week or two.”
“It’ll get better, Attie,” Anne said as she sat in the spot I’d left empty. “You’ll be old news before you know it. Well, after the crap hits the fan, anyway.”
“What crap?” we asked simultaneously.
“I talked to several of the girls on the squad today. We vote for captain on Friday after school, and if my count is right, it isn’t going to be Tiffany.”
“Who’s it gonna be?” Kent asked.
“Who do you think, brainiac?” Tammy asked. “Attie, of course.”
Kent’s eyes grew wide. “Well, that’s gonna knock ol’ Tiff for a loop. She’s been so busy trying to cause you problems that she’s lost the support of the only people she had on her side. Heck, it’s like going out and mowing your lawn while your house is on fire.”
“What does that even mean?” Anne asked.
“Don’t ask,” Tammy begged. “He makes sense to himself, honest he does.”
Tammy leaned toward Anne with an excited grin. “Anyway, back to the cheer squad. So what did you hear?”
“Just that everyone is sick of the way Tiffany’s acting. Plus, Attie’s the better leader, and her skills are far better.”
“She does have great skills,” I added.
Tammy gave me a scowl. “We don’t need to know that.”
Attie lifted her head and punched me in the stomach. “Don’t act like you’re talking about something you’re not really talking about.”
“I was acknowledging what a great cheerleader you are.”
“You’ve never even seen me cheer, moron. You don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.”
“I could assume. You’re good at everything else.”
She lightly punched me in the stomach again. “Quit while you’re ahead.”
“What?”
“This is serious. It could get bad.”
“Nobody’s gonna mess with my girl Attie,” Kent said. “And let me just say, had they seen you out there noodling, they would have realized you’re one tough cookie. Personally, I wouldn’t mess with you.”
“I don’t mess with her,” I said. “I just give her what she wants.”
“Like I ever have to get tough with you, Riley Bennett.”
I grabbed her cheeks in my hand and squeezed until she looked like a fish. “That’s my point. You’ve got me whipped.”
She covered my mouth with her hand. “Enough out of you. You aren’t helping.”
I kissed her on the inside of her hand several times before giving it a lick. She yanked her hand away and wiped it on my shirt. “I knew this cheerleading thing was a bad idea.” She was still talking through fish lips. “It’s going to be my downfall, I just know it.” She finally swiped my hand away from her face and gave me a small thunk on the forehead with her finger.
“I hate to break up the party,” Chase whispered, “but said cheerleader is walking our direction.”
“You’ve got to be kidding.” Tammy moaned as Tiffany slunk up to the table.
“Hey, Riley.”
“Tiffany.”
“Uniforms are in, Attie. You might want to check yours out. I noticed it looked a little small. It may be too tiny for your slightly larger frame.”
Tammy stood. “Slightly larger frame my—”
Kent covered her mouth.
“She’s the size of a tic-tac,” I added.
“Thanks, Tiffany. I’ll go check it out. Where are they?”
“Coach Tyler’s office, of course.”
“I need mine too, Attie,” Anne said. “We’ll go together. Thanks for going out of your way and letting us know, Tiffany.”
“It’s what a leader does, Anne. We look out for our team.”
“Bull crap.”
Tammy hid the comment behind a cough, which caused Kent to slap her on the back several times. “There, there, now. You choking on something? Need some water?”
“I need some boots is what I need. It’s getting mighty deep in here.”
Kent jammed a cookie in her mouth. “Here. Chew on that.”
Tiffany ignored them and kept her hostile eyes on me. “Oh, and Attie … ”
Attie reached up over her head and pointed to herself. “I’m over here.”
“In