In The Long Run

In The Long Run (27, Epilogue)

6 Months later

The sun was one hot ray of  light, shining down on the track like a spotlight. It made me feel just a little bit more alive. I stretched out all my muscles. This was actually something I missed while I was pregnant. Just having a good stretch.

I got down, stretching out my back and lifting my head to stare down the track. I didn't even peak at my competition. This was all about running, finishing it and enjoying it.

"On your marks!"

"Get set!"

And then I heard the gunshot.

I took off at a speed I'd almost forgotten I was capable of, but the rush was too exhilarating and I just had to keep pushing forward. This is what I'd missed. The wind through my hair, the deafening roar of the crowd and the satisfying exhaustion I felt after a long sprint like this. I was nearing the finish line and didn't dare even glance at one of the other runners. I crossed and then the crowd seamed to suddenly cheer even louder, or at least, just my school did and that's when I knew. Courtney who was watching from the sideline shrieked loudly and then practically tackled me.

"You won! You won!" she chanted and I had to smile. I hugged her back and started jumping up and down like a happy little girl, too ecstatic at that point to really care.

The awards ceremony was about to begin, so we all moved to the stage to go take our places, me being the highest of course. The girl in second place was from an out of state school and the one in third was from a school in a town not far from our own. They handed out the medals and I had to contain the cocky smile that threatened to spill onto my face. This was great. I was even awarded Female Athlete of The Day, earning me a kick-ass trophy. The announcers said what they had to say and we were free to leave after a few photos. As I walked down the steps of the stage, a coach from another school came over to shake my hand.

"Congratulations, Jamie." he said. "You did real great out there."

"Thank you, sir." I shook his hand quickly and tried to get away from all the people, but to no avail. Another person stepped in front of me.

"Hi Jamie, I'm Greg Warner." he told me, reaching out his hand for me to shake and so I did. "You did very good out there today. You've probably got a few good scholarships lined up, huh?"

"Um... No, actually. I haven't seen or heard anything from the scouts."

"That's unfortunate, but it just so happens that I'm a scout myself and I couldn't help but notice your skills out there. Would you be interested in going to college?"

"Well, of course. Everyone wants to go to a good college."

"Good. Then I'm glad to tell you that you've got a full scholarship at Brown University, if you choose to go there that is."

"Brown?! Are you serious?" It just couldn't be possible.

"As serious as can be."

"Oh my gosh, thank you! Thank you so much. I'll have to talk to my parents about it first, but I'm sure they'll let me go."

"No problem." He handed me a small business card. "Here's my card. Let me know when you've made your decision and I'll help you get things set up."

I shook his hand again. "Thank you so much. I'll be sure to let you know."

He walked away just in time for me to see my parents coming my way. I was grinning like an idiot when I barrelled into my dad and hugged him.

"I got a scholarship at Brown!"