Back to You(84)

A few minutes later, as Lauren was using the wall to get a good stretch on her ankles, she heard the door open, and that same excited peal echoed through the gym.
“Is she here yet, Daddy?”
“I’m not sure. Let me just talk to this man for a minute and then we’ll go look for her, okay?”
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.