It was only about ten more minutes when Coach Carole finally blew her whistle and called out, “Okay, that should be enough for today, girls. Walk it out to cool down, then go shower. If you’re thirsty after all that, and I sure am from watching you, looks like there’s cold water enough for everyone, so you don’t need to rush the fountains. Thank you, James, that was thoughtful.”
“Ah, well …,” I stammered. “I know I’m always thirsty after P.E. class, and that looked much more intense and tiring ….” I blushed a little under all the attention, but I continued speaking. “Granola bars and chocolate, too. I know athletes shouldn’t overdo it on sweets, but they’re tiny little packets, only a hundred calories each, so they should be fine, I think …?” I shrugged.
“Hey, three cheers for James,” exclaimed a freshman girl, one of the new members who was looking a little more tired and worn out than the older girls.
A loud cheer of “Hip, hip, hurray!” reverberated through the gym, and both Beth and Liv did a couple freestyle jumps and flips. Cartwheels, maybe? Ah, that’s a little excessive, don’t you think?
After grabbing a water bottle, Monica leaned in and stage-whispered, “Looks like you’re an honorary member of the squad now, James.” She flashed me a smile, then started a brisk walk around the gym to cool down.
“That’s not a bad idea,” one of the other girls said, though I didn’t catch who. “Coach Carole, the football team and such have a waterboy, right? Why don’t we have one?”
“Nah,” and this was Liv, “that term’s so old-fashioned. What about steward or adjutant?”
“Or aide de camp?” suggested Beth between bites of her granola bar. “Oh, oh, I know … aide de cheer.”
“Walk it off, girls. You don’t want your legs cramping after all that,” Coach Carole admonished.
The last of the girls took their water bottles and a granola bar, and went on their way, and I leaned back and sighed. All that attention had been … almost as exhausting as if I had been trying to learn the cheer routine myself.
Well, probably that was a bit of hyperbole, but it sure felt that exhausting.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
Coach Carole grabbed a bottle of water and tossed it to me and then took one for herself … along with two little packets of candy. “These are actually my favorite, thanks.” She sat on the bleachers as well and kept an eye on the squad while they walked. “In all seriousness, James, the girls’ suggestion isn’t a bad one. We could use an assistant, and you’ve got a good head on your shoulders. Twenty years of coaching, and we’ve always made due with the water fountains or whatever we’ve got in our bags. The first afternoon you’re here, and you bring cold water over from the cafeteria. I don’t know why I never thought of that.”
I shrugged. “It’s not that big of a deal, Coach Carole. It’s just … I don’t know. Everyone was working so hard that I thought maybe waiting in line for one of the two water fountains would just be a little aggravation they didn’t need, even if they didn’t consciously think of it. I was just trying to help keep their spirits up.”
The cheer coach gave me another long, measured look. “And what do you think the squad does? It’s not just celebrating victory or being a bit of motivation or entertainment before the game and at halftime. If things are going poorly in a game -- and sometimes they do -- the squad’s cheers and encouragement help restore flagging spirits. And at away games, when there’s not a lot of spectators on your side, it helps to have someone there, cheering you on.”
“I … I’ll have to think about it, Coach Carole. I couldn’t do what they do,” I gestured out to the floor where the girls were wrapping up their cooldown and headed to the locker room, “but supporting from the sides, maybe.” I shrugged. “But if I do, I for certain can’t afford to keep buying snacks all the time.”
“Oh, we can expense those out, don’t worry.”
Coach Carole and I talked a bit more. She was doing her best to try and talk it up, to convince me … but without putting the pressure on. And I appreciated that. Truth be told, it really wasn’t a bad idea -- colleges and such wanted to see extra-curricular activities and community involvement, not just academics. Granted, I was only in my sophomore year, so I didn’t need to think too much about college just yet, but … I hadn’t been thinking about it all really before now.
Just a teen, hanging out with friends, doing teen stuff.
I was kind of ambivalent, though. Any time spent in an extracurricular activity without my little circle of friends was necessarily time away from them. We only had so much time together.
While I was still worrying those thoughts, the girls started coming back to retrieve their bookbags and head home for the day, and I had to face a scattering of “Thanks again, James” and “See you tomorrow, James” before Monica showed up.
“Sorry to keep you waiting! Come on, let’s go shopping!” She picked up her bookbag and purse, and I followed her out of the gym.