[Author's Note: This chapter is mainly Sasha and Ariana fluff. I was in the mood to write a father daughter scene. As much as I love a good PaysonxSasha story, I have decided that this story will not contain that. Watch out to see who Payson falls in love with in later chapters]

Sasha drifted off when there was a knock on his door. "Who needs me at 1:09 A.M?" he mumbled as he climbed out of his bed. Not a care in the world that he was only dressed in his boxers. Glancing through the spy glass hole, Sasha saw his daughter on the other side. Sasha's demeanor changed as he opened the door and let her in. "What is the matter, Aria?" he asked while closing the door. Ariana paced the floor of her father's hotel room before taking a seat on his bed. "What happens if I miss my landing on vault or do not catch the high bar in bars. What if I eat mat on floor or need to fill in for someone on beam and fall off? I am scared." Aria vented as she wiped tears from her eyes. Sasha shook his head and sat down next to her daughter. "It is your first time competing at this level. You are allowed to be nervous, but you should also have fun. The other girls will not kill you if you make a mistake, and I will love you no matter what happens out there." Sasha comforted. He wrapped her in a tight hug and waited for the crying to stop. Slowly, her audible sobs became whimpers, and her breathing returned to normal. "I love you Daddy." Aria whispered. Sasha smiled and kissed her forehead. It was rare when Aria called him 'daddy' because she only did it when she was exhausted. "What is your sleeping arrangement?" Sasha wondered, knowing it was about time to send her back to bed. "I am sharing the king sized bed in the second bedroom with Payson. She is a heavy sleeper." Aria explained with a yawn. "Why don't you go back to your room and sleep? We both need it. Remember when you said you do not like a cranky coach?" Sasha reminded as he released his daughter from his arms. "Can I stay with you a for a few more minutes?" Aria asked as she climbed under the covers of her dad's bed. Sasha sighed in defeat but silently agreed. He went to the bathroom, and when he returned, he found Ariana fast asleep on his bed.

He had three options; he could wake her, he could move her himself, or he could leave her. Sasha knew she had been awake since 7:00 A.M. Waking her would allow her to move back to her room herself, but he risked her not falling back asleep right away. Besides, she might not wake up if Sasha tried to wake her. If he moved her sleeping body to her bed himself, he risked being caught by the other girls. Getting caught would let the cat out of the bag. He also risked waking her up in the process, and he knew she might not fall back asleep if he woke her. That left option three, leave her alone and just let her sleep in his room. It was risky, but it meant the most amount of sleep for her. He decided that leaving her would be the best for now, and he would just wake up earlier than scheduled to her back to her room before the other girls noticed. Sasha gently nudged her to the right side of the bed, so she was no longer sprawled out in the middle and climbed under the covers. He flicked off the bedside lamp and made his alarm was set for 4:00 A.M instead of 5:00 A.M. It took him a few minutes before he was passed out as well.

There was a pounding on the door accompanied by an annoying buzz. "Sasha, Ariana is not in our room." a shout from the hallway came. Ariana was the first to awake to this. She was confused as she opened her eyes and was not in the bedroom she shared with Payson. Then it hit her, she had come looking for comfort after the other girls had fallen asleep. She must of fallen asleep because now she was covered by the duvet, and her dad was asleep next to her. Aria looked at the clock, 6:00 A.M. Shoot, we were scheduled to wake up this early and get ready. Ariana thought. She could hide in the closet while her dad dealt with Payson. "Dad, wake up. Payson is at the door, and she knows I am missing. I am going to hide." Ariana whispered while shaking him awake. Sasha groaned and rolled over to look at the clock. His brain went into panic when he also recognized the situation as well. He silenced the alarm and hurried to throw on some clean clothes. "One minute, Payson" he shouted as Ariana tucked herself away in the closet. Sasha unlocked the deadbolt and opened to door. "Now what is the matter?" he asked like he had no clue what was happening. "Ariana is not in the suite. She is missing." Payson cried as she was worried they lost their teammate. "Calm down, Pay. Have you checked anywhere besides the suite?" he asked. "No, but we tried her cell. No answer. We thought we inform you before we went searching." Payson replied. Sasha nodded. "Go back to your suite and get ready for breakfast. I will go look for her. She most likely woke up early and needed to get some of the nervous energy out of her system. It is her first National competition. She could be working out or running. She would call someone if she was in danger." Sasha said. "I guess you are right. I am sorry for bothering you. See you at breakfast." Payson apologized before turning back to go to the suite. Sasha closed the door and opened the door to his closet. "You do not happen to have an extra warm suit in your luggage?" Ariana wondered before reaching for his suitcase. She could not return to her room in pajamas after her dad's lie to Payson.

[Author's Note: I loved writing this chapter.]