To be on the safe side, Spencer turned off his phone.He didn’t feel like hearing what a fuck-up he was from anyone else.
The triumph was all too short-lived.The problem with turning off his phone was that it left him alone with his thoughts and nothing else to distract himself.It didn’t help that the sky was pitch black or that his leg was dully throbbing, a sign of bad weather on the way.Sure enough, rain splattered against his windows to demonstrate how grim things had gotten.
Some small part of him recognized this black mood and felt desperate to overcome it.He was in no mood to turn his phone back on.The games weren’t enough to distract him, he wasn’t in the mood to look at the news, and he didn’t feel like looking at everyone else’s perfect lives on social media.He thought about punching something, but didn’t feel up to lifting his arms.He didn’t feel up to doing much of anything and decided not to force it.He turned off the light and pulled back the covers, hoping he’d fall asleep before other thoughts could creep in.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Misty stirred awakeat the sound of Tish’s alarm, feeling oddly unsettled and silly for it.It was true that she preferred a different sound when she set her phone’s alarm, but she should have been used to this by now.
The reminder of that weird-ass phone call and its aftermath came flooding back to explain her mood.One minute she’d been flying high from the first day in the sled, and the next she’d come crashing down at Spencer’s bad mood.He’d started closed off enough to appear downright chatty the day after the ice bath before devolving into doom, gloom, and outright meanness.Maybe she could have handled it better, but what could she say to someone who was so resistant to encouragement or any positivity whatsoever?Nothing came to mind as she got dressed and headed downstairs for breakfast.
“Good morning, ladies.”Ms.Coolidge addressed them from the front of the dining room.“If you’re here today, that tells me you enjoyed the ride yesterday and are in it for the long haul.”
Misty stole a surreptitious glance around the dining room.It didn’t look or sound noticeably emptier, but a few people, including that poor girl from the third group, were missing.
“There is no question that everyone in this room is physically prepared for what the World Winter Games entail, which I must say makes the job of choosing the team harder.However, before we make any decisions, we want to make sure everyone is also emotionally ready for what lies ahead.To that end, we—some other experts and I—will be meeting with each of you one-on-one over the course of this week.Check your email for your interview time.”
As soon as she stepped down, everyone’s heads swooped down to look at their phones.Misty saw that her interview was scheduled for midway through the morning.“When’s yours?”she asked Tish.
“Not for a few more days.”A worry wrinkle appeared between Tish’s eyebrows.
“Mine’s tomorrow,” Tallulah chimed in.
“Day after.”That contribution was from Angela.Misty was surprised to see her still here in light of all her worries about her family.
“And I’m last on the docket for today.What does this mean?”
Marla had given voice to what everyone was starting to wonder.Were they interviewing the most promising prospects first and working their way down?Unless it was the other way around, talking to the longest shots first and saving everyone serious until the end.Or had everyone’s times been chosen at random?Either way, her mind raced with the possibilities of what they might ask her about.
“Let’s go!”Ms.Coolidge’s voice cut across the discussion.“Four laps around the lake first, then it’s off to the track.”
Misty put her phone away and got up to join them.She’d told Spencer she was busy trying to make history, and now it was time to live up to that.As the cold weather and central heating were drying out her skin something awful, she put on an extra coat of Glossier lip balm before bundling up.
As usual, the cold air sliced across her face and shocked her upon first stepping outside.Once they started running, though, it got her blood moving and warmed her up under her layers.If she’d been inside, she would have been tempted to shed her shirt and do the rest of the workout in her sports bra.
Midway through the third lap, Misty’s smartwatch buzzed to let her know she’d reached a certain milestone.It also showed the time, which was perilously close to her interview.She passed Angela, who could impressively give what sounded like a step-by-step guide to cooking oatmeal in the microwave without sounding winded, and Sam, who was in charge of this session, to get back to the hotel on time.It gave her a flashback of leaving high school track practice early to go to a dentist appointment.
