Meanwhile, Hank and his buddies all met in the school gymnasium to watch the cheerleader tryouts. As they took their seats they discussed who might be selected.
"I hope we get some pretty cheerleaders this year. Last year's batch were good and all, but kinda plain, you know?"
"Yeah. We want someone who looks like - that blonde girl down there. Know who she is, Hank?"
As his friend asked the question, Hank looked down to see. His friend was pointing at an unfamiliar girl, chatting happily away with two of last year's cheerleaders with a bright smile on her face. She had fluffy, curly hair the colour of sunshine, and was in a playful outfit with a sparkly pink sweater and a short pink skirt.
"I don't know who she is," remarked Hank, looking slightly dazed, "but I hope she makes the squad!"
His friends all grinned and nudged him, Hank pushed them away, and then the cheerleaders were all taking their places and he briefly lost sight of the pretty blonde girl.
But he noticed her again when it came her turn to try out. The gym teacher called for "Charity", and the blonde girl emerged from the crowd, already standing out with her bright hair and outfit. She gave a playful smile to the onlookers, her bright blue eyes sparkling, and went into a routine that left the entire gym sitting speechless.
Hank sat there with his mouth open. "What a girl!"
"Yeah," his friend agreed. "Looks like we'll have some pretty and talented cheerleaders this year."
As soon as the tryouts were over, Hank got up and hurried from the bleachers with a brief "Excuse me" to his friends, who all smirked at him, knowing where he was going. He had to talk to that girl before someone else did.
Hank met Charity just as she was coming out of the girls' lockers. "Hey - Charity, right? Nice job back there. I was watching." Charity turned to him, looking a little surprised but mostly pleased to be addressed. "I'm Hank. I'm on the team you're going to be cheering for - because you're going to make the squad for sure. So, are you new here?"
Charity nodded. "Yes! My family just moved here. Everyone's been so nice and welcoming so far."
"So," Hank ran his hand through his wavy dark blonde hair and tried to sound casual, "since you're new here - are you doing anything tonight?"
Charity lit up, then immediately arranged herself into a more coy pose and answered in a soft, flirty tone. "Not really, why?"
"How about I take you out to dinner? I can help you get to know your way around the town, tell you more about the football team...."
Charity took a moment to answer, but her bright smile had already answered for her before she did. "That sounds great."
"I hope we get some pretty cheerleaders this year. Last year's batch were good and all, but kinda plain, you know?"
"Yeah. We want someone who looks like - that blonde girl down there. Know who she is, Hank?"
As his friend asked the question, Hank looked down to see. His friend was pointing at an unfamiliar girl, chatting happily away with two of last year's cheerleaders with a bright smile on her face. She had fluffy, curly hair the colour of sunshine, and was in a playful outfit with a sparkly pink sweater and a short pink skirt.
"I don't know who she is," remarked Hank, looking slightly dazed, "but I hope she makes the squad!"
His friends all grinned and nudged him, Hank pushed them away, and then the cheerleaders were all taking their places and he briefly lost sight of the pretty blonde girl.
But he noticed her again when it came her turn to try out. The gym teacher called for "Charity", and the blonde girl emerged from the crowd, already standing out with her bright hair and outfit. She gave a playful smile to the onlookers, her bright blue eyes sparkling, and went into a routine that left the entire gym sitting speechless.
Hank sat there with his mouth open. "What a girl!"
"Yeah," his friend agreed. "Looks like we'll have some pretty and talented cheerleaders this year."
As soon as the tryouts were over, Hank got up and hurried from the bleachers with a brief "Excuse me" to his friends, who all smirked at him, knowing where he was going. He had to talk to that girl before someone else did.
Hank met Charity just as she was coming out of the girls' lockers. "Hey - Charity, right? Nice job back there. I was watching." Charity turned to him, looking a little surprised but mostly pleased to be addressed. "I'm Hank. I'm on the team you're going to be cheering for - because you're going to make the squad for sure. So, are you new here?"
Charity nodded. "Yes! My family just moved here. Everyone's been so nice and welcoming so far."
"So," Hank ran his hand through his wavy dark blonde hair and tried to sound casual, "since you're new here - are you doing anything tonight?"
Charity lit up, then immediately arranged herself into a more coy pose and answered in a soft, flirty tone. "Not really, why?"
"How about I take you out to dinner? I can help you get to know your way around the town, tell you more about the football team...."
Charity took a moment to answer, but her bright smile had already answered for her before she did. "That sounds great."
Within a few days of the release of their album, Union, New Religion and the Radiant Terriers' collaboration became very popular. "Bittersweet" was released as a single, and it reached number two on the Modern Rock Charts, right behind "Inside of Us" by The Devil Wants Peace. The Radiant Terriers decided to stay with New Religion until the end on their tour. Leila said, "I'm glad things are going so well now. I hope things continue to go well when we tour." The next morning, the two bands began to prepare for their tour.
The Radiant Terriers were on their way to Oak Ridge, Tennessee. They had agreed to collaborate on an album with New Religion. Along the way, Leila said, "This is so exciting. We're going to be collaborating with one of my favorite bands." Abigail said, "Indeed. Plus, Paul is kind of dreamy." Greeley said, "You realize he's an aromantic asexual, right?" She said, "I know." Sammy said, "Abigail has been a hopeless romantic for a long time." She said, "Yeah. It seems all the best guys are either deceased or wouldn't have me." Leila said, "Don't worry, Abigail. You'll get your chance at romance someday." Abigail said, "You really think so?" Leila said, "Sure I do. You deserve it." This made Abigail smile. She thought, For someone who has been through Hell and back, Leila sure is an optimistic girl. Pretty soon, the Radiant Terriers made it to Oak Ridge.
One day, New Religion had an interview where they talked about their song, "Stuck", and Fritz's retirement. Shortly after the interview aired on television, Paul got a call from his mother. She said, "I want to congratulate you on your new song. It's good that you asked for help when you realized you needed it. I always stressed to you the importance of asking for help. I also want to congratulate Fritz on his retirement. When you go on tour, I'll gladly stay with Fritz." Paul said, "Thank you, Mother. Yes, you did stress the importance of asking for help." She said, "That's right. I always told you that there's no shame in asking for help when you really need it." He said, "That's right." Paul talked with his mother for a long time. Finally, she said, "I have to let you go now. I'm getting ready to fix dinner." He said, "All right, Mother. Goodbye. Take care." She said, "You take care, too. I love you, Paul." He said, "I love you, too, Mother."
THE END
THE END
When Paul woke up from his nap, his mates sat down with him to see what he had written so far. He said, "You see, I keep getting stuck with the chorus." Lola said, "I think I know what will work as a chorus." She wrote down some words. Paul sang what he had written and what Lola had written. He said, "That works very well. Thanks, Lola." She said, "You're welcome." Erin and Carl added the second verse and the third verse respectively. They sang the song, and Paul said, "This is going to be a hit. Thanks for the help, my friends." Carl said, "No problem, Paul. If you ever feel stuck, tell us right away. Don't be afraid to ask for help." Paul smiled and said, "I won't." Erin then said, "To the recording studio!" The others said, "Yeah!"
