Girls Only! (3 page)

I’m Livvy . . . not that sophisticated-sounding name
, she thought, taking a fast turn around the rink. She attempted to think through her setup for a triple toe loop. Coach Sterling, as well as her previous coach, always prompted her to do this. She must take time and care to envision her every action. Gliding backward on the back inside edge of her skate—knees bent gracefully—she extended her free leg behind her.

Livvy was right-handed, so she almost always jumped off her right foot. Not when performing the loop jump, though. The left leg was the one for this easiest of the toe jumps.

She gained power with a backward crossover, accelerating more quickly. She felt the speed as she pushed and pulled hard with her edges. This jump would take off and land on the exact same skate edge. Livvy could imagine herself giving the extra kick from the toe pick. Yep, she was ready to go for it.

“Give it all you’ve got, Olivia!” Grandma suddenly called.

Hearing her given name threw Livvy off. Her focus was messed up—
super
messed up. She didn’t even try for the jump. She skated out of it, burying her face in her hands. Skimming the ice, she felt like calling it a day. More than anything, she wanted to skate just once without Grandma Hudson.

“Livvy? What is it?” Coach called.

She shook her head. How could she explain to Coach with Grandma standing nearby? Her complaint might come out sounding very bitter. Deep inside—no, right on the surface—she felt as upset as she’d ever been.

Coach stood at attention, waiting. She could see him through her fingers. Then, dropping her hands, she made another pass around the rink, avoiding center ice and the side nearest Coach and Grandma. She was having a horrible time centering herself. Her balance was tottering, too.

“I’ll try again,” she said.

Another skate around the rink would surely do it. If only Grandma would stop calling out. It was as if Grandma was confused about her role in all this. Like maybe she thought she was the assistant to the coach. Or something other than just a grandmother.

Livvy thought about it. Why did her grandmother bug her so much? Surely she was only trying to help, not wanting to take over every inch of Livvy’s life. Surely not.

This time around, Livvy turned into her backward glide, coming faster across the ice.
I
,
Livvy Hudson, future Olympian, can and will do this jump!
she psyched herself up.
Please, God, help me
.

One leg trailed the other as she sailed toward the spot where she knew she must jump. There was a slightly prolonged amount of time when it seemed she was merely flying. But then she kicked her toe into the ice and leaped off her skating leg, into the air. Three spins counterclockwise high in the air were flawless. The landing was supposed to happen on the back outside edge of her right foot. Instead, both her feet came down together!

She was furious with herself. Especially because she’d let Grandma get to her.

Again!

But she wouldn’t give up. She tried the same jump again. Four more times in a row.

Finally she landed correctly, on only one skate—her right. Her free leg swung around gracefully behind her and up.

“That’s it, Her Grace!” Coach was saying, though not loudly. His voice had the most pleasant ring to it. He even applauded several times.

Grandma, on the other hand, waved her skinny little hands like a cheerleader—but a rather dilapidated one. Livvy couldn’t begin to imagine her grandmother in a short, pleated skirt and tennis shoes. The best she could do was to think of Grandma Hudson back in Illinois, baking bread in her kitchen. Where she belonged.

Livvy met up with Jenna in P.E., their third-period class. The locker room smelled of hair spray and deodorant. There were a number of girls rushing out, late for their next class.

It was impossible not to notice how happy Jenna Song was. Her face nearly shone with glee.

“What’s up with you?” Livvy asked, searching her face.

Jenna rummaged through her book bag and produced the reason for her delight. “It’s this!” She showed off an Α-plus in math. “Do you have any idea how unbelievable this is?”

Several other girls were grinning, too. In fact, two girls came over to peer at Jenna’s math grade.

Livvy opened her gym locker. “Congrats, Jen,” she said softly, without turning around.

“Hey, you okay?” Jenna asked.

Livvy did a double take. “What do you mean?”

“You just sound so . . .” Her voice trailed off.

“Ticked off?”

Jenna nodded, her eyes serious. “Did something happen at practice this morning?”

Livvy felt the lump in her throat. Tears clouded her eyes, and she leaned deep into her locker. She couldn’t do this. Not here, not now!

“Oh, Livvy, it’s your grandma, isn’t it?” Jenna patted her shoulder. “I’m really sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

Livvy tried to say, “I’ll be okay,” but it came out mushy and squeaky. She was sure her best friend had no idea what she was trying to say.

“We’ll talk at Girls Only Club,” Jenna offered.

Livvy nodded. She watched Jenna walk to her locker. Actually, it was more like floating. But then, gymnasts were known to walk that way. And ice skaters, too, but only when their world wasn’t crumbling beneath their feet.

Jenna’s graceful walk made Livvy’s heart sink. If Grandma Hudson didn’t leave her alone—and soon!—she would never be able to float or skate gracefully or do any of the demanding jumps and moves in her repertoire. In short, she would never be able to follow her heart—to the Olympics!

Follow the Dream

Chapter Five

After ballet class at Natalie Johnston’s private studio, Livvy, Jenna, Heather, and Manda hurried to Jen’s house. Jenna—president of Girls Only—called the meeting to order. She was the prez because her attic bedroom was the location of their Friday meetings. The ideal setting.

Her room was super cool, with hot pink carpet. There was also plenty of space to hang out and relax. The barre and wide mirror Jenna’s father had installed stretched across one long wall. A computer desk and large bulletin board behind it filled up one spot at the far end of the room. Posters of Mary Lou Retton, Keri Strug, and the Magnificent Seven of recent Olympic fame decorated the walls near a four-poster bed. One glance around Jen’s room, and her athletic obsession reached right out and zapped you.

Actually, all four members of Girls Only were on course for the Olympics: Jenna Song, Heather Bock, Miranda Garcia, and Livvy herself. Heather was an ice dancer with her older brother, Kevin. Manda was an Alpine skier.

“What’s up with old business?” Jenna said, giving a nod to Heather. Blond and vivacious, Heather had been both the secretary
and
the treasurer for the club. Now that Manda was one of the foursome,
she
was in charge of the bucks. Not that there was much money to be in charge of. All the same, Manda held the position of treasurer.

“Let’s vote on what to do for our springtime activity,” Heather spoke up. “It’s been months since we’ve performed anything for our families.”

Manda wore a fleeting frown. “Easter’s only a few weeks away. Not much time to pull something together.”

Livvy wondered about Manda’s comment. Was there a downhill event coming up for her? Manda was a first-rate skier. Maybe she didn’t want to be distracted. “Are you training for a race?” Livvy asked thoughtfully.

Manda shook her head. “My mom and I are going to visit my grandparents in Kansas over Easter weekend.”

“Oh,” Jenna said, face drooping. “That’ll leave just the three of us.”

“Maybe we should skip it,” Livvy said, feeling as glum as Jenna looked.

“Why can’t we do something anyway?” Heather suggested. “You wouldn’t mind, would you, Manda?”

Livvy, Jenna, and Heather turned simultaneously toward the tall, Hispanic skier. Blushing, Manda pursed her lips. “I don’t want to be a party pooper,” she said comically.

“Oh, don’t worry. You’re never that,” Livvy assured her.

Manda nodded, grinning. “Sure . . . go ahead, plan something for Easter. I’ll cheer you on from afar.”

Was there still some hesitation in Manda’s voice? Livvy kept staring—not to be rude, she just wanted to be sure Manda really didn’t mind. “You know, it would be real easy to wait till you get back,” she said. “We could put on a program
after
the holy days.”

Manda insisted, shaking her head. “Do whatever you like. Honest. I’m cool with it.”

So, with Manda’s help, the girls put their heads together. They decided to create a pageant-type play. “Complete with our pets,” Jenna said, stroking her golden-haired cat, Sasha.

“Who’s going to write the play?” Heather asked.

The room was still. The girls eyed one another without speaking. Almost bashfully.

At last, Jenna volunteered. “If no one else wants to, I’ll do it.”

Applause followed, and Jenna’s face lit up. Her jet black hair shone under the ceiling lights. “In case you didn’t know it, I have a secret dream.” Her eyes squinted nearly shut.

“Let me guess,” teased Livvy.

But Jenna volunteered the secret before Livvy could say more. “I’ve always wanted to be a script writer.”

Livvy wasn’t surprised. Jenna was known to be quite creative on paper. She loved writing in her leather-bound book. Every day she wrote, no matter what.

“How will you keep up with writing
and
gymnastics?” Manda asked. “When you’re an adult, I mean.”

Jenna smiled her perky smile. “If God wants me to do it, I’ll give everything my best shot.”

Livvy said softly, “My mother used to say, ‘Your creative strengths will start to narrow down as you grow up.’ ” She startled herself. It had been months since she’d spoken so openly about her deceased mother.

Heather reached over and squeezed Livvy’s arm. “I think your mom was positively right.”

There was lots more talk of the pageant—how to bring certain animal pets into the show. “Be sure to include Livvy’s talking parrot,” Manda piped up. “Coco’s a real kick.”

“Yeah, we could train him to do the echoes,” Jenna said, her eyes blinking.

“What echoes are you talking about?” Livvy asked.

The girls burst out laughing.

“Yeah, what’s with the echoes?” Heather said.

Jenna’s olive skin turned slightly purple. “Oh, whatever.”

“Please, just put lots of action into the show,” Heather said, twirling her long golden hair. “Maybe even write in a ballet finale—we could do an encore for a change.”

“Yes, an encore!” Jenna said.

“Great idea,” said Heather.

Livvy agreed, especially since they were all in ballet class together. The more she thought about it, the more she liked the pageant idea. But they’d have to work hard to pull it off, beginning with Jenna and her script. “How fast can you write the play?” she asked.

“Probably in a couple days,” Jen said.

“Wow, that fast?” Heather said. “Are you sure?”

“Oh, she’s fast,” Manda piped up. “I’ve seen her do her double salto forward. She’s lightning.”

“But can she
write
that fast?” Heather asked, teasing.

Jenna pointed to her new computer. “Check it out.”

Livvy chuckled. “Does your computer take dictation?”

“Not yet, but someday.” Jenna was smiling.

Livvy was excited about the program plan. But she felt terribly unsettled. When should she bring up the subject of her grandmother?

Or should she keep quiet?

After refreshments of only healthy snacks—canned V8 juice and celery sticks with peanut butter—Jenna shared Livvy’s problem. Jen sat cross-legged on the floor, explaining the predicament. “Liv needs our support,” she told the others, eyes serious. “Her grandmother’s calling all the shots. On and off the ice.”

Livvy fidgeted, then spoke up. “I didn’t want Jen to say anything. Not at first. But things are getting worse. And . . . I don’t want to be rude to her, but I really don’t know what to do.”

“We’ll help,” Heather promised.

“You know who your friends are,” Manda said.

“How long has it been going on?” asked Heather.

Livvy explained. “Well, when Grandma first came to live with us, things were pretty much okay. But more and more, her constant attention is suffocating.”

“My grandparents are just the opposite,” Manda said. “Thank goodness! But if one of them came to live with us, well . . . I don’t know how that would work.”

“Older people can get stuck in their ways,” Jenna said. “Who knows how
my
grandma would behave if she lived with us.”

“Is she trying to be a mother replacement, maybe?” Heather said hesitantly.

Livvy shook her head. “It’s hard to say what’s going on in Grandma’s head.”

“Can you gently ask her to mind her own business?” Manda suggested, which brought a big laugh.

“Seriously, though,” Livvy said, “I don’t want to hurt my grandmother’s feelings. She’s a big help around the house, cooking and doing other stuff. Besides, I think my dad would be lost without her.”

Before the meeting was adjourned, Jenna prayed. She also encouraged each girl to pray for wisdom. “Liv really needs it.”

“Yeah,” Livvy whispered, “so I won’t do the wrong thing.”

Jen, Heather, and Manda gathered around and hugged her good-bye. All the way home, Livvy thought of Jenna’s prayer.
“Help our Livvy know what to do, Lord. . . .”

She smiled, remembering it as she walked the short distance home.

“Our Livvy . . .”

It was the sweetest prayer ever.

Things have to get better now
, she thought.

Follow the Dream

Chapter Six

Sunday at church, Livvy spotted Kevin Bock in the foyer. He was tall, blond, and very cute. She didn’t want to interrupt because he was talking with his sister Heather and two other friends. Secretly, Livvy wished Kevin would notice her. Someday . . .

But Kevin was a teenager, way cuter than most of the boys at church. There was no chance he’d think twice about a girl who was close to turning just
twelve
.

Taking a deep breath, she walked past their group. She waved when Heather caught her eye, but kept going. She wanted to check her hair before Sunday school.