Queen's Gambit, Accepted

Chapter One

"There's a green apple on my bed."

"On your bed?"

"Well half of an apple. I was snacking before we talked." Beth could hear him try not to snicker through the phone. "Don't judge! I'll throw it out before I leave."

"Blue."

"The curtains?"

"You've used that already."

"Oh, right. Um..." Beth walked into the hotel bathroom, searching for something suitable. "My towel. The lining is blue."

Someone knocked at the door. "Ms. Harmon? It's time."

Beth cupped her hand over the receiver. "Just a minute!"

"Okay, let's make this quick. Purple."

"Uh, my shoes. Which I can't seem to find..." She finally spotted them hiding underneath her bed, tangled between her dirty clothes.

"Good luck. You'll be amazing."

"Thanks."

"Ms. Harmon."

"Have to go Harry, bye."

__________________________________________________________________

"As many of you will recall, this is Ms. Harmon's second appearance at the Moscow Invitational. The last time she competed she left as champion. As we come down to the final match, let's see if she can continue her streak." People clung to the commentator, eager for any news he could offer on the match.

The game wasn't going as it was supposed to. She was still doing a great job, of course.

After all, she is Beth Harmon. But Flento was going against his usual style. The familiar squares on the chessboard were suddenly giving her anxiety. Beth could figure out what to do next– she had to. She just needed to relax and focus.

Her eyes wandered to the spectators. Flento had his own little section of fans– his wife and child sat front row, biting their fingertips. Worried about him. Beth didn't dare look in the stands for much longer because she would have been reminded of that fact that there was no one there for her. At least the last time she competed at the Moscow Invitational, she had Townes (and a friendly bodyguard) waiting for her, as well as a group of supporters congregating in Benny's apartment. This time she had no one. But if she focused too much on that then she wouldn't be able to concentrate on the game.

She looked up at the ceiling, but the pieces were out of her grasp. They looked fuzzy and were impossible to move. Beth knew she had to snap out of her funk, and quickly. Because getting frustrated was always the first part of losing.

"Red," she mouthed to herself. She could almost hear Harry's voice. Flento wore a red tie– how convenient. Orange was a little more difficult, but Beth found a lady in the stands with an orange purse. Beth knew she didn't have time for the other colors, but she had done enough. Significantly calmer, she studied the board and finally made her move.

Flento's face fell. "Draw?" he asked.

"History repeats itself tonight," the commentator told the crowd. "If Harmon accepts the draw, they will be co-champions. And this will still be considered a great success. But as we all know, Ms. Harmon has never accepted a draw. She plays to win."

"I accept." They shook hands and were met with outrageous applause.

As Beth left the game, she was instantly hounded by reporters. "Ms. Harmon, what encouraged you to accept the draw?"

"I was very proud of my game, and I decided to quit while I was ahead. No shame in that."

"Do you think you could have possibly beaten Flento if you had continued the game?"

"I don't analyze what could have happened, only what actually happened. I'm at peace with how I performed tonight."

"How does it feel to be a co-champion? Does this win feel as fulfilling as it did three years ago against Borgov?"

"Yes of course it is fulfilling– chess is my life. But winning isn't everything. I have other things to look forward to."

"Does this mean that you will take another break from chess?"

"When I go back to the states I plan on starting university, which means I will not have as much time for tournaments. But I will keep practicing and return as soon as I can." 

soon as I can."

__________________________________________________________________

A few months later 

"Hi, Harry."

"Hi, Beth. How are you?"

"I'm okay. Just wanted to say hi."

"That's nice." Beth didn't usually call him, and there was a strange waver in her voice, but Harry knew better than to press the issue.

"How have you been?"

"Good. I just graduated, and I'm still working at the supermarket, but hopefully that changes soon."

"Right, graduation. I'm so sorry I couldn't be there; I had something to take care of in New York."

"Training with Benny?"

"Not exactly. It's kind of complicated."

"I see."

"Speaking of graduation, I'm actually about to start school."

"Oh right, I read the article about your match with Flento. I can't believe you accepted the draw."

"What's wrong with a draw?"

"Nothing, it's just not your usual style."

"Fair enough."

"So I assume you'll go to school in New York?"

"Probably, but first I'm taking summer classes in Kentucky as a sort of trial run."

"I thought you sold your place in Lexington?"

"I did."

"So where are you going to stay?"

"I don't know yet. But I'll figure something out."

"You could always stay with me, in my apartment. I mean you'd have to take the couch and it's small, but you won't have to pay rent."

"I don't mind the couch, but what about Cindy?" Though they only had a few phone calls since her match with Borgov, Harry never failed to mention his girlfriend Cindy and how happy they were. The last Beth had checked, they weren't officially moved in together, but they spent any night they could at each other's separate apartments (when their work schedules allowed).

"Cindy sleeps in my room anyways, and I don't think she would mind."

Most girlfriends would be horrified with the idea of a strange girl living in their boyfriend's house for two months straight– but not Cindy. Even Beth couldn't argue with Harry; Cindy was very understanding and she trusted Harry a lot. If he said that Cindy would be okay with it, well, free rent was too tempting to refuse.

"We can discuss it more when the time comes," Beth said. "But thank you, Harry. I'll think about it."