Swan Song

Three

The day had finally arrived for the regional skate competition semifinals and my nerves had been at an all time high. While I had skated because I loved it, many of the people who were involved in the competition all had ambitions to go to the Olympics which was something I knew was out of the question for Matt and I.

During a short break between performances, I snuck out to where I saw my dad and brothers after putting my skate guards on. Once I had them on, I snuck up to the stands to see them and hopefully the rest of my family before mine and Matt's performance.

"Dad, do you know if Mav's gonna be here?" I asked as I put my earrings on.

"Yes, O. Your godfather will be here," he replied as my mom came to her seat beside my dad.

"Oh, sweetheart! You look gorgeous," she said softly as she smoothed out the shoulders of my dress.

"Thanks," I replied as Bradley approached us with Payback and Fanboy not far behind.

"Bradley?" I asked, a brow raised in question, horribly confused as to why he had them with him.

"Oh, you guys are good friends! I figured you'd be fine with them knowing."

"Thanks for checking with me first," I muttered with a frown before turning to Reuben and Mickey. "This stays between us, okay?"

"No questions asked," Reuben replied.

"I never even saw you," Mickey added with a playful wink.

I breathed a sigh of relief as I nodded. It wasn't that I wanted to hide my extracurricular activities but I was intimidated by the thought of Jake and Javy making me miserable over it.

"Are you nervous?" Bradley questioned, trying to get the attention off of my uninvited guests.

"I'm sure I'll be fine," I replied. "I should get going though. We'll be up soon."

"Good luck," my dad called out as I disappeared into the coed locker room.

As Matt and I waited for our turn, I finished working on my makeup before curling my hair and then putting it up in a ponytail to keep it out of my way during our performance.

As we waited, I pulled my blade guards off and put them in my bag. Nervous, I began to pick at my cuticles until Matt grabbed my hand to get me to stop.

"It's going to be fine, Odette," he said quietly in an attempt to sooth me, pulling me closer to him as he ran his hand up and down my back. "We've been working on this for weeks and we have our routine down perfect."

"Do you know how long it's been since I've performed in front of my entire family, plus friends that I had no idea would be here?"

I harshly pushed air past my lips as the team in front of us finished their routine and the ice was then cleared and smoothed for mine and Matt's performance.

As I looked around the crowded stands outside of the rink, a chill ran down my spine as I spotted the section that held my family and friends. Not only did I have to prove myself to Matt and the judges but my family and closest friends as well, two of which had no idea that I was figure skating during any free time I had following work.

"Up next on the ice— Odette Kazansky and Matthew Rojas!"

I took a deep breath before looking up at Matt with a soft smile.

"Now or never," he said. "C'mon, we've got this in the bag."

"I hope so," I replied as we stepped onto the ice and skated to the center of the rink hand in hand.

As I heard the first few chords begin to plan of Golden Hour, I took one more deep breath before resting one hand on Matt's shoulder and placed the other hand in his before we began gliding along the ice, the overhead spotlight following us.

As the song played over the speakers, Matt and I danced and twirled, going through our entire routine exactly as we had been for the previous few weeks and it was going better than I had expected.

Just before our finale, Matt lifted me with both hands before dropping one as he twirled me around his body before my feet hit the ground.
When the music ended and we came to a stop, our breathing was heavy but there were cheers that echoed throughout the rink.

We watched as the judges tallied our final score and Matt had an arm around me, soothingly running a hand up and down my back. The freezing temperatures of the rink made chills run down my spine and as the final score was up, I squealed in excitement as we had the highest score of the day.

"I told you," Matt said as he scooped me up, giving me a hug.

"I need to listen to you more often," I replied as I cheered, my face full of shock. "Time to learn a new routine!"

"One day at a time," Matt chuckled. "You're always so anxious."

"I sure am," I laughed as we left the ice and went back to the locker room where I sat and pulled my skates off.

Once I had stuffed my skates into my bag, Matt and I had said our goodbyes for the day before I met up with my cheering section. My mom, of course, was the most excited, followed by my dad and Mav. All three of them, along with my brothers and Bradley, knew how much I had loved skating from the time I was six and that love had grown exponentially now that I was in my thirties.

"We're going to celebrate," Mav said as he pulled me into a hug. "You name where we're going!"

"Would I be me if I didn't choose Cannonball?" I laughed as Oliver hooked his arm around my neck.

"Come on, boys," my mom encouraged as she laid her hand on Payback's shoulder. "Just follow us there!"

"I always forget what a badass you are," Oliver said with a chuckle as we all made our way to the parking lot and then towards the restaurant.

The easy part was over. Now the hard part was about to begin.