Something To Prove (TNT Force Cheer Book 7)

by Dana Burkey

  Finally heading into the backyard I wasn’t too surprised to see both Jackson and Nina had arrived and were in the hot tub as well. I joined the three of them, my body instantly loving the feel of the warm water after my tumbling practice. It made me instantly worry about Connor’s back, but I pushed that thought out of my head. I trusted him when he said he was okay, and the fact that TJ was already aware put me that much more at ease. In fact, not wanting anything to get in the way of a fun evening, I pushed all worries about Nitro and Worlds out of my head for as long as I could. I was determined to make the evening a chill and worry-free time with my friends.

  “Where’s Nick?” I asked Whitney from my seat on the pool deck where I was enjoying some chips and salsa.

  “He said he was sick,” she frowned in reply.

  “Sick?” Connor asked. “He never gets sick.”

  “Other than when he eats too much Mexican food before conditioning,” Jackson reminded him.

  “Yeah true,” Whitney laughed. “But I think this is different. I asked him if he was doing okay, but haven’t gotten another text back yet.”

  “Maybe he fell asleep?” I guessed. “Or maybe he’s, well, in the bathroom.”

  With a groan and eye roll Whitney dropped her tote bag onto a deck chair and pulled off the sun dress she was wearing over her suit. It wasn’t exactly hot outside, but it was warm enough that she joined me for a few chips before finally heading into the pool. Emma and Nina were both in the deep end floating on blown up fruit shaped rafts they had found in our pool shed. Much like myself, Connor and Jackson were enjoying snacks after our long soak in the hot tub.

  “So what do we think,” I began between bites. “How terrible is practice going to be tomorrow?”

  “I don’t know,” Connor answered slowly. “If Detonators and Bomb Squad are all going to be there then it could mean we go super hard all day. Or it could mean we’re doing some kind of conditioning and team building. TJ’s been in a weird mood the last few days so anything is possible.”

  “He’s more stressed about Worlds than he’s letting on,” Jackson agreed. “I was in the gym this morning to do some tumbling and he was sitting in his office watching videos from practice for at least an hour straight. I think he’s planning upgrades.”

  “Seriously?” I set down the chip in my hand to focus on what he was saying. “How could we upgrade anything? Our tumbling is super maxed out, and if I flip around any more during pyramid I might throw up.”

  “What about stunts?” Emma called out. I hadn’t realized she was listening, but when I glanced and saw her floaty was now in the shallow end just a few feet from us it didn’t surprise me too much. “He mentioned once that the single around needles would be even more amazing as a double around.”

  I opened my mouth to tell Emma that was crazy, but then closed it as I thought through the skill. Spinning around once while being held up high above the mat with my leg stretched behind me was difficult, but adding another rotation wouldn’t be as hard as it had been to simply learn the first one months ago. All of the flyers were used to locking their core and keeping their balance enough that it would make a little more spinning easy enough. Even Lexi who had only just started learning the difficult stunt was catching on quickly.

  “Oh I know that look,” Connor laughed. “Max is ready to go for a triple around if that’s what it’s going to take to win.”

  “And you’re not?” I challenged.

  “I plead the fifth.” He laughed, then turned his attention to his phone. “Um, that’s not good.”

  “What’s not good?” Jackson asked around a mouth full of chips.

  “Juleah just messaged me that she’s sick,” he explained. “Throwing up a lot I guess. She was tumbling with me at the gym earlier, so wanted to let me know since she no doubt had chances to spread her germs on to me.”

  “Hold on,” Whitney said, climbing out of the pool and walking our way. “She just got sick today?”

  “Yeah,” Connor nodded. “When I saw her earlier she was fine. I mean, I guess she said she was feeling really tired, but we had been tumbling with Lenny and some of the guys from Detonators so I figured it was just that.”

  “I threw up at school literally five times today.” Glancing over in shock, I was glad to see Whitney wasn’t talking about herself, but instead reading a message from Nick out loud. “The office made my dad come pick me so I didn’t have to drive. I’m going to bed now so hopefully I will be okay for practice tomorrow.”

  “So that means both Nick and Juleah are sick,” Emma recapped. “Is anyone else throwing up?”

  “Only one way to find out!”

  I couldn’t help but laugh as all of our phones went off, no doubt receiving the group text Connor sent to the team. Nina and Emma made their way out of the pool to sit with the rest of us as we waited, praying for no one else to mention feeling sick or puking. There was an odd silence that made time feel like it was slowing down until suddenly the buzzing and chimes of a new message came in. Clearly afraid to read the words ourselves, we all waited until Connor updated us on the news.

  “Sarah’s sick too.” He paused as the noise of incoming texts began again. “And Craig. Jade isn’t feeling good but hasn’t thrown up. Oh, and Hannah T. said she’s thrown up once and has felt terrible ever since.”

  “This isn’t happening,” I said, more to myself than any of my teammates around me.

  “Alright,” Jackson began slowly. “What does all of this mean?”

  “That tomorrow might be a practice in the grass so it’s easier to clean up all the vomit?”

  “Ew, gross Connor!” Whitney whined.

  “Seriously though,” Jackson tried again. “Why does this have to happen now?”

  “Good question,” Nina said with a sigh. “Not going to lie though, my stomach is instantly feeling a little uneasy. Like, who’s going to be the next one to get sick?”

  Thinking about her words for a second, I pushed my still half full plate of snacks away from me and took a long drink of water instead. Glancing around, everyone else looked a little off as well. Not sick exactly, just dejected at the news. Partly since it meant our friends were sick, and also because it meant getting ready for Worlds was about to become that much harder.

  Over the next half hour three more messages came in letting us all know athletes were experiencing various stages of sickness. All of which worked to bring the mood down even more. What was supposed to be a night of swimming and eating too much sugar became a real life version of Russian roulette. Whenever someone went to the restroom it was as if everyone was holding their breath until we got good news that no vomiting was involved with the trip.

  Our group chat was a bit crazy for a while, as other people were understanding what we had realized first. Too many athletes were sick to make it just a coincidence. It was likely someone came to practice and managed to pass on the flu to everyone else. Or at least the handful of people who were throwing up or dealing with not feeling great. Knowing the chances of her getting exposed to germs thanks to Nick was highly likely, Whitney headed home early. She gave Emma a ride home as well, leaving just four of us to sit around the campfire we built once we were done in the pool.

  “Has anything like this ever happened before?” Nina asked, absentmindedly poking the fire with a stick.

  “Not that I can remember,” Connor explained. “I mean, people getting sick? Sure. But not right before Worlds like this.”

  “It could be worse,” I offered. “It could have hit everyone once we were already in Florida.”

  “Being sick in that heat would be awful,” Nina frowned.

  “You don’t even know the half of it.” Jackson looked like he might be sick on the spot, which was worrying until he explained. “My first year at Summit I got super sick and was throwing up the whole time. I had a fever and everything, and barely made it through performing even with only marking most of the routine.”

  “Oh my gosh,” Nina g
asped. “I remember hearing about that. Didn’t you puke all over Mindi when you were leaving the mat?”

  Jackson nodded with a particularly pained look on his face, which got the rest of us laughing. Not that the idea of him throwing up was all that funny. But rather the stress of the evening was leaving us all sorts of emotional. If he had said something sad, we could have just as easily cried in that moment instead. Laughing right then was the exact kind of release we needed to break all the tension.

  “Well, I vote we watch a movie or something,” I finally suggested once the laughter died down.

  “Good idea,” Connor agreed. “It’s getting cold out here, and a fire isn’t the same without s’mores.”

  “I mean, I could get the stuff for them,” I offered.

  “There’s no way I’m risking eating anything else,” he explained, holding up his hands in protest. “Nothing tastes good coming back up, so just in case I’m not putting anything else down.”

  That got us laughing again as we made our way inside and to the basement. My dad offered to make us popcorn when he saw us heading downstairs, but I quickly assured him anything else he made would go to waste. Instead, I took the extra blankets he offered so we could be super comfy. We had a couch across from the big screen TV, but knowing my hair was still wet from swimming I knew I would want to snuggle up with a blanket. And maybe Jackson as well.

  In the end we got a little carried away and made a full-fledged blanket fort to sit in for the movie. We used an old coat rack I found in our storage closet as the high point of the tent-like structure. It was a little messy, and fell down in some places, but was still a perfect spot in the end. We lay down blankets on the carpet as well, and lying between Jackson and Nina amid the extra pillows we pulled off the couch, I finally allowed myself to relax. Kind of.

  The problem with watching a movie we had all seen before was that since we knew the plot, characters, and even a lot of the lines, it gave me time to think. Too much time, in fact. While the movie played I found myself thinking about everything Nitro had gone through in the last few days. First Catherine got hurt, and now people were sick when time in the gym was more important than ever. Try as I might to keep the worry at bay, it was all I could think about by the time the movie ended and everyone decided to head home.

  “You doing okay?” Jackson asked me as we folded up the blankets once the credits had rolled. Connor and Nina were both putting the first load of blankets in the hall closet so they thankfully didn’t hear the question. “You’re not starting to feel sick are you?”

  “No, I’m fine,” I said quickly. “I’m just worried for tomorrow. Not to mention next week. All of this bad luck seems to be hitting at the worst time.”

  “True,” he agreed. “But we’re through the worst of it now. We have Lexi on the team, and I bet people will be feeling better in no time. I mean, from what he said in his last text to Whitney it sounds like Nick is still planning to be at practice tomorrow.”

  “Yeah, I guess.”

  I didn’t say anything else since Connor had come back, helping us carry the rest of the blankets upstairs. Jackson thankfully didn’t press the issue any more either. Instead we grabbed their still drying swimsuits and towels from the laundry room and headed outside.

  “Well, see you guys tomorrow,” Connor said, turning to give me a hug once we were standing in the driveway.

  “Bright and early,” I agreed, not quite looking forward to practice, all things considered.

  “I’ll walk with you to your car,” Nina offered, giving Jackson and I a raised eyebrow as she passed. I knew she was trying to give us a little alone time, and it instantly made me nervous.

  “I’ve been thinking about it, and I honestly don’t think we have anything to worry about.”

  As Jackson continued our conversation from a minute ago he stopped walking down my driveway and turned to face me. He was already holding one of my hands, but reached to take the other as well. I looked up at him, giving my best attempt at a smile.

  “I’ll feel better once we make it through tomorrow in one piece.”

  “Good thinking,” he grinned.

  Then, time seemed to slow down as Jackson stepped closer and began leaning down towards me. I instantly knew what was about to happen. He was going to kiss me. Right there in the driveway. The thought made me more than a little antsy, mixing with the stress and worry I was already feeling about the upcoming time in the gym. Even though they had walked away, I knew Nina and Connor would be watching us. Not to mention my dad could easily see us if he decided to peek out a window. Sure, he had never been one to keep that close of an eye on me, but I was overreacting all the same. So, as Jackson got closer and closer to me, I did the first thing I could think of. I looked down at my feet as if they were the most interesting things in the world.

  As soon as my head was down I could feel Jackson’s grip on my fingers loosen for a second. He was clearly a little startled, and I found myself worrying he would also be mad. But instead, he gave my hands a long squeeze as he planted a kiss on top of my head. Finally pulling my eyes off the ground I looked up and was glad to see he was even smiling at me, despite my obvious rejection of his kiss.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow morning,” he said simply.

  “Yeah, tomorrow.” I echoed his words then watched as he headed down the driveway to where Nina was waiting in her car.

  Falling asleep took almost twice as long as usual. The not so romantic moment between Jackson and myself replayed in my head on and off between thinking about so many people on Nitro getting sick. Both things were silly to worry about. Clearly Jackson didn’t mind that I wasn’t as ready to kiss him as he was ready to kiss me, and there were only a few athletes on my team that were actually sick enough to be puking. Even still, I lay in bed tossing and turning a lot later than I would have liked. When I finally did fall asleep, my dreams were all about a weird disease that was turning everyone to zombies, and only could be cured through kissing. Talk about a face palm kind of a night.

  “Almost ready to go sweetie?” my dad asked, poking his head into my room while I was finishing putting up my hair. It was almost long enough for a ponytail, and I was actually thinking about growing it out for the first time since chopping it off my first year at the gym.

  “Yeah, give me like five minutes,” I replied before filling the air with hairspray.

  “How about some warning,” he coughed dramatically.

  “I’m spraying hairspray,” I said flatly, then squirted a little into the air just because.

  “Great. Now that the polar ice caps are all melted, can we go?”

  Giving him my best annoyed look and eye roll I grabbed my bow off my bed and slipped on my glittery teal backpack. Following him down the hall I checked my phone and was happy to see at least one of my teammates who had been throwing up the night before was feeling totally better after a good night's sleep. As for the others, it was looking like the scheduled four hour practice was going to be a long one.

  “People still sick?” my dad guessed, clearly noticing my facial expression as we loaded into the car.

  “Most of them,” I frowned. “Nick is in Lexi’s stunt group so they’re already a little behind on things but he seems to be the sickest one out of everyone. He said he’s feeling a little better, but still not one hundred percent.”

  “Well, it’s better this flu hit everyone now instead of in another week while you are trying to actually perform in Florida.”

  “Yeah, we were talking about that last night,” I replied, knowing if even my dad was thinking it then it was worth remembering. It still didn’t mean I was happy about it by any means, but the timing could have been a lot worse.

  We moved on to chatting about Florida for the short ride to the gym, mostly discussing my need to finish the rest of my laundry. I should have seen that one coming, so I assured my dad I would finish folding and putting away all my now clean clothes right when I got home from the gym. Not tha
t I wanted to, but because then it was one less thing I needed to worry about doing before heading off to Worlds. Homework was the only other thing that I needed to focus a little more energy on, but I was kind of keeping it second to cheer. Obviously.

  “Stay positive in there sweetie,” my dad said to me as I finally climbed out of the car.

  “I will,” I assured him as I left him to park the car while I headed into the gym.

  Walking in, the first thing I noticed was how many more athletes were in the gym then I was used to. Usually on a Saturday morning Nitro was the only full team practicing. There might be a few other people in the gym for privates or to work on skills, but it was never full. Today wasn't like usual though. Instead, Nitro was joined with the two other Worlds teams Bomb Squad and Detonators. It instantly filled me with a little more adrenaline which seemed to fade when I spotted a whole group of my teammates wearing blue masks over their faces to keep them from spreading germs around to other athletes.

  “What is going on?” I asked Emma who was trying to adjust the mask in her hand before slipping it on her face.

  “TJ is making us all wear them,” she sighed. “He was going to just get them for the sick people, but then decided this way anyone still contagious or about to get sick won’t share their germs anymore then they already have.”

  “Hold on, what is on Jackson’s mask?” I said, my eyes locked on him from across the room.

  Beside me Emma confirmed what I was already figuring out on my own. It was a pair of big red lips. Once I realized what they were I could instantly feel my cheeks burning with blush. Had Nina said something? Was this Jackson’s way of letting me know he was sick of waiting for us to finally kiss? I was about to start voicing my concerns to Emma when I looked and saw Connor with the same drawing on his mask as well.