Nexus // 2016 Rio Olympics

Chapter Four

        Who knew, because I knew I certainly didn't. Distraction was something I didn't need right now, and I needed to focus on making sure that both myself and my horse were in the best condition possible. That meant getting sidetracked with pointless flirting wasn't on my list of things to do, even if deep down I really didn't mind it.

        Scolding myself, I said a final goodbye to Nexus before heading back to the village, knowing that when I got back I would have a few things to explain to Lauren, if she was even awake to have witnessed them.

        Eleanor's P.O.V.

        Walking up to the door to my room, I took a deep breath before placing my key into the key slot. Opening the door, I was met with an awaiting Lauren as she sat on her bed, her head quickly turning up from her phone to face me, a curious look on her face. Knowing she had questions to ask, I entered and closed the door behind me, sighing.

        "So, I guess quite a few things happened between the time I fell asleep to now." She said, giving me a playful glare. I felt my face heat up with embarrassment, walking across to the room to my bed, sitting down on it so that I was facing her.

        "Just some chatter, that was all." I explained, being honest about it. Would I have liked more to have happened? Sure. Maybe an exchanging of phone numbers, maybe something else, but that would have been a bit too much to expect.

        "With who? Because I'm looking at these tweets and am getting too many ideas from them. Reading the comments below them are even worse." Lauren's expression was priceless as she looked like she had just seen something she hadn't wanted to. Laughing, I went into an explanation of everything that went down in the elevator.

        "And you didn't get his number?" She asked, astonished, now sitting upright in her bed as she had become immersed in the story. I just shrugged, avoiding her eye contact.

        "I didn't care to ask. It would have been weird." I responded, knowing that the argument was a little weak. But, it's not like you ask someone for their phone number unless there was some serious flirting, which there definitely wasn't. It was just some friendly conversation; sadly.

        "True, but maybe you'll see him at tonight's party." Lauren said, getting up and heading to her dresser, where I assumed she had put all of her clothing. I quickly became confused, and that thought of what she meant by a party. I wasn't aware of one, or invited, so did she mean we were having one, or were we going to go crash one? From my silence, she must have realized my confusion and turned around to face me.

        "Right, I forgot to tell you." She started, heading over to the wardrobe and opening it to reveal several outfits of hers, most of the being her showing attire. "I think the track and field team all pitched in and rented out a club for the night, only a few blocks away, and invited everyone on the US team to come. That includes us. It's kind of like a team bonding thing, if that's how you want to look at it." Finishing her explanation, she pulled two cocktail dresses out, holding them up side by side. "So, which one should I wear?"

        Michael's P.O.V.

        "1:58.34. I've seen you do better." I heard Ryan say as I hung onto the side of the pool, my lungs burning some from swimming my final 200m Butterfly for the day. Preparing myself, I pulled myself out of the pool with some struggle, final sitting at the edge. Taking my time, I let myself take a breather. He was right, I could have swam that faster, but it was only practice. I knew on the day of the race I would do my best. I just needed to swim fast enough to qualify for the semifinals.

        "Don't worry. I'll be alright, Ryan." I said, final getting up from where I sat, getting some help from Ryan. I quickly pulled off my swimming caps and goggles, walking over to where all of my stuff sat, seeing that China's team was finally making there way in.

        "So, are you going to that party tonight?" Ryan asked, pulling on his sweatpants. I shrugged, pulling my sweatshirt on. Sure, party's were fun and I always enjoyed having a good time with friends, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to go. There would be plenty of opportunities to go with friends another time.

        "I don't know. I was kind of planning on taking it easy tonight."  I responded, putting on the rest of my clothes and gathering up the rest of my stuff. Glancing up at Ryan, the look he was giving me said that he wasn't impressed. I tried to start and make another excuse for myself, but he was quick to interrupt me.

        "Come on, Mike. It wouldn't be the same without you. The team would want you there." He argued, giving me a small shove with his arm as we made our way out. "Anyways, I think Eleanor might be there." I could feel his eyes on me, and I rolled my eyes looking away from him just in case there was any evidence of embarrassment.

        "Please, Michael. If after an hour you still don't want to be there, then we can go." Ryan said, making the compromise. He was a party animal, so I doubt he would actually leave with me, but the fact that he said it, I knew that he somewhat meant it. With a sigh, I gave in to his request.

        "Fine, I'll go. But I swear if you try to pull me into some weird shit, I'm leaving right away."

      Sorry for the wait on this next chapter. Had to think of a bridge between the last chapter, and the next one. It took longer than it should have, but taa-daa! Anyways, to the one person who commented, thank you! I really like feed back, so please keep it coming. Also, didn't really enjoy trying to write Ryan's part  because of recent events. If you don't know what I'm talking about, just look up his name and you'll figure it out. I still love him, but you gotta better decision bud.