by Dana Burkey
“Two more minutes!” TJ called out through his megaphone. “Teams 2 and 7 are tied for first, but team 12 is closing in fast!”
I cheered on Morgan as she ran the length of the field, moving under ropes and through a maze of cones to our team bucket. Even with the hot sun beating down on us, it was a lot of fun just playing games and enjoying time with everyone. As a competitive person I was also excited for the chance to win the first game in an attempt to set the standard for our team. It was something a basketball coach always taught me, and it was driving me in the relay as well. “If you win the first game you play,” Coach Westmore used to say, “Then you let people know what you're capable of all season.”
His words were running through my mind as the megaphone siren went off, letting us know the game was over. Thankfully Sarah and Morgan both got a lot of water into our bucket before that time, making it really close between us, team 7, and team 2. We all sat down and waited in suspenseful silence as TJ and Tonya poured each bucket into a clear container with lines on it to mark how much water was collected. Finally, they turned to the waiting teams and announced the good news.
“In first place, receiving 1,000 points, is Team 7!”
Without much thought, we all jumped up and began cheering and hugging and giving high-fives. It was a great moment for us, after racing the length of the field so many times in the hot sun. And I realized that it was the first time I really felt excited and a part of something. I also, of course, noted that it had nothing to do with the girls I was practicing cheer with twice a week. But I didn’t let it affect me too much since I knew it was only the first of a series of competitions. In fact, once a few more teams were announced and awarded points, we were given our next challenge.
“Each team please send one team member to Greg immediately,” Tonya called out, pausing quickly while each team chose one person. Not knowing what the challenge could be, we chose Jake since he was the fastest runner on our team. Once every team had sent someone to Greg, Tonya continued. “That team member is going to be covered head to toe with shaving cream and it will be the mission of your team to get that person totally clean. You will be doing so with these.”
Tonya held up water shooters, and then quickly explained to everyone that we would be standing behind a series of cones. And, much like the last game, we would have to run back and forth to fill up the water shooters using water in our team buckets; these were currently being refilled by a few assistant coaches I didn’t know by name. Our teammates, Tonya explained, would be standing in a baby pool a good distance from the cone line where we would have to shoot from. It struck me then that the games seemed to be a fun way to trick us into doing conditioning, but at least it was more exciting than just running and working out. Lexi had mentioned once that when they did conditioning at the gym at the start of summer it was brutal.
“Everyone aim for his head,” Matthew instructed us as we headed to our team location and bucket of water. “That way everything will wash off below where we hit him as well.”
“Good thinking,” I agreed, giving Matthew a high five.
“I hope you’re as good at aiming as you are at flying,” Connor said to me as we waited for the game to begin.
“I go hunting with my dad pretty often, so I think I’ll be okay.” When Connor didn’t reply immediately I turned to look at him. “Oh, you’re kidding, aren't you?”
“Yeah,” he laughed. “But the idea of you hiding out in camo and shooting at Bambi makes sense. You’re more tough than a lot of girls here, so knowing you’re a hunter fits the bill.”
“Oh,” I said turning back to face where Matthew was standing. I knew he meant it as a compliment in a weird way, but it was still another point in just why I didn’t fit in with the other girls on Blast. We didn’t exactly have a lot of things in common, either in the gym or out of the gym.
When TJ blew his whistle, I put the thoughts about my team aside and focused on cheering on group 7, as well as doing my part to help us try to win. I was third in line, and when it was my turn I did my best to shoot Jake right in the face. He wasn’t too happy about it, but I was able to get a good stream of water running down the front of his body, taking a lot of shaving cream with it. After the whole team had gone once, we had Jake turn to the side so we could finish the front of him and work on his back. Thanks to Matthew’s idea working so well, we finished in first easily.
That game was followed by three more, all involving a lot of running and teamwork. We came in second in the event that involved getting your whole team through a web of yarn fastest, and third in a good old fashioned potato sack relay race. The final event, however, allowed us to win big! Every team was given a list of tasks to complete in the field, in the gym, or along the street outside the gym. They were all tasks we needed to take photos of, and after I sprinted in and grabbed my phone, we got to work right away.
Sprinting to make up time between each task, we quickly began to take photos and cross off items on the list. We got a group selfie in the foam pit, made a human pyramid, reenacted a scene from a Disney movie, and many more similar challenges. The tasks were very strange, but were still easy enough to race through as long as we stayed focused. When we turned in our checked off paper and showed Tonya all of our photos first, it was clear we were the big winners.
“You guys can all go shower if you want,” she told us after letting us know we were the first place team. “Dinner is next and then we’re doing something a little more fun for a while that won’t involve much running around or craziness.”
She didn’t need to tell me twice. Our whole team cheered for the win, then turned and headed inside to get cleaned up. I was more ready for a shower than I thought I could be, and could only imagine how Matthew was feeling after being coated in shaving cream.
“Can you post those photos on Instagram and tag me in them?” Morgan asked as we walked into the gym.
“I don’t have Instagram,” I said simply. “But I can text them to you.”
“You really don’t have Instagram?” Connor asked, holding the door open for all of us to walk inside.
“Nope,” I shrugged. “I really only use my phone in emergencies. Or to talk to my dad or my neighbor Peter.”
“I don’t think I could live without having my phone for Instagram and Snapchat,” Sarah commented, holding her phone up for effect. “I can’t go longer than about an hour without checking if anything new was posted or letting people know what I’m up to.”
“I lost my phone once and I had like 50 missed messages from people asking me if I was okay since I hadn’t been posting online all day,” Megan added quickly.
“Honestly, I’m not even sure if I would know how to set up an account,” I said, only half joking at my lack of knowledge when it came to apps and social media.
“If you want, I can help you with that after I work with you on the dance Tonya taught us,” Connor assured me, then turned and walked into the guy's bathrooms to shower.
With a smile I walked into the girl’s bathroom. There were 5 shower stalls, so the three of us girls were all able to get in before any other teams arrived to line up. Part of me wondered how long it would take for everyone to make it through the showers, but I quickly learned the answer. Apparently a lot of the girls who had been at the gym for past camps wore their swimsuits and would shower in groups before changing into clean and dry clothing. I caught sight of this smart time saver as I exited the bathroom after I had gotten cleaned up. Wearing a matching outfit to the one I had on before showering felt odd, but I knew it was what everyone else would be wearing as well. Grabbing my stuff, I walked back into the gym and was happy to see Connor waiting for me.
By the time dinner rolled around I felt like I had learned and accomplished so much. Thanks to Connor I was set up on Snapchat, Instagram, and even Twitter, and had posted the photos from the team challenge. I was also rapidly gaining friends on all three since everyone from group 7 wanted to add me. Then Lexi and H
alley not only added me but also told the other girls on Blast that they should add me as well. We did all of this before spending some time practicing the dance Tonya had taught earlier.
Dinner, which consisted of a taco bar, was served outside in the field. It was still well before sunset and the weather was hot and dry. Everyone ate as much of the Mexican food as they could, clearly needing energy after playing all those games, aka ‘working out.’ I made sure to drink a lot of water and even had a protein bar for dessert in case there were more workouts to come.
“So, how late does everything go tonight?” I asked the groups sitting around me. Halley, Lexi, Connor, and Anna were with me, as well as a few others that I didn’t know by name yet.
“Usually we only do stuff until around 9, and then we’ll watch a movie until lights out,” Lexi explained. “And as long as it’s not raining, there will be volleyball and basketball and things like that in the field and parking lot.”
“How could anyone have energy to play more games after how much we’ve been working today?” I asked with a sigh.
“Maybe if you let another team win you wouldn’t be so tired,” Halley joked.
“We didn’t come in first all the time,” I reminded her, although I was smiling at the joke myself.
“Close enough, right?” Connor asked, holding up a hand for a high-five that I quickly and happily gave him.
We chatted more during dinner about the games and how crazy they were. Since none of us were on the same teams aside from Connor and myself, we all got to share how we tried to win different games or even totally failed thanks to people slipping in the grass and stuff like that. When I pulled out my phone to show our teams’ photos, one of the girls I didn’t know, but quickly learned was named Traci, did the same so we could compare. It was fun to see everyone acting silly doing the tasks on the sheets we had been given. I realized then, in that moment, that I could have at least a little fun with the people at the gym. The idea of quitting the team seemed like a little less of an option for a few minutes. That was, until we were split into teams for our evening activity.
“We’re going to break everyone into groups to make up a dance sequence,” Tonya explained once dinner was over and we had run through the dance she taught us again. “It needs to fit right in the middle of the sequence we learned today. You have one hour to work on it, and also come up with a team banner and call and response cheer. And your teams are determined by your wristbands. So find your team, and start working!”
I stood up from where I was sitting and began looking at all of the wrist bands of the people around me. For the longest time the only colors I saw were blues, greens, and reds. But finally, after what felt like forever I saw a purple band. Leanne, who was wearing the wristband, gave me a half smile then turned to find more of our teammates. Her response was confusing, since she had only met me once at our flying practice, and I got the feeling she didn’t like me much.
Ten minutes later, I was sitting in a circle with 14 girls, all from different teams. Their names were Leanne, Jackie, Emma, Sasha, Nicole, Angie, Lexi G, Heather, Dawn, Sabrina, Lexi K, Gina, Bella, and Paige. It was hard to keep them all apart, but thankfully once we started working, I was able to just listen and take direction instead of talking to people by name. Leanne called me ‘Maxine’ right after the prep time started and after that I felt like I heard my name every five seconds from at least one of the girls. And by my name, I mean my full name.
“Maxine, I need you to stand here and just do this for two counts and then the kick and jump,” Paige told me, moving her body quickly to show me what to do.
“Wait, when do I kick?” I asked instantly, not sure I had heard her correctly. This was mostly because I was fighting the urge to correct her on my name yet again.
“On 5,” she said with a sigh. “Remember, it’s right after you whip your head to the left and step, step, and high-v.”
“Okay, got it,” I said nodding, although I was still rather confused.
“Good, now wait here in your spot while we get the other side ready,” Paige instructed me before turning and walking to the other side of the grass where we were practicing.
I stood there and watched her tell the other girls what to do, and could tell immediately that I was the only one still struggling. After spending time going over our names, teams, and positions, I realized that I was on a team of all fliers. It might have been the coaches’ way of helping me meet people that I could be like one day, but the more I was getting to know the girls through the dance practice, the more I was reverting back to wanting to quit the gym. Once the dancing started the eye rolls and annoyed sighs began as well. I asked question after question and people were starting to tire of me. Dance was a struggle for me, and it was making the rest of the team super frustrated. Thankfully they put me in the back and gave me the ‘simple’ moves so I wouldn’t ‘bring down the whole team.’
“Okay everyone, from the top!” Paige called out before standing in her spot and counting out the routine. “Maxine, step left,” she called out over her shoulder at one point, knowing I was going to get the move wrong.
“Max,” I muttered, stomping my foot harder than needed in my growing frustration. It was at least the tenth time I had corrected someone on my name, but I got the feeling it was never going to matter to most of the girls.
“It doesn't matter, just get the moves right,” Paige replied, instantly confirming my thoughts. “From the top again so Maxine might actually learn some of it before we hit the mat.”
Clenching my teeth, I followed the instructions against my will. All I wanted to do was call my dad and have him pick me up, but it was getting late enough that I was praying our time practicing would be up soon. I focused on the dance as best I could, then sat and did little more than listen to the group as we made up the team call and response. When we started decorating our banner I colored in the border and then volunteered to be one of the girls that would hold it, meaning I didn’t have to do much of the motions to go with the call and response. Everyone agreed, not wanting to fight me on the issue. By the time we made it back into the gym to watch the other teams, I didn’t even bother looking around for my friends. Instead I sat and watched each group perform one at a time until it was our turn. We were the fourth team, and by the time we took the mat I knew I had forgotten most of the moves.
“I’m doing the same moves as you, so follow me when the dance starts,” Leanne told me as we walked onto the mat, surprising me that she cared. “Try to get at least some of it right so the whole group doesn't look like a total mess.” So much for her caring.
Before I could even reply, the call and response cheer began, and I was stuck standing in front with our banner. The words of the cheer were lost on me as I tried to put on a fake smile and look at the floor in front of me. I knew if I looked into the crowd and saw everyone staring at me, then I was going to really start to freak out. Instead, I kept my cool until the part of the dance we made up began. It was at that moment that my mind went blank, and I stood in the back watching the girls around me dance. They all moved as one, while I stood there standing out as the one person not doing the choreography we made up. Even when the second half of the part Tonya had made up came around, I just stood frozen. My fists were balled at my sides in an attempt to keep me from leaving the mat in tears, but it was only barely working.
“Great job ladies,” TJ explained as we finally finished and walked off the mats when our performance was over.
I walked off the mat with the other girls, trying to ignore the glares and frustrated looks they were sending my way. As soon as I hit the edge of the mat and could hear TJ calling up the next team, I knew everyone's attention was off of me and my group. Moving as quickly as I could without drawing too much attention, I headed for the bathroom. Tears were just beginning to fall down my cheeks as I entered a stall and locked the door behind me.
I don’t know how long I sat there, on top of the toilet seat with my k
nees pulled up to my chest. Occasionally I could hear people cheering for groups as they finished their dance routines out in the gym. At one point someone even came in and went into the stall next to me. I made sure to keep my sniffles silent while they were there, and before long they left me to again sit alone and kick myself for not grabbing my phone on the way into the bathroom.
“Max?” A voice called out, waking me from my emotional daze. “Are you in here?”
Recognizing Halley’s voice, I froze, not sure if I should respond. The last of the cheering had given way to sounds of people talking and laughing. I could only guess that the last of the dances were over and everyone was getting ready for the evening free time that would last until bed. It would mean I could likely get my phone and text my dad without anyone wondering why I wasn’t hanging out with other people. That thought, in fact, was the only reason I decided to let Halley know where I was. After all, if I didn’t talk to her in that moment I would likely be seen by her when I finally left the bathroom.
“Yeah, I’m here,” I called out weakly.
“Are you okay?” She asked, then seemed to think better of it. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“No,” I sighed.
“No, you don’t want to talk about it? Or no you’re not fine?”
“I don’t know.”
Below the stall door I could see Halley’s familiar white cheer shoes. They matched the ones I was wearing as well, since we were told to wear them for the dance performances. I made the mental note that I would have to change back into my sneakers before I went outside after I texted my dad to pick me up. Basically all of my thoughts were about making my exit strategy out of the gym as quick and seamless as possible.