"Please, just one more picture, Conner," I urged. I had been standing in the rain for an hour, trying to capture that perfect shot. "Iz, we've already taken 20 photos," Conner replied. "You're going to catch a cold," added Ashleigh, one of my cheer squad friends. After some persuasion, I managed to convince them to snap a few more shots. "That's 40 and counting," Conner finally said. Perhaps I had overdone it.

At that moment, my phone rang. "Izabelle Waters. Hi," I answered. "Where are you? The game is about to start, and the coach is growing impatient," Leah, another cheer friend, said. "What do you mean? Haven't you guys gone on yet?" I asked, feeling flustered. "No, it's today. Maybe if you hadn't fallen asleep, you'd know," she replied. I promised to arrive in 10 minutes and asked her to hold off for me.

With just five minutes to spare, Ash, Conner, and I arrived at school. "Where have you been?" Everleigh yelled at us. "And why are you wet?" Leah inquired. "I was out taking pictures because I felt like it, and it was raining," I explained. "You've got 15 minutes to get ready, Waters," Coach Marya informed me. I thought the game was about to start... or so I believed. "It's called pressurization," Leah commented, perhaps not just to me. I rushed to get ready, needing to dry my hair quickly. I blow-dried it and slipped into my uniform to meet the squad and the team outside.

Our school has a unique way of doing the opening stunts. We cheerleaders perform alongside the football team. We run onto the field, waving our arms high, then turn to face our partners. "Holy shitake mushrooms, Fisher... if he drops me, he's dead," I whispered to myself. We hurried to our partners, and I placed one foot in his waiting hands. He lifted me onto his shoulders and steadied me by gripping my ankles.

"You drop me, Fisher, and you're a dead man," I hissed. "If I drop you, you'll end up with a concussion," he shot back. Aiden Fisher, the captain of the football team, is undoubtedly the most annoying person in existence. His best friend, Everleigh, is also irritating but somewhat bearable. "Your feet are starting to slip... how much longer?" he asked. "Just a few more seconds, and remember, you're holding my ankles," I replied, and with that, I leapt off his shoulders, performing a front flip mid-air and landing on my feet. At the end, we waved our pom-poms high.

The rest of the game went smoothly, with no major hiccups. However, the announcement of the winner was delayed as they carefully reviewed the videos in slow motion. Hailey asked who we thought would win, and we all confidently replied, "Us... Duh!" Finally, the announcement came, "The winners are... The Royals!" We all leapt up, screaming and cheering. I stole a glance at Fisher, and witnessing his joy warmed my heart. Despite my efforts to uphold my tough reputation, I couldn't help but question whether I truly hated him... or not.

After the game, everyone decided to head to someone's house for a celebration, and Everleigh insisted that we cheerleaders join in. Without consulting me, everyone agreed to celebrate at my house. I responded firmly, "No, absolutely not! I don't want to have this at my place. If you want to celebrate, it's happening somewhere else, understood?"

They didn't heed my words, and before I knew it, we were all heading to my house. I sat in the driver's seat, blasting Reputation because it's the album I listen to when I'm upset. Conner wasn't allowed to come either, but that was fine; I had Ash. "Is this what we're listening to on the way to your house?" a voice asked me. "That's because, Fisher, you invited yourself into my car," I snapped back. The rest of the ride was peaceful, with me vibing to the music, and I thought I even heard Fisher singing along.

"So, you guys have decided to celebrate at my house, but what do you have in mind?" I inquired. "Let's relive our middle school days and play Spin the Bottle," Hailey suggested. "We act like middle schoolers?" Fisher and I said in unison, both staring at each other. "Exactly," Hailey replied. I looked at her sceptically. "This is going to be fun," I muttered, the sarcasm practically dripping from my words.