september 19th, 2019
4:18 pm
"CAM, IT'S GOTTA BE SHARPER. DO IT AGAIN." Kylah said, her bare feet planted on the wide blue mat in the gymnastics gym, hands placed lazily on her light gray unitard-covered hips and her head tilted a little in concentration, her ponytailed sew-in following the incline of her neck.
While the rest of the girls on the team were practicing the uneven bars and the eggplant-colored balance beams in the corner of the warehouse under the watchful eye of their coach, Kylah and Cameron were off to the side of the gym, attempting to perfect her routine finally.
Cameron groaned before dropping dramatically to the mat, her light brown curls supporting her head, "Ky, you're killing me. Do you know how hard it is to a front tuck sharply? We all can't be you, ya know!"
Kylah dropped her head forward to look at her light pink-painted toes with a laugh, "You're a great gymnast. You are going to get this."
"I'm going to get this when pigs start flying. Can you just do it? You know coach is going to pick you anyway." Cameron sat up and rested her elbows on her knees.
"Or you could show him how quickly you got this routine down and he could pick you for mat," Kylah smiled. Cameron rolled her eyes a little before finally rising to her feet, "Can you just show me how it's supposed to be done one more time?"
Kylah sighed but backed up to the beginning of the mat and then waited a moment for her friend to waddle off to the side before taking a deep breath and starting the routine with a short run. As she propelled herself through the air, Kylah tightened her muscles to sharpen her movements and her feet hit the padded mat hard, creating rhythmic booms that she knew she was going to feel later.
Kylah finished her dance routine with a signature arm flourish, then turned around to face the silent gym, pausing in her tracks. Every girl on the team had essentially ceased the various practicing they were doing and instead nosily stared at where Kylah's father, Thomas was standing by the door.
"Aint't that ya Dad?" Destiny asked as she paced up to where Kylah was still standing on the blue mat.
Kylah cleared her throat, "Uh, Cam!" She waved her friend over and pretended she didn't notice the annoyed look Cameron gave at the sight of Destiny standing so close, "Can you run practice for a bit? Just like ten minutes?"
"Hold up," Destiny raised her hand in opposition, "I have seniority over her. I'll run it."
"No, I got it." Cameron clapped her hands once and boisterously and everyone's attention turned to the trio on the mat. Kylah quickly walked over to her father, her ponytail swishing back and forth across her neck.
"Hey," Kylah greeted, "Is something wrong?"
"Well, yes," Thomas responded in a curt tone, "You're on the mat helping others when you should be on bars. There's a line for them and you're not in it. Why?"
Kylah tucked in her bottom lip for a moment, "Cameron needed some coaching on the routine so I thought-."
"You're not a coach," Thomas shook his head.
"I'm the captain. They voted me captain because they knew that they could trust me to help them through routines," Kylah explained in a patient voice, "Try and make them better."
"No, they made you captain because you," Thomas jabbed a finger into her arm, "Not any other girl, you, are the star. And do you wanna know why you are the star? Why you've won all these competitions around the world?"
Kylah gulped as Thomas dropped his voice a little, "Because of me and your mother. So you are going to get in the line for bars and that's final."
"Dad-." Kylah attempted to say and rubbed both hands down the sides of the unitard that stopped mid-thigh.
"Tom!" Coach Alexander's voice was cheerful as he approached the two near the doors, "What a nice surprise!" The two men shook hands for a moment before Kylah's coach rested his hand against the silver doors, "What's going on?"
"I just came to make sure Kylah was making progress on the right set of skills. She's been slacking on the bars," Thomas shot Kylah an annoyed glance and she had to fight the urge to make herself smaller and hide.
Coach Alexander blinked at the statement, not bothering to hide his surprise, "Your daughter is a prodigy. She hasn't been slacking at anything lately."
Thomas rolled his eyes, his tone now dripping with disdain, "She fell off three times in practice just a couple of days ago."
"We were low on chalk that day," By this point, her coach's smile had completely disappeared, "Everyone, not just your daughter, was having trouble on bars."
Kylah glanced back and forth between the two men and took a minuscule step back at the tension rising in the space between them.
"I don't need you to make excuses for her," Thomas glared at the other man, "She's not like everyone else."
"Which is why I made Kylah captain, so she can put her skills to making this team better as a whole," Coach replied, "You should be proud. Your daughter has been a leader for the past four years, dependable and selfless."
"I don't have her on this team for you to make her a leader or whatever inspirational bullshit you're about to spew." Thomas replied, "She needs to practice on bars." His dark eyes shifted to where Kylah was still standing, "Go."
Her coach gently caught her on the arm, "She needs to prepare my second for the mat routine and that's something Kylah actually wants to do," Coach Alexander's jaw visibly tightened and he extended his hand toward the door, "Now if you don't mind, practice is closed to the parents. You will see your daughter at home."
Thomas's fist was clenched with a huff but the man left, letting one of the doors close with a slam.
"I'm sorry," Kylah muttered to her coach. Coach Alexander waved her off with a weary sigh, "It's not your fault that your dad is an ass. There's such a thing as over-practicing."
"He means... Well." Kylah responded meekly. Coach simply patted her shoulder before striding to where his office was located towards the back of the gym.
"What was that about?" Cameron trailed off as soon as Kylah rejoined her on the blue mat. Kylah simply shook her head, "Just my dad being himself. Look, practice is almost over but I can come over and we can practice at your house if you want."
Cameron nodded quickly, "Yeah, I want that."
A few hours after the sun had gone down, Kylah parked her car in the driveway of her home, the only light on nearby being the lamp bolted onto the porch. Once inside, Kylah dropped her gym bag in its usual spot by the garage back door, noting the darkness of the first floor and the faint aroma of a dessert-smelling candle her mother, Maya, liked to burn.
Kylah strolled up the stairs, taking off her shoes and leaving them on the landing before picking up her pace to the bathroom that was designated as hers. Once inside, she flipped the light switch before stripping off the oversized hoodie that was covering her unitard and turning the shower handle to the right so the hot water would start to run.
"Ugh, crap. My shower cap," Kylah muttered to herself as she examined the clear marble countertop. She pushed the bedroom door open, revealing her pink and red oasis and the black shower cap sitting on her desk. Once snatched up, Kylah crossed the room to close the blinds before pausing and peering into the dim backyard, feeling slight disbelief.
A few feet away from her trampoline and almost right underneath her window stood a brand new set of double horizontal bars.
NOTE FROM KY
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