She abruptly turns on her heel and walks away, hoping her threat is more than enough to intimidate him. It had been a bluff, of course. She'd never actually hurt him. But it is completely possible for her to do, and Peter knows that.
Lena just hopes she isn't wrong by placing her trust in him.
-♕-
The television's blue light sears into Lena and Cindy's brains as they boredly watch a Hallmark film. It's a lame tradition for them— something they do when they have nothing else to do and want to make fun of people's bad acting. A bag of Doritos rests on the side table between their beds. Lena finds herself reaching into it out of habit rather than hunger.
"Didn't they have two kids at the beginning of the movie?" Cindy questions through a mouthful of chips.
Lena ponders this. "Yeah. Their baby, like, disappeared. That's some parenting."
A knock sounds from the outside of their room. Cindy pushes herself out of bed and whisks open the door to reveal Liz and some of the other team members huddled around the door. Lena switches off the television.
"We're going swimming," Liz informs them in a whisper.
"Isn't the pool closed?" Cindy asks skeptically.
Abe grins. "Exactly."
"We're gonna go raid the minibar," Charles adds, pushing his blue glasses further up his nose. "So hurry up!"
Cindy responds by slamming the door in their faces. She runs to her bag and practically rips it open, nearly breaking the zipper before rummaging through it to find her swimsuit.
Lena sits, frozen, on her bed.
"Come on, Lena!" Cindy urges as she hurries toward the bathroom to change. Then, upon remembering why she isn't moving, stops with a concerned expression. "Oh, that's right. You don't have to swim, you know? You could just, like, put your feet in."
Lena's throat feels tight. She remembers the last time she was in water, how cold the lake had been the instant before she'd lost consciousness. Her heart pounds in her chest. The others don't know she can't swim, so she'd have to make up some dumb excuse.
But raiding the minibar sounds fun. So does sneaking around and doing rebellious activities. She loves her team and would hate to miss out on something like this. Besides, Cindy is right— she doesn't actually have to swim.
She climbs out of bed and locates her red one-piece from her bag. Her parents had convinced her to put it in there just in case, and she finds herself grateful that she'd eventually caved in.
Cindy hides her black-and-white gingham one-piece with one of the fluffy bathrobes the hotel had supplied. Lena simply throws a shirt on and slips on her sandals. Together, they meet their team in the hallway.
Lena observes the members who are present. Charles, Abe, Sally, Liz, and Flash are all waiting for them, some choosing to cover up their outfits and others not. Flash, for example, is spinning his shirt around like a lasso and showing off his swim trunks, which are very obviously swim trunks and not regular shorts. Charles is more subtle in a graphic tee and plaid shorts.
Liz shoulders her large pool bag and waves them toward the stairwell. "Let's go!"
Lena finds herself regretting her choice of footwear as soon as they start running. Her sandals slap against the tile, so she slips them off mid-run and chooses to carry them instead. Abe helps her hold her balance as she fumbles with the strappy shoes and hops on one foot.
The candy bars are ridiculously overpriced— who wants to pay eleven dollars for a Snickers? Lena and Sally keep watch as Cindy and Abe help Charles and Flash over the counter so they can shove the snacks into Liz's bag. They're mostly silent except for whispered instructions and a few stray giggles. But, inevitably, it starts to go downhill once Charles bangs his ankle and lets out a shout of pain.
They end up having to scramble away with only a few candy bars, but the thrill of it all is more than satisfactory. Lena's heart fills with elation as she sprints through the halls along with her friends. It makes her forget her nerves, which had previously been eating her up during the Hallmark film. Her blood pulses in her veins. She feels almost giddy with the rush.
They pass by Peter and Ned's room just as the former walks out of it. Peter wears a gray hoodie and his backpack is slung over one shoulder, stuffed with something big enough to make it bulky. If he's thinking about studying now...
Liz stops to chat with him and possibly convince him to come along. As she waves the rest of the team down the hall, Lena passes Peter while giving him an 'I'm watching you' gesture, then gives him a cheerful grin before scampering to the end of the corridor.
The pool has Lena wishing she wasn't so afraid of water. It's not very large, but still nice, with underwater lights illuminating it in an aquamarine glow. It's separated from the hot tub by a thin strip of smooth tile that Liz is perched on. Lena sits beside her with a smile on her face as Cindy and Flash engage in a splash war. Charles quickly shuts them both up by cannonballing into the pool, soaking them both and getting Liz and Lena drenched as well.
As the tidal wave consumes her, Lena's mouth drops into an 'O' and her body tenses. She wipes the water from her eyes and furiously shouts, "Charles!" while the boy cackles at Flash's shocked expression. Then, he quickly plunges underwater as the Guatemalan boy reaches out blindly, possibly to choke him.
"This is hilarious," Abe comments from where he lounges on one of the poolside recliners. He tosses a handful of Reese's Pieces into his mouth, laughing around them as Charles nearly swims into the wall. At that, he sets down his bag of sweets and jumps into the pool with another splash that seems impossible to come from such a small boy.
Lena reaches back to unstick her now wet hair from the back of her neck with a chuckle, glancing up at the skylight as she does so. Her eyes catch a glimpse of something red before it disappears from the window, but it's so quick that she starts to wonder if she'd imagined it.
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i love the decathlon team so much??? they're literally the cutest and i hope they're all in far from home or i'm gonna fight and include them anyway.
also, we have an angsty chapter coming up because, as you can tell, peter is still hiding things from lena, and then he'll have to face her wrath
i know that the last chapter was a filler, but it did include key plot points and lots of foreshadowing, plus i delved a bit more into graham's character. it would mean a lot if you even just voted because i spent a lot of time perfecting it and it has about 30+ less votes than chapter 6. your participation encourages me to update!
-kristyn