A Spark of Hope
Chapter 4: Obstacles
*song featured: "The Way You Do" - 98° [Revelation]*
As the months passed on, Rachel and Joey kept going on, strong--they
signed more endorsements, tackled harder and more expressive
choreography and nailed it, but most importantly, their relationship
grew even more. They had their squabbles here and there--mostly about
skating, learning how to leave their skating problems on the ice and
out of their growing relationship--but in the end they only served to
strengthen their bond. Time flew and it was now the end of 2004.
Joey and Rachel were cuddling on his couch, twilight slowly
giving way to nightfall, with a full moon bathing them in light, when
they both sighed. They laughed at the incident and then Joey asked,
"Why'd you do that?"
Rachel bent her head down. "I've been having problems with my
landlord. He's not only afraid that I'll ruin his rental room with my
painting, he's also worried about people breaking into the building,
what with our status and all. And not to mention the fact that I'm
practically never there, between skating and... you. I don't know what
I'm going to do. It's getting to be almost like a burden for me. I feel
cramped."
Joey looked at her thoughtfully. He'd been considering asking
her to move in with him for a while, and it seemed like Fate was urging
him to go on and ask her. "Um..." Joey cleared his throat and glanced
sideways, one trait that Joey always did when he was nervous. Rachel
picked up on that. "What?" she asked.
"Well..." he began, tentatively. He hesitated and then the
words left his mouth in a steady stream. "I'm kind of getting tired of
having this apartment so out of the way for you and from the rink, so
I've been checking out condos closer to the rink, and I think I've
almost got one, but I can't handle all the rent by myself, and I'd be
lonely anyway, but... oh, Rachel, my point is... will you move in with
me?"
Rachel had to stifle a giggle because of the way Joey was so
nervous when it came to things like that. She smiled brightly and said,
"Of course I'll move in with you. It's going to be so wonderful having
you wake up next to me..."
"...holding you..." Joey continued, sharing her vision.
"..and not having to call you on the phone to talk to you..."
Rachel grinned and jumped up, hugging Joey. "Oh, Joey, thank you, you
saved me yet again."
"Need I remind you, miss?" He pulled her down back into his
lap. "I love you," he whispered in her ear, causing her to tremble
slightly. "I'd do anything for you." He kissed her head and after a
moment of loving silence, she asked, "So how much closer is the place
from the rink than our places are?" Dana had persisted for them to move
closer to the rink, because they lived a ridiculous hour from their
site of training.
Joey thought for a minute. "About fifteen to twenty minutes,"
he judged. "And it's really beautiful, too. It's right on the edge of
the lake, so you get to see the reflection of the moon off the water at
night, but still close enough to the city to be able to see hockey
games and stuff." He smiled, in spite of himself. "I told the guy I'd
come to see him tomorrow, after our morning session. Our tryouts are in
three weeks, you know," Joey reminded her, referring to their attempt
to make it onto the Olympic team for Torino in 2006.
"I know," Rachel said, nodding. "I think we're ready. I just
don't know how I'm going to do it, Joey. I don't think I could stand up
to all that pressure of judging again." She snuggled in closer to him.
"I'm so grateful I have you with me, though," Rachel whispered.
"Hey, angel, we've been through judging since Salt Lake," Joey
comforted her, stroking her back gently with one hand and
absentmindedly toying with her hair, now hanging to two inches past her
back. "And you heard how they've beefed up the judging process since
then." The world had witnessed that past summer the Olympics of the
warmer kind in Athens, where yet another judging scandal had surfaced,
and the IOC, fed up with the negative attention, had decided on
changing the rules for judging in the next Olympics--Torino would be
the guinea pig, so to speak.
"Still... the memory will always be there," Rachel said. Then
she tried to stifle a yawn, but it didn't work. Joey could see how
tired she was. "Rach, why don't you go home, go to sleep, and we can
meet up at the rink tomorrow, practice, then check out the place. I
think I have enough to put the down payment on."
Rachel nodded listlessly, her head still snuggled against his
chest. "Sounds good to me," she slurred, obviously tired.
"Rach, get up, you have to drive back home."
She lifted her head, blinking. "I wish I didn't have to
go."
Joey smiled warmly at her, and his gaze penetrating into her
own jolted her into alertness. "Just wait... a couple more days and
you'll never have to leave home to see me. Now go. The earlier you
leave, the earlier I get to see you tomorrow."
"Fine, since you're so eager to get rid of me," Rachel huffed
mockingly, padding around Joey's apartment gathering her things. "I'll
leave." She put her hand on the doorknob of Joey's front door when two
strong hands on her waist pulled her back.
"Not without this, you won't." Joey then placed one finger
underneath Rachel's chin, looking deeply and intently into her
beautiful eyes, then leaned down and guided Rachel's lips to his own.
Their goodbye soon became deeper and more involved, and breathlessly,
Rachel pulled away. She and Joey had been together romantically for
about almost two years and it still never ceased to amaze her how he
could take her breath away. "Joey, I have to go."
"Okay," he breathed in a soft tone. "I love you, Rachel."
She leaned up and gave him a short but sweet kiss that lingered
on both their lips. "I love you too, Joey," she whispered to him. "I'll
see you tomorrow."
Joey nodded as Rachel slowly backed up, not willing to break
their interlocked glances. Joey blew a kiss to her and she smiled, the
last sight Joey had of her as she turned around and headed out the
door. He stared after her for a while, overjoyed by the fact that soon
he'd be living with her, but lonely at the fact that he'd have to wait
until then. He sighed, ran a hand through his blond curls, and turned
to head to bed. If he couldn't see Rachel now, at least he might be
able to catch her in his dreams.
~*~
As Rachel drove towards her apartment, grateful that soon she
would be in a new home--with Joey, a song that she'd never heard before
filled her silent car with a beautiful melodic tone. But the words were
what drew Rachel to listen intently. As she listened, the words touched
her heart because she knew it described her relationship with Joey
perfectly.
*Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, oh, the way you do
You've heard this a thousand times before: I'm in love with you
You'll hear it at least a million more, baby, that's the truth
It's the small things that endear me every time that you are near
me
The way you laugh at what I say,
the way you look at each new day
The way your tears fall right on cue;
that's what I love about you
Nobody else knows me by heart,
takes me where I can reach the stars,
makes me believe in love the way you do*
Rachel smiled to herself. "Thank you," she whispered to no one
in particular. "Thank you for sending him to me."
~*~
Joey lay on his back in his bed, thinking over the events of
the past day. His mind fell upon Rachel again, and he thought about how
he was so lucky to have her, how she was everything to him and how he
could trust her with everything--they were best friends as well.
(You see in me the man that I can be, and I'm thanking you
You've given me all I'll ever need, all I wanted, too
I know how blessed I am; girl, you are my best friend
The way you laugh at what I say,
the way you look at each new day
The way your tears fall right on cue;
that's what I love about you
Nobody else knows me by heart,
takes me where I can reach the stars,
makes me believe in love the way you do)
Images of her filled his mind--the excited look on her face
when they believed they had won the gold medal at Salt Lake, the
adorable way she laughed, especially when he told a really corny joke
but she laughed to make him feel better, the very first time they
kissed, their endless walks in the park and the way at a certain
moment, her soul was exposed to him when he placed his mouth next to
her ear and whispered the three words she loved to hear--sometimes in
English, sometimes in French, "Je t'aime." He smiled to himself. "I
love her so much," he whispered into the night air. "Please, don't let
me lose her."
~*~
"Morning," Dana greeted Rachel when she walked into the rink.
Rachel had been having a bad day already; her landlord had come to pay
a visit to her apartment and when she told him she was going to be
moving out, he started going off about how she was too good for them
and that she didn't value him as a friend. Rachel rolled her eyes at
the thought. At least she'd see Joey today. That thought brightened her
spirits a bit as she laced up her skates and stepped onto the ice.
Soon, she was joined by Joey and Dana called out, "Okay, guys, let's
start!"
After warming up and doing a few jumps and spins, plus their
signature death spiral, Rachel and Joey were ready to work. And work
they did. Out of nowhere, Dana asked, "How are you guys with triple
jumps?"
Rachel, who had been skating around the rink at a fast pace,
stopped so suddenly that she had to hold on to the wall for balance.
"What?" she asked. "You can't be serious." Her singles skating past
came back to haunt her, as she flashed back to all her attempts to land
just one triple jump--all ending in falls.
"I can be, and I am," Dana said firmly. "I've taken the liberty
to plan your program with Kristen for the 2006 Olympics, and it's
probably going to attempt a side by side triple-triple combination."
With the judging changes and everything, the rules had changed a bit
and now pairs were able to add one element of their choice as well as
the required pairs skating elements.
"No," Rachel breathed, clutching the wall for support. Her
shock turned to a bit of angered envy as Joey skated past her,
executing a perfect triple toe loop. "Good enough for you?" he called
to Dana.
She applauded him, and he bowed for her. "Excellent. That's
great, we can work on combos later. Rach? You want to try?"
From her position, glued to the wall, Rachel vehemently shook
her head no. "I can't," she said, her face pale.
Joey skated over to her and attempted to comfort her, but she
pushed him away. "Leave me alone, Joey." She skated away from him,
first pulling off a single flip, then a double flip, but as she
attempted to try the triple, her foot caught on her other skate,
leading her to fall on the ice. Rachel slammed the ice angrily and then
let the momentum she put into her jump move her into a corner of the
ice. "I can't do it," she whispered. "I'll never be able to do it."
"Rachel?" Dana asked. "I was just wondering. I didn't know that
it bothered you so much."
"No, it's okay," Rachel called out. "I just need to work on
it."
"Are you sure?" Dana had now headed over to where Rachel was
and slowly led her off the ice. "Kristen and I were just playing around
with it. We're not sure yet. It'd be a great thing to do for your free
skate, but if it's this difficult for you, we can just do something
else."
Rachel, whose head had been in her hands, glanced up at her
coach. "We have a year, Dana," she said. "Let's go for it. But you have
to help me conquer my fear."
Dana nodded, patting her student's hand. "I promise, Rach. But
it's up to you whether you want to let go of it or not."
Rachel nodded. "Okay. Now let's get back to work."
chapter 3: a long-awaited victory! |
chapter 5: remembering the pain
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