Authors Note:
I couldn't stop once I started and I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! :)
Chapter Twenty
Time Jump – Spring Session
Clary POV:
I was getting ready to look at all the applicants for the spring session and we had way more than anticipated. After the Olympics wrapped more boarders and skaters were coming to our facility from all over the world. One was from Australia, and that was just the beginning. I was flipping through files when the phone rang.
"Herondale Snow Boarding and Figure Skating Training Facility, how can I help you?" I said.
"Mrs. Herondale, it's Ian Turner." I heard and I smiled.
"Ian, how are you?" I asked.
"I'm alright. Listen, I need to talk to you about something." He sounded worried.
"Is everything okay? Is Jacqueline okay?" I asked. She hadn't told me anything was wrong, and it was weird for Ian to be calling me.
"Everything is good, but I'm coming to visit." He said.
"Really? What's the occasion?" I asked.
"My brother applied for your facility over the winter, and he got the letter accepting him for the spring session, and since he moves in in a couple days I'll be there helping." He explained.
"That's great. Have you told Jacqueline?" I asked.
"I haven't. I want to surprise her." He said and I smiled.
"Okay, I have an idea. I have to meet with all the families and go over what's happening. Normally it takes me way too long so Jacqueline and Patrick help me out, I'll make sure she's with me while your brother is moving in."
"That sounds great Mrs. Herondale. I really appreciate this."
"Of course Ian. I'll see you in a couple days." I said and we hung up. I was excited for Ian to come but only because I knew it would make Jacqueline really happy. I went back to sifting through the files to fill the last 6 spots and man was it always really tough.
Time Jump – A Couple Days Later
Jacqueline POV:
I was sitting in my room while all the athletes were moving in. I hated being caught up in all that chaos. Every now and than mom asks me to help, but I try to stay indoors until the meet we have before the parents leave. I was sitting in the living room with Karina when my mom walks in.
"Hey hun, I have so many people today and I can't do it alone, would you mind helping?" She asked and I internally groaned but smiled at her.
"Of course mom." I said and stood up. She handed me a stack of files and I went to make my rounds. Most of the kids here were pretty young, but we did have kids my age here. They were mostly here to work on their skills and make them harder. My dad was a pro at making runs harder and the older kids really appreciated that.
I was done with the last file I had and I didn't see my mom anywhere. I walked around for a little until I just stood in front of the guys cabin and decided to shout.
"Clary Herondale, your daughter needs you!" I shouted.
"I'm in room 110 Jacqueline." I heard her say and I started walking towards her. When I got to the room and walked in I stopped dead in my tracks.
"Ian." I said and he smiled at me. It took a moment but soon I was running and jumping into his arms. "Oh my god what are you doing here?" I asked.
"James wanted to get even better and what better place to train in the world?" Ian said and I laughed.
"You totally knew." I pointed at my mom.
"He called a couple days ago." She confessed.
"I knew you didn't need my help. All the kids you gave me were returners. They knew the drill." I said and she walked over and kissed my temple.
"Guilty, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to see your reaction." She said and I hugged her.
"Thanks mom." I said and she smiled.
"My pleasure. Now, 2:30 is the meeting, and I expect you and Ian to be in attendance. Don't sneak off." She said and I laughed.
"I will drag his ass to the meeting area." I said and she laughed.
"I will see you all soon." She said and she exited the room.
"There is a mandatory meeting?" Ian asked and I laughed.
"Oh yea. It's basically saying that if you don't give 110% they won't be afraid to kick you out and never invite you back." I said.
"Holy shit. That sounds intense." James said.
"It's pretty intimidating." I said.
"Well, your dad is an intimidating guy." Ian said.
"My mom gives the speech." I said.
"Really? Why not your dad?"
"Because despite how cocky my dad can be, my mom is the backbone of the behind the scenes of this place. If my mom doesn't see a kid giving 110% she won't be afraid to tell you." I said and they nodded. "My mom stopped teaching the figure skating when she was pregnant with my little sister, and she started doing all the administrative work, and she is really good at it, where as my dad is totally focused on training the boarders. They have a great system and my dad knows not to get in her way."
"Sounds like they make the perfect team." Ian said as we all exited the cabin. I looked over and saw my mom and dad in each others arms and my mom was laughing at something my dad said, and she was smiling like an idiot.
"Yea, they are the perfect team." I said. If I get half of their love with someone I will be the luckiest girl in the world. "Alright, let me show you the way." I said and I lead them to the meeting area. I walked with them while they sat down. "I have to go down there but I'll see you after." I said and he gave me a kiss and I met down with my parents. After every one filed in my mom cleared her throat.
"Welcome Olympic hopefuls and families, my name is Clary Herondale and this is my facility that I run along with my husband, Jace Herondale. The little one right here is our youngest, Karina, she isn't involved with any program and I don't think she ever will, but she will be around the facility a lot, so keep an eye out for her. She tends to be blunt, so if you suck, she'll let you know." She said and everyone laughed. "We are glad you chose our facility to train at, and if you are here right now it means that you are the best of the best." My mom started. I looked around and I saw the fear in some kids faces. "We take everything really seriously around here. You will wake up at the crack of dawn, and sometimes you won't get back to your room until late at night, but you all want that gold medal and that's what it takes to be on that podium." My mom said. "I dedicated 10+ years of my life to figure skating to reach my goal and so did my husband. We take everything seriously here. If you are injured we have a phenomenal staff to take care of you. If you are not putting everything into your training, I will not hesitate to ask you to leave." She said. "Behind me is the staff. Emma and Mark are part of the snowboarding staff along with my husband. They will be your lifeline while you're here. They report back to me if they notice any slacking off, so don't even try. Julian and Camille are the staff for the figure skaters. I will not be teaching this spring due to a lot of administrative things I have to attend to, but my son Patrick will take over the classes that I used to teach. He is a silver gold medalist in his sport, and you will treat him with respect. He is a coach, and should get the same level of respect that Julian and Camille get. Jacqueline is my daughter and is part of the snowboarding group." My mom said and she smiled at me. "For all the newbies, don't underestimate her."
"Jack, Jack, Jack, Jack, Jack." The older boys started chanting for me. After a minutes they calmed down and my mom laughed.
"This facility will test your limits and make you question your abilities more than I'd like to admit, but just remember, I can always find a boarder or a skater who wants it more than you. So if you don't take this seriously, I'll find someone who will." She ended and all the kids looked scared. "Parents must be out by 3:30, and you're all dismissed." The families and athletes got up and started walking out. We stood there for a moment to give them time to make it back to their cabin when I heard my dad start talking.
"You're still incredibly sexy when you give that speech." I heard and I gaged. They looked at me and laughed.
"Seriously, we all know that's how Karina was born, and I don't think we need another one running around with dad's OCD." I said and they walked over to me. They each put an arm around me.
"Why ruin the three most perfect children with another one." Dad said and I laughed. We all walked out of the building and I made my way over to Ian again. When I got to his room I walked in and was surprised when he was roomed with Tucker.
"Wow, who would have thought you two would be roommates." I said and Tucker laughed.
"Fate brought us together again." Tucker said and he put his arm around James. James laughed and pushed Tucker away. "You ready for this session?"
"Hell yea. I can't wait to kick your ass in competitions again." I said and he laughed.
"What exactly goes on here?" James asked.
"Well, you really do get up at the ass crack of dawn like Clary said. Than you eat breakfast, and check for when your sessions will be. Either morning afternoon or night. If they are in the morning, you workout in the afternoon, if they are in the afternoon, you work out in the morning, and if they are at night, you workout in whichever one you want." Tucker explained.
"So what do you do with the portion you don't have anything planned for?" Ian asked.
"Well, if you have the night off most kids hang out in the lounge area. If you have the morning off, most kids grab a late breakfast so they can sleep in, and if you have the afternoon off, you can go and watch the skaters train or watch the boarder." Tucker said. "I like watching the skaters personally."
"That's because you're in love with Ava." I said and he glared at me.
"I am not." He said and I laughed.
"Tucker, you've been pining after her for three years, grow a pair and ask her out."
"And what the hell are we going to do? We can't leave the grounds." Tucker said.
"A lot of people find ways to occupy the time without leaving the grounds." I said and he smirked.
"Just because you can take boys into your house to make out with them doesn't mean I can." Tucker said and I was a little nervous how Ian would react but he just laughed along with James
"That was one time, I was like 14. I got caught, and I was grounded, and that kid never came back. Plus, my brother has taken plenty of girls on simply dates right here on the grounds." I said.
"Patrick gets around?" Ian asked and Tucker snorted.
"That kid is a chick magnet. It's weird because all the girls who he sees that go here never come back." Tucker said.
"That's because he dumps them before they leave."
"Who knew Patrick was a heartbreaker." Ian said.
"Everyone. Ever since he started looking like my dad, we all knew the girls wee doomed." I said and everyone laughed.
"Anyway, every weekend there are competitions." Tucker adds.
"Wait, we don't get the weekends off?" James asks.
"You get one day. But its spent watching the competitions. Snowboarders go on Saturdays, and figure skaters go on Sundays."
"This sounded better on the website." James said and I laughed.
"Trust me, it's a lot of fun." I said. "My parents make it seem like you aren't working your ass off and you're just having fun. Once a month they give us a Friday off and we literally have game days. Pretty much the whole facility chills in the lounge all day and watches movies, eats junk food, plays board games, and at night my parents let the figure skaters be boarders and the boarder's be figure skaters and there is a competition to see who can transition the best." I said.
"Who normally wins?" James asks.
"Well, when Jack and Pat aren't participating the skaters for some reason blow the boarders out of the water." Tucker says.
"What happens when Jack and Pat are a part of it?" James asks.
"It becomes the funniest show you've ever seen. Since Jack and Pat were both brought up boarding and skating they are both good at each, and it's so annoying but hilarious when they go head to head. Cause Pat is better than her on ice, and Jack is better than him on snow, but they are still both pretty badass at both." Tucker explains.
"I feel like I'm in for a rude awakening." James says and we all laugh.
"You'll be fine. You're an Olympic gold medalist. You can handle the pressure." I said and he smiled.
"But watch out for Jace man. He can be a dictator." Tucker said and I laughed.
"It's true. He's a pretty tough coach, but he gets results, and that's why this place is as successful as it is." I said and they smiled. The bell rang which symboled for the families to leave. I walked with Ian's family to the exit and we were saying goodbye when Karina ran up to us.
"Jack!" He yelled and I turned around. "Mom says that while you all are getting the first lecture from dad they were to wait in the house."
"Why?" I asked feeling nervous.
"She wants them to stay for dinner." Karina said and I felt a little weight lifted off my shoulder.
"Okay, tell mom we're on our way." I said and she turned around to walk away. "Wait, Karina." I said and she turned back towards me. "Is James invited too?"
"Yea, she want's the whole family." Karina said and made her way back to the house.
"Follow her, and James and I should be done in about an hour." I said and Ian gave me a sweet kiss before his parents and him started walking towards the house. I turned to James and smiled. "Prepare to be completely and totally drained for the next 4 months." I said and he laughed and we made our way over to the half pipe. All the boarders were standing opposite of my dad and I made my way over to his side. He put his arm around my shoulder and I smiled.
"Welcome newbies and returners. Now if you're a returner this speech will sound the exact same, but bare with me." Dad said. "This program is designed to test every possible limit your body can reach and to push them beyond what you've ever done before. I'm not going to go easy on you. Some of you have your parents as your coaches, and some of you don't but you share that coach with 75 other kids. I know what it's like, my father was my coach and he was brutal. He worked me until some night I had to sleep in my car because I didn't have the energy to drive home. I am not going to be your father or your friend on this half pipe. I will keep it as professional as you need me to be." He explained and everyone nodded. "I will be hard on those who need it, and I will be hands off on those who don't need as much. Don't take this as me being condescending to you. If you need a tougher coach, I will be that for you. If I think you're doing a good job I won't be as tough. But let me make myself perfectly clear, my wife wasn't lying. She will ask you to leave if you aren't putting 110% into everything here. We sit in our bed at night and discuss this to see if we need to cut anyone lose." My dad said and it made me really happy that I was his daughter and not a stranger. "Emma and Mark are going to be the same. We have a midpoint evaluation and a final evaluation, and those are considered if you want to come back for the next session. We are here to make you Olympians. We aren't going to go easy or spare your feelings. This facility is to make you the person you couldn't be on your own, and we pride ourselves in being one of the best training facilities in Europe."
"I think you've scared them enough dad." I said and he laughed.
"Listen boarders, this place is no joke, and it's going to test you, and you might cry. But don't be afraid to ask for help either. If you see me around the grounds come up to me as start up a conversation. I won't turn you away. We can be friends off the half pipe, but when sessions are in full swing, I am your coach." He said and they all nodded. "If you don't believe me, ask Tucker, that kid wouldn't shut up after he realized he could talk to me without stuttering."
"It's true. I saw him in the lounge, started talking, and I haven't shut up since." Tucker said and everyone laughed. "But he is serious. Jace is a great dude, and he's really chill and a great person to know, but he's all business on that half pipe, and he knows what he's talking about, so listen, learn and kick ass."
"Very well said Tucker." My dad said and I smiled. "Now, today I just want to girls to go with Emma, and the boys to go with Mark and I'll be around to discuss future plans and give your sessions out." My dad said and everyone broke apart. I stood there with my dad for a moment and looked up at him.
"Have I ever told you have happy I am that you're my dad?" I said and he kissed my temple.
"Yes, but it doesn't hurt to hear it baby. Now go to Emma, I'll see you inside for dinner." He said and I smiled before making my way over to girls group.
Clary POV:
When Ian and his parents walked into the house I was finally glad to be able to meet them. I only talked to Ian when we were at the Olympics but I wanted this dinner so that I could get to know his family as well. Karina immediately grabbed Ian and made him play with her until dinner was ready and I couldn't help but laugh.
"Would you like anything to drink? Wine, beer, iced tea, soda, juice, I have pretty much anything." I said and Mrs. Turned smiled.
"I would love some wine." She said and I went and got the bottle.
"I'll just have some iced tea." Mr. Turned said and I grabbed a bottle from the fridge.
"I haven't really introduced myself to you properly. I'm Clary, Jacqueline's mom."
"I'm Charlotte, and this is my husband Harrison." She said and I smiled.
"It's really nice to finally meet you guys. Jacqueline wouldn't let us met anyone besides Ian during the Olympics."
"Ian said the same thing. We kept asking, but all he kept saying was that he didn't want us to interfere with his relationship." Charlotte said and I laughed.
"I was worried about them at first. I know how hard long distance can be, and I was really scared when the Olympics ended." I admitted.
"So was I." Charlotte said. "That boy has never had a very long lasting relationship. At tops it would be 2 or 3 months and than they would break up, but here they are going on 6 and I'm completely surprised."
"I know. Jacqueline has dated but relationships never really blossomed out of it. She knows what she likes and what she doesn't like and when I saw how happy she was and how much she liked Ian I was worried the distance would be a deal breaker." I confessed.
"For two weeks after the Olympics he just moped around." Harrison said and I laughed.
"Jacqueline was distant too. She would speak when necessary but other than that she just looked so sad." I said and they both nodded. "I'm really glad James picked out facility to train at, and that Ian was able to make it out to see her, and that we finally got to meet."
"Me too. I knew I was going to like you because of how polite Jack is." Charlotte said. I smiled and continued making dinner while we made more small talk. When Jacqueline, James, and Jace all came in from the meeting all we were waiting for was Patrick. Once he arrived, with lipstick on his collar, and a guilty face they washed up and we all sat down for dinner. I loved seeing Jacqueline happy again. This smile was different than the smile she's been wearing recently and looking around this table made me believe that something special was forming, and I was pretty pumped to watch it grow.