#i wrote this straight on here and on mobile so excuse spelling. mistakes etc

[joysmercer]

[kate dies au]

“Okay team, same time tomorrow. Um, at least try and learn the words to the cheer at least by then, yeah?” Cairo waves a hand, dismissing them.

Chess watches as the others wander off to the locker rooms or the parking lot. She waits until she’s absolutely certain they would be out of earshot before approaching the other girl.

“How was the test?” Cairo asks, not looking up from her work.

“Okay. There were only ten minutes left of practice when I finished, otherwise I would’ve—”

“That’s fine.” Cairo continues reorganizing the pom-pom box as if the pom-poms were an abandoned lot and she was a bulldozer assigned to raze it over.

Chess clears her throat nervously. “I, uh, got you something.”

Cairo finally turns around, first raising her eyebrows quizzically, but narrowing them sharply when she spots the starbucks cup Chess is holding.

“Just how you like it,” Chess mumbles, shoving it into Cairo’s hand. She looks down, wishing she could sink into the floor. This was stupid, what was I thinking, trying to make amends, as if—

“Iced Chai Tea Latte,” Cairo says. “Chai, my favorite.”

Chess looks up, but doesn’t dare say anything.

Cairo turns the cup in her hands, brushing her thumb over the name scrawled on it. “Chesapeake,” she reads, then immediately smiles, the corners of her eyes crinkling for the first time since the sleepover. “It’s you!”

Chess’s heart skips a beat. She remembers. “From Chess to Cai—”

“The whole world, and then some,” Cairo says, finishing the stupid saying they’d come up with all those years ago.

Cairo had started it when she’d convinced herself that Chess’s real name must be Chesapeake (after the bay) because her name was Cairo (after the city) and it just made sense.

Chess had played along, quipping that with names like that, the two of them were halfway to world domination, and they burst into giggles (both of them just the right level of tipsy to find everything funny). They laughed and laughed, and the lights turned brighter and the music dulled around them and the sparkles in Cairo’s eyes became the most beautiful things in the universe, and when they kissed, Chess felt like she was flying.

And fly she did, but then the summer was over and, well, high school is hard in more ways than one.

The two girls stare at each other, an awkward silence filling the space between them.

Cairo clears her throat. “Um, if that’s it—next time, make up tests at lunch so you’re not missing practice.”

“Will do, Cap.” Chess is about to leave, but one final wave of adrenaline washes over her and she turns around again. “If you were serious about the world-domination thing—”

“Chess—”

Chess holds up a hand to stop her. “You need an assistant.”

Cairo humphs, frowning, but Chess holds her gaze. “You can’t do this alone, and while I may be fucked”—she gestures to her knee—“I did once had the best technique on this team. I can help.”

Cairo eyes her carefully, and Chess feels rather like a bug under a microscope. “Get here an hour early tomorrow.”

“Uh…”

“Half hour wind-sprints to make up for today.” Cairo pauses. “And a half-hour admin meeting. We’ve got to re-choreograph that cheer.”