Chapter 36
The day of the practice meet has arrived, and I’ve gotten so used to the stupid shenanigans of the people at this school that I’m a little on edge waiting for something else to happen. I keep hoping that I’ve reached the limit on the crap being thrown my way but if I had to guess, I’d say it’s not over. Life is never easy.
That’s why it’s unnerving me that it’s been surprisingly quiet since last Tuesday when I crashed and burned on that bars dismount. In fact, there haven’t been any more Mandy pranks, stunts, or rudeness. Maybe whatever Beau said to her finally sank in. And I’m pretty sure Marshall has been in hiding somewhere. He’s missed physics, PE, and study hall for several days running. It’s honestly been a relief. Beau heard his family had taken a vacation or some bullshit like that. Doesn’t make sense with the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday and winter break two weeks after that, so I’m not quite sure what to make of it.
What I really need to do is shove all thoughts of anything else aside and focus on this competition. Coach Hall made me take two practices off last week to make sure I gave my shoulder a proper rest. I’ll admit, I’d been worried it would affect my performance today, so I’d hit the weight room to do lower body workouts. I’ve had significantly less time to get my routines together than everyone else has. It’s irritating, but I get it. I do. I keep telling myself she’s looking out for me, just like Simon would. And I’m ready. I keep reminding myself that there is a reason why I’m here. They chose me. And now it’s my turn to prove to them that I can get the job done.
* * *
There are a lot of fucking people here. I hadn’t anticipated a lot of spectators at a practice meet, but it is what it is. I’d done well during warm-ups, so I’m feeling pretty good. I’m ready to kick ass and take names all over this equipment.
My eyes flick around the gym, taking in the hordes of people who continue to stream into the room—classmates and parents alike. Beau and company arrived several minutes ago and seated themselves in the front row of the bleachers. They waved when they came in but other than that, they’ve left me to do my thing. I’m used to competing in front of people, so it’s not a huge deal. The truth is I’m excited to finally show everyone—my friends as well as all the haters—why I’m here. I bounce up and down on the floor mat a few times, swinging my arms back and forth. I’m ready. Ten minutes and counting.
Our team begins on vault. I watch our entire team perform, and then I’m up. I nail the hell out of a Tsuk. We move to beam where I perform my routine flawlessly. Not even a hint of a wobble. I guess this means the time off was worth it and didn’t affect me. We head to bars, and while I’m a little nervous at the pull on my shoulder, I manage just fine, even through the giants and dismount. Finally, we head to floor. I love that floor exercise allows me to show both power and grace at the same time. I’m beyond thrilled with my execution of the dance segments and definitely in my tumbling. My heart races as I stand in the corner, prepared to throw my final tumbling pass. Out of the corner of my eye, I see someone standing at the doorway. It’s fucking Marshall.
No.No one gets to take this from me. I begin my final tumbling run: a punch front to a round-off back handspring, ending with a double twisting layout. I stick the landing, and with a sense of complete relief, work through the final seconds of dance.
I drop into my final pose just as the music ends. Breathing hard, I stand and rotate to face the judges, raise both arms and salute them. That’s when the shit hits the fan.
“That’s my baby girl!” I don’t even have to look to know who it is, and I’d recognize the sound of my mother’s super-high heels clicking across the gym floor anywhere. She charges onto the floor mat in her favorite pleather pants and bright-green tube top, throwing her arms open. Oh. My. God.
When she reaches me, she gives me a huge hug, then turns to everyone. “Isn’t she fucking amazing?”
There’s a roar of laughter from the crowd. I want to crawl under the mat and hide away from everyone’s prying eyes. I don’t even think I have a blush going on—it’s more like a full-body inferno. I’m so embarrassed, I could die.
Over on the bleachers where our team sits to watch, Mandy howls with laughter.
Then from across the room, there’s a loud exclamation. “Holy shit. What the fuck?” Marshall gets my attention, shouting over the noise of the crowd to me. “I knew you looked familiar.” He starts laughing his ass off. More loudly now, he shouts, “I totally fucked your mom!”
If I thought I was embarrassed before, that was nothing compared to this. The murmurs rolling through the crowd have me wanting to run away and hide.
Marshall isn’t done. He scans the crowd, obviously searching for someone in particular. He points when he finds him. “Hey, Beau! Remember that party at your house when we were fifteen and hired that stripper? You remember her, right? What a fucking way to pop our cherries!”
My gaze connects with Beau’s. He looks mortified… and guilty.
No. Please, no. This can’t be happening.