It's something we're all used to, but once we lose the pressure of competition, it's not something we need to do. For a lot of swimmers I know, it's the first thing they get rid of. From the other side of the pool, I watch him turn at the wall before gliding underwater.He comes up before the fifteen-meter mark, transitioning into a freestyle, and that's where I can immediately tell he needs some work.
"Is he swimming the back half of an IM?"
I didn't hear Carter approach, but he's standing on the deck, dressed in a black brief with a cap and goggles in his hand. His entire focus, though, is on Bryce.
"It looks like it, doesn't it?"
I'm curious to see if he's wondering the same thing I am. Whenever he and I would swim, he tended to stick to either breaststroke or backstroke, two of his strongest areas. I'm pretty sure the last time I saw him do any sort of IM swim was when he was still competing.
"Yeah," Carter admits, pulling his cap over his head. "What do you think that's about?"
It's definitely not for me to say, because I'm not Bryce. I don't know what his physical fitness goals are or what he hopes to achieve from a workout. I do, however, think how he's switching up his swims and has started to pay more attention to the details is interesting. Why he's doing this, though, isn't my business.
"I don't know, man," I reply. "Maybe he felt like switching up his workout?"
Carter shrugs. "Makes sense."
Without another word, he dives into the pool, picking up a well-paced freestyle. I continued to watch Bryce, though. Even after I pull myself out of the pool, I watch him. There has been something different about him recently, and I can't put my finger on it.
When Josie called and told me I had someone at the front desk wanting to see me, a million different people ran through my mind. Each more unlikely than the last. Because the truth is, the longer I'm in Columbia, the tighter-knit my circle becomes. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing because I've never felt more supported or as much a part of a family as I do here.
In this job, being surrounded by these people every day makes it harder to keep up fake friendships and appearances. The only person outside of our group that I talk to consistently is Mel Segal, and that's only because she's second-in-command at Operation Fly. Honestly, I don't mind that my circle is dwindling to the people who really matter.
The one person I should have expected to see, however, is the one waiting at the desk when I get down to my office.
"Liam," I greet warmly, shaking the youngerman's hand when I reach him. "How's it going?"
"About as well as it could be," he replies with a sheepish shrug.
"Yeah, I can imagine." It's true, though. As much as Emmie's life was thrown upside down, so was his.
"Do you have a second to talk?"
Confused and a bit curious, I lead him up to my office, where he takes the seat across from my desk. "What can I do for you?"
"I think we should talk about Emmie almost quitting?"
"I agree," I say with a slow nod. "She and Mia talked in the locker room after she made the declaration, and she ended up changing her mind. Did she ever talk to you about it?"
"Not ahead of time," he confirms my unasked question. "I had no idea that was even a thought running through her head. I'm glad Mia was able to talk her out of it, though, and I wanted to stop by to personally thank you for it. And thank you for the call."
When Emmie had talked to me about quitting, I was worried she might have had something to really be concerned about. That maybe Liam was guilting her into taking on more responsibility because of everything he had given up. The more I thought about it, though, the less likely it seemed. Liam hadn't even questioned any of the decisions he was forced to make. He had listened to what we thought were the best options for his sister and went above and beyond with it all.
While it isn’t totally out of the realm of possibility, I doubt Liam will be one to go back on his word like that.
"I want to make sure we're on the same page. As two people who care about her success, you don't want her to quit the team?"
"Not at all," he assures me. "From the first day we were reunited, all she could talk about was the team and how much she loved swimming. It made me so happy to see she found an outlet, to find something she loves, and is passionate about. It's something I could never do for myselfuntil I left home."
"Emmie mentioned that you tried to come get her when she was younger?" It's not a question I should necessarily be asking, but the more I know about the situation, the more I can help Emmie in the future as well.
He nods. "Straight out of college, I graduated and drove to their house. I thought my mother would be thrilled to not have to worry about a child that she never wanted to take care of in the first place. But then she heard I graduated with an architectural degree and decided it meant I had instantaneous money. Like you graduate and they hand you a check with your diploma or something."
"That would be nice," I joke.
"Yeah." He chuckles. "But needless to say, I had nothing. I wanted to save my little sister from dealing with the same shitty life I had. I had a place to live, a job that kept me stable through college, but I knew I'd never get a judge to sign off on it."
"Which is why you attempted to get your mother to see reason. It makes sense. I would have done the same thing in your shoes. Especially if you could get her to sign her rights away and put you as Emmie’s sole caregiver."
