Center Stage (TNT Force Cheer #3)

by Dana Burkey

  “So, you’re really not mad?” Connor asked one final time, at least 10 minutes into our conversation.

  “I’m really not mad,” I said yet again. “It’s just fueling me even more to land the kick double tomorrow. Hopefully people will see a good post of me actually landing a skill.”

  “I’ll make sure I’m filming, and upload it right away,” he offered, and I made a mental not to make sure he followed through on that promise.

  After the strange discovery of everything on Instagram, I was happy that the rest of the night was much more relaxing. My phone was still buzzing pretty often as more people continued to follow me and go through my posts. I usually only posted to my account once or twice a week, but made sure to upload some videos from recent practices, photos from last season, and a good ‘slumber party photo’ after Lexi’s suggestion. In total, it was less than a dozen photos added to my account by the time we reached the gym, where Connor was waiting for me. Wrapping me in a big hug he apologized a few more times, clearly still feeling bad for all the craziness that his post had suddenly caused.

  “Don’t worry about it,” I told him again after returning the extra long hug. “If I was mad I would let you know. But it’s actually kind of cool. I mentioned in a post this morning that I’m going to try to finally land the kick double today and people have been writing good luck and all kinds of stuff!”

  “You’re turning into the cheerlebrity and the season hasn’t even started,” Connor laughed, finally letting me go so he could walk with me to check in at the office.

  “A cheerlebrity?” I echoed.

  “Yeah,” he nodded. “You know, a celebrity cheerleader.”

  “I know what it means,” I said quickly. “I just don’t think anyone cares about me.”

  “Trust me, people care,” Connor finally said, an unreadable smile on his face.

  The facial expression was confusing, but I was distracted with signing my name on the open gym clipboard sitting on a table outside of the gym offices. Once we all wrote down our names and signed the page, I parted ways with Lexi and Halley. Since Halley was on Lexi’s stunt team, they were using the open gym time to work on their skills. Callie and Whitney, the other members of their group were waiting on one of the blue mats, stretching and working on their standing jumps. Lexi was more than likely going to be the point stunt this coming season for Spark, so they wanted to make sure they spent as much extra time working on things as possible. After all, being point stunt was a big honor and responsibility. Something I was still trying to wrap my head around myself.

  Knowing my focus was on the kick double, Connor walked with me to the trampoline track to get started. I was also planning to work with Leanne, but I didn’t see her when I first walked into the gym. Hoping to find her later, I went to work throwing the kick double with the help of the trampoline. It was pretty easy to work into after only a few kick singles and similar moves. After landing it a few times on the trampoline I headed to the air mat for more work.

  Much like at the assessment just a few weeks prior, I was planning to do a punch front, round off, back handspring, and whip all leading to the final kick double. I wanted to add in another whip to help get height, but that felt like cheating. If I wasn’t allowed to do it on the competition mat, then I wasn’t going to try it just to land the kick double for the first time. Instead I just did the same pass over and over so my body would begin to get used to it and build up my muscle memory. Even when I thought I had enough height I tried to push harder and harder with my arms and legs so I knew I would still be okay once I made the move to the real mat.

  “Should I record this one?” Connor asked, watching me as I landed the third kick double in a row.

  “If you want to,” I said between sucking in deep breaths of air. “But it doesn’t really count if it’s not on the spring floor.”

  “Only you Max,” he laughed. He handed me my water bottle which was sitting next to him. Once I took a long drink of water and handed it back to him he continued. “Ready for the mat?”

  “I think so,” I nodded, then wordlessly walked to the blue spring loaded floor closest to me.

  I was the only one on the mat, so I quickly did a more basic pass to help my legs gets used to the floor. Then, I stood in the corner and did the pass part by part. I started with just the punch front. Next I did the punch front but added in the round off. I did this over and over again, each time adding in the next skill in the tumbling pass. Once I had the rest of the pass good to go I ended it first with a back tuck. Then, I tried it again landing it in a layout, followed by another pass ending in a full. From there I worked in the kick single, and finally a double full. In that moment, I knew the only skill left was the one I had been working on for weeks: the kick double.

  Slowly walking back to the corner of the mat where I started each tumbling pass, I took long breaths to ensure I was ready for what was next. I could feel the nervous excitement building in me, but paused to close my eyes and just calm down for a few seconds. Then, once I knew I couldn’t delay any longer, I open my eyes and focused on the far end of the mat. I knew exactly where I needed to land if everything went as planned. So, before I could convince myself to try a safer pass or chicken out completely, I took off, running three strong steps before launching into the punch front.

  As my body flipped through the air, it felt like time seemed to slow down. Seconds turned to minutes as I was aware of each and every twist and turn my body was making. I pushed with my legs and arms harder than ever before, feeling my body flying higher and higher off the mat below me. Every move was getting me closer to the moment of truth. The moment when I needed to finally throw the kick double.

  With my body flipping in a long straight line after the whip I felt my feet hit the ground and pushed off as hard as I could. Then, as my body flew up into the air I kicked my right leg high before bringing it down to begin the first of two full rotations. I was spinning fast enough and knew I was high enough in the air. I just needed to get my feet under me. Finishing the final of the two twists, all while my body also completed the flipping motion it was making, I bent my knees and reached my feet down to find the floor. Both feet managed to make contact with the mat at the same time, my legs bending to cushion the landing. I held my breath then, squeezing all my muscles and willing myself not to pitch forward or fall to either side. I popped up off the mat slightly, something that was common even for moves like back tucks. Finally, after what felt like a full minute I straightened my body to stand fully upright, my feet firmly planted on the ground.

  Before I could stop myself, I gasped then looked towards where Connor was standing and filming me. Only it wasn’t just Connor standing there. Instead, Connor stood with Halley, Lexi, TJ, Gwen, Matthew, Emma and a handful of athletes I didn’t know by name. As the realization of what I had just done sunk in for everyone, the crowd of people came racing towards me, jumping and giving me hugs. I had done it. I landed my kick double on the spring-loaded floor for the first time ever.

  “It was perfect!” Matthew cheered, picking me up as countless arms wrapped around me from different directions.

  “Did you get it on film?” I asked, my question directed at Connor who was standing just outside of the mass of people celebrating.

  “Yup!” he grinned. “Come see.”

  Reaching Connor took longer than usual, since a lot of people wanted to give me a hug or high five along the way. But, eventually I made it to him and give him a big hug before grabbing his phone to watch the video. Connor wrapped one arm around my shoulders and watched with me as I pushed play. The video showed me from my first step leading into the punch front all the way to the moment I gasped then turned to look towards where my friends were watching.

  “I just did that,” I said a little in shock. “I did it.”

  “Why don’t you do it again and prove it wasn’t a fluke,” TJ challenged from where he stood watching me with a massive grin on his face.

  Openi
ng my mouth to protest, I was both excited and mortified as Greg quickly clapped the series of claps that regulars at the gym were used to hearing. As the athletes around the room repeating the rhythm of the clapping then got quiet, I realized what was going on. I was going to have every person in the gym watching me as I tried to kick double for a second time.

  “Gather around if you have a second people,” Greg called out once the room was silent. “Max just landed her first kick double full and wants to show everyone how it’s done!”

  I knew something like that should scare me. I knew that I should be intimidated as athlete after athlete walked over to the mat where I was working and found a seat to watch. I knew I should have cringed as a bunch of people also pulled out their phones to snap a photo or take a video of the attempt. I knew all of it should have made me nervous. But instead, it fueled me with even more confidence.

  Standing on the corner of the mat once again, I looked around at everyone watching. For a second I thought I saw Leanne in the crowd, but it was hard to be sure since so many people had gathered. Enough people, in fact, that when I finally took off across the mat and landed the entire pass perfectly once again, the gym was all but deafening as the sounds of cheering and celebrating rang out. This was partly thanks to the sounds echoing off the tall steel walls, but my focus was mostly on the celebrating in that moment.

  “That was even better than the last one,” Greg assured me, after I was once again hugged and congratulated by athlete after athlete. “Now we get to start working on your Arabian.”

  “How about next week?” I suggested, still in shock that I landed the kick double not just once but twice.

  “Deal,” he agreed, then turned and began to herd the other athletes off the mat. “Okay people, back to work.”

  As everyone finally trickled away I had a chance to catch my breath, get some water, and finally sit for a little while. I was joined by Lexi, Halley, and Connor who were still brimming over with excitement for my accomplishment.

  “Are you going to post the video?” Lexi asked Connor.

  “Sure,” he replied. “Or I can send it to Max and she can post it.”

  I instantly nodded in agreement. “I want to post it first. But feel free to post it after that or whatever.”

  With a nod, Connor immediately went to work sending the image to my phone. It gave me a chance to look around the room for a second before turning to my friends with a question, “Was Leanne here?”

  “Yup,” Halley said immediately. “She was over here watching your final pass with everyone.”

  “So, where is she now?” I asked simply.

  “She left,” Connor answered, although I hadn’t realized he’d been listening to our conversation. “Right after you landed the kick double I saw her walking out.”

  That fact confused me, but I got a little distracted as Connor handed me my phone as the video arrived in a message. After watching it through one more time, I uploaded it to Instagram. My phone began buzzing due to notifications right away. People were already giving the video views, likes, and comments congratulating me on landing the kick double. Taking it all in I couldn’t help but smile. Although it looked like I wasn’t going to get to work on tumbling with Leanne at all, I landed my kick double finally and even managed to get it on film not once but twice. All in all, it made for a pretty great morning.

  After landing the kick double, the rest of the open gym time seemed rather mundane. I did a little bit of tumbling for fun and then decided to work with Matthew on partner stunts. We knew we would likely be together for our partner stunts, since we were together for our elite stunts and baskets. Once I was ready for a rest after a long while of stunting, I spent some time watching Lexi and Halley work on their flying with their stunt team. It made the afternoon much more relaxing after the initial excitement and work that went into landing my complete tumbling pass.

  The rest of the weekend went by quickly as I helped my dad around the house with cleaning and even some yard work. Well, that is after we went out to dinner Saturday night to celebrate my new skill. My dad was so happy when I showed him the video that he actually called the gym to thank the staff for helping and encouraging me. Not to mention for also pushing me to accomplish such a lofty goal time and again, or at least that was how he put it on the phone. I had a feeling it was just the beginning of the thank yous, especially when I saw he was looking up local stores that sold those fancy fruit bouquets.

  “Here’s our star tumbler,” Matthew called out to me as I walked into the gym Monday afternoon for practice.

  “Very funny,” I said dryly, although I couldn’t help but smile at the same time.

  Taking a seat next to Emma and Juleah after putting my bag and bike helmet in a cubby, I was hoping to avoid any more talk about Saturday. Unfortunately, I didn’t luck out on that one. Instead, both girls began telling me about the posts they had seen on Instagram. At least two of the cheerleading accounts that posted my fail video also posted the success video Connor filmed for me. It had more follows, likes, and comments, all of which was becoming a little overwhelming.

  “You’re turning into a cheerlebrity,” Emma grinned at me finally.

  “What?” I asked, remembering Connor suggested the same thing just days before.

  “Seriously?” Leanne asked, taking a seat next to us as well. “You don’t know what a cheerlebrity is?” She started explaining the term, complete with examples, of well-known cheerlebrities before I could stop her. “Basically they’re the girls everyone wants to be and the guys everyone wants to date. Not to mention they get all kinds of free stuff just for posting photos to their social media accounts.”

  “I know what it is,” I said once she was done. “I just don’t think I’m anywhere near that level.”

  “Oh,” Leanne said which was followed by a rather awkward pause. “Congrats on the kick double.”

  “Thanks,” I replied, a little shocked considering she looked genuinely happy for me. “Do you want to work on your full again today after practice?”

  “Not today,” she said holding up her hands that featured perfectly manicured nails. “I have a nail appointment today. I need to get them redone since they’re growing out. But I can on Wednesday.”

  “I’m going camping Wednesday night,” I explained. “We’re leaving right after practice and then won’t be home until Friday morning just before practice.”

  “Camping?” Juleah asked, looking horrified. “Like real camping? In the woods? With tents and stuff?”

  “Of course,” I began eagerly. “We go to the same place every year with my neighbors. They meet us on their drive back from California and we go fishing and hiking and everything. There’s not much cell phone service, but it’s still really awesome.”

  In reply, all three girls just stared at me. It was like they were waiting for me to say, “Just kidding,” and start telling a different story about how we were actually going to go stay in a fancy hotel somewhere and live off 5-star room service meals and hang out with rich and famous actors. Okay, maybe not quite something on that level, but they were clearly not impressed at the idea of sleeping in a tent in the middle of the trees.

  “I’m free tomorrow if you want to meet here or even at my house,” I said to Leanne, knowing that talking about camping would get me nowhere. “My dad ordered me an air mat so I can work on tumbling at home. It should be there when I get home tonight so I can set it up and test it out and everything.”

  “What?” all three girls asked at once, catching the attention of a few more athletes nearby.

  “Everything okay?” Jade asked, sitting down to join our conversation.

  “Max’s dad bought her an air mat to use at home,” Emma explained quickly.

  “Wait, like a real one?” Jade now had a look on her face that was somewhere between shock and awe.

  “I guess,” I shrugged, feeling suddenly self-conscious. “He was really proud of me landing my kick double and wanted to get
me something to celebrate.”

  “Those things cost, like, over a thousand dollars,” Leanne quickly noted, causing my jaw to all but drop open. “There are gyms that don’t even own them since they are so much more expensive than trampoline tracks.”

  I managed a halfhearted “Oh,” before I was interrupted by TJ who called out that it was time for Nitro to begin our running. The 3 miles were sure to be pretty easy since the weather was finally cooling down, but still had most of the athletes around me groaning. I, on the other hand, was happy for the distraction. Hearing how much my dad might have spent on the mat was a little shocking, although I knew we were fortunate enough to have enough money for things like that. After all, my dad has a great job at a cancer research clinic, so I guess I often didn’t think about things like how much we spend on different items most other families had to really budget to afford.

  Thankfully the run took my mind off the air mat, and gave me something to focus on instead. And the focus, as always, was finishing my miles before Matthew. He was getting faster and faster, but I was determined to still finish first. That meant pushing myself harder than usual, but it paid off. Or rather it paid off during the three miles. After I finished the last few minutes of the run, in a pace much faster than my usual speed, I arrived at the gym and instantly regretted my choice. Mostly because it left me much more exhausted during conditioning than usual.

  “Max, are you doing okay?” TJ called out as we were doing bear crawls from one side of the mat to the other. “You’re looking a little green.”

  “Maybe,” I replied, although it wasn’t a very good answer to his question or even his statement for that matter.

  “Trash can’s over there,” he reminded me, then went back to yelling at people who were moving too slow or trying to cut corners on the bear crawl drill.

  I never thought I would be pushed to the point of puking during conditioning, but clearly it wasn’t an impossible situation. This was proven true as I ran off the mat and quickly emptied my stomach into the can TJ had just pointed out. Thankfully I had Gatorade in my cheer bag so I was able to refuel quickly and get back on the mat. TJ checked if I was okay quickly, then encouraged me to keep working. It was how he treated anyone who threw up during practice, so I was expecting it. Not to mention, sitting out on any of the flying practice was not even close to an option for me.