Back to You (28 page)

Lauren turned to see Michael approach the man at the front desk while Erin hopped from foot to foot, taking a few seconds to balance on each one. She glanced up, catching sight of Lauren, and grinned as she broke into a dead run.

Michael turned abruptly, reaching out for her, but he immediately relaxed when he saw where she was running. Lauren dropped to her knees and caught Erin in a hug, smiling over her tiny shoulder at Michael. He held up his finger and mouthed “
one minute
” to her, and she nodded, releasing Erin and leaning back to see her face.

“Happy birthday!”

Erin smiled broadly and danced in a circle, waving her hands over her head.

“Can we flip now?” she sang.

“Almost,” Lauren said. “First, let’s take off your jacket and shoes.”

Erin stopped her dance long enough to let Lauren help her remove her coat and sneakers as Michael approached them.

“Hey,” he said, reaching down to take Erin’s things out of Lauren’s hands. “Thanks again for doing this.”

“It’s no problem,” she said, looking down at Erin. “We’re gonna have fun, right?”

“Right!”

Michael smiled at his daughter’s enthusiasm. “I’m just gonna go put her stuff in one of the lockers.”

“Yep. We’ll be over on the mats,” said Lauren, reaching out for Erin’s hand.

While Michael put away her things, Lauren stretched Erin out a bit. She knew they wouldn’t be doing anything too intense tonight, but still, she wanted to show her the proper way to approach the sport.

Erin was an obedient student, just as she was at Learn and Grow, listening in earnest, picking up the stretching techniques Lauren showed her immediately.

By the time Michael made it back to them, they were about to start, and he took a seat up against the wall a few feet away.

“Okay, so we’re going to start with a cartwheel. I’m going to show you what it looks like, and then I’ll teach you how to do it, okay?”

Erin nodded, taking a step back, and Lauren took a few steps away from her before she lifted her arms gracefully. In one quick, fluid movement, she executed a perfect cartwheel, legs extended, toes pointed, coming up on the other side and finishing with her hands raised above her head, the same way she started.

“Ooooh,” Erin cooed, wide-eyed. “You’re good at that.”

“It looks fancy, but it’s easy. You ready to try?”

Erin nodded, and Lauren knelt down in front of her. “Okay, so what I want you to do is lunge forward a little bit. Bend this knee and put your weight on it, and leave this leg straight behind you.”

Lauren placed her hands on Erin’s waist, adjusting her weight distribution, and she smiled, casting a sly glance at Michael. “You know,” she said just loud enough for him to hear, “I tried to teach your daddy how to do this once.”

Michael looked over at her and smirked, shaking his head slowly.

“You did?” Erin asked, looking over at her father.

“Mm-hm.” Lauren cupped her hand in front of her mouth, feigning a whisper. “But he wasn’t very good.”

Michael looked down, and she could see his shoulders bounce with laughter.

Erin raised her eyebrows in surprise before she turned to Michael sympathetically. “Don’t worry, Daddy. I’ll teach you after I learn how.”

“Thank you, baby girl,” he called before he stuck his tongue out at Lauren, and she chuckled at his juvenile behavior before turning her attention back to Erin.

“Okay, now I want you to put your arms over your head, the way I did before. Good. Now you’re going to lean over and put your hands side by side on this line, right here, and when they touch the floor, I want your straight leg to come up behind you. Let’s just practice that a few times so you get the feel of it. I’m gonna hold on to you, okay?”

“‘Kay.” Erin nodded, determination taking over her little features.

They practiced the motion a few times until Erin was able to do it smoothly. At one point Lauren glanced at Michael, and when he winked at her, she felt heat instantly blooming on her cheeks. She heard him laugh shortly after that, but she had no way of knowing if it was in response to her silly, girlish reaction to such an innocent gesture.

“Can I try going over?” Erin asked, pulling Lauren’s attention back.

She cleared her throat. “Um, sure. If you’re ready. I’ll keep my hands on your waist to help you balance. Once your straight leg goes up like we practiced, you’re going to push off with your bent leg to send yourself over. Try to keep your toes pointed and your legs straight.”

Erin got in position, and Lauren knelt parallel to her, keeping her hands on Erin’s waist to give her a little extra support. The first few were shaky, her legs falling forward or back or bending awkwardly. But the more they did it, the sturdier she became, until finally Lauren was barely touching her waist at all.

“You want to try one on your own?” Lauren asked, and Erin looked up, somewhat hesitant. “It’s okay, sweetheart. I’m right here. I won’t let you fall. Promise.”

With a tiny breath to steel her resolve, Erin nodded and turned, raising her arms above her head. Lauren stood by, ready to grab her at the slightest signal, but she didn’t need to. Erin went over smoothly, landing on the other side with her arms extended like a pro. She whipped her head toward Lauren, grinning from ear to ear before she turned and ran toward her father.

“I did it! Daddy, I did it! Did you see me? Did you see me?”

“I saw!” he said, scooping her up. “You were awesome!”

Lauren watched them with a smile until suddenly, without warning, she was struck with a thought that caused a sharp pang in her chest.

Michael had been just one year older than Erin was right now when his father left. When his mother pretty much checked out on him.

So young.

She looked at Erin, her adoration for her father beaming from her eyes as she looked up at him. She was so vulnerable. So needy. And then she thought of Michael at that age, just as vulnerable, twice as needy, and completely forsaken.

And suddenly, she felt like crying.

Lauren wanted to cross the mats and hug him. Just wrap her arms around him and rock him side to side, even though it was years too late to give that little boy the comfort he deserved.

“Show me a fancy flip!” Erin called as she ran back toward Lauren, and with a quick intake of breath, she shook off the ache in her heart.

“A fancy flip?” she asked uneasily. “I haven’t done those in a long time.”

“You can still do it I bet,” Michael said as he followed Erin onto the mat. “Muscle memory.”

Lauren scrunched her nose at him, and he laughed. “Try something easy. I bet you anything you can still do it.”

She looked down at Erin, who was staring up at her expectantly, and she took a deep breath. “Okay. Something easy.”

Erin clapped her hands before taking a step back, pulling her father with her to give Lauren some room.

Lauren rolled her neck and took another deep breath before she brought her weight forward on her toes. With a little hop, she was off running, bringing her hands to the mat as her legs flipped up behind her, coming together in a perfect line above her head before she whipped them around together toward the mat. As she landed, she rebounded several inches off the floor before extending her hands.

She definitely had enough power to go over again.

“Wow!” Erin breathed. “What’s that called?”

“That’s called a round-off,” she said as she walked back toward them. “I think I’m gonna try one that’s a little fancier.”

Erin leaned into her father, her eyes pinned on Lauren in awe as she set herself up once more. She tightened her body, put her weight on her toes, and then she was off running again. This time, as her legs whipped around on the round-off, she threw her arms back over her head, executing a perfect back-handspring.

And because it felt so good, she immediately followed it with another before she hit her landing, arching her back slightly as she extended her arms overhead.

Erin’s gasp echoed off the walls of the gym. Her face was priceless, some combination of shock and complete worship as she watched Lauren walk back to them.

Michael was grinning at her. “See? What did I tell you? Muscle memory. That never fails to amaze me, by the way. Watching you do that.”

“What’s muscle memory?” Erin asked before Lauren could react to his comment.

He pursed his lips, thinking of a way to explain it. “Well, sometimes if something is
really
important to you, it gets stuck in your body,” he said, poking her ribs and making her laugh. “So even if your mind thinks that it’s gone, it’s still in there, kind of hiding inside of you, just waiting for you to remember. It never goes away.”

Lauren stared at him.

She knew he was talking about her flip, but his words hit much deeper than that.

He was smiling down at Erin, but when he looked up and saw her expression, his smile fell, his face turning serious.

For a second, they just stared at each other, and Lauren found that she was struggling to keep her breathing even.

“What else can we do?” Erin asked excitedly, gripping Lauren’s hand, and she pulled her gaze from his, looking down at Erin.

“Um,” she said, blinking quickly.

She could still feel his eyes on her.

Lauren swallowed hard and lifted her eyes, scanning the gym for a second, and then she saw it.

The corner of her mouth lifted in a smile. “I have an idea. Come with me,” she said, pulling Erin toward the back corner of the gym.

They walked across the mats and up the padded incline that dropped off suddenly into an enormous pit of colorful foam blocks. Lauren remembered this being one of her favorite exercises when she just started out.

Michael walked up the incline behind them, and she glanced over at him. He smiled at her, but his eyes were uneasy. Cautious, even.

And there he was; she could see him clearly in the expression on Michael’s face. The abandoned little boy.

This time she couldn’t help it.

She walked the few steps over to him, wrapping both arms around his waist as she rested her head on his shoulder.

Instantly she felt the tension drain from his body as he exhaled, wrapping his arms around her shoulders.

“Are those blocks?” Erin asked. “Is this a pool? Why are there blocks in the pool? Are we gonna swim in here?
Daddy
! Let Miss Lauren go so she can swim with me!”

Michael laughed softly, planting a kiss on the top of Lauren’s head before he released her. “I was given strict orders not to steal you away from her tonight,” he said. “I’m breaking the rules right now.”

Lauren laughed. “I think we have to let the birthday girl call the shots tonight,” she said before she unwrapped her arms from around his waist.

She looked up at him and he smiled, tucking a lock of hair that had fallen free from her ponytail behind her ear at the same time that two tiny hands clasped hers.

“Let’s swim, Miss Lauren!” Erin said, tugging her away from Michael.

He took a step back, holding his hands up in surrender, and Lauren couldn’t help but laugh before she turned toward Erin. “It’s not a pool, sweetheart. It’s something called a foam pit. You want to do something cool?”

Erin smiled broadly as she nodded, and Lauren walked her to the edge of the incline. “Okay, turn around and face Daddy. Put your back to the pit.”

As Erin did what she was told, Lauren knelt beside her, putting one hand on her lower back and the other behind her knees. “Okay, on the count of three, I want you to jump as high as you can. Ready?”

“Ready!”

“Here we go. One…two…
three
!”

As Erin jumped, Lauren supported her lower back as her other hand flipped Erin’s legs up over her head, sending her off the platform in a backflip. She sailed into the foam pit, bouncing into the multicolored cushions.

Erin squealed with hysterical laughter. “Again!” she called from the pit. “Do it to me again, Miss Lauren!”

Lauren laughed. “Okay, get over to that ladder and climb out. Come back around.”

Michael approached the edge of the incline, looking into the pit beside Lauren. They watched Erin struggle through the large foam blocks, stumbling and giggling.

“So what do you think? You want to try taking lessons again?” Lauren asked as she bumped him with her shoulder.

“Nah. You can’t improve upon perfection,” he said, brushing his fingers over the top of his shoulder.

Lauren pursed her lips to hide her smile. “Come on. Give it a shot. At least this time you’ll land in the foam instead of on your ass.”

Before she could even process what had happened, Michael whirled and scooped her up bridal style, causing her to gasp.

He spun once and tossed her over the side and into the foam pit, and she flailed sloppily, her squealing laughter rivaling Erin’s as she bounced into the foam.

She looked up to see Michael standing at the edge of the incline, looking down at her. “Well, that wasn’t very graceful. And you call yourself a gymnast?”

She picked up one of the foam blocks and threw it at him, but he sidestepped it easily. Then he took a step back and did one of the worst cartwheels Lauren had ever seen off the edge of the incline, his legs splayed apart and bent like broken hangers.

When he plopped into the cushions next to her, she was laughing so hard she couldn’t breathe.

“See?” he said, somewhat winded. “Perfection.”

“Hey!” a little voice called.

They both whipped their heads up to see Erin standing at the edge of the incline above them, hands on her hips, her expression stern.

“Sorry! We’re coming!” Lauren called up before she turned to Michael. “Stop distracting me. You’re getting me in trouble,” she scolded, and she could hear his laughter behind her as she made her way toward the ladder.

They spent the next hour playing in the foam pit and practicing cartwheels. When it was time to leave, Michael knelt in front of Erin, helping her on with her coat.

“So what do you think? Do you want to do this? You can take classes here.”

“Yes, please. Can Miss Lauren be my teacher?”

“Well, you’ll have a different teacher,” Lauren said. “But I’ll come here and practice with you some days if you want.”