1
Ugh I woke up with a killer headache and form the looks so did kari and jesse. We had been up till 3:30 and only got approximately 4 hours of sleeps.
Our room was a total chaos I was helping jesse pack up the stuff from Shaun and his room and kari was desperately trying to get shaun up. Our bags were in the hall for Uncle Roger scratch that he preferred to be called The Rodge. Our last attempt to get shaun up was actually very entertaining.
We started piling clothes on top of him and then when he sprang out of bed sent them flying everywhere.
He seemed to have forgotten we were leaving today by the many shit's that followed his body as he ran into the bathroom.
We nearly missed the plane into LAX airport not because of out late start but because jesse was complaining it was too long of a flight and needed a dvd player. After settling in to the seats kari and I reclined our seats back fully so we were lying on out stomachs facing the player which was playing the ring 2.
"What's happening now." I yelled spreading my fingers apart to see a tiny bit of the screen.
"Oh the child is getting sucked into the tv." jesse said in a 'cool' tone.
"Never mind I'm definitely not taking my hands off of my face."
"Oh yes you are!" before I knew it Kari had grabbed my hands away from my face and was holding them so I couldn't move them
"Ok ... Ok I'll watch the movie, all you had to do was ask." laughing at how I was actually going to finish watching the movie I really hated.
"We have been" Shaun, Jesse and Kari answered.
"I will ask for the umpteenth billionth time can I press play ." jesse getting rather annoyed at how many time we had paused the movie between food, bathroom breaks and questions. The movie ended as soon as we got into LAX airport and it was surprisingly really good.
"How do you like California so far?" did shaun seriously need to ask me that question my mouth had been wide open since we stepped into the comfortable sunlight of Los Angeles in mid January.
"It's okay." I had said stepping into the suburban and made my voice try to sound as if I had seen better; it was hard considering I hadn't seen anything like it before.
"Just okay?" laughing at how shocked shaun looked, playfully punched the side of his arm with my response.
" NO it's beautiful... it's amazing ... it's undescribable... it's CALIFORNIA" rolling the window down and taking in the sites.
While singing CALIFORNIA CALIFORNIA HERE I COME! By Phantom Planet
Shaun's POV
Cara had helped jess and I unpack the trunk and while mom was cooking dinner we decided to go for a walk at the beach.
"I'll meet you out in a few I have to change." Cara walked up to the guest room which would literally be her room for about 2 and a half weeks before we left for Torino. It wasn't a bad idea to change either. Outside it was cool and windy; it was convenient to get to the beach simply cross the highway.
" Lucky! your only two steps away from the beach compared to my 50 miles"
"Oh I know I am." Cara narrowed her eyes at me.
we found a spot by the abandoned lifeguard chair and climbed up to watch the ocean.
" Shaun- do you find it weird how close we have become within a matter of weeks?"
"What type of weird like the creepy weird or the good weird?" I thought it was awesome how close we had become in such a short time.
"I hope it's not the creepy weird."
"I was thinking the good weird." Cara said smiling at me and leaned her head on my shoulder; as if she was in limbo wasn't sure if she should or she shouldn't put her head down. I picked my arm up so it was resting on Cara's shoulder.
"SHAUN!" it sounded like Kari calling us in for dinner so I raised my left arm up in the air to acknowledge her.
OH MY FUCKING GOD That was not Kari.
"What is this! We broke up a few weeks ago and you already found someone else to lye in your arms" Summer shouted at the top of her lungs referring to cara. Cara picked my arm up from her shoulder and let it hang off the guards seat.
"Ok so I know you think were something... but that would just be wrong" Cara had jumped off the seat to stand near summer with a yuck expression on her face.
"Shaun I loved you and now..." that had to be the most awkward silence of my life "and now your trotting around with her."
"Well I love her too" that didn't come out right and summer had no idea cara was my cousin. Cara had smacked her hand over her eyes, showing I had obviously made the wrong statement.
"Would you like me to explain, since shaun is screwing up his lines?"Cara had said surprisingly peaceful for all the accusations that were being thrown at her.
"Don't mind me as I steal your boyfriend from you." Summer had sneered and pulled me to the side of the guard chair. I turned my head to mouth a sorry but it didn't seem to phase Cara much.
"Summer let me explain. I know your thinking that the cara is my girlfriend, but that would be so messed up considering were cousin's." holding summers upper arms her mouth formed a 0.
Smack. Summer had hit me on the head and ran off to I guess apologize and then ran back to her home.
"Well that was an experience." avoiding as much eye contact as possible.
"I'm guessing the breakup wasn't mutual?"
"No, it was mutual, I think just she gets protective and jealous because she doesn't want to see me being taken advantage of. It's like puppy dog love" Shrugging my shoulders
"Oh Shaaaun I didn't know you were that sensitive!" sticking her tongue at me.
"SHUT UP! Moving on shall we go home?" sticking my elbow for cara to grab onto.
"You are so bad with words."
Cara
We came running through the door of the white's home laughing at what had been a few moments ago a true embarrassment but was now just a funny story.
"What up you two?" Aunt Cathy who wanted to be called just Cathy because of the same reason as the rodge did; Was cooking dinner turned to us.
"Well you all know how bad shaun is with words at time?"
"God do we ever." jesse said not taking his eyes off the laptop.
"Well right now was one of those times." I couldn't help but be excited to tell the story.
"Tell me tell me tell me!" kari had shouted like a little kid.
And so I told the whole story about twice just to make everyone happy.
1 week had passed by fairly quickly and the bruises on the gully of my neck were almost gone but besides that everywhere else was still banged and bruised up.
Shaun had informed me that in California I could drive because I was 16.
SWEET!
And tomorrow he was going in for his last training session before we left in two weeks for the Olympics.
Shaun gave me the option if I wanted to come but I said that I would distract him too much and that he needed to get into the zone. I wished him luck with his training and they drove off it was really early considering the closest mountain where he was meeting was 4 hours away.
It was Aunt Cathy and Uncle Roger and myself eating lunch when news came that you just didn't want to believe.
Shaun's coach had called to deliver some very bad news that shaun had been sabotaged at practice by an opposing team who was also training for the Olympics.
it was heart wrenching to hear this news considering the Olympics were in 2 week and all the hard work shaun had prepared for.
Because the coach just kept yackking, Cathy had to finally ask what had happened, which turned out to be the other team had taken his board and loosened the bindings on the board and when shaun was practicing the bindings went right off landing on the wall of the pipe on his ankle/knee.
It didn't sound good. Shaun was returning home early and was prompted to see a doctor ASAP.
The olympics were not on anyone minds; well they were on some peoples minds but it was making sure shaun wasn't badly injured. It was horrible to see shaun and jesse come in the house, shaun on crutches and his eyes had mixed emotions-anger, sadness, fear.
Shaun leaned on the counter top with his head in his hand
"Sweetie, do you need anything?" Cathy asked wondering if it was a good time to talk,
No Answer.
"Shaun, are you okay?" his expression was so glumly.
"OKAY! I'm not OKAY! I freakin' busted my ankle and I have the Olympics in 2 weeks how an I OKAY!" wow shaun has a temper.
"Well your not getting anywhere with that attitude."
"What?" looking shaun right in the eye and in my mind I knew I had to knock some reality check into his head.
"Yeah shaun! If you keep that attitude up and not try and fix your injury you can say bye bye to the Olympics! Are you going to just throw it away" The rodge peaked his head out from behind the newspaper and cathy from her magazine.
"Isn't that what it seems like if I go to rehab now I won't be on top of my game at the olympics"
this injury sure did mess with Shaun's head
"What is this to you? Are you just going to the Olympics to win; not to do what I thought you loved. It's not suppose to be about winning, it used to be about having fun in your mind. Before the "Knee sabotage injury"corrupted my brain. "
Shaun
"What is this to you? Are you just going to the Olympics to win; not to do what I thought you loved. It's not suppose to be about winning, it used to be about having fun in your mind. Before the "Knee sabotage injury"corrupted my brain. "
Ouch that hurt cara had verbally slapped me and was right about everything I was forgetting that I normally could pull through everything but I was so mentally and physically tired I barley had strength left.
" as of now I'm not going to the Olympics." there was a huge gasp; my brain was in one of those modes where your brain says stuff that isn't true.
"Fine Shaun but I hope you know that your showing your fans and everyone that believed you were going to win the gold.. Your letting them down. 'Cause you certainly have left havechanged my thought right now! Unless you fix it I can't help you .
There was something about cara that everything she said seemed to have an effect on me.
"How am I suppose to do that?"
I walked across the room to where she was standing in the family room since we both got riled up and moved far away from each other. I was only a few feet apart from cara.
"Easy, your shaun white and you use to have determination beyond belief, and because you have 5 people in this world that no matter what goes down in Torino will love and support you ."
UGHHH! I been such a dick head about this. I was normally always optimistic even during times like these, I think I just got all worked up over the past and upcoming weeks I forgot what I was doing for a living.
It walked towards cara and gave a huge hug.
"Thanks for knocking some sense into me."
"No problemo and my only suggestion right now is get that knee/ ankle of yours healed." Cara looked up smiled and walked up to the spare bed room.
"Um Shaun have you noticed car's throat?"jesse was sitting transfixed at the tv screen
"yeha a little bit it but her arms have these bruises on them; Oh and since when is she car we minus well call her Benz, Beemer or bug."
" i've seen those marks on her wrist I wonder if we should be concerned?" my mom said still reading a mag.
"Why do you think she's hurting her self?" if that's really what's happening I hope she tells me before I find out another way.
Cara
it seems I did manage to knock some sense into shaun... luckily.
Finally it came the night before Torino and I was in the spare room thinking about life.
Over the few weeks I had begun to gain more and more stress partially because the Olympics, the skiing career and it didn't help that every few nights joe would send threatening text messages saying how when I got back I would be hurting or if anyone knew about him practically killing me I was literally dead meat.
Till one night when sitting on the balcony the stress became to great and I reached into my bag and pulled out my secret addiction- a box cutter.
I quickly ran into the bathroom started the water and at the first slash it stung but for some reason spilling my own blood was relaxing.
Applying pressure to my upper wrist walked back into the room right as shaun came in
frantically trying to hid the blade.
"What's that?" Shaun's eyes were filled with concern.
Dropping the blade behind my back and closing the bag
" oh, nothing"
I could tell he didn't by it
"Eh ok well I'm off to bed when you get a chance bags go by the front door; it's going to be mad fun up in Italia."
"Yeah it its."we both hugged each other and shaun left , but I stood staring at the wounds that I had just dug.
I was addicted and sooner or later things were going to come out.