Majestic

12.

"If you don't go after what you want, you'll never have it. If you don't ask, the answer is always no. If you don't step forward, you're always in the same place."

-Nora Roberts

Nationals:

I tied on my skates and adjusted the skirt of my uniform. Blake smiled at me and I gave him a nervous one back. I sat up and took a deep breath.

"I'm going to get us some tea."

"Thanks," I watched him leave the warmup room and I finished stretched and ran my shaking hands down my tights.

"Hey," I looked up and Josh sat down next to me.

"Hi," I kissed him quickly, "You're not supposed to be back here," he shrugged and smiled.

"You look beautiful. I think I might like the keepers uniform more," I smiled and Blake came back in the room.

"Hey Josh," he handed me a cup of tea and joined us on the floor, "We should head out soon. We are the second ones on the ice," I nodded and took a sip of my tea.

"I'll see you out there," Josh stood up and offered me his hand. I took it quickly and walked him to the door.

"I love you."

"I love you too," he kissed me and left for the stands. I shifted nervously and took another sip of tea.

"You're going to be okay," Blake hugged me tightly and I nodded. We walked out of the warm up room and down to the entrance of the rink. My whole body started to shake and Blake rubbed my back softly.

"I'm trying," I whispered.

"Breathe with me," he inhaled and I exhaled with him, "It's going to be okay," he calmed me down and I fanned my face.

"Okay, I'm ready."

"Game face," I put mine on and we walked to the door. I heard the music end and the stadium erupted. Blake pushed the door open and we skated onto the ice.

"Now coming onto the ice for the pairs skating national competition, Blake Alverez and Addyson Barnes," people clapped and cheered. Blake and I skated towards the center of the rink and got into our starting position. I took a deep breath and found Josh's eyes. I smiled and he gave me a thumbs up back. The music began and we moved through the beginning flawlessly. My first triple was coming up and my heart raced quickly. My stomach dropped and I grabbed Blake's hands.

"You got this," we skated forward and gained a lot of speed. I jerked my body up and felt myself spin in the air. I held my breath and prepped for my landing. My left skate touched the ice first and I opened my eyes. I lifted my right leg and gilded across the ice. The crowd erupted and I smiled. We continued the show and my confidence took over. Blake and I moved around the ice and we prepped for the final move. Blake lifted me in his arms and threw me across the rink. I spun into a triple axel and felt my legs shake. I landed, but something was wrong. I landed and felt my right skate slip quickly. I put my left skate down and knees fell onto the ice quickly. I stood up quickly and skated back over to Blake. I grabbed my right leg and pulled it up behind my head. I gave Blake a smile and he caught me. We finished the show and held our final pose. We skated off the ice and Blake pulled me into a hug.

"You did amazing! Are you okay? That slip looked scary," I nodded and looked down at my legs. I could see blood on my knees and holes in my tights.

"I'm okay. I'll take this over my head injury any day," we watched the last two pairs and then skated back onto the ice.

"In fourth place, Benjamin Miller and Kyle Kettleman!" we all clapped and the announcer continued, "In third place, Jennifer Liberman and Markus Hingler!" I held Blake's hand and I looked back at the announcer, "In second place," my ears started to ring and I blinked a couple of times and my ears refocused my attention again, "Landon Michaelson and Roseline Cho!" a burst of excitement ran through me and Blake pulled me into a huge hug, "And in first place, Blake Alverez and Addyson Barnes!" we skated forward and received our metals. I couldn't keep the smile off my face. We left the rink and Blake and I jumped up and down.

"We did it!" we screamed and hugged each other tightly.

"I'm going to meet up with Damian and see if I can sneak him in the shower," I laughed and he walked towards the locker rooms. I walked towards the women's locker room and saw Josh.

"You did amazing!" he picked me up and spun me around quickly. I kissed his cheek and he set me down, "Are you okay?"

"Yes. I'm okay. How did the fall look?"

"It looked like it was part of the show. When your knees hit the ice, your recovery was flawless," I kissed him softly and he wrapped his arms around my waist.

"I should go shower and change," he kissed me again and I walked into the locker rooms. I pulled off my skates and walked into the shower room. I turned on the water and waited for the water to get hot. I stepped in water and felt my muscles relax. I cleaned up the cuts in my knees and climbed out of the shower. I bandaged up my knees and feet, before changing into black leggings and a blush, pink sweater. I slipped on my white vans and pulled on my duffle bag. I walked out of the locker room and Josh took my bag from me.

"Blake isn't out yet."

"Shocker," he laughed.

"Damien and I were talking about getting drinks to celebrate," he wrapped his arm around my waist and we walked over to the concession counter, "Can I get two coffees, please?"

"Sure thing. Congrats on your win Addy," Maggie said and I smiled.

"Thanks Mags. I thought my bad landing after my triple axel was going to lose our spot," she slid the coffees across the counter and smiled.

"You were beautiful out there as always. That was a small mistake and no one noticed. Coffee is on the house."

"Thanks."

"Of course. See you later," I waved and Josh and I walked over to the men's locker room.

"How long do you think they will be?"

"I don't know. If he snuck Damian in, then it could be awhile," we both laughed and I sat down against the wall.

"How are your knees doing?"

"Good. Just scraped up and my feet are gross as usual," I took a sip of my coffee and Josh looked up quickly.

"Finally!" he said loudly and I laughed into my cup.

"Shut it Addy."

"Can we get drinks now?"

"Yes," I stood up and we walked towards the parking lot.

"We'll meet you at club Duo," I gave Blake a hug and walked over to Josh's bike.

"Let's go celebrate," he stated and wrapped me in a warm hug.