A/N: 3 sleeps until I fly out to the 2024 Xfinity Gymnastics Championships to witness Simone Biles in the FLESH!

"The last time these two ladies competed together, it resulted in three Olympic gold medals apiece. Now, two years out from the Tokyo Olympics, the athletes that many consider to be the best female gymnasts of all time are competing together again. She took a break from the sport after Rio, but now Simone Biles is back on the competition floor, rejoining her partner in crime, the reigning Olympic all-around Champion, Jennifer Jareau, or JJ as she is more affectionately known. JJ is back to the floor after sustaining an injury at last year's world championships…. which were supposed to be her last, but apparently, there's more in store for the decorated Olympian. The Olympic Channel, home of Team USA, proudly presents the 2018 US Classic. It's a beautiful evening here in Columbus, the state capital, largest city, and also, the campus of the Ohio State University. That's where we are, inside the Schottenstein Centre. Top gymnasts from America, including Simone Biles and Jennifer Jareau, looking at upgrades, testing routines, with an eye on the upcoming US and World Championships, and of course, Tokyo 2020. Biles getting ready, and so are we!"

First competition of the season.

If JJ was perfectly honest with herself, she wasn't sure whether her head was in a good space for competition. But there was no pressure for this meet, and so both Nick and Rachel had wholeheartedly agreed it was a great opportunity to get out and test her routines, her body, and her nerves. At the end of the day, she was still here because she loved gymnastics… and that was ultimately the final impression she wanted to leave on the floor. Which was ironically where she was starting her meet.

"Why do they always stick me and you in the same rotation?" Simone said with a giggle as she walked up to her. JJ grinned, shrugging her shoulders.

"Probably so we're not on the apparatus at the same time and the cameraman doesn't have to run as far"

"Simone and JJ waiting by the floor, both highly anticipated routines coming up. Now, JJ's had a big year, hasn't she Nastia?"

"She absolutely has, she obviously got injured last year at the World Championships, she sustained an Achilles injury on her very last event, so the early part of this year was spent rehabbing and recovering from that injury. But in May, she got married to her longtime partner, Will LaMontagne, and went on her honeymoon to the Maldives, all before deciding she was going to come back to gymnastics and see what else she had left to give to the sport. And all I can say is that she is of course a fan favourite, and such a joy both on and off the competition floor. I think everyone is incredibly glad to see her back for another round"

Up in the stands, JJ's cheering squad had settled back in like it was nothing, albeit a little bit smaller than usual. With Katie still struggling with morning sickness, she and Jason hadn't been able to travel up to Ohio for the meet like they normally would… but JJ knew they were watching at home, and that was more than enough for her to feel the love. One by one, Will, Sandy, and Paul had filed into their seats in the front row opposite the floor, taking in the familiar atmosphere of the arena as the girls warmed up and TV cameras roamed around capturing the establishing shots.

"I can't believe we're back here," Sandy chuckled as Paul returned from getting water for the three of them. She gratefully took two bottles from his hands, passing the second one down to Will. "She just continues to amaze me. And give me grey hair"

"She looks really happy," Will mused with a smile, nodding towards where JJ and Simone were standing together, chatting easily as they stretched and kept warm for the rotation ahead. "I think as much as she was set on retirin'... gymnastics truly is where she's meant to be right now"

"I'm excited to see what this is all about," Paul added on, making Sandy let out a little laugh and reach for his hand.

"Oh honey, you've got no idea what you're about to witness. JJ and Simone have constantly pushed each other to be better for the last five years and it has resulted in some truly insanely difficult gymnastics between the two of them"

Paul grinned. "So I'm about to see where those ten Olympic medals came from?"

"Without a doubt"

Down on the floor, Nick approached JJ as the warmups for the first rotation ended and Jade Carey moved into position at the edge of the floor. "How are you feeling?"

JJ took a deep breath, furrowing her brow slightly as she shrugged. "I actually don't know"

Nick frowned, taking a step out in front of her so he could see her face properly. "Good? Bad? Nervous?"

"Just… I don't know. Not nervous. Not bad," she replied nonchalantly. "I'm ok though. I think I just feel a little off because I've never gone into a competition with such a weird headspace before"

"Yeah, but let me remind you, you've gone into competitions in much worse headspaces before," Nick said softly. "No pressure today, ok? Let's just get those comp muscles warm again. And if it's not working or you're not feeling mentally prepared, we'll reassess in the gym next week"

JJ nodded, looking up at Nick with a smile. "I am happy to be back though"

"I know," Nick replied, smiling back as he patted her shoulder. "You know though, if that changes at any point, you just have to say the word. You've achieved everything you've wanted and more in this sport… there's no point continuing to put yourself through this if your heart isn't 100% in it anymore"

"Yeah. Thanks for putting up with my constant in and out over the last couple of years"

Nick laughed. "JJ, I probably won't believe a retirement from you until it's on a gravestone"

Giggling, JJ shook her head in amusement. "I just like to keep you guessing"

"Sure," Nick snorted, stepping back as Laurent Landi came up to shake his hand.

The first couple of routines seemed to fly by, and before she knew it, JJ was climbing the steps to be ready at the edge of the floor.

"So we're going to go across now to the floor exercise where the reigning world and Olympic all-around champion is about to go"

"Don't forget she is the reigning world floor champion as well"

"Oh of course"

"Are we expecting upgrades from JJ today?"

"I don't think so. I'd be surprised if she came in at her full difficulty that she had last year, considering she's coming back off a significant injury. Although, I do believe she has revamped her bars routine, because it was the only event she could properly train for a while, so we may see a new skill or two there"

"On floor for Romero's, Jennifer Jareau!"

Raising her arms into the air, JJ saluted the judges amidst excited cheers from the watching crowd. Stepping out onto the floor, she readied herself in her starting pose, taking a deep breath to steady herself and calm the nerves.

There was a short near silence before her music began, loud and energetic as it reverberated through the arena. Almost immediately, she felt it invigorate her, amp her up, and make her want to absolutely smash the routine out of the park.

She broke into the first section of dance at her cue, feeling strong as she made her way into the corner for her first pass.

"Here we go, first tumble for Jennifer Jareau"

She took off, generating speed and power as she hurdled into her first tumbling line. Punching out of the backflip, she wrapped around her double double layout, landing it with only a small step forward as the crowd went wild.

"She's still got the double double layout, INCREDIBLE!"

The next two tumbling lines were just as strong - a double layout, followed by the combination pass she had been using the last two years - and before she knew it, she was at the end of the routine, lining up for her last pass. Sucking in a deep breath, she surged across the floor, generating as much power and stamina as she possibly could. Out of the backflip, she punched into a powerful tucked double double - but possibly too powerful, for when she hit the floor, she immediately bounced backwards and over the boundary line with both feet.

"Little bit too much juice there, but wow! What a spectacular finish!"

Throwing herself into her final pose, she couldn't help but smile as the crowd roared with delight at the conclusion of her routine. Turning towards the judges, she saluted again, before heading over to the stairs where Nick was waiting.

"Nice job! Achilles held up?"

"No pain," JJ replied simply. "I overcooked the double double though"

"Yeah, but you've never done it as a closing pass, so you weren't sure if you were gonna have enough steam for it. Next time, you know to just reign it in a little," Nick said with a smile, patting her shoulder and peeling off as she reached her bag.

The competition was well and truly underway after that. After another electric floor routine from Simone (where she debuted her own double double layout), they moved around to the vault. There, it was a solid showing for both of them, JJ with an Amanar, and Simone with a Cheng, and JJ was starting to feel like she was back in her groove.

Unfortunately, it was in the third rotation that it came undone. Simone's new and improved bars routine was going well until she overdid it on a pirouette atop the high bar. While trying to save it, she seemed to lock up, her right hand not able to grip the bar, and off the apparatus she came. After a quick pep talk from Laurent, she started the routine all over again, nailing it completely and closing it out with her new double twisting double tuck dismount.

"That bars routine was a piece of shit," Simone spat as she rejoined the group at the chairs. JJ laughed, looping an arm around her friend's shoulders in consolation. "Don't worry, we've all been there"

And as if she had spoken it into existence, just a few minutes later, JJ was having troubles of her own.

Halfway through the routine, swinging down into a release, it went haywire. She could feel as soon as she let go of the bar that she hadn't driven the kick out far enough. And sure enough, after flipping through a clean laid out Jaeger, her fingertips barely brushed the top of the bar before she crashed down on her stomach on the mat.

"Ooh, ouch, that… that was a new skill for JJ, a laid out front flip release from the bar, but she was just a bit too far away from the bar to make the catch on the other side"

"You ok?" Nick asked as she pulled herself to her feet.

"Yeah. I was too far away, I let go too early," she said bluntly, walking over to the chalk bowl with him just a couple of steps behind her.

"Alright. Shake it off. Only a couple more skills to finish the routine," Nick said encouragingly.

"She's going to be quite annoyed about that. She's always been pretty tough on herself when it comes to mistakes on bars, because it's an event she's worked incredibly hard to become a top challenger on"

Grips chalked again, she marched back over to stand under the high bar, Nick coming to stand behind her. Adjusting the hand straps once more, she looked up at the bar and nodded once to indicate to Nick that she was ready. He gripped her waist as she jumped up, boosting her up so she could grab the bar once more. She quickly got her swing back, executing a kip to get her back up on top of the bar. All that was left were two pirouettes, which she did in clean, quick succession, followed by two giant swings into her dismount - a double twisting double layout, an upgrade from her previous season.

She landed the dismount with only a little hop forward, turning and saluting the judges with a blank expression. As the crowd applauded for her, she turned and walked off the podium with Nick at her side.

"First meet back," he reminded her gently. "Don't be too hard on yourself"

"Yeah," JJ sighed, unbuckling her grips and beginning to take them off as she stopped short at her bag.

One more event to go.

While beam had been her best showing of the night, it was still not her usual standard. A few balance checks and a short landing on the dismount meant she was quite disappointed with her overall showing. Even though it was enough to secure second place in the all-around behind Simone, she couldn't help but feel a little deflated as they returned back to the hotel.

"What's on your mind?" Will asked softly later that evening as he came out of the bathroom toweling his hair. JJ heaved a sigh, leaning back against the pillows and pulling her knees up to her chest.

"Do you want to do this again?" she asked in a soft voice.

Will frowned, casting the towel aside onto the nearby armchair and coming to sit in front of her on the bed. "I'm not sure what you mean"

To his surprise, her eyes suddenly began to fill with tears. "All day, I felt like I was wrestling with myself over what the hell I'm doing, and whether I still want to be doing this, whether you still want to be doing this, and I'm still just… I feel so lost"

"What do you mean if I still want to be doin' this?" Will asked.

JJ let out a shaky breath, a small sob escaping as she did. "I just keep putting you through this yearly cycle. Dragging you across the country to meets. Surely this isn't what you want"

"JJ, all I could ever want for you is for you to be happy," he said gently, lifting a hand to wipe away the tears tracking down her cheeks. "If that means we traipse around the country and around the world every year for you to compete, then fuck it babe, that's what we'll do"

"You never signed up for this," JJ sniffed.

Will chuckled, tipping her chin up so she could see his face. "Babe… that's exactly what I signed up for when I decided it was time to face my feelin's after the Olympics in 2012. I took that plunge knowin' that that wasn't it for you, and I have never expected that you would give it all up until you were 100% ready. I never would either"

JJ sniffed back a sob, a couple more tears dripping down her cheeks.

"What's really goin' on babe? Why are you so upset?" Will asked in a soft voice, opening his arms to her as she clambered into his lap, her legs looping around his waist as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"I don't know," she said quietly, her tearful voice muffled against his neck. "My head feels like a mess. I had fun today, being back out on the floor with the girls, but there's this little nagging feeling in the back of my head that makes me wonder if I'm truly enjoying it anymore. I feel like I… like I keep teasing retirement and a normal life, and then ripping that out from underneath you-"

"JJ, I never want to hear you say that again," Will replied, his voice gentle but firm. "I promise you… if any part of me was unhappy with this arrangement, I would tell you"

Lifting her head, JJ looked at him for a moment before she spoke. "You promise?"

"Wholeheartedly," Will replied without missing a beat, lifting a hand to brush a few stray locks of hair out of her face. "You have done so many amazin' things over the last few years… and I am so lucky to get to be by your side witnessin' every single one. If you want to outdo Oksana Chusovitina, I'll be behind you every step of the way. If you decide tomorrow that you want to throw in the towel and move on, I'll support that decision. But at the end of the day… doin' this sport, pushin' yourself to the next level… that's entirely your decision, babe. Completely and utterly yours. And whatever you want to do, I'll support it. I don't want you wrestlin' yourself like this, feelin' guilty or makin' yourself upset because you think that you should retire. There's no should in this equation JJ. It's what you want. And you know somethin'? You tried to talk yourself out of this relationship on the very first day by tellin' me that I would end up wantin' someone normal… and that has never been the case. I love you, I love the life we have together, and I love gettin' to watch you do all the incredible things you do. Never, for a second, have I ever considered throwin' that all away for a 'normal' life"

"I feel like this is probably why my head is such a mess lately"

Will gave her a small smile. "You could be onto somethin' there"

Tears beginning to subside, JJ let out a heavy sigh. "Probably why my gymnastics was such a hot mess today too"

"Hey," Will scolded gently. "Don't say that. You were incredible"

JJ rolled her eyes. "I made mistakes all over the place"

Shaking his head, Will wrapped his arms around her, holding her flush up against him. "Doesn't matter. You've overcome a lot to be where you are today and I'm not just talkin' about your injury or your mental health as of late. I think you sometimes forget to remind yourself how incredible it is that you've had all these things happen in your life that have tried to knock you down, and yet year after year, you keep gettin' up and givin' this sport everythin' you have to offer. Yeah, you might have made a few mistakes today, it's your first meet of the season after a pretty intense injury, I think that's ok. But you went out there and showed everyone that eight years in and a lot of heartbreak later, you've still got what it takes to be at the top, and you do it with so much joy and love. That's why people look up to you Jayje… not because you can do a Moors… well maybe a little bit because you can do a Moors-"

JJ laughed, draping her arms over his shoulders, her eyes bright and her tears dried.

"-but because you keep tryin'. And whether you win the meet or you come dead last… you do this because you love it. And I genuinely don't ever want you to feel like you have to promise me that you're goin' to retire. I don't care if we keep going through this cycle every year for the rest of our lives. You're happy and thrivin' out there, so if you feel like you want to keep goin'… I'm not goin' to stand in your way"

JJ stared up at him for a moment before letting out a tiny laugh. "Why do you always entertain such deep conversations when I'm half asleep and emotional as hell?"

Will chuckled, pressing a kiss to the tip of her nose. "Because I know it's when your walls are at their lowest and I'll get a decently truthful answer out of you"

JJ let out a noise that was somewhere between a laugh and a sigh, leaning back in and tucking her head underneath his chin as he began to run gentle circles on her lower back with the tip of his finger. "I am happy. My head might be a bit all over the place right now, but I am happy"

"I know you are babe"

"I'm happiest out on the gym floor. Or living life with you. Those are the two times when I just feel… free. Free to just relax and forget all the awful stuff that's ever happened to me. And being out on the competition floor, it's… there was a time last year when I hated who I'd become. I hated myself and didn't think I was worthy of love or adoration. And even after you and I were back together and I was doing well in therapy… there was a part of me that still felt like that right up until I walked into the floor at Nationals"

"And all those people started screamin' your name," Will said softly, his eyes twinkling in the low light of the room.

"I don't hinge my self-worth on what gymnastics fans think of me," JJ replied quietly. "But it was a perfect reminder that I am my harshest critic. And the run up to this meet has been tough because we've just had so much going on. Even though I didn't feel quite back to my usual self, I still felt so good being back out there. Especially being back with Simone. I've missed her"

"You could see it on your face," Will pointed out. "I even said to your mom that you looked so happy"

"You know, I… keep saying that I want to finish on a good note, but I honestly don't even feel like I want to finish right now"

"Then don't. Stop puttin' a deadline on when this has to be done. Because if you love it and you want to keep goin', and you still can? Why shouldn't you?"

Lifting her head again, JJ smiled, tears now long forgotten. "I love you"

Smiling back, Will leaned in and pressed a kiss to her lips, pulling her in for a tight squeeze. "I love you too babe. Let's kick this crisis of confidence to the curb and get you back on top of your game"