Dance of a Lifetime

by Frank Downey

  The drama started Friday afternoon, with the ladies’ short program.

  Since raising her technical level four years before, Liz Cushman had practically been unchallenged, up until her loss to Allison Bowman a month before at the Grand Prix finals. Liz had, for those for years, had the most challenging programs technically in the world.

  However, Allison had caught up. Especially in the short program, where the jumps were limited. Liz did the hardest combination being done in the short program, triple lutz-triple toe. Only one other ladies’ skater in the world was doing that—but that one was Allison.

  This still usually wasn’t a problem—because Liz had been the best artistic skater in the world for years. But Allison had caught up there, too.

  Liz skated first, and had a little problem. It was the slightest of glitches—her free leg came down early on the back end of her combination. The lutz was clean, the takeoff of the toe was clean, she landed on one foot—but that second foot came right down, and she almost came to a complete stop. It was a clean jump, but it wasn’t textbook. The rest of her program was.

  Allison’s entire short program, however was textbook. The combination could’ve been used on a jump training film. The rest of the program was just as good. And, after a year and a half of training with Terry and working on choreography with Warren and Sophia, her confidence had increased exponentially. It was close, 6 judges to 3, but Allison defeated Liz in the short program.

  Friday night was the free dance.

  Sophie and Warren’s coronation was never in doubt. The Singing In The Rain program was a wonderfully constructed program, and the duo delivered it flawlessly. This time it was the second mark, the presentation mark, that received sixes, seven out of nine. The technical mark received one six, with the rest 5.9s.

  The drama in dance was, who would win the silver? Ryan and Amy had the lead, but, if Evan and Courtney beat them in the free dance, they would win the silver. That’s exactly what happened. It was close, but Evan and Courtney won the silver medal, Ryan and Amy the bronze. Both teams would be joining Warren and Sophia at the Olympics.

  "Let’s see," Courtney said to Ryan afterwards. "You did better in the Grand Prix and made it to the final. We beat you at Nationals. You will, no doubt, beat us at the Olympics; and then we’ll beat you at Worlds. And then we’ll get to do this for four more years."

  "It’ll be fun," Ryan laughed. "Hey, at least we’re all going to the Olympics. You and I and Amy have never been."

  "I know, I can’t wait!"

  Saturday afternoon was the free skate for the men. Tom wasn’t challenged at all, and skated an excellent program, earning an easy victory.

  The ladies came down to Allison and Liz. Allison had the lead, but whichever one of them won the free skate would win the National Championship. Allison skated first, and skated wonderfully, earning excellent marks. But then Liz came out onto the ice and skated like a house afire. She landed everything perfectly, and skated the rest of her program with verve and flair. It was a clear victory. Both she and Allison would have their next battle at the Olympics.

  Afterwards, sitting with Tom, Kristin, Warren, Sophie, and her boyfriend Eddie, Allison was astounded at how close she came. "Liz Cushman is almost my idol, for goodness’ sake. And how close did I come to beating her? One slip—if she had one slip, I would’ve won. I’m almost stunned."

  "I’ve been watching you skate for years," Eddie told her. "And God knows I’m no expert, but even I can see the difference in the past two years, since you left that Ron Aztov bozo."

  "I know, but—getting better is one thing. Getting to Liz Cushman’s level, or almost? That’s another thing entirely. I know I beat her at the Grand Prix, but that’s because she blew up, that’s different. She skated clean, and I still took two judges, and was within a tenth with five more. That’s unbelievable to me."

  "You earned it," Tom told her. "I see the work you put in at the rink every day."

  "Thanks," Allison told him.

  "We’re neutral in all this, obviously," Sophia said, "but the ladies’ competition at the Olympics ought to be a barnburner!"

  "All I want to do is skate clean and get on the podium. I’m in this for the next four years. I skate two clean programs, I’m happy," Allison said.

  "That’s the spirit," Eddie agreed.

  The exhibitions were Sunday. Warren and Sophia did the two programs they had worked on for the pro-ams: the Beach Boys medley, and the Lisa Lynne/Enya program. Both went over very well. The rest of the skaters also enjoyed the exhibitions, and all went back to their respective rinks to prepare.

  The Olympics were a month away.

  Chapter 165 - Buildup

  Sophia and Warren had less than a month. Nationals had ended on January 15th. That was a Sunday, the day of the exhibitions. The Olympics would begin on Friday, February 10th.

  They were still working. They wanted those programs down cold before the Olympics, so they were working hard. Sophie was so tired that she wasn’t even in the mood for sex for about a week.

  "Are you sure you’re all right, honey?" Warren laughed.

  "I’m fine. I’m just tired. We might be working too hard."

  "Yeah. We’ll want to ease off some as it gets closer. Are we putting too much pressure on ourselves?"

  "Of course we are," Sophia laughed. "But, it makes sense. This is it. Except if we decide to go to Worlds, but still, this is it. This is the only thing we haven’t won. This is what we’ve been gearing up for. And, you know how it goes in figure skating. The audience, what, quadruples or something for the Olympics? If you don’t win an Olympic gold medal, you’re an also-ran, even if you’ve already won a World Championship. Plus, there’s that ‘first American ice dancers’ thing. We’d go down in the history books. If we weren’t feeling pressure, I’d be amazed."

  "Too true," Warren said with a wry grin. "And we’ve certainly traveled a long and winding road to get here. Our life has been so wrapped up with skating. So, when we’ve had a twist in life, we’ve had a twist in skating."

  "And we’ve had a lot of twists," Sophia laughed. "Nine years. We met each other almost exactly nine years ago."

  "And I wouldn’t change a minute. Well, except for being attacked, that I’d change. Everything else, I wouldn’t change."

  "Even me breaking up with you Freshman year?" Sophia asked.

  "It made us stronger. If we hadn’t gone through that, I don’t think we would’ve been able to deal with Betsy."

  "You’re right. I never quite thought of it like that, but you’re right."

  "It’s been a hell of a nine years. And a big part of it is almost over."

  "Just in time for you to go to Med School—and for me to start popping out more babies," Sophia laughed. "And it’ll never be completely over. I still want to choreograph."

  "And I’m leaning towards sports medicine, so I can stay involved. But the skating part’s about to come to an end."

  "Do you regret that? If you want, we could turn pro and still skate, and you could put off med school for a while. It’s up to you."

  "No," Warren said. "Pro skating actually holds no appeal for me."

  "Me, either, actually."

  "And as for eligible competition, it’s time to move on. We don’t win this year, we never will, and I don’t want to stick around for the downward slide. Plus, I’ve wanted to be a doctor since I was 8. The problem is, being a doctor isn’t going to be something I do with you. That’s the biggest loss, actually. I wouldn’t have cared about skating so much if I had done it with someone else."

  "That’s so sweet," Sophia smiled. "I do know what you mean, though. We’re going to spend less time together. Med school’s a grind, and you’ll have to drive back and forth to Boston every day. So, yeah, I’ll miss the closeness aspect of it. But there’s a lot of it I won’t miss."

  "Really?"

  "Yeah. Most specifically, the keeping-in-shape part. That I am entirely sick of, I’ll admit it. I th
ink we’ll always skate. Even when we’re like 90, I think we’ll put our creaky bodies out on a public session and waltz."

  "Most likely," Warren laughed.

  "Yeah. But the rest of it? I’m done, and glad to be done. As of the end of this season, I have lifted my last weight. I have run my last lap. I have counted my last calorie. If I gain thirty pounds from the next kid and it doesn’t bleed right off, so be it." She stopped, and looked sideways at Warren. "You will still love me if I gain thirty pound from the next kid, won’t you?"

  "You really have to ask that?" Warren chuckled.

  "No," Sophie smiled. "I know you will. Hey, I want to keep myself in reasonable shape, especially when I get older. But I don’t have to care about keeping myself in animal shape anymore. It comes as a relief."

  "For me too, actually," Warren agreed. "Getting back after the knee was brutal."

  "No doubt," she said. "So, anyway, that I won’t miss at all. I’ve loved skating. I’ve especially loved skating with you. But it’s time to go out."

  "Right. So let’s go out on top."

  "Damn straight!"

  A few weeks before the Olympics, Warren and Sophie, along with Warren’s parents and Tom, traveled into Boston. Cambridge, to be more accurate—they were headed to Harvard.

  Because of their crowded autumn schedules, neither Tom nor Warren and Sophie had had a chance to do this. But the second semester was just underway, and they had a chance to squeeze in a trip to go see Kristin sing.

  When she arrived at Harvard, Kristin—to the shock of everyone that knew her—got up the gumption to try out for one of Harvard’s a cappella singing groups, the Veritones. "Wow, what a change that is!" Warren had told Tom when they had first found out.

  To Kristin’s shock, she was accepted. "They must be hard up for mezzos," she joked to Tom. She’d always considered herself a pianist first, a singer second—but she was a good enough singer for the Veritones.

  The only problem with the whole thing was that the Veritones kept up a pretty busy schedule, which cut down Kristin’s time with Tom. Plus, being a freshman pre-med at Harvard was no picnic. But Tom understood, and was secure enough in his relationship with Kristin to deal with it. Plus, it was a pretty busy time for him, too.

  So, it hadn’t worked out yet that Tom would be able to see her sing. It finally would. Tom was thrilled—Kristin was even more thrilled.

  "You’re particularly nervous tonight," Karen, one of the seniors in the group, said to her before they went out to perform.

  "My boyfriend’s here. He hasn’t had a chance to see me sing, yet," Kristin told her.

  "Her boyfriend’s a figure skater," Regina, one of the other girls in the group, told Karen. "He’s been too busy winning to come watch Kristin sing."

  "Yeah, and my brother and sister-in-law, too," Kristin laughed. "They’re here as well. Since they’re also figure skaters, they’ve been busy, too."

  "Ah. This is why you’re leaving us for a week in February—you’re going to the Olympics," Karen realized.

  "Yep. Got to go watch my honey win a gold medal. Oh, and my brother, too."

  "Is that realistic?" Karen asked.

  "Tom won the silver medal at Worlds last year. Warren and Sophie won the World Championship a couple years ago. They won silver as well last year, but Warren was coming off a knee injury. Both Tom and Warren and Sophie won the Grand Prix back in December. So, yeah, it’s realistic. Warren and Sophie actually won the silver medal four years ago."

  "That’s cool," Karen said. "Well, then, you don’t have to be nervous. They know what the performing thing is like."

  "Too true," Kristin agreed.

  Kristin and her colleagues went out and sang wonderfully. Kristin’s family and Tom thoroughly enjoyed it.

  A week before the Olympics, Warren and Sophia were on the ice. Warren, on a whim, decided to pop in the CD that had most of their program music on it, and hit random. This had a lot of what they had skated to throughout the years.

  The first thing that popped up was "As Long As I (Can Be With You)," the Patti Scialfa song they’d used as an exhibition years ago, and only a couple of times. They cracked each other up with their efforts to remember it.

  The next thing was the Riverdance free dance. That they remembered just fine.

  The Springsteen free dance was next. They’d just skated that at the Grand Prix final, so they didn’t miss a step.

  Their old swing OD, "If You Can’t Rock Me," came on. They hadn’t skated that in four years and were surprised at how well they remembered it.

  Next up was True Colors, which they remembered well. "Of course, this is the first time we’ve ever skated it fully clothed," Sophia laughed.

  Then it was a real blast to the past, back to Phil Collins’ "You’ll Be In My Heart," their very first exhibition. It had been years since they skated it, but remembered a lot.

  The Sinatra free dance followed, another oldie. They forgot a lot of the beginning, but remembered most of the "I’ve Got You Under My Skin" section.

  "Damn, this is a lot of fun," Warren said.

  Next came REM’s "At My Most Beautiful." It was only a couple years old, but they forgot a huge part of it, which made them crack up.

  "One more," Warren said. Sophia nodded agreement. The last one, fittingly enough, was Romeo and Juliet. They remembered every single step.

  "We going to exhibition that at the Olympics?" Sophia asked.

  "Definitely. If we do two, we’ll do the Beach Boys first, then end with that."

  "Sounds like a plan," Sophia agreed. "Damn, I love that program."

  "Yep. But Singing In The Rain is pretty special, too."

  "I know. It’s so us!"

  The opening ceremonies would be on Friday, February 10th. On the 8th, they arrived in Quebec City, ready to go for the gold.

  Chapter 166 - A Surprise For Warren

  The athletes’ village at Quebec City had a small section set off for married couples, so that’s where Warren and Sophie found themselves. Betsy was with Ellen, and would be coming with her when they arrived on Friday, in time for the Opening Ceremonies.

  They got settled in on Wednesday, and spent that evening and most of Thursday, just wandering around the village. They explored the various amenities, and met some of the other athletes who were arriving.

  Liz had arrived the same day they did, and they ran into her in the dining hall for supper that evening. "Jeez, you’re awfully early for someone who doesn’t skate for two weeks," Warren told her.

  Liz laughed. "Don’t you remember? After Nationals, you guys elected Evan and I the figure skating team captains? Well, we have the captains’ meeting tomorrow."

  "Lucky you," Sophie said.

  "Yep. Well, at least I get to hang out and relax!"

  Thursday, after checking out the athletes’ village and eating supper, Warren and Sophia were sitting in their room, just chatting. There was a knock on the door. They opened it up to find Liz and Evan.

  "Hey, come on in!" Sophia said. "What’s up with you guys?"

  "This isn’t a social call," Evan said with a grin.

  "We had the team captain’s meeting," Liz told them. "And, after discussion, we took a vote. And it gives me great, great pleasure to say this." She turned to Warren. "Warren Kelleher, by a vote of all of the team captains, you have been chosen to carry the American flag in the Opening Ceremonies tomorrow night."

  Warren was absolutely dumbfounded. He sat down hard on his bed, his mouth wide open in surprise. Sophie squealed, delighted. "Oh, honey, that’s awesome!"

  "My God," Warren hissed, "why me?"

  Evan told him. "Since you have been a competitive figure skater, you’ve been through more than most people would’ve been able to handle. The beating and rape. The knee injury. Getting married, raising a child, getting through school and doing well. It’s all about perseverance. You put yourself through a lot to get here. All the team captains saw that. You deserve this."

  "S
ophie’s been through some of that, too, and she had a baby."

  "Actually, our first thought was both of you, but we found out that’s not allowed," Liz said. "So we picked you. Sophie gets enough publicity!"

  "She’s right," Sophia laughed. "You do deserve this, Snugglebear. I’m thrilled."

  "I’m honored. Not to mention stunned," Warren said. Then he looked at Sophie. "We won’t be able to march in together, though."

  "I’ll be right behind you," Sophia smiled.

  "We’ll make sure she gets in the front row," Liz assured him.

  "I’ll be watching your ass the whole way," Sophie said to laughter. "Now. Call your parents!"

  "Good idea," Warren laughed, reaching for the phone.

  Warren didn’t sleep particularly well that night. And he was jittery all day Friday.

  "I’m more nervous about this than I am about skating," he said over lunch.

  "Why?" Sophia asked him.

  "What if I trip? What if I drop the flag?"

  Sophia laughed. "Snugglebear, when’s the last time you fell on the ice? You can do furious footwork without dropping a beat—you can carry a flag into a stadium."

  "I hope so. It was just unexpected, so now I’m gonna worry," Warren said.

  "Don’t worry," Sophia grinned. "You’re going to be awesome."

  They spent the afternoon chilling out, then they headed to the gathering spot where the athletes got together to prepare to march into the stadium. There they saw lots of athletes including Alan Zimmer, the skier they had met four years earlier. Alan was a top contender now.

  "Hey, congratulations on the flag," he told Warren. "Don’t drop it!"

  "Oh, thanks," Warren laughed.

  Warren went and talked to the protocol person from the IOC, who instructed him on the correct protocol about carrying the flag. He chatted briefly with the very nice young lady who’d been chosen to carry the placard with "LES ETATS-UNIS D’AMERIQUE" on the front. She was a local girl, about 18, from Quebec City and was thrilled to have been chosen. And it turns out she was a huge fan of figure skating and knew who Warren was, so that was cool. He chatted with her for a while about skating and the Olympics.