Chapter 18

I was not in my usual self when I got home. I commuted again to avoid Iris. When I reached the house, the door was locked, indicating that I was the first one to go home.

I entered the room and immediately collapsed into the bed. I was not physically exhausted, but I felt emotionally tired. Earlier, I didn’t do anything but stare at the wall. I didn’t know why but that made me feel exhausted too.

I was even unaware that Pierre followed me in class a few minutes later earlier.

I waited a few moments until I heard Iris’ car pull into our garage. The horn honked three times then it stopped. What should I do? When it was just the two of us, it was definitely awkward.

I’d been in the bedroom for a few minutes but didn’t change my uniform yet. I was not hungry either. I usually ate when I returned home, but I felt as though I had lost all appetite.

I missed my father so much.

My tears were on the verge of dripping as the door slammed open. I quickly raised an eyebrow at Iris.

“Ouch!” I whimpered when she hurled a little notebook and a ballpen at me. I gave her a questioning look, but she simply gazed at me.

“What am I going to to with this?” With a frown on my face, I asked. She pursed her lips and folded her arms across her chest.

“Make a note of your body sizes. Prepare for tomorrow’s practice by going to bed early,” she stated as she left my room. I chewed my lip before examining the piece of paper she threw at me. There were many names listed there, as well as the body sizes of various individuals. At the end was my name, which was evidently written recently.

I stifled a smirk as I jotted down my body measurements one by one. I simply copied it from the document I submitted to the dean when he also asked about our uniform size.

My sadness vanished abruptly. I knew that manipulating someone was wrong, but how could I claim it was wrong if this was the outcome? I felt horrible for Iris because I previously treated her shit. I should apologize afterwards; even when she was rude to me most of the time, I knew she could feel pain too.

I exited the room after noting the sizes. I went straight to the kitchen, knowing I might catch Iris cooking our dinner, and I was right; I caught her cooking our food.

“Hey,” I murmured. I laughed and approached her for a hug after she looked at me and mouthed “fuck you.”

“It was my intention to make you accept me, and guess what? It worked. Am I good at it? I’m built differently, Iris,” I confessed, and a laugh erupted from my lips. She broke the hug and lightly pinched my waist.

“You’re a manipulative bitch, and I won’t be surprised if you die early because of your stubbornness. Be thankful that you’re my only friend, because if you weren’t, I might have kicked you out of the house sooner.”

“That’s mean.”

“I don’t care.” There was a brief moment of silence before we both burst out laughing. I was not sure what I was feeling at the moment. Even though it was just the two of us, I was having a good time. If only we could spend the rest of our lives here, I would be even more appreciative.

The following day, Iris and I went to EastWood together. As was customary, her pink Lamborghini drew the attention of the students. Instead of heading straight to our individual lectures, we decided to go to the gym instead. As a member of the cheering squad, this was my first day on the job. I was a little nervous because I didn’t know anyone else in the group.

I hope they would accept me as a member of their team.

When we arrived at the gym, a small group of individuals had already assembled. There was a man and a lady conversing on the other side of the bench, while the rest of the people were just sitting alone. It even took me by surprise when I spotted Nellie with her pals.

What was she doing here? What a bunch of early birds, huh?

As Nellie and I looked at each other, my brows began to rise in anticipation. At first, she merely glanced at Iris and myself, but later on, they began whispering to her friends.

“Announcement, everyone!” Iris yelled over the din of the room. The members of the cheering squad walked toward us one by one and formed a circle.

“I would like to introduce the newest member of the EastWood cheering squad. I believe you all know her because I hang out with her frequently. I’m expecting you to be nice to her because if you’re not, return the uniforms. We are a team here, we don’t bully anyone. If you have a problem with one of the members, forget it when we have a practice or performance.” Surprisingly, the members that paid attention were attentive. To be honest, it was unusual for me to see them in that manner, especially Nellie. Most of the time, when Iris was in front of them, they were either whispering or being disrespectful.

“Yes, cap!” they exclaimed simultaneously.

“All right, then—”

“I apologize for interrupting you, but why is she immediately accepted? We have no idea whether she’s talented or not because we didn’t see her audition. If I am the one who’s asked, it’s extremely unfair because each of us has previously auditioned. Even you, our cheerleading captain, did that infront of our coach. Right, guys?” Nellie cut her off.

I hated to admit it, but she had a point. Of course, it would be extremely unfair for them to accept me outright. Iris clearly favored me if you looked closely.

“Who informed you that she wouldn’t? Naturally, we’ll examine her capabilities. If she’s not good enough, I won’t include her in the lineup every time there’s a performance. As I did with Velasco previously, I did not include her in the line up until she met the standards. I will, however, allow her to participate in our practices.” Iris arched an eyebrow and cast a gaze my way. I was immediately nervous. The Iris in its natural state was quite different from what I see now. I could sense her authority in every word she spoke.

“Lea, put on the music,” she commanded Nellie’s friend. I pursed my lips and braced myself. I was frightened; what if they wouldn’t accept me?

To be sure, I’d got moves. Even my teachers were previously astounded by my dancing and cheering abilities. The only reason I was not accepted at the time was because my physique was so frail that I frequently passed out during practice. Particularly during the audition, the coaches quickly observed my body’s talents but refused to accept me. That was why I practiced so diligently and socialized with them until I was admitted into the lineup. My mother used to pay the coach for more practice time.

When the music began, I began to move as well. My movement pace was determined by the song’s tempo. Because I was unfamiliar with the song, the single beat serves as my indicator that the dance would be enjoyable. I performed highkicks and cartwheels. I was initially scared to perform cheerleading tumbling skills, but I persevered. I wished to join them, and hence should demonstrate all of the skills I had.

I was fortunate that my bones were strong enough to support my weight while performing basic skills. If I wasn’t in good shape right now, I’d be out of balance.

“Is that enough?” I asked, panting for breath. They all clapped and nodded in my direction. I smiled and leaned over Iris, sweaty.

“I had no idea you had moves,” Iris stated and raised an eyebrow at me. I grinned and drew nearer to her.

“I’ve previously been a member of a cheering squad, Iris. Unfortunately, someone shot me, and I was unable to participate in our alleged performance,” I responded with a giggle. She shook her head and looked at the cheer members.

“You’ve seen what she’s capable despite being a newbie. However, everyone should not anticipate her to be brimming with vitality, all right? We all have our flaws when it comes to cheerleading, and I’ve seen that she occasionally lacks energy. As with the rest of us, we will endeavor to improve that weakness. Don’t pass judgment on her because you, too, had this phase. That is it; we will begin practicing today. I’ll give you ten minutes to change your clothes. Move!” Iris’ loud applause prompted everyone to move fast.

For practice, they all wore uniforms. Iris only requested my size yesterday, which meant I would have to wait to receive my uniform. I believed she just passed it on to the seamstress a while ago. Today, I was wearing merely a black t-shirt and black shorts. Iris insisted that I wore knee pads to protect my knee. Indeed, we all wore safety equipment, but mine was a different color. I believed that whenever we rehearsed, we wore this and not to the performance. All I knew was that it was prohibited unless it was part of the uniform.

We practiced for hours until it was time for classes. I was exhausted, as we had only a brief break. I could still walk, I just needed to eat food.

Nellie and I entered the classroom nearly simultaneously. My classmates were all already there, as the lesson was about to begin. Pierre, who frequently toured the entire campus in the mornings, was already here.

I was holding a sandwich as I moved over to the chair. Iris purchased this for me before I left the gym. She advised me to eat during class to avoid becoming nauseous.

“Where’s my towel?” I mumbled to myself. I needed to wipe my sweat because I forgot to do it in the bathroom due to my haste. I thought the teacher was already here.

I was about to take a sip of water when the door opened. The teacher entered, carrying a large book. Fortunately, I had completed my meal before she came.

Before we began the discussion, the teacher greeted us. A few minutes passed, but nothing she said made sense to me. Sex education, perhaps? Sex? I was only familiar with female and male; was this significant?

At the front, the teacher said a lot more, but I truly didn’t understand anything. I could no longer resist raising my hand out of curiosity.

“Yes, Ms. Jenkins?” I cleared my throat before standing. I didn’t care if they would laugh at me since I’d lost track of the lesson. I was curious as to what they were discussing. I believed I was the only one who was clueless, as practically everyone else appeared to be interested in the subject. Particularly nearly every man in our class.

“I’m sorry, ma’am, but I have no idea what you’re saying. I’m aware that this is some sort of awareness topic, as seen by the instances. However, I’m not sure where this topic coming from. I simply want to know what sex is. I’ve heard the term several times but have no understanding what it means. Kindly enlighten me.”

Silence fell after I asked. After a few seconds, the entire class burst out laughing. I was expecting them to laugh at me, but I wasn’t expecting it to be this hard. They mocked me as if I was the most illiterate person on the planet.

“Everyone, be quiet!” With the tiny stick in her hand, the teacher struck the whiteboard. Although my classmates grew silent, many of them suppressed a giggle.

“Darling, may I ask as to why you are unaware of the subject we are currently studying? I suppose that teachers began teaching sexual education in the eighth grade. As I understand it, you are a transferee. Where did you study prior to coming here?” For a little period, I was astonished and unable to respond. Where did I study at that time? I couldn’t tell her where I previously studied because it was a kindergarten and an elementary school.

“Uh, ma’am, I was homeschooled. My teacher never introduced me to this subject.” I exhaled a sigh of relief when I saw the teacher nod.

“You were homeschooled and yet you’re stupid? I’ve heard that homeschooled students consistently excel in math because they are mathematical geniuses. How come you are not one of them?” one of my classmates asked. Again, laughter filled the classroom. My entire body was engulfed in intense shame. Why was he even mentioning that? That was not what we were talking about here.

“Everyone, be quiet! Whoever I catch laughing, I’ll drop on this subject for the whole school year! I’m not kidding. Mr. Labrador, how can you be able to embarrass a classmate? I’ve heard you’re the son of a congressman. I’m expecting you to be courteous and well-behaved for the sake of your father’s image. Where did you get that behavior? You’re acting like a condescending person!” When our teacher said that, the entire classroom fell silent. I was grateful that the person who called me stupid remained silent following that yell. If he insulted me again, I might lose control and throw my hands.

“Darling, It may be unsettling for you if I explain the significance of what I am teaching right now. However, I can provide you with a summary. Sex is a common method for making babies. If you want to learn more about what it is and how it works, you can conduct a search when you go home. For the time being, only listen to what I teach.”

I nodded and returned to my seat. Some of my classmates were still staring at me, behaving as if they knew something I didn’t. I couldn’t care less, because I didn’t believe this subject would kill me.

However, I was astounded. When I was a child, I was always intrigued about how babies are formed but never asked my parents. I had always believed that storks deliver babies to a mother’s tummy. That was what I believed until I became a teen. I had no idea that you needed sex to conceive a child.

The first and second classes ended. I was alone at break time. I was about to walk past Iris in their classroom when she texted me. She informed me that the dean had called her.

I ate alone in the canteen, as Alister was also not with me. According to what I had heard, he departed the country with his mother last Monday. I had no idea where they were heading because Iris didn’t mention anything to me.

I was busy eating my lunch when the chair in front of me was occupied. I looked up and saw Pierre carrying nothing but water.

“What are you doing here?”