"Drill team, you're up next," I called out to the crowd of people waiting in the hallway.
We were halfway through the pep rally, and it was going really well. The performances and contests had been great, and the students were engaged and having a good time. I slipped back into the gymnasium to watch the marching band play their last song, and then I ushered in the drill team. I was full of adrenaline. This was the kind of thing I loved. Being busy, watching everything come together. I was about to go into the hallway again when Sadie Garrett, my junior class vice president, walked up to me.
"Hey Kayla, the talent show sign up is full," she said, handing me the paper. "It looks pretty good, but I'm not sure about the first sign up."
I read what was written on the first line. "The Shadowed Singer." I frowned. It sounded sketchy. It could be some idiot determined to ruin the show. "Well, they put their contact information there, so let's just be sure to figure out who it is and what they're planning before we let them perform," I said.
"Sounds good, I'll get on that." Sadie responded. "How are you doing right now? Do you need any help?"
"Yeah. Could you let the football team know they're going to have a couple extra minutes for their presentation? We're a little ahead of schedule."
"Absolutely." Sadie disappeared into the hallway and I turned my attention back to the drill team. I noticed some liquid had been spilled on the floor in front of the bleachers. The cheerleaders were on next, and I knew that a couple of them would be tumbling in that spot. If they slipped, it could be devastating. I looked around for a janitor, but I couldn't find one. I glanced down at my clothes. I was wearing a cardigan over a tank top. It was a warm day and I really didn't need the extra layer, plus it could be easily washed.
When the drill team finished, I rushed over to the spill, whipped off my cardigan and quickly mopped it up. I heard some cheers and whistles as I finished, and I blushed and gave a small wave before heading back to my post by the hallway. I couldn't help but think about Frog and how he had been treated as he cleaned up at the football game, how his experience had been so different from mine. I guess a little popularity made a difference after all.
The cheerleaders ran out and got everyone pumped up with their high energy routine and gymnastics. I noted with some satisfaction that one of the girls did in fact do a back handspring in the spot that I had just cleaned up. I watched Miranda and smiled. It seemed like she had enough energy for the whole team. They finished to loud cheering, and then the football team came in, making the students go wild. I let myself gaze at Wyatt for a few moments before I went over to the sound board to prepare the music for the end of the rally. As the football team ended their presentation, James Huckston walked forward to announce the homecoming royalty. I was mainly tuning it out until I heard my name.
"Homecoming Princess: Kayla Morrison!"
It took me a moment to realize that I needed to walk up and stand with all the other royalty. People were cheering and James smiled at me as I took my place with the others.
"Homecoming Prince: Wyatt Brooks!"
My heart pounded as Wyatt came over to stand next to me. His eyes lingered on my tank top before he dragged them up to my face. I felt a moment of discomfort, but shook it off as I smiled at him.
"Looks like we'll be sharing a dance," he whispered.
"I don't mind if you don't," I replied.
"Why don't we make it easy and just dance together the entire night?"
"Yeah, okay," I said, hating myself for sounding really lame as I responded to his understated way of asking me to homecoming.
He smiled and slipped his hand into mine, making my heart nearly beat out of my chest. I noticed Miranda glaring at me, and I suddenly remembered that she had wanted to be homecoming princess. I felt a little bad, at least, as bad as I could feel standing there holding Wyatt's hand. It wasn't like I'd tried to become royalty, it hadn't ever really appealed to me. Maybe I could add it to all the things I was planning to put on my college applications. That had been my objective for the past few years. If I had enough impressive things on my applications, maybe the admissions people wouldn't mind that my father was in prison for attempted murder.