10. Lucas #4
"Ruff ruff!" I barked, pulling him close to me.
He looked at me, confused.
"Did you forget already?" I asked. Leaning in, I whispered, "Doggy style."
"Ah, you remember that?" he asked, trying to pull away.
"Hard to forget,” I said, wrapping my arms around him to grab his butt.
"You don't have to-"
"Nope," I said, interrupting him. "It's already a thing, and I'm holding you to it."
He smiled.
“Plus, I think it’s excellent motivation,” I added.
We dried off quickly and snuggled into bed. I was happily the little spoon again.
Just as I was about to drift off to sleep, I heard Cam mumble, "I could get used to this."
And I smiled. I could too.
The next morning, the locker room was quiet with tension.
It was always like this before a competition, but this felt different.
As much as we had been relaxing this week, and trying not to feel pressure, it all came down to today.
If we didn’t do well, that was it. If we did, we would still have to wait to see if the other teams did better later in the day.
The locker room could accommodate multiple countries, but there were still officials posted to make sure we didn’t wander into Russia’s area, and vice versa.
Coach already warned us about monitoring our snacks and water.
Someone from China had theirs tampered with, so they said, at Worlds last year, and our coaches didn’t want us getting disqualified over something like that.
They kept the competition suits securely offsite until we were competing. That way, they didn’t get lost or damaged. A lot of work went into creating them, and we were representing our country in front of the entire world, so I was happy to not be responsible for them.
We had already all changed into our suits and were ready. I liked the ones with a brief cut, more leg flexibility. I noticed Cam and Grant did, too. Graham and Ty went for the square cut. Once we were out there, I could change between shorts or pants depending on the apparatus.
We’d find out shortly what apparatus we were starting on.
I already knew I was doing three events - horse, parallel bars and high bar.
It was the least of anyone, though it made sense, as I was the youngest. Grant and Graham were doing all six, and would try to make the individual all-around finals.
Since they were older, this was probably their last shot at an Olympic medal.
Not that I will bring that up. Ty was doing four events, and Cam was doing five.
My Cam. I was so proud of him. I knew he was going to do great.
“Alright, guys, gather round,” Coach Woodward came up to us. “I have the rotations. We’ll be following Russia, Brazil will be behind us, followed by France and the other athletes. And we’re starting on the horse.”
There were a few groans.
“I don’t have to tell you that’s our weakest event.
It’ll be good to have it done with, but if you do a good job, we can use that momentum to carry us into our stronger events.
That’s the plan. Get through the horse,” he paused.
“I know you can do it. Focus on what you need to do. Keep it simple. I’d rather you nail an average routine than completely fail a harder one.
Talk to your coaches and see what you feel like doing today. I’ll leave it to you to decide.”
That was new. Usually, we had little freedom. I liked this approach.
“Also, I’ve said it before, and I’ll keep saying it.
I’m very proud of you. We all are. We know you’ll do yourselves, us, and your country proud today.
And as much as I should say do it for the good ole USA - and that’s what I will tell the media - I think you need to start with focusing on yourself and how much you want this, and forget about everything else. ”
He looked at his watch. “You’ve got about five more minutes before we need to be out there warming up. Get ready.”
The coaches headed out shortly thereafter. The twins and Ty were raring to go. Ty asked if I was coming, but I told him I’d be right out.
“Gonna use the bathroom one more time.”
But truthfully, I wanted a minute alone with Cam. And he apparently had the same idea.
He smiled at me.
“You ready, Luke?”
“Yeah, I think I am.”
“You don’t sound as confident as last night…” He leaned in.
“I mean, fuck yes. Definitely need to add fuck to my response. ‘Fuck’ is a fantastic word.”
Cam smiled again.
“Quick kiss for luck?” I asked.
“Yes, please.”
My lips had just brushed his, when I heard, “Oh sorry, Lu-” from behind me.
Instinctively, I turned and saw it was Noah.
“Oh, shit! Cam?”
I turned back to see Cam’s face. I hope he’s not pissed.
“Uh...yeah. Hi!” He wasn’t. He was smiling.
“You okay?” I whispered.
“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?”
Noah was still standing there. “Uh, you guys should hurry. You need to warm up.”
“Right,” I said. Cam grabbed my arm and pulled me in for another quick peck. In for a penny, in for a pound, I guess. “Good luck, handsome.” I stood up and openly adjusted myself, as Noah tried to look away, and headed out to the floor.