⋆ ˚ ｡▐ 𝚰𝐍 𝐃𝐄𝐄𝐏.
❝ I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE BAMBI. I'M IN
DEEP FOR YOU. ❞ ━━━ KAEDE HAYASHI
𝐎𝐃𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐄𝐓𝐓𝚰.
Daughter of David and Boipelo Moetti. The media calls her the "Mantra Ray". She's used to being under fame'...
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ODETTE | MOETTI
IT WAS SURPRISING that out of all of us, Lesedi had finished unpacking first.
But maybe that had to do with Jae organising, then reorganising her things, Aerona doing more reading of her book than touching her suitcases ( which I suspected held more novels in ) and Noor getting distracted every time she came across framed pictures of her family. Even I'd put my unloading on pause when I found the only trophy I'd brought with me.
It wasn't a reward I'd recently won. On the contrary, it was my first award I'd ever gotten for swimming and it was made of plastic. You could probably find perfect replicas of it ( if you ignored its wear and tear ), if you nipped to Tesco, but it meant so much to me because of the memories attached to it.
I'd gotten it six years ago, at a summer swim-camp in Ireland that had introduced me to the sport. It was during an era when my parents were dead-set on finding a sport that I'd excel in during my free time. They would get in contact with sporting legends and pay them so I'd be under their wing and expertise for the six weeks. It had happened since I was seven, when the Moetti company had struck gold. I was used to being carted off to different countries every year during the summer.
Back then, I took it as a fun learning experience that introduced me to so many different cultures and people. But I'd never forget wishing to go on an ordinary holiday with my parents and make happy memeories with them.
In County Louth, I learned the different swim styles alongside other kids and it was one of the happiest times of my life— especially because of the kind, elderly woman who'd seen my gift and had been my mentor. In hindsight, Ms Mori probably been payed by my parents to do so, but unlike other teachers I'd had, she was kind on her own accord.
Aya Mori was Japan's most famous multi-gold medalist during the seventies. Straight after completing her high school final exams, she was swimming amongst her country's best and made a name for herself in her debut by achieving bronze. She'd improved with age to the point where from the ages of twenty-one to twenty-five, she was the only one to ever win gold in the butterfly long distance women's category. The main reason she'd retired from the sport at twenty-five was because she'd gotten married and wanted to direct her time, energy and love towards her family, especially when she'd became pregnant.
She was one in the long list of female swimmers I looked up to— so I doubt I'd ever forget the experience.
The trophy was small in my hands and I could hardly believe it used to crowd my palms. The gold colour had peeled away over the years, but it always reminded me of what the sport originally was to me; my calling and where I was supposed to be.
