Excerpt from Chapter 13

“Ughhh,” I cried out, huffing. “I’ll never get this!”

“Here’s the thing … ,” she formed her lips like she was going to say one thing then shook her head like she’d changed gears. “Look, how do you think we all learned it dupe-face?” Hilde could be a bit harsh when she wanted to, even if she was tired. “Here, I’ll pick up from where you left off, but first, is your ankle fine?”

I rubbed it. It felt sore enough that normally I would probably have stopped, but the once-a-week playdate with Hilde was my best chance to practice. Without her help I knew my chance of gaining acceptance in the Besties was basically nil.

“All right, fine.” I tried not to think about things like sprained ankles.

“Okay.” Hilde handed me the rope. “We’re almost to the end. C’mon, you chant while turning the rope for me.” I took the rope and did as she suggested, though half-heartedly. Yes, I wanted to learn, but it was irritatingly hard sometimes.