Return to Us by Julie Cross Read Free Book Online Page A

“Can I see your full twisting double?”
    “Why?” I snort back a laugh. “That skill ain’t worth shit—”
    I stop when his eyebrows shoot up, arms folded across his chest. But his face gives none of his intentions away. Fort Knox.
    “But you can do it, right?” he asks.
    “Tuck or layout?” I squeeze my hands into fists, trying to shake some of the tension. Or is it nerves? Except I don’t get nervous. Well, at least I haven’t before.
    “Tuck,” he says, quiet and careful.
    I’ll humor him for a few minutes. Then I’m done with this creepy, mysterious Saturday night gym lurker shit. I stand up the skill with no problem. But that’s no surprise. It isn’t the single twist that’s giving me hell, it’s the double. Which is exactly why I should be working on those right now.
    He doesn’t say anything when I get back to the far end of the tumbling strip, but he gives a tiny nod toward the landing area. I think that’s code for, do it again . I’ve seen that same move from Nina Jones a million times. “Wanna see a layout this time?”
    My layouts are better than my tucks. If I’m gonna put on a show, might as well do my best tricks.
    “No, just the tuck.”
    Whatever.
    I go again and again. My curiosity must be getting the best of me because any other day, I’d have flipped the guy off and gone back to my regular workout about ten full twisting double flips ago.
    “Close your eyes.”
    I jump and look over at him, startled. It’s the first thing he’s said in fifteen minutes. “What?”
    “Close your eyes,” he repeats.
    I turn to face him, my hands lifting into the air. “Dude, I don’t care what you’re into but—”
    “Close your eyes and do a standing back tuck,” he finishes.
    This shit is getting weird. I turn back around and shut my eyes before flipping backward. The second my feet hit the mat, he says, “again. Do two in a row.” I land that and he says, “Now jump full turn.”
    I stop and open my eyes, staring at him. Jump full turn? Like a jump without a flip? “What? Like a girly dance move? Or that shit we do in warm-ups with the six-year-olds?”
    “Jump in the air and turn in a circle that’s equal to three hundred and sixty degrees.” His words are sarcastic but his tone is calm, like he’s being careful in case I’m actually an idiot and can’t understand what he’s saying. “Back flip, back flip, jump and turn in a circle. Got it?”
    “I think so.” I shake my head, then lift my arms up to start again.
    “Eyes closed,” he reminds me.
    My eyelids squeeze together. Bang, I land the first standing tuck. Bang. I pull myself upright to start the stupid jump twist thing, but there’s a clear hesitation when I can’t decide if my arms go up or pull in toward my body. When I land the jump he says, “Don’t open your eyes yet. Tell me which wall you’re facing.”
    “Easy.” I grin. “The one with the uneven bars. Same as when I started.” See Mr. Creepy Dude? TJ actually knows what three hundred and sixty degrees means.
    “All right, open your eyes.”
    I do as he says and end up staring at a long row of brown leather balance beams. “What the hell? I did a full turn…”
    He nods. “True. You did.”
    “Then why am I facing the beams?” I scratch the back of my head, getting a grasp on this disorientation. I know the answer to my question. I did more than three hundred and sixty degrees.
    “I take it you’re feeling lost on the double double?”
    Um, yeah. Only a lot. A whole lot . I shrug, not wanting to admit any weaknesses. Especially considering he hasn’t bothered to introduce himself.
    “Each angle of the twist needs to coordinate with a segment of the flip. And you can’t set that skill up high like you do the triple back.”
    How does he know about my triple back? Are there gym spies here? Maybe the same person who put Campbell’s crash into the high bar on YouTube. That’s what I get for having a Dumb Phone instead of one that