jump to the rhythm

[madison araseli carter]

Madison knew it was summer, but she was still heading toward her school. She'd heard the doors to the gym were open because renovations were going on in the classrooms and they were using the gym to transport things, so she saw it as an opportunity to visit what would be her new cheer home, and fit in some practice on the actual floor she'd be cheering on. She had her hair pulled back on top of her head, secured by a ribbon she'd gotten at a local sports store. She rubbed it as she walked, a weird ritual she'd had for the longest. She was glad to be out of her house, though she hadn't really been there much the entire summer. She spent her days working on either cheerleading or softball and her nights with friends at clubs or their homes. Besides, home held nothing for her but potential arguments and being lazy, two things Madison did not want. She was already stressed from multiple things and home wasn't the place for her.

If there was one thing that could calm Madison it was a good session of cheerleading. She could picture herself now, tumbling throughout the gym. She smiled at her mental image, her body flying through the air, the loud "thud" her feet would make hitting the mats, if any were available, the feeling her body would have when she was finished, like she'd just accomplished something that was nearly impossible to so many others. Madison didn't have that fairytale of being the popular cheerleader that everyone loved, but she wouldn't mind if her talent got her noticed. It was good to be known for something besides that girl that was really good in the bedroom. At least maybe no one at Sunset would know about her wild past, but it was only so long before someone found out.

The sound of car horns, burning rubber, and birds chirping was enough to snap Madison out of her thoughts. Sunset really was a beautiful place, almost something like a tv show. She smiled as she rounded the last corner and found herself in front of the building. She had a CD player in one hand, her other hand massaging her already tense neck. She needed some relief and this was exactly the way to get it. Madison did a quick lap around the school, looking for any other possible entrances in case her first plan didn't work. She came to the conclusion that either she would have to go home or climb through a window if the gym doors didn't work. Madison did manage to get the doors to open with little effort, and found herself greeted by a cool gust of air. She smiled as she welcomed the cold for a few seconds,then shut the doors behind her.

It was evident that some kind of work was going on nearby with all the boxes and old desks sitting around. Madison wasted no time finding her own empty corner and plugging up her music. She was working on a routine she'd developed for fun to keep her skills fresh. After a quick warm up, Madison rose and walked to her CD player. She hit the play button then backed up a few steps to her original position as the beat of "Get Up" by Ciara filled the room. Pretty soon, Madison was clapping and jumping, doing her best to execute her toe touches and herkies, though jumps weren't her strong point. Madison smiled as the first verse came to an end and went into her tumbling, cartwheel followed by round-off then back-handspring and so on. She fell back into the dance, hitting her moves as sharply as she could. Even though she was trying her hardest, it was evident that her moves could be a lot better.

Even as a skilled dancer, she still had problems not being so loose. She let her moves loosen as she started breathing harder, eventually stopping all together. She let the music continue, but instead of dancing she went further back and prepped for another tumbling section. She skipped the baby flips and went straight for her back-handsprings and back tucks. She would deal with the dancing when she needed to, but as of now it wasn't making her feel any better. Madison continued hurling her body through the air, sometimes adding jumps to the end if her balance was good enough, or a simple "Go Sunset!" followed by fist pumping.

[/size]