When in Sochi

Damn Tabloids ♡

"I don't know what I would do without you, Gretchen," I sighed as I took a sip from a warm vanilla flan latte.

Gretchen and I were sitting down in the Soviet Starbucks.

"You're welcome, baby doll," he answered in his awesome gay voice. "Captain Gretchy to the rescue."

I smiled warmly. "Thanks again. He just... He just threw himself on me. I didn't know what to do."

"Well, it's hard not to, you're drop dead gorgeous."

I blushed. "Stop, I'm not."

"Girl, you must be blind. Like the guy over there. He's checking you out."

I turned around and saw a cute guy in his teens. He was winking at me.

"Should I go talk to him?" I asked.

"Girl, you go for it. You look like a million bucks, go for it."

I laughed and took a deep breath. Then I walked over to the teenage boy.

"Hi," I said.

"Hey," he smiled. "What's up?"

"Nothin' much... Just here haha."

The boy laughed too and smiled at me.

"Wanna go out sometime?" I asked.

Suddenly I felt someone grab my arm. It was Gretchen. He dragged me off to the side and looked at me angrily.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked.

"You said he was checking me out so I said hi and asked him out!"

"Do you wanna get arrested? He's like, 13!"

"Ok, no, he's definitely like 15. OBVY!!!"

Gretchen rolled his eyes. "It was HIM checking you out."

He whirled me around and I saw a man in his 30s giving me the skeevies.

"Ew! He's old! Gross!"

Gretchen rolled his eyes. "I don't know what's gotten into you, Kira. You honestly haven't been the same."

Then he walked away, leaving me alone with my dangerously stupid thoughts.

~~~

I woke up the next day in my hotel room (where else would I wake up lol) and I ordered some, breakfast in bed. It was delivered to me, but as I was closing the door, I noticed an Olympic Edition People Magazine lying at the foot of my door. Every room got one.

I shrugged and took my tray and the magazine into my room. My hash browns were still nice and hot so I decided to flip through the magazine.

Then my jaw dropped.

On four total pages were pictures of me and Apolo Ohno holding hands and drinking at that exclusive area and him... leaning in to kiss me!

I nearly choked on my vanilla frap.

RETIRED SHORT TRACK SKATER APOLO OHNO AND POTENTIAL LOVE INTEREST SPOTTED FLIRTING AND CUDDLING AT ICEBERG SKATING PALACE was the headline.

"What the fuck!" I yelled with my mouth full of hash browns.

I threw the magazine out the balcony and changed out of my bathrobe. I looked through my luggage for what clothes to wear, but I think 26 year old Kira is hard-wired to dress like a slut.

So I decided to play to my strength and wore tight black leggings and a loose cream white sweater.

My phone rang. It was Nick. Oh dear...

"Hello?" I answered nervously.

"You better get down at the Palace right now."

~~~

I didn't waste a breath. I rushed over there and met him at the judging panel. He was clutching the magazine and he angrily shook it in front of my face.

"Seriously?!" he barked. "Why can't you just keep alow profile?! What is the matter with you?!"

"For the record," Gretchen suggested, " People Magazine published this to try to destroy US Weekly, right? And they knew Kira was vulnerable. She was never into Ohno. I had to save her from him yesterday."

"Then what the hell is this?" he flipped through the pictures. "Were you just enjoying each other's company?"

"No," I said softly. "I.. I don't even like him..l don't know how this became what it is now. It's not what it looks like, really!"

"I was beginning to suspect it was you!" Nick glared at me.

"Suspect what?"

"Someone's been giving all our magazine ideas to People," Gretchen said quickly.

"What?! Really?!"

Nick shook his head and continued to speak.

"You're client just lost his event. The 1000m short track. You'd better talk to him about how to appeal before the general public. He was America's only short track hope too. Shame..."

Aww! My baby lost!!

"Where is he?" I asked.

"Rink loading area, below gate 0."

I walked over there quickly, drawing attention from the spectators.

There he was, sitting alone in the prep room with his beats in, shirt off, revealing his Phillipine tattoo. I stared at him breathlessly for a good minute, and he seemed to notice I was there.

He immediately took off his beats and smiled.

"Hey Kira! Glad to see you!"

I waved an awkward hello and sat next to him. "Hey. I.. I heard about what happened.. I'm sorry."

JR chuckled and shrugged it off. "Aw, don't worry about me. I just couldn't focus, you know?"

I noticed the People magazine tucked in his bag, the page turned to the "scandal" between me and Apolo.

He saw me staring at it so he laughed weakly and shoved it away. "My bad."

"It's not true, by the way," I said quickly. "The rumors about me and that guy, Apolo. None of it is true, just.. Just to let you know."

JR smiled at me. "Apolo's an awesome dude."

Is this how ALL guys are? 'JR's a great kid.' 'Apolo's am awesome dude.' I wish girls are like this.

"He's something, alright," I cleared my throat. "He's not my type."

I figured that instead of reminding JR that he lost, I should divert the subject to something else. It seemed to be working because he smiled, a spark of curiosity in his sweet brown eyes.

"Really? Wow, you're the first girl I know to say that. Well, what's your type then?"

I smiled and I let my smoky eyelids get heavy. "Well... I like the down to earth guys. The ones that are kids at heart."

"The good-natured, wholesome ones?" he asked.

IT'S YOU, STUPID, I felt like saying. Instead I nodded. "Ya."

We just stared at each other for a while, his soft eyes searching mine, and then I blushed. I must've turned so red because he laughed, "I'm lucky to have such a hot publicist."

I gulped, wide-eyed, and then I smiled. "Oh. Uh... Thank you..."

I looked at the ground and spoke bashfully, "You did great, by the way. For the record, America still loves you an awful lot."

JR smiled and took out the People magazine he crumbled in his bag. He showed me the cover. It was of him, and the title read CELSKI: AMERICA'S HOPES AND DREAMS.

I didn't know what to say, but his friendly laugh was enough.

"Damn tabloids, huh?" he said as he stood up and stretched his back.

"Yeah," I replied slowly, my face turning fiery red. "Damn tabloids."