Page 81 of Going for Gold (Sweet Cravings 3)

"Is Bryce even gonna be out there with me? He's Tim's understudy, so unless Tim was practicing in high heels this morning and tweaked his ankle like you, he's not going to be out there." Actually, Tim practicing in high heels wouldn't really surprise me that much.

"I'll go to the guys' locker room and convince him that you need Bryce out there. But first let's go to our changing room and find me some crutches."

I helped Kristen to her feet. She draped her arm around me and hopped on one foot towards our changing room.

Our changing room was marked with a gold star with "Kristen - USA" printed in the middle. I held it open and let Kristen hobble through. There were three women inside. One was pulling a ridiculous amount of makeup out of a duffel bag and setting it on a counter in front of one of those fancy mirrors with all the light bulbs on the side. Another had at least three different curlers and flat irons plugged in and was cleaning off a comb. And the third was our wardrobe designer, Annie, who had just hung up Kristen's dress and was making a few last minute measurements with a tape measure.

All three of them turned to look at us.

"Hi, girls," said Annie. "I'm just putting a few finishing touches..." She paused and looked at Kristen. "Are you okay? Why are you hopping on one foot like that?"

"I sprained my ankle during the rehearsal. Alina is going to have to dance for me."

Annie shook her head. "That's why we have understudies."

"Do you think you can find me some crutches?" asked Kristen.

"Sure, I'll be right back." Annie looped her tape measure over Kristen's dress and hurried out of the changing room.

The girl with the curling iron took a step towards us. "Hi, I'm Judy, and I'll be doing your hair. Cindy will do your makeup. We're gonna make sure you look amazing."

"Hi, thanks," I said. "Is it okay if I shower first? I got all sweaty during the rehearsal."

Judy smiled. "Of course. There's a bathroom right through there." She gestured to a door on the opposite side of the room. "I put a few products in there for you to use."

"There's a towel and robe waiting in there for you," added Cindy.

"Okay, great. Thanks," I said. At least I'm getting pampered before humiliating myself in front of millions of people.

"Did you want me to wait until Annie gets back?" I asked Kristen.

"Kristen hopped over to the makeup chair and sat down. "That's okay. I'm comfy here. You should go shower. This is your big day now."

She was taking her injury surprisingly well. I thought she had been so excited to perform, but now that she couldn't, she didn't seem the least bit upset. In fact, she didn't even really seem to be in that much pain. Oh my God, is she faking her injury just to get me to perform? She was the one who demanded I be her understudy.

"Are you sure your ankle isn't feeling any better?" I asked.

Kristen lowered her foot to the ground and winced. "Ow, damn."

Okay, definitely not faking. I guess it was wishful thinking that she'd be faking and actually be able to perform.

"Go, take your shower," said Kristen. "The sooner you shower the sooner Cindy and Judy can start working their magic."

"Thanks for being so supportive. I know you really wanted to do this dance."

"As long as we win gold and wipe that smug look off Gabriela's face, I don't give a damn which one of us is out there."

I gave Kristen a smile and walked into the bathroom. As promised, a fluffy towel and robe were hanging up on the wall and the shelf in the shower was lined with bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and lotion that had super expensive sounding brand names. I turned the water on, stripped off my sweaty clothes, and stepped inside.

When I was a kid, showering was one of my favorite parts of my daily routine. I remember waking up on cold winter mornings. The sun would still be hidden below the horizon. I'd be so cold when I got out of bed, but I'd run right into the bathroom and take a nice, hot shower. And for those fifteen minutes, I was warm and at peace. Whatever tests I had coming up, whatever boy problems or drama with my friends, none of it mattered while I was in the shower. All that I would focus on was the sound of the water hitting the tiles. There were times when I wished I could just stay in the shower forever.

This was one of those times.

I took extra long rubbing the shampoo in, then I told myself that I should let the conditioner sit for a little longer before rinsing it. I even soaped myself up twice. But it was all just prolonging the inevitable. Eventually, the shower came to an end.

I turned the water off and stepped out. The steam from the shower had filled the entire room, so the air was pretty warm. Maybe I should crack a window. Or escape.

The thought lingered in my mind as I walked over the window and opened it. I was on the ground floor. I could easily just hop out and catch an Uber to somewhere far away from here. It was so very tempting, but I couldn't stand the thought of letting Gabriela win. I had to at least try to beat that bitch.

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