The Captain's Dirty Little Secret

Chapter 331: Chapter 331 - Interview Event

The next morning felt completely different from competition day.

There were no warmup mats, no bags full of tape spread across the floor, and no Coach Miller yelling for somebody to find a missing shoe. Briarwick had been told to report to one of the convention center’s smaller event halls in their team jackets and uniforms for the finalist media program, which had sounded simple enough when Coach Miller explained it over breakfast.

Roxie had expected a few cameras, maybe somebody asking questions in front of a Nationals backdrop, then some pictures before they were released for the day.

She had seriously underestimated it.

The moment they stepped into the hall, Angela grabbed Roxie’s arm and stopped walking.

”Oh my God.”

Roxie followed her stare and laughed.

A raised stage had been built at the front of the room with a wide white backdrop covered in the Nationals logo. Two chairs sat beneath bright studio lights while several cameras faced the stage from different angles.

One of them had the Nationals broadcast logo across the side, and behind it, crew members moved constantly, checking cables, adjusting microphones, speaking into headsets, and carrying equipment from one side of the room to the other.

The finalist teams filled most of the rows facing the stage, with captains and coaches closer to the front while family members and invited supporters had been directed toward the back.

Some girls were fixing bows and makeup while others whispered possible answers to each other. A few coaches stood in the aisles checking schedules while staff members with clipboards moved from team to team.

Angela squeezed Roxie’s arm harder.

”This is actually on national television.”

Roxie laughed. ”Calm down.”

”I am calm.”

”You’re crushing my arm.”

Angela released her immediately, then turned and grabbed Karen instead.

”We’re going to see them on national television.”

Karen pulled her arm free. ”You’re acting like we’re not standing three feet away from them.”

”That’s different.”

Kendall glanced back at them. ”Can both of you stop making this weird?”

Angela stared at her. ”You’re about to be interviewed on national television.”

”I’m aware.”

”You look way too calm about it.”

Kendall rolled her eyes and kept walking.

Roxie laughed again.

Maybe she should have been more nervous, but for once, she actually felt good. There was no routine waiting for her today, no count she could miss, no flyer depending on where Roxie placed her foot.

All she had to do was sit beside Kendall, answer some questions, smile for pictures, and survive Angela acting like they were about to accept an Oscar.

That felt manageable.

Last night probably helped too.

Roxie tried very hard not to think about that as they crossed the room, but the effort became useless the second she spotted Zac near the back with Dylan and Mason.

He was leaning against the wall with two of Roxie’s bags hanging from one shoulder, her makeup pouch in one hand, her water bottle hooked through his fingers, and her jacket folded over his arm because apparently somewhere between breakfast and arriving here, he had become responsible for everything she owned.

Their eyes met.

Zac slowly raised one eyebrow.

Then the corner of his mouth lifted.

Roxie immediately knew exactly what he was thinking about.

Heat rushed into her face.

Asshole.

He did not need to say anything. That look already carried enough memory from the night before to make Roxie suddenly very interested in adjusting the sleeve of her jacket.

Her mouth still tasted faintly bitter from the alcohol.

Or maybe something else.

Roxie refused to think about that right now, even as her face burned hotter.

Karen noticed.

She followed Roxie’s gaze, saw Zac standing there with all the bags, then looked back at her.

”Does your assistant need to be in the room?”

Roxie snapped her head toward her. ”What?”

Karen pointed toward Zac. ”Your assistant. He’s carrying your bags, your makeup, your water, and I’m pretty sure that’s your jacket too.”

Angela looked over and immediately started laughing.

Zac lifted Roxie’s water bottle in greeting.

Roxie covered her face for a second. ”I hate all of you.”

”You’re blushing,” Angela said.

”I’m warm.”

Karen slowly looked around the heavily air-conditioned hall. ”Sure.”

Roxie gave both of them a warning look, which only made Angela laugh harder.

Coach Miller glanced back. ”Are we having a problem?”

”No,” Roxie answered immediately.

Karen smiled sweetly. ”Everything is professional.”

Coach Miller looked suspicious but continued toward the Briarwick section.

Roxie looked back once more.

Zac was still smiling.

He raised his eyebrows again.

Roxie flipped him off discreetly before turning around.

That finally made him laugh.

Coach Miller led them toward a block of seats reserved for Briarwick.

”You two are third.”

Roxie looked toward Kendall. ”Third?”

Coach Miller nodded. ”Virginia finalist introductions are grouped together. Chloe’s team goes after you.”

Roxie found Chloe several rows ahead almost immediately. She was sitting beside her co-captain while someone from her team fixed a loose strand of hair near her temple. Chloe noticed Roxie looking and gave her a small nod.

Roxie returned it.

Angela appeared in front of Roxie carrying a makeup bag.

”Sit.”

Roxie frowned. ”Why?”

”Because your lipstick is almost gone. You need to look perfect.”

”I’m wearing lipstick.”

”Barely. Sit.”

Roxie looked at Karen for support.

Karen pointed toward the chair.

Traitors.

Roxie sighed and sat while Angela immediately started fixing her lipstick. Karen came around behind her and began inspecting her curls like she had suddenly become a professional stylist.

”Oh, for fuck’s sake.”

”Stop moving,” Karen said.

”My hair is fine.”

Karen pulled one curl forward, studied it, then pushed it back. ”That one was weird.”

”You’re weird.”

”That doesn’t make the curl less weird.”

Across from them, Tori and Marissa were doing almost the same thing to Kendall.

Kendall looked deeply offended by the entire process.

Roxie held still while Angela carefully fixed the edges of her lipstick, then leaned back to inspect her work.

”There.”

”Thank God your hair decided to behave today,” Karen said as she adjusted Roxie’s collar, smoothed one side of her hair, then fixed one last curl near her cheek.

Roxie looked between them. ”Are you finished?”

Karen inspected her once more.

”Now.”

Angela looked from Roxie to Kendall and suddenly smiled.

For once, there was no joke behind it.

”Our captains are going on national TV.”

Kendall groaned.

Roxie laughed, but something warm settled in her chest.

Angela ignored both reactions. ”Do you understand how insane that is? A few months ago, we were yelling at each other in the gym.”

”We still yell at each other in the gym,” Karen said.

”That’s beside the point.”

Roxie looked toward the stage again.

Another finalist team had already been called up. Two captains sat beneath the lights while their teammates watched from the audience. The host asked something that made both girls laugh, and several people around the room joined in.

Watching from here made the whole thing feel much less intimidating.

Most of the audience consisted of other cheerleaders and captains who were too busy preparing for their own interviews to pay much attention to anybody else. One girl was practicing answers under her breath. Another had three teammates fixing her ponytail at once. A coach nearby kept reminding his captains to slow down when they spoke.

Even the camera crew looked too busy to care about Roxie specifically.

That helped more than she expected.

For once, the cameras simply felt like part of the event.

Roxie relaxed back into her chair.

Angela noticed immediately. ”You look weirdly calm.”

”I am calm.”

Karen narrowed her eyes. ”Are you still drunk?”

Roxie smacked her arm.

Karen laughed.

”Never mention that again,” Roxie whispered. ”That was a lapse in judgment.”

Angela covered her mouth to hide another laugh. ”Stop, Karen. Coach will grill us if he hears even a rumor.”

Coach Miller glanced toward them from the aisle.

All three immediately faced forward.

Roxie bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself from laughing again.

The team onstage finished their interview to applause, and a staff member carrying a clipboard started walking toward Briarwick.

”Kendall Whitlock and Roxxane Jones?”

Both girls stood.

Angela immediately caught Roxie’s wrist.

”Wait.”

Roxie stared at her. ”What now?”

Angela fixed one curl near her cheek and stepped back.

”Perfect.”

Roxie shook her head.

Kendall was already heading toward the side of the stage, so Roxie followed her.

As they passed the other finalist teams, Roxie caught pieces of conversation around them. One captain was asking whether her microphone looked weird. Another had apparently forgotten every answer she had prepared. Two girls were whispering about whether smiling too much made them look nervous.

Roxie found herself smiling.

Everybody was nervous, even the girls who had been here before.

The staff member stopped them beside the stage.

”You’ll walk on when your names are announced. Sit wherever you’re comfortable. The host will start with team questions, then move into some individual background questions. Just answer naturally.”

Roxie nodded.

Individual background questions sounded harmless enough.

Beside her, Kendall adjusted the cuff of her jacket.

Roxie looked at her. ”You nervous?”

”No.”

Roxie smiled. Kendall always looked composed, but Roxie had known her long enough to notice the little things that gave her away. Her eyes kept shifting toward the stage even while she pretended she was completely relaxed.

”Sure. You’re not.”

Kendall glared at her. ”You better behave up there. We’re representing Briarwick.”

”Sure.”

Kendall narrowed her eyes harder.

Roxie smiled.

The host finished introducing the next segment, and Briarwick’s school logo appeared across the large screen behind the stage.

The audience applauded.

Roxie felt her stomach flutter.

Then the announcer’s voice came through the speakers.

”Representing Virginia and competing for the national title, please welcome Briarwick High School co captains Kendall Whitlock and Roxxane Jones.”

Angela screamed from somewhere behind them.

Roxie closed her eyes briefly.

Of course she did.

Kendall actually laughed.

Then they walked onto the stage together.

The lights were brighter than Roxie expected, but once she sat down, she could still make out most of the audience beyond the cameras. Karen was grinning. Angela looked like she might explode from excitement.

Coach Miller stood behind them with his arms folded, trying very hard to look professional.

Farther back, Zac was still holding Roxie’s bags.

The host sat across from them with a stack of cards in her hand and smiled. ”First, congratulations. National finalists.”

”Thank you,” Kendall said.

Roxie smiled. ”Thank you.”

”How does that even feel?”

Kendall looked toward Roxie, and Roxie looked back at her before both of them laughed. That seemed to relax the room immediately.

”Honestly, I think we’re still processing it,” Kendall said.

”Definitely,” Roxie added. ”Yesterday was a lot.”

The host smiled. ”I imagine. You came into Nationals as Virginia State Champions, but this is Briarwick’s first time in years reaching the national final, correct?”

”Yes,” Kendall answered. ”We knew coming here that the level was going to be different. Every team here is good, so making Finals means a lot to us.”

The host turned toward Roxie. ”Was there a point during the week when it actually became real for you?”

Roxie thought about it for a moment. ”Probably yesterday when our name went up on the finalist screen. Before that, it still felt like we were just trying to survive every round.”

A few people in the audience laughed, and Roxie laughed with them.

This was easier than she expected.

The host asked about their routine next, and Kendall took most of that question, explaining how much they had changed after State and how many hours they had spent cleaning transitions and rebuilding sections for Nationals.

Roxie listened beside her and found herself smiling. Kendall sounded good. Annoyingly good. She looked completely comfortable beneath the lights now, which meant Roxie was absolutely bringing up that nervous eye twitch later.

”And both of you are seniors?” the host asked.

”Yes,” Kendall answered while Roxie nodded.

”So this is your final season together.”

That hit a little differently.

Roxie glanced toward Kendall. ”Yeah. Which makes this a pretty good way to end it.”

”If we win tomorrow,” Kendall added.

The audience laughed.

”There’s the captain answer,” the host said.

Roxie laughed too, settling more comfortably into the chair. For once, the cameras barely registered anymore. She could hear Angela somewhere behind them whispering too loudly, Karen had probably already taken twenty pictures, and Zac was still at the back holding half of Roxie’s life in his arms.

This was actually fun.

The host glanced down at another card, and her expression brightened slightly. ”Roxie, I actually thought this next part of your profile was really interesting. You entered Briarwick as a full scholarship student, and now you’re graduating as cheer co-captain while competing for a national championship. That’s quite a journey.”

Roxie kept smiling.

For maybe half a second, the words did not register.

Then they did.

Her scholarship.