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CHAPTER 22
They’d done everything right, but it still hadn’t been enough. Wasn’t that the story of Chandler’s life? She’d always worked the hardest, the longest hours. She’d eaten right every day of her life, with the exception of very recently, but that had only been once, and she’d worked off all that sugar and fat a few hours after eating it. She hardly ever drank, with the other night being another exception, but she’d never even thought of smoking or doing drugs. She rarely even took medication unless she couldn’t avoid it or it was prescribed to her. She hardly even had sex because it took energy, and she hadn’t had a significant relationship in her life in order to put her entire focus into this. She spent hours a day in the gym or on the ice, putting the time in, and that had earned her third place in her free skate program in a local invitational. How was she supposed to make an Olympic Team?
“Hey,” Walker said when he picked up the phone.
“Hey. How are you?” she asked.
“I’m good. Still lying around all the time, which is annoying, but I’m okay.”
“Yeah? Any update on when you can at least get up and move around?”
“I’m almost off crutches, but it’ll be a boot for a couple of weeks after. Then, I should be able to test the waters. I went to the doctor yesterday, and he said I’m on track so far, so that’s good.”
“Yeah, it is,” she said.
“So, what’s wrong with you?”
“Why do you think something’s wrong?” she asked as she laid her head against the pillow.
“Because I can hear it in your voice. Is it not going well with your new partner?”
“Belle? No, it’s great. She’s great.”
“Okay. Then, why do you sound sad?”
“Because I’m not good enough.”
“For what?”
“For the Olympic Team.”
“What are you talking about?”
“We’re competing in this invitational tonight at High-Performance Skate, and we came in third in our free.”
“You’re competing there? Why?”
“They asked me.”
“Do they even have same-sex pairs for it?”
“No, we’re with the others.”
“Okay. Well, that’s probably why.”
“Yeah, but I’m starting to regret this whole decision. I don’t regret Belle. She really is the best. And I think she’s what I need, but at the same time, we skated damn near flawlessly tonight, Walker, and we came in third at an invitational.”
“You know as well as I do how old-fashioned that place is. I know people other than you that were funneled through there, and some of them have horror stories, Chandler. The judges were how old? Ancient, right?”
“Close to that, yeah.”
“There you go. They didn’t like you competing with a female partner, so they came up with some bullshit deductions. Skate tomorrow, and I’m sure you’ll kill it. Don’t give them a choice, you know?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“Hey, you know if I could be there, I would.”
“I know. Thank you. I just want you to get better.”
