Changing Strides

~Prologue~

  "Go, go, go! Come on Claire, yeah come on you can do it!" The cries of my friends echoed in my mind as I pushed myself into a whole other gear. I dug down deep, lengthening my stride and pumping my arms harder. I looked beyond me to see the finish line only meters away, the adrenaline rush just reaching it's peak of excitement. All I could see was the black track scored with white paint and a throng of people surrounding the finish line getting larger as I gave the sprint my all. Though no opponent threatened me, I always pushed myself for a new personal record. I sailed over the finish line slowing up before I met the fencing. I turned around, hands on hips catching my breath as I slowly walked back to the finish. The heat had already finished and had followed suite walking back to the finish, winded. My clocker flashed the stopwatch toward me. I tilted my head to read the time. It read 11:34.09. I let out a ragged sigh. My time was not what I had hoped, but it was close, and I tried not to be defeated.
 

After recording the time, I dragged my breathless body off the track. I went to my coach. "Sorry, I tried." I bent my head in shame. The coach reassured me, "You have a fast time, your not average, your fast is, well, superhuman even for a senior in high school." I knew this was true, I just had to accept my "superhuman" speed. I went to the bleachers to see my friends congregated around our bags. I climbed up to them and they all started to cheer. They congratulated me on my run. Then a muffled announcement came over the weak speaker, "Last call for 200 meter dash, last call for 200 meter dash. Second call for 400 meter run, second call for 400 meter run." One of my friends, Jordyn grew wide eyed and shoved my other friend, Amanda, almost sending her tumbling down the bleachers. "Dude! 200 last call, go!" Amanda's light bulb goes off.
  "Crap!" Amanda sprints down the bleachers two steps at a time and quickly weaves and pushes through the herd of people. Kristen, another one of my friends burst out in laughter.  Jordyn started laughing too as Amanda stood in front of a pissed off official.
  The last friend to speak named Sammy finally chimed in, "Lets go watch, down there." She pointed to an opening in the crowd cozied up against the fence. We all unanimously shuffled down to beside the track just in time to watch Amanda. I saw Amanda line up and crouch down at the starting line. She stood perfectly still as the gun was raised into the air. She launched forward timing it perfectly at the sharp pang of the gun, as it echoed through the track.