Take One for the Team

Chapter 19: Sick

I decided that it was nationals crunch time and that I had to get good.
I did have a week off for sixth grade camp, which was fun, and I made a lot of good friends.

One morning in May I woke up with a terrible cough.
"MOM!!!" I yelled. "I'M SICK!!!"
She ran up stairs.
"You're fine Julie, it's just a cold. Now go back to bed."

I got up later and felt pretty fine, except that I would have a bunch of random coughing fits and was really tired.
The next day, I went to practice and started coughing in the middle of my routine.
"Are you okay?" Cara asked after watching my routine.
"Ya I'm fine," I replied.
"You sound really sick," Lilah added.
"It's just a cold I'll be better soon and I need to keep practicing for nationals."
All though it didn't get better.

***

The next night I threw up.

It wasn't like normal throw up when your stomach just hurts and you puke. I had a coughing fit and started coughing really really hard. My lungs started hurting, and I ran over to the bathroom. There was a deep pain in my chest, and I coughed till I threw up my dinner.

It happened again the next day.

I was getting pretty worried because I wasn't getting any better. My mom took me to the doctor and they said that I had whooping cough.
"Whooping cough?!?? When will I get better!?!?" I yelled.
"It depends, but you guys didn't treat it soon enough, so probably three to four months."
"MONTHS?!? But nationals is in three weeks?!??" I exclaimed.
I cried the whole way home, thinking about how my chances for nationals were blown. I had never placed in the top 10 at nationals before, and I had thought that this was my year. Now there was no chance for me to place on anything.

I thought about quitting, not even going to nationals. It's not like there was a pairs partner who I was gonna let down by not competing. I wasn't in group routine. Would anyone even CARE if I quit? I didn't have an important part on the team.

But the money was already payed, so I decided to stick with it.

The next night at practice Coach Melissa announced a new rule.
"Due to the lack of competitors this year, the qualifying rule has been changed. Now up to 10th place will qualify in every event."

Now I would have to compete in three minute speed at nationals! I had whooping cough, and I sucked at it in general. I couldn't even imagine how embarrassing my score would be.

I did find a few ways around working with whooping cough.
I had to slow down in my routine, aka when I felt like I had to cough, I close my mouth right and breath through my nose really fast. If I did cough, I'd have to keep jumping.
I was usually fine for thirty second speed, and okay-ish for one minute speed.
For three minute speed I usually went in the bathroom and hid.

The next few weeks got a little better.

Before I knew it it was time to pack for nationals. I had like 5 pairs of tennis shoes that I packed. Then I looked down into my suitcase and stared.
What was I supposed to pack for nationals???
I started with my uniform. Then my warmups. Then a sports bra.
Then I packed pjs and underwear and socks and that stuff.
That was easy.
I shut my suitcase.

Nationals started on a Thursday and ended on a Sunday.
I drove up to long beach with my mom on Wednesday. My dad drove up in the other car with my brother and sisters so that we could fit all of our suitcases in.
The drive was about two hours long. On the way up I talked with my mom about all of my routines.
"Mom, I'm nervous," I said after a long while of silence.
"Don't be nervous Julie," she said and handed me a banana and a piece of chocolate.

We were going to stay at my cousins house, which was about 15 minutes away from the competition. But first, we stopped at the convention center.
We got kinda lost and had no idea how to get in. First we found a sign with in arrow that said:
JUMP ROPE PARKING LEFT
I'm not sure how but we missed that turn and ended up going around the block.
Once we finally got parking, we ended up walking three blocks to the convention center. We entered throw a back door that seemed something like a hotel hallway. We saw some USA jump rope staff members sitting at tables, but had no idea where the actual room was.
I followed a girl from another team to a large open hallway.
I walked through the door.
The room was HUGE!

To the right was a snack bar and restrooms.
On the left there was a huge practice floor made out of sport court.
And in the enter if the room was a huge floor crowded with teams practicing amazing tricks. Behind the floor were huge bleachers big enough to seat thousands of spectators.

I watched as a team marches in with their matching bags in two straight lines.
I watch a girl who looks about my age or maybe younger do a back flip with the help of her coach.
I watch teams practice speed way faster than I could ever go.

"Julie!" Someone calls. I look over to see Rosie, Ashlyn, Becky and Cara.

"Common, let's practice!"