let's give 'em somethin' to talk about

i'm hopin' that you feel the same way

With Sonia's advice still ringing in her head, along with everything her friends have said, Gloria comes close to revealing her feelings, but always backs off before it's too late, and Hop remains oblivious. The last few days together are fun, but the dread now hangs over her, as she knows that it is almost at an end. All the while, she reminds herself that it will just be a few months, nothing major and nothing worth getting this sad over.

But the frequent and irrational worry that Hop might forget all about her persists, and knowing that she can call him doesn't do much to ease that.

And before she knows it, the day is upon them. They hang out the entire day before, and Hop tells her what time he's going to be leaving. The airport he's departing from isn't far from where she lives, and he says, "I wasn't going to ask anyone to come see me off, since I'm having a little going away party with my family tonight, but if you aren't busy, you can. Since it isn't too far out of the way for you!"

She should probably go, if Hop is going out of his way to invite her when he wasn't planning on inviting anyone else. It isn't out of the way for her, and she doesn't have anything planned for the next day, having kept her schedule pretty clear just to spend time with him, so she should definitely go. But she finds herself shaking her head sadly, saying, "I would if I could, but I had something come up tomorrow that I really can't get out of."

Hop's face falls for only a moment before he's smiling again. "That's fine! Like I said, I wasn't planning on having anyone come. You can't keep dodging your responsibilities to hang out with me, you know!"

If only he knew.

But now, the morning after, the day of his departure, she wishes she hadn't said no. She wishes that she could be there to see him off, but at the same time, knows exactly why she immediately turned him down. It feels like the perfect last minute opportunity to tell him how she feels, the perfectly cliche backdrop to what she has been building to the past couple weeks, and the actual worst time to spring that on him. Why would she want to tell him right before he got on a plane to another region?

It puts a lot of pressure on him, for one thing, and even if that weren't the case, if he were to just come out and reject her then, that would just put a damper on all the fun they had leading up until now. More than a damper, really, but she's trying not to think about how much it would crush her if he did reject her.

Hop has been a part of her life for so long now. It's going to be strange to not be able to see him, but she supposes she'll get used to it. When they were kids, when they lived so close to each other that they could show up spur of the moment, knocking on the other's door, they took it for granted. Their gym challenge and the different directions their lives took them in meant that they couldn't just drop in on the other whenever they wanted, but they got used to that. Gloria knows that she will get used to this as well.

Even if he were to decide to stay there, she would get used to it. Even if he were to fall in love with some stranger and never come back home and forget all about her, she could get used to it.

She repeats that thought to herself only a few times before she checks the time. His flight shouldn't have left yet; if she leaves now, if she really hurries, then she should be able to catch him before it's too late. She doesn't waste another second, getting up quickly to put her shoes on and leave.

Gloria probably could get used to all of that, but she doesn't want to, not if she doesn't have to. And if he rejects her and if he doesn't want to talk to her ever again, then she'll just have to get used to that instead, but at least she can say that she tried. She's wasted enough time, denying her feelings and then making excuses, but she doesn't want to send Hop off without him at least knowing how she feels about him.

The brief trip to the airport is spent rehearsing what to say to him when she sees him, and all she can do is hope that she catches him in time, and that he didn't take off early for some reason. She's cutting it close, she knows that, but regretting her choices now won't change the fact that she made the stupid decision to not accompany him to the airport in the first place.

By the time she gets there, she knows that she doesn't have enough time to make her way through the confession she has planned in her mind, but still, she texts Hop, asking where he is. After thirty agonizing seconds, he replies by telling her he's about to go into the terminal, and won't be able to text her for very long before he has to turn his phone off. That's the only answer she needs, and before she knows it, she's taken off running, as fast as she can.

She's pretty sure that she hears people muttering as she goes past, saying things like, "Isn't that the champion?" but she couldn't care less about being recognized by now. The only thing she cares about is getting there before it is too late, before Hop has disappeared into the terminal, out of contact until he lands.

Finally, she catches sight of him, at the last possible second. She shoves through the crowds, going as far as she is allowed to without a ticket, and, without any concern for all the other people in the airport, she calls out to him, "Hop, wait!"

Upon hearing his name, he turns, confused, but he sees her, their eyes meeting. He says something that she can't quite hear, but it looks like he's saying her name. The others behind him are pushing past him now and ushering him forward; she doesn't have enough time for this at all. She has to say what she came to say, blunt and simple.

"Hop! I'm in love with you!" she shouts, as loud as she possibly can.

She's only vaguely aware of all the eyes on her after she confesses, more concerned with the way Hop's eyes go wide as he processes what she's said. And he opens his mouth and he shouts something back at her, but she can't hear him over the rest of the crowd, who have grown considerably more excited now that they've figured out what is going on. Well, except for the people trying to get around him, as they've just gotten their last call to board the flight. With no choice other than to miss his flight, Hop finally moves forward until he is out of sight, and Gloria has absolutely no idea what he's said.

Call me as soon as you can .

After she sends that text, she has to fight her way through the crowd who have taken quite an interest in the champion's love life in the past couple minutes. She isn't even able to try to check her phone until she's outside, but there isn't a response from him.

Now, she can only go home and wait until he lands.