Love Untouched (Unexpected) (24 page)

I watched as Kieran eyed me from the pool where I was sitting a few rows from his family and friends. He gave me a small tilt of his head and a smile; he had most likely just listened to what I had dubbed as ‘Brynn’s playlist for Kieran’ on his iPod. The latest song that I added was
Smack
That
by Akon.
What?
I wanted to introduce him to pop music, add rap and hip-hop to his musical collection.

“Who are you rooting for Brynn?” Sedona asked on my right side. She had arrived in Shanghai with Zander. We had dinner last night, along with Ava, Duncan, Peter, and Kieran’s family. Kieran couldn’t go because he had to be up early in the morning.

“I want there to be a tie,” I answered honestly. If Kieran won, this would be his sixth gold medal at the World Championships, an unprecedented achievement in swimming. If Milo won, this would be his fourth medal, which would solidify his ranking as one of the world’s best.

Zander heard my comment, “Brynn there’s no tie. Well, I don’t think there is. But what do I know? I’m a football player.” He leaned over to give Sedona a peck on her cheek. Every time I saw these two, they could not keep their hands off of each other. Either Zander was always touching her, or Sedona was holding his hand. They had left Sofia with Zander’s parents because she was too young to travel internationally, but during dinner last night, Sedona had her phone on almost half of the night just to keep track of Sofia.

“I’m here to watch Kieran win, so I hope he does,” Sedona said unflinchingly. Zander pulled Sedona closer to his side and whispered something, Sedona’s face turned red, and she smacked Zander’s left leg. These two would always be in the ‘honeymoon stage.’ When you looked at a guy like Zander, extremely handsome, extremely wealthy, and extremely popular, you would never think that he would be committed to one girl, with all the female population, I was sure, hoping to offer their selves to him. But all you had to see was the way he looked at her, as if the earth revolved around her. When she spoke, Zander’s gaze never left her. Even when we were in New York, before they were married, Zander often came to visit and you just knew that his love for her was beyond words. I had heard he was fast becoming one of the greatest quarterbacks in the NFA, but when you looked at him, he was the most unassuming guy, and you wouldn’t know he was the son of one of the richest guys in the country.

Ava’s voice was loud in my left ear. “Well, it seems that no one’s rooting for Swimmer Boy, so I guess it’s just me.” She looked down at her phone, obviously sending e-mails and texts as part of her daily routine. She was an extremely busy lady. I was surprised that she was even able to make the trip here for the finals. I had cried to her the other night about what was going on between Milo and Kieran, and she made the decision right there and then to fly back here to be with me. Her loyalty knew no bounds.

“Of course I’m rooting for Milo, Ava.” I was. I was rooting for both of them.

Just then, the sounds inside the Aquatic Center became deafening. Fans were waving, screaming for their revered swimmers. I caught a glimpse of Duncan, Peter, Kieran’s parents, and his brothers, Zach and Matthieu, who were sitting two rows down. They were all wearing red shirts with STONE on the back. They were so excited for Kieran. This would be a momentous occasion—one for the history books.

The crowd quieted down. The swimmers formed a line on the starting blocks, and then the sound of the electronic beep filled the air.

That was all it took.

Kieran’s reaction time was excellent. So was Milo’s.

What did you expect? They were the best there was.

They were almost head-to-head after the 14
th
lap.

Two more laps.

It was so hard to watch the two men I loved compete against each other. I had a feeling that it was not just about swimming to them. This was personal. They had much more invested in this swim than any of the others in the pool right now. This morning, before Kieran left my bed, he tenderly kissed me, and without a word, he left. Last night, he had given me something of himself that he has never shown to anyone. My heart blossomed with warmth at the memory.

I had received text messages from him throughout the day, updating me on what he was doing. He was with his coach, trainer, his parents came to see him, and he had met up with Zander and Sedona briefly.

Milo, on the other hand, stopped by, but he was quiet again. He stayed in my suite for twenty minutes then left to go meet up with his team. Before he left, he gave me another long hug and whispered, “You’ll always be my sister Bee and I just want the best for you.”

My gaze flew back to the pool, and Kieran and Milo were only a few meters to the wall. You couldn’t see who was ahead since it looked like they touched the wall at the same time.

I looked up at the electronic display board: Stone Tanner Sturgen Dent … I didn’t look at the rest.

Kieran’s family was jumping up and down, his brothers were blowing on their paper horns, Sedona was screaming, and Ava was clapping. I was ecstatic! Kieran had done it. He was now an unbeatable champ. I saw the other swimmers congratulate him in the water but my brother was already getting out of the pool.

“KIERAN!” “STONE!” People were cheering across the Aquatic Center. Finally, Kieran got out of the pool and waved. He was smiling widely. This was his moment of greatness. I was so proud of him. I was also proud of my brother.

Just as what seemed to be undying cheers, hoots, and screams dying down, an official from the side walked towards Kieran. Kieran lowered his head, and he was motioning with his hands. He shook his head a couple of times. What was going on?

The official and Kieran stopped off to the side, and Kieran’s coach joined them. Kieran’s coach looked livid and he was gesturing with his hand wildly. Then, they all walked towards the back, out of view.

The crowd became quiet, obviously confused at what was going on. All of a sudden, a hush fell inside the Aquatic Center. The silence was even more deafening than the screams and cheers from earlier. Kieran’s mom pointed at the electronic scoreboard. In white, bold digital letters, it said: STONE DISQUALIFIED

All the people around me were in shock. I heard Sedona’s loud gasp by my side, Zander’s “What the fuck?” and Ava’s “What’s going on?” Kieran’s parents were walking down the stands, his brothers trailing closely behind.

Kieran was being disqualified?

My eyes landed on Milo’s figure, sitting on a plastic bench, his coach and Leif were standing and talking to each other. Milo, on the other hand, looked like he was staring at the wall, into space, with his arms around his head, and then he looked down.

Call it gut feeling, instinct, ESP, or whatever you wanted to call it.

My brother’s words came back to haunt me, “I just want what’s best for you Brynn.”

Oh my God, what has my brother done?

“I dream of having a train table and set.”

~C.G., age 6, tetralogy of Fallot

The second I touched the wall, I wasn’t so sure of the results.

I felt Milo gaining speed on me the last 50 meters.

In those last few seconds, I brought out the energy I had reserved for times like these. My shoulders started to feel tight and I felt my neck muscles pull, but now was not the time to give up the fight.

Then my hand touched the wall.

The cheers were loud in the Aquatics Center, but I didn’t know if it was for me.

I removed my goggles, wiped my eyes, and squinted to look at the electronic display board above the pool.

STONE, K. USA 4:04:20 (WR)

TANNER, M. USA 4:04:28

STURGEN, L. USA 4:04:51

DENT, P. AUS 4:05:10

CERVIONE ITA 4:05:32

FLETCHER CAN 4:06:14

DAMASCOS RSA 4:07:11

PEARSONS GER 4:07:33

Leif inched towards me; fist bumped me, along with the rest of the guys on the pool. From the corner of my eye, I saw Milo wading in the water, away from the rest of us, and climbing out of the pool. Even at this moment, he couldn’t congratulate me? He and I needed to talk about Brynn, once and for all. I was waiting for the finals to be done, and then I would face him. Brynn asked me to wait. Waiting to do something was becoming a pain in the ass. How many times had I deferred to Brynn’s plea to wait? So many times. Why did I wait those many times? Because I didn’t want to hurt her, didn’t want to put pressure on her more than she was already experiencing. I just up and decided that one night that I was not going to take it anymore—so I announced it to the whole world that she was mine.
Great timing, Kieran
. Let the world know you are dating your rival’s sister during one of swimming’s biggest events. I never thought of myself as impulsive, and the first time I gave into an impulse was that one night. I put her in a tough position, saw the struggle in her deep blue eyes when she came back that night, and then she kissed me... the whole world melted away.

On the pool deck, I waved at the people in the stands. They were screaming my name, and while I usually just nodded my head in acknowledgement, I guessed tonight was one for celebrations. Some people probably didn’t understand why I felt no need to jump, holler, or scream while bumping my fists to my chest after winning. I didn’t need them to understand. It was just me. I did celebrate. In my own way.

After each win, at night, no matter how late the events ran, I went back to the pool and just stood there. Just me and the water where I reigned. The stands emptied, the fans have gone, and all the competitors have retired to bed. It was just me with the quiet, undisturbed water. I let it out. I always dipped my hand down to the water, barely touching it, and then soaked it all in. I replayed my turns, my strokes, and my kicks. Each swim, each medal was special to me. Was it a sin not to jump and scream like every other winner, in front of the TV? Was it my fault that I stayed away from the limelight? Probably. Through the years, this was my celebration. It allowed me to just be me and not lose any part of the special feeling that each win brought.

Last night, I took Brynn here. After she had dinner with my family, one I couldn’t go to because I was so tired after swimming during the day, I brought her here. She held my hand the entire time. In all the years I’ve been competing, I’ve never shared my “celebratory ritual” with anyone. Not with Ace. Not with any of my friends. Not even with my family. I did with Brynn. I wanted her to see just how much each win meant to me, and my love for the sport. I shared it with her because I was sharing with her the biggest part of me. My love for the sport was in synchrony with the magnitude of feelings I had for her. In between our quiet breaths, our sandaled feet standing mere inches away from the starting blocks, our hands holding each other, I leaned closer to watch her eyes as I said the words, “This is me Brynn. This is
my
world. My soul lies deep within the walls of every center, every gym, and every pool I swim in. Tonight, I am handing it all to you. I want you to know that from now on, every medal I win, every step I take on that podium, I am offering it all to you. You give so much of yourself to me. I’m not trying to grant you a favor or exchanging this for anything you give me. I’m offering you my world because…I love you.”

The look on her face was priceless. Her lips started trembling and her hands started shaking as she tried to say something. It was as if her words were caught in her throat. I placed my right forefinger on her pink lips and said, “I know honey. I know you love me.” I smiled, and in a teasing voice, I asked, “How could you not love me?” She grinned, with tears running down her cheeks, and kissed me.

I was still waving at the fans cheering my name when I saw Tom, a FINA official, walk towards me.

His brows were furrowed and his mouth was in a tight line. Was he wanting to talk to me now? That was weird. Usually, the officials talked to us after the race for any discrepancies or issues to be addressed. This must be an urgent matter.