The Fastest Finish

by Catherine Hapka

  “All it would take is another busted ankle, like the kid who had to drop out when JJ got in,” he told Mackenzie as they headed back across the gym. “Or maybe someone getting sick or missing their flight . . .”

  Mackenzie looked dismayed. “Don’t say that stuff!” she exclaimed. “It’s like you’re wishing bad luck on other people. That’s not nice.”

  Ty just shrugged. He wasn’t wishing bad luck on anyone. Just good luck on himself. But he figured Mackenzie wouldn’t understand. She didn’t even seem to care about not making the finals.

  The show was fun to watch, as always. But this time Ty was more focused on the details. He watched all the competitors carefully, especially the ones who did well. He wanted to be ready to beat all of them.

  During the commercial breaks he watched his teammates—​especially Izzy, JJ, and Noah. He needed to be ready to beat them, too.

  But I’m not wishing them bad luck, he told himself with a glance toward Mackenzie. I’d be really happy if they came in second, third, and fourth. Just as long as I’m number one!

  Twenty-Two

  “You should take this, sweetie!” Izzy’s stepmonster, Tina, had been digging through Izzy’s closet. She held up a flowered dress that Izzy hadn’t even seen in several years. “We might want to go out for a nice dinner or something while we’re in L.A.”

  “That doesn’t fit me anymore.” Izzy tossed two more pairs of gym socks into her suitcase. “Anyway, we probably won’t have time for stuff like that.”

  “Sure we will,” said her older sister, Hannah, who was lounging on the end of the bed. “We don’t fly back until Wednesday, remember?”

  “Whatever.” Izzy frowned at both of them. “I can pack my own bag, okay? But it would be a lot easier without all kinds of extra people in my room.”

  “Oh, dear.” Tina winked at Hannah. “Sounds like that’s our cue to leave.”

  Hannah pushed herself to her feet. “Yeah, okay, Ms. I’m-Cranky-Cuz-I’m-Nervous-but-I-Won’t-Admit-It. We’re out of here.”

  To Izzy’s relief, the two of them headed out the door. She was nervous, all right, but not because of JNC. Not that she was about to tell those two the real reason.

  As Izzy pulled some T-shirts out of her dresser, Tina poked her head back in. “Don’t forget that California’s in a different time zone,” she said. “You’d better go to bed a little early so you’re well rested.”

  Izzy grimaced as her stepmother disappeared. She’d forgotten all about the time difference! It made her even more anxious about what to do about that party, which was due to start in a couple of hours.

  Maybe I can just go for a little while, she told herself. I can make sure I’m home by midnight, then nap on the plane tomorrow . . .

  She jumped as something scratched against her window. When she hurried over, she saw Jess perched on the peak of the garage roof just outside.

  Izzy threw open the window. “How’d you get up there?” she hissed, shooting a look behind her to make sure her sister and stepmother were really gone and her door was closed.

  “How else?” Jess grinned and vaulted in through the window. “Parkour.”

  Izzy nodded. That was how she and Jess had become friends—​they were both into parkour, which was all about running, jumping, and climbing. Of course Jess wouldn’t think twice about scaling the rose arbor and then running along the roof peak to Izzy’s second-story window.

  “What are you doing here?” Izzy asked in a low voice, hoping nobody could hear them. “The party doesn’t start for hours.”

  “Duh.” Jess wandered toward the closet, which Tina had left standing open. “Just came by to see what you’re planning to wear tonight. And help with your hair and makeup.” She shrugged. “Just ’cause you’ll probably be the youngest one there, you don’t have to look like it, right?”

  Izzy nodded, relieved that Jess was back to acting friendly. Maybe this was her way of saying she was sorry for being so distant lately.

  But she hasn’t actually said she’s sorry, Izzy thought, her happiness fading as quickly as it had come. I mean, she totally ghosted my premiere party and pretty much the whole ninja thing . . .

  So maybe it was time to find out where their friendship really stood. “Listen,” she said. “I might have to bail on the party tonight.”

  “What?” Jess’s smile disappeared instantly. “You’re kidding, right?”

  Izzy shrugged. “Nope. I have a really early flight tomorrow.”

  “So what? You can sleep when you’re dead.” Jess laughed, but it sounded a little forced. “Nobody skips this party. Nobody.”

  “Okay,” Izzy said. “But there’s all kinds of events for us ninjas when we get to California tomorrow, and then I have to be at the competition bright and early on Sunday morning. With the time change and everything, I just thought . . .”

  Her voice trailed off. Jess’s expression had gone hard and cold. “Maybe you should think again,” she said. “Because no friend of mine would ever bail on me like that.”

  “Yeah.” Izzy swallowed hard. “I hear you, Jess. Loud and clear.”

  “Good. So you’re going, right?”

  Izzy hesitated, not sure for a second what she was going to say. She thought about all the fun she’d had with Jess over the past year or so. Was she really ready to give that up?

  “Sorry,” she told Jess before she could lose her nerve. “If you’d bounce me for something like that, maybe we were never really friends to start with.”

  The older girl’s eyes widened in surprise, then narrowed. “You can’t be serious.”

  “Yeah, I am.” Izzy waved toward the window. “You’d better leave, Jess.”

  Jess just glared at her for a second. Then she stormed over to the window, vaulted through, and disappeared into the darkness outside.

  Izzy collapsed on her messy bed, wondering if she’d just made a huge mistake. Just then her phone buzzed.

  When she grabbed it off the bedside table, Izzy saw that it was a text from Mackenzie:

  Check it out, Iz! I made T-shirts for the rest of us to wear while we watch u compete. Cool, right? It was supposed to be a surprise, but Ty is saying he won’t wear it so u need to help me convince him . . .

  By the time she scrolled down to the attached photo, Izzy was smiling. There were Mackenzie and Kevin, goofy grins on their faces, posing in bright neon yellow shirts with the words FIT KIDZ 4EVA! printed on them.

  “Mack, you’re such a nut,” she muttered.

  But she was still smiling. And feeling pretty good again despite what had just happened with Jess.

  Who needed fake friends like her, anyway? Izzy already had the real thing.

  Twenty-Three

  JJ took a deep breath, glancing down at the sliver of space showing between the end of the gangplank and the doorway into the plane. Then he stepped through, clutching his carry-on bag.

  “Whoo, JJ!” Mackenzie rushed on behind him. “It’s your first time on a plane, right?”

  “Yeah.” JJ felt a little nervous, but excited, too. “So now what?”

  “Now we sit.” Izzy glanced back at him over her shoulder. “Come on. I think I’m supposed to have the window seat, but we can switch if you want.”

  “Cool, thanks,” JJ said, following Izzy down the narrow aisle. His parents were on this flight, too, along with most of the other families. But the Santiagos had arranged for all the kids to sit together.

  Ty was already seated in the row behind JJ, Izzy, and Noah. He stood up and clapped JJ on the shoulder as he took his seat.

  “Ready to soar through the sky, bro?” he asked.

  “Ready as I’ll ever be.” JJ was glad that Ty was in a good mood. He still wasn’t being very friendly to Noah, but other than that, he was almost back to normal.

  JJ clutched the armrests when the engines roared to life and again when he felt the plane’s wheels leave the runway, but once they were in the air, he forgot all about being nervous. The sun had jus
t risen, and he could see half the state spread out beneath him.

  “I think I see our town!” he cried, pressing his nose against the plastic window.

  “Can you see Fit Kidz down there?” Mackenzie asked with a laugh. “Make sure the Santiagos remembered to turn off the lights!”

  Everyone in both rows laughed, including JJ. A few minutes later the plane had climbed high enough for the clouds to block his view.

  But that was okay. He and his teammates had plenty to talk about!

  Twenty-Four

  “Wow!” Mackenzie stopped on the sidewalk between the taxi stand and the hotel, staring up at the tall palm trees towering over the street. “California is like a whole different world!”

  Daddy Jim poked her in the back. “Keep moving, Mack,” he said. “We’re running late, and you don’t want to miss the welcome luncheon.”

  That sent Mackenzie scurrying forward into the cool glass lobby of the hotel. JJ and his family were already there, signing in.

  “This is amazing, huh?” JJ told Mackenzie. “I never thought I’d stay in a hotel like this.”

  “Me either,” Mackenzie said. “I wonder where our lunch is going to be.” She’d memorized the weekend’s schedule. Today all the competing ninjas and their coaches were invited to a luncheon at the hotel. Each of them was allowed two guests, and Tara was bringing Mackenzie and Kevin. JJ’s mother had offered to go sightseeing with Jasmine and Mackenzie’s dads instead of attending, so that Ty could take her spot.

  After that, they were free to rest, work out at the hotel gym, or sightsee in Los Angeles. The competition would begin bright and early on Sunday morning and finish on Labor Day, which was Monday.

  JJ’s mom was digging through her bag, but she looked up at Mackenzie’s words. “Why don’t you kids go ahead with Tara and find out where it’s being held?” she suggested. “We can unpack without you.”

  “Agreed,” Papa Kurt said, walking over. “Tara’s waiting for you over there.”

  Mackenzie looked to where he was pointing. Tara was waiting near a doorway that was labeled as the ballroom.

  “Let’s go,” Mackenzie said, and JJ nodded.

  A few minutes later the whole team walked into the ballroom together. It was a huge room, with a buffet set up at one end and tables and chairs at the other. In the middle, tons of kids and adults were milling around, talking.

  “Check it out.” Izzy elbowed Mackenzie. “Isn’t that the Mighty Mini over there?”

  Mackenzie pushed her glasses up her nose so she could see better. “Yeah, it’s totally her!” she exclaimed. “Wow, she looks even tinier in person.”

  “Didn’t that guy compete in our semis?” Ty asked, pointing toward a red-haired kid nearby.

  Mackenzie recognized him right away. “Yeah, his name’s Vince. He did really well.”

  “Oh wow, and there’s Stretch McKenzie!” Kevin exclaimed. “He was on NNC last season with Tara, remember? I heard he’s coaching a team from Philadelphia.”

  “He is,” Tara said, smiling and waving at the other adult ninja. “I think I’ll go say hi. You kids go ahead and mingle, okay? I’ll meet you at our table later.”

  Mackenzie nodded and threw herself into the crowd. There were so many interesting people here! She couldn’t wait to meet them all.

  * * *

  “So everyone is talking about which ninjas are the ones to beat,” Izzy said.

  Mackenzie and the others had been at the luncheon for a little over an hour. A few minutes earlier, Mellie Monroe had arrived and told everyone it was time to sit down and eat. She was supposed to make some announcements in a little while.

  Kevin took a sip of water. “Yeah, and everyone says the same thing. Chen the Mighty Mini and Benny the Beast.”

  “And JJ and Izzy and Noah,” Mackenzie put in loyally.

  Izzy snorted. “Not really,” she said. “But that’s okay. We can sneak up and beat them anyway, right?”

  She traded a high-five with JJ, and Noah smiled. “Don’t forget me,” Ty said. “Once I get called in, I bet everyone will add me to the list.”

  Tara looked concerned. “Ty, it’s good that you’re ready to go if needed,” she said. “But I hope you’re not—”

  “Look!” Kevin blurted out, cutting off whatever the coach was going to say. “Here comes Benny the Beast!”

  “Really?” Mackenzie spun around in her seat. “Benny! Yo, Benny! Over here!”

  Benny walked toward her, looking a little confused. “Hi. Do I know you?”

  Mackenzie grinned at him. “No, but I know you. You were amazing in semis! Can I have your autograph?”

  “Um, sure.” While Mackenzie searched for something for him to sign, Benny glanced at Ty. “I remember you. Tough break on the cliff, dude.”

  “Yeah.” Ty shrugged. “It’s cool, I’ll kill it next time.”

  Benny nodded and grinned. “Well, I’m planning to kill it this time,” he said, glancing around at Izzy, JJ, and Noah. “Sorry to tell you guys, but this competition is mine.”

  “Oh yeah?” Izzy said. “We’ll see about that.”

  “Yeah,” Benny said, grabbing the napkin Mackenzie was handing him. “We will.”

  “Attention! May I have your attention please?” Mellie Monroe was at the main table with a microphone. “Please take your seats so we can explain how the weekend’s schedule will work.”

  “Thanks,” Mackenzie whispered as Benny quickly scrawled his name on the napkin and then hurried off to his own table. She leaned back in her seat, hardly daring to believe she was really here, in California, getting ready to watch her teammates compete in the morning. This was amazing!

  Twenty-Five

  “Wow.” JJ swallowed hard as he looked up—​up—​up at the framework of the finals course on Sunday morning. “This looks way bigger than the semis!”

  “Of course it does.” Kevin was studying a large TV camera hanging nearby. “This is the big time, right?”

  Mackenzie pumped her fist. “Whoo-hoo!”

  JJ hardly heard her. He shaded his eyes against the bright California sunshine as he surveyed the huge, colorful course. It was set up in a park in the middle of the city. A large canvas tent was nearby—​where competitors could warm up or get out of the sun when they weren’t competing. A large crowd had already gathered in the spectator area, even though the taping wasn’t going to start for a couple of hours.

  “Look,” Noah said. “The Crazy Cliff is in the middle of the course instead of at the end!”

  Kevin nodded. “That happens on the adult show, too.”

  “Yeah,” Ty put in. “The last obstacle is usually something even scarier.”

  Tara checked her watch. “The demo should start soon,” she said. “Pay attention, and we’ll talk about it afterward while we walk the course.”

  JJ nodded. A moment later a production assistant announced that the demonstration was about to begin. Then a teenage boy stepped onto the start mat.

  “He must be at least sixteen,” Izzy commented. “That doesn’t seem fair. He’ll probably make it seem easier than it is.”

  JJ didn’t say anything. He wasn’t sure anybody could make that course look easy.

  He watched with the rest as the demonstration ninja went through the course, showing the competitors how each obstacle was supposed to be completed. First came a set of balance steps called Stepping Out, just like in the semis—​except this time there were six steps instead of five. Next was a rope obstacle called Monkey Business, then several others. JJ was so nervous he was having trouble focusing. He watched the demo ninja race up the Crazy Cliff, which was sixth on the course. Then came three more obstacles, and finally the tenth and final one, which was called the Wall Crawl.

  “Whoa,” JJ whispered as the demo ninja did it. The Wall Crawl consisted of two sheer walls set just a little less than arm’s length apart, with crabs and other scuttling creatures painted all over them. The ninja had to “crab-walk” up by pressing his a
rms and legs against the walls and moving them up a little at a time.

  “That looks super hard.” Izzy said. She had gone a little pale as she watched the demo.

  JJ just nodded. They hadn’t practiced anything like that back at Fit Kidz!

  When the demonstration was over, Tara led the whole team into the alley beside the course, where each competitor’s family and friends were allowed to stand while the ninja competed. She stopped beside each obstacle, giving tips on how to attack it. But JJ hardly heard her. He kept being distracted by the spectators, who were making a lot of noise, and the course, which looked even bigger up close, and the cameras, which seemed to be everywhere. This was overwhelming! Suddenly he couldn’t help remembering how nice it had been to be ordinary, just hanging out in his tree house without having to worry about acting like a celebrity or being on TV or messing up in front of so many people . . .

  They were at the seventh obstacle, a set of balance balls called Round and Round, when Noah elbowed JJ. “You okay?” he whispered. “You seem a little out of it.”

  “Yeah,” JJ whispered back. “Um, guess I’ve got a touch of stage fright.”

  That was what Mackenzie had called it at semifinals. JJ wasn’t sure Noah would know what he was talking about, but Noah nodded.

  “I get that too,” Noah said. “Before every performance. You just have to get past it.”

  “How?” JJ glanced toward the audience, then toward Tara, who was demonstrating something for Izzy. “This is nuts!”

  “Deep breathing sometimes helps me focus,” Noah said. “Also, try to picture yourself doing everything perfectly. Don’t even think about what might go wrong.” He smiled. “Then just remind yourself that you love doing this.”