Boris Beloff was not his son and the way that was most apparent was in his coaching style. Sasha was harsh and demanding, balls to wall, a risk taker, especially with those who were exceptionally talented. Boris, who had been coaching National programs since his late twenties, had adopted the philosophy that consistency won gold medals, not risk. Both men had won gold medals as coaches, so Payson didn't favor one system over another, but there was one difference that was starting to grate on her, Boris tended to deliver all of his criticism and praise at one volume: loud.
"Andrea, that bars routine is a disgrace. You did not come to twelve o'clock for any of your handstands. You continue at this pace you will not go to Worlds and you will not go to the Olympics." Payson saw Andrea's lip tremble, but Boris's attention had been grabbed by something else. "Excellent, Lauren, that beam was excellent." Lauren's face lit up in a smile. "Andrea, again on the bars. All the way up to twelve, this time." It was all delivered at what conservatively could be called a bellow.
"The Bellowing Beloff," she murmured to herself, just before she ran down the run, launching into the Produnova and landing cleaning. She saluted and waited. "Beautiful, Payson!" he yelled at such a high volume that Andrea nearly fell off the bars, startled out of her zone. "Break for lunch. Coaches, meet with me in the office, now," he added and every gymnast sighed in relief.
"Was he this bad last time? I don't remember him being this loud." Payson whispered to Sasha as they walked away from the vault.
"I think maybe he was behaving for the committee members last time."
She stifled a giggle. "Have a good lunch break," she said, in a sing-song voice, moving away from him towards her friends as he patted her on the shoulder before joining Marty and the other club coaches in the office.
"What do you think that's about?" Kaylie asked, as they all watched them disappear into the office.
"A pow-wow," Kelly added. "It can't be good."
"Who asked you?" Lauren snapped and Kelly rolled her eyes.
"Easy, Lauren. We're all teammates for now at least." Payson said.
Kelly nodded, "You're right. For now. We've got a year until the Olympics. There are thirteen of us on the National team and only six of us go to Worlds and there's no guarantee the same six will go to the Olympics. Junior national champ, Isabella Ruggeri is turning fifteen tomorrow and the silver medalist, Justine Turner turned fifteen last month, just after Nationals."
"So?" Lauren asked.
"So they'll be sixteen in 2012, which makes them eligible for the Olympic games, Tanner. That's going to leave some of us out in the cold." Kelly pursed her lips. "And somehow I don't think it'll be Payson or me or even Kmetko, after her performance at Nationals, that loses our spots. You should watch your back, Tanner or get out of the way for the young blood that's coming up behind you."
Everyone was silent. Kelly Parker was right.
Payson sighed, "Wow, that was really inspiring, Kelly." She turned and looked at the office before turning back to the twelve other girls. "Look, there is absolutely nothing we can do about that. The only thing we can do is concentrate on our gymnastics. Train harder and earn a spot on that Olympic team. Our coaches are all in that room and every single one of them wants us to succeed, including Boris Beloff. We've all got something those juniors don't have."
"Breasts?" Lauren suggested, producing nervous giggles from a few of the girls.
Payson rolled her eyes, "Experience, experience in life and experience at the international level against the best senior elite gymnasts in the World. Do you really think they're going to want to take someone who's never performed at our level before? The only way they'll do it is if we ease off the accelerator. In '96, a fifteen year old practically cost the US the gold medal because she sat down on two vaults in a row. Do you think they don't all know that? We have to prove to Boris that we can be consistent and hit our routines under whatever pressure they throw at us, including two little pipsqueaks breathing down our necks."
She finished speaking and the other girls were nodding their agreement, even Kelly Parker, when she heard Boris's voice from behind her. "Girls, we will call you in one by one. Each of you will sit down with your club coach and myself. We will discuss the National team's plan for you this upcoming year. We will discuss who will be attending the World Championships and your training program for your possible inclusion for the team that will go to London next year. This will be the first of many meetings. Payson Keeler, you are first."
Payson nodded at her teammates and hoped they took what she said to heart. She hoped they believed it, word for word, because honestly, she wasn't sure if she did herself.
"Payson," Boris said as she walked past him. As she entered the room, she saw the other club coaches look up, each had a smile on his or her face. Boris shut the door behind him. "Payson, sit down." She obeyed. "That was an excellent speech you just gave to your teammates," he said.
"Thank you."
"Did you believe what you were saying to them?" Boris asked, his eyes narrowing at her.
She looked him dead in the eye, "I believe that you can't replace experience at major international competition at the senior elite level."
Sasha smiled at her, "Good answer," he said and the other coaches murmured in agreement.
"Yes, very, how you say, diplomatic," Boris said and then shook his head. "No matter. I think you know we do not have much to discuss today, Payson. You are our National Champion and the reigning World Champion. You are captain of this team and you showed why just a few moments ago. Barring a major injury you will lead this team into London next year."
"Thank you," she said, trying not to become overrun with emotion. Intellectually, she had known this was what they would say to her, but deep down she had refused to believe it until it came from the horse's mouth, so to speak.
"No," Boris said, "thank you. Go enjoy your lunch and send Miss Parker up here."
"It has three bedrooms, but I'm turning one of them into an office," Payson said, as she walked around her new house with Emily, Lauren and Kaylie. They'd arrived right after National team practice to take a look around. The closing went through the day before and as soon as she had the keys in hand, she'd moved in, the furniture for her living room, kitchen and bedroom all were delivered earlier that day. MJ had hired a decorator and when Payson walked in the door, it was basically complete.
"This place is nice, Pay," Lauren said, opening the master bedroom's walk in closet, where most of Payson's clothing was already stored. "I wish my Dad would let me move out."
Kaylie laughed, "You don't have the money to move out, Lo."
Lauren shrugged, "My Dad could buy me one of these. They're not that much. Then we'd be neighbors," she said to Payson who smiled in what she hoped was a convincing way. The last thing she needed was Lauren living near her. That would defeat the entire purpose of having her own place.
"Please, your Dad will not buy you a house," Emily said. "He barely trusts you now after what happened with Carter."
"Carter and I are over, everyone knows that," Lauren insisted. "Besides, that was over a year ago. He's so over it by now."
Kaylie laughed, "You so don't think like a parent, Lo. This place really is amazing though, Payson. It must be really cool to know you own it. It's yours. I've never had anything that my parents didn't buy me."
Payson shrugged. She was still uncomfortable talking about the money she earned from her endorsements. She could talk about it with MJ, but even then she had to put on a tough front, to keep her agent from going overboard. It was why she needed MJ around to talk to her parents about it. It was more money in theory than anything else. She didn't mind it with Sasha, since he'd gone through the same thing during his career, though he always insisted he was a lot less responsible with his money than she was with hers. She rarely saw any cash. There was a modest deposit in a bank account made every two weeks for spending money, but nothing crazy like Lauren's allowance from her father. She shrugged, "It's just money. It sort of comes with the territory, I guess."
Kaylie nodded, "It does, but not like this. My Dad was talking about it last night. MJ's doing an incredible job for you."
Emily laughed, "Yep, MJ did it all, it has nothing to do with Payson's performances, right? I mean every time we go to competition, you break another record, Pay."
"Then there was that thing with Austin. You got a lot of publicity from that little fling," Lauren threw in, as usual trying to stir the pot. "You and Nicky should totally go public again, Kaylie. Give the King and Queen of Gymnastics a run for their money."
Payson's eyes shot to Kaylie, who looked away immediately. Just a few days before, Kaylie had cried her eyes out over Austin Tucker for two hours while Payson listened sympathetically. They'd had a major blowout, the details of which Kaylie hadn't divulged to her, but Austin had, in painful detail. Payson wasn't about to take sides, but if anyone asked her opinion, she understood exactly why Austin said what he had, even if Kaylie still didn't. "Austin and I were never together. The media was just making assumptions."
Lauren laughed, "Assumptions that paid for this house." She flopped down on Payson's bed, "and this ridiculously huge bed. Why did you get a king?"
Payson shrugged, "The decorator said something about it fitting the size of the room. I don't know." Or, you asked specifically for a king sized bed and the decorator had smiled at you knowingly. She thought back to how it had come about.
"Ouch," she said, as the back of her head hit the wall of the trailer.
"Sorry," Sasha said, not looking sorry in the slightest as his hips pressed against hers, forcing the rest of her body against the wall.
She pushed back against him, rolling them over until he lay precariously close to the edge of the bed. "We need a bigger bed," she mumbled as he shifted his weight into her again, her back landing the center of the mattress.
"A king sized monstrosity. I have plans for a bed like that," he murmured, his lips traveling over her neck.
"I'll call the decorator tomorrow," she said, burying her hands in his hair as her back arched, trying to bring their bodies into contact again.
Lauren's laugh jerked her back into present time. "It's such a waste though, all this space and you're not sharing it with anyone."
Payson rolled her eyes, "I have better things to focus on, Lauren and so should you."
"Yeah, I can focus on my beam routine, since that's the only thing I'll be doing at Worlds." Lauren sighed dramatically.
Kaylie sighed, "That's not true. We'll both be doing All-Around in the first round."
Lauren shook her head, "Please, this is where it starts, Just wait, suddenly you'll be Chellsie Memmel in Beijing, one routine and your Olympics is over."
Emily rolled her eyes, "Memmel was injured."
"Enough," Payson said, putting a stop to where this conversation was going. "We knew this was going to happen. Boris is preparing himself like any coach would and he's preparing us mentally for it as well. The Olympics are less than a year away, whatever our roles are it's the Olympics, guys. If one solid beam routine wins us a team gold, then isn't it worth it?"
Lauren shrugged. "Besides, Boris might change his mind after the World Championships, if he feels like some people can't be counted on to be consistent," Lauren said, glaring pointedly at Emily.
Payson stepped in front of Emily and looked Lauren dead in the eye. "Enough."
Lauren held her hands up in mock surrender.
Payson checked her watch. Nine o'clock. She looked at her friends and smirked, "Okay, everyone out. I'm going to bed early tonight. I'm not going to show up tired tomorrow and get a big I told you so look from my mom because I wasn't responsible enough to get to bed at a reasonable hour on my first night here."
She received three identical eye rolls in response, but they all dutifully trudged down the stairs and five minutes later, she had the house all to herself. She sighed. No Becca to steal her clothes, no Mom to cook dinner. Her stomach rumbled in response to the thought. Crap, haven't eaten since lunch.
She heard a horn honk on the driveway, startling her out of her thoughts. She made her way to the front of the house, wondering who it was. Maybe one of the girls forgot something. Opening the door, she saw Sasha's silver truck on the driveway. He was unloading brown paper bags from the backseat.
She raced down her front steps to him. "You're a God send, how did you know?" she asked, stepping forward to peck him on the lips quickly, but his arms quickly snaked around her waist, pulling her closer and deepening the kiss, the groceries forgotten for the moment.
"I've moved in before. Everyone always forgets food," he said, finally answering her question, kicking the car door shut.
"What smells so good?" she asked as they climbed her front steps and went into the house.
"Roasted vegetables and rice pilaf," he said, stopping in the entry way, looking around appreciatively. "You going to give me the tour?"
"After we eat, I'm starving," she said walking straight to her kitchen, the smell of the roasted veggies making her mouth water in anticipation.
She set the table quickly, using the new dish set she and her mother had picked out. "I have a present for you, a sort of joint eighteenth birthday, housewarming gift," he said, pulling a wrapped box from one of the bags and holding it out to her. "Just a little something, somethings actually."
She unwrapped the box quickly and took off the lid to see two crystal champagne flutes nestled in tissue paper. "These are gorgeous, Sasha," she said, stepping towards him and kissing him lightly on the lips. "Thank you."
"That's not all," he said, reaching into the bag again with a grin. "Sparkling cider."
Payson smiled at this rare display of sentimentality. "Like at the ballet," she said, running a finger down one of the glasses lightly.
"And at Christmas," he reminded her and her hand instinctively flew to her neck where the charm he'd given her almost a year before still rested. "I love you." His voice was low and firm as he leaned forward to kiss her again. It was a small, sweet kiss, almost a reaffirmation.
"I love you too," she said softly, as she pulled away a little dazed. There were times when her feelings for him overwhelmed her and this was one of those moments.
The pop of the cork shook her from the dreamy state as he poured them both some cider. She took the food from the bags and set it on the table as they sat down across from each other, silly grins still plastered on their faces.
They ate slowly, for once allowing themselves to simply enjoy the other's company, not worried about anyone interrupting or a self-imposed time limit to make sure they began training on time.
"This is delicious," Payson said, taking another bit of the rice pilaf.
Sasha nodded, washing down his food with the cider. "I got it at that place on Main, Celery."
"The vegetarian place? I hadn't eaten there yet and I wanted to desperately."
"I know," he said, "You mentioned it the other day."
Payson smiled, "You're really racking up thoughtful points tonight," she said.
He chuckled and raised his eyebrows at her, "I know." Their laughter mixed together.
"Are you done?" she asked, noticing his plate was almost clean. She stood and picked up her own plate, before taking his and walking towards the sink. She rinsed off the plates with warm water before drying her hands on a towel, when she felt his strong arms wind around her waist, his lips pressing a hot open mouthed kiss at the base of her neck.
She shivered at the contact, feeling his body press against her back. She leaned back into him as the contentedness that always accompanied his embrace washed over her. "This house was a really good plan," she said, as his mouth nuzzled against her shoulder. She turned in his arms to face him. "Who's idea was that again?" she asked, cheekily, as he moved his lips from her cheek to the small spot behind her ear he always found.
"Yours," he breathed against the patch of skin, "Bloody brilliant idea, love."
She dipped her head to bring their lips together again. He stood tall, pushing her fully against the counter ledge. She rose up on her tip toes to help alleviate the disparity in height. "You had a brilliant idea too, you know?" she said, pulling back a fraction of an inch.
"Did I? he asked, their lips brushing as he spoke.
"Mmhmm, the king sized bed upstairs," she said, her voice dripping with suggestion and promise.
He chuckled, "How about that tour?" he asked, knowing it would only have one stop.
She grabbed his hand and backed out of the kitchen before releasing him. "How about a race?" she challenged, taking off up the stairs, him hot on her heels. She ran down the hallway, through her bedroom doorway and just made it to her bed as his arm wrapped around her and their combined momentum send them careening onto the mattress together.
Payson smiled up at him, "We win."