School of Life
Chapter 8
On Ice
Wayne Kingston sat on the cot in his cell watching the small TV that he had in his cell. The clip of Ron proposing to Kim was on again as well as the kiss that followed, Wayne could hear the yells and whistles from the common room where most of the other inmates were watching the coverage of the games. He had been the brunt of a great deal of jeers and comments over the past few days. All of the other inmates knew who he was and just who had put him there. They also knew that Kim had made a mockery of him on national TV. The other inmates made sure that he was reminded daily if not several times a day that one of the hottest women in the world had turned him down in public. Add to the fact that the man she chose had taken over his place as the main running back for Vandercraft and you get a barrel full of misery laid on his shoulders.
He sat up and turned off the TV, they didn't get a many channels as he did back at home. Wayne flopped back down on the thin mattress of his cot and put his hands behind his head as he stared at the ceiling. It was her fault. Everything was her fault. He was WANYE KINGSTON, he was THE MAN on campus. All she had to have done was drop that......Stoppable and all would have been right with the world. He would have had her on his arm when he went into the draft and all would have been perfect. He would have had the best eye candy in the world on his arm and everyone would differ to him as he deserved.
That was then, reality was now. He counted himself lucky that he was in a private minimum security facility. At least the family had enough pull with the right people to at least get him sentenced to this place. Most of the inmates here were tax evaders, embezzlers and the like. His dad was in another facility across the states, fighting the divorce papers his mother filed the day they were sent to prison. The alarm on the small desk rang. He grimaced. It was time to go to work. He worked in the prison kitchen washing dishes and cleaning up the kitchen. He shivered in the memory of letting his mouth run off at one of the supervisors in the kitchen. He spent the rest of the day cleaning out all the garbage cans. The memory of having to literally crawl into some of them and scrape out the most unbelievable filth forced him to keep his mouth shut and do his job. Getting up off his bed he stepped out of his cell and headed for the kitchen. As he passed the common room he noticed a report from the Olympics was on. It showed Kim skating on the ice oval where the figure skating was performed. There were several wolf whistles and yells as Kim skated up to the edge of the rink, placed her skate on the top of the wall and stretched her legs. Wayne turned his back on the screen and continued on his way to the kitchen. Somehow, someway, someday, Kim Possible would pay for what she did to him.
Pulling the laces tight across the top of her skates, Kim tied the laces off and rolled her socks down over the top of the skates. Stretching, she stood as she arched her arms over her head. Reaching down, she picked up her bag and made her way out of the area where all the skaters changed and headed for the ice. A smile crossed her face as she thought back to the day and the evening before. Their engagement announcement was one of the biggest stories being reported at the time. The reporters and photographers had followed them around for the rest of the day and into the evening. Good to her word, she let Jim and his crew follow them into the restaurant that night. The camera crew was able to get some good footage of the two of them at dinner doing the little silly things some couples did like feeding each other and sharing a dessert. Kim had also walked by a bridal shop and looked into the window. The owner of the shop nearly broke the door before she welcomed Kim into her shop. Kim had not planned to go in, but the lady was so nice she did go in for a few minutes. She looked at a few dresses but declined to try anything on. It would be a few years before she would really be looking, but for right now it had been fun.
She dropped her bag at the door that led out onto the ice. The camera crew was already there and ready for the clip she would be doing. Stepping to the door, she reached down and pulled off the protective covers off her stakes. Placing the covers on the top of the wall near the door she stepped out onto the ice and with a few strokes of her legs skated out onto the ice. She started her warmup by doing a number of laps around the ice working up to a number of spins and jumps. After a few minutes she skated up to the wall and placed her left leg up on the wall and stretched it out, working out a knot that she felt coming on. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed the camera crew zeroing in on her. Well, she can't keep them from not filming everything and she was sure that little stretching move would make some interesting footage. Switching legs, she worked out the knots in the other leg and started to stake back out onto the ice. She turned back to the crew and reached down to make sure the wireless mike she was wearing was on. Nodding to the camera man, she slid to a stop and composed herself.
The assistant with the camera man gave Kim the signal and she started her talk.
"Hello everyone, I'm here in the Pacific Coliseum to demonstrate the event of figure skating. The single's events are broken down into two parts; the short program and the long program."
Kim started to slowly skate across the ice as the camera followed her.
"In the short programs the skater has a number required steps, jumps, spins and combinations that must be completed. One of the jumps is the Axel, for this jump the skater takes off from the forward outside edge of one foot and lands on the back outside edge of the opposite foot. A single Axel is 1 ½ revolutions, a double is 2 ½ revolutions and a triple Axel is 3 ½ revolutions. It is the only jump that begins from the forward facing position. I'm going to attempt a double Axel, wish me luck!"
Muting her mike, Kim started to speed up and set herself coming out of a turn. She planted her skate and launched herself into the air. Spinning twice in the air she nailed her landing and skated out of the movement. She skated back toward the camera wiping her face and unmuting her mike.
"That was interesting and a little fun. Another one of the required movements is the lutz jump. This toe pick-assisted jump is launched from a back outside edge and landed on the back outside edge of the opposite foot. The skater glides backward on a wide curve, taps his/her toe pick into the ice and rotates in the opposite direction of the curve. Let's see if I can do this as well as the others."
Kim speed up again and made ready for her move. She made the toe-pick and went into her jump. She launched herself into the air, spun twice and tried for the third when she realized she wasn't going to make it. Trying to pull out of the spin, she slipped and crashed to the ice. The decided "offff" and the other muttered words came from her mouth. She realized as she sat on the ice that she had not muted her mike. She covered her mouth for a moment and thought. 'I sure hope they bleep that one out.' Smiling, she stood up and skated back to her spot.
"Sorry about that folks. I didn't quite make that one. But I hope that you can see that figure skating is very difficult. The other part of the event is the long free skate program. The free skate program is worth two thirds of the total score and allows the athletes to demonstrate their creativity, innovative moves and technical difficulty. Both are set to music. Right now, they are going to let me have a free skate program of my own. I would like to dedicate this to my fiance, Ron Stoppable. Ron...Ronnie...with all my love and with all my heart, this is for you. I hope everyone will understand that I wanted the lyrics sung along with the music."
Kim skated to the center of the ice and set herself in place. The music started as she began to skate. She poured everything that was in her heart into each of the moves she made. She started slow and started to speed up as the song progressed.
"Who knows what tomorrow brings
In a world, few hearts survive
All I know is the way I feel
When it's real, I keep it alive"
She started off with some simple moves as she skated across the ice.
"The road is long, there are mountains in our way
But we climb a step every day"
Kim braced herself and flipped into a double axel and landed it perfectly.
"Love lift us up where we belong
Where the eagles cry on a mountain high
Love lift us up where we belong
Far from the world we know, up where the clear winds blow"
Slowing down a bit, Kim moved into some simple arm movements and a camel spin. Moving out of spin she made several loops and move spins.
"Some hang on to "used to be"
Live their lives, looking behind
All we have is here and now
All our life, out there to find"
"The road is long, there are mountains in our way,
But we climb them a step every day"
Kim seemed to have become part of the music. She moved with the music and the lyrics. The audience was mesmerized as they watched her skate across the ice.
"Love lift us up where we belong
Where the eagles cry on a mountain high
Love lift us up where we belong
Far from the world we know, up where the clear winds blow."
"Time goes by
No time to cry
Life's you and I
Alive, today"
Kim worked her way over the ice and jumped into a triple Lutz and landed it with perfection. As the music wound down she slowly made her way to the center of the ice and wrapped her arms around herself. She slowly came to a stop and turned her head up with tears in her eyes. As the music came to an end she closed her eyes with a smile on her face.
"Love lift us up where we belong
Where the eagles cry on a mountain high
Love lift us up where we belong
Far from the world we know, up where the clear winds blow."
Kim opened her eyes with a smile as she reached down and turned on her mike.
"I hope that you enjoy my interpretation of that song. It really meant a lot to me. This is Kim Possible, I hope you enjoy the Olympics."
The director gave a cut motion and the camera man lowered his camera. Kim staked up to the door as one of the people watching opened it for her. She picked up her skate covers, placed them on her skates, picked up her bag and made her way toward the dressing rooms. She turned to Jim as he stood with the director.
"Thanks Jim."
Jim smiled.
"No problem Kim. The world is going to eat this up. Thanks for letting us film this."
Kim smiled.
"Well, I had another piece of music picked out but after a few things happened I thought this would be the best one to skate to. Now, where is Ron?"
The director handed Jim is clipboard. Jim glanced down at it.
"I think he is going to be demonstrating the Biathlon today. He'll be back later this afternoon. Would you like to try and get up there or would you like to go back to your apartment?"
Kim winced as she shrugged her shoulder.
"I think I'll head back to our room after I change. I could use a little rest. When will they show my part?"
Jim referred to the schedule again.
"It will be shown early this evening. Right after Ron's demonstration of the Biathlon. If you are wondering, he will be back in plenty of time to see it."
Kim smiled.
"Thanks Jim. I'll head back to the room now. What else is on the schedule for us?"
Jim shook his head.
"Nothing really for the next day or so. We have had a request from a certain party to give you a couple of days off. Why don't you two relax a little and celebrate."
Kim grinned.
"And be sure to let you know when and where we are going so that you can film it?"
Jim laughed.
"Well, we would appreciate it."
Kim nodded.
"That was part of our new agreement. I'll let you know."
Jim smiled as Kim walked off toward the changing rooms.
"Oh yes Miss Possible. We will REALLY appreciate it, when we get what we want."
Ron slid his rifle onto his back as he fumbled with the bindings on his skis. His director walked up.
"You about ready there Ron?"
Ron looked up at her.
"Yeah, just about. I sure wish I could have seen Kim skate, but I guess I'll have to wait like everybody else. So, you want me to ski down this little slope and start my talk. Then you'll run the video that we have already shot showing me out on the track. Then I'll ski into the shooting area and shoot a round."
The director nodded.
"That's the plan. Let me know when you are ready."
Ron shrugged his shoulders.
"By the time you get back to the camera crew I'll be ready. Just give me a signal."
The director patted him on the shoulder, then turned and walked back to the camera crew. She waited a moment then gave him the signal to start. Ron pulled his goggles down over his eyes and started to ski down the slope. He reached a spot at the bottom and slid to a stop, raising his goggles he turned to the camera.
"Greetings everyone, Ron Stoppable here to show you what the biathlon is all about. The skiing portion of the biathlon requires fast and physically demanding cross-country free technique racing, while the rifle shooting requires accuracy and control.
When the athletes ski into the shooting range, they must put down their ski poles and take five shots at a metal target located 50 meters away. Each target has five plates, fixed in a straight row, which the athlete must hit. The hit area size changes depending on whether the athlete is shooting in a prone or standing position. When in a prone position, the hit area is the size of a golf ball (45 mm); standing, it's the size of a large grapefruit (115 mm). A top athlete usually takes 20 to 25 seconds to aim and shoot five bullets. Missing a target plate can be costly: depending on the event, a missed shot means either one minute of added time or skiing a 150-meter penalty loop.
There are five separate events in the biathlon. The individual start, the sprint, the pursuit, the relay and the mass start. The names pretty much tell the story of the event. In the individual event the skier must ski the loop five times stopping four times to shoot. If they miss a target then a minute is added to their time. The Sprint is similar but they ski only three laps. If they miss a target in the sprint then they have to ski a penalty lap. The start of the Pursuit is based on the finishing times of the Sprint. The skiers have to ski 5 laps stopping four times to shoot. The relay is just as is says, each team member skis three laps and has to stop twice to shoot. But this time the shooter has three extra bullets instead of the standard five. If they still miss they have to ski a penalty loop. The mass start is everybody starting at the same time instead of the thirty second delay. They have to stop four times to shoot. The same penalty applies. So now let's see how well I can shoot, I'll ski a lap then come in and shoot."
As Ron spoke, several small clips of others skiers and some scenes of Ron skiing were shown. When
he finished talking he put his goggles up on his eyes and started off. As he skied, there was a voice over of his own voice as he demonstrated a number of styles of cross-country skiing. As he skied into the shooting range he found a spot to shoot and stopped. Putting his ski poles down, he pulled his rifle off his back, flipped the snow cover from over the barrel and slid a magazine into the rifle. He took aim and fired his first shot. The black dot disappeared with a hit. He fired four more times, missing one target. When he finished shooting he flipped the cover back over the barrel and slid the rifle back over his shoulders. Facing the camera he spoke as he gasped for breath.
"It's really really hard to shoot straight with your heart beating so hard and you are breathing so hard. You have to force yourself to calm down and steady your shots. It looks like I missed one so I'm off to the penalty lap. This is Ron Stoppable signing off, if you are out there KP I can't wait to get back to you."
Ron skied off onto the penalty lap as the cameras followed him. They followed him as he skied around the penalty lap then back out onto the main course. He waved at the camera as he skied past. The director signaled the camera man to cut and Ron stopped. Skiing back to where everyone stood Ron stopped and pulled off his goggles.
"How was that?"
The director smiled.
"It was perfect. What do you say we take a break? There seems to be something wrong with the crew van. Why don't we stick around for a little while until they can get it fixed? Maybe you can meet some of the other skiers?"
The director pointed to a group of female athletes watching from the edge of the course. They all waved at Ron. He waved back.
"Naw, I need to get back to Kim. I'll just call Wade and I'm sure he can get me back to Vancouver. Until then I will go talk to the ladies."
Ron slipped off his skis and handed the rifle to the property manager who rode with them. Walking off to meet the other athletes he pulled out his communicator.
"Hey Wade, can you get me a ride back to Vancouver? The crew van is down and I'd like to get back as soon as possible."
Wade nodded on the screen.
"Already done. I figured something like this might come up. One of the teams is heading back in just a few minutes. You'll have to time to talk with some of the other athletes before they leave."
Ron smiled.
"Thanks dude. Tell them I'll be right there."
The director watched as Ron made his way over to where the other athletes were. She crossed her arms and sighed in disgust.
"Well, we DID have things set up, but that didn't work."
The camera man nodded toward Ron where he was signing some autographs.
"Do you want me to film that?"
The director shook her head.
"No, all everyone would see is Stoppable signing autographs, who cares about that. We will have to try and set up something else."
The property manager joined the two.
"Got any idea why the bigwigs still want to push this thing. I mean the whole world saw him propose to her."
The director just shrugged.
"Hey, they don't care about sweetness. They want dirt, the dirtier the better. I tried to tell them it'll be near impossible but they don't care. They seem to think the dirt stories will to better then the feel good stories. I think a good heart warmer would be good for the show, but I get my orders same as you. Let's get back to the van and tell Lloyd to go ahead and fix it. No need to fake it anymore. Stoppable will still beat us back. Come on let's get something to eat before we leave."
The group walked off toward the crew van while Ron finished with the autographs and pictures and joined up with the team that would take him back to Vancouver.
Ron walked into their apartment just as the sun was starting to set.
"You here KP?"
He dropped his ski boots in the corner and hung his coat up in the area near the door. As he did two slim arms surrounded his waist and a warm body pressed itself against his back.
"Oh yeah, I'm here. Feel like something to eat?"
Ron turned to take her into his arms and give her a kiss. She was wearing a nice sweater and a skirt.
"Ummm, booyah! Sounds good. Let me get a shower and we'll find a place to eat."
Kim snuggled against him.
"Already got a place picked up and laid some clothes out for you."
He gave her another little kiss.
"Somebody's is taking care of me."
Kim smiled a demure little smile.
"Oh yeah and looking forward to doing it for a long, long time. Now hit the shower while I call the restaurant and let them know when we will be there."
Ron smiled as he turned toward the bathroom and started to unzip his suit. Kim watched as he made his way to the bathroom. Her eyes took in his toned back and it followed down. A smile graced her face as she sighed. Oh yeah, this was her man and she was dang proud of it.
There was polite and light applause as Kim and Ron entered the restaurant dining room. Kim held on tight to Ron's arm as the hostess led them to their table by the window. They were at Top of Vancouver and the view was astounding. Ron held Kim's chair as she sat down, then took his own seat. The hostess gave them each a menu.
"Marie will be your server this evening. We are honored that you have chosen to dive with us this evening. If there is anything that we can do please let us know."
Kim nodded to her.
"Thank you. We will."
A petite blonde haired waitress stepped up to their table.
"Good evening, my name is Marie and I will be your server this evening. What may I get you to drink?"
Kim smiled.
"Tea will be fine."
Ron nodded.
"same here."
Marie made a note on her pad.
"How about something to start with?"
Kim glanced at the menu again.
"I think I'll have the Classic Caesar Salad."
Marie glanced at Ron and he nodded.
"Sounds good to me."
Marie made another note.
"Would like to order now or should I wait till I bring your salad?"
Ron glanced at Kim with a smile.
"I think I can order for both of us. We'll have the New York Steak, medium rare with baked potato?"
Kim grinned.
"The man knows the way to my heart."
Marie giggled as she finished writing down their order.
"I'll have your drinks and your salads right out. I am honored to be waiting on you. I have been a fan of yours for years and hoped one day to meet you. I was watching the TV the other day when you made your announcement. I would like to add my congratulations. If you need anything, please let me know."
Kim smiled back at her as she handed Marie her menu.
"Thank you, we have really enjoyed being here in Vancouver."
Ron handed Marie and turned back to Kim. She had that look on her face that absolutely melted him.
"You really didn't have to skate like that you know."
Kim blushed and bowed her head down and looked back up at him.
"I just wanted to let everyone know how I felt. You are the only one for me Ron Stoppable and don't you forget it."
Ron smiled.
"Forget it? The most beautiful, most badical girl in the world skated a program in front of the whole world after she dedicated it to me. Add to the fact that she skated to one of the most famous love songs in the world and it adds up that a certain girl really digs the Ron-man."
Kim laughed. Ron marveled at how beautiful she was when she laughed like that. A laugh full of joy and love. He was so lucky. She reached across the table with her left hand, the ring sparkling in the candlelight. She took his hand in hers. She gently caressed his hand. She marveled at his hand. It had taken down villains and creatures, yet with her, touching her, it was incredibly soft.
Ron looked into her eyes. He was about to say something when Marie returned with their drinks and their salads. Kim released his hand sat back in her seat. Marie set down their drinks and their salads and stepped away. Kim pulled out her napkin and laid it in her lap. Ron followed suit and soon they were eating, chatting and laughing as the restaurant turned under them giving them a slowly changing view of the area.
Hello everyone. This is the Captain. Sorry I have been gone for so long. Life has really thrown me some curves lately. Some really, really hurt. There have been nights that I didn't even want to do anything when I got home except go to bed. Then I lost one of my best KP friends in Cpneb. I will miss him a great deal.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I wanted to bring back Wayne for a visit and let Kim and Ron continue on with what they were there for. Kim decided to make a statement of her own as only she can. Thanks for the support. Please send a review. I would appreciate it.