Trackstar Antelope

Trackstar Antelope Volume 11

Chapter 85: The Wondrous Winter

These past few weeks have been so different and eye-opening for me. To think it all started when I said I wanted to try out for the school track team... I met so many more interesting animals, and learnt more about them. So much has happened to me, I made new friends, but I also lost contacts with a few others.

Some parts were scary, like the hyena attack, and the magazine fraud, but other parts were amazing, like qualifying for the District Finals and realising my full potential as an herbivore athlete. I think back to when I walked home in the dark with Sam, and he was so shy back then. Now, he's really comfortable talking to me and soon other herbivores will feel fine around him.

Nalu's a nice guy. He's still young and eager, but definitely has a long way to go, learning about how to treat herbivores. And our dads know each other at work, so we have something in common. I'm so grateful for Erica to have the courage to stand up for me, and help Murray out, even if he won't know it was me, it's still good to keep Abe from harassing us anymore.

Liam is now obsessed with the ocean and sea life, which is good. Someday, I bet he'll get to see the ocean, which might sound weird, but keep in mind that Whigata is a six hour drive from the ocean.

But, most importantly of all, Riley is dealing to cope with himself. I do what Mr. Jarman says, and try to avoid him, but occasionally I say hello, to make him feel better and to keep him from thinking that I've forgotten about him. I'm sure in no time flat, we'll be reunited again.

My training continued all through the winter, every Monday and Friday after school. When my Mid-Year Exam came up, I was nervous that I didn't do well and I got 65%, nothing amazing, but still a decent pass. I got my grade back for the SeaSpeak assignment as well, scoring 84%. I doubted that talking to a Lamprey about the weather was going to do well, but Mr. Dupont complemented my good use of grammar, despite the boring topic. Liam got lucky, and received a mark of 86%. He did pretty well with his vocabulary, but sometimes muddled a few words around.

After the exams, it was Winter Break. Two weeks off from school, just to ourselves. Sam and his parents spent a week in Durranga, visiting Ben of course, and I heard that Levi's family went off to the North for a nice little beach holiday. Hopefully his winter coat didn't give him any troubles, because it can get pretty hot up there.

In July, we started doing even more training to get ready for the District Finals in Lavalla. Coach Harris said that every morning before school, I should do morning jogs, which meant that I needed to wake up earlier. I still persevered through my training, even if I wasn't as strong or good as my carnivore peers. I have weak jaw strength, who cares? I can move around that, and still be the best I can be. July is also the time when my winter coat comes through, which means that my colours get darker, which is cool

August in Whigata means rain, so I wasn't able to go for my morning jog most days. Coach Harris saw a way around this, and he opened up the gym before school for us to train and practice. Mum and Dad still worked as hard as ever during this period, and I'm proud of them for pushing through. I was also able to do some things for myself around home after school as well, such as clean up around the house, and sometimes do my homework in the afternoon, so I can spend time with them at night. Mum and Dad still promise that they'd come along to watch me race in Lavalla.

It's only nine more days until we leave to go to Berriwan College in Lavalla, to prepare for the District Finals.

A lot has changed to me. I feel stronger, faster, and better than ever. Even Sam says that I look fitter and that I've improved greatly. I feel very safe around my peers at school now. Even Abe doesn't scare me anymore... at least, not as much as he used to. I guess what Erica said to him really worked, and he's really cleaned up his act.