Double-Axel Doubt by Jake Maddox

Author:Jake Maddox
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: 9781434224996, 9781434224996, Fiction, Jake Maddox Girl Sports Stories, Sports & Recreation/Ice Skating, Girls & Women, Social Issues/New Experience
Publisher: Capstone
Published: 2011-11-19T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 6

DO YOU WANT TO WIN?

It had happened again. Another hard jump, another hard fall. Shakily, Gabby stood up. She brushed ice off her warm-up tights. She felt sick to her stomach.

Coach Pearce walked over. “Are you all right, Gabrielle?” she asked.

Coach Pearce checked Gabby’s neck and shoulders for injuries. “Turn your head,” she ordered. Silently, Gabby turned her head side to side.

Coach Pearce felt Gabby’s arms and ankles. “Nothing broken,” she said. She walked back to the side of the ring and turned the music back on. “Start again, please. Toe loop, sit spin, double Axel.”

Gabby panicked. She couldn’t try the double Axel again. Her mind raced. What if I fall again? What if I get hurt again? She stood, frozen, in the middle of the ice.

“Did you hear me?” Coach Pearce asked. “Begin the routine again.”

Gabby still didn’t move. Coach Pearce came toward her. Her gaze was intense. “What is going on here?” she demanded.

Gabby drew in her breath. “I’m so sorry, Coach Pearce,” she managed to say. “I can’t do the jump again.” She stared down at the scuffed toes of her skates.

“And why is that?” Coach Pearce asked.

Gabby swallowed. “I, um, don’t feel like I’m ready for that hard of a jump,” she said. “If it’s okay with you, I’ll just do the single Axel.”

Coach Pearce shook her head. “I’m afraid that is not going to be good enough,” she said. “You’ll never be a winner if you won’t do the double. Single won’t cut it.”

Gabby bit her lip.

Coach Pearce came close and put a hand on Gabby’s shoulder, looking directly into her face. “You can do this jump,” Coach Pearce said. “It’s nerves that are getting in your way, not skill. Look, do you want to win?”

“Yes,” Gabby almost whispered.

“Then you will do the jump,” Coach Pearce said. She turned and walked to the side of the arena.

“Practice is over for today,” she called over her shoulder. “Be ready to do the double Axel tomorrow morning.”

Outside, the fresh air felt cold on Gabby’s face. She walked home slowly, avoiding the puddles on the sidewalk. Her feet felt heavy as she climbed the front steps of her house.

Her mind was filled with images of Coach Pearce’s angry face and herself, crumpled on the ice. Suddenly, another image filled her mind — herself twirling in the air, arms drawn in close, then landing the double Axel perfectly as the crowd cheered.

Gabby walked upstairs to her quiet room and sank down on the bed, burying her face in her hands. She sat that way for a long time, trying to decide what she should do.

Several minutes later, Gabby raised her head. Coach Stone would know what to do. Just because she’s not my coach anymore doesn’t mean she can’t still help me out, Gabby thought.

She reached over and grabbed her cell phone from the bedside table. She scrolled through the numbers in her phone until she found the one she was looking for and dialed.

“Hello?” an unfamiliar voice answered.

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