just sat in silence, aware this ordeal would be over soon as we headed to a destination only Robert seemed to know.
No stranger to Tokyo, he maneuvered the streets with an ease that I wouldn’t have been able to recreate.
I was glad that we were shuttled in on buses on the few occasions when Coach didn’t have me run to the stadium to warm up. Nothing made sense here, not the strange atmosphere in the air, not the odd costumes I sometimes saw younger men and women wear. Although, when they were dressed up like dolls from the Victorian era, I had to admit, I envied them their freedom.
They didn’t care what anyone thought about their outfits. They were proud of their appearances, and that was what I envied even if I didn’t get it. But I didn’t have to, did I? I wanted that freedom to be myself, but, for the most part, I wasn’t sure what I was, except for a swimmer. A charity case. Someone whose successes were due to the pain of others.
For the past five years, I’d been focused on nothing more than reaching these Games, on making the Olympics and forging a name for myself that would live on longer than I did. But what happened after?
It was four years until the next Olympics, I’d only be twenty-six, and there’d be plenty of time for me to make more history, but was that it for me?
Just more training? More endlessness as I dedicated my life to one single thing?
Confusion swirled inside me as we made it to the restaurant. By that point, I wasn’t really in the mood for the little eatery that was tucked away in a quieter street just off a busy thoroughfare.
All around, the buildings towered over us, but the restaurant seemed pretty old-fashioned.
As I climbed out of the car, I stared around, fascinated once more by the city.
In the grand scheme of things, I hadn’t managed to do that much visiting. Nothing outside of the stadium, pretty much. We’d ventured out for a couple of drinks the first night we’d arrived, but that had been under Coach Friars’ watchful eye, which meant it had been mimosas with more OJ than champagne—not that I’d complained. I wasn’t that much of a drinker anyway.
Still, the vibe in the air and the busy hustle was such a contrast to my real life, I couldn’t help but be blown away by this marvelous city.
The scents filtering from the restaurant were rich and strangely creamy, and if I hadn’t been hungry before, I was now. The banana I’d eaten earlier had long since stopped filling a hole, so when Robert grabbed my arm, tucked it through his, and started shuffling me toward the restaurant, I wasn’t about to complain.
“I found this place the last time I was in the city. They do something called omurice.”
My brow puckered. “I might have seen something like that on Facebook.”
Robert shrugged. “Wouldn’t know about that, but it’s damn fine and should be the carb dump you need.”
Even as he said the words, Coach’s doom-and-gloom voice filtered into my head.
With races and heats tomorrow, I had to watch what I ate, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t sample something of what the others were getting.
The restaurant was dark, and each table was in a booth that gave a veil of privacy. Overhead, there were dim lights that created a spotlight in the middle of the table, meaning you could see what you were eating, but there were more shadows between each table, making the waiters moving around look like specters.
I’d found, thus far, the Japanese people to be kind, beyond helpful, and ultra polite. To the point where I felt rude for only saying ‘thank you.’
My lips curved at the thought as we were seated, with the waiter bowing as we slipped into the booth. Automatically, I wanted to bow back, but I wasn’t sure if that was rude or not.
Whenever I was around Robert and Adam, even though it wasn’t their fault I’d been raised the way I had, I kind of always felt awkward. Not with Anna. She knew what it was to strive thanks to her past, but Robert and Adam knew their place in the world. It had been set in stone for them since they were born.
Hell, probably before they were born.
I could imagine Anna picking her kids’ schools while they were still in the womb and getting them registered for a school that had