A Young Woman's Heart

Chapter 80: Mo Xueyao as a Cheerleader

This was the first time Mo Xueyao had stood on the podium.

The first tier of the stage was staffed by two senior high school students who served as guides, while the second tier, a raised platform, was where the cheerleaders cheered on the other students.

All the cheerleaders were freshmen in their first year of high school. Although they were a little less experienced than the second and third-year students, they were also more energetic and youthful.

The class of Grade 11, Class 2 sent the most students.

All classes combined have only thirty students, and half of them are girls in Class Two.

Feeling the gazes looking up at her from below, Mo Xueyao felt extremely embarrassed.

Even though she was in the audience, she felt she couldn't see the faces of the people up there clearly.

Now, however, I'm starting to feel nervous.

This is probably what's known as the spotlight effect.

The incredibly catchy athletes' march kept playing on repeat in my ears.

It seems that if this song isn't played on repeat at the school sports meet, it always feels like something is missing.

"Next, please proceed to the check-in area immediately if you are a first-year high school girl in the first 100-meter sprint group."

"Wang—Jia—Le—!" Mo Zhuyou shouted breathlessly from the top of the steps, "You're in the first group! Hurry up!"

"Huh? Oh right!" Wang Jiale suddenly realized, and hurriedly pinned the paper representing her athlete number to her chest with a paperclip. "Youyou, which group are you in?"

"I'm in the third group, hurry up, it's about to start!" Mo Zhuyou urged anxiously.

"Okay, okay—" Wang Jiale took off his coat and tossed it to Mo Xueyao, "Xiaoyao, hold this for me!"

Then he hurriedly followed Mo Zhuyou downstairs.

"Run faster, I'll cheer you on!" Mo Xueyao waved vigorously.

Mo Xiaoxiao pinched a strand of hair on the side: "But Xiaoyao didn't call out to the others before."

"I haven't gotten used to it yet... cough cough, I'll definitely shout next time! After all, it's Wang Jiale's competition." Mo Xueyao coughed awkwardly twice.

The main problem is that she cares too much about what others think, so she can't relax and cheer loudly for others.

A few minutes later, Wang Jiale had already placed his hands on the soft rubber track, looking like an arrow ready to be released at any moment, waiting to start.

"Three, two, one! Bang!" As the starting gun fired by PE teacher Ye Ran rang out, Wang Jiale suddenly rushed out.

Surprisingly, despite her petite stature, she was quite fast at sprinting. She ran so fast that the rubber band on her ponytail came off, and her long hair was loose and fluttering in the wind.

"Go for it!" Mo Xueyao shouted with all her might.

Many things, once you start doing them, don't seem so difficult anymore.

The first step is always the hardest.

Mo Xueyao was the same way. After getting started, she relaxed and began to blend into the enthusiastic atmosphere of the cheerleading squad.

However, 100 meters was still too short, and Wang Jiale quickly reached the finish line, qualifying as the first in her group.

This means she'll have to run it again later to compete for the final championship.

When Wang Jiale returned while drinking water, it was already Mo Zhuyou's turn in the third group.

Compared to Wang Jiale's rapid pace, Mo Zhuyou was much slower and was the last to reach the finish line.

But this actually relieved her.

"Phew, it's over. There's no more of my project." Mo Zhuyou said as she returned, then leaned on the railing of the second-floor platform and lazily basked in the sun.

……

"The girls' thighs are just so beautiful..." Zhou Yong said, holding his digital camera with a moved expression. "Luckily I had this camera, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to capture this beautiful scene!"

"Stop sighing, okay? You look like a pervert." Gao Yuan rolled her eyes.

"You're not saying that yourself? Besides, what I'm doing is art, okay!"

"This is the first time I've seen a pervert describe himself in such a refined and elegant way."

"So what? Besides, what's wrong with a man being a pervert!" Zhou Yong said confidently, squatting down and snapping several photos of the girls on the stage.

"Stop taking pictures of the top ones, there must be other pretty girls, right? Let's take some closer pictures," Gao Yuan patted Zhou Yong on the shoulder.

"All the good-looking freshmen are on the podium, okay?"

"And what about the senior girls in their second and third years of high school?!"

"That fatso is right, let's go, let's go take pictures of the senior!" Liu Xiaowei urged.

"Alright... then." Zhou Yong left somewhat reluctantly, glancing at Mo Xueyao a few more times before following his best friend to take pictures of other girls.

The morning activities are mostly relatively easy, with running events being sprints under 400 meters, as well as shot put, high jump, long jump, and so on.

While taking photos, Zhou Yong also participated in the shot put, which took him only two or three minutes.

But Gao Yuan began to feel dejected.

"What's wrong? You don't have to be so disappointed that we didn't get a clear shot of your face, do you?" Zhou Yong asked, puzzled.

"Damn, I have to run 1,500 meters later...!" Gao Yuan rolled her eyes. "Do you think I can even run that?"

"Keep it up, I believe in you." Liu Xiaowei patted Gao Yuan on the shoulder and gave him a thumbs up.

"Me too."

"You guys are just talking without any sense of the consequences, damn it!" Gao Yuan raised his middle finger.

"You're already being generous by not making me run 10,000 meters, you should be grateful," Zhou Yong said with a laugh.

"Fortunately, no. I heard that it used to exist, but the 10,000-meter race was canceled after the new principal took office."

"So, if you have to run 10,000 meters, that's something that can really kill you."

"This 1,500-meter stretch isn't much better, is it?"

"It's okay. Just think about it. A lap around the track is 400 meters, so 1500 meters is less than four laps. Doesn't that make it seem much easier?"

"Easy my foot! Why don't you come and run for me?"

"I appreciate the kind offer," Liu Xiaowei said with a smug smile. "Keep it up, you might even lose three pounds by the end of the run."

"If it were that effective, I wouldn't be so fat, okay?"

"It's really not easy for that fatso to finally admit he's fat," Zhou Yong exclaimed.

"You bastard, give me back my camera!"

"Big brother, big brother, I was wrong. You're not fat at all, you're incredibly handsome, and you have a well-proportioned figure..." Zhou Yong immediately started to flatter him with a grin.

There was also a small vendor next to the playground at the school sports meet.

The owner's shop is located at the school gate. Today is the school sports meet, so the school specially invited him to come in and sell some snacks such as steamed buns, shumai, and zongzi.

If students get hungry, they can go buy it themselves.

Moreover, since they are snacks, the prices are not expensive. The cheapest tea egg is only three cents, which means that everyone can afford it.

If you run out of money, you can wander around the school and maybe find a few cents or a dollar, which you can then use to buy something to eat.

Some guys will do this even if they have money in their pockets, just because they find it funny.

A man's happiness is that simple and unpretentious.

After shouting all morning, Mo Xueyao's throat was sore.

She cleared her throat and sat down on a chair nearby: "Cough, I can't take it anymore, my throat hurts."

"Drink more water." Mo Xiaoxiao handed over an unopened bottle of mineral water, a perk that Ye Wen provided to the cheerleaders. "You're shouting too loudly, so use it sparingly."

“Yeah, when Xiaoyao shouts, it’s like she’s screaming at the top of her lungs…” Wang Jiale nodded. “Either don’t shout at all, or if you’re going to shout, go all out…?”

"Of course." Mo Xueyao answered matter-of-factly, taking the bottle of mineral water and gulping down half of it.

She was just standing there shouting encouragement, but it made her sweat profusely.

She hadn't been this excited in a long time.

Although I'm not an athlete participating in the competition, I can still feel this kind of passion as a cheerleader.

As a girl, this has brought many inconveniences and discomforts.

But it also allowed her to experience many things she had never experienced before.

Moreover, it must be admitted that most people are more considerate of girls, especially pretty girls, who always enjoy many conveniences.

However, this is somewhat different in society.

Girls are far less competitive than boys.

Schools and society have reached a delicate balance in this regard.

"Lunch is here!" Li Hongran's voice rang out, and then he was seen carrying a plastic crate to the platform by himself. "Girls from Class Two, come over here!"

"Hey, are you here? What's for lunch today?" The girls all gathered around curiously, and even the girls from other classes did the same.

At the same time, they were also complaining about why their class's lunch hadn't been delivered yet.

"Today's lunch is steamed buns, three buns per person: tofu bun, meat bun, and red bean bun," Li Hongran said, distributing bags of steamed buns to the girls. "Then the homeroom teacher also bought you milk, and there will be ice cream after you finish eating."

"Would you like ice cream in this weather?" Mo Xiaoxiao tilted her head slightly.

"Of course we should eat it in this weather! That way the ice cream won't melt easily, and it tastes the best in this weather!" Wang Jiale shouted excitedly. "What kind of ice cream will we buy?"

"It should be the regular kind," Li Hongran replied, handing the steamed bun to Mo Xueyao. "Here you go, Mo Xueyao."

"Thank you."

Mo Xueyao took the buns; she was starving. Just as she opened the bag to eat, she heard Wang Jiale shout, "Hey—who doesn't like red bean buns? I'll trade her other buns! I want red bean buns!"

"I'll trade you my red bean bun!" Mo Xueyao immediately said. "I want the meat one."

It would be stupid not to eat meat buns when they're available.