Champion [2014]

Chapter 8- Proud of You

Becca was texting Katie and telling her what had happened when she was met by a very excited and happy Emma.

"I am so proud of you!" she squealed, holding up a thumbs-up sign. Becca leaned over Emma's wheelchair and bumped her fist. Emma laughed and hugged her friend. "You did it!" she cried, examining Becca's medal with admiration. "You really won!"

Becca glanced over at Melissa, who was standing in the lobby while her mother scolded her. "I never knew why Melissa was so mean," she said quietly.

"I know," Emma sighed, following Becca's gaze. "Poor Melissa... she must have been humiliated."

"Yeah," Becca agreed. "I would feel terrible if I was humiliated by my mother right after winning a prize." She looked at Emma sadly. "I'm so sorry you weren't able to compete," she said. "You would have won."

"Are you crazy?" Emma said in disbelief. "You deserve the prize!"

"No, I don't." Becca looked at her seriously. "If you hadn't gotten hurt, you would have won." She looked at the medal around her neck, then pulled it off and handed it to Emma.

"What?!" Emma stared at Becca. "No—this—I don't—"

"Yes, you do," Becca insisted. "Take it! You helped me this far. And you're still better than I am! Come on... you deserve it more than I do."

"No way." Emma refused. She forced the prize back in Becca's hands. "This is yours. It's a reminder of how great a gymnast you are."

"And how good a friend you are!" Becca said fondly, hugging Emma. "Thank you. You helped me so much."

"No, thank you!" Emma said, hugging Becca back.

"I, uh... want to go talk to Melissa," Becca said awkwardly a few minutes later.

"What?!" Emma said, staring at Becca. "She'll only make it worse!"

"Now that I know what her mother is like," Becca explained, "I see her in a different light. What I think is going on is her mother wanted her to win, and it's stressing her out so much, she feels better when she makes other people feel weak. I bet she feels awful about how her mother humiliated her in front of everybody." She grinned at her friend. "Now who qualifies as a professional mind-reader?"

"Wow," Emma said, gazing at Becca. "You really understand her!"

"Well, I'm going to go talk to her," Becca said firmly. "I'll see you later."

And she walked into the lobby... after taking off her medal.