New muddy Keds story:
Jenna was very excited about the dedication for the re-built football stadium. She had made Head Cheerleader the previous year but wasn't able to show off at home due to the construction forcing all of the team's games being away.
Cheer camp had recently ended and she knew that - by far - she was the prettiest and most talented cheerleader on the squad. She swore that most of the girls had two left feet and were very uncoordinated.
Jenna was able to sway the school board into getting new uniforms in conjunction with the opening of the new stadium. The uniforms were blue with white trim, both the top and the pleated short skirt. This was for except HER uniform which was white with blue trim. This made it clear who was to be the center of attention - the head cheerleader.
Jenna spent extra time on her hair that day, wanting to look perfect for the event. Her shoulder length blonde hair was perfectly styled without a strand out of place. She had kept the uniform in a garment bag so that it wouldn't gather any dust. Lastly, just the day before, she received her new Keds back in the mail from Etsy where she had her initials embroidered on the heel area with the same blue as on the uniform. The initials were tasteful and discreet but added an extra level of eliteness to her ensemble. Paired with some cute, white ankle socks she looked adorable.
All of the cheerleaders gathered in the gym prior to the ceremony. Jenna was hoping that they wouldn't be in the gym for long as it was kind of stuffy and she didn't want to perspire. Fortunately, they got outside in a short while and were given instructions on the sequence of events. After some old guy talked, they were going to first introduce the football team followed by the cheerleaders. They were going to have everyone enter from the visitor's side and then make their way across the field.
This part couldn't go quick enough. She barely spoke to the other cheerleaders as most were "losers" in her mind. She was, however, very eager to get out to the field and show everyone, including her crush, her moves.
As the football team made their way down the hill to the far end of the stadium in full uniform, the principal gathered the girls and made an announcement about a "technical difficulty" they had been dealing with. As luck would have it, the sprinkler system timer malfunctioned and ran for 12 hours the day before as opposed to the two hours it was supposed to run. He informed them that the field may be "a little soggy" but it will be fine.
Jenna finally took a closer look at the field and saw that they erected a platform maybe 20 feet wide and 10 feet deep at the side of the field closest to the home stands for the speakers, football players and cheerleaders to use. It looked big enough for them to still do their routine but she'd be damned if she was walking across a squishy field in her new Keds and white socks.
Quickly, she looked for options. After a few seconds, she spied one of the nerds from the A/V Club sitting in a golf cart on the side close to where they'd be entering from. Turning on the charm, she asked him for a ride to the platform. He was unsure but she assured him that it would be okay and oh by the way, it would be a great opportunity for him to be seen with the head cheerleader. Her radiant smile finally convinced him.
When the cheerleaders were given the cue to make their entrance, she hopped in the golf cart which made its way across the field. She looked back to see the other cheerleaders trying to tiptoe across the wet, muddy grass. They looked ridiculous she thought, their efforts to keep their Keds clean were futile. When they reached the platform, they each had a brown ring of muddy wetness around at least half the canvas. A few had spots on their ankle socks. Jenna, on the other hand was immaculate - thanks to her smart thinking.
As A/V nerd pulled away, one of the tires spun and splashed mud on the side of Sara only adding to her blemished appearance. Jenna quietly laughed as they got into formation.
Jenna assessed the platform which was about six inches off the ground. It certainly seemed large enough for their routine. The platform was about 10 feet from the track that circled the field and as she looked down, she could immediately tell which way the water had drained from the field. It all seemed to pool in this general area which coupled with the equipment used to place the platform in place and the numerous tire ruts made for a soupy mess.
As the other girls briefly fussed over their shoes, Jenna scanned the crowd in the stands and spotted her crush sitting amongst several other of the cool guys. She waived and he waived back. As expected the local newspaper and radio station were there as well.
In a snarky tone, she referred to her group as piglets pointing at their soiled sneakers. Jenna then commanded them into position for their halftime routine. Her final warning to them was not to make her look bad. Time to shine!
5, 6, 7, 8.....the routine started flawlessly with everyone moving and dancing in unison. Jenna hit all of her marks as rehearsed. The other girls were on their game as well. (For once, Jenna thought.)
When Jenna hit her high spot she heard a whistle from the crowd which she was sure was her boy. The second and third numbers went just as well. The final routine was the shortest but the most intricate. She could feel everything flowing just as it should. She knew she was the center of attention in her white uniform - just as it should be.
In the last segment, they lifted Jenna up so that she could pose above the group. In that brief moment in the air she thought how gross it would be to be lifting one of the other girls in their wet, muddy sneakers but that wasn't the case for her. (She was doing them a favor!)
In the dismount she jumped down effortlessly. Looking up at the crowd, she didn't realize how close she was to the front of the platform. She felt her right foot over the edge somewhat and looked down. Her left foot was right at the edge and her right shoe was an inch or so over the front. No worries....her performance was over and her stance looked better with her foot dangling on the edge.
She posed with a big smile for the crowd. The other cheerleaders were to line up directly behind her so that there was no mistaking who the star was. As Sarah moved into place, she slipped on the spot of mud that was splashed onto the platform by the golf cart causing her to lurch forward....right into the back of Jenna.
As Jenna stood gleaming at the crowd, she felt this push from behind and with no space in front of her, she tumbled right down into the mud. First landing on her feet, she slipped and slid, her Keds offering no traction in the ankle-deep muck. Instantly, her look of poise and precision turned into a slapstick routine as she struggled to stay upright. Screaming "No!!!!" as her feet churned in the mud. A second later her left foot slid out from underneath and she fell on her left side all to the collective gasp in the crowd.
Scrambling to get out of the mud, she slipped again this time losing her right shoe in the mud. Laying now on her right side, she saw the sneaker sticking out of the mud like the Titanic on 45-degree angle. Looking down into the shoe, she watched the muddy water swirling in like a sinking ship. The embroidered initials were barely recognizable.
Sara offered a hand to help her up from the platform. Jenna took her hand with the intentions of pulling her in saying, "Look what you've done! My outfit is ruined!" As she pulled Sara, she lost her grip falling backwards, this time onto her back. Mud splashed into her hair and onto her face. Again screaming at Sara, she said, "You've ruined everything! Look at me! None of this will come clean!"
Somewhere in this mayhem her other shoe had come off and she was standing in the mud in her once-new white ankle socks. The left shoe had one white spot remaining at the end of one of the laces. She daintily picked it up by the lace using two fingers and slogged to the track where the local newspaper got her picture. Smile!
Jenna was very excited about the dedication for the re-built football stadium. She had made Head Cheerleader the previous year but wasn't able to show off at home due to the construction forcing all of the team's games being away.
Cheer camp had recently ended and she knew that - by far - she was the prettiest and most talented cheerleader on the squad. She swore that most of the girls had two left feet and were very uncoordinated.
Jenna was able to sway the school board into getting new uniforms in conjunction with the opening of the new stadium. The uniforms were blue with white trim, both the top and the pleated short skirt. This was for except HER uniform which was white with blue trim. This made it clear who was to be the center of attention - the head cheerleader.
Jenna spent extra time on her hair that day, wanting to look perfect for the event. Her shoulder length blonde hair was perfectly styled without a strand out of place. She had kept the uniform in a garment bag so that it wouldn't gather any dust. Lastly, just the day before, she received her new Keds back in the mail from Etsy where she had her initials embroidered on the heel area with the same blue as on the uniform. The initials were tasteful and discreet but added an extra level of eliteness to her ensemble. Paired with some cute, white ankle socks she looked adorable.
All of the cheerleaders gathered in the gym prior to the ceremony. Jenna was hoping that they wouldn't be in the gym for long as it was kind of stuffy and she didn't want to perspire. Fortunately, they got outside in a short while and were given instructions on the sequence of events. After some old guy talked, they were going to first introduce the football team followed by the cheerleaders. They were going to have everyone enter from the visitor's side and then make their way across the field.
This part couldn't go quick enough. She barely spoke to the other cheerleaders as most were "losers" in her mind. She was, however, very eager to get out to the field and show everyone, including her crush, her moves.
As the football team made their way down the hill to the far end of the stadium in full uniform, the principal gathered the girls and made an announcement about a "technical difficulty" they had been dealing with. As luck would have it, the sprinkler system timer malfunctioned and ran for 12 hours the day before as opposed to the two hours it was supposed to run. He informed them that the field may be "a little soggy" but it will be fine.
Jenna finally took a closer look at the field and saw that they erected a platform maybe 20 feet wide and 10 feet deep at the side of the field closest to the home stands for the speakers, football players and cheerleaders to use. It looked big enough for them to still do their routine but she'd be damned if she was walking across a squishy field in her new Keds and white socks.
Quickly, she looked for options. After a few seconds, she spied one of the nerds from the A/V Club sitting in a golf cart on the side close to where they'd be entering from. Turning on the charm, she asked him for a ride to the platform. He was unsure but she assured him that it would be okay and oh by the way, it would be a great opportunity for him to be seen with the head cheerleader. Her radiant smile finally convinced him.
When the cheerleaders were given the cue to make their entrance, she hopped in the golf cart which made its way across the field. She looked back to see the other cheerleaders trying to tiptoe across the wet, muddy grass. They looked ridiculous she thought, their efforts to keep their Keds clean were futile. When they reached the platform, they each had a brown ring of muddy wetness around at least half the canvas. A few had spots on their ankle socks. Jenna, on the other hand was immaculate - thanks to her smart thinking.
As A/V nerd pulled away, one of the tires spun and splashed mud on the side of Sara only adding to her blemished appearance. Jenna quietly laughed as they got into formation.
Jenna assessed the platform which was about six inches off the ground. It certainly seemed large enough for their routine. The platform was about 10 feet from the track that circled the field and as she looked down, she could immediately tell which way the water had drained from the field. It all seemed to pool in this general area which coupled with the equipment used to place the platform in place and the numerous tire ruts made for a soupy mess.
As the other girls briefly fussed over their shoes, Jenna scanned the crowd in the stands and spotted her crush sitting amongst several other of the cool guys. She waived and he waived back. As expected the local newspaper and radio station were there as well.
In a snarky tone, she referred to her group as piglets pointing at their soiled sneakers. Jenna then commanded them into position for their halftime routine. Her final warning to them was not to make her look bad. Time to shine!
5, 6, 7, 8.....the routine started flawlessly with everyone moving and dancing in unison. Jenna hit all of her marks as rehearsed. The other girls were on their game as well. (For once, Jenna thought.)
When Jenna hit her high spot she heard a whistle from the crowd which she was sure was her boy. The second and third numbers went just as well. The final routine was the shortest but the most intricate. She could feel everything flowing just as it should. She knew she was the center of attention in her white uniform - just as it should be.
In the last segment, they lifted Jenna up so that she could pose above the group. In that brief moment in the air she thought how gross it would be to be lifting one of the other girls in their wet, muddy sneakers but that wasn't the case for her. (She was doing them a favor!)
In the dismount she jumped down effortlessly. Looking up at the crowd, she didn't realize how close she was to the front of the platform. She felt her right foot over the edge somewhat and looked down. Her left foot was right at the edge and her right shoe was an inch or so over the front. No worries....her performance was over and her stance looked better with her foot dangling on the edge.
She posed with a big smile for the crowd. The other cheerleaders were to line up directly behind her so that there was no mistaking who the star was. As Sarah moved into place, she slipped on the spot of mud that was splashed onto the platform by the golf cart causing her to lurch forward....right into the back of Jenna.
As Jenna stood gleaming at the crowd, she felt this push from behind and with no space in front of her, she tumbled right down into the mud. First landing on her feet, she slipped and slid, her Keds offering no traction in the ankle-deep muck. Instantly, her look of poise and precision turned into a slapstick routine as she struggled to stay upright. Screaming "No!!!!" as her feet churned in the mud. A second later her left foot slid out from underneath and she fell on her left side all to the collective gasp in the crowd.
Scrambling to get out of the mud, she slipped again this time losing her right shoe in the mud. Laying now on her right side, she saw the sneaker sticking out of the mud like the Titanic on 45-degree angle. Looking down into the shoe, she watched the muddy water swirling in like a sinking ship. The embroidered initials were barely recognizable.
Sara offered a hand to help her up from the platform. Jenna took her hand with the intentions of pulling her in saying, "Look what you've done! My outfit is ruined!" As she pulled Sara, she lost her grip falling backwards, this time onto her back. Mud splashed into her hair and onto her face. Again screaming at Sara, she said, "You've ruined everything! Look at me! None of this will come clean!"
Somewhere in this mayhem her other shoe had come off and she was standing in the mud in her once-new white ankle socks. The left shoe had one white spot remaining at the end of one of the laces. She daintily picked it up by the lace using two fingers and slogged to the track where the local newspaper got her picture. Smile!
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