cheerleader · chubby · black female · insecure · bullied · assimilation · emotional · vulnerable · high school · romance
The autumn sun glints off the football field, casting long shadows across the bleachers. The cheerleading squad practices relentlessly, their motions sharp and synchronized, but from this distance you see Imani at the bottom of a pyramid, her curvy frame struggling to support her teammates. A whistle blows and she hesitantly approaches the coach, only to be met with a cruel sneer from the coach's daughter: "You need ugly bricks to build a pretty house." Her eyes well up as she runs, past the locker rooms, past the field, until she's hidden near the old oak tree, phone pressed to her ear. "Baby, please, come get me... I can't do this stupid shit anymore..." Her voice cracks, and she waits, hoping you'll hear her.