A/N: Who's excited for 2016?
FOUR. TIME. WORLD. BEAM. CHAMPION.
(Yes, this is literally the whole question) I KNOW RIGHT! She's so good, I love it. Can't wait for her to dominate the beam final next year and win her second Olympic title (no pressure!). Seriously though, when do we start crowdfunding to buy JJ a crown that says Beam Queen because GIRL NEEDS ONE.
On an actual more incredible note, JJ is the first gymnast ever to hold more than two world beam titles AND to hold them consecutively along with the most recent Olympic title, so that is seriously impressive.
What was the deal with JJ at Worlds? She didn't seem very happy even though she had a great week.
You probably missed it or you may know by now; JJ's father was diagnosed with cancer while JJ was in Glasgow, and she found out the night before the team final. She did have a great meet, but in the grand scheme of things, a handful of medals at Worlds just doesn't take away the pain of a loved one fighting cancer.
Do you think JJ's going to stick around next year now that her dad isn't well? She's always spoken about how close she is to her dad, she seems like the kind of person who would want to be with him through all of this.
Hmm... I actually can't say I have a definitive answer for this. JJ is a very private person compared to a lot of the other girls, and it's really hard to tell what she's going to do unless you actually see her walk out into the competition arena. You're right in saying that she's very close to her dad, she speaks very highly of her relationship with him, and I know I've heard him in the stands at Nationals cheering for her... she might not want to handle competition without knowing he's in the stands, or she might want to push through and do this for him. It's a bit of a guessing game. We'll have to wait and see.
Seeing Will in the concourse near the arrival gate had flooded JJ with a sense of relief she couldn't even describe. With no words spoken between the two of them, she'd simply walked straight into Will's arms, sinking against him as he wrapped her up tighter than he'd ever held her before.
Sensing that upon arriving home, JJ would be eager to simply spend time with her family, Nick had already bid his goodbyes at the gate, heading out of the terminal on his way to a meeting he'd arranged a few days earlier; the hunt for the assistant coach had not turned up anyone who Nick felt was right for the gym, and so he had postponed hiring anyone until after they had returned from Worlds.
"You ok?" Will finally asked after what felt like forever, gently pulling away so he could see JJ's face.
"Yeah," JJ said softly, giving him a reassuring smile. "I just want to see my dad"
"He's at the hospital today. Your mom said he's having his first round of chemo. I can take you straight there if you like, your mom should be there too," Will said warmly, reaching down and taking her larger bag from her hands.
"Please," JJ replied, falling into step beside him as they started to walk towards the terminal exit. Internally, her stomach was churning again. She hadn't seen her dad since leaving for camp. While she was excited and relieved to be able to see him again, part of her was anxious. She'd never witnessed someone battling cancer firsthand, and even though she would never admit it, she was afraid of exactly what that was going to look like.
As they reached Will's truck, Will leant over and pressed a gentle kiss to her temple, simply reminding her that he was there for her, and he would be at her side no matter what.
Almost instantaneously, she started to feel a little better.
Everything was too white, too clean, too... medical. She hated it. She'd hated it when she dislocated her shoulder, she'd hated it when she'd broken her leg, and she hated it still now.
Unsure where she was supposed to go, she stood rooted to the spot, looking a little overwhelmed as she glanced between all the signs pointing to various wards. Clutched tightly in her hand were the four newest medals in her collection; she wanted to show them to her dad and put a smile on his face.
Just as Will was about to step up behind her and remind her to breathe, a kind looking nurse approached them from the nearest hallway. She had long dark hair which was pulled back in a simple ponytail, and eyes that reminded JJ of her mother.
"Are you alright?" she asked softly, a warm smile on her face.
"Uh... I don't kn... I'm looking for my dad, Michael Jareau. He's having chemo today-"
The nurse chuckled, beckoning for JJ and Will to follow her. "I know your dad. He's been keeping the whole outpatient ward entertained today"
JJ broke into a grin as Will slipped an arm around her waist. They walked side by side, following the nurse to the end of the hall and into a large open room. The room was full of wide windows that allowed plenty of light to come streaming in. Despite being in a hospital, it was warm and inviting. To their left was a small nurses station, with a few nurses milling around inside. Off to the right, the room was rather large, with comfortable armchairs everywhere they looked, at least ten of them currently occupied. If it weren't for the IV poles beside each chair and nurses moving around checking tubing, JJ wouldn't have believed it was part of the hospital.
"There's your dad over there," the nurse who'd brought them said gently, gesturing towards a chair at the back of the room.
With a hurried thank you to the nurse, JJ headed in the direction of her father's armchair. She could now see him, her mom right beside him as she flipped through a magazine.
Seeing him felt like a sharp kick in the gut; he looked a lot worse than when she'd left. He had clearly lost weight, and his skin seemed to carry a grey undertone. Add to that he was incredibly pale, and looked exhausted... JJ was starting to wonder just how she was going to keep it together.
"There she is!" came her dad's excited voice just seconds later. Breaking into a wide smile, JJ set the medals down on the small table beside the armchair, before leaning down and wrapping her arms around him in a loving embrace.
"I'm so proud of you peanut," Michael whispered.
Fighting back tears, JJ pulled away, turning to her mom and hugging her tightly as well.
"You were amazing, you all were," Sandy gushed as she gave JJ a comforting squeeze. "We watched everything"
"So this is the new hardware," Michael said as JJ pulled away from her mom, wiping her eyes as she took the other vacant seat beside his chair. Will chose to stand behind her, leaning on the back of the chair for support.
"Yeah," JJ said softly, a smile crossing her face as her dad reached over and lifted up one of the gold medals. Across the back it bore the engraving Women's Balance Beam Champion.
"You're a little bit unbeatable, hey?" Michael chuckled, passing the gold medal to Sandy before picking up one of the silver medals as one of the nurses approached with a syringe filled with clear liquid.
"Just getting a little more anti-nausea onboard Michael," the nurse said with a smile, reaching for the tubing that JJ was only just noticing was protruding from her father's chest.
"You must be JJ," the nurse asked as she pushed the syringe into the port on the end of the tube.
"I am," JJ said with a nod.
"We've all heard plenty about you," the nurse chuckled. "I'm Angie, I'm one of your dad's primary nurses"
Reaching up, JJ shook Angie's hand. "Nice to meet you"
"So you've been away competing at the world gymnastics championships, is that right?" Angie asked as she cleared away the medical waste that had accumulated on the shelving behind Michael's chair. "Your dad's been keeping everyone up to date"
JJ looked at her dad with a grin, shaking her head slightly as Sandy laughed. "I think Dad would tell a squirrel about my gymnastics if it stood still long enough," she laughed.
"I'm just proud," Michael scoffed. "How many people can say their daughter is the most decorated gymnast in America?"
"It's kind of funny actually that I've ended up looking after your dad, because I have a little six year old girl, Isabella, and she does gymnastics, and honestly, some days, you're all I ever hear about," Angie chuckled. "She adores you"
JJ beamed. "That's so sweet. I'll have to bring you some signed things for her"
"She would probably pass out from joy," Angie laughed. "She's my crazy girl"
Despite the heartache she'd endured while she had been away, and despite how ill her dad looked, JJ couldn't help but start to feel as if things were definitely going to be ok. Her dad was in good spirits, and was in even better hands with the staff at the hospital.
Surely it wasn't all doom and gloom.