The dropoff had been made- Bazooka gum, the only kind that Becky would be caught dead with. She unwrapped a piece and popped it in her mouth, disregarding the comic on the wrapper. She felt slightly better once she started chewing- it was a reassuring and familiar action. It worked off some of her pregame nerves.

The gum tasted different, though, and when she looked at the package, she realized why. This was real bubble gum, the gum of bubble-blowing champions. It had been a long time since she had even thought about blowing bubbles, but she was in the mood. She was surprised to find that she hadn't lost the knack.

Expanding the bubble as she went, she walked down the hallway to the locker room. The door was slightly ajar, and Crystal's voice could be heard- quiet, slightly raspy, and overlaid with her Oklahoma drawl. As Becky drew closer, she could see inside; judging by the mixed grin and chagrin on Tari's face, Crystal was telling a story about their days as members of the Colorado Xplosion. The rest of the girls had no fear of being embarrassed by the story, so they were laughing to the point almost of tears.

The story was reaching a climax, and Crystal got more animated as it did. Becky came in, listening quietly. Crystal's back was to the door, so she didn't know she had a new audience member. As Crystal reached the most important, dramatic, and just plain weirdest point in the story, she flung a hand out behind her. There was a popping sound.

A pin could have dropped and echoed after that. Crystal slowly turned. Gum was stuck all over Becky's face and matted in her bleached blonde hair. She glared at Crystal, and Crystal felt very small- no mean trick for a woman close to six feet tall. "Sorry," Crystal whispered sheepishly. "Didn't see you back there. What with you bein' back behind me. Uh. Yeah."

Becky didn't say a word, merely turned on her heel and stalked towards the bathroom. Crystal thought for a second, then followed her to apologize further.

Sue said to no one in particular, "How long do you guys think it'll take for Becky to kill her?"