A New Life

I watch Jana finish up the routine, she had adapted to it pretty well and I felt confident in her. We’d only known each other for a short time and she still seemed unsure of me. I could understand it, the bond between a coach and a gymnast was incredibly important and complicated. In my entire career I’d only had my mother as a coach and I got that she wasn’t ready to accept someone she didn’t know.

“You’ve done a really good job today Jana.” I tell her before turning off the music. She sits on the mat her hair falling out of a bun. She smiles back at me before standing up.

“Thank you Miss. Antov.” She replies as she grabs her water bottle from the side of the carpet.

“Call me Galina please, I’m not that old.” I tell her and she grins, possibly happy to call an adult by her first name. Jana’s mother arrives a few moments later from the waiting room and she hugs her daughter. I feel my chest hurt at the sight of them. All of the sudden I can only think of my mother, I hadn’t spoken to her much since the Olympics, given how close we used to be that was quite a statement. Yet given some of the words she said to me I wasn’t really willing to talk to her. I waved at the pair of them as they left the gym and prepared to do the same. Tony was out for the weekend, going up to Milwaukee to pick up the rest of his girlfriends things for her move to the city.

I took the El back to Lakeview and once I got into the apartment I lay down on the couch. The apartment was empty and I’m on my own for the first time since I got here. Suddenly that line from the movie we had watched the other night came to mind. Where that kid skipped school because he could.

That life moved fast and if you don’t pay attention you could miss it?

I’m a young women in a big city and I could do anything I wanted to.

And I wanted to go get drunk, and maybe dance or both. I wasn’t sure of which order I wanted to them them in yet. I look through the various business cards to clubs and bars Tony has collected over the years and find one that was right in the loop, I wanted to go all out and have fun. To forget the problems I had going on with me and become somebody else for a night.

After I shower I let my hair dry into its natural dark curls before scanning through the various dresses I had in the closet before deciding on a dark cranberry coloured mini dress. I do my makeup and put in my earrings, a pair of gold hoops that I’d bought in London.

Not bad, not bad. I say to myself as I look in the mirror. The dress hung nicely, showing off my small frame. I was shorter than most people coming in at a towering five feet two inches as the American’s said. It didn’t help that while a gymnast's body fit her in the routines it didn’t give me a very womanly figure.

I decided to ignore the fact that I had the body of an undeveloped young women and grabbed a pair of heels, I was never very good in them all the balance I’d acquired through gymnastics seemed to fail me. But I wanted to appear slightly normal height and wore them. I called a cab to take me to the club and waited for the call.

It was time to forget myself and live it up, at least for a few hours.

000 I’d managed to talk to a few people at the club over the next few hours. However coming here has made me realize that I had no real friends in Chicago. The only person I’d known here was Tony and as much as I loved him I needed some real friends.

I sit down at one of the little booths and play with the straw in my drink when I think I hear my name being called. I looked up from my drink and through the crowd I could see a familiar face.

Well several faces to be exact. Because now I had Shaw, Kane and Jonathan walking over to me.

“I didn’t think i’d see you here.” Shaw tells me and he sits down, the other men do the same and I try to not blush because he’s sitting right next to me.

“I thought I’d go out for once.” I nearly have to shout to be heard over the music.
“Is Tony okay that his little sister is out alone?” Patrick asks me.
“Well he’s not here right now so I’m not sure.” I reply and he smiles.

“Well then Johnny looks like we have to keep her safe from any ass holes.” Patrick tells Jonathan and I feel myself redden when he looks to me.


000
“Do you want to go to the roof? It’s a lot quieter.” Jonathan asks me, I nod back at him hoping I don’t appear too excited.

The clubs rooftop looks over the city street and unlike the club its pretty empty. I didn’t know where Andrew and Patrick were but I was pretty sure Andrew was enjoying the girls that had been surrounding him.

“So, how do you like the city?” Jonathan asks me, I shrug back,

“It’s different, sort of weird adjusting to everything but I really like it here.” I answer, looking over the railing. Jonathan stands beside me and I can feel goosebumps rise on my bare arms.
Calm down Galina, he’s just a man, just a very attractive man.

“Yeah, it was strange when I first got here, but I’m guessing Winnipeg isn’t is different as Bulgaria. Where are you from there?” He asks me.

“I was born in Burgas, its on the Black Sea. But when I began training my mother moved me to Sofia the capital so I’d be at a better gym.” I tell him,

“When did you begin training?”

“I was about five I think?” I couldn’t remember a time when I didn’t do gymnastics, it was always their. “When did you start playing hockey?”

“God I had to be around that same age maybe? But all Canadians do hockey so it was normal.” He responds, “Do all Bulgarian girls do gymnastics?” He smiles at me and my my stomach flutters a little.

“Well many do, some do tennis and others football.” I respond “In fact my dad was a tennis coach.” I tell him.

“So you just come from a long line of athletes.” Jonathan replies, I grin at him. We fall into a silence for a few moments, I’m trying to think of something to say to him, something that would sound reasonably intelligent.

“Do you miss your parents?” He asks me and my stomach twists. They were indifferent when I said I was leaving Bulgaria, as if they didn’t care about it. Maybe it was easier for them to feel that way given their only children were now thousands of miles away.

“I do, I mean my mom coached me for my entire career we were always really close until.” I stop myself, I couldn’t tell him what happened he wouldn’t get it. “I said some things about the government, things that endangered my standing as a gymnast and she wasn’t happy with it.” I tell him, well that was half of it, I was only lying about the other reason I left.

“I’m sorry but hey you’re in America you can say pretty much any shit you want to.” He tells me and I laugh.

“Thank you Jonathan.” I say and he chuckles slightly. “What did I do?” I ask, the beers from tonight have made me calmer and I’m surprised I can fall into this back and forth with him.

“Yan-a-thon.” He replies, “Your accent makes it sound like a better name.”

“It’s not my fault we don’t use...J?” I manage to sound out, the beers aren’t helping my accent very much.” Jonathan laughs again and I join in. “ You can talk about accents Mr. Canadien.” I respond, wishing I was more clever.

“Come on Galina its Captain Serious, get nicknames right.”

“Captain Serious, its a bit of a downer.” I answer smirking at him.

“Keptin.” He mumbles trying to mimic my voice, but only causing me to giggle.

I probably shouldn’t have done the Vodka shots.

0000 “You should come to a game sometime, I mean if you’re not too busy.” Jonathan says. Were still on the roof but now were sitting at a lounge up their.

“I’d like that, I’m pretty sure Tony is taking me there no matter what.” I answer, it was true Tony had made me promise I’d be at as many games as possible. “If you ever want to witness physics being broken you should come to the gym sometime, I’m pretty sure that would make the girls day.”

“I’d like that, maybe you could tell me how you manage to not tear your leg off jumping.”

Did I just ask him out on a date? Was that a date? No, no it was a vague you should see where I work event.
0000 I stumbled into the apartment exhausted. It was around one in the morning according to the clock on the stove. I kicked off my heels and fell onto my bed, not caring about smudging my makeup. I grab my purse and take out my phone to charge it when I notice a scrap of paper tucked into the case. Pulling it out I see a number scrawled out on it with a note.
Call me- John.

Yes, going out was definitely the best idea I’d had since I got here.

Notes