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I was completely and utterly saved from answering by the arrival of Cam, who breezed over to me and grabbed my arm.
“Hey, can I talk to you for a second? It’s important.”
“Of course.Excuse me, Denise.” I stepped away from her as Cam led me away.
“I will never be able to thank you enough for what you just did,” I said when Cam had pulled me into a corner of the gym.
“I could tell you were drowning over there, so I figured I would throw you a lifeline. I know you’d do the same. Denise is something else.” I looked over and found Denise fluttering around, fake smile plastered on her face as if she didn’t talk shit behind everyone else’s back.
“What was she pestering you about?” Cam asked.
“Uh, remember Echo? The Heartwood coach? We’re kind of seeing each other and she was at the same restaurant and now I’m sure everyone knows, but no one has the balls to ask me about it, besides her. She straight up asked me if it was a ‘business dinner’ like it’s her business.” I wished I could tell her to fuck off, but then I’d get fired.
“I’ll talk to her. That is none of her business.” Cam looked like she was ready to burn shit down, but I knew she’d been dealing with the likes of Denise for years and had been looking for a reason to tell her off for a while now.
“At least next year her last child will be a senior and then I will be rid of her. I look forward to that day, but then someone just like Denise will take her place. Such is life.” Cam looked off into the distance and then back at me. “Anyway, I’ll have a talk with her. No worries. How’s Dom doing?”
I showed her a picture of Dom and Heath and little Marissa.
“Oh my god, I’m dying. I can’t wait to meet her.”
More people were starting to arrive, so I was needed to help organize things, and Cam had to talk to Denise, so she went in one direction and I went in the other.
The squad finally arrived, and they were all dressed up in their finest, and it was so cute to see them all dolled up. I gave lots of hugs and received many in return and then I had to get up and make a little speech as people were sitting down.
I’d made a little video of all the pictures from Nationals, and had gotten the official video file, so I could show the performance to the parents on the projector.
“I can’t tell you all how proud I am of what this team did. No one could have asked for more. They gave me what?” I put my hand up to my ear and the squad yelled out “ELEVEN!” in unison.
“I didn’t even tell them to do that, I swear,” I said, and there were chuckles in the audience.
“I’m going to miss this family, this squad, but I know that you’re all Tigers for life, and you’ll always have a home here at CHS. Thank you for trusting me, and thank you parents for trusting me with your children. It’s an honor to be their coach, thank you.”
After a round of applause, I played the video and then everyone ate while music played in the background. I made rounds, stopping by each table and reminiscing and sharing jokes. I wished Dom could be here, but I was sending him pics and updates and video messages from all the kids.
Cam was also doing her thing, and Denise seemed subdued when I made it to her table. I’d saved her for last, and I hoped that symbolism wasn’t lost on her.
Cheerleaders and parents and relatives filled their plates and laughed and I wanted to bottle this moment because this was really it. All of them had brought their uniforms to turn in, which was also part of the night. After dessert, they all got in a line with their uniforms folded up and placed them in the uniform box where they would wait for another year, or another cheerleader.
Once the box was closed, I put my hand on it for a moment and said my own little goodbye to this season. Then it was time to pack up the leftovers, shove Denise’s awful mac and cheese back into her hands, and call it a night.
Cam and I were the last two in the gym, putting away the tables and making sure the floor was clean. I got out the broom and did a few sweeps.
“Another cheer season over,” she said, balling up some paper that we’d used to line the table and then tossing it into the trash can in the perfect shot. She’d been a state champion twice in basketball.
“In the books,” I said, shaking out the broom into the same can and then putting it back in the closet.
“You did good, just so you know. You’re exactly what this team needed.” I didn’t know about that, but it was still nice to hear.
“Thanks, I appreciate it.” She gave me a hug and said that she’d lock up and I could go home.
The first thing I did when I walked in the door was call Echo. Sure, I was seeing her tomorrow, but that didn’t matter. I wanted to see her tonight. I needed to see her tonight. I was in a prime mood to wallow, and the cats weren’t as helpful as they should be in that pursuit.
“Hey, what are you doing right now?” I asked.
“Uh, do you want to know what I’m actually doing, or what I wish I was doing?”
I put the phone on speaker so I could feed the angry cats at the same time.
