Sylvia Goes For The Gold (Complete)

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Sylvia was tired but Andrew refused to let up on her training. She believed that he was allowing his resentment of Lilly's betrayal to cause him to push her beyond her limits of endurance but was afraid to say so. She simply begged for some time to rest. That is until one day she collapsed on the ice from exhaustion. Only then did he realize that he was pushing her too hard.

Andrew helped her up asking; "Are you OK?"

"Yes, I'm just very exhausted from all the practice. I've been trying to tell you that I need a break. I think you've lost sight of the fact that I am human, not a robot."

"I am so sorry Sylvia. You are right. I have let this thing with Lilly and Eric interfere with my desire to see you win and my ethics. I never believed in driving a skater to get the best out of them. You are right; an exhausted skater cannot perform well. Go ahead and take the rest of the afternoon off."

Andrew helped Sylvia to the locker room and left her there to change. He waited until she came out to make sure that she was alright. When he saw that she was he said that he would see her in the morning, and then with a backward wave he left.

Sylvia walked home slowly, deep in thought. She wondered if Andrew loved Lilly and was hurt by her relationship with Eric. His reaction was a bit extreme for someone who was simply angry over another skater trying to get her competition disqualified. Of course if she, Sylvia, was to win the Olympics his name as a coach would be made and he wouldn't have to ever worry about being out of a job. Maybe that was all it was. Shrugging she let herself into the house and after letting her mother know what had happened, she put her things away and went to bed to take a nap.

Sylvia was giving the performance of her life. She was performing maneuvers she had never performed before. There was total silence as everyone watched her. Only slight gasps of appreciation of the crowd could be heard as she completed each sequence. She was on her last when suddenly she went out of control. She was falling from the air with no way to stop herself. She hit the ice hard. It knocked the breath out of her so she laid there unmoving. She felt two hands grabbing her and roughly rolling her over and when she looked up it was to see Lilly Lavern laughing down at her. Andrew was standing behind her with his hands on his hips shaking his head back and forth in disappointment.

Sylvia began to cry and the shaking got rougher. She fought the hands but they only grasped her tighter. Then she heard a voice saying; "Sylvia, Sylvia, wake up!"

Sylvia finally did as she was bid and was relieved that it was not the laughing face of Lilly Lavern looking down at her, but her mother with a concerned look on her face. She also realized that she was in her room, in bed, not on the ice.

"Are you all right, dear? I could hear you crying out from your room all the way into the kitchen. Is there something that you need to talk to me about?"

"No, I was just having a bad dream. I dreamed that I fell during my performance at the Olympics. I fell during practice today and that is what probably brought it on."

"Are you sure that you are alight? You didn't hurt yourself did you?"

"No, I probably have a few bruises, but other than that I'm fine. I have to admit that I am getting a little nervous now that I'll be leaving for the Olympics soon. All the time and money you and dad have invested in me will be for nothing if I lose."

"You will be fine. And remember, we love you no matter how it turns out. Now, why don't you come down and have some supper with me. Your father is going to be late this evening and told me not to hold it up for him. He said that he was going to grab a bite with his boss while they worked."

Sylvia acquiesced and got up, hugged her mother and followed her to the kitchen.

Andrew hated to leave Sylvia like that but he needed to be by himself to think. He did not know what was making him react like he was. He usually had good self-control. He walked around town for hours going over what he had been forcing her to do. It was insane and really bothered his conscience. He never believed a good coach got the best out of their student by being a slave driver. He himself would never have tolerated it from his coach, and for him to treat her like this really bothered him.

Finally Andrew hit on what was at the bottom of it all. He hated Sylvia's vulnerability. Even though she had turned eighteen months ago she was still naïve when it came to men. It really angered him when she told him how easy it was for Eric to worm his way into her life. Why it should bother him he did not know. After all, she was his protégé and he was her coach. Maybe it was the fact that she came so close to blowing it, not only her career but his also.

Fortunately for them Sylvia was smart enough to catch on to what Lilly and Eric were up to. She had put a lot of time into learning the rules, something that he had instilled into her from the first. He could not ask for a better student. That is even more of a reason to wonder why he over reacted. He could so easily have over worked her to the point that she hurt herself. It would have been he, himself, who ruined their careers. He owed her a big apology. He found a florist and sent Sylvia a huge bouquet of mixed flowers along with a note of apology, slipped it inside a card and, attached it to the vase with a ribbon.

The doorbell rang while Sylvia and her mother were eating supper. She got up to go and see who it was and was surprised when she opened the door and came face to face with a huge vase of mixed flowers. She had never been given flowers before, except when she skated, so she did not know what to do. Was she supposed to give a tip or what? The young man asked if she was Sylvia Sloan, and when she said yes, he told her that they were for her and asked her to sign for them, then he told her to have a good day and left. She had them to her face when she walked into the kitchen. She asked Sylvia; "Who are those for?"

"They are for me."

"How lovely, who are they from?"

"I don't know; I haven't looked at the card yet." Sylvia set them down on the table and pulled the ribbon detaching the card from the vase. She opened it and a note fell out. She reached down and picked it up and proceeded to read what it said. She blushed as she read Andrew's words. She never expected him to admit what he had been doing and certainly never expected to apologize. She handed her mother the note and proceeded to read the enclosed card. Then she went to top up the water and took everything to her room.

Sylvia placed the flowers on her vanity. There was a triple mirror attached to it and the two side mirrors had been broken so she replaced the mirrors with cork board making a peg board out of each. She hung the card and note up on one of them. She had her ribbons, a photo of her parents when they got married, and everything else she treasured stuck on them as well. She even had some newspaper clippings of Andrew when he won the Olympics. She had a crush on him when she was younger and was devastated when he dropped out of the skating world with no word. Needless to say, when her parents hired him to be her coach she was both thrilled and nervous at the same time. When she won the Nationals the newspapers did a write up of them both and she had a photo that was taken of them together hanging alongside the articles on him as well. She sat there looking at them, until her mother called for her to come back and help clean up the kitchen.

The next morning Sylvia thanked Andrew for the flowers and told him that he didn't need to apologize, she just wanted him to take it a little easier on her. He agreed and her practice resumed at a slightly slower pace. Soon it was time for them to pack and leave. The Olympics were due to start.

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Author's Note: Thanks to Andrew's humility Sylvia is on her way to the Olympics. Will she win the gold?

Happy reading, don't forget to vote and comment, Tigger