Page 78 of Chasing Gold, Catching Her

“Then wait for me outside the arena… Hermann, you have a car, right?”

Hermann immediately straightened up proudly.

“Well, of course. Miss, would you like me to drive you around the city?”

“Well, if you’re offering…”

“Undoubtedly, miss, anything for you today, if only to improve your tragic mood after your tragic third place.”

“Hermann!”

“What? I’m supporting you!”

“And speaking of mood…” Lev suddenly said, looking at Alisa again. “Have you already decided who will make your dress when you go to the qualifiers?”

“If I go,” Alisa corrected automatically.

“No,” Lev immediately shook his head. “I said when you go, and that is a completely different thing. So… have you chosen someone?”

Alisa shook her head. To be honest, she had not thought about the dress at all. She had not let herself think that far. Because to think about it meant believing that she would actually get there, and Alisa still did not believe in herself enough for that…

“Well then,” Lev smiled a little, “my mom will be very happy to sew you one. A separate dress for the qualifiers, and another one for the Olympics too, if you suddenly want a new image… and by the way, for the Olympics you’ll definitely need one more for the exhibition gala on the last day, because obviously you’ll be there too.”

“Lev…” Alisa pressed her lips together, because once again she suddenly felt tears painfully rising in her throat.

Today there had simply been too many emotions.

“That’s… that’s wonderful, really.”

“Then when everything is decided, come over to our house,” Lev said with a smile. “Mom will be happy, we’ll drink tea, gossip about everyone, judge terrible costumes, everything as usual.”

“I’d like that,” Alisa answered quietly. “Very much.”

Then the boys finally went toward the exit, still arguing about something and dragging that stupid poster with them, while Alisa returned to the locker room.

And there, inside, the mood was completely different.

Someone was saying that there was almost no chance anymore.

Someone sat on the benches with their heads lowered and their hands clasped tightly together.

Someone was almost crying.

Because everyone understood perfectly well what tomorrow meant.

Alisa understood it too.

In the free skate she would have only one chance. Only one. Only one attempt to skate everything perfectly, to land every jump, to do more quads than Anastasia, who was now in first place, and somehow beat Anfisa too, who was in second and also had every chance to win tomorrow.

Everything would be decided tomorrow.

Beijing or nothing.

Because if she did not qualify now, then she would almost certainly never make it to the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Alisa closed her eyes.

Inhale.