yours | adam banks.

chapter two

ava

"Okay I want Chloe up in the air and we won't take a break until she gets that double down right."

The lungs inside me work tirelessly to keep up with the exertion I'm putting my body through, pumping air into my body at a shattering rate.

Coach Lina is a stickler, has been like that ever since I started at Edina Cheer. She's worked me through sprains and tensed muscles, never once letting me quit. I was her star. She's built me all the way up from a girl who could barely touch her toes to the most flexible one in the gym. I was always the first to try out new tumbles, tosses, never given second dibs. It was Ava in the air or the routine would be sure to fail.

I loved her for it. Hell, if anyone else had coached me I would've quit long ago. I was envied and revered at the gym. You don't mess with Colby or you endure coach's wrath. It makes a good portion of the girls here hate my guts but then again, what are they gonna do? I'm untouchable.

"I want Lily, Annie-Mae and Thea working on tumbles," There's grumbles of complaints from the three but a glare from Coach has them up and stretching. "You girls are sloppy. I can't have messy tumbling in this routine."

Don't screw with Coach. She has far too many years of experience to test her. Her old gym from when she did cheer competitively were the champions of Worlds three years in a row. Coach managed to be flyer for every one of those titles. For anyone who doesn't know anything about cheerleading, The Cheerleading Worlds are equal to The Olympics. That's how major they are in the cheer world. The mere fact we have Coach here in Edina is insane.

Once you win Worlds, you automatically get entered into the metaphorical cheer hall of fame. Sometimes, I'll be taking a water break at practice and I'll just watch her. You can almost see her brain's cogs whirring as she watches us practice, highlighting our mistakes and strengths. The woman nitpicks at every flip and jump, almost like she's holding up a protractor to your legs to calculate the exact degree you can raise it.

She's truly incredible.

"Ava! Stop daydreaming or whatever you're doing and work."

I snap out of it and gulp down some water, wiping my mouth carelessly and screwing the bottle closed before jogging over to Matt and Peter. They're the bases I trust the most. Of course, I have to trust all of the squad but when you bond more with certain people it's obvious I'd rather have them chuck me up in the air and catch me again when I come down from the stunt.

"You make me eat mat and you'll be lucky to have a face when I'm done with you." I say, making Peter laugh. He knows I'm just teasing.

"Maybe I should do just that. Then you could get your nose done." I gasp in shock and punch him lightly in the arm.

Anna comes over and then we're ready. Matt and Peter go on either side of me whilst Anna is behind me. On the count I step up onto Matt's waiting hand and then it's down and up, both my feet and ankles supported by the three below me. I raise my arms up high, smiling widely. The exhilaration clouds my senses as I'm midway to the high ceiling, overlooking the gym, the title banners from NCA and Summit in full display.

I hear the count and clasp my hands together in front of me before reaching for my right leg, raising it up into a scorpion. I hear the claps of the rest of the squad and I release, before preparing to dismount. I bend my legs and my support lets go. I twist to the left and tuck but the expected arms don't arrive.

A strangled scream comes out of my throat as the mat comes closer and closer. My hands reach out to shield my face and neck as I hit the ground full force.

Absolute chaos breaks out as soon as I hit the mat and an agonising pain in my shoulder rips up and down my arm, tears immediately spring to my eyes and pour relentlessly as Coach runs towards me, shouting out orders to the rest of the squad.

"Who dropped her? Tell me now." Coach is furious, her expression stone-faced as Peter anxiously steps forward.

"It was me Coach, I'm sorry. I raised my hands too late."

Coach looks about ready to kill him. "Fifty push ups, then 50 press ups and then you can work on tumbles until you can't think straight. Until the only thing you can think of is how you will never drop a teammate again. Even if you're late to the original move, you DO NOT drop her. Now!"

She watches Peter get down and begin before turning to me, the medic now by her side and surveying me.

"Where's the pain?" The medic asked. She's called Winnie.

"M-my shoulder. I think it's dislocated or something, I d-don't know. Coach it hurts so much!"

Coach tries to comfort and calm me down as Winnie inspects my shoulder. I know for a fact I'll have to go to the emergency room.

"Okay, come on." Coach says and I follow her blindly, the pain so intense I can barely see.

We burst through so many double doors until we're out in the open air, the evening sky aglow with yellow and orange, painted in streaks across the skyline.

Unbeknownst to me, Adam and his other teammates are out skating and just as I am ushered across the gym parking lot and into the shotgun seat of Coach Lina's car, ugly sobs leaving my grief-stricken mouth, the blond glances over only for his eyes to widen at the sight of me.

He stops dead in his skates, alarmed and confused, much to the aggravated team.

"Banks! Why'd you stop?" Charlie comes racing over to his side, looking in the direction Adam is.

"I swear to god I just saw Ava get into that car." He says, mind racing.

"Maybe she's going home? Come on Adam, we gotta get home. We don't all live in cake-eater ville."

"Charlie, she was crying."

"So?"

"Ava Colby doesn't cry."

Charlie gives his friend a look. To be honest, he thinks Adam's went mental.

"Okay Adam. Come on dude, just drop it and let's go."

The boy starts to skate away and Adam huffs before hesitantly following in tow, looking back constantly at the now empty lot, Coach Lina's car long gone to the hospital.

Hope she's alright.