Read Bending Over Backwards for Free Online Page A

stretched. Here the only sound was Nastia’s rapid commands: pike, squat, lunge, split.
    â€œExtend.” Nastia pulled my leg behind me. Then she pushed down hard on my shoulders. “Get deeper into the split.” I cringed, sure my hip bones would crack like a Thanksgiving wishbone.
    Twenty painful minutes later, she handed each of us a jump rope.
    â€œWhat’s this for?” I whispered to Sofia.
    Sofia raised her eyebrows. “Conditioning.” She twirled the jump rope so fast it blurred. With a million tiny jumps, she kept the rhythm.
    I started to hum as I jumped. Conditioning at Daria’s gym had been dancing to pop music.
    â€œWhat is that noise?” Nastia asked, coming up behind me.
    â€œI do better with a beat. A melody, you know?” I hummed a few notes.
    â€œNo noise,” she commanded. “Jump!”
    I kept tripping and slapping my shins with my rope as she pushed me faster and faster. My heart was racing by the time we finished.
    I glanced across at the parent waiting area. Evenfrom this far away, I saw the frown lines Mom gets in her forehead when she’s worried. I flashed a thumbs-up to tell her I was fine. I just needed to get back into shape.
    â€œFloor warm-up. Do what they do,” Nastia said before she walked away. Everything moved so fast here.
    I followed the other girls, who lined up at the corner of the large mat. The warm-up started simply. Forward rolls diagonally across the mat. No problem. We went one at a time. Then cartwheels, front walkovers, and then back walkovers.
    â€œMove on up . . . up to the top . . .”
    Voices chanted as I did one back walkover after the other. I tried to concentrate on my form. Not only were Nastia and the other girls watching me, but I also sensed that Andre had his eyes on me.
    â€œWait, don’t hesitate . . . move on up . . .”
    The chanting grew louder as the first girl began back handsprings. I couldn’t believe the height she got.
    â€œDominate . . . intimidate . . . move on up . . .”
    Was it someone’s floor routine music? It was catchy, but I’d never heard anyone use anything with chanting.
    â€œWhat’s going on?” I whispered to Sofia, who waited in front of me.
    â€œThe cheerleaders.” Sophia pointed to the wallbehind us. “The building is divided in two. The other side is Top Flight Cheer. The wall doesn’t go all the way up. Andre said it has something to do with air flow.”
    I noticed that the cinder block wall stopped several feet before the ceiling.
    â€œThey’re awfully loud.” I tapped my foot in time with their chant.
    â€œAnd annoying. We share the locker room with them.” Sofia scowled.
    â€œYou don’t like them?”
    â€œOf course not, they’re cheerleaders. You know what that means.” She stepped to the edge of the mat, readying herself to start.
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œThey weren’t good enough to be serious gymnasts like us.” Sophia began her series of back handsprings.
    I couldn’t hold back my gasp. Sofia’s back arched perfectly as she launched into each flip with incredible power. In seconds, she’d covered the length of the mat. She was good. Crazy good. Everyone here was.
    â€œMove on up . . . up to the top.” I chanted along under my breath as I began my turn.

CHAPTER 5
    I grasped the banister as I crept down the stairs the next morning. If I let go, I feared my body would slump and I’d tumble. My arms throbbed from push-ups and handstands. My legs burned from squats and extensions. Even my toes ached from gripping the mat. Last week, Mom yelled because I kept sliding down our curvy banister. Now I was hobbling worse than my great-grandmother!
    I’ll stretch as I bake, I told myself as I entered the dark kitchen. The clock on the microwave read 6:22. I was never up this early.
    I padded quietly in my blue fuzzy slipper socks, hoping Mom wouldn’t