Chapter 132

I organized an impromptu meeting with the cheerleaders first thing the next morning. Everyone met in the gymnasium, wearing their day clothes. I hadn’t invited the trainers, wanting just to speak with my squad.

When everyone arrived, I stood in front of them while they sat on the bleachers. My nerves prickled and I felt sick to my stomach, but I had to do this. It was far too late to turn into a coward.

“I’m pregnant,” I said, without any preamble.

Some of the girls looked surprised. Some looked confused. A couple looked annoyed. One rubbed her eyes, barely awake.

“How pregnant?” one asked. “This whole time?”

I nodded.

“Wow,” one said. “And you’ve been doing all the routines?”

“Yes.”

“Not only has she been keeping up with our routines,” Nicole said, jumping to my defense, “She’s been contributing.”

“Is that healthy… I mean, for the baby.”

“I spoke with a nurse,” I said. “I have people helping me.”

“And your wolf,” said the girl who had nearly kicked me, pressing a hand to her wounded thigh.

“And my wolf,” I confirmed.

“So let me get this straight,” said one of the girls who looked annoyed. “I’m supposed to believe that you’ve been pregnant this whole time?”

Another girl rolled her eyes. “Don’t be mad just because she surpassed you even while dealing with a baby.”

“Shut up!” the annoyed girl said. “She is not surpassing me!”

“If not, it’s only because she’s pregnant,” another girl said. “If she wasn’t, she’d be doing cartwheels around all of us.”

“Ug, knock it off,” said the tired girl. “It’s too early to shout.”

Elena scrolled through her phone, like she had barely been paying any attention. Still, in a moment of quiet, she asked, “Do you even know who the father is?”

The question had been sharp, aimed to hurt. I knew she was only lashing out from her own pain. She likely suspected Asher to be the father. She’d always been jealous of my relationship with him.

I wished I could tell her that he was. I didn’t want them to know that it was Joseph I was permanently attached to.

“I do know who the father is,” I said, but shook my head before they could ask further questions about that. “Look, I have made plenty of mistakes here, and I should have told you all the truth much sooner.”

Someone gasped. “That’s why our old coach was so nice to you! He knew!”

Another snapped, “What does that matter now?”

“I made mistakes,” I began again, reclaiming their attention. “But I promise you, I will continue doing my best by our squad. I won’t hold anyone back.”

“You physically can’t promise that,” Elena said, glancing pointedly at my growing stomach.

“I have a plan.” Here, my nervousness grew again. If I didn’t have their support, I wouldn’t be able to pursue my dreams. “I will stay until the qualifying exams, then take some time off until after the baby is born.”

“So you are going to bail on us…”

“Why don’t you have an abortion?”

“I want to have the baby,” I said.

That reply earned me a groan from two or three girls.

“What’s wrong with wanting to keep the baby?” another girl yelled at them.

“I think it’s a good plan,” Nicole said loudly, clearly trying to drown out the others. “This way, we’ll only lose Cynthia for a while. When she comes back, she’ll be better than ever.”

“If she comes back,” someone said. “How many girls drop out to raise their kids? ‘Oh, I’ll only have one,’ she says now. I’ll believe it when I see it.”

“I have my own dreams,” I said. “I will not lose my place at the Academy.”

“I can respect that you think so now, but things always change.”

“Not this,” I said firmly.

“Well, thanks for telling us, anyway,” someone else said. “Even if it is late. It’s good to know.” A few others agreed.

Elena scoffed. “She wouldn’t have told us if we hadn’t found out on our own. Don’t award her a damn medal.”

That was unfortunately true, so I couldn’t dispute it.

“Tell us the truth now, Cynthia,” Elena said. “You are only telling us this because you want something from us.”

That was also unfortunately true. The girls all looked at me. I hooked my fingers nervously together.

“I was hoping you could keep my secret until after the qualifying exams. I’m not sure what would happen if the trainers found out, or the judges.”

A few heads turned, the girls looking at each other. Elena laughed.

“Please,” I said. “It’s only a few more days.”

I waited. Some agreed right away. Others said they needed to think about it. Elena continued laughing to herself all the way out the door.

With the meeting ended, I sat on the bleachers watching the others leave. Nicole stayed beside me.

“I’m not sure I made the right choice,” I admitted. My stomach was all tied up in knots.

“You should be proud of yourself,” Nicole said. “You shared your truth.”

I wanted to believe her, but it was a struggle. “I don’t know if they’ll keep my secret.”

“There’s only a few holdouts,” Nicole said. “I’ll help convince them. Don’t worry about it.”

“Even Elena?”

“She won’t say anything. It’d make a better story to see if you can pass the qualifying exams on your own. Which I absolutely believe you will, by the way.”

Nicole sat with me for a while, until we both had to go to our classes for the day. I tried to take comfort in her words, but I still worried.

Later, I received a text from Asher.

Come over tonight. I have a surprise for you.

I went to his dorm room not sure what to expect, and knocked on his door.

When he answered, he only wore sweatpants, no shirt. He leaned against the doorframe as I took my fill of the miles of skin and muscle on display. A small smirk curved his lips.

After a while – too long, probably, though he didn’t seem to mind – I dragged my gaze up to his face.

“I’m proud of you for what you did today,” he said. “It took a tremendous amount of courage.”

I blushed a little at his open affection.

He stepped back from the door. “Come inside. I’m going to help you relax.”

Both my brows lifted high on my face.

He snorted a quick laugh. “I’m going to give you a massage, Cyn. Get your head out of the gutter.”

He was the one who answered the door without a shirt! What was I supposed to think? He had to be teasing me again… Though when he laughed like that, I supposed I didn’t mind.

A massage sounded pretty nice too, honestly.

I entered his room and followed as he led me to the bed.

“Should I take my top off too?” I asked.

“Only if you feel comfortable.”

“I do,” I said. “I think.”

He nodded, and politely turned from me without me having to ask. He was such a gentleman. I truly did not deserve him and our undefined relationship.

After removing my top and my bra, I laid down on my stomach on the bed. “I’m ready.”

Coming to my side, he placed his hands on my back. He’d barely applied any pressure before I melted into a warm, comfortable goo.

“You have a lot of tension,” he said. “I’ll have to make sure I do this more often.”

“That sounds like a promise.”

His voice held a smile. “Maybe it is. Maybe there are a lot of other promises I want to make you, too.”

I turned my head, peeking up at him over my shoulder. “Like what?”

He hummed. “You’ll just have to wait and see.”