Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 14

I was surprised Mouse had lasted so long on the cheerleading squad. It was beyond me how and why she didn't quit. Heck, it was beyond me how and why she joined in the first place! I just couldn't get it through my head why she would do something like that. Mouse hated every one of the cheerleaders. Oh, wait, that's not true. Mouse hates every one of the cheerleaders.....


Except for Lydia.

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 13

I went to Harold's house on Friday. I knocked on the door and Harold answered it. "Oh, uh hi, Angela." He said, gesturing for me to come in.
I smiled, "Hey." I said, stepping through the door.
We stood in silence for a minute and Harold said, "So, um... D-do you want to go to my room?..... or something..."
Harold's Mom called something in Japanese from the kitchen and Harold started blushing furiously. "Mom!" He said, saying something back in Japanese.
"Uhhh...." I said stupidly, "Sure?"
Harold nodded, "Um, o-okay." He directed me to a small room at the end of the hall. It was kind of weird, you know, tanish walls, shelves full of crap that Harold didn't care enough about to put away or sort. It was pretty much the exact opposite of Chris's room; It was messy, cluttered, dully colored.... Did I mention you can't see the floor?
Harold turned to me, a grin breaking across his face, "So, wanna see my collection of torn-in-half-by-something-or-other butterflies?"
I blinked, confused. "Uh... Sure..." I ventured. Wow, this kid was weirder then I thought. 
Harold pulled a huge glass case out from under his bed. It was full of butterflies; Halves... Halves of butterflies. He picked them up one-by-one, explaining exactly what it was that tore each butterfly in half. I nodded with mock approval, unable to believe that there was someone on this planet that had a collection of torn in half butterflies. Maybe Chris was right, maybe Harold did have a mental disorder.
Harold beamed at me stupidly, "So, what do you think?"
I nodded, smiling tightly. Didn't Harold know anything about girls? Well, he probably didn't, but isn't it kind of common sense that sophomore girls often don't take interest in a dead bug collection?
Harold showed me a variety of other weird things and I pretended to think they were interesting. After I while, I went home. 
When I arrived home, Chris was waiting on the couch. "Hi, Angie! How'd it go?"
"I thought you went to that butterfly thing with Geoffry." I remarked.
Chris nodded, "Yeah, I did. It was pretty awesome. I just got home a half hour ago."
He sat me down on the couch and said enthusiastically, "So, what happened? Was he romantic?"
I snorted, thinking of Harold and his butterfly collection, "Harold? Romantic? I think something is wrong with your head. Did your boyfriend brainwash you?"
Chris looked disappointed, "So, nothing interesting happened?"
"You didn't ask me if anything interesting happened, you asked if anything romantic happened?"
Chris smirked at me, "Is there that big of a difference?"
I rolled my eyes, "Well, this was interesting and if you'd call it romantic, then go ahead, but you're crazy."
Chris nodded excitedly, scooting closer to me to hear my answer.
I grinned, "He showed me his collection of ripped up butterflies."
Chris gaped in horror. Oh yeah, he had just come back from a butterfly exhibit, making it worse. I laughed at his expression and he stuttered, "B-butterflies? All ripped up and dead? But, but..."
I laughed and stood up, patting Chris's shoulder as I went down the hall to my room, "Night, Chris."
"Night..." He said, staring at the T.V. (which was turned off at the moment).




Chris sat in the living room, thinking about butterflies, for the next twenty-six minutes.

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 12

I needed something to worry about..... besides Mouse. Anything besides Mouse, please. What should I get myself into so I have to worry about it....? Mabel? Oh, please, God, no. I want something to distract me from Mouse that does not include possible injuries *crosses ten people off the list*
Hmm..... Geoffry? Yuck, no. He's Chris's problem. What about Harold? Harold! Yeah.... but, how would that be something to worry about? Uhg! This paranoia thing is harder than I thought!


Chris walked into the boys bathroom at school and he saw something that he found rather odd... A MONSTER!!!!...... No, not really. Harold was sitting in the corner, facing the wall and talking at normal volume. He was saying things like, "Oh, yeah. Well, I don't really know, she doesn't really like me." and "No, I don't fit in very well." and "Oh, that's my favorite color too!"
Chris raised an eyebrow at him. Was Harold talking to imaginary friends? Chris didn't even know, but he did know that Harold took absolutely no notice of him.
Chris considered making Harold snap out of it, but he just smiled and left the room, deciding to use the second floor bathroom.


Harold walked up to Leo, looking nervous. "H-hey, Leo?" 
When Leo turned around, Harold wiped the nervous look off his face and managed a grin. "Hey, you like movies?"
Leo grimaced, "Sorry, kid, I'm straight. Thanks for the offer though, I know I'm kind of irresistible." Harold's face flushed and he shook his head, stuttering, "N-no! That's not what I meant at all! I just have some extra tickets...."
Leo eyed him suspiciously and Harold held out the tickets. He said, "You can take a friend with you, or a girl, but I don't know if girls would really like it...."
Leo gasped when he saw the tickets, his face lighting up, "You got porno tickets? Dude! How'd you get these?"
Harold didn't know what to say, he had gotten them from the football team, "Oh, uh..." He said, trying to think of some cool-sounding excuse, "You know, I have my ways."
Leo was stupid enough to settle with that and grinned, "So, you're just giving them to me?"
Harold nodded quickly, "Uh-huh. No scam, no nothing, just take 'em."
Leo patted Harold's back, "Thanks, man! Trust me, you've done a good thing." He ran off, almost squealing with excitement. 
Once Leo was out of sight, Harold whispered to himself, "One down, four to go."


"Hey, Chris!" Harold said, trying to sound enthusiastic. Hesitating, Chris turned around, firing a untrusting look at Harold. He smiled tightly, "Hi, Harold. What is it that you want?"
Harold swallowed nervously, hoping his plan would work. "Um, hey... I just....."
Chris raised an eyebrow at him, pursing his lips, "Sorry, Harold."
Harold cocked his head, "What?"
Chris sighed, sounding annoyed, "No, Harold. You're not my type and if you're asking me out than I decline your offer."
Harold blushed and shook his head violently, "N-no, that's not what I...." Why did everyone think he was asking them out? Was he really that shaky?
Chris looked annoyed and said, "Good. Now, what do you want."
Harold sighed, starting to loose his patience, "Okay. I heard there's this awesome exhibit at the science museum on Central Avenue about.... butterflies. T-this friday."
Chris studied Harold, looking him up and down suspiciously as he always did. 
After a somewhat long, extremely awkward silence, Chris spoke, "Butterflies?"
Harold nodded cautiously and was surprised to see a smile slowly spread across Chris's face.
"Is that so?" Chris said, smiling at Harold, which was kind of alien to Harold. Harold nodded and Chris said, "Thank you, I'll be sure to check that out."
He reached out to pat Harold's shoulder, but recoiled, remembering that he wasn't a particular fan of Harold. Instead, Chris walked away, leaving Harold sighing with relief, Chris would've been the hardest. Now, the next victim.


Mouse was pretty easy. All Harold had to do was make a fake ad that said, Big sale at Gamestop, Friday the 20th and Mouse bought it. This was a little dull for her, but she was probably just pretending to believe him so he would leave her alone. Mouse too thought Harold was asking her out, which disturbed her greatly. She figured he was too pathetic to beat up for 'attempting to ask her out on a date'. Harold still didn't understand why everyone thought that.


Alice was easy too, she was already babysitting her cousin that day. Perfect. Jamie was going to the mall with her friend, Crystal. Again, perfect.
Harold grinned, his mission was almost complete.


"Hey, Angela?" Harold said nervously. 
I smiled at him, "Hi, Harold."
Harold laughed nervously and said, blushing a bit, "Hey, Angela.... um.... D-do you and your friends want to come over to my house this Friday?"
I sighed, smiling politely, "Oh, sorry, Harold. They're all busy on Friday." It just occurred to me what a weird coincidence it was that they were all busy, even Chris. He was taking Geoffry to this weird butterfly thing at a museum.
Harold looked up at me and said slowly, ".... Well, then... Maybe you could just come...."
I thought about this; I wasn't busy that day. I nodded, "Sure, I'm free on Friday."
Harold smiled a little, chuckling, "Really? You'll come? Seriously?"
I nodded, "Sure, I'll come."
Harold grinned, "I-I'll see you later then. Bye bye." With that, he ran off. Typical. Sometimes I couldn't remember who was the one with the stutter, Lydia or Harold.




Okay then, I was going to Harold's house on Friday.

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 11

Stephanie stood in the middle of the filed while all the other cheerleaders sat in the bleachers. "Okay, girls. We're learning a new routine today." She said, gesturing for them to come out onto the filed. 
Once they were all down, Stephanie turned on the radio and I Kissed A Girl by Katy Perry started playing.
Mouse groaned, "I hate this song!"
Stephanie smirked at her, "Ironic."
Mouse was a little bit taken aback by this, as well as surprised. "What do you mean...?" She started to say, but Stephanie had already started the new routine. It was a lot harder than usual and a lot..... dirtier. Mouse was not fond of this routine at all, this one bothered her more than the others. The team usually didn't do routines anywhere near sexual, but this one was. Mouse tried to follow along anyway, but she hated it more than usual. After all, she had to stay on the team, otherwise, when would she be able to see Lydia? She wasn't in any of Mouse's classes.
Mouse shook her head, trying to forget the thought.
When the routine was over, Mouse said loudly, "That routine was horrible!"
Stephanie scowled at her and, smiling, Kathy said, "I loved it! It was great!"
Stephanie looked over her cheerleaders and said, "Girls?"
All of them nodded and said they liked the new routine, except for Mouse.
Stephanie turned back to Mouse, smiling evilly, "I win."
She walked off the filed and Mouse whispered, "Over my dead body."

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 10

"And then I said, 'Girl, are you serious? That top with that skirt? Are you kidding?' and she slapped me! I mean, I was just pointing out her hideous fashion mistake and she took it the wrong way!" Chris was blabbing on and on to Alice and I about some poor girl that he had lectured about how bad her clothes were and she slapped him.
"And you know what I said? I said, 'Hey, you do not have the right to slap me! That's just uncivil and rude!' and guess what she said. She said that I was rude to her first!" Chris went on, totally unaware of Kathy, who was coming up behind him. "I'll tell you, I do not think I deserved that- KKAAGHHHH!!!"
Kathy jumped onto Chris's back, practically choking him to death. "Hi, Chris!!! How are you today?" She hollered in his ear.
"Kathy! Get off!" Chris choked out, Kathy let go of him and got off his back.
Chris straightened his hair and turned to Kathy, his hands on his hips. "Kathy, why do you think it's okay to do that? It's rude and would not be considered socially exceptable."
Kathy beamed at us and said innocently, "Well, that's what my sister, Lizzy, always does. If she sees a guy on the street or in the mall that she likes, she just goes up to him and kisses him. Just like this!" 
Kathy grabbed Chris's collar and tried to kiss him, but he pulled away. As if nothing had happened, Kathy continued her theory, "So, she would kiss him and he would like it and she would say," She leaned in toward Leo, putting her hand up like she was telling a secret, "Hey, do you want to come back to my place?"
Chris wrinkled his nose in disgust and Kathy went on, "He would say yes and they would go to our house, and then....." She let her voice trail off and she held her hand to her mouth, like she was surprised.
Chris gaped at her in horror and she went on, describing a few things that I won't explain here.... This was too much for Chris. He suddenly put his hand over his mouth and ran to a nearby garbage can, hurling into it. 
"Aw, crap!" I said, exasperated. I jogged over to help Chris. 
Leo held up his hands in confusion, "Why is Chris throwing up?" He said stupidly.
I said, "He's very sensitive. Sensitive stomach, sensitive childish mind..."
Leo sat down on a bench, gesturing for Kathy to sit next to him, "Go on, Angel. I'm listening."
Kathy sat down next to him, continuing her story, but a little quieter. 
"You know, I have five brothers and sisters." Kathy said, "Sometimes I think my little brother, Joey, is kind of nuts, but aren't we all?" How ironic. Kathy laughed and Leo tried to laugh with her.
Not sure what to do, Alice looked back and forth between us. Hmm... What to choose? My best friend barfing into a garbage can or a wacko chick telling us about her wacko chick sister? Oh, so hard to choose....
Alice ended up choosing the third option, walking away from both of us.




Well, that was interesting.

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 9

At lunch the next day, Mouse sat down at the table; There was a girl with her. The girl had dark hair and bright blue eyes. Mouse was helping her to the table (the girl was limping). Geez, why are so many people suddenly sitting with us? I mean, I'm not trying to be rude, it's just weird. Mabel stopped sitting with us after Geoffry and Chris got together. 
The magical Geoffry himself didn't really sit with us as much anymore, but he sometimes did. He didn't really come over much, but he and Chris were definitely still 'together'. They always passed love notes in class, you could tell they were love notes because Chris would blush whenever he read them. It was still rather annoying, actually, but I tried hard not to let it bother me....
They had friendly arguments occasionally, like the one about whether Lady Gaga was an alien or not. Geoffry said she was and Chris went all 'oh no you didn't' on him. But enough about them, yuck...
Mouse and the new girl sat down at the table. Alice, Leo, Chris, and I waited patiently for Mouse to introduce her.
"Oh, uh, yeah." Mouse said, "She didn't have anywhere to sit.... Um, this is Lydia Wood." Hmm... It was unlike Mouse to introduce someone using both their first and last name, or anything polite, for that matter.
Lydia smiled pleasantly and said, "H-hello." Oh, I knew who she was! I hadn't recognized her at first because she was the new girl, from Alabama. She came to our school just last week and she had a speech impediment. You just learn these things when you go to my nosy school.
Alice smiled back, "Hi, I'm Alice. It's nice to meet you. New friend, Mouse?"
"Yes." Mouse said quickly, "Um- I mean... acquaintance... not really, ummm...."
Lydia blinked, looking confused. Mouse was blushing furiously, which was something that was about as common as an solar eclipse. We were all so confused....
Chris cocked his head, "Um, you okay, Mouse?" He reached across the table and put his hand on her face, "You look flushed."
Mouse backed away, saying defensively, "I'm fine!"
We all stared at her with concern and she quickly started eating her lunch.


I saw Mouse talking to Lydia again a day later, they were both wearing orange cheerleading uniforms. So that was how Mouse met her, cheerleading. I still couldn't completely gather the fact that Mouse was a cheerleader, I laugh every time I think about it.
Mouse was almost stuttering as much as Lydia, which was just beyond weird to me. Mouse was never nervous and she had never cared about anyone else's feelings before..... What was going on? Now here's a question for you, folks. What do you do when you can't get something through that thick skull of yours?..... Da da da daaa! Time to talk to Chris the Therapist!
"What the heck is going on with Mouse, Chris?" I asked my brother/therapist, "She's been acting all weird lately and.... and....."
Chris cleared his throat and I stopped talking. He nodded and said, "I know, she has been acting weird. I think those walking perfume shops have gotten her brain-washed." He turned to me, "The cheerleaders."
I nodded, "Yeah, I got that."
Chris continued, adjusting his glasses (reading glasses), "You know what's wrong with young Mouse, don't you, Angela?"
I shook my head slowly and Chris put his hand on my shoulder, sighing lightly. He said, smiling, "I think our Mousey just might have a little crush."
I was surprised to hear this, "On Lydia?"
Chris nodded, "Maybe so. That's the only thing I can think of."
I thought about this, not knowing what to say. I hadn't even considered the thought, I had sometimes wondered if Mouse was asexual (not attracted to either boys or girls), but I had never thought......
"Are you sure?" I asked Chris.
He shook his head, "Of course not, it's just an educated guess. I could be completely wrong, I could be exactly right, I could be somewhere in between."
I sighed, my brain was racing. "I'll see you on the bus, Chris."
"What?" Chris said as I stood up, "Don't you want to stay and chat?"
"Thanks, but no thanks, Chris." I said. I had had enough of this and just wanted to think about something else. 




Was Mouse in love with Lydia? That would be weird.... And why pick Lydia out of all people?

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 8

Kathy ran up to Chris excitedly, screaming, "Hey, Chris!"
Chris jumped, putting his hand in his heart, "Kathy! You scared me! Oh, what do you want." He tried not to sound too rude.
Kathy looked at him excitedly, "Hey, Chris. Um, well, I was wondering...."
Chris sighed, but let her go on. Kathy giggled, blushing, "Do you want to go out with me this weekend?"
Chris sighed again, shaking his head. Kathy's smile faded and Chris put his hand on her shoulder. Lowering his voice, Chris said as politely as he could, "I'm sorry, Kathy, but I've already told you, nine times as of now, that I have a boyfriend. I don't want to go out with you, okay? I'm sorry, but I don't love you. You're just going to have to except that." He smiled kindly, patting her shoulder. 
Chris almost felt bad, seeing Kathy look so sad, but he tried to ignore it. In case Kathy got angry,  Chris turned and walked off, leaving her standing in the hallway.... alone.


"Chris, I think Kathy is staring at you." Leo said, leaning over to see past Chris and Alice. Chris and Alice turned around to look and quickly turned back.
"Oh my gosh, you're right." Alice said. Chris was looking around nervously, leaning down and close to the table.
We all glanced back at Kathy, except for Chris. She was sitting a few tables away and she was holding a metal fork, bending it with two fingers. There was a surprising look of hatred in her eyes. Everyone kind of assumed Kathy was just a psychopath, but maybe not. I know this sounds bad, but I wasn't really used to Kathy having any feelings besides OMG-I-love-you-Chris mode.
Now, Kathy was definitely not in that mode. She was burning holes in the back of Chris's head and tears filled her eyes. This wasn't a look I recognized, but Chris, however....
Chris turned around to look at her. Instead of just whipping back around in fear, he stared back at her. He had a kind of 'I'm not going to hurt you' look on his face, a sincere look. Kathy's face softened, but she hardened it back up and scowled more.
"That was what she looked like when I first met her." Chris said, almost a sad tone to his voice. I remembered when Chris had first met Kathy; She had been crying over some stupid guy and Chris came to comfort her. For a while they had been inseparable, then we realized what a wacko she was.
Kathy scowled at Chris, but he didn't flinch, he just watched her with that sincere look in his eyes. We all watched curiously too see what would happen next. Chris held up his hand and waved at Kathy, "Hi." He said softly.
Kathy's face softened again and she whimpered. 
Chris nodded, "It's okay, I don't bite." Dude, are you serious? It was like some cheesy film were the nature freak stood in the bushes, trying to lure out some wild animal.
Kathy stared at him, tears still filling her eyes. Kathy has an interesting approach to feelings. When she cries, she doesn't try to hide it like most teenagers I know. Kathy let the tears run down her cheeks, what an emotional girl. What had Chris done to her? She knew that he had a boyfriend, he's told her eight times.
Chris put his hand down and hesitantly gestured for Kathy to come sit with us. A small smile crossed her face and I felt kind of bad for hating her.
Kathy stood up and ran over to us, hugging Chris. "I'm sorry I was mad, Chrissypoo!"
Chris hugged her back and laughed nervously, "I-it's okay, Kathy." He glanced at Alice and I for help and we shrugged. It was his problem now.
"Oh, you're so great, Chris!" Kathy gushed, "I WANNA MARRY YOOUUU!!!!"
Chris blushed a little, wrinkling his nose, but smiled tightly when Kathy looked at him. 
With that settled, Kathy smiled and frolicked away. 




What a weird kid.

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 7

Mouse arrived at practice to see Lydia talking with Michelle. She was talking about something that happened at her old school, in Alabama, which didn't make any sense to Mouse. Michelle was nodding slowly, listening intensely to what Lydia was saying. Mouse, however, found it quite hard to listen to Lydia talk. 
"A-and me and my friends w-would always g-go to this one store in the m-mall. Oh, we had s-so much fun th-there." Lydia struggled to pronounce the words, stuttering heavily.
Stephanie went up to them and said, "Come on, girls. Practice time."
"Y-yes, Stephanie." Lydia said, standing up. Mouse almost felt sorry for her, she was like Stephanie's little slave.
Stephanie studied Lydia and said, "What's wrong with you?"
Lydia looked confused and said, "W-what do you mean?"
Stephanie raised her eyebrows at Lydia and Lydia said, "Oh, the s-stutter?"
Stephanie nodded, sighing. Mouse wanted to punch her.
"Oh," Lydia said quietly, "S-speech impediment."
"Yeah, I know. I'm not stupid." Stephanie said, turning to Mouse, "Oh, speak of the devil."
Mouse scowled at her, "Nice to see you too. Are we gonna go through the routine, or what? You don't seem too eager to get things done here."
Stephanie walked up to Mouse, putting her face close to Mouse's. That was really starting to bother Mouse, they seemed to do that a lot. 
Stephanie said, chuckling a little, "Oh, Mouse. You think you're so great, don't you?"
Mouse smirked, "Better than you, fo shiz." 
Stephanie glared at Mouse, who grinned back at her like she knew everything. 
Half doing it just to annoy Stephanie, Mouse snapped her fingers and said mockingly, "Lydie, Melon, come on, Routine Four."
Melonie scowled at Mouse, who stifled a laugh. Lydia wanted to laugh too, but she knew better. 
The cheerleaders all got into formation, except for Stephanie, right behind Mouse. She started doing the routine, the others following her perfectly. Stephanie stood by the bleachers, watching Mouse with a look of pure hatred as she took her job. Mouse noticed her and grinned, not slowing the routine down. 
Lydia stumbled and fell, Mouse stopped to help her, "Are you okay?"
Lydia blinked, a little confused, "Um, yeah. I'm f-fine. Th-thanks."
Mouse nodded, realizing that the other cheerleaders were staring at her. 
"Okay," She cleared her throat, "On with the show."
Stephanie joined the group, taking lead and eyeing Mouse throughout practice.
Once practice was finished, Mouse saw Lydia sit on the bleachers, examining her ankle. Mouse swallowed and slowly went up to her, "Hey, are you alright?"
Lydia looked up, her blue eyes shining, "Oh, yeah. D-don't worry about me. I'll be ok-kay." Mouse nodded, looking concerned, "Um...." She said, at loss for words, "Are you sure? That ankle doesn't look too good." It was true, Lydia's ankle was bent at a slightly unnatural angle. Lydia sighed, "Okay, maybe I c-could you use some h-help." 
Mouse helped her stand up and uncertainly put her arm around Lydia's waist, helping her walk. 
Stephanie, Melonie, and the other cheerleaders watched them walk off to the school. The cheerleaders cocked their heads to the side. 
"Why does Mouse keep helping her?" Gwen the cheerleader said, "I mean, Mouse isn't nice and Lydia isn't...... likable."
Melonie shook her head, "Who knows? I think she's just a freak."
Stephanie said, a small smile breaking across her lips, "Everyone just assumes that girl doesn't like boys or girls, but maybe they're wrong...." She chuckled evilly, the other cheerleaders studying her curiously.
Stephanie paused dramatically before saying, "I'm thinking maybe little Mousey is a lesbo."
The other cheerleaders gasped and started murmering. 
"Or maybe she's bi!" One cheerleader cried, the others buzzing with excitement.
Stephanie smiled evilly, thinking about all the embarrassment she could cause for Mouse as she watched the showoff walk helpless little Lydia to the nurse.


This was going to be fun.

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 6

"So, Leo, are you busy this Friday?" I asked Leo. 

His face lit up, "Why do you ask? Are you aski-"

"I'm not asking you out, I was thinking about taking Chris to see this movie and Alice would come too, blah blah blah...."

Leo cringed, "Probably some stupid baby movie....." 
He ran his fingers through his hair, "Ah, sorry, Ange, I told Michelle I would go to the school football game this Friday, she's cheerleading."

I shrugged and he said, "Wanna come? You can bring your baby, too." 
I laughed, he was talking about Chris. "Sure. Can I bring Alice?"

"Yeah." Leo nodded.

I pursed my lips, 'What about Mouse? Is she coming?"

Leo shook his head, "Nah, I doubt it."

Oh, she came, alright. 
Chris, Alice, and I sat down by Leo in the crowded bleachers. We waited for the game to start and talked. We watched as the cheerleaders came out and our eyes widened in shock.

My face turned pale and I cocked my head to the side, pointing at the cheerleaders, "Hey, is that...?"

Eyes wide, Leo swallowed and nodded, "Mouse....."

We all watched in shock as Mouse tripped over her feet, running onto the field with the other cheerleaders, dressed in an orange cheerleader uniform.

Chris and Leo suddenly burst out laughing. 
Alice said, trying hard to fight back laughter, "Chris, that isn't funny! Don't laugh at her!" 
She giggled and started laughing, I was right behind her. 
We all sat in the bleachers, laughing our heads off at Mouse the cheerleader.

Then, they started their pre-game routine. 
Our jaws dropped as every cheerleader including Mouse did a perfect, amazing routine. 
Kathy was the flyer, which wasn't surprising. She was so skinny that the heaviest part of her was probably her hair. Her ponytail was probably about three feet long, maybe longer.

Leo watched in awe as Kathy's red hair flew around her (almost majestically) as she was tossed through the air, paying no attention to Mouse. 
I was too surprised to roll my eyes at him. 

Chris was still laughing his ass off, tears running down his cheeks. 
"Oh my God, this is sooo going on youtube!" He hooted.
Chris took out his video camera and turned it on, filming the cheerleaders and closing up on Mouse several times. 
Damn, the boy was really starting to think like Mouse, but I didn't object because I was comforted by the thought of Chris and I watching the video every night before bed and laughing about it until Dad made us shut up.

The routine ended and we all stood up, hollering at Mouse, "Yay, Mouseeeyyy!!!" 
Mouse whirled around, the grin fading from her face when she saw us. Her face went pale and we called out, "Hey, Mousey! Go Mouse!" 
We started laughing hard. 
Mouse's eyes widened and her face flushed with anger and embarrassment, she had noticed Chris's video camera. 
Chris waved at Mouse and pointed to the camera, mouthing, "Youtube."

Mouse seemed to be yelling something at him, but we couldn't hear her over the roar of the crowd. 
The other cheerleaders laughed and motioned for Mouse to follow them off the field. 
The football game started, but we just watched the video Chris had filmed in a loop throughout the whole game.

After the game, we found Mouse and 'congratulated' her. 
"Hey, Mousey!" I patted her on the back hard. She almost jumped out of her skin, "Angie!" 
We all started laughing, except for Mouse. 
"Really. A cheerleader, Mouse?" Leo said, smirking, "That's a new one."

Chris gestured to her uniform, "Okay, I'll just tell you upfront, Mouse. Orange is sooo not your color. The ponytail, however, is kind of a nice extra."

Mouse clenched her teeth, "Chris, can't you go be a diva somewhere else?"

Chris chuckled, "And guess what? I got the whole thing on tape to show your little family." 
He added innocently, "They said they were so sorry they couldn't come." 

Well, that was kind of an automatic death sentence for poor Chris. 
Mouse immediately ran after Chris; what a shock. 
I must say, Mouse can run a lot faster than you would think.... a heck of a lot faster than Chris.
"Chris!" I yelled stupidly, "She's gonna break the camera!"
Leo snickered, getting Alice's and my attention. 
"What?" I said. 
He held up the video camera and watched Mouse pointlessly chase Chris all around the football field. 
I tried to look mad. 
"Leo, that was a very mean thing to do." I said stupidly, "She could hurt him, you know Chris can't outrun her."
We all started laughing soon enough, watching cruelly as Mouse attacked Chris and discovered that he didn't have the camera. She looked up at Leo, a wild look in her eyes. 
Leo smirked, waving the camera up above his head. 
Mouse ran up to him and started uselessly jumping for the camera. 
Leo easily held it out of her reach, grinning.
Mouse stepped back, clenching her teeth, "Leo, give me the camera!"
"Oh, did those cheerleaders finally tell you that it's not ladylike to attack people into giving you things?" Leo said. Well, that couldn't be smart.
Mouse charged at him, snatching the camera. 
Leo then performed a stunt that was pretty clever for him. When he saw Mouse, he pressed the button on the side of the camera and flipped the tape out of it, catching the tape in between his fingers.
He apparently noticed this, because he smirked triumphantly. 
"Woah," He said dumbly, "I am a beast!"
I rolled my eyes and said, "Please never say that word again. I better go make sure Mouse didn't kill Chris."
Leo nodded, glancing at the tape in his hands. 
I picked Chris up off the ground and started dusting off his shirt, "Dude, that wasn't smart."
Chris laughed stupidly, "It sure as heck was funny, though." 
Were people just unusually stupid tonight?


When Chris and I got home, we went straight to my room to watch the video Chris filmed. Chris's creepy cat, Ger10, came and sat on my head. 
"Chris!" I said, "Get this stupid cat off my head!"
"Sorry," Chris said, picking Ger10 up, "You want to see the video of Mousey being weird too, don't you? Yes, yes you do."
I rolled my eyes. Something really bothers me about that cat, but I don't know what it is. It's just always... staring at me.
We watched the video about seven more times before I kicked Chris and his cat out and went to sleep.

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 5

Mouse actually went to cheerleading practice, arriving almost on time. 
Stephanie looked a bit surprised to see her there. 
A few of the other cheerleaders giggled at the sight of Mouse in her uniform. 
Mouse ignored them and turned to Stephanie, "So, what do you want me to do, Barbie?"

Stephanie crossed her arms and said, "So, you think you're cool now? You think you can do this?"

Mouse smirked, "Anything you can do, I can do better."

Stephanie glanced at her other cheerleaders as if to say, Yeah, sure. 
She grinned, "Okay, Butch. Let's see what you got."

Stephanie walked over to the cheerleaders' radio and turned on Tik Tok by Ke$ha. She walked into the middle of the field and started a mind-blowingly elaborate cheerleading routine with flips and kicks and the like. 

Mouse watched in horror, the blood draining from her face as Stephanie landed in a perfect split. 
Stephanie stood up and walked over to Mouse, smirking evilly. She bent down to Mouse's level, taking advantage of Mouse's height. "Try to top that, Smartass."

Mouse swallowed and slowly walked onto the field, signaling for Lydia to turn the music on. Tik Tok started playing again and the cheerleaders watched Mouse. 
Mouse stood in the middle of the field, looking nervous as the music started. 
To the team's complete shock, Mouse repeated the routine perfectly, getting every move right. Kathy, Stephanie, Lydia, Melonie, Michelle, and the other cheerleaders watched as Mouse landed in a perfect splits. She turned her head to face them and grinned at their shocked expressions.

Mouse stood up and walked over to Stephanie, "How was that?"

Now it was Stephanie's turn to go pale, "Uhh....." She managed, clearing her throat, "That.... wasn't bad."

She took in the shocked faces of the cheerleaders, smiling proudly. "I'll see you chicks to-ma-row." 
Mouse spun on her heels and mockingly flipped her dark brown ponytail over her shoulders the way the cheerleaders did.

Kathy leaned over and whispered to Stephanie, "That was good. I know Mouse, this really isn't her thing. Where the hell did she learn to do that?"

Stephanie blinked, still in shock, "I.... I don't know. It couldn't have just been dumb luck...."

"Are you s-sure?" Lydia said, "Who knows? Maybe s-she's just a p-prodigy for cheerleading. Or maybe she just h-has a good memor-ry."

Melonie shook her head, "Unbelievable." 
She involuntarily grinned and Stephanie shot a look at her.
"Wooowwww!" Jenny laughed loudly, "That was crazy, Steph! She was, like, as good as you! Maybe even better!"
Stephanie shot a glare at her, "Shut up!"

"Wait, that was who?" Michelle said innocently. 

Stephanie rolled her eyes and Lydia said quietly, "M-Mouse, th-that was Mouse." 

Michelle's jaw dropped, "Really? Wow!.... She's good."

Stephanie gritted her teeth, "Okay, let's run through the other routine."

Lydia said quietly, "B-but Mouse isn't here."

"We don't need her!" Stephanie snapped, causing Lydia to recoil. She clenched her teeth, "Come on! You heard me, routine two!"

Mumbling, the cheerleaders got into formation for their second routine.

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 4

Mouse and Leo came to sit by us in French. 
I studied Mouse, "Hmm...."
"What?" Mouse said firmly.
I gestured to her hair, "Did you do something different to your hair?"
"It looks nice." Chris said, smiling politely.
Leo grinned, "Oh, well I suppose you've never seen her hair like this, have you?"
Chris, Alice, and I shook our heads, "No, never. What did you do with it?"
"I washed it." Mouse said flatly. 
We all blinked, exchanging glances. 
Chris sniffed and leaned closer to Mouse, causing her to tense up. 
He sighed, "I'm not gonna hurt you, Mouse." 
Mouse scowled at Chris and he sniffed her hair and stared at her in surprise, "You used shampoo? Your hair smells like lavender!"
Mouse's shoulders tensed more and she looked embarrassed, "Uh, yeah.... I-I used this stuff Stephanie gave me yesterday..."
We all gaped at her and, eyes wide, Chris said, "Stephanie? Stephanie as in cheerleader Stephanie? Stephanie as in Stephanie Bradley?"
Mouse nodded reluctantly, "Yep, cheerleader.... Stephanie Bradley."
We all looked around at each other, curious and confused. 
Mouse said, sounding strained, "Why do you guys have to freak out about that? I mean, a girl's gotta wash her hair sometime..." 
We all gaped at Mouse stupidly, not sure how to answer. 
All we knew was that Mouse would never usually say something like that and she would never usually have anything to do with the cheerleaders.
We let it go for now and got to work on French stuff.


Mouse walked as slowly as she could to the gym after school was over. She wasn't afraid of the dark or anything, she was more afraid of the cheerleaders coming out of nowhere and ripping her face off with their bare hands.... or something like that.
Her sneakers squeaking on the wooden floor, Mouse opened the gym door and turned the lights on. The whole gym lit up with bright lights, causing her to flinch. Mouse turned around and almost had a heart attack, Lydia and Melonie stood right in front of her. 
"What the hell?" She hissed. 
The cheerleaders cocked their heads to the side creepily and Mouse said, "You, like, appeared out of nowhere!"
The cheerleaders stared at her with that creepy blank look they had, spinning on their heels and Melonie pushed open the supply room door. She turned on the light and walked into the largish room. Well, large for a supply closet, anyway. 
Melonie opened a box, revealing a stack of orange and white cheerleading uniforms. 
Lydia reached for a uniform and Melonie slapped her hand away, picking one up herself and holding it up to Mouse. 
Melonie shook her head and picked up another. She sighed and started going through the box, trying to find one that would fit Mouse. 
The cheerleading uniforms were kind of thoughtlessly sized and annoyingly small. They were basically meant for tall, ultra skinny girls, and Mouse was neither of these things. She was a bit heavy-set and very short for her age; Shorter than Chris, which drove her crazy.
Melonie finally pulled out a uniform and thrust it carelessly at Mouse, remarking rudely, "Here. It might be a little tight." She turned around, mumbling, "God, she's so short."
Annoyed by Melonie's perfectionism, Mouse went to the bathroom to try on the uniform. She predictably hated it in every way. It was orange, it had a short skirt (Mouse wasn't particularly fond of skirts in general, but this one bothered her more than most), and for many other reasons.
Having changed back into her normal clothes, she returned to the gym. "Thanks, girlies."
Melonie smiled tightly and said, "Arrive at practice from 3:30 to 5:00 on Tuesdays and Thursdays."
Melonie hadn't let Lydia say a single word the whole time, but Lydia managed to say quickly, "Bye, Mouse!"
"Yeah, whatever, Cheerleader." Mouse said without turning around.




Mouse sighed and left the gym, regretting ever saying yes to being a cheerleader.

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 3

Well, I must say, I had kind of a weird Valentine's Day. 
All day Leo followed Mouse around, singing 'Happy Birthday'. Freak. 
Kathy stalked Chris even more than usual (creepy to think about, I know. You're probably thinking about it right now, "More than usual?"..... *shiver*) 

Chris walked down the hall to 4th period, glancing behind him; Kathy was going around, holding something in front of people and talking. 
Chris quickened his pace, glancing over his shoulder. 
"Crap, Kathy. Don't notice me!" He whispered to himself, almost in prayer.

"Hi, Chris!" Kathy called out, giggling. 
Chris noticed what she was carrying; A video camera!

Kathy put her arm around Chris' shoulder and held the camera out, pointing toward them. She giggled, "Hi, Chris! Hi, everybody!" 
She waved at the camera. Chris was so confused. 
Kathy went on, "This is Chris! We're gonna get married someday!"

Chris shot her a surprised look, "What?!"

Kathy shushed him and whispered, "I'm making a tour video of the school. Stephanie offered to use it for the end of the year party if I filmed it!"
Then she added, "Wave to the camera, Chris!" 
Chris blinked and slowly waved at the video camera.

Kathy giggled and whispered loudly to the camera, "Isn't he the cutest? Yeah, like I said, we're gonna get married and he's gonna be my husband."

"Kathy!" Chris hissed. 

Kathy grabbed his collar, "Shhhhh...." 
She smiled sweetly at the camera, putting it in Chris's face, "So, what do you have to say, Chris? Wouldn't we be so great together."

Chris shook his head slowly, looking tired of being pestered by this lunatic, "No, we wouldn't, actually. While I would go to collage and try to get a good job, you would crash my dorm and say 'Come on, Honeyface! Let's ditch this place and live far away in the mountains where I can harass you without your sister there to save you!'"

Looking a little offended, Kathy wiped her frown off her face and giggled, shaking her finger at him, "Now, now, Chris. Don't tell lies, it's not good for your brain." 
She ruffled Chris's hair and he combed it back into place.

Kathy held out the camera and giggled at it, "Well, well, it looks like I'm going to have to edit that part out! Ha ha ha! See what you did, Chris? Naughty, naughty!" 
She playfully slapped Chris's shoulder and he took a step away, eyeing her hatefully.

"Bye, Chrissypoo!" Kathy frolicked away and ran up to a girl named Julie. "Guess what? Julie said that I'm her best friend in the whole wide world!" 
She giggled stupidly and Julie said, "What? No I didn't-"

"Oh, looks like we're going to have to edit that part out too!" Kathy shook her finger at Julie, "Bad girl, Julie."

Chris clenched his teeth, stomping all the way to 4th hour, which he would no doubt be late for. 
Chris hated being late for things. It was rude, it deducted points in the class, it made the teacher angry. And all because of Kathy.... What could be worse?

Chris came into French late, which was weird for him. He looked angry as he quietly slipped into the room. He sat down next to me, "Hey, Angie."

"Hi. Is something wrong?" I asked. 

Chris shook his head, "Nah, Kathy just won't stop following me."

"Oh." 
Hmm.... Nope, nothing out of the ordinary.

I sat by my friends at lunch, waiting for Chris, who hadn't arrived in the lunchroom yet. 

"There he is." Alice said, pointing across the room. 
Kathy trailed behind Chris, holding a video camera and chattering, "Why don't you want to be in my video, Chris?"

"Because, Kathy, you scare me!" Chris snapped at her without slowing down. 

Kathy sighed, "Oh, I get it." 
Chris turned around, looking at her. 
Kathy went on, "You're still mad about the whole thing where Leo and Johnny and I came to your house and I came in through your window...."

Chris snorted, "And a heck of a lot more than just that."

Kathy grasped Chris's hand in hers and said innocently, "Chris, am I too clingy? That's why you're upset, isn't it?"

Chris said, "Uh, yeah. That's exactly why, actually." 
Kathy let go of his hand and he stomped over to our table. 

Kathy squealed, "Ooh, this will be perfect for the drama scene in my movie!" 
I couldn't help rolling my eyes.

Chris sat down next to Alice and complained to us, "Uhg! Kathy is so annoying!"

"Uh-huh." I said in a 'duh' tone and Chris rolled his eyes.

"Don't be a smart-aleck, Angela." He said. 
Ooh, I made him mad. Oops.

So, that was my Valentine's Day. I found out that Leo was following Mouse around and singing 'Happy Birthday' was because Mouse hates her birthday, it being on Valentine's and all....

Cool With A "K" PART 16 - CHAPTER 2

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOUSEYYYY!!!!" Leo screamed on the top of his lungs. 
Mouse's eyes shot open, "What the hell man? Can't you see I'm trying to sleep? Damn it, Leo!"
Leo grinned stupidly, "But it's your birthday, Mousey!"
Mouse looked around the room, "Oh, is it now?" 
Leo nodded, "Yep, February 14th. You're sixteen as of today." 
Mouse eyes widened, "T-that's not my birthday! Ha ha! Silly boy...." 
She put her covers over her head.
Leo grinned, "Oh, I'm pretty sure it is." 
He called down the hall, "Hey, Jessica!" 
Mouse grabbed Leo's hair, "Shut it, Leo! Don't!"
"Is today Mouse's birthday?" Leo hollered.
Leo's mom called back, "Is it the 14th? Yep, happy birthday, Hun!" 
Mouse gritted her teeth, giving Leo a shove. "You moron! Do you have to spread the word?" 
Leo sang out loudly, "And do you know what else happens on February 14th?"
Mouse said through clenched teeth, "Leo, don't..."
Leo continued, "Valentine's Day!" 
Mouse grabbed his shirt and ran him against the wall, "Shut up, Leo!"
Leo grinned, "What's wrong, Mousey? You seem a little tense. How can I help?" 
Mouse shoved him toward the door, "I'll tell you how. Get the hell out of my room!"
Leo pouted, "I'm sorry, I should let the birthday girl sleep." He gasped, "But, it's a school day...."
Mouse gritted her teeth, hesitating, "Fine, I'll get up." Leo smirked and Mouse shoved him into the wall as she passed.
Mouse sat at the kitchen table, wishing she could just crawl into a hole and leave all the freaks singing Happy Birthday to her to sing by themselves. Leo, Mouse's mother, and Leo's little sister, Mary, were singing on the top of their lungs, "Happy biiirrrthdaaaaay dear Moooooouseeeee! Haaappppy biiiirthdaaay toooooooo yooooooooouu!"
"In French now!" Leo hollered and they started singing in French.
Mouse slumped down in her chair, hating her life, hating her family, hating her birthday.


Mom put plates of eggs in front of Chris and I and said, "So, is there anything special happening today?"
"Well, I believe it's Mouse's birthday, but I'm not sure." I said, my mouth full of toast.
Chris raised an eyebrow, "Is that so? No one told me."
I shrugged, "I guess they didn't think you'd care."
Chris sighed wistfully, "I still can't believe that thing is older than me...." Chris is fifteen; He's supposed to be a freshman, but he skipped fourth grade and has been in the same grade as me ever since. He's pretty smart, I guess, but my theory is that they got sick of hearing Chris scream 'ANGIE!!!!!!' every time he was upset, which is a lot. So they decided to move him so he could cry onto my shoulder instead of bothering the teachers.
I filled my mouth with more food and said, "Age doesn't matter, Chris." Mom smiled at me proudly and I continued, "You will forever act like a five year old until further notice."
"Angela!" Mom scolded. I started laughing hard and got eggs up my nose. Gross.
Chris sighed at my 'immaturity', "Oh, Angela. When will you learn not to talk with food in your mouth?"
"When will you learn that most fifteen-year-old boys don't still believe in leprechauns?" I said, smirking. 
Chris's eyes widened a little and he looked at Mom in surprise. "You knew?" He said, his voice cracking. Geez....
She shrugged and said gently, "Sorry, Honey. Leprechauns aren't real."
Chris turned to me in disbelief, looking hurt. I glanced nervously at Mom and said to Chris, "Should I have let it go on a few more years?" I shrugged, laughing nervously.
Chris shook his head and stood up, "I'm going to bed." He said, walking to his room with his head down.
Mom and I exchanged looks and she called to him, "Um, Sweetie? You have school today.... Honey...."
After a moment's hesitation, Chris returned to the kitchen and we left for school. I turned to Mom and whispered, "I'll handle this."




At school, Alice glanced at Chris and said, "Hey, Ange? Is something wrong with Chris?"
I shook my head, "Nah, he's just depressed 'cuz this morning Mom and I told him that leprechauns aren't real."
Alice gasped, drawing her hand up to her heart, "Oh, poor kid...."
I shrugged, "Don't worry about him, he didn't cry as hard as he did when he found out about Santa Claus."
Alice nodded, glancing nervously at Chris. "Oh, I hope he'll be okay...." Chris is the kind of person that stays upset about things for a long time and Alice knew how hard life without leprechauns would be for him.
"He'll get over it." I said cooly. 
It was pretty weird to see Chris not being ecstatic on Valentine's Day, so I started to kind of get worried. Soon enough he came around, though.


A few cheerleaders sat in the bleachers and the team captain, Stephanie, was blabbering to the newest girl. "So, any guys you think are cute?"
The new cheerleader, Lydia, shrugged. "Oh, n-not really."
Stephanie and the other cheerleaders exchanged glances and laughed nervously.
"Wait, are you serious?" Stephanie asked Lydia, "None?"
Feeling that she had done something wrong, Lydia quickly said, "Um, n-not yet! B-but I'll p-probably notice someone soon..."
"Girl, it's Valentine's Day." One of the cheerleaders, Gwen, said stupidly, "I can't believe you don't have a date."
Stephanie pursed her lips, studying the school grounds. 
Lydia half expected her to stand up, grab a random boy, and bring him over, saying, "Here's your date, Lydie!" 
But no, Stephanie said instead, "What about that kid? Chris Harper, A lot of girls like him. He's good if you like the helpless type."
Helpless type?
Jenny, another cheerleader, cackled maniacally and said loudly, "Oh, my gosh! You two would be perfect together!"
Jenny laughed more and Lydia shook her head distastefully. 
"No, n-not my type, I-I need someone who can take care of me s-so I won't need to d-do anything." She lied, smiling uneasily, "P-plus, I think he's gay."
Stephanie chuckled, "That doesn't stop Kathy."
All the cheerleaders turned to watch as their fellow cheerleader broke into a run and attacked Chris from behind, jumping onto his back and screaming, "HI CHRISSY!!! HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!!"
Chris then screamed, "Angie!!! Kathy's on meeeee!!!" 
A blonde girl ran up to him and pulled Kathy off his back. 
Chris was in tears now, the girl patted him on the back said, "Oh, it's okay, Sweetie. Shh..."
The cheerleaders laughed at the pathetic sight. 
"So pathetic. Did you see how Kathy just attacked him? That kid can't even handle a girl like her!" Stephanie laughed.
One of the other cheerleaders hooted, "'Ahhh! There's a cheerleader on my back! The short skirt, the flowing hair, oh, the horror!"
"You got that right. Those things are awful creatures." A voice came out of nowhere. 
The cheerleaders all jumped, whirling around to find the source of the voice. 
Mouse stood on top of the bleachers, taking a bite of the red apple in her hand. "Hey, what's up, Fembots?"
Stephanie put her hands on her hips, "What are you doing here, Butch?"
Mouse shrugged, "Avoiding my step-brother."
Lydia grinned, "Oh, Chris? Yeah, h-he looks annoying."
Mouse snorted, "No, he's not my step-brother, but I agree with the 'annoying' part. That kid drives me nuts."
She sat down near the cheerleaders, "You know, he was all depressed this morning 'cause his sister and his mom told him leprechauns aren't real." 
The cheerleaders laughed. 
"Oh my god, are you serious?" Jenny cried, laughing loudly.
Grinning, Mouse nodded and stood up, "Yeah, there's a lot more where that came from!"
The cheerleaders giggled excitedly and Mouse said, "Last summer, when we went to camp, Chris got bullied so much by the boys that he had to sleep in the girls' cabin! Which, of course, didn't bother him at all!"
The cheerleaders roared with laughter. 
Seeing the commotion, some football players and other kids came by the listen. 
A huge grin broke across Mouse's face and she went on, "A-and one time Kathy snuck into his bedroom through the window and sat on his lap and he woke up and screamed 'AAAAANGIEEE!!!!'"
The crowd laughed hard and a cheerleader called out, "Is that his sister?"
Mouse nodded, her eyes gleaming, "Yep! One time at the burger joint downtown, when me and Angie and Chris were there, Jesse- Jamie Wright's friend- he came in and Chris stared at him like 'oh, he is sooooo hot!' And then he spilled pop all over himself and went 'oh no! Hide me, Angie!'"
The crowd irrupted with laughter again. "That freak! What is with that kid and his sister?"
Mouse shrugged innocently and said with sweet voice and a fake lisp, "Oh, I don't know, I guess little Chrissy just has some separation anxiety." 
More laughter.
Mouse nodded again, grinning, "Yeah! And at Angie's birthday last year, they were playing Spin The Bottle and Chris kissed my step-brother!"
The whole crowd broke out in furious laughter and Johnny Thomas called out, "Hey, who is your step-brother?"
"Leo! Leo White!" Mouse answered, laughing. 
The crowd laughed harder.
"I bet he liked it, too!" One of the cheerleaders chirped. 
"I bet they both did!" Another called out.
Mouse beamed proudly, she had gotten an entire group of high schoolers laughing their asses off. 


I got Kathy off of Chris's back and had mostly calmed him down by the time we heard an enormous rupture of laughter come from the bleachers. Chris and I turned to see what was going on. To our surprise, Mouse was standing on top of the bleachers, her hands in the air and a crazy grin on her face. 
I strained to hear what she was saying that made the crowd so excited. I heard my name, I heard Chris's name, I heard mocking comments.... 
Gesturing for Chris to come with me, I started walking towards the bleachers. 
"Hey, Mouse!" I called out.
The smile faded from Mouse's face and she got a little pale. 
Seeing the eyebrow raises from the crowd, she started grinning again. 
"Hey, what's up, Ange?" She bent down to Chris and said, "And how is my little Christina today?"
The crowd laughed and Chris scowled at Mouse, who laughed loudly, "Oh, I'm sorry. Did I hurt your widdle feelings?" 
She pursed her lips, shaking her head, "I guess I shouldn't be telling these stories about you, but hey, it's my birthday and you're just so easy to make fun of!"
The crowd laughed and Mouse pinched Chris's cheeks, saying, "Yes, sooo entertaining! Look, buddy, you're making all these people so happy!"
I clenched my teeth, taking a step toward Mouse, "Stories? You were telling stories about 
us?" 
Mouse's face paled and I got the feeling that she thought we had heard her and already knew. She glanced around nervously at the waiting, mumbling crowd. She swallowed and said, "Oops." 
Her face paled more and the crowd snickered.
Mouse sighed and put a grin back on her face, "Don't be so sensitive, Angela."
"Don't be such an ass, Mouse!" I shot back. 
The crowd oohed sarcastically as I grabbed Chris's hand and stormed away.
Once we were far away, Chris cleared his throat and said, "Don't listen to her, Angie. She's just trying to be 'cool'."
I huffed, blowing my bangs out of my eyes, "Yeah, by backstabbing us!"
Chris looked a little surprised. 
"Backstabbing. Hmm..." He rolled the word around a few times and said calmly, "That's a new one."
I sighed, sitting on a bench nearby, "Mouse is just so.... stupid."
Chris sat down next to me, pursing his lips. He said honestly, "It's her birthday, you know." 
I stared at him. Was he joking? "Dude, did you seriously just say that?" 
Chris shrugged, "You tell me to cut her some slack sometimes-"
I laughed hollowly, "Ha! Yeah, 'I'm sorry I got mad at you for talking about me and my brother behind my back. My bad!'"
Chris sighed patiently, "Angie, I don't think we need to bring sarcasm into this-"
"Stop being Therapist Chris, man! You're freaking me out...." I burst out. 
Looking kind of offended, but still calm, Chris stood up, holding his hands over his head in surrender. "Sorry, sorry...."
Seeing his lower lip tremble a little when I didn't respond, I sighed, "I'm sorry, buddy. I... I'm not in the best mood."
"Clearly." Chris mumbled. 
I gritted my teeth and Chris crossed his arms. 
"Just try to ignore Mouse, okay? It's her birthday and on top of that, Valentine's Day. Just try to forgive her," He smiled warmly, "For me."
I looked at my brother like he was crazy, "Hypocrite."
Chris sighed, looking tired and older than usual. "I'll see you later, Ange."


Mouse watched Chris and Angela leave the field as the crowd watched her curiously. 
Mouse took a deep breath. Do I go after them? 
She shook her head at the thought. No, I will not upset my audience. 
She put the grin back on her face and said, "So, you think that's funny?"
The crowd cheered and she went on telling them about how stupid her friends were. 
After she finished and the crowd broke apart, Stephanie snapped her fingers, "Girls, conference!"
The cheerleaders gathered into a group and started whispering so that Mouse nor anyone else could hear them.
"I don't know, I k-kind of like her." 
"Yeah, she's funny." 
"That girl sure can raise a crowd." 
"But, is she really cheerleader type?" 
The cheerleaders all turned to look at Mouse and said in unison, "No." 
They turned back to their conference and Mouse shrugged. 
The group broke apart and Stephanie said, "Mouse, um... is that really your name?"
Mouse nodded, clenching her teeth. 
"Yep." She lied. Mouse hated her real name and preferred the rather unflattering nickname that she had gotten used to. 
Stephanie sighed and said, "Okay.... Mouse."
Mouse nodded, waiting for her to get to the point. 
Stephanie sighed and said, smiling tightly, "How would you like to become a part of the cheerleading squad?"
Mouse burst out laughing, not caring if she was making the cheerleaders uncomfortable. 
"Are you freaking serious?" She laughed. 
The cheerleaders nodded and the grin melted off Mouse's face. "Wait- really? Why?"
Stephanie said through clenched teeth, trying to smile, "Because, Mouse, when you make fun of people, it's funny. Making the lesser kids feel bad about themselves is a big part of being a cheerleader." 
This didn't sound right, even to Mouse, but she let Stephanie continue, "You can walk around with us, torment the freshman, wear the uniform...." 
Stephanie paused, eyeing Mouse distastefully, "Date the football players....."
Mouse rolled her eyes, tossing her apple in the general direction of a trash can, "Look, Princess, the whole girl-clot-going-around-making-the-newbies-cry scenario really isn't my thing...."
Melonie, one of the prettier cheerleaders, walked up and stood in front of Mouse, so close that Mouse could smell her perfume. 
Mouse took a step back.
"Look, we think you would be good for the squad. Why won't you join?" Melonie fluttered her eyes innocently.
Mouse eyed her uncomfortably, clearing her throat and her face flushed a little, "Um... don't you do other things as a cheerleader? You know, like cheering?"
Melonie barely smiled and said, "Yes, we have cheering routines for the football games."
Mouse nodded, stepping back and still blushing a bit. "So, what's in it for me?"
Melonie smiled at her and Mouse really hoped she wouldn't say what she thought she would. She didn't. 
"Why not?" Melonie said.
Mouse was getting irritated now, "I told you, it's not my thing!"
Suddenly, Lydia spoke up, "I dare you." 
Everyone turned and looked at her. 
"What?" Mouse said. 
Lydia nodded, "I d-dare you to join the ch-cheerleading squad."
Mouse gritted her teeth, this girl was good. 
Mouse never in a million years pictured her self joining the cheerleading squad, but this was a dare. The thing about dares is if she said yes, they would hopefully leave her alone. If she said no, she would be a chicken. Mouse was no chicken.
"Fine." Mouse heard herself say. 
Looking a little surprised at first, the cheerleaders smiled evilly and Stephanie said, "Coolness. You can pick up your uniform in the gym after school tomorrow." 
With that, all five of the cheerleaders flipped their hair, spun on their heels, and left Mouse standing alone, wondering if this was a bad dream. 




She sighed, thinking to herself. I hate my birthday, I hate Valentine's Day, I hate my life, I hate Mondays.