A good day to die
"_Oh please! At least I didn't have a child with my escapades or adopt theirs Alexander. Did you buy the girls ponies too, did you propose to her, you fucking asshole?!"
The vase shattered against the wall of her father's study, a million glittering pieces raining down on the expensive rug. Elizabeth bit her lip and took a deep breath. She simply tightened the silk ribbon on her ballet pointe shoes, the frustrated screams of Evelyn was just a background noise to her pre-practice ritual.
"Keep your voice down," Alexander's low voice came from the room also. She heard him shuffle with something for a moment before replying with low growl. "Or would you prefer the press finds out about it, and your... investment in the Kuznetsov's portfolio? Talk about shameless"
Elizabeth slammed her dance bag shut, trying her best to shut the sounds out, a new ache was beginning to rise from her temple and that's the last thing she wanted having being voted as the lead swan for the new swan lake national performance coming up. She swung her bag over her shoulder and walked out past the study door, not even glancing at the two red-faced people inside.
"I'm leaving for practice," she announced, her voice cutting through their fury but neither one looked at her.
"Fine," her mother snapped, not taking her eyes off her husband.
Elizabeth scoffed and slammed the front door shut. She slid into the car, and turned the ignition, letting the sound of the engine fill the silence, taking a breath that did nothing to steady the irritation crawling up her spine and drove out of the gate and into the highway.
Her first stop was the ballet studio, but just before she parked, she noticed the lights off, the door locked, and a sheet of paper taped carelessly to the glass with CANCELLED scribbled across it like the writer was in a hurry.
Did Madam Cecile catch her daughter drinking again?
It's always one of the reasons the woman cancelled practice even after being paid like a doctor. Unfortunately she was the best in the country, and she was once known in the ballet world, winning competitions after competitions, until a scandal broke out between her and her then teacher...and just like that, she fell from grace.
Elizabeth tutted and looked away from the door. She unlocked her screen and tapped the first number. Barely waiting for the line to open, she put it on speaker and placed the phone on the armrest as she drove out of the studio.
The line rang for a few seconds and the person on the other end picked after that second ring.
"Practice is back on, try to gather everyone."
A long exhale came through the phone. "Hennessy, it's four on a Friday. People have plans, I have plans okay? The world doesn't revolve around you, you know?. You really need to stop doing this."
She tilted her head, eyes narrowing at absolutely no one. "I believe I didn't stutter. We've got practice today Deborah, gather everyone or make your position as the co captain vacant."
There was a pause from the other end before Deborah hummed reluctantly. She ended the call before the witch would say anything else.
Few minutes later she arrived at the towering Bellaire high black gates that absorbed all the lights that shone on it. A sturdy looking man walked out through the pedestrian entrance to her car, he knocked twice on the shot gun window and she wound it with a sigh.
"Good evening Jerry, we have practice today." She explained with a small smile.
He nodded and signaled the gate to be opened. "Right. Have a lovely evening"
She nodded and drove in, parking almost immediately at the nearest empty spot on the VIP section.
~
Bellaire Elite Cheerleaders shuffled together near the middle of the cheer gym, stretching and whispering as she walked in.
"Good evening ladies,sorry for calling you out so late, ballet got cancelled so I thought, why not practice for Friday's game." She smiled, and threw her bag to the floor.
Deborah scoffed from behind the girls. "Like she cares what they think. She's so fucking pretentious." Maybe it was a normal thing, Debby didn't know, but she's never seen someone so perfectly manipulative and pretentious like Elizabeth Hennessy Von Hess. She was bad alright, but this girl? This girl is the devil's offspring if anything.
"Can I borrow your pom-poms Lisa?" Stretching an arm out, Elizabeth wigged into her skirt and pull the other down.
A curly brunette sheepishly walked out of the group with a pair of black and pale red pom-poms. "It's Vanessa."
She looked up. "Huh?"
"My name is Vanessa not Lisa."
"Oh yeah, I know. You look more like a Lisa and Lisas are prettier." Elizabeth replied, nodding, her eyes innocently opened widely.
"Oh...are Vanessas ugly?"
Elizabeth exhaled, her facade dropping as she snatched the pom-poms. "Get back in line."
The girl, nodded and hurried back to the team.
"So we're not going to spend much time tonight, just full routine and you can all go stuff your face with chicken, and I mean you Deborah. You'll be out flyer for today." Her voice cut through the gym and the girls got into formation quickly.
Introduction and cheers went by smoothly until it got to the tumbling passes and one of the girls sprained her ankle and while she limped out of the gym to the nurse office, Elizabeth turned to grab her water when the back gym doors opened and a guy walked in, seeing him, the actual Lisa practically ran to him, smiling like she hadn't been struggling through warm-ups a second ago, and he didn't even hesitate before pulling her close and kissing her right there in the middle of practice.
Elizabeth stared for a moment, and heaven knew how hard she held herself from actually throwing her shoe straight at both of them. She lifted the whistle to her lips and blew into it so hard the whole gym flinched.
"ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS!!!"
The room stilled as Lisa, startled, moved back from her boyfriend, eyes wide in surprise, confused at the sudden attention.
"What...?" she asked, confused and breathless, her boyfriend frozen right beside her, confused as well.
"You might as well fuck him right in the middle of cheer. Get it while you can, because you're going to have no business with Bellaire Elites when you have a baby. I didn't leave home or my bed to come witness this."
Red hue creeped into Lisa's face as she opened and closed her mouth as though she wanted to defend herself but nothing came out. Her boyfriend shifted back a bit, looking uncomfortable now, noticing the tension, he tapped her hand and muttered something.
"I'm sorry, do you not hear me? Or are you slow? Can you not find your way back to the team?"
Rolling her eyes, she hurried back without another sound, and the girls reset because no one wanted the next blow of the whistle directed at them.
The routine picked up again, a little shaky but they were at least pretending to try this time and the boyfriend slipped out through the same doors he came in through.
They were halfway through the second run when a sound alarmingly similar with a gun shot rippled through the air. The sound sent the girls screaming, a few dropping into crouches, with one or two bolting toward the changing room.
"I—I think it came from outside..." someone said, voice trembling.
"David...?..." Lisa muttered under her breath, her lips quivering, and without thinking sprinted towards the exit despite the girls' attempt to call her back.
She pulled the door open as fast as she could and with that same ferocity did she scream at the sight before her. The sound tore its way up her throat and if the gunshot didn't frighten the girls and alarmed Elizabeth, this did.
A dark streak slowly crept towards her, blood already slipping under the door frame and spreading into the gym floor.
The girls behind Elizabeth backed away in confusion and fear with their hands over their quivering mouth.
Elizabeth looked at the streak of blood with confusion as well, but the expression immediately falling off as fast as it came. "Well," she muttered under her breath grabbing her back, "...that's a good day to die."
