Balances on chair

“Don’t be silly,” Naomi said. “Here.” She reached across the table and took Ryn by the wrist, clicking out her ballpoint pen. The click shot Ryn backward. For a moment, Naomi thought she’d fall off her chair. Instead, the chair slanted onto two legs and Ryn somehow alighted onto it, balancing it with a foot on the seat and another on the chair back. She crouched, focused on the pen in Naomi’s hand.
Denise and Elli stared. Naomi raised the pen and presented it to Ryn. She clicked it a few times for Ryn’s unwavering gaze. After a few clicks, Ryn glanced back at Naomi. Only then did she tilt forward. The front chair legs banged onto the floor and she dropped into her seat in the same motion.
Naomi had taken eight years of ballet, swing dance, and gymnastics, but had never seen anyone move like that in her life. The speed. The fluidity. “Sorry,” she whispered. The low current of alarm had returned, and she licked her dry lips. “I should have asked.” She set her hands at the table’s midway point. “Do you trust me?” Do I trust you?


Chapter 5, Page 67