Chapter 325 - Everybody’s Watching

Chapter 325: Chapter 325 - Everybody’s Watching

"You were so high!"

Roxie laughed as Jayson’s face filled almost the entire screen.

"I know. I was there."

"No, like really high."

"That’s kind of the point."

Jayson grinned, completely ignoring her sarcasm. "I saw everything."

"I saw you too."

That part was true. Somewhere during the chaos after preliminaries, when Briarwick had finally been allowed to leave the competition area, Roxie had managed to find Cynthia, Jayson, and Mr. Robinson near one of the exits. They had watched Briarwick perform from somewhere in the arena, then stayed long enough to congratulate her before heading back to their own hotel.

They were all here in Orlando for Nationals, but thankfully they were staying somewhere else. Roxie liked it that way. She liked knowing they had traveled all the way to Florida to watch her without suddenly feeling like every part of the trip had become a forced family event.

Cynthia appeared behind Jayson. "He’s been talking about your routine since we got back."

"I told everyone she’s my sister."

Roxie’s smile softened.

Jayson had started calling her that lately, sometimes Sis, sometimes Sister. The first few times, the word had caught her off guard, but now she was slowly getting used to it.

"You’re gonna win tomorrow," Jayson announced.

"We still have another round."

"You’re gonna win that too."

Roxie smiled. "You sound very sure."

"Because you’re good."

"Well, thank you."

"And because you’re my sister."

That one got her again.

Before she could answer, Cynthia glanced somewhere offscreen.

"Your dad’s here."

The warmth inside Roxie shifted.

She barely had time to prepare before the phone moved and Mr. Robinson appeared.

"Hey, Roxie."

"Hi."

He smiled at her, careful as always.

"Congratulations. You girls looked great out there."

Roxie went quiet.

They barely talked. Most of the time that was because she made sure they didn’t.

She bit her lip before muttering, "Thanks."

Mr. Robinson had been trying to mend their relationship for a while now. He called more often, asked about school, asked about cheer, and seemed to have learned that pushing Roxie only made her retreat farther.

He had even come all the way to Orlando.

She knew that should mean something, and maybe it did.

But every time Roxie thought about letting him closer, Claire came with it, along with everything Roxie had lived through while Mr. Robinson had been somewhere else with another family.

Some part of her was still angry.

Another part felt guilty whenever she imagined forgiving him too easily.

It felt like betrayal, as if letting him become her father now somehow erased everything her mother had done without him.

Roxie knew that probably was not fair.

She still preferred the distance.

It was easier there.

"Thanks for coming," she said.

Mr. Robinson’s smile softened. "I wouldn’t miss it."

Before the silence could become awkward, Jayson pushed himself back into the frame.

"You have to win."

Roxie laughed. "Wow. No pressure."

"You can do it."

"I’ll try."

Jayson frowned immediately. "Try?"

"Okay, okay. We’ll do our best."

"Roxie!"

Angela’s voice carried across the pool.

Roxie turned and found her waving from the other side of their section.

"Drinks are here!"

"Coming!"

She looked back at the screen.

"I need to go. We’re celebrating."

Jayson leaned closer again. "Bye, sis."

Roxie smiled. "Bye."

"Win tomorrow."

"I heard you the first five times."

Cynthia laughed and waved while Mr. Robinson gave her another small smile from behind them.

Roxie ended the call and stared at the dark screen for a moment before Angela shouted again.

"Roxie!"

"Jesus, I’m coming!"

She stood and headed back toward the pool.

The hotel had a large outdoor swimming area wrapped around one side of the building, and apparently half the teams staying there had decided to celebrate preliminaries in exactly the same place.

Cheerleaders filled the pool, the lounge chairs, and the tables surrounding it. Some were still wearing team shirts over swimsuits while others had already changed completely. Music played from somewhere near the far end, mixed with laughter, splashing water, and conversations from at least six different teams.

Briarwick had claimed a corner near the shallow end.

Karen and Angela sat at one table with several drinks while some of the other girls were already in the water.

Zac was sitting on one of the lounge chairs beside them in nothing but swim trunks, his hair still wet from the pool and his bare chest shining under the lights.

Roxie slowed when she saw him.

Then she noticed she was not the only one looking.

Two girls from another team walked past the table, and both of them glanced at Zac. One looked away quickly. The other absolutely did not. Her eyes traveled straight over his chest and down his stomach before she whispered something to her friend.

Roxie frowned.

Then another girl looked.

Oh, hell no.

She reached for the shirt Zac had tossed over the back of the chair and threw it at his chest.

"Put that on."

Zac caught it and stared at her. "Why?"

"Because people are salivating over your abs."

His mouth immediately curved.

Roxie regretted speaking.

"Are they?"

"Put your fucking shirt on."

Zac laughed as he pulled it over his head.

Roxie watched him do it and felt slightly worse with every second. If some guy told his girlfriend to cover herself because other men were staring, half the women around them would probably be in his face asking why the hell he thought he had the right to control what she wore.

Meanwhile, Roxie had just thrown a shirt at her boyfriend because two girls looked at his stomach.

Amazing.

She was apparently a feminist until Zac Prescott’s abs became public property.

Zac finished pulling the shirt down and looked at her with far too much satisfaction.

"Happy, babe?"

"Very."

"You’re jealous."

"As if."

"You threw clothes at me."

"They were staring."

"So?"

Roxie glared at him. "You enjoyed that way too much."

"I enjoyed you caring."

Before she could answer, Zac reached for her waist and pulled her closer until their sides were pressed together. His hand stayed there, warm against the bare skin above her swimsuit, while his thumb moved lazily against her side.

He leaned toward her ear.

"For what it’s worth, I haven’t been looking at anybody else."

Roxie’s irritation weakened immediately.

Zac smiled against her hair. "Why would I look anywhere else when you’re sitting right here looking this fucking hot?"

Heat crawled into her cheeks.

"Zac."

"And beautiful."

She elbowed him lightly, but that only made him laugh as his hand tightened around her waist.

"Stop."

"You started it."

"I made you put on a shirt."

"Because you’re obsessed with me."

Roxie turned to glare at him, and Zac only grinned before tapping his thigh.

"Come here, princess."

Her eyes dropped to his lap.

Absolutely fucking not.

At home, pulling her onto his lap was one thing. Here, he was wearing thin swim trunks while half the Briarwick cheer team sat around them, along with what looked like half the competitors at Nationals. If his body decided to react, darkness around the pool was not going to save either of them.

Judging by Zac’s expression, he knew exactly what she was thinking.

She sat beside him instead.

His grin widened.

Roxie narrowed her eyes. This man had become way too brave lately.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing."

"You look scared."

"I am not scared."

"Of my lap?"

Karen made a disgusted sound across the table. "I hate sitting with you two."

Angela slid a drink toward Roxie. "Here. Celebrate before they become unbearable."

Roxie grabbed it. "Thank you."

Zac leaned closer. "Coward."

She elbowed him again.

He laughed and wrapped an arm around her shoulders instead.

Roxie let herself lean against him.

For the first time since they had arrived at Nationals, she actually relaxed.

They had passed preliminaries.

That alone still felt unreal.

Earlier, Roxie had convinced herself they might be going home before they had even really started. Now Briarwick was still in the competition, the girls were celebrating around her, and for a few hours they could stop thinking about scores, judges, and whether another team had cleaner stunts than they did.

Karen lifted her cup.

"To surviving preliminaries."

Angela raised hers. "Barely."

Roxie clinked her drink against theirs.

Zac lifted his too. "To Virginia State Champions making everybody nervous."

Karen looked at him. "That was painfully supportive."

"I can be supportive."

Angela stared at him. "That sounded fake even when you said it."

Roxie laughed.

Zac looked offended. "Your captain loves me."

"Unfortunately," Roxie said.

His arm tightened around her.

For a while, the night stayed easy.

Some of the girls jumped into the pool. Karen nearly got dragged in by two of the bases and threatened to drown both of them if they tried again. Angela spent ten minutes arguing with someone about which team had the best uniforms, while Zac kept stealing from Roxie’s drink until she finally slapped his hand away.

Around them, other teams celebrated too.

Roxie recognized a few girls from the competition hall, though everyone looked different without the bows, competition makeup, and uniforms.

Seeing them like this helped.

Earlier, they had seemed almost untouchable. Now they were just teenagers splashing each other in a hotel pool.

Roxie finished her drink and stood.

"I need the bathroom."

Karen immediately got up. "So do I."

Angela followed. "Same."

Zac looked between all three of them. "Why do girls always do that?"

Karen looked at him. "Do what?"

"Go to the bathroom together."

"Because we have secrets."

"What secrets?"

Angela started walking. "That’s why they’re secrets."

Roxie laughed and followed them.

The restroom near the pool was busier than she expected.

Several girls stood in front of the mirrors fixing their hair while another group occupied most of the sinks. Roxie recognized one of the team shirts from the arena earlier but could not remember the school.

She went into one of the stalls while Karen and Angela waited outside.

For a few seconds, everything was normal.

Then someone spoke.

"Is that her?"

Roxie went still.

A quieter voice answered, followed by a soft laugh.

She closed her eyes briefly before finishing, flushing, and stepping out.

Three girls stood near the mirrors.

One of them looked directly at Roxie, then leaned closer to her friend.

"Yeah. That’s definitely her."

Karen went still beside the sink while Angela looked toward Roxie.

Roxie walked over and turned on the faucet.

Keep your cool.

She caught Karen and Angela’s eyes in the mirror and gave them a small shake of her head.

The girl nearest the mirror looked Roxie over before clicking her tongue.

"I thought she’d look different."

Her friend laughed. "Same."

Roxie kept washing her hands.

Karen’s mouth tightened, but she stayed where she was.

The first girl continued.

"Must be nice coming to Nationals when everybody already knows who you are."

Roxie shut off the water and reached for a paper towel.

Another girl leaned against the counter.

"Seriously. Some teams actually have to get attention because they’re good."

Karen turned immediately.

Roxie grabbed her wrist.

She could deal with them staring at her.

She could deal with whatever they thought about the videos.

But Briarwick had worked too hard for anyone to act like the team had somehow made it here because Roxie was getting attention online.

She dried her hands slowly before turning around.

"You done?"

The first girl raised her eyebrows. "We weren’t talking to you."

Roxie stared at her. "Seriously? You’re gonna talk about me ten feet away and then pretend you weren’t?"

The girl’s fake smile tightened.

"Relax. Everyone here knows who you are. You should be used to people talking."

The second girl laughed softly.

"Just be careful. Somebody might film you again."

Roxie’s stomach tightened.

For one second, she said nothing.

The girl noticed.

That pissed her off more than the comment itself.

Karen stepped forward.

"Say it again."

Roxie caught her arm.

"Karen."

"No, Roxie."

"Leave it."

The girls were watching them now, waiting.

Probably hoping for exactly what Karen was about to give them.

Roxie looked back at the first girl.

"If you have something to say about me, say it to my face next time."

The girl opened her mouth.

Roxie rolled her eyes before she could answer.

"Actually, forget it. I’m already bored."

She threw the paper towel into the trash and headed for the door.

Karen and Angela followed.

The moment they reached the hallway, Angela turned around.

"I should’ve slapped her."

"And then Coach Miller would kill all three of us."

"She deserved it."

"I know."

Karen looked at Roxie. "You okay?"

Roxie kept walking.

"Yeah."

She hoped it sounded convincing.

When they reached the entrance to the pool, Roxie glanced back through the open restroom door.

One of the girls stood near the mirror with her phone in her hand.

For half a second, Roxie could have sworn the camera was pointed toward the doorway.

Then the girl lowered it.

Roxie turned away.

The laughter and music from the pool suddenly sounded different.

Ten minutes ago, Nationals had finally started feeling fun.

Now Roxie found herself looking around again, wondering who else already knew exactly who she was.