"Clara," someone called out but it was drowned out by my thoughts.

We didn't win.

"Clara," another one tried.

We were second place.

"Clara."

The seniors and I were going to graduate without the title.

"Clara!" Vivian finally yelled, grabbing me by the shoulders to stop me from taking another step.

Blinking at her, I opened my mouth but I felt like my tongue was glued down. No words were able to come out and even though I knew that the right way to actually release my frustration was to just cry it out, I couldn't.

There were no tears, I felt numb. As if my muscles gave out at last, my body felt so sore, finally recognizing the brutality of training that I made it go through. I was already apologizing profusely to myself for pushing myself that far and ending up with nothing.

Here I was, boasting that I was number one and all that shit but now I'm walking away with the silver, not the gold.

One member climbed out of the bus, holding a birthday cake that was still in the box with the lid off. Someone lighted a single pink candle and they presented it to me, trying to make me smile fruitlessly, "We were saving it for after, you know, like a celebration."

Lifting my gaze from it, I looked around me. Here I was, moping around when my whole team were trying to cheer me up on my own birthday. They managed to quickly get over the lost, but from the guilty expression they were sporting, I can assume that they were blaming themselves for the results.

The burden of being a captain has never felt heavier than this.

Shaking my head to snap myself out of this trance, I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, blowing out the candles without even bothering to make a stupid wish. The fact that I responded to their small hope of lightening up the mood made they all relax as they clapped me on the back and started throwing me their well wishes.

"Thanks for a wonderful season, girls," I murmured, leading them back up inside the bus.

It was only in there did it sink in that their sole focus was trying to place a smile back on my face. There wasn't a dull moment during the whole journey, I was being passed around the seats, each member giving me a perky grin before going on about something with a cheerful tone.

I wanted to feel happy, I really did, not only because of my sake but because of theirs as well. They would never feel settled until they were assured that the effects of being declared a runner-up has gone through my head.

"Don't worry, there would be alcohol," Vivian clapped as if it was the ultimate cure for this slump I was going through. When I didn't respond, she lifted up her hands and yanked off the ribbon, effectively releasing the ponytail. I flinched at the sudden pain, ready to yell at her, but all words died in my throat as I sank lower in my seat.

It's alright, I wouldn't be needing it anymore.

And perhaps my lack of response to her vain attempt to elicit a reaction from me was the last straw, "Will you fucking lose that annoying frown on your face?!"

The other girls gasped at her outbursts, thinking that she went too far with that one, "We lost! Get into your shitty head, we lost!"

She almost spat the words on my face but I only turned my head, refusing to meet her gaze. She screeched, tugging on the ends of her hair in frustration, "If I thought the normal you was irritating as hell, this is more insufferable than that."

"Vivian..." someone warned, her voice leveled while she tried to create order inside this metal contraption, "It's alright for Clara to be upset."

"She's acting like she was the only one who didn't win the title," she yelled back, venom dripping in the way she spoke, "News flash, we're a team and we all didn't get that giant ass trophy."

"You think that I didn't know that?" I finally retorted, rising to my feet and grabbing hold of her shoulders as her eyes widened at the sudden movements, "I've done my absolute best and it still wasn't enough. If that wasn't hard enough, I have to shut myself up because I need to be okay for the team!"

They all went quiet and surprisingly, Vivian didn't utter a single word so I took this as a sign to keep on going, "I don't want to be like this and the fact that you're all upset because of me makes me want to claw at myself because I'm your captain, victory or not, I should always be telling you that all your efforts were worth it."

There was a moment of silence before Vivian lifted her head, her eyes piercing into mine as if ready to wring an answer out of me, "Was it?"

Maybe it was too predictable for me to say no, because that's the way I have always been. It's true that I've been forcing my team into a grueling training and it's correct that I have this permanent look of disappointment whenever something doesn't go the least bit right.

But I would be lying if I denied her statement. All in all, I saw their determination behind those groans of protests, I saw how even though their arms and legs were shaking, they continued on with the steps, and most importantly, I saw how much they valued the team by always sticking with each other no matter what happened.

"Yes," I muttered and in the most uncharacteristic way possible, Vivian leaned forward and hugged me.

I was rendered shock at her gesture of affection and she ignored the way I stiffened, "Sorry, captain."

Those two words was enough to make the whole cheer team burst into a fit of tears, all gathering towards us. The last thing I expected was an apology and everyone else seemed to jump into the sorry train. They were all hugging me, telling me how bad they felt.

It wasn't their faults, I wanted to say, but I was too busy trying to collect my thoughts to even say something.

We simply wasn't the best.

And it was only when the driver complained for us to all go back to our seats did we remotely calmed down. I felt Vivian's hand on my shoulder and I cracked a soft smile, shaking my head at her, "I'm sorry that I wasn't a good captain."

"Then I'm sorry for not being the best co-captain."

The sadness was once again seeping through but I refused to let it overtake the little bit of happiness I wracked up. I may not graduate with the trophy and the title, but I will leave this school was something that was as good as. I managed to get a friend and a team of loyal girls, which was already a victory in its own.

Arriving at the school, we all disseminated after a few hugs and such. We agreed to meet at the party that was being held in a few hours, before Vivian and I headed to her car. Instead of going straight to the events place, she drove to her house which was a five minute drive from the actual lounge.

We dressed up in her room and I was quite glad that Vivian's taste in makeup was as expensive as mine. I shudder at the memory of those cheap products that had managed to touch my skin during Hallie's wedding.

She cleared her face of the bright and neon look that she sported for the competition. As she worked on her makeup, I fitted myself into the outfit I brought – a tight red cocktail dress that stop at mid-thighs, hugging my body in a way that I wasn't wheezing to breathe but it complemented that freaking figure I worked hard on maintain. With the right of angle of lighting, it would sparkle due to the glittery fabric, but it was still a subtle shine.

While I fixed my makeup, Vivian proceeded to iron her hair flat. Since she pulled off my ribbon earlier for a desperate attempt to rile me up, my hair was less than tamed. There was a crease to where the tight hair tie used to lie earlier and it was up to the hair curler to mask any kind of imperfection.

We took a whole hour and a half before we decided that we were satisfied with our appearances.

Vivian arranged for us to have a reserved parking slot and so we then found ourselves in the fast elevator, watching the buildings slowly decrease in size as we ascended up the tall building.

Once the double doors opened, I was greeted by the spectacular sigh of the all people who were invited. Throwing balloons and such in the air. All were clad in a shade of black because Vivian insisted that I should be the only spot of color in a room of monochrome.

As we walked through the crowd, various people gave me their well wishes, hugs and cheek kisses along the way. At the side, a big tower of gifts sat on a long table draped with a black sheet, keeping up with the theme of the room. My cake was perfect to say the least – four tiers with a white fondant covering it but was intricately decorated by some black pattern.

Never in my wildest dream did I imagine that I would grin so much that my cheeks would actually start to hurt. Me, the usually cynical Clara, could be blown away by such bliss.

The lighted bar was occupied by a young bartender, someone who was obviously in his mid-twenties, already juggling with drink orders being passed about to him. I raised a brow at Vivian, questioning if this was alright. Technically, we were never a stickler for the rules but this was a public place so I wasn't really allowed to be served a drink.

She sensed my uneasiness and shot me a wink, "Are you really doubting my abilities?"

Finally getting it, I laughed and she threw an arm around my shoulder, guiding me towards the bar to get our first cocktails for the night. The speakers were blasting an EDM track, the DJ on the booth busily encouraging the crowd to jump along to his mixes.

When I took my glass, an arm wrapped around my waist and I jumped up, whipping around quickly at assailant. Seeing Gray, my expression softened and I lifted a hand to rest on his shoulder and leaned to give him a quick kiss on the lips.

"Happy Birthday," he murmured, his mouth still hovering over mine before he joined them together again, pulling me closer to his body and I instantly melted in his touch. He pushed me backwards and I felt the bar dig into my back and his arms move so he could use them to cage my body between his and the bar.

Before we could even go further though, someone cleared their throat loudly, causing Gray to tear our lips apart and I whimpered at the loss. He chuckled, tilting his head up and kissing my forehead instead before taking a step back, facing whoever disturbed us.

Evan stood there, albeit a little flustered, he smiled as he was clad in a black dress shirt. Gray whispered that he was going to excuse himself, before giving Evan a pointed look while he walked away.

Once we were alone, Evan opened his arms and I grinned, stepping into them as I allowed the both of us to fall into an embrace. He muttered a quick birthday greeting before pulling back, "Sorry that you didn't win."

From behind me, I heard Vivian groan, obviously displeased that someone brought it up again but I simply shrugged. The amount of glee I managed to gather up because of this party was enough of a distraction, plus this was Evan I was talking.

The same Evan who was a slap of reality and a breath of fresh air. Although his words were sympathetic, the tone was encouraging, telling me that there was much more that awaits me. He saw determination and expected it to be a constant in my life.

"You win some, you lose some," I sighed, "It's alright, I guess."

That was when my wonderful co-captain peeked over from her position on the stool to roll her eyes, "Except when you were moping the whole way back."

This then earned a concern look from Evan and I waved it off but Vivian still kept going, "Gave her a cake and everything, I even yanked on her ribbon and still, nothing."

And now the concern turned into full on worry and I lightly glared at her, something she responded with a raise of her glass, hopping off the stool and sauntering away to the direction of some guy who had been eyeing her from the far side of the room.

Gazing back to Evan, he was showing an inquisitive look towards her before turning back to me, all the question swimming in his eyes.

"I'm fine," I assured, leaning against the bar, "Trust me, I've done enough pity partying and I just want to enjoy the night."

He stared intently again and I knew that he had already seen through me. He lifted a hand, making me flinch as I was ready to feel his karate chop, but it never came. He placed a gentle hand on top of my head, giving me a comforting smile, "Don't blame yourself, everybody knows that it wasn't your fault."

Blinking up at him, I reached up and took his hand in mine, giving it a light squeeze before I allowed it to drop back to his side, "You're such a smartass, always knowing what to say."

"I try," he grinned, "So may I interest the lady to a dance tonight?"

I raised a brow at his choice of words before I grinned, placing my cocktail back down on the bar before I allowed him to lead me to the dance floor. The beat was as still fast-paced as the others so we stood facing each other, swaying our bodies to the music.

I threw my head back and lifted my arms above my head, letting myself go loose to the sound pumping out of the speakers, hearing the DJ yell some incoherent words over the microphone. Evan chuckled along, holding out his hands and I placed mine in them, swaying them together.

My gaze then fell on a trio of girls who were whispering to themselves, their eyes focused on us. I subtly tried to maneuver us closer to them without Evan suspecting anything. Unfortunately, he was always quick to get it and he noticed where my attention was pointed at.

And somehow, this made my mission to eavesdrop easier. He winked down on me and I held back a laugh as he spun me around, taking two big steps to guide me and then we found ourselves within earshot of their conversation.

"Wasn't there a rumor that they were dating?" one of them brought up, bringing the glass of her drink to her lips, "I think they went to her relative's wedding together."

"The one where they had a picture of them looking at each other?" her friend questioned, "Yeah, I'm pretty sure they were a couple then."

"Maybe they still are," another said in a hush whisper but it was loud enough for us to hear, "And she's cheating on Gray."

The first girl clicked her tongue as she shook her head, "Old habits are hard to break, and maybe that's also the reason why they lost earlier. You know, she was too busy dating two guys at the same time to practice."

"She's the stereotypical blonde cheerleader after all."

Oh hell fucking no, not in my own party. Scratch that, not ever.

Evan looked like his patience has dwindled down as well and we released our holds of each other. I pushed people away, marching up to them with the dirtiest glare I can muster. They were still talking animatedly when I reached them and only one of them managed to notice me practically fueling, she quickly scrambled around to inform of her friends of my presence.

I pride myself to have one of the harshest look and I guess it worked for this lot. Their mouths clamped shut and they all took an instinctive step backward. With my hands balled into fists, my voice was laced with pure menace, "Will you please repeat that, only this time, say it to my face."

With that, they took another step back and what they didn't expect was the figure looming behind them. Even though they bumped into him already, Evan remained immobile when he stared down onto them, his arms crossed over his chest as he sported that same look as I had.

"Clara Harper is the most loyal and determined person I know," he stated without a hint of hesitation, "And I cannot stand here as you make a mockery to the traits that had made her one of the best girls I ever met in my life."

His words sinking in, my gaze softened at him and I felt my anger slowly dissipating. Taking a deep breath, I jotted a finger to point away, "Leave."

They gaped in disbelief and I closed my eyes before opening them once again, giving them one last warning with my voice going dangerously lower, "Now."

His words was enough to soften me up inside but I still kept my stance. I jotted a finger to point away before I told them, "Leave."

Without a second too soon, they scampered away and I huffed, stomping my shoe down on the floor before my eyes locked with Evan. A few spectators nearby went back to their own business and I walked towards him, leaning up to press a chaste kiss on his cheek, "Thank you."

He gripped my arms and nodded, holding me still and I smiled softly at him, "You're also one of the best guys I had the pleasure of meeting."

Releasing me, I heard him whisper softly, "Thanks."

The moment was ruined though by Vivian who looked stressed beyond belief after the news of the scuffle reached her ears, "I'm talking to security so that they wouldn't come back here again."

She grabbed Evan's arm and dragged him with her, never allowing a protest to leave his mouth. I bit my lip to stop the giggle that was sure to escape if I didn't. Trust Vivian to get rid of any kind of tension.

Turning around, I started my venture in the search for Gray, ready to spill everything that happened. When I spotted him one of the open balconies with his fellow teammates, I knocked lightly on the glass just as one of them finished talking, "...then the three girls walked out."

He caught my eyes and then promptly requested the other to leave, beckoning me to step outside with him. Sliding the glass door behind me for a bit of privacy, he pulled me towards him with my back pressed against his chest, "Heard about what happened."

I frowned as I stared up ahead, watching the city lights greet us with its unique beauty, "They're idiots for thinking like that."

As if I had it in myself to cheat on the one guy I love.

Pulling me closer, he wrapped his arms around me before whispering quietly in my ear, "Happy, baby?"

"Quite," I relaxed in his hold, leaning back with a smile.

"I never congratulated you for the competition, haven't I?" he reminded himself, staring down towards me, "I'm proud of you."

"We didn't win," I blinked up at him and once again, the unsettling feeling draped over me and my shoulders slumped.

He pressed a kiss on the top of my head and mumbled with a sly grin, "Oh please, you have me so you're already a winner."

"Humility is such one of your defining traits," I spoke sarcastically, accompanied with the usual eye roll.

"You did your best," he shrugged, "That's enough of a victory."

But that didn't actually really guarantee you a spot in the colleges, it doesn't give you a title, it doesn't satisfy my insistent goals that I've made before entering high school. Maybe becoming a dictator to my team finally made karma catch up to me.

Sadly, karma was bigger bitch than I am.

A small part of me wants to completely create a do-over for this year. Place me back to the first day where I could correct every mistake. Then a bigger part comforted me by saying that this was the place where I truly belong.

If I were to do things again, I might never meet Evan, Gray and I would still be living in a friends with benefits ordeal, Will might still be cheating on my mother, Vivian would still be a fake friend, and I would never be sharing this moment with the one man I love.

Was I really willing to throw all of that away for a trophy that I've been eyeing for about four years?

Gray felt me tense up and he rubbed smooth circles through the expose skin by the cuts of my dress, "You can let yourself go," he said soothingly, "I'll understand."

And against my better judgement, I felt a big fat tear roll out of my eye without my permission. It fell on the arm still wrapped around me and Gray hugged me tighter. After hours of conflicting emotions, the sadness I've been feeling since the announcement earlier came through.

My body shook due to my insistent prevention of allowing any sob to come out, but the tears kept on going. The denial was long gone and there came the acceptance.

All the team's hard work was placed to waste. The picture of us waving the gold trophy and the image of us performing in the Nationals was long gone. They counted on me to lead them to victory and I completely failed.

Maybe because I allowed myself to get distracted. Instead of concentrating on training, I worried over things that was never counting on me to get fixed. I became a busybody and neglected my duties.

"I'm here," Gray shushed, peppering my cheek and neck with feather light kisses as a way of comfort, "It's alright."

He was rough on everybody else, but times like these makes me wonder why anyone would be afraid of him. Because he was telling the truth, he was there. He was always there, together or not, he was there. My mind knew that I completely trusted him and that was why my brain decided to let itself go. Letting him see such a vulnerable form.

He never left me. Erin said so herself, even when he wasn't by my side, he never left me.

Thinking back to those girls' words, my hands found their way to take hold of his arm and I held onto it for my dear life as if I was trying to prove him something. I want to convey it to him that no matter how long, no matter how much shit he will put me through, it's alright.

Because I was his the moment he punched that boy who was hitting on me during sophomore year. I was his on that night we had sex for the first time.

I was his, completely his.

No matter what people say, I can handle it. As long as Gray and I know that I'm his as he was mine.

"Gray, am I just a blonde cheerleader?" I questioned softly, my thoughts returning to those girls earlier. He paused for a moment before resting his chin on my shoulder, still running his lips against my neck.

"And what makes a blonde cheerleader?" he murmured.

Let's list off the criteria, shall we?

"Blonde?" I half-stated, half-asked and this earned a chuckle from him.

"Obviously."

Tilting my head as he lifted his head and he grinned, silently telling me to go on and so I spoke, "Blue eyes?"

"How do those corny books describe them again," he thought, "Like, as you say, a reflection of the ocean."

Twisting in his hold, I turned to face him and he continued for me, "Cheerleader?"

"Complete with the uniform, babe."

He tapped his chin before snickering the offensive word that I despised so much, "Bimbo?"

Rolling my eyes, I wound my arms around the back of his neck and I smirked, "My grades beg to differ."

Thinking at the top of my head, I rested my head against his chest as I said, "Bitch?"

He stiffened and I instantly knew that he refused to say it and I knew he was going to outright deny it for my sake. But I didn't need any kind of reassurance so before he could interject, I answered for him, "I'm not even going to deny it. There's one more though."

"And what's one more requirement for being the blonde cheerleader?" he inquired lightheartedly, tilting my chi with his hand, making me look up at him.

Wracking my brain for those stupid and cliché teen fiction stories, they always portrayed the good girl as the protagonist so that meant that the blondie usually ends up gaining the role of only one other person, "Antagonist?"

I waited for his reply, letting him be the judge of that. He had every right to say yes since I basically terrorized every girl that came his way.

He didn't agree though, he gazed at me with such sincerity that I was afraid that somebody swapped my Gray for someone else. He must have noticed the worry in my eyes as his face slowly descended down, "Never, this is your story."

And right under the stars, he kissed me just like the time in the faint traces of his glow-in-the-dark constellations in his room and during that time on the field where we finally fell into place. The party raved inside and I ignored it, my hands finding the face of my love, the one who treated me so kindly even if the stereotype was strong. He gave me respect when most people expected none with the arrangement we were in, and he helped me prove to fight against the usual cliché.

Actually, we had our own kind of cliché.

And maybe I filled up all the criteria – well, except for one. In my book though, the last one shouldn't even be included in the list because we had feelings too, we had our own tale to tell, we have another point of view.

Now, more than ever, I'm proud to call myself the blonde cheerleader.

The End.

----------------

This created more suspense that intended for the mere fact that I didn't update last week. Sorry guys, but I had my exams and I felt so exhausted because of the lack of sleep. And I'm aware it's Sunday, but excuse me once again but I had other things to do for the past two days.

Now I just want to say a massive thank you for staying with me throughout the story! From our main cast of the cheerleader, the wolf, and smartass, the co-captain, and the lamb, we truly hoped that you enjoyed this story.

This was not a way to break the cliche, this was a way to write it from another point of view. Notice how parallelism has been the strongest point of this story? She and Gray first had sex under the glow-in-the-dark stars, they came together under the real night sky, and I also ended the story under the same setting.

I fell in love with this story as I wrote it. This was the one story that was the perfect mix of you and me, I added the elements you wanted while also staying with the plot I had in mind.

Let me dedicate this story to all of you guys!

I love you all so much! Wait for the epilogue coming your way within this week. Comment, vote, and follow! I shall see you all real soon.