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[img]https://i.imgur.com/ghsMnBk.jpg[/img]
[sub]A collab featuring [@ayzrules] and [@MissCapnCrunch][/sub][/center]

[color=B0B7BC] It was a familiar sight. As her fellow cheerleaders gathered in the south entrance of Ohio Stadium, Melissa Elliott felt the tingle of anticipation. It wasn’t a foreign feeling, but it still held the same kind of charge that she remembered. However, she wasn’t prepared for CJ Stroud walking right up to her as she stood in the tunnel. [b]“Hey,”[/b] he said confidently. [b]“I know this is a big deal, but you’ve got this. I know you’ve got this. So, get out there and be the best dot you can be, Melissa.”[/b] The quarterback punctuated this believe with a peck on the lips of the cheerleader before heading back to the Buckeyes’ sideline, lest Coach Day chew him out for being where he shouldn’t be. 

Rejuvenated from the affection, Melissa readied herself against the 100,000 fans that were sure to be out there for what had to be a pivotal early-season game against Bowling Green. She turned back to the rest of her squad. [color=CE0F3D]“All right, we got this, you know?”[/color] she questioned the rest of her team. [color=CE0F3D]“We’re gonna go out there and give the show that we know those Buckeye faithful deserve! You hear me?”[/color] A loud cheer rose up behind her. [color=CE0F3D]“Damn straight! Let’s do this!”[/color] As Melissa led the rest of the Ohio State cheer squad out to the field, she was suddenly tackled from the side! It had to be a rogue Falcon aiming to take her out of the picture! But she wouldn’t allow it! At least, until she heard the remarks accompanying the take down.

[color=ff00ff]“Melissa! Wake up! It’s like 7! You’re my drive!”[/color]

After a brief moment admitting that her sister could indeed hit people as well as any linebacker the Mid-American Conference had to offer, Melissa was annoyed at being snapped out of her usual stellar dream. A dream that was sure to be a reality soon enough. But Zoey had a point. Those realities had to start somewhere, and that somewhere was today. The first day of the last year of high school. 

It was an important day. Enough that Melissa had taken no chances and laid out her outfit the night before. A pair of denim shorts that would be sure to highlight her well-toned legs, hidden behind some Buckeye-silver leggings, as well as a scarlet-red tank top and a matching bow for her pulled back hair. Melissa added a silver zip-up sweatshirt, just in case the wind decided to make itself known, but it was likely going to be just for the morning to keep the chill off.

Luckily for Melissa, Zoey’s early entrance surely meant that she wasn’t going to require the bathroom for a lengthy duration of time. After a shower and a detailed trip to the mirror, Melissa headed downstairs to the kitchen-living room that made up the first floor of the duplex she called home. 

[color=800020]“Hey hun,”[/color] Jessica Elliott called out to her eldest daughter. [color=800020]“I’m sorry I don’t really have breakfast ready. Got called to the store. That damn Valerie didn’t show up for her shift.”[/color]

[color=CE0F3D]“It’s all right, mom,”[/color] Melissa assured her mother. [color=CE0F3D]“Take it out on Valerie. Hell, fire her. She deserves it. That’s what, the third time she’s deserted?”[/color]

[color=800020]“Fourth,”[/color] Jessica answered. [color=800020]“Let’s see which family member died this time…”[/color] The elder Elliott shook her head. [color=800020]“Are you good to drive your sister to school?”[/color]

[color=CE0F3D]“Yeah, I’ll get her there,”[/color] Melissa confirmed. [color=CE0F3D]”You good to ride, Z?”[/color]

Zoey nodded from the living room, where a Netflix episode of She-Ra blared.

All Melissa could do was shake her head. Her sister had some strange tendencies that would instantly disqualify her from mainstream popularity. But she was an Elliott, and damn it, Melissa would drag her to the crown like Zeke Elliott dragging that 2014 Ohio State championship team. [color=CE0F3D]“All right, we might as well head out now then. You ready, Zoey?”[/color] A quick nod from her sister confirmed that this show was going to hit the road shortly.

[color=800020]“Great. Have a good day at school, girls!”[/color] Jessica called out as she herself headed out towards the door.

The Elliott sisters weren’t far after their mother. Again, Melissa was way too ready for this final first day at Rosefell, and she was going to make sure everything went as it should, right down to the length of the lead in her mechanical pencils. There was gas in her car, there was money in her purse for lunch. Everything was as it should be. And her sister was not going to ruin this day for Melissa. No, ma’am. Pulling her sibling away from the TV, Melissa quickly shepherded Zoey into the backseat of the 2011 sedan and got ready to assemble the rest of the thorns.

After a short drive, Melissa pulled her Sentra into the driveway where her second-in-command was supposed to be waiting. She turned around to talk to Zoe. [color=CE0F3D]“All right, Steph should be out pretty quickly.”[/color]

Zoe slumped back in the seat. [color=ff00ff]“Can we at least get Taco Bell or something for breakfast?”[/color]

Melissa looked at her incredulously. [color=CE0F3D]“Do you want diarrhea on the first day of school? Damn it Zoe, that’s a supper place. At least ask for McDonald’s or something…”[/color] Melissa thought for a second. [color=CE0F3D]“Actually, an Egg McMuffin sounds good. We might do that.”[/color]

Steph was nowhere to be seen, so Melissa grabbed her phone out of the console and shot a quick text to her best friend:

[code] Hey Pink Lightning! Where you at? I got a hungry sister to feed here![/code]

Once she got Melissa’s text, Steph was jumping out of her seat at the kitchen table, headed for the door. Steph had a car - well, technically, she shared it with her brother Kevin - but it was a janky, ratchet-as-can-be mom van that was older than she was. Needless to say, they took Melissa’s car anytime they had to go somewhere.

Steph paused at the threshold to slip on a pair of [url=https://i.pinimg.com/474x/2d/7e/46/2d7e4676bab3fb6e09fe6b261fa5b46b.jpg]pink boots[/url], decorated with a cute floral design (Steph thought that they were cherry blossoms), before bounding out the door. Sure enough, Melissa was pulled into her driveway, and Steph gave her friend a cheery wave as she pulled open the door to the passenger seat.

[color=F4BAD0]“Hey, Melissa!”[/color] Steph paused to buckle her seatbelt, and then she turned around and waved at Zoey, too. [color=F4BAD0]“Hi Zoey!”[/color] 

Steph put her backpack on the ground and settled back into her seat. [color=F4BAD0]“Have you seen your schedule yet? We should compare. I don’t know if we’ll have any classes together - ugh, it [i]sucks[/i] - but maybe we will! That would honestly be the best thing, like, [i]ever[/i]![/color]

True to Steph nature, she was going a mile a minute the second she got into the car. If scientists could harness the speed of which the girl could talk, it would end the energy crisis, and ensure the south side never had a blackout ever. Sadly, it just served as an excellent wake up call for now. [color=CE0F3D]"Nice to see you too, Steph,"[/color] Melissa offered in response. [color=CE0F3D]"I haven't seen it yet, but I don't have to, because I am certain we are in a good number of classes together. Especially if certain people know what is good for them."[/color] Melissa slowly pulled out of the driveway and started motoring towards the next destination to pick up the other member of the Thorns. 

Steph giggled at Melissa’s response - it really was [i]such[/i] a Melissa thing to say - and pulled up her own schedule on her phone. [color=F4BAD0]“Highkey, I don’t want to go to any of these classes,”[/color] Steph said, frowning. [color=F4BAD0]“Besides lunch. Does lunch count as a class? It should, so that we could get more time for it. Thirty minutes really isn’t enough of a break from school. Ugh.”[/color]

As Melissa started in the direction of Tiffany’s house, Steph tapped open the text message that Tiff sent the group chat. 

[indent][indent][color=D8BD51][i]MY DAY IS RUINED![/i] 😭 [i]I CAN'T STAND IT!!![/i][/color][/indent][/indent]
She quickly replied:

[indent][indent][color=F4BAD0][i]oh nooooooooo!!! :( What happened???????[/i][/color][/indent][/indent]

[color=CE0F3D]"To be fair…,"[/color] Melissa offered. [color=CE0F3D]"We do have the option of taking longer breaks if needed, especially if English is the class surrounding lunch. Honestly, who needs English? I already speak it and I don't need to read Shakespeare's fractured take on femininity any more, thanks."[/color] She glanced over as she pulled back onto the main road toward Tiff's place. [color=CE0F3D]"What's going on there?"[/color]

Steph nodded in agreement. [color=F4BAD0]“For [i]real[/i]! We’ve been reading this jerk since, like, sixth grade! There’s literally no reason we should still have to read his stuff. It’s also sooooo confusing to try to understand!”[/color] she said, making a vague gesture with her free hand. [color=F4BAD0]“Like, if we’re going to be forced to read boring stuff, I think we should at least be forced to read boring stuff that wasn’t written in medieval English.”[/color]

At Melissa’s question, Steph furrowed her brow and looked back down at her phone. [color=F4BAD0]“Tiff said that her day was already ruined! I wonder what happened.”[/color]

[color=CE0F3D]"Probably stared too long at the orange juice again and got a headache,"[/color] Melissa remarked. [color=CE0F3D]"It's hard to tell with that girl sometimes. But, I love her. Love her like a puppy."[/color] The girls lived relatively close together so it didn't take too long for them to reach Tiffany's home. [color=CE0F3D]"Anyway, it can't be too bad."[/color]

Steph laughed softly. [color=F4BAD0]“I guess that’s true,”[/color] she answered. [color=F4BAD0]“And I hope it isn’t! That would suck, having something super bad happen right before the first day of school!”[/color]

[color=CE0F3D]"Again, it can't be that bad,"[/color] Melissa repeated as she pulled into the driveway. [color=CE0F3D]"Can you text her that we're here?"[/color]

[color=F4BAD0]“Sure!”[/color] Steph chirped in response, tapping out a quick [color=F4BAD0][i]hey tiff we’re here![/i][/color] and sending it to the group chat.

Meanwhile, at the Ashford residence, Tiffany had been reading through her dm’s and totally ignoring the text messages she had received from her girls. She knew they had responded but wanted to wait until they arrived so she could really spill the dramatics up close and personal. After she received the “we’re here” text she gathered her belongings and came out the door, a mischievous albeit dorky smile plastered across her face.

[color=D8BD51][b]"SO!"[/b][/color] she said as she flung up the door to Melissa’s vehicle taking a look at who was inside, [color=D8BD51][b]"My day was ruined because I spilled butter all over my skirt, as you can see my first day outfit was in shambles!"[/b][/color] she explained as she crawled into the car, her backpack sitting carefully between her legs. [color=D8BD51][b]"Good morning, by the way, thanks for the ride.[/b][/color] she cooed, thankful she didn’t have to ride in with her mother and younger sister.

This was a new one on Melissa. [color=CE0F3D]“Tiff… how did you manage to spill butter on… actually, I’m not sure I want to know how that happened. Some things are best left unknown. Nice to see you, girl.”[/color] The queen put the Sentra back into drive and pulled out towards the penultimate destination. [color=CE0F3D]“Well, if you’re still hungry, we’re stopping at McDonald’s. You will have to try really hard to spill cheese on your jeans if you want something there.”[/color]

Steph waved a cheery greeting as Tiff made her entrance. [color=F4BAD0]“Tiff!”[/color] Steph giggled. [color=F4BAD0]“How did you spill [i]butter[/i]? Isn’t it, like, solid?”[/color]

Steph twisted around in her seat so that she could see Tiffany’s face. [color=F4BAD0]“Oh gosh, but I love your hair,”[/color] she said sincerely. [color=F4BAD0]“I can [i]never[/i] get curls to stay in my hair. It looks so pretty!”[/color]

Tiffany looked to her best friends, shaking her head a bit disappointed, [color=D8BD51][b]"No, no, no it wasn’t the stick. My mom’s got this new fancy butter that is already soft and like melty."[/b][/color] she made hand movements to symbolize a squishy item, [color=D8BD51][b]"I put it on my poptart and it just kind of-"[/b][/color] she blew a raspberry between her lips. She smiled as Steph complimented her hair, [color=D8BD51][b]"Thank you so much Steph, you’re so sweet!"[/b][/color] she beamed, knowing that the curls wouldn’t last the car ride most likely.

[color=D8BD51][b]"I really shouldn’t eat cheese, but I also really want a hashbrown.."[/b][/color] Tiffany mumbled to herself debating whether or not she should order breakfast with everyone after just eating.

[color=ff00ff]“I want a McGriddle!”[/color] Zoey chimed in.

[color=CE0F3D]“No you don’t, Zoey. You don’t want to be eating sunscreen,”[/color] Melissa chided her younger sister. [color=CE0F3D]“I can say that you still look ready to rock this year, Tiff. Even without the skirt.”[/color]

Steph nodded sympathetically as she listened to Tiff recount the story. [color=F4BAD0]“Aww, that sucks, Tiff!”[/color] she exclaimed, knowing that she herself would have been very put off if she’d spilled butter onto her clothes, too. [color=F4BAD0]“But I agree with Melissa, you know. You look fab!!!”[/color]

Steph made a face when Zoey mentioned McGridldles. [color=F4BAD0]“I think I’m just going to get fries. Or a hash brown. You can never go wrong with those, right?”[/color]

[color=CE0F3D]“You girls are really going full Irish with all the potatoes, huh?”[/color] Melissa opined.

[color=ff00ff]“I want breakfast burritos!”[/color] Zoey demanded.

[color=CE0F3D]“Fine,”[/color] Melissa sighed, resigned to getting Zoey something that was going to make a mess. [color=CE0F3D]“As long as you eat the burritos at the school. You’re not getting salsa all over my car.”[/color]

Tiffany laughed out loud as they discussed breakfast, it was nice to be back with these girls after not getting to spend as much time together over summer vacation. [color=D8BD51][b]"I think this will be a really good year for us."[/b][/color] she commented, hopefully. It was their senior year afterall and that meant that there was no going back after this. She wondered if they would remain friends after graduation was over. Could they all throw years of friendship away like that? She hoped that wasn’t the case.

[color=CE0F3D]“Well, of course!”[/color] Melissa agreed. [color=CE0F3D]“I mean, this is gonna be it, you know? After this, we’re out of Rosefell and into the world. We have to make sure we finish our careers as Knights with an absolute bang!”[/color]

[color=F4BAD0]“Oh, for sure![/color] Steph agreed. [color=F4BAD0]“I can’t wait for cheer season to start, too! Do you guys remember Cami from middle school? Melissa, we definitely did gymnastics with her for a while! But anyway, I think I saw on Insta that she was back in Columbus.”[/color] 

Steph frowned, slightly. [color=F4BAD0]“Was she that one girl who had the best front punches on the entire team, in eighth grade? I [i]definitely[/i] don’t remember. But it’ll be so fun if she joins cheer!”[/color]

[color=CE0F3D]“Wait, Cami? Like, THE Cami?”[/color] Melissa nearly missed the turn-off for the promised land of Egg McMuffins. Cami was a fixture of the friend group before heading off to New York with her daddy. If she was back in the picture in Ohio, things were going to get a lot more interesting. [color=CE0F3D]“If she is in the Bus, we have to make sure she is on the cheer team. She would be such a perfect fit!”[/color] 

The three of them continued to chat as Melissa pulled into the McDonald’s drive thru, and Steph handed over a five-dollar bill in exchange for a hash brown and fries, which she happily snacked on as they continued on their way to school. She still hadn’t finished the fries by the time that Melissa was steering her Sentra through the high school parking lot, so she discreetly tucked them into the outermost pocket of her backpack, praying that the ketchup wouldn’t spill everywhere.

[color=F4BAD0]“Do you think that they’re going to make us do that stupid back-to-school assembly that they did last year?”[/color] Steph wondered out loud as she got out of the car, slamming the door to the passenger seat as she did so. [color=F4BAD0]“God, I hate those things. They’re [i]soooooooooooooooooooo[/i] boring. Like, jeez, we’re seniors! I’d think that we would know what was going on by now.”[/color]

[color=CE0F3D]“It’s Rosefell, Steph,”[/color] Melissa noted. [color=CE0F3D]“It wouldn’t be Rosefell if they didn’t do the same back-to-school bull that they do every year.”[/color] Sure enough, as the four girls piled out of the Sentra, the announcement came blaring over the PA that there was a mandatory assembly to be held in the auditorium. [color=CE0F3D]“See? I’m a freaking psychic.”[/color] The hustle was somewhat on as the ladies headed into the school, and for 75% of them, it would be the last time they had to hear what was sure to be a truly insipid speech.[/color]