"Who am I riding with this morning?" Lacey yelled from the top of the stairs.

"Me Tiger," her father responded.

"Be right down, just have to grab my gym bag." Lacey stopped in front of the mirror at the top of the stairs to check her reflection. Her hair was up in a ponytail, and she admired the way the two curls she let hang in front of her ears, accented her chin line. All she had for makeup was a bit of mascara to turn her pale eyelashes black and rose lip gloss.

The pink top she'd picked out, left the perfect vee to show off her favorite rose quartz heart pendant on the end of a silver chain. She'd picked out a silver belt made of giant square links to accent her neat waist and stone washed blue jeans echoed the blue grey of her eyes. Perfect.

Bouncing down the stairs, she slung her pack with her laptop and snacks in it over one shoulder. Kneeling down, she checked her gym bag to make sure her cheer uniform and tumbling slippers were in it. Ready, right where she left it last night. The first day of senior year was off to a great start.

"Bye, Mom." She stopped to hug her mother.

"Go, Lacey. You don't want to be late for practice."

"Not to worry, most of the team is coming in on the school buses. We have the early class every morning in the gym. I've got the best schedule ever."

"Good enough, I'll see you at the office after school?"

"Not sure, we might pull another practice on the football field after school. Homecoming is way too soon, and we have to be ready."

"Let me know," her mother called as she slipped through into the garage to meet her Dad.

"We're going to get you a car," Dad said as she stowed her pack and bag in the back seat.

"Really? I don't need one. I mean Terry will have a car most days, and I can catch a ride with you or Mom on the other days."

"We're getting busier at the office. When Sampson Law shut down after William retired, he sent all his clients our way. You've got another job if you want to help with the filing. We'll pay you."

"Like I can fit it in with everything else I'm doing. But I'll help out when I can."

"Thanks, let's get you to school. I want to beat the buses." Dad hit the button on the garage door remote, waiting while it rolled open.

S

The school was on the other side of town, and her father zipped through avoiding Main Street with it's four traffic lights. He didn't quite make it ahead of all the busses, but it was close. Only two made it in before they made the final turn. Joining the line of cars pulling to the curb, her father eased to a stop.

"Look at that poor girl. That's embarrassing," Lacey said, pointing at the blonde who she assumed was with her father, walking up the path to the front doors of her school.

"Don't jump to conclusions. She might be new, and her Dad's concerned about her getting off to a good start. Facing the first day alone isn't easy." James Pemberton idled forward to get a little closer to the main walkway to the front doors.

"Still, everyone's going to stare. I did."

"I suspect you'll run into her soon. Give her a break, okay?"

"Of course. I mean I'm a senior now, but I remember freshman year. I know a lot of the kids, but still, new school, new teachers, it's tough."

"Let your Mom know if you've got another practice, okay?"

"Yeah, Dad," Lacey leaned over to give him a hug and felt the customary kiss he always dropped on her forehead.

"Go get the day, Tiger. See you later."

Lacey jogged off to find her way around the science wing to the gym entrance. She could see the rest of last year's cheer team was already waiting for the janitor to turn up to open the doors for them. Her dad calling her Tiger, reminded her of the first time he did it. He always used it whenever something new or challenging came her way. Senior year was both.

When she rounded the corner into the sheltered field, Percy and Terry stood beside each other with two other guys who were new to her. Sally, Evie, and the rest of the dance squad were in a line doing last year's final routine to the beat of a portable stereo sitting against the wall.

"Hey everyone, how was your summer?" Lacey asked as she came to a stop beside the guys.

"We haven't lost it from where we were in June," Sally yelled over the music.

"I can see that. I learned a couple of new tricks I want to try out but I need another couple of feet of boost," she told Terry. "You've seen me do them on the tumbling mat. Now we need to work them into our routines."

She stopped to study Percy. Always shorter than Terry since freshman year, he topped her best friend by two inches now.

"Wow, man!" She peered up into his blue eyes. "Why didn't you tell me Terry?" He just grinned at her surprise.

"Yeah, I grew like crazy. I think I've got two left feet." Percy shrugged his shoulders. "I might be off the team if I can't get it together."

"He wanted to surprise you Lace, but I'll bet he gets it back together on the mats." Terry said. "He's still riding as well as ever."

"If he's still good on his horse, then it'll work out. And when we get it right, you'll be giving me the boost I need. I've got a new triple spin I want to work in." Lacey told them. "Man, I still can't believe what I'm seeing Percy.

"There's Jackson, he's back again this year. He didn't retire." Percy's voice soared over the music. The girls stopped mid step and Evie grabbed her boom box, pushing the button to silence the tunes. He turned to point and almost tripped in a gopher hole.

"I'm back. Couldn't give up on this school. No one else knows where everything is, and which keys belong to which doors." Jackson unlocked the emergency exit door and pulled it open.

Their coach was right behind the janitor; her arms loaded with new pom poms. She smiled like a Cheshire cat.

Lacey peered up at Percy as his toe caught on the doorsill. "You really do have two left feet."

"I know. At least we have a couple of weeks before homecoming." Percy said.

Their coach dropped her burden in the corner by the bleachers.

"We scored some new uniforms. I managed to pick up a sponsor. The sports equipment swap store stepped up. Let's get some stretching in and then we'll figure out what we're going to do for homecoming."

Her triumphant voice echoed in the cavernous gymnasium.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Lacey scraped her wet hair back into a ponytail to dry. Thank God for waterproof mascara. Dabbing gloss on, she rubbed her lips together and thought about practice. They needed four new members for the pyramid formations and two new dancers. She really didn't want to be head cheerleader, but it looked like she was going to be stuck with it.

Man, I'm going to have to run. Should have had a quicker shower.

She wanted to make it to home room on time, so she shoved her gym bag into her locker, and pulled her pack out. One last look in the mirror and she dashed out into the hall running flat out. No one ever monitored the hall between locker rooms for anything.

Whipping around the corned, she slammed into someone coming the other way, and they tumbled to the floor. Her laptop made an ominous clunk as her pack jammed under her back. When she pushed herself up to see who had been in her way. Her jaw dropped.

Across from her, the girl was mimicking her movements, reaching for a pale pink pack of her own. Then their eyes met.

Exactly the same chin, and for crying out loud she was wearing the same color lip gloss. Even the pink of her tee shirt was almost identical, and except for the distressed look, their jeans and belts were close enough to fool people into thinking they'd planned it. Her ponytail looked like hers before her shower, and she even had pink studs in her ears, the same as the ones her mother gave her on her last birthday. It was eerie. Scary even.

"Holy shit!" Lacey almost never swore, but this was insane.

"No kidding, holy shit. What were you doing running like that?" The cadence a timber of the blonde's voice was eerily similar to her own.

"I'm going to be late for home room."

"Me too, I'm lost. But I've got to get to a mirror. I swear I'm seeing myself."

"Are you real?" Lacey knew she sounded like a fool.

"Of course, I knocked you over, didn't I?"

The girl had a point. What the hell was going on?

"The girl's locker room is right around the corner. We can take two minutes and check this out. Then, if you can run, I'll take you to your home room." Lacey offered.