Peg looked out across the water. Sure hope it's this calm tomorrow, she thought. A triathlon. Her very first one. She'd trained so long, spent so many hours building up muscles and endurance and speed. Her mental fitness was in top notch shape as well. But she was nervous. What if she goes out too fast and cramps up? What if she pops a tire or crashes? What if she hits the wall and simply collapses? What if...? Well, there were a ton of those to think of but why waste the time. She had a very long day ahead of her tomorrow. Plenty of time to contemplate what ifs. Right now, she needed to clear her mind and relax. Today was a short, easy run and now it was time to cool down before dinner. She always ate a big spaghetti dinner the night before a running race. Tonight would be no different.
Well, that's not entirely true. Tonight was different. There was one big difference. Her coach, the man who had first introduced her to running, the man who had been her coach from the first moment she tied on sneakers until just one short month ago. He had always been there for her. Running beside until age weakened his knees, then using a car to meet her at different points during her run. Always planning her schedule and pushing her to go faster. Always reminder her never to give up, never to quit.
Then one day he didn't show up at her house at 6am banging on the door as usual. She waited around for 15 minutes then called his house. He was gone. Died in his sleep. It wouldn't be the same now. It'd never be the same.
Her mother came up behind her and touched her back. “Honey, dinner's ready.”
“Thanks Mom.” Peg said putting her arm around her mother and walking inside.
“I'm so proud of you Honey. No matter what happens tomorrow.” Her mother said warmly. “And you're father is so very proud, too.”
Peg hugged her mother tightly. “Thanks Mom.”
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