The Fastest Finish Page 6

  Noah wrapped his arms and legs around the obstacle and pushed off. His muscles were strong from years of dance, and he had little trouble hanging on and reaching the mat. After that came an obstacle that involved grabbing balls that were hanging from chains and then swinging across.

  Next came the Loco Ladder. Noah wiped his hands on his shorts, staring up at it. He flashed back to that first day at Fit Kidz, when he’d messed it up. There was probably no obstacle he’d practiced more, and he was sure he could conquer it this time.

  Finals, here we come, he thought as he leaped up to grab the pegs.

  But he soon realized that this was going to be harder than it looked. The holes on this Loco Ladder were farther apart than the ones at the gym. The first time he aimed for a new hole, he came up a couple of inches short and almost lost his grip.

  Mackenzie’s voice floated to him over the crowd noise. “Take it easy, Noah!”

  Noah shoved the peg back into the first hole and closed his eyes, catching his breath and visualizing what he needed to do. Then he opened his eyes and tried again. This time he made it—​but just barely. He was going to have to take his time; there was no room for error.

  Finally, what felt like a lifetime later, he made it to the top. The crowd cheered, but Noah barely heard it. At least the next obstacle should be easier. It was a set of balance steps called Stepping Out, and he recognized it from seeing it on TV. Most of his teammates hadn’t had much trouble with it, and neither did he. He made it through the tire swing obstacle, too, along with another balance obstacle called the Swirly Steps, which were spinning disks on poles.

  After that, all he had to do was make it up the Crazy Cliff. “Climb that Cliff! Climb that Cliff!” the crowd chanted.

  Noah wanted to get it over with. But he was a little winded from the rest of the course, and he forced himself to stop and catch his breath.

  Then he noticed a commotion in the crowd. He glanced over and saw Chen surrounded by fans and reporters. Thinking about how fast she’d made it through the course reminded him that he’d lost a lot of time on the Loco Ladder. He hadn’t been particularly quick through the tire swings, either. Only ten ninjas would make the finals from all six wildcard locations. How many others had already completed the course, and how fast had they done it? He had no idea . . .

  Suddenly panicked at the thought of missing his goal, he gulped in one last deep breath and ran at the Crazy Cliff.

  At the first step up the steep wall, he could feel that he didn’t have quite as much momentum as he’d hoped. No! He couldn’t miss this chance . . .

  Calling on every ounce of strength and body control he had, he pushed himself up, up, up . . . His hands scrabbled for the lip of the cliff. His right hand came up just short, but he managed to get three fingers of his left hand over . . .

  Seconds later Noah collapsed on top of the Crazy Cliff, gulping for breath and hardly daring to believe he’d made it. But would it be enough?

  Eighteen

  Izzy was watching a tall boy struggle to make it up the Loco Ladder when her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out and saw that it was a text from Jess giving a few more details about the Labor Day party.

  She scanned it, then clicked off her phone, not wanting to think about the party right then. She still hadn’t decided what to do.

  “Ohhh!” the crowd sighed.

  Glancing up, Izzy saw that the tall ninja had just fallen. “That’s the last person,” she said. Kevin and Noah nodded. The two of them had wandered over to join her a few minutes earlier.

  “Only four ninjas finished the course in our location,” Kevin said. “And that one girl was really slow the whole way through. That means you’ve got a great shot at the finals, Noah.”

  “Yeah,” Izzy added. “It depends on how many made it through in the other five wildcard locations, I guess. Anyway, we’ll find out soon.”

  Noah nodded, but didn’t say anything. Izzy could see that his hands were shaking.

  “Nervous, huh?” she said. “I don’t blame you. But you did what you could, right?”

  At first Izzy hadn’t been sure that the Fit Kidz team really needed another member, especially since Noah’s arrival had turned Ty into a grumpy grouch. But that was Ty’s problem, right? Anyway, Noah had won Izzy over. He was a hard worker, and he really seemed to want this. So what if it meant more competition if he actually made the finals? Izzy had never been supercompetitive the way Ty was. Being a ninja was about beating the obstacles and testing your limits, not about winning. Then again, she knew not everyone saw it that way.

  Noah shrugged. “I just wish I had made better time.”

  At that moment Mellie Monroe appeared on the big screen where the competitors’ packages played. She had been hosting live at the West Coast semis, so this was the first time Izzy and the others had seen her. “May I have your attention please,” Mellie said. “I have the list of ninjas from all six wildcard locations who are invited to compete in the finals in Los Angeles. Those ninjas are: Chen Chang . . .”

  She had to pause, since the place went wild at the mention of the Mighty Mini’s name. When it quieted down, Mellie continued, listing eight other names. Izzy held her breath.

  “. . . and finally, Noah Dhawan,” the host finished. “Congratulations to all our ninjas! We’ll see you in California!”

  Ten wildcard ninjas had made it. That meant Ty was out of luck. Izzy glanced around to see how he was taking it, but he was nowhere in sight.

  “Congratulations!” Kevin said to Noah, grinning. “See? Told you you had a shot.”

  “Yeah,” Izzy said, smiling at Noah. “Don’t look so shocked. Or are you scared ’cause now you have to compete against me?”

  Noah laughed, but then he shook his head. “Wow. I didn’t think I’d make it after I messed up at the Loco Ladder. I’ve never been this nervous waiting for a result.”

  “You mean like at dance auditions or whatever?” Izzy tried to remember what Mackenzie had said about Noah. “No surprise there. I mean, you’ve been doing that forever, right? So you must be really good. And you just became a ninja a few weeks ago.”

  “Yeah, I’ve been dancing forever.” Noah shrugged. “Singing and acting, too, but that doesn’t make me any good at those things.”

  “What do you mean?” Kevin asked. “Mack says you’re always in the local musicals and stuff.”

  “I am—​as a dancer.” Noah grimaced. “Even though my mom wishes I could be more like her.”

  Izzy was curious now. Noah hardly ever talked about himself or his family. “What do you mean, more like her?” she asked.

  “She’s supertalented at everything—​singing, dancing, acting,” Noah said with a sigh. “She’s had me taking lessons for all that stuff for as long as I can remember—​trying to turn me into a star. That’s a big part of why we moved back here from India when I was little. She thought both of us would have more opportunities to work in show business here. She convinced my dad to look for a job at a lab over here, and voilà! Here we are.”

  “Oh.” Izzy could tell that Noah wasn’t happy about what he was saying. “So I guess you’d rather live in India, huh?” she asked.

  Noah shook his head. “That’s not it,” he said. “I just wish—​”

  “Noah! There you are!” JJ shouted, rushing over to them. Mackenzie, Ty, and Tara were right on his heels. Ty was glowering, which didn’t surprise Izzy one bit—​she knew he had to be bummed that he wouldn’t get to compete in the finals. But she barely thought about that as Noah was surrounded by the others.

  “Congrats, dude!” Mackenzie exclaimed, dancing around like a jumping bean. “This is so amazing!”

  Everyone except Ty swarmed around Noah, chattering excitedly about the finals. Izzy stood back and watched Noah, more curious than ever now. What was the deal with him, anyway?

  Nineteen

  Mackenzie leaned forward eagerly as the JNC theme music started to play on the big Fit Kidz TV s
et. “Ready to be a star, Noah?” It was a week and a half after the wildcard taping, and Noah’s episode was about to air. “Actually,” Mackenzie added with a grin, “I guess you’re used to being a star already, huh?”

  “Quiet, Mack,” Izzy ordered before Noah could respond. “It’s starting, and I want to hear the show, not you—​okay?”

  Mackenzie laughed, knowing that Izzy was just kidding around. The older girl had seemed kind of prickly at first, but now Mackenzie really liked her.

  “Make room for Momma!” a loud voice cried out.

  Mackenzie giggled as Mrs. Perry-Dhawan—​“Call me Stella, please!” she’d ordered everyone when she’d arrived—​rushed forward. JJ scooted over so she could sit beside her son.

  “This is so exciting!” Stella said, grabbing Noah around the shoulders and squeezing him. “My baby, on national TV!”

  “Mom, shhh,” Noah said. “People want to hear.”

  “Oh, don’t be silly,” his mother said. “People will forgive me for being a proud mother!”

  Mackenzie smiled, then looked around the gym. About two dozen people had gathered to watch the wildcard show on TV, with Noah and his parents as the guests of honor. Mr. Dhawan was near the back of the group, where he’d been chatting with Daddy Jim about science.

  Onscreen, Mellie Monroe was explaining about the wildcard contest. “At the end of today’s show, the fate of our alternates will be decided,” she declared. “We’ll just have to wait and see how many of our wildcard ninjas make the cut!”

  “No, we won’t,” Ty muttered.

  “Shhh!” Mackenzie warned, glancing around again. She knew Ty was disappointed that ten ninjas had made it in from the wildcard group. It meant he was less likely to be called in to compete in the finals, though there was still a chance if someone got sick or something. But most of the people in the gym hadn’t been at the wildcard taping, so they didn’t know the results yet. Mackenzie didn’t want Ty to accidentally ruin the suspense.

  The show was just as exciting as all the others. Noah’s turn came near the middle. Everyone cheered when he appeared onscreen, and Stella stood up and whistled loudly.

  “Go, baby, go!” she cheered. “Hey, when did you film this?”

  Noah’s package was starting. It showed him with his father at home. There was also a scene at a dance studio and a few at Fit Kidz.

  When it finished, everyone applauded. But Stella turned to Noah, looking confused. “Where was I when the camera crew came to our house?” she asked.

  Noah kept staring at the TV. “Um, they had to do it that day you were at your school reunion,” he said quickly. “I thought we told you.”

  “No, you didn’t.” Noah’s mother still sounded confused, but Mackenzie didn’t have time to wonder what was going on. On TV, Noah was starting his round.

  * * *

  “Well, that was fun,” Mr. Dhawan said as the final credits rolled. Noah’s father was a tall, thin man who always seemed to be smiling. “Thanks for inviting us.”

  “Wait, we’re not leaving yet, are we?” Stella said. “I want to see the ninja room.”

  “Mom, the gym is technically closed,” Noah protested. “We can’t—”

  “No, it’s okay, Noah,” Mrs. Santiago said. “Go ahead and give your parents a tour if you like.”

  Mackenzie followed as Noah and his parents headed to the ninja room. So did Tara, Izzy, JJ, and Kevin, though Ty stayed behind in the main room.

  Stella oohed and aahed over all the obstacles, especially the Crazy Cliff. “It’s so tall!” she exclaimed. “How did you ever make it all the way up that thing, Noah?”

  “Strong legs,” Mr. Dhawan put in with a smile. “Thanks to all those dance classes.”

  Tara chuckled. “It seems really high at first, but you get used to it,” she told Stella.

  “Maybe you youngsters do, but it scares me!” Stella declared with a dramatic shudder. She pointed to the balance beam. “That, on the other hand, looks like fun. Can I try?”

  “Mom, no!” Noah looked horrified.

  But Tara laughed. “Go ahead,” she said. “Just be careful.”

  “Don’t worry. In the theater, we like to tell each other to break a leg.” Stella winked broadly. “But we don’t like to actually do it!”

  For the next few minutes Stella tried out the beam, the rings, and even the Loco Ladder, though she gave up after missing the first hole three times, laughing as she tumbled to the mat. Everyone else laughed, too—​Stella was hilarious!

  “Okay. Clearly my son is more talented than his old mum,” she said. “And never fear, stalwart fans—​Junior Ninja Champion won’t be Noah’s last star turn. You should all come out and see him starring in Beauty and the Beast this fall!”

  “Mom, stop,” Noah protested.

  “Hush. Don’t be modest.” Stella flapped her hands at him. “You know you’re going to land the part of Chip.” She grinned. “But guess what? I’m thinking of making my own return to acting by auditioning for the part of Mrs. Potts! Won’t that be fun? Mother and son, acting together.”

  Mackenzie nodded and applauded. She’d seen Beauty and the Beast lots of times, and she was sure the mother-son pair would have a blast acting together in the show.

  She glanced at Noah to see what he thought. But he was staring at his feet, not even smiling. Weird! Mackenzie wanted to go over and ask what was wrong, but just then Mr. Dhawan announced that it was time to go and bustled his wife and son out of the room.

  Twenty

  Noah was fuming by the time he and his parents got home. His mother had spent most of the short car ride discussing the trip out to L.A. for the finals. But as they walked into the house, she started babbling about those auditions again.

  “. . . and we can get you in for a few extra vocal lessons with Andre,” she said. “You’ll want to make sure you’re ready to wow the audition committee.” She smiled and winked. “Although the publicity from this ninja show can’t hurt your chances, eh? Everybody loves a winner.” She started humming a song from an old movie musical with that line in it.

  But Noah had finally had enough. “Stop!” he cried, tossing his gym bag aside so hard that it slid under a chair in the front hallway. “Mom, just stop, okay? I don’t want that stupid part!”

  “What?” His mother blinked at him, looking startled. “Of course you do.”

  Noah clenched his fists at his sides to stop his hands from trembling. He felt a little bit sick to his stomach, and for a second he was tempted to take it back. He could say he was joking, change the subject . . .

  But if he did that, nothing would change. And wasn’t that why he’d started this whole ninja thing? To try to change things, to turn his life into what he’d visualized it could be like?

  “No, I don’t,” he said, following his mother, who was already heading into the kitchen. “I hate having to act and sing solos! Why won’t you just let me dance? That’s what I’m good at—​it’s what I like!”

  “You’re good at everything!” Stella exclaimed. “Don’t sell yourself short! I know you’d love singing and acting if you gave it more of a chance. That’s why I think this Chip part would be so wonderful for you. All it will take is hard work—​and look at how hard you’ve worked at this ninja thing! You could do the same with the show!”

  “But that’s the whole reason I worked so hard to become a ninja,” Noah blurted, unable to hold in the truth anymore. “I thought I could become a TV star that way, and that would finally make you happy.”

  His mother’s jaw dropped. For a second she didn’t say anything.

  “Stella?” Noah’s father said softly. He’d followed them into the kitchen without Noah’s noticing. “You okay?”

  “No,” Noah’s mom said. “I’m utterly and completely shocked and dismayed.”

  Noah winced. He should have known this crazy plan wouldn’t work.

  Noah’s mother clutched the back of a chair, still looking distraught. “Noah, I had no
idea you felt this way! I thought you loved the theater as much as I do!”

  “I do, Mom,” Noah said. “But only the dancing part.”

  “I always said you were pushing him too hard, Stella,” Noah’s dad chided gently. “You can’t force him to have the same dreams you had at his age.”

  “I suppose not.” Noah’s mother looked sad for a moment. Then she turned to face Noah. “So what do you want to do? Quit the theater?”

  “No, not quit completely,” Noah said. “But, um, maybe I could drop out of voice and acting lessons?”

  “Oh, baby . . .” Noah’s mom began.

  “Stella . . .” his dad said.

  She sighed. “Okay, it’s a deal. You still want to dance, though, don’t you?”

  “Of course. I love dancing—​I definitely still want to do that.” Noah shrugged. “I want to keep doing ninja stuff, too.”

  His mother looked surprised. “You still want to be a ninja?” she asked. “But you said you only did it for me.”

  “I did.” A smile spread across Noah’s face as he realized something for the first time. “At first. But now I love it almost as much as dancing!”

  Twenty-One

  Ty raised the weight on the leg press, then flopped onto the bench. Across the room, his teammates were already gathered around the TV.

  “Ty, come on!” JJ called. “It’s going to start in a minute.”

  “Then I’ll be there in a minute,” Ty called back as he lifted steadily—​one, two, one, two . . .

  Mackenzie didn’t seem satisfied by his response. She hurried over and poked Ty in the shoulder.

  “Come on,” she said. “It’s the last semis show! You don’t want to miss a second, right?”

  “I guess.” Ty did a few more reps, then lowered the bar and stood. “I just want to make sure I’m ready when they call me in at the finals.” For the past couple of weeks, ever since the wildcard show had aired, Ty had been working harder than ever. Okay, so maybe ten ninjas had qualified from the wildcard show, but an alternate was still an alternate, right? And he’d overheard Mackenzie and Noah talking about visualizing how they wanted stuff to happen. Ty could totally visualize himself stepping in at the last minute—​and triumphing!