Page 83 of Stealing for Keeps
“Because I still remember when she went to tryouts in seventh grade. She did one cheer and then said absolutely not and left me there alone.”
“You were in cheer heaven. You didn’t care if I stayed.”
“You’d be a great cheerleader. We could teach you all the cheers, and it’d be fun to do it together,” Andie says.
“I don’t like the idea of being tossed up into the air,” Itell her. Which is true. The other reason I only lasted half of a practice is because I could just hear my mother in my head. She thinks cheerleading is for people who can’t cut it as gymnasts or dancers. I don’t agree, obviously. Lacey has a special something about her that would be all wrong for dance or gymnastics, even though she’s great at both. And Andie loves cheering. It’s a natural fit for both of them.
“What about the hockey cheer team?” Andie asks and nods her head to where the small squad is standing just off the ice.
The sight of the girls in their skates makes a whirl of emotions stir inside me. It’s been months since I laced up my skates, but I can still remember that feeling, the first glide onto the ice. Nothing beats fresh ice. The smooth surface and the way the skates cut across it.
The cheerleaders skate to the center and do a cheer to get the crowd going. Their skill levels vary from good skaters to great. The latter incorporate some jumps and spins. At least two of them are good enough that I know they had to have taken years of figure skating lessons. I can hear my mom’s voice in my head, nitpicking their sloppy landings or the lack of height on their jumps.
“They do have great outfits. We need to work new ones into the budget for next year,” Lacey tells Andie.
Then they both look at me, and I realize I’ve gone silent as I think about skating and my mom. An ache has formed in my chest.
“I don’t think I have enough pep for cheering of any kind,” I say, which is true.
“Pep can be taught.” Lacey bumps her shoulder against mine and gives me a look like she knows where my mind just went.
When the Frost Lake hockey team comes back out onto the ice, Andie goes back to focusing on the game and cheering for Brandon.
Lacey scoots closer to me so I can hear her over our friend’s screams. “So have you found anything you liked during all this extracurricular fun with Austin?”
“The only thing I’ve realized I like is him.”
Lacey looks like she wants to burst with excitement. She clasps her hands together, and her shoulders inch up to her ears.
“It can’t happen,” I remind her.
Her shoulders fall, and she cocks her head to the side. “It’s been four months since you and Vaughn broke up.”
“I don’t want to cause problems for Austin.”
Her happy expression returns. “Vaughn can deal with it. I mean, look at him. He seems fine.”
I glance over to where the guys are coming back down the stairs to their seats. My ex is smiling, talking. By all appearances, he seems to have completely moved on. Maybe it’s me who needs to come to terms with it. It isn’t like I’ve been pining away for him, but there’s this part of me that knows Austin is a lot like Vaughn, and that scares me.
“Come on,” Lacey says. “You’re making too big a thing of this. Let me prove it to you.”
Before I can ask what she’s up to, Lacey stands and moves up a row to sit next to Rowan.
“Let me get in on those nachos,” she says to him.
“You’re lucky you’re cute,” he says in reply, looking a lot like he doesn’t want to share.
Vaughn takes a seat next to Lacey, then Austin sits on her other side. I can either move to the far side to sit by Rowan or sit beside Austin. Lacey’s eyes widen, and shetips her head slightly to indicate I should sit next to Austin. So I do.
One side of his mouth lifts in a crooked smile. I feel a zing from head to toe. I like him.Reallylike him.
He holds out a bag of Skittles toward me. “Want some?”
I hold my palm out, and he empties a large handful into it, then steals the red ones back.
“What are you doing?” I ask with a small laugh.
“They’re my favorite.” He winks and tosses the red candies into his mouth.
