“So close to the wire, we’ll never be able to keep this quiet.” His father sighed.
Anders shrugged. “That’s the risk he took.”
Elliot didn’t understand it. The kid had had everything going for him, and he’d seemingly just thrown it away. He didn’t have time to dwell, though, because Anders was looking at him now, and he understood. He wasn’t here as Chris’s mentor or to speak with his father. This was his role. He was the alternate, and it was time to step up.
It didn’t feel nearly as good as he’d thought it would.
“Are you ready, Owens?” Anders asked.
Elliot nodded. He had to be.
“Your fit test was solid. I know you can handle this. Just don’t push it, okay? I don’t need to watch two careers implode today.”
Taking a steadying breath, Elliot replied, “I’ll go change and warm up.”
“I’ll get your fuel stations sorted. Do whatever you need to to get focused.” Anders rested his hand on his shoulder. “You’ll do great, kid. You’re ready for this.”
It was everything he wanted to hear, but it was coming from the wrong man. His father watched the exchange with sad eyes. “Elliot, can we talk?” he asked.
“Later,” Elliot replied, walking out of the room. As he exited, he heard Anders’s voice, barely louder than a whisper. “Give him space, Carl,” he said. “Give him space or you could lose him completely.”
Elliot didn’t turn, didn’t even glance back. Whatever his father wanted from him would need to wait. He had a race to run.
Elliot donned his Team GB kit, preparing for the race he’d never expected to be part of. Staring at himself in the mirror just once and pinching himself hard to make sure it was all real. Then hetexted Beth as he made his way down to the designated warm-up area, where Hewitt and Jackson were doing strides.
Jackson spotted him almost as soon as he rounded the corner, stopping mid-warm-up and jogging over to his side.
“What’s going on? I thought you were meeting up with my parents?”
“Slight change of plan.” Elliot shrugged.
“Green’s out, I take it?” Hewitt asked, arriving beside them.
Elliot nodded. “Adverse finding last night.”
“Fuck,” Jackson whispered. “Has anyone heard from him?”
Elliot hadn’t thought of that. In the rollercoaster of emotions he’d been through over the past hour, he hadn’t even considered reaching out to Chris, and now his stomach rolled with guilt. “My father’s here. He’ll do what he can for him.”
He knew it was true. With what he knew now of his father’s history, he was confident the man would know how to keep this from being the end of the road for Chris.
Jackson was looking at him, eyes brimming with concern. Elliot desperately wanted to kiss him, but the warm-up area was crawling with press and their competitors. He settled for a smile and a tight nod that made Jackson smile back fondly. Hewitt rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath.
Anders arrived, and they finished warming up, reviewing race plans as a group before being pulled into a huddle by Anders that was laughably similar to what you’d see in football, and certainly not something he’d ever seen marathon runners do. Elliot briefly wondered what the other athletes around them must think.
“This team has had a rough go of it; I’m not going to sugarcoat things. Some of that sits on my shoulders,” he admitted with a nod to Darius. Elliot wasn’t sure what had changed between them, but Hewitt had clearly earned Anders’s respect over the past few months. “Some things were preventable, and some were surprises, but we have made it through, and this race is the finalhurdle. Everything you’ve done to get here, every sacrifice, every injury, every moment you’ve questioned whether you were doing the right thing. All of that has brought you here. Now it’s time to make it count.” Anders released them. “You’re all great runners, and you’ve got brilliant careers ahead of you still. Go out there and show the world what Team GB is made of.”
Jackson let out a whoop and flung his arms over Elliot’s and Hewitt’s shoulders. They nodded to Anders as they walked towards the start together, falling into easy conversation about the top contenders they’d be up against and their weaknesses.
It felt right. The three of them against the world. The familiar feeling of racing against Jackson Jennings started to fill Elliot, excitement thrumming in his blood. He leaned over and whispered in Jackson’s ear a little wager to see which of them would make it over the finish line first.
“Oh god, this is what it’s going to be like now, isn’t it?” Darius groused. “Please don’t make sex bets in front of me.”
Jackson elbowed his friend. “Don’t be such a prude. We aren’t the ones who defiled the elite tent in London.”
There was definitely a story there, but Elliot found he really didn’t need to know. “Nah, just the altitude tents in St. Moritz,” he interjected.
Darius made a gagging sound in the back of his throat as Jackson threw his head back in laughter.
