Page 108 of Salto

Yeah.

No.

I hated ice baths. Like, with a passion.

When I was training elite as a teenager, my coach had started implementing them, but I'd quickly developed a severe hatred for the practice.

Getting into an ice bath made my entire body tense up. And tensing every muscle in my body didn't exactly feel great—especially around my pelvis and lower back.

It was hard enough learning how to relax during my routines.

Stick me in an ice bath and tell me to relax?

Literally impossible.

They hurt. They were uncomfortable. They stole my breath.

Overall, I hated them.

So I'd follow every doctor's order...

Except that one.

"Good," Rove said. "Now let's work on tension and release exercises again.”

Later that night, my mom called to check in. Seeing her contact pop up on my screen made my heart ache, and my stomach sink a little bit. I hadn’t had the chance to update her on everything with the qualifier.

“Hey, Mom,” I said, answering and simultaneously wincing. I knew what was coming.

“How did your meet go? You never called, sweetie.”

“Yeah, I’m so sorry. It went good; I qualified,” I said, curling up on my couch. I grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around myself.

“Oh good, that’s such a relief to hear.”

Guilt shot through me again.

“How are you feeling? Are you in a lot of pain?”

“I’m mostly just sore,” I said, trying to tell a sort of half-truth. I bit my lip and reached up to fiddle with the end of my ponytail.

“I bet. You’ve been training so much.”

“Sorry things have been so crazy, I haven’t been calling as much as I normally do.”

“I understand. Training elite is all-consuming.”

“It is,” I said quietly, realizing that she did know. She’d been my support through it my entire teenage years. I started to feel a wave of homesickness at the thought of her.

The stress made me want to go home, curl up on the couch, watch a movie, and forget about the world.

I wanted to close my eyes and feel my mom brushing my hair again.

“Well, I love you, sweetheart. We miss you and can’t wait to see you at family dinner.”

My eyes popped open. I’d found myself drifting into past memories, nearly falling asleep.

“Oh, that reminds me. The U.S Classic is coming up, and it's at a gym only thirty minutes from you.”