It's such a great day to be alive.

That was Mina's one and only thought as she skipped down the halls of Middleton Academy. This day, the first day of November, was the best day of her entire life. Nothing, not even the time her father bought her first convertible, could fill her heart with joy as much as the five words that echoed over and over in her mind, compounding her heart with so much happiness her head felt light with giddiness. She tried calming herself down, tried slowing to a simple excited walk as she made her way to the school field, but as soon as those words replayed themselves, her feet were lifting themselves off the ground once more in pure bliss.

To think all those years at Middleton Academy pining for a boy who never spared her a glance would all lead up to this moment. The moment he finally said to her, "Will you be my girlfriend?" Mina had frozen as soon as the words registered, staring into his beautiful, smiling face in shock. The 'what' she had croaked out was rather embarrassing, and, had her brain been out from under the cloud of surprise, she would have surely blushed in humiliation. But then he repeated, and that confusion had cleared away and brought out a wide smile. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out what her answer had been.

Mina slowed to a saunter as her mind went back to the days she had drawn up her elaborate plan to capture Dan Slater in her jaws. The first time she ever saw him was her second day at school. During their freshman year, they had shared the same literature class. Mina distinctly remembered the first time she laid eyes on him. He had walked in with the same casual stroll she loved so much, and sat right up front beside the one Jessime Beaumont. While they formed a fast friendship, Mina had be forming a fast and all-consuming crush as she stared into the back of his head the entire class. From then on, she had been determined to get him to fall in love with her, but each time she tried to approach him, her nerves frayed and she slinked away from him with sweaty palms and a beating heart.

And now, almost four years later, they were official.

Mina giggled suddenly. Heads turned to look at her as if she were mad but she was already running out, pushing the door open that led to the fields. The hanging afternoon sun shone on the grassy expanse before her, surrounded by tracks. As the school's track stars warmed up nearby, Mina ran past the seats, over the tracks and onto the large vastness of grass. To one section, gymnasts practiced; to the next, soccer was being played. The fitness club managed to grab another section of the massive field and, gob smacked in the centre was the cheerleading team.

Mina spotted Anna immediately. Her new 'bestest friend in the entire world' stood apart from the crowd of cheerleaders, watching them with a dead look on her face and her hands on her hips. Her hair was tied up into a ponytail that blew into her face with a gust of wind. She stood out like a sore thumb, since while the others wore cute shorts and colourful tank tops, Anna was decked out in black yoga pants and a black spaghetti strapped shirt. Considering the blazing sun overhead, it was wonder she wasn't fainting from the heat.

"Anna!"

Anna looked up at Mina as she ran over to her. Her face didn't change, Mina noticed absentmindedly. Her expressions never change. Mina grabbed onto Anna's hand, digging her nails in. Anna looked down at it and, slowly, pushed her hand away.

"You would never believe what just happened!" Mina squealed.

Anna opened her mouth, no doubt to either ask what, or tell her she didn't care – Mina wasn't entirely sure which – but before she could get anything out, a snarky voice interrupted.

"Excuse me," it said. "If you haven't noticed, we're trying to have practice here."

It was Angela, in her all her pink shorts, white top, sweaty yet still gorgeous glory. Her ponytail hung to the side as she crossed her arms and looked at Mina pointedly. "Are you deaf?"

"She was just telling me something," Anna jumped in before Mina could reply. "You can continue what you're doing, we won't bother you."

Angela's jaw dropped when Anna turned her back to her. Mina was crossed between gloating and laughing. Instead, she shook her head, her pigtails flying. "No, it's okay, Anna. I can wait until your practice is over."

"You sure?" Anna asked her. A slight frown appeared on her face and Mina considered that a huge accomplishment. She smiled.

"Yes, really. What I have to say is really, super-duper awesome and you're just going to die when you hear it but I can wait a bit before I burst at the seams." Mina pushed her hands, indicating that she run along. "Seriously, I don't want to get in the middle of practice."

For a second she considered sneaking in a sly comment to Anna to get her onto the squad, but then she realized that she didn't care about being a cheerleader anymore. Right now, she was living on Cloud Nine officially dating Dan; cheerleading was no longer on her wish list.

A look of skepticism shadowed Anna's face for a spilt second before she shrugged and walked away. Mina stepped back, still grinning. She plopped down onto the grass, ignoring the voice in her head that told her she had no maid here that would help her get grass stains out her skirt. She smoothed it out and tucked her legs to the side, enjoying the view she had. There, she was able to see her best friend just as clearly as she could see her new boyfriend.

Her heart leaped once more when she saw Dan run onto the field. He was smiling while he jogged, and Mina basked in the thought that he was still thinking of her, that the smile was just the result of her face in his head. The thought made her blush and giggle.

Dan was a great soccer player. He and Jessi were famed throughout the school for being the dynamic duo. A game could never be played with Jessi on field without Dan there too, and vice versa. They complemented each other. They covered each other's hindsight as if they were one and the same. With them both on the field, it was a sure win for Middleton Academy.

Even now, while they practiced, Dan and Jessi were kicking ass. They both had laughing faces as Dan twirled around, dodging an opponent as he dribbled the ball. More people came upon him from in front, blocking his sure shot to the goal but Dan wasn't flustered. He pulled the ball away from an attacker and shot blindly behind him with his heel. He continued running ahead, never stopping to look back as Jessi ran forward, catching the ball with a laugh of his own. He swerved past more opponents then, when the coast was mainly clear, he kicked the ball upwards and sent it overhead. Dan, who now stood near the goal, flipped back unto his back, sending a flying kick ball into the goal. The team rioted.

Mina herself was going crazy, screaming and clapping from her post on the ground. "Go Dan!" she screeched. Dan turned around at the voice. Mina waved frantically, trying to get his attention and, when he spotted her, he smiled. He waved back, acknowledging her, before running off to continue.

Mina turned back to Anna. She still stood on the outskirts, but instead of watching the cheerleaders, she was watching the soccer practice. Her face was unreadable, as usual, but her eyes were intense. Mina couldn't be entirely sure who she was staring at, but had a sneaking suspicion – and mounting hope – that it was Jessi.

"Hey! New girl!" Mina jumped at the snapping voice. Angela approached Anna, who turned to face her, and crossed her arms again. "Are you even listening?"

To Mina's surprise, Anna shook her head. "No," she said, and Mina almost doubled over, had she not been sitting. She still couldn't figure out this girl. How can she be so fearless?

Angela grew visibly angrier. Then a smile creeped over her face. "You think you have what it takes to be a Middleton Academy cheerleader? We don't just lift our legs and scream 'Go Centaurs!' you know. It's much more complicated than that."

Anna's only reply was a cocked eyebrow and the words, "Your mascot is a centaur?"

"If you don't even know the school's mascot, how do you plan to become a cheerleader?"

"I didn't plan it. A piece of paper told me to go."

"If you're not serious –"

"How about you just show me what you've got and we'll see if I've got what it takes or not? Deal?"

Mina was more than sure she could have fried an egg with the angry heat that rushed to Angela's cheeks. Her mouth began to fold in on itself as she tried to contain her rage. Suddenly, she turned.

"Let's go, ladies!" she shouted. All the cheerleaders readied up.

Mina looked anxiously at Anna. She didn't know her long, had no idea whether she had any experience at all, but Mina saw the cheerleaders in action before. She knew that it wasn't just throwing legs up and clapping along to cheers. They mixed confusing dance routines with hard gymnastic moves. Just looking at them, you felt both entertained and overwhelmed by its obvious difficulty. Angela was a shining star each performance.

"Ready! Okay!" All in single line, the cheerleaders at the very end began clapping before jumping into such a complicated beat, Mina grew confused. She stared at them, as each cheerleader jumped in, adding to the beat. The sound was good, very good. But the way they made the sound, the claps, slapping their thighs, the creative way they carried it out, was even better. Suddenly, they made two loud shouts and stopped, hands clasped under their chin.

Music started. The beat was booming, making goosebumps rise on Mina's skin while her heart pounded along with it. Angela began first, twirling her hips and whipping her hair as she carried out the dance. Her hands moved right, backed up by the other cheerleaders, as they danced and gyrated perfectly. Angela outshone them all, carrying out each move so faultlessly, it was as if she was made to do it. When the beat stopped, she cartwheeled forward, then flipped backwards into the hands of her teammates. They pushed her into the air, and she twirled once before landing in their arms.

Mina watched the routine with her mouth opening each second that past. She never saw this one before, but of them all, this was the most complicated she had ever witnessed. It angered her that they were making Anna carry this out when she probably didn't even know the basics.

Anna was silent throughout it all. When Mina looked at her, she was just staring at them, her smoldering brown eyes boring into Angela as she scrutinized every move. It was only when they were done did she move, a simple blink.

Angela's grin was boasting. "Think you can handle that?"

"I don't know," Anna replied, shrugging. "Let's see, shall we? Should I take your place?" The question was light, but it served to anger Angela just a teensy bit. Mina could see it in the way her eyes narrowed, even while she gestured for her to go ahead.

Mina was sure this was doomed to fail. Even if Anna was capable of doing all that, there was no way she got everything in just one go. It was all a trap! Angela was trying to set her up to fail. She recognized the method, one of her more enjoyable ploys she used to get newbies to drop out. Mina's tongue drew her lip into her mouth as she watched anxiously for the disaster she was sure was about to unfold.

Anna didn't look flustered. Mina couldn't be sure if she wasn't or if she just didn't care about humiliating herself. Mina wasn't sure about a lot of things when it came on to Anna.

She started the beat off slow, while tense breathing floated around her. Those tense breaths turned to shock gasps when she sped the beat up, matching everything effortlessly. Gaping mouths and wide eyed became a well-known sight when Anna polished off the beat with no mistakes and moved flawlessly into the dance. By that time, Mina was gaping alongside everyone else, even those who had gathered to watch the humiliation of the new girl, but was now enraptured in her performance. She wasn't as perfect as Angela, didn't move as smooth, but she got the movements and she carried them out well. When she cartwheeled forward, two girls moved into catch her and she flipped backwards into their hands.

Anna seemed to suspend in midair, all eyes on her. She went high. Flipped once, twice, then managed to send Angela a salute as she plummeted back to the ground. When it was all over and applause broke out, Mina still couldn't believe her eyes.

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Hey guys! Kind of a filler chapter, but what did you think about Mina's POV?