Secrets Until Someday

Chapter 5

    Sydney's POV

Friday is full of fun, distraction, and all kinds of buzz about the football game. 

The guys have on their home jerseys, white with big black letters, and their names across the back in red. The cheerleaders are all wearing their varsity player of the week's away game jersey. It's a game day tradition for each cheerleader to sponsor a varsity player, which basically forces us to bake them their favorite dessert so they let us wear their extra jersey to school. 

Typically we draw names out of a hat and pair each other up. Except for Quinn, she always gets Sam, and no one ever dares to challenge that. I'm not sure who would be more furious about another girl in his jersey, her or him. But I'd probably enjoy watching the scene unfold, laughter rolling around in my head at the thought.

 Everyone is so hyped up for the first game, the entire student population is covered head-to-toe in Westville gear. People are literally bouncing off the walls, high on school spirit. 

Tonight's gonna be fun. I wonder to myself if the energy is like this everywhere when it comes to athletics or if it's something unique to small towns. We all become so invested, it's addictive.

 I get through the day with no talk of "you know who" and I've never been so grateful. 

Maybe that means he's headed back to school already and I will have successfully avoided him and those melt-worthy hazel eyes... Damn it Sydney. STOP.

    Maddie, Quinn, and I head back to my house to get ready for the game. We have the upstairs bathroom covered in hairspray, bobby pins, glitter, and ribbon as my mom peaks in. I notice a glimmer in her eye and it catches me completely off guard. My body freezes as I have my hands tied up in the ribbon I'm wrapping around my ponytail, a shocked," Mom, what the heck's wrong with you?"

    "Nothing, I just can't believe this will all be over soon." And she gently taps the corner of her eye. My mother is tearing up. What kind of madness is this? She never usually shows any kind of emotion, especially nostalgia for me. I'm completely out of my element here. I feel my cheeks redden. 

    Luckily Maddie pipes up and says " Aw, Mrs. G don't worry I'll have no problem coming over next year to get ready in this bathroom! The lighting is amazing!" And with that my mom is smiling and whatever tear was there has now disappeared. I breathe a sigh of relief. 
    The three of us finish our pregame prep, snap a selfie in our brand-new kick-ass uniforms, and head to the big game.

    As we drive to the football field I feel uneasy. I haven't decided if it is because this is my last first football game, the way my mom was acting back there or if my body is trying to tell me something that I'm not ready to admit to myself.

He's home, he's been home. It's the first big game and there's a slight chance he'll show up tonight.

    The amount of people tailgating at a high school football game is kind of overwhelming, so we know the crowd is going to be on fire. It makes our job easier and a lot more fun so I'm not complaining. The minutes before kick-off fly by and before I know it we are in play. The boys on the field and us on the sidelines.

    As we yell into the crowd I notice the massive size of our student section, Layla leading the way in cheering along with us, she has half of her face covered in red paint and the other half in black. That girl has some school spirit let me tell ya. She will be the first one to kick your ass if you're standing in HER student section and not screaming with everything you've got. 

It's one of the million reasons I love that girl. She may be an all-star on the volleyball court but Quinn and I always tell her she's a cheerleader at heart.