His face went pale.
I turned away before he could respond, before I could see whatever broke in him in that moment, and started paddling back toward the Riverside dock.
It was over.
He was over.
And I’d never felt more alive.
***
The crowd erupted again when I got to dock and the whole bleacher section was on its feet.
Coach Hale was waiting at the dock, hand extended to steady my boat as I pulled in. His face was calm, but I could see something bright in his eyes.
“Clean race, Moore. Best I’ve seen you row.”
I nodded, too winded to speak, and climbed out of the shell. My legs almost gave out when I hit solid ground. Tyler and a couple other guys rushed over, slapping my back, shouting things I couldn’t quite process.
“Holy shit, man!”
“A full length!”
“Did you see Harrington’s face?”
I did. I saw it. And I wanted to hold onto that image—his hollow eyes, his broken composure—forever.
Noah appeared through the crowd, grinning so wide I thought his face might split. “DUDE!” He threw his arms around me even though I was dripping with sweat and river water. “That was insane! The whole crowd was losing it! Did you hear us?”
“Yeah,” I managed, my voice rough. “I heard.”
“Moore Power, baby!” He pulled back, still beaming. “That’s gonna be a thing now. I’m making shirts.”
I laughed despite myself, the adrenaline still crackling through my veins. I felt invincible. Untouchable. Like I could take on the whole damn world and win.
And then I saw her.
My mom.
She was standing near the edge of the crowd, hands pressed to her mouth, tears streaming down her face. She was wearing her navy jacket and her hair was pulled back like she’d actually gotten ready for this.
My heart stopped. “Mom.”
She broke into a sob the second I said it and rushed forward. I met her halfway, and she threw her arms around me so tight I could barely breathe.
“I’m so proud of you,” she whispered into my shoulder. “So, so proud.”
My throat closed up. I couldn’t remember the last time she’d been able to come to a race. She was always working—double shifts, night shifts, whatever she could get to keep us afloat. And I never asked her to come because I knew she couldn’t afford to miss work.
But she was here.
“How did you—“ I pulled back to look at her. “How did you even know about this?”
She wiped her eyes, laughing through the tears. “Someone told me I needed to be here. That you were racing and I shouldn’t miss it.”
I turned, scanning the crowd, and found Emily standing a few feet away. She was watching us with this quiet smile, her arms wrapped around herself.
Our eyes met.
