Page 74 of You're the Reason

The little girl giggled as if surprising Grace was half the fun. “My dad is working tonight, so my brother was supposed to walk me home. But he’s not here.”

“Do you want me to walk you home?”

The little girl shook her head, her blonde pigtails flapping back and forth. “I can’t stay home alone.”

“Of course.” Grace eyed the front door. “Do you know where your brother might be?”

She nodded. “The new gym place with Seth, Pastor Nate, and Jimmy. Can you walk me there?”

Her heart sped up at the idea. But she wasn’t chasing him—Susie needed her to go. “Of course. Just let me change my shoes.”

Grace quickly replaced her pointe shoes with street shoes and led them out before securing the lock.

“That sure is a lot of people.” Susie pointed across the street at the town square where a good share of the townspeople were busy setting up booths, decorations, and a few carnival games.

“Sure is.” Grace held out her hand to Susie. “Are you planning on going tomorrow?”

“My dad has to work,” she said with an extra dramatic sigh. “And my brother said he has to help Seth at the ninja thing. So, I have to stay there with him all day.”

“Maybe you and I could go together for part of it.”

The little girl’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

Yeah, really? A month ago, she’d told Ms. Margret she wasn’t a kid person, and here she was volunteering to spend the day with Susie. “See what your dad says.”

“Are you going to do the solo?”

“I told you I’d think about it.”

“What’s there to think about? Doesn’t dancing make you happy?”

“Sometimes.” That was the most honest she’d been about that question.

“I looove it.” The little girl spun under Grace’s arm. “My daddy told me that when I dance it makes God happy.”

“Why do you think that is?” What she really wanted to ask was what made her dad think some crazy thing like that, but she didn’t want to be rude.

“He says that God put that seed of dancing in my heart, and now He has given me the opportunity so He loves when I do it. Or something like that.”

Susie threw her hands up but didn’t let go of Grace’s hand. “You should do the dance and you should do a lift at the end. It would make God happy.”

Grace offered a quick glance up and down Richard Street and Second Street before they crossed. “A lift?”

Halfway across Susie dropped her hand and ran ahead to where Otis sat at the corner as if watching all the setup happening on the square. The girl jumped on his back and walked up and down, with her arms out for balance. Funny, it didn’t bother her when Susie stood on Otis. But Otis was always meant to be climbed on and loved by kids, not used as a foot prop for her brother. She held out her hand to Susie again. “How would I do a lift by myself?”

The little girl took it and jumped down. “Not by yourself. With Seth. I told you he’s strong.”

Yes, he was. She wasn’t sure if a lift would make God happy, but it sure would make her happy.

The location for the future rec center sat only twenty yards away, up on the left, and the lights were on inside.

When she got to the unremarkable brown building, she banged on the door, but with the music blasting no one would ever hear them.

She opened the door and led Susie inside. The place had been an old warehouse and still retained most of that look. No doubt they’d change a lot more, given more time, but for now, it was primarily a large empty room with obstacle-course-like structures in the center.

The course, which appeared temporary, started with a variety of rings, ropes, and what looked like monkey bars mounted on rotating barrels that were to swing across. After that was a rock wall designed for climbing sideways rather than climbing up, then a series of angled platforms and balance beams. Another climbing obstacle followed, then a curved ramp that led up to a high wall. There was also an inflatable obstacle course for younger kids. None of the challenges looked high enough to get injured if someone fell, especially since there were thick, padded mats lining the whole floor under them.

“You have to trust yourself and reach for it.” Seth’s voice echoed in the room, but she couldn’t see him. “You only gave a half reach and now you lost your momentum. You won’t make it.”

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