Chapter 4: — "Cheerleading, Part 2 — Sparks on the Field"

The sun beat down on the football field, making the air shimmer like everything was melting. My new cheer uniform clung to me uncomfortably, and the bow Mina had tied into my hair felt like it was mocking me.

“This is ridiculous,” I muttered, adjusting my sleeves for the hundredth time.

“No, this is perfect,” Koko whispered, materializing near my ear with both tails twitching like angry cat whiskers. “Perfectly terrible. Perfectly humiliating. Perfectly proof that your parents secretly hate you.”

I rolled my eyes. “It’s just cheerleading.”

“Just cheerleading?!” Koko nearly yelped. “You’re about to wave shiny pom-poms and scream about some glorified ball-chasers while he’s out there stealing your attention like a walking distraction pancake!”

I tried to ignore him. I really did. But my eyes, traitors that they were, slid toward the field.

And there he was. Sora Fujimoto. In his football uniform. Laughing with his teammates as he stretched. The sunlight caught in his hair, and for a second, I swore the world slowed down.

My cheeks burned.

“See! SEE!” Koko jabbed a paw at me. “Your face! It’s the mushy pancake face again!”

Before I could argue, Mina clapped her hands. “Alright, squad! Warm-up time!”

Everyone cheered, their voices confident and loud. Mine… not so much. When we tried the first routine, I missed a step, my pom-poms got tangled, and I nearly smacked myself in the face.

Smooth. Really smooth.

Mina jogged over, giggling. “Don’t worry, Haruka. First-timer jitters. Here, watch me.”

She repeated the steps slowly, her movements sharp and graceful, like she was born to do this. I tried again, following her lead. Still clumsy… but better.

“See? You’ve got this,” she said, patting my shoulder. Then she leaned in closer, lowering her voice just enough so the others couldn’t hear. “Though, you might wanna stop staring at number five over there if you want to keep your rhythm.”

My whole body froze. “I—I wasn’t staring!”

Mina smirked knowingly. “Oh, sure. Totally. You just happen to ‘accidentally’ turn your head every time he stretches his arms.”

“Mina!” I squeaked, my face on fire.

She just laughed. “Relax, it’s cute. But if you’re gonna crush this hard, at least don’t drop your pom-poms while you’re at it.”

I groaned, hiding my face behind said pom-poms. Koko, meanwhile, was practically foaming with jealousy.

“Unbelievable,” he muttered, sparks flickering from his tails. “First, the human jello cube. Now this cheerleading imposter with suspiciously good hair. You’re surrounded by thieves, Haruka. Thieves stealing your loyalty!”

“Shh!” I hissed, but Mina just tilted her head at me, confused.

“Everything okay?” she asked.

I faked a cough. “Yeah, just… talking to myself. Totally normal.”

We practiced a few more times, and with Mina’s help, I actually managed to get the steps down. My nerves didn’t vanish completely, though, mostly because every time I dared a glance at the field, there was Sora. Running. Laughing. Looking unfairly good in that uniform.

Mina caught me again, her grin wicked. “Careful, Haruka. If you keep looking at him like that, people might think you’re cheering just for him.”

I nearly dropped my pom-poms again.

“WHAT? N-No, I’m— I’m cheering for the whole team!”

“Mm-hmm,” she hummed, clearly not buying it.

Koko growled under his breath, his tails flicking so violently that little sparks sizzled in the air. “I swear, one more blush, and I’m short-circuiting the scoreboard.”

I ignored both of them, focusing on Mina’s encouragement and the rhythm of the cheer. By the time the whistle blew and the announcer’s voice boomed over the speakers, I was… actually kind of excited.

The squad gathered at the sideline, forming up for the opening cheer. The crowd in the stands roared. The players jogged onto the field. My heart pounded like a drum.

This was it.

Mina gave me a wink, the music started, and I lifted my pom-poms.

The cheerleading squad was about to begin.

We lined up at the edge of the field, the grass cool beneath my sneakers. Mina whispered a quick “You’ll be fine,” before the captain shouted for us to start stretching.

Easy enough… except my arms and legs didn’t seem to understand what “in sync” meant. Everyone else bent gracefully; I wobbled like a broken wind-up toy.

“Haruka, your arms!” Mina hissed from beside me.

I tried fixing them. Somehow, I managed to make it worse.

“Now you look like a T-rex trying yoga,” Koko snorted, floating above me with both tails flicking. “Magnificent. Truly squad material.”

I bit back a groan, my cheeks warming. “Shut up,” I whispered.

“Who are you whispering to?” Mina asked, raising an eyebrow.

I panicked. “Uh—myself. Just… motivating myself.”

She smirked. “Cute. But maybe don’t motivate yourself into dinosaur poses.”

The stretches turned into simple chants, then light jumps. Nothing too complicated, but somehow I still managed to mess up timing. My pom-poms nearly flew out of my hands during a clap sequence.

“Focus, Haruka!” Mina said with a laugh, catching my wrist before I accidentally flung one into the captain’s head.

“I am focusing!” I argued.

Except I wasn’t. Because right across the field, Sora jogged past, his jersey sticking slightly to his shoulders, his hair bouncing as he laughed with a teammate. He moved so effortlessly, like the whole field belonged to him.

And my brain? Gone. Completely useless.

“Uh-huh,” Mina said dryly, clearly noticing my not-so-subtle staring. “You’re totally focusing.”

I nearly tripped mid-step. “Wha—I wasn’t looking!”

“Oh, you were definitely looking.” Mina grinned like a fox. “Honestly, Haruka, if you cheer with that face tomorrow, the poor guy might faint before halftime.”

I buried my face in my pom-poms. “You’re evil.”

“And you’re obvious.”

Meanwhile, Koko was practically vibrating with fury above us. His tails sparked dangerously. “Obvious is an understatement! Her heart is basically a neon sign! This is blasphemy! Betrayal! CHEERLEADING TREASON!”

“Shhh!” I snapped under my breath, making Mina tilt her head again.

“Talking to yourself again?” she teased.

I forced a laugh. “Yup. Totally normal.”

We ran through the routine twice more, and slowly, slowly, I started to get the rhythm. Mina cheered when I finally nailed the timing on a clap-spin sequence. “See? You’re a natural once you stop staring at number five.”

My whole face burned. “I wasn’t—!”

“You so were,” she sang.

Koko groaned dramatically. “Oh yes, make it worse, why don’t you?”

Finally, after what felt like hours, the captain called a break. I collapsed onto the grass, my chest heaving. Mina plopped down beside me, still way too energetic for someone who just jumped around for half an hour.

“You did good,” she said with a smile. “Tomorrow’s the real deal, so don’t stress too much. Just have fun with it.”

I managed a weak grin. “Easy for you to say.”

“True. But hey…” she nudged me. “At least you’ll have extra motivation out there.”

I didn’t even ask what she meant. I already knew.

Koko let out a theatrical sigh, flopping onto my other shoulder like he weighed a thousand pounds. “If you embarrass yourself tomorrow, I’m teleporting us both to another dimension.”

I laughed softly despite myself, the nerves in my stomach twisting into something almost… exciting.

Tomorrow was going to be insane.