Dance of a Lifetime

by Frank Downey

  When she got back to the table that Warren was at, Warren's friends were looking at her in complete astonishment. "You need to play in front of people more often," Evan told her.

  "I'm completely stunned," Christine Arsenault added.

  "Thanks," Kris mumbled, still blushing.

  "I'm not stunned at her playing-I've heard it," Warren said. "I'm stunned she did it here."

  "So am I!" Kris agreed, laughing.

  * * *

  A week and a half later, the tour was in Pittsburgh. Sophie and Warren were in their hotel room, just hanging out. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Warren opened it, and it was Evan. He looked excited.

  "The Speedskater is out!" he said triumphantly.

  "Huh?" Warren asked.

  "He's out! The ISU board voted to remove him as the head of the ISU."

  "This is great news! Who's his replacement?"

  "Joan Wilton," Evan said. Warren and Sophie nodded approvingly. Joan Wilton was British, a former pairs skater, a long-time judge, and a woman considered to have integrity and to think about the skaters first. "Oh, and that's not all," Evan went on. "Three members of the ISU has been expelled-including Ivan Zhelkov."

  "Wow!" Sophia said. Ivan Zhelkov was the Russian representative to the ISU, the head of the Russian federation, and as corrupt a skating official as you'd ever find.

  "There's more," Evan went on. "No Russian or French judges at any ISU event for the next year. And some individual judges have been suspended. Grigoriy Kamenskiy was suspended for life." Kamenskiy was a Russian dance judge, and the worst of the lot.

  "My GOD," Warren was shocked. "How the hell did this happen? I'm thrilled, mind you, but I never thought I'd see this day!"

  "The ISU has been deluged by complaints. One of those came from the television network, you know. They were threatening to get out. Their contract with the ISU ends after this year. The IOC said something-figure skating's an Olympic sport, after all. Since they got all that proof with the audiotape at Worlds, and all these people complaining, they almost had to clean house. Oh, you will be glad to know that Curtis voted for all of it."

  "Good for Curtis," Sophie said.

  That was the topic of discussion amongst all the skaters before the show. After the show, too-and it wasn't just skaters. Warren and Sophie were standing there, chatting with some other skaters, when a blonde woman in her thirties came up to them. "You!" she spat out. "You two just ruined this fucking sport!"

  "Excuse me?" Warren said, "and who are you?"

  "I'm Paula Rogers. My daughter is Courtney Rogers. My baby's going to be a world champion, and you just fucked that up! All your whining and complaining. Hey, most people in skating know the rules. If you aren't willing to play by the rules, get out!"

  "The rules? I thought the rules were about great skating?" Sophia asked.

  "You silly little thing. It's about whose ass you can kiss. It's about whose palm you can grease. At least it used to be. Until you two made a stink! You got your World Championship, what else do you want?"

  "Fair judging," Warren said. "You think it might be more productive if Courtney was working on becoming a better skater."

  "She's the best, it's her partner that's bringing her down."

  "I tried to teach her a bit of our program," Warren laughed. "She couldn't keep up. She couldn't come close. Don't delude yourself-she's not that good. Sophie blows her away. That's why, in fair judging, they'll never beat us. Ryan's actually good-he's closer to my level than Courtney is to Sophie's." His pleasant look became more of a glare. "And that's what it's all about to people like you. You can't win fairly, so you want to cheat. Those days are over. Thank goodness." He and Sophia then turned and walked away from her.

  A few minutes later, Ryan Killen came over and sat with them. "I see you've encountered the Barracuda," he said quietly.

  "Yeah," Warren snorted. "How do you stand it?"

  "It's getting harder," Ryan admitted.

  "At least now I know where Courtney gets it," Sophie said.

  "Yup," Ryan agreed. "Look, Courtney's a great skater, and we're a good team, at least on the ice. That's why I put up with it." He took a breath. "Have you guys figured out that Court and I are lovers?'

  "WHAT?" Sophie said. "I thought she was all Christian and that. And how can you sleep with her?"

  "The morality play is an act," Ryan said. "As for sleeping with her? The attraction was genuine at first. I was only 16, she was all of 13, and I thought she was beautiful and magical." He sighed. "Now? I don't really have a choice, not if I want to keep my skating partner."

  " You need a life," Sophie told him. "Away from Courtney."

  "I know," he sighed, "but we're stuck in Madison and I don't know anyone there."

  "You know us," Warren smiled. "And we know people. Our social life is limited because of school and Betsy, but, you know, we'll help if we can."

  "Thanks. That means a lot," Ryan smiled.

  Chapter 136 - Liz and Crash

  Towards the end of July, Crash flew to Los Angeles. There was an orientation session at the UCLA Law school, plus, he needed to find a place to live.

  The tour had just ended, so Liz was there to meet him. They'd both be going back to Boston after about a week-Liz needed to work on choreography with Warren and Sophie.

  Liz drove Crash back to her apartment, where they deliriously raced each other to her bedroom. They didn't emerge until late the next morning.

  The orientation, which was Monday through Wednesday went well. Hunting for an apartment was not going well. He had looked at the paper every day and had visited some places on Thursday while Liz was at practice. He checked some more listings after eating dinner at her place Thursday night-but, after a few minutes, threw the paper on the couch in frustration. "This is ridiculous," he griped. "I knew LA was going to be more expensive than Chicago, but this is insane. Everything I've seen is either way out of my price range, or a colossal dump."

  "I know. This place costs a fortune," Liz agreed.

  "You have a fortune, miss Olympic Gold Medallist And Idol Of Millions," he teased. She hit him with a couch pillow. "Well, you do. I, alas, am just a humble law student, scraping away on a shoestring."

  "Oh, what a sob story," Liz giggled.

  "I know, ain't it a tragedy?" he grinned. "Seriously-I have some money, and I'll get a job out here part-time at a firm, but the rents really are insane."

  "Jason? You could move in here," Liz said quietly.

  "What?"

  "You could move in here. We could live together."

  Jason looked at her for a minute. "Isn't that a little bit premature?"

  "Probably," she giggled. "But we have been going out for almost a year."

  "Well, off and on," he pointed out. "We haven't spent more than a week together at any one time over the whole year. We've gone months without seeing one another. It'll be a huge change."

  "I know," she said. "Jason, think of it this way, though. Why are you going to law school out here, and not in Chicago or Boston or somewhere else?"

  "Well, you."

  "Right. So I'm kind of responsible for you being out here, right? So, if you get yourself in financial difficulty, or end up living in a dump, I'm going to feel responsible. I have plenty of room here. The bed's a queen. You're coming out here for me anyhow, right?"

  "Yeah, but, still..." Crash was still unsure.

  "Jason. There's not someone else, is there?"

  "Of course not!"

  "OK. Is it that you're not over Jessie?"

  "Sort of. Probably not the way you mean, though." He took a breath. "Liz, I love you. I don't love Jessie. Well, I do love Jessie, part of me will always love Jessie, but I'm not in love with her. I am in love with you." He sighed. "What it is, is this. Part of me thinks that Jessie and I ended because we just grew apart and wanted different things. But part of me thinks that Jessie and I ended because I fucked up, and badly. And now I have you, but we haven't spent much ac
tual time together and now you're talking about moving in. I'm afraid of fucking up. And Jessie and I never lived together." He grinned slightly. "Good thing, there probably would have been blood on the walls. But taking this big of a step, after how Jessie and I ended-well, it's terrifying."

  "I understand," Liz said. "I do. But I think we can make it work. Look, I didn't end with Rich all that great, either. And it's the same thing-either he was intolerant of my lifestyle, or I was too pigheaded about my lifestyle. Maybe it was me, you know? But, I don't know, it's just different with us. Even though we haven't spent enough time together, I just feel it." She grinned, but it was half-hearted. "Besides which, I'm gone a lot."

  "And you're worried about that," Crash said perceptively. Liz nodded. "I'm not Rich, Liz. The fact that you're an independent, successful woman is one of the reasons I fell in love with you. Besides which, you're going to have to deal with me sitting here with my nose in law books."

  "I can handle that."

  "The other thing is, are you going to be able to handle me not being there?" Crash asked. "Nationals, well, I can pretty much always go to that, because of when it is. And I'm sure you really don't care much about some of the lesser competitions. But, OK, take the Olympics next year. February, in the middle of my second year in law school? I might not be able to go. I'm going to try my damnedest, believe me-but I might not be able to make it."

  "I know," she said. "I hope you do. But I understand. We're both busy." She looked at him. "Honestly, this is one of the reasons I want to live together. Just think-when I come home from Skate America in October, you'll be here. I won't have to find you. I won't have to drive to some other apartment to see you. Likewise, when you have an exam or a paper or even if you're studying to death and need a back rub-I'll be here. With how busy we are, I think this is the only chance we've got to have any kind of normal relationship."

  "OK. Then let's do it."

  "Oh, thank goodness!" she exclaimed. "I've been working up to asking you this since the moment you got here."

  "You have?" he laughed.

  "Yeah. You getting frustrated looking for a place made it so much easier," she grinned. "Love you."

  "Love you too."

  "Shall we go celebrate?"

  "Sure. You want to go out?"

  "Hell, no. I want you to go try out your new bed," she giggled, "now that you know it's your new bed."

  "Ah," he grinned and stood up off the couch. He took her hand and pulled her up to him. "That sounds like a perfectly wonderful idea." They went into the bedroom and fell on the bed, kissing and rubbing one another. "Yeah, this bed will definitely work," Crash joked.

  "I hope so, you've been in it all week." Crash was reaching for her shirt and lifting it over her head. She wasn't wearing a bra. His hands went right for her boobs. She moaned as her nipples stiffened.

  "I will never get tired of how responsive you are," Crash laughed.

  "Good. I'm glad somebody won't." Crash heard something in that, so he withdrew his hands and looked at her. She sighed. "Rich didn't like it."

  "ExCUSE ME?"

  "He said he never knew if it was him. He said it could've been anyone, and I would've reacted the same way, and he didn't like that."

  "You don't have to worry about that," Crash said with a grin. "I know it's not me, and I still love it."

  "It is you. Look, I got a lot less responsive with Rich when things started to go downhill. Yeah, I get off easily-but a lot easier when I love the guy I'm with."

  "I don't mind either way. You're a great boost to my confidence in any case," he grinned, and went back to her boobs with his hands. He fondled them and rubbed her nipples with his thumbs, as her breathing got more and more ragged.

  When Crash got to the point where he'd usually move his hands down off her boobs and head lower, he didn't. He kept one hand on her boob, and moved his mouth onto the other one. He pressed his face into her boob and suckled on the nipple, curious as to how far he could take her just by this.

  He didn't have long to wait. A few minutes of that, and she stiffened, shuddered, and squealed.

  He looked up at her. "Did you... ?"

  "Yeah."

  "That's amazing."

  "It's only happened to me once before, ever."

  He grinned, and went to take off her pants. Her panties were, of course, sopping wet. He quickly lowered his face in between her legs. He ran his tongue up and down her swollen labia, and then dipped it into her opening. She clutched the sheets in her hands and hummed. "Oh, God, so good, so good," she moaned, as he ran his tongue up and down her pussy. After getting her good and worked up, he circled his tongue all around her erect clit. "UUUNNNNGGGGHH!" she moaned, and quickly started rocking her hips back and forth on the bed.

  He did his best to stay with her, but mostly had to content himself with keeping his tongue extended as she rocked back and forth on it. He moved with her as best he could, as her moans got louder. Then she jerked upwards, mashing her pussy into his face, and spasmed up and down off the bed. Crash pulled away after she came down and looked up at her.

  "Mmmmmm," she groaned, "that was a good 'un."

  "Damn, I love watching you cum," he said.

  "Good, because I love cumming," she giggled. Waving her hand at him weakly, she said, "Now. Undress." He did, laughing. "Good. Now lie down," she said, pointing next to her on the bed. "I want to try something."

  "OK," Crash said, and positioned himself, figuring out what she was going to do. He was right. She crawled up on top of him, straddling him, and lowered herself down on his erection.

  "I've never done it this way," she told him.

  "Fine by me. I have a great view," he grinned.

  She started moving up and down, looking for a rhythm. Once she found it, she steadily moved herself on him. He reached up and grabbed her hips, to assist her. Liz wasn't a big girl, so Crash's assistance was almost lifting her right off him. Their pace picked up, Liz squeaking out an "EEEP! EEEP! EEEP!" every time she hit bottom, as their bodies thwacked together. She quickly climaxed twice, before he thrust deep inside her and came himself.

  Afterwards, they were cuddling together, and Liz said, "Just think, honey. When you move in, you can do that all the time."

  "Well, considering we've done it at least once every night I've been here this week, I predict that you are going to wear me out."

  "But what a way to go, eh?" she laughed.

  "Too true," he agreed. "So, tell me-have you told your parents that you were going to ask me to move in?"

  "I told my dad. He's cool with it. But now he's got to find a way to break the news to Mom. She's a wee bit traditional for this. They both like you, though, that helps." She grinned at him. "And your Mom is going to freak!"

  "No doubt," he agreed with a laugh. "But, you know what? I expect it. She didn't like Jessie, you know, and I thought that was just a conflict. I've figured out differently. She's already upset that I'm going to school out here. 'You picked UCLA because of that girl, didn't you?' she said. Anyone I go out with, she's not going to like. I just refuse to worry about it."

  "She's damaged you some."

  "Well, let's not get carried away, I was never abused or neglected. She's a great Mom, she's just way overprotective. And accommodating-I grew up indulged, because of her. That has cost me. Because it's made me selfish, and it's made me over-reliant on her approval."

  "You know, I've learned a valuable lesson from your best friend and his wife. Follow your heart, no matter who else it pisses off."

  "Good point," Crash laughed.

  "They're not scared of anything."

  "And Warren used to be scared of his own shadow. Anyhow, you're right. And my heart tells me I should be right here."

  "Good!"

  * * *

  "That's a big step," Warren said to Liz.

  "We know." Liz was at Warren's parents' house, there to work with the duo on her choreography. It was a Sunday, and they'd start work the next day,
but today they were just hanging out. "It's the solution to a lot of problems, though. Jay was going to have a problem finding a place to live, and it gives us more time together to see where we're at with each other. We're both going to be so busy, that'd be a problem if we were living in different places."

  "I get you. But, trust me, there's a lot of adjustments. And the key to living together is compromise. And, sorry Liz, I know he's my best friend-but compromising isn't Crash's strong suit."

  "Neither is it Sophie's," Liz giggled.

  "True. But then you have to understand what kind of relationship you're going to have." She just looked at him. "Liz, I am the most pussywhipped human on the face of the planet." Liz just looked at him, then cracked up. "It's true. So, look, compromise isn't that important if you're the one in control-and Sophie's the one in control. However, what she's learned, through painful trial and error, is that I have limits. I cede control a lot of the time, but I have limits. There are times when I am capable of putting my foot down. It used to take Sophie by surprise, because it happens so seldomly. What she's come to recognize is that I only do it when it's important."

  "OK."

  "The other thing is that I have come to recognize my problems with this, and Sophie's come to recognize them, too. I won't take control back, even when I feel I should, until it gets to the point that I'm bitter and resentful. So, Sophie gives it up, voluntarily, every so often, just to be on an even keel." He grinned. "Sometimes it's more symbolic, like the whole bondage thing..."

  "Excuse me?" Liz laughed.

  "Oh, you didn't know that? Every so often, Sophie likes to be tied up in bed. And call me Master while she's at it."

  "I would've put any amount of money down it'd be the other way around," Liz laughed.