This choice: The next day they go to each other’s training • Go Back...Chapter #5The next day they go to each other’s training by: Kirafair   Author’s notes: I love this scenario by Grimmjow. I recall during my own high school years looking enviously at the cheerleaders in their uniforms. My chapters will hope to describe a bit about both the football and cheerleaders teams that to non-USA readers may seem unclear but I will try to explain as best as I can. I didn’t play football, my parents forbade it, but my 5’10’’ 160 lbs frame would have made me one of the bigger kids on the school’s team. There were several cheerleaders on my school’s all female team who were very close to my size so this scenario isn’t that far fetched. Strictly looking at the physical nature of the two teams, football is definitely more demanding but its not as clear cut as many might suspect. My niece has been a very competitive cheerleader and has several back and knee injuries to show for it. Let’s see where we can take this story.
As soon as the challenge had been issued, Julia Munroe immediately headed to find her Junior Varsity cheerleader coach. With her fellow cheerleaders Tammy Duncan and Jessica Garrett in tow, she found the Coach in her classroom preparing for her next Math class.
Rebekah Bosley was a physically fit 33 year old woman of average height with medium length blonde hair that she typically wore in a ponytail. She had been teaching 10th grade Math and acting as a Cheerleader Coach at the school for almost ten years now. She looked up from her lesson plan to see three cheerleaders from the JV team that she coached enter her classroom. Julia explained briefly the challenge that Chris Jackson along with Simon Wilson and Jake Houghlin had issued. Each Junior Varsity team was made up of Freshman and Sophomore students approximately 15 to 16 years old.
“We three want to do this and need your help making it happen” said Julia in a commanding tone.
Rebekah sat back not terribly surprised that Julia had responded this way. ‘She is such a bundle of energy. Confident in everything she does. A born leader who easily convinced Tammy and Jessica to do this with her’ she thought.
Trying to suppress her skepticism “And the boys are okay with switching places with you?” she asked. All three girls nodded in unison. Rebekah had some idea of exactly what training the boys did for football. Her boyfriend for a few years now, John Forsythe, was the Junior Varsity Football Coach. “Do you three know exactly what you will be in for on the football team.” This time the girls seemed less sure in their agreement but Julia confidently replied “Only one way to know for sure.”
Rebekah thought this wasn’t a very good idea but she was reluctant to outright say No to the girls. Her own life experiences included a number of times when other people had told her she couldn’t do something simply because she was a woman.
“Alright, I can’t promise anything but I’ll check with the Football coach and the school Principal to see if they agree. I’ll let you know what they say at practice later today.“ Rebekah secretly hoped that by deferring the decision to someone else, she would be absolved of any blame if the challenge was rejected.
Later that day Rebekah found her boyfriend sitting in his office near the school gym. John Forsythe was 32 years old and had been on staff at the school as a Physical Education teacher for almost as long as Rebekah. Befitting his avid interest in running and bicycling, he was very lean and since his height was almost identical to his girlfriend’s, it was not uncommon for the two to share workout clothes.
“Hey, you are not going to believe what three of my cheerleaders just asked me” she said. She went on to explain the challenge that the six teens had agreed to.
Once Rebekah finished describing what they were volunteering for, John shook his head “You’re right, this is hard to believe. What do you think?”
Rebekah returned a warm smile. This is why she was so attracted to this man with his short blonde hair and boyish good looks. He valued her opinions and treated her as an equal.
“I have no problem with having the three boys practice with my squad. I doubt I can ask them to do any tumbling or stunts so there should be no risk of injury. They might even gain some understanding of what is involved in cheerleading.” Rebekah had added the last part because she knew that many boys in school considered the JV and Varsity Cheerleading squads as basically ‘eye candy” for the boy’s games. Most seemed unaware that they practiced hard to eventually compete in Local and possibly State competitions against squads from other schools.
John was even more skeptical than Rebekah that the girls were prepared for the physical ordeal that was part of football. However he knew that girls were legally allowed to play on a boys football team in their State. Her reference to injury brought to mind his biggest concern. “I think we need to check with Principal Greene to see what she thinks. I don’t want us to be responsible if any of the girls get hurt.” John was hoping that Principal Greene would make it easier for Rebekah and him by nixing this outlandish challenge.
His hopes were quickly dashed when they met with Dr. Greene soon after. She actually was intrigued by the idea. Dr. Marjorie Greene was an African-American woman in late 40’s. As a minority and a woman, she had overcome greater obstacles in her life than many of her peers simply to attain the position she currently enjoyed. She also had a special interest in building empathy to prevent bullying among the students, something that she hoped would lead to adults with more compassion for their neighbors later in life.
“I think this would be a fascinating experience for all involved” she said to the two coaches. “We have I believe 10 days until the first game of the season”. John reluctantly nodded in agreement. “I am all for letting them try. I don’t think a few days of this experiment will significantly disrupt the preparation for each of your squads. Let’s see how this plays out” Rebekah and John could not hide their disappointment in Dr. Greene’s decision.
“Here is what I propose. To give them the full experience, each of you should be neither lenient or overly strict during your practices for the three. I’m confident you two can be fair. Let’s see how committed they are to this challenge. You can pair them up in terms of size?”
John and Rebekah looked at each other without understanding the reason for the question. “I think so” said Rebekah “Why do you ask?”
“Well if the girls really want to try this, we will make no special adjustments for them regarding the practice uniforms. The girls will have to wear the boy’s helmet, pads, socks, jersey, etc. This will include the State mandated rule of wearing an athletic supporter and protective cup.”
John noticed Dr. Greene had said the last sentence slowly and with an emphasis on every word. ‘Maybe that will get the girls to give up on this challenge if they have to wear one of the boy’s jockstraps’ he thought.
Dr. Greene turned her attention to Rebekah. “For the boys, they will wear the girl’s practice gear. To make sure they are equally committed as their counterparts, they will wear their sports bra’s and cheer briefs. I believe you usually expect any member of your squad to present themselves at practice without any body hair. Thus the boys must shave their legs, underarms, and chest if they wish to participate.”
Rebekah grinned ‘Those provisions could be enough to get the boys to drop out of this ridiculous challenge’ she thought The two coaches thanked Dr. Greene and left her office hopeful they had a plan to derail this whole affair.
Later that day the cheerleader squads were practicing in the school gym when the football team passed by on the way to the locker room after finishing practice. Rebekah saw that John was leading the three boys directly toward her. “Alright JV that’s it for today. Julia, Tammy and Jessica can you stay behind?”
The three boys presented quite a sight in their sweaty, grass stained practice gear with full pads on. John nodded for Rebekah to start “Dr. Greene, Coach Forsythe and I have agreed that you all can try switching teams with the following rules…”. She went on to explain what was expected of them and was taken aback when each trio with seemingly no hesitation agreed to follow the instructions.
John and Rebekah looked at each other and shrugged. “Okay then, report here to the gym before practice tomorrow with your practice uniforms ready to exchange with each other.”   indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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