Fresh Meet by Miller Jasmin

Author:Miller, Jasmin
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-03-04T16:00:00+00:00

Eighteen

Jace

I barely see Em the next few days, and I hate it.

I miss her. It’s plain and simple.

But Coach is also having my ass because of my poor performance lately, and I know he’s right. My focus hasn’t been the same, and I haven’t been taking good care of my body lately either. How could I have?

Nationals should be a walk in the park compared to what’s waiting for me next year at the Olympics. But what are the chances of achieving my dream if I fail at this upcoming competition?

I know that if I want to reach my goal of beating the only record that stands between me and being the most adorned Olympic swimmer of all times, I need to get my head back in the game.

Right now.

That means making sure I give my body the rest it needs since that’s always played a huge part in my routine, and why I’ve been capable of pushing myself the way I did all these years.

If that means I get to spend less time with Tanner and Em, then that’s just what it needs to be right now. Instead, I’ll have to make the time we have together count more, schedule them in my busy calendar like everything else.

I’m sure they’ll understand. Plus, I want to make them proud too.

For the first time in my life, I want to make someone else other than my parents proud.

Of course, I’m having this pep talk today of all days.

My dad’s birthday. He would have turned sixty.

He’s the reason I love the water so much. He’s the reason I started swimming.

He’s the reason I want to succeed.

I usually spend this day in the pool, and today is no different. It’s the one day my coach lets me be, knowing I need to deal with this my way. Work through it.

Chase that relief, that feeling where the pain of losing him so early in my life eases slightly.

The blackness that usually pulls at the edges of my whole being weaker than normal though. The pain that’s usually right in the middle of my torso is duller today. For the first time. Ever.

It’s all still there but it’s fading, and I’m not sure that’s a good thing. It scares me.

Instead of the never-ending library of pictures of my dad rotating in my brain, there’s now also Tanner. Which causes the pain to shift into a different beast, something unfamiliar yet powerful. The extra loss of my dad never meeting my son. Tanner never meeting his grandpa.

A void that’s impossible to fill, no matter how much I try.

A sudden motion in front of me makes me slow down until I come to a stop at the end of the lane.

Hunter, Ryan, and Noah stand in a half circle at the edge of the pool. All in swim trunks and a towel wrapped around their shoulders.

There’s a moment of silence between us before Hunter crouches down. “Hey, dude. We thought you might want some competition today.”

They all know about my dad and how I normally spend this day, but no one says a word about it.

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