Striving for Greatness: A Vladimir Chigvintsev Story

41

After we got to the hotel I immediately went to sleep. I'm sure everyone wanted me to celebrate with them but I couldn't. I wanted to rest up so I could help Macy practice all day on Saturday. I hadn't even seen anyone yet besides my dads and Peta.

I awoke in the morning to little Maddox jumping up and down on my bed. I wasn't angry, I was very happy to see him.

"Maddox!" I grabbed him and pretend wrestled him and then started tickling him. He immediately began to laugh and then I called a truce and asked him how he liked Paris.

"I like It! I saw the Awful Tower yesterday." I was jealous that they saw it without me but then I laughed at the way he pronounced the word. He is so innocent. Pretty soon Alek came in my room and then Macy came in with Valerie. We all hung out and ordered breakfast to the room so we could catch up and talk about what we're doing today.

"Well I want to help you, Mace." I said, "I'm sure your partner isn't taking it seriously and is going to be off doing something stupid. Want me to go to the practice studio with you?" It would give me a chance to see and catch up with Jaque. I'm sure Penny and Jules will be in the studio all day long in preparation for tomorrow.

"Actually," Macy said, "Benji and I are scheduled for studio time at noon, he is taking it seriously, suprisingly." I nodded, even though I was upset. I wanted so badly to be dancing here. I told my mom I'd become the best dancer in the world and here I am on the sidelines of a world competition.

I hung out with Valerie and my brothers for the rest of the morning and afternoon and then I sat down with my Uncle Val.

"Can we talk?" I asked him.

"Sure, Vlad. Of course we can."

We sat at the hotel bar and bonded over dance for about an hour until I saw Maks coming back from the rehearsal studio. I ran off to talk to him, I wanted to ask him about my mother.

I followed him to the elevator and when he saw me he smiled.

"Vlad, just the man I wanted to see. I have something for you that I was going to give you last night but with Artem and Peta there.. it didn't seem right. It's in my room.." he said. I followed him and we walked in and Maddox jumped out and said boo. He was trying to scare his daddy and he nearly scared me half to death. Peta came walking out and Maks whispered something to her and she took Maddox downstairs.

I sat down on the couch and Maks came out with a small box and set it on the table. I looked at him and he told me to open it. I did as he said, not knowing what I would find inside. Then I got excited. I was holding pictures of me and Maks and my mom. There were More? He had these all of this time. I flipped through them and in each one Maks and my mom looked so happy. I was very young. Only a baby and then a little bit older.

"I can't believe you have these." I said in disbelief, "She looked like she was in love with you."

"Well we were best friends, it's weird how things all worked out though. I was in love with her. And now I'm in love with Peta."

"I selfishly wish that I grew up with you and mom being in love." I admitted as I flipped through the photos once more.

"You almost did get that." He said looking like he was thinking back to something.

"Don't hold back now," I said, "I seriously do want to hear everything. I want to know."

"You were young. Six I believe.."

"When she got sick.."

"Well.. right before she got sick and Artem and her weren't getting along and I was single. Peta had a boyfriend and I flew your mother out here to be with me..."

I was staring at him unsure of where the story was going. He looked like he was remembering a special time that he had with her.

"I remember her leaving," I said to him, "You were Uncle Maks, and she was going with you to take care of you and then she came back and we couldn't see her. She was so sick."

"She loved it here. She won her first championship in this city. It's where I met her. And it's the last place she was before she found out she had cancer." He said half smiling, half upset.

I couldn't look at the photos anymore. I got up and set them delicately in the box.

"Are you okay?" He asked me.

"Yeah, just upset. Here I was with the opportunity to win a championship in the same city that she did and I blew it."

"I am sorry that all of this happened in the past year, and that you lost your spot but just be grateful that you are back. We will begin the road to compete again in the following year. You will have a lot to prove."

"This was my chance. This was what Mom wanted for me. I can never get over this." I walked out of the room and went down the hall and past the elevator. I went down 15 flights of stairs to the lobby and out the door. It was almost nighttime and I didn't want to go do anything. I just wanted to be alone. I saw Julian and Benji and they walked over.

"Hey, Vlad want to go out tonight. We are all going to the club. It's good to be back in our city."

"You should probably be staying in tonight. You have to be up extremely early for competition and you know Maks and Artem would be furious if they knew what you were up to."

"Well I know that you won't be telling them, right Vlad." Benji got close to my face.

"Your unbelievable. You don't scare me. You took my partner and my spot but I unfortunately know that you won't be up to par with the other couples. You will be lucky to be near he bottom honestly. Your nothing but an amateur who happened to get the opportunity, remember."

Macy walked up wjth Penny after hearing everything I said to him.

"Vlad, that was rude," She said, "that means you don't believe in me. Let's go guys."

"Where do you think you are going?" I asked her. My inner Maks was coming out. I was an angry son of a... Russian.

"I am going to enjoy the city for one night. I believe in my partnership and know that we will do great tomorrow. Now you can go to sleep knowing that you are the reason you aren't competing tomorrow, okay."

Her words hurt. She was just jealous that I fell for Valerie instead of her but why was she betraying everything Maks has done for her. If anything happens tonight and if she doesn't get proper rest, not only their names will be tarnished, but mine and especially Maks' will.

I went to my room and decided to go straight to sleep. This should unfold interestingly when we have to wake up at 5 a.m. tomorrow.