Lilli: Thank you! Yes that's right, I wanted Sasha to stay and always felt like he was being a drama queen by leaving, so I decided I wanted him to stay.

Carla: Totally agree. It didn't seem logical, but then, it's TV. Hahaha!

nicole: Thank you so much!

Izzyb101: Thanks! That's very sweet of you, I will!

I love you, all of you! :)

Kaylie opened her eyes. Sunshine was streaming through the window in her hospital room, but Kaylie didn't feel warm. She felt cold under the heavy woolen blanket. A nurse was checking her vitals and tidying up the room, but otherwise it was empty. Where's my mom and dad? she thought to herself, blinking sleep away. A nurse handed her a plastic cup full of a sweet-smelling milkshake. She stuck her tongue out in disgust.

After some prodding from the nurse, Kaylie sucked down her milkshake reluctantly. "You know, this is probably full of calories," she said to the nurse in a whiny voice, hoping to sway her.

"That's what I'm hoping," the nurse responded without missing a beat. "You need to get some calories back in you."

Kaylie changed her tone to sound stronger and more confident. "I feel fine. In fact, I bet I've gained some weight. I'm sure of it."

The nurse stopped. "All right. You want to weigh, let's weigh in." She pulled a doctor's scale out of the closet.

Kaylie pulled back the blanket and stepped on the cool hospital floor with her bare feet. She shivered. She stepped onto the scale and the nurse adjusted it. The little arrow that had become her worst enemy stopped just before 100 and stood at attention. Kaylie winced.

"Well, that's good, we're making progress, but Dr. Walker wants you to get up to at least 110 before we let you go."

Kaylie gasped. "110 pounds? But I'm an athlete! I need to stay in shape, I can't afford to just pack on the pounds!" The nurse sighed and shook her head. "Come here," she said, gesturing to a mirror on the inside of the closet door. Kaylie had been dreading this. She approached the mirror cautiously.

Her eyes were sunken in. Her gorgeous brown hair lay flat and lifeless on her head, and her skin was oily and pale. She lifted up her hospital gown and saw that she could no longer see her own ribs without straining her body. An angry tear slipped down her pale cheek.

"Kaylie?" Her mother's familiar thoughts broke through her thoughts. "Kay, honey, are you okay?" Her mother rushed over and wrapped her in a hug. And for the first time since she'd found out about the affair, she hugged her mother back.

"Kaylie, baby, are you all right?" Her father's hand stroked her head. He put his arms around her too. Kaylie grew hot. She wasn't sure how much longer she could keep her mother's secret. "Dad? Can I tell you something?" He drew back.

"Yes, baby?" He put his arm around her mother, and she lost her nerve. "Uh, nevermind, I was just wondering how Leo's doing."

Payson tilted her body forward and propelled herself forward and off the beam, landing flat on her back. She slapped the mat.

"Sasha, I just can't get this triple full," she said. Sasha shook his head.

"Don't ever say you can't. You can do anything you work hard enough at. It may take you a bit longer, but you can do anything," he resoonded. Payson smiled.

"Okay," she said, and mounted the beam again.

Lauren breathed in. And out. And in. And out. And read the paper she held in her hand. And read it again.

STEVEN P. TANNER

paid (in full) a sum of nineteen thousand and eighteen hundred dollars and ninety-four cents ($19,800.94) on 4/14 to Welsh Jewelers for one (1) sterling silver band inset with four 2-karat diamonds and one 10-karat diamond.

Thank you for your business!

Welsh Jewelers, 42 Longoria St, Boulder CO

She threw it at the ground and stomped on it. He couldn't. He wouldn't. He did.

And right now, while her father was on a romantic dinner with his little puppy dog, Amber, he was probably down on one knee proposing to her this very second. Lauren tore off the new Tiffany necklace he'd given her and threw it on the ground. Then she locked herself in her room and cried herself to sleep.

Steve Tanner arrived home that night around midnight. "Lauren? I've got big news, honey..."

The next morning, Lauren awoke before six. She slipped into a leo and her Rock warm-ups. She braided her hair back into a sophisticated French braid and slipped out of the house before six-thirty.

She was at the gym when Sasha opened, at six-forty-five promptly. "What are you doing here so early?" he asked, when he saw her. "Lauren, you know we have the Denver Elite invitational today, and you need your sleep! I told each and every one of you you weren't required until eight!"

Lauren nodded. "Yes, Sasha, I'm sorry, I just was worried about my vault and wanted to work on it a bit before Denver gets here."

Sasha sighed. "All right, Lauren, but only for a half hour. I don't want you wearing yourself out before we even get started."

"Yes, Sasha," Lauren replied, and dropped her bag, rushing over to the end of the vault.

She began to run, without stretching, and propelled herself into the Amanar she'd been practicing in secret. She stuck it cold. Her body hurt, but it felt good. It was good pain. At least, it hurt less then thinking about the previous night. She walked to the end again and prepared herself for another one.

See, Daddy? I can do things without your money.

Payson walked into Sasha's office. "You wanted to see me, Sasha?" He nodded. "Sit down, Payson, I'm thinking."

She sat down.

"Payson, I've been thinking. I've just gotten word that Andrea Conway is training at the Denver Elite, and she'll be competing today. While I don't think she's a threat to you individually, I am worried she's a threat to this team."

Payson swallowed. "And...," she trailed off, allowing him to fill in the blank.

"I want you to do your triple full routine."

Payson gasped. "Sasha, it's not done! I don't even nail the dismount fifty percent of the time!" There was no way she could perform a half-finished routine in front of Marty, in front of Kelly Parker, in front of Andrea Conway...

Sasha smiled. "You're saying it wrong, Payson. You nail the dismount fifty percent of the time. And it's good. Besides, the routine you performed as a power gymnast hasn't been practiced since just after your surgery. Your muscles don't remember it. And your triple full routine even if you fell flat on your back is worth more points then a flawless performance of your old routine."

And then it occurred to her. "This was your plan all along, wasn't it?" she said, recalling how Sasha had wanted her to keep working on the triple full and neglect the power routine.

A glint of mischief was visible in his eyes. "Well, it worked, didn't it?"

Now it was Payson's turn to smile. "Well, anything that shocks Marty can't be bad," she replied. "I trust you, Sasha."

"Thank you, Payson."

She looked out the window at the blonde girl who flew through the air. "Is that - Lauren?" she asked, in disbelief. Sure, Lauren was good, but the last time Payson had seen her attempt an Amanar she'd fallen flat on her back and stomped out of the gym. "You've got her doing an Amanar vault?"

Sasha stood and strode over to join her at the window. "No, she's been practicing here for about twenty minutes but I haven't gone near her yet, that was flawless." Payson sighed. Sasha had already found his new project.

"Lauren? Lauren!" Sasha called, striding across the gym as Lauren prepared to do her twenty-seventh vault. She'd only fallen on three. She stopped and brushed the chalk off her legs. "Sorry, Sasha, I'll go," she said, walking off of the mat. Vaulting was very therapeutic. Each time she'd stuck the landing, it was like one more knife in that wench's heart.

"Lauren, that was amazing. How long have you been practicing that?" Sasha asked, stopping her cold.

"Um, a few days." She was ecstatic. Someone was finally noticing her!

"Well, I hope you're prepared for a longer workout, because you're doing that vault today in the invitational!"

She hoped her father would come.

"I am?"

"Of course you are. Get back to work, now." Sasha stood and watched her perform vault after vault. No one wonder Payson was stuck up. The spotlight was a nice place to be.

A/N: Next chapter is going to the Denver invitational! Can't wait! Anything specific you would like to see happen?