The Favorites: A Novel(27)

“Bella said the money wouldn’t be a problem, we’d work something out. We wouldn’t have to worry about school, either; we’d be tutored a few hours a day, like she and Garrett are, and the rest of the time we could train.”

Heath opened his mouth. I kept barreling ahead.

“We wouldn’t have to see my brother ever again. We’d be free.”

“I don’t know, Kat.”

I took his hand. I led him toward his unmade bed. I drew him down beside me.

“We could be together,” I told him. “Like we’ve always wanted.”

He stared at me, eyes shining in the glow of the streetlights outside the window.

Bella’s words rang in my head. Convince him.

“Unless…” I leaned closer. One of the flimsy straps of Arielle’s dress slid off my shoulder. “Unless that’s not what you want.”

Heath slid a finger under the strap, like he was going to tug it back into place. Instead, he twisted it around his knuckle.

“Of course I want to be together.” His voice was hoarse, breathing gone ragged. “But—”

I pushed him back onto the bed, straddling his waist like we were about to perform a lift. His eyes widened with surprise when I raised the dress over my head and tossed it onto the floor.

“You’re sure?” he said. “You’re sure this is—”

“Yes.”

I wanted it all. California and gold medals and Bella Lin’s unshakable confidence. I wanted so much skill and fame and money that we’d never have to worry about anything, ever again.

And him. I wanted Heath so much. I was tired of waiting.

I wanted it all, and I would have it.

“I’m sure,” I said. “About everything. But if you…”

I knew Heath wanted me—but did he want the same future I did? I needed to hear him say it, before I could go through with this.

“I realize it’s a lot to ask. Living in California long-term.”

“Katarina.”

“It’s a lot of money, and we’re a long way from home, and—”

“Katarina.”

I fell silent. Heath sat up and pulled me against him, so close I couldn’t tell his heartbeat from my own.

“You’re my home,” he said.





Part II


   The Rivals





Katarina Shaw and Heath Rocha stand on the second step of the podium at the 2001 Nebelhorn Trophy competition in Germany. Katarina leans down to receive her silver medal. Her ponytail gets caught in the ribbon, and Heath gently tugs it free.

Kirk Lockwood: After a year at the Academy, Katarina Shaw and Heath Rocha had improved tremendously.

The Lins smile from the top step of the Nebelhorn podium, gold medals around their necks.

Garrett Lin: Kat and Heath were nipping at our heels. Which was the plan all along.

Katarina and Bella grin at each other as “The Star-Spangled Banner” plays.

Garrett Lin: My sister thrived on the pressure. The closer their scores got to ours, the more it motivated her.

Francesca Gaskell: It was inspiring, seeing skaters not that much older than I was accomplishing so much. Watching Kat and Bella made me think: maybe I could do that too.

Ellis Dean: The rest of us felt like, what’s the point? We all knew we were never going to beat the Lin Twins. Now we have to fight Shaw and Rocha for podium spots too?

Kirk Lockwood: They still had a long way to go, though. Especially Rocha.

Competition footage from the 2001–2002 season shows Katarina and Heath performing a tango in the original dance event.

Kirk Lockwood: Rocha’s edges weren’t deep enough. His transitions were sloppy.

The video zooms in on Heath’s skates, showing the difference between his technique and Katarina’s, then cuts to the judging panel, where Jane Currer peers sternly over her glasses.

Garrett Lin: Heath had so much passion when he skated, but he struggled with the details. I offered to give him some pointers, several times. He wasn’t interested.

Back to the Nebelhorn medal ceremony, as Katarina hugs Bella, then Garrett.

Garrett Lin: The guy barely spoke, except to Kat. Bella complained all the time about how he wasn’t good enough for Kat, on the ice or off. I thought maybe he was…I suppose shy isn’t quite the right word. Proud, maybe? Stubborn?

While Katarina embraces the Lins, Heath stands off to the side, glowering.

Garrett Lin: After a while, I stopped trying.





Chapter 19





You never forget your first time.

For Heath and me, it was Skate America 2001. The day before I turned eighteen.

We weren’t even supposed to be there. We were alternates—until Parry and Alcona pulled out due to injury, and Reed and Branwell withdrew, citing concerns about travel safety. The event was only six weeks after the September 11 attacks, and everyone was on edge. At LAX, Heath was pulled for a supposedly random search, the TSA agents’ eyes flicking with suspicion between his ethnically ambiguous features and his Illinois ID.

As I stood on the other side of the barricade, watching Heath get patted down, I grew more and more furious. He was a teenage boy and an American citizen—en route to represent his country in a major athletic event, no less. How dare they treat him that way? Heath endured this with his typical impassivity, but once they released him, his hand trembled in mine until well after we’d boarded our flight.