Chapter 7
She awoke early the next morning. She wanted to eat some breakfast and head over to the gym. She went to the hotel lobby to get some food. Egg whites, some fruit, and a couple of strips of bacon. She had a lot to prepare for and she wanted to flip her vault again before finals. She was pulling up the Uber app on her phone when she spotted Ben across the lobby. He was staring at her again. He got up and walked toward her. "Sleep well?" he asked her.
"Um yeah, sorry again for trying to get into your room last night," she said, crunching on her bacon.
"No worries, " he said, stealing a piece of bacon off her plate. "When are you heading to the gym?" he asked, nonchalantly, as if they had been buddies for years.
"Now,", she said. "I want to do some extra beam work and flip my vaults again.
"Let me give you a ride," he offered. "I'm heading in for a judges meeting anyway," he informed her.
"Well, ok," she said, clearing her plate and standing up to follow him. He walked into the parking lot and escorted her to his car. He came around to her door and opened it for her before letting himself in the driver's side.
Once the car ride was underway, he asked her, "Why are you alone? Why aren't your parents driving you? Most gymnasts have their families here with them, " he pointed out.
"I don't know my parents. I've been orphaned since I was very young. These people are my family, so I guess they are here, in a way," she answered, smiling to herself.
"Oh, I'm sorry, " he said, looking a little flustered.
"Oh please, don't worry about it," she said, brushing it off like it was no big deal.
They sat in silence for the next few minutes before arriving at the gym. "Thank you for the lift," she said, gathering her back and getting out of his car. "I appreciate it," she smiled at him. He looked at her, smiled back, and headed off for the gym.
She walked with him to the door. He opened the door, let her in in front of him, and then entered the gym. There were already a few gymnasts and most of the judges were in the back getting ready to have their meeting. He walked to the back of the gym without a second look at her and sat down for his meeting. Rey walked over to the floor to warm up. She was distracted and knew that warming up floor would take her to the zone she needed to be in.