A week before summer break, four best friends—Mia, Lila, Sienna, and Harper—sat in their favorite corner of the school gym, buzzing with excitement. They had grown up together, tumbling across lawns, practicing cartwheels in driveways, and making up cheers during sleepovers. Now, for the first time, they were entering the State Junior Cheer Competition as Team Starbright.
Every afternoon, they practiced under the big oak tree near Lila’s house. Mia, the natural leader, kept everyone focused; Lila perfected the choreography with her dancer’s grace; Sienna had the highest jumps anyone in the neighborhood had ever seen; and Harper, the jokester, boosted everyone’s spirits whenever frustration crept in.
But as the competition drew closer, doubts slipped in. One windy afternoon, Harper fell during a stunt and burst into tears—not from the pain, but from fear. “What if we mess up?” she whispered.
The other girls circled around her. “Then we get up and try again,” Mia said firmly. “We’re a team. That’s the whole point.”
The night before the competition, they made a pact—no matter what happened, they would cheer with everything they had and trust one another completely.
At the arena the next morning, the crowd roared while bright lights flashed across the floor. When Team Starbright took their place, butterflies fluttered in their stomachs—but they squeezed hands, smiled, and started their routine.
Their moves flowed like music. Sienna’s jumps soared, Lila’s spins dazzled, Harper’s timing was flawless, and Mia’s steady voice kept them united. The final stunt rose into a perfect star formation, earning cheers from the audience.
They didn’t win first place—but when they took home the award for Best Team Spirit, the four friends knew they had achieved something even better: they proved to themselves, and to each other, that together they could shine.
Simply 6 Minutes – Welcome to the Challenge: 11/25/2025 – Stine Writing
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