"The newest member of the cheerleading team is..."
The gym is so quiet you could hear a mouse's peep. Everyone is on the edge of their seat, wanting to know who this lucky girl is.
Being a cheerleader at my school means fame, but being head cheerleader means being queen. The old captain was constantly bombarded with her wannabes and always had a girl by her to help her with all her needs. It was annoying, but you couldn't help but envy her life.
Wiping her hands on her cheerleading skirt, Ashley screams, "Caitlin Mays!"
Someone behind me pats me on the back‒–more like slaps–‒ and the crowd around me goes beserk. Everyone is either cheering or crying, with the exception of Ella who is steaming. I barely make my way down to Ashley to accept my role without tripping over my pure shock.
The whole cheerleading squad engulfs me in a huge team hug. They throw balloons and streamers around and the audience comes down to join this mini-celebration.
The newspaper team take pictures and want to interview me, but I can no longer speak. Nothing like this ever happens to me, it's was always Ella's job to be the successful one. She was always good with people and I was just her no good side kick.
"STOP!"
Every single head turns to the direction of the voice. Ella is standing on top of the bleachers with Ashley's microphone at hand and a smirk at face. Oh no.
I raise my eyebrow at her as a warning to not do what she is about to do, but she waves me off. Tapping her hand evilly against the grip of the microphone, she speaks distinctively into it, "Hello fellow students. My name is Ella Louise Anderson and I must tell all of you something. As much as I love my friend Caitlin Mays, the students who deserve respect comes first."
What the hell is she saying?
We aren't friends. She certainly doesn't love me, she barely thinks of me as a human being. She has something to tell the student body? This can't be good.
"Recently, I have heard Caitlin talking with her cousin, daughter of a Hollywood choreographer about this try out. Her cousin looks a whole heck lot like her; they could be faternal twins! Caitlin asked her cousin to do the try out for her. So tonight, instead of seeing the clumsy Caitlin Mays perform, you have seen her cousin Rebecca who has just put on a face of makeup to look like Caitlin. As soon as Rebecca finished the performance, she and Caitlin switched back so that the real Caitlin couls accept something she doesn't deserve," Ella's heels clonk as she walks down the bleacher to stand in front of me with a horrible glare gracing her face.
I can't count the number of glares sent in my direction with my fingers and my toes. The formerly happy crowd seems to have changed within seconds.
Rebecca? My cousin Rebecca. does look a whole heck lot like me, but she us not a good dancer. She is her state spelling bee champion and a proud softball player. Besides, she's too much of a goody goody like me to pull something like that.
A girl I recognize as Miranda spits out, "I thought that twitter hashtag was balony, but they were right about you, Caitlin. You are the biggest bitch this school has ever seen!"
Every time someone says something rude about me or to me I try to explain, but no one wants to hear it. They are so caught up in Ella's stupid story that they don't have time to listen to mines.
"Once a bitch, always a bitch," Ella raises both of her eyebrows as she walks towards me.
All this time, I've been trying not to crack, but it happens now faster than the speed of light. I run with my to the washroom as tears pour out of my eyes by the bucketful. I hear a faint voice yell my name just as the washroom door closes, but I don't care.
Damn you, Ella Anderson.
I swing open the door of the very last stall and slam it closed, not even bothering to lock it. Hitting my back hard against the wall, I slowly slide down to my knees and let all my hatred for Ella show.
Crying probably enough to refill the toilet ten times, I try to get up, but I instantaneously sink back to my knees again. The only time I choke up is when I hear the bathroom door being opened and someone stepping in.
"Caitlin?" the voice is soft, but urgent.
Miller. Why would Miller care enough to come? Souldn't he be supporting his girlfriend's story and have everybody hate me?
I hear the creaking of every single stall door until he reaches mines. I brace myself as the door swings open, nearly hitting my face. When Miller sees me , he looks more hurt than shocked and he definitely doesn't have the tough guy face he usually puts on. This one is more of an 'I care about you, but I don't want you getting the wrong idea. I'm sorry' kind of look.
"Your eyes are bloodshot and it looks like you are wearing a massive layer of pink eyeliner around them," he sits himself in front of me, his large feet contouring my smaller ones.
As soon as he tells me, my hand goes up to wipe my eyes, but Miller stops me by clasping onto my wrist. His smoky eyes stare into my blue ones so intensely that I think he may be hypnotizing me, "Don't. You look hot when you are ragged."
A whimper comes out of me without warning and I can see myself getting redder on the metal of the bathroom stall. No one has ever complimented me like that.
"Hey look," he takes my hand and tugs on my fingers, "There may be a gazillion people who don't believe your story, but you don't have to let them take you down. As long as you believe in yourself, no one can take you down."
This kind of advice is the only available in movies, but it inspired me anyways, even if it does make me sound like I'm a criminal going to court. To show my appreciation, I give him a weak smile.
He pulls me up and tugs me closer to him so that he can give me a hug. I feel protected somewhat when his football player arms are around me. The smell of his pine perfume fills my nose when I take a deep breath against his chest.
I cannot keep myself from blushing because of this cliché boy.
"Ella seemed so nice last week," he breathes hot air into my hair.
Even though I find myself having trouble talking for reasons I have never experienced, I let out a shaky reply, "Her ugly side is showing. That's all, I hope."
We walk out of the bathroom together, ignoring the weird glances people are giving us. It's not everyday that you see a boy come out of the the girls' washroom. I'm just hoping we make it to Miller's truck before I re-burst into tears.
"Here," he opens the door of the red vehicle and hands me a tissue as I get in. I want to cry again, but no tears come out.
"I am so done with Ella right now. I'm tempted to break up with her with a text, but I'm not that cruel," he shoves the car key into the truck like I want to shove a pen in Ella's perfect eyeballs.
Ah, the wonders of text message heartbreaks. It's a person's natural enemy.
I stare at the girl reflected by the glass or the window. She's looking blotchy and wrecked, but beneath all that, I can see fury. Her blue eyes show a fiery sensation and the way her lips are pursed in such a concentrated way is a dead giveaway.
"I just wish that there was some way we could get back at her for everything she's done to me," I say thoughtfully, still staring at my reflection.
I feel the car wobble and Miller tense up beside me, "What else did that bastard do to you?"
"Oh nothing besides, push me away whenever she wanted something, take my spotlight, and only be my friend because she knew that she would look better next to a dork like me," I can't help but feel better when I tell Miller this. Finally someone will understand me just a little better.
"I would've slapped that bitch," his eyes suddenly turn a whole shade lighter, reminding me of the first time I was in his truck, "And you can still do that... but in a wholly different way."
The weird glint in his eyes scares me, but I listen to what he has to say instead of bolting. His plan shocks me so much that I have to hold onto the front of the car to keep myself from falling over. It's brilliant, but also cruel and people know that I'm not cruel.
"Caitlin, don't you see? What Ella needs is something to not go the way she wants it. Look at what happened today when you won instead of her. This situation, she found a way to control, but imagine if there was a situation that was beyond her manipulation to control. I'm talking about us dating, Caitlin. Not for real, but just as something to snap Ella. What do you say?"
Brilliance is totally an understatement. If Miller and i were to 'date', Ella would try to break us up, but of course, without success because it's fake, but she won't know that. Eventually, she'll get so fed up, she'll crack and that's what I want to see happen. It's hard not to love the rebel side of me.
"I think this plan will be good for Ella and us," my voice is still soft because of my crying.
That's when I realize that this project will require Miller and I to work together, closely... literally. It may also require touching, hugging, laughing and kissing, all of which I struggle at. When I glance over at Miller, I know that he is thinking about the same thing. I barely like this guy as a friend, or do I?
Honestly, I don't know why this little detail is making me re-think this amazing plan that can change my life forever. Imagine if Ella was actually a sweet person like she fakely built her reputation as.
"If you're not comfortable with the dating thing, I can probably come up with something else," Miller asks nicely, but I know that he wants this really badly.
Nodding, I reply in a confident tone, "It's pretend right? It'll just be like acting, no big deal at all. I'm sure both of us can be professional about all of this. It's just pretend."
Yeah Caitlin, it's just pretend.
~~~
Awww, I can't help thinking that Cait is so sad about it being pretend, but she just doesn't know it yet and omg I feel so bad for her... she'll be like Peeta in The Hunger Games nooooo what have I done!:0
Okay, so life has been busy, I changed my username, I am mid-season in softball, and I am really caught up in the MDC, so writing has been hard lately. I hope some of you guys are still with this story:)
Question: What do you think the the results of Miller's ingenious would be?
Okay, make sure to vote and comment and even hit me a follow? Do whatever you want(except drugs and sex if you're too young) and remember that I love you and will never ever give up on this story!