Ficlet: Silver Heels
Title: Silver Heels
Pairing/Characters: J.R. Celski/Apolo Ohno
Prompt: Memory
Rating: G
Word Count: 318
Beta: whymzycal
The disqualification had hurt at first. Not only did the judges ignore the fact that Hamelin had bumped into him, forcing him to shrug Hamelin off, but J.R. had been moving up to a qualifying position that would have taken him into the final. Not qualifying would have been disappointing, but being disqualified was far worse. His hopes for one more individual medal, dashed.
But while they could take away his chance at another medal, they couldn’t take away what he had earned in the 1500 meter. It was more than the medal that had hung around his neck as he stood on the podium.
For eight years J.R. had watched Ohno winning medal after medal in two Olympic games and countless other international competitions. He admired him. Hell, he idolized him. Ohno was the reason that J.R. had switched to skating on ice after seeing him in the 2002 Winter Games. Just skating in the same race was a dream come true. Now J.R. was hungry for more, and the disqualification was disappointing.
But that was the nature of short track. Short track was rock and roll, it was fast, it was uncontrolled, and it was dirty. After nearly bleeding out in the trials, J.R. knew that only too well. He considered it a gift to be skating at all when for a few short minutes he had wondered if he was going to die that day on the ice.
So screw the judges and his disqualification. Not only did J.R. have an Olympic bronze medal, he had something else that they couldn’t take from him: the memory of strong arms lifting him off the ice, the American flag wrapped around him, and a grin that just wouldn’t quit. In the few seconds that Apolo had picked him up in celebration after their race, J.R. had never felt so high.
Pairing/Characters: J.R. Celski/Apolo Ohno
Prompt: Memory
Rating: G
Word Count: 318
Beta: whymzycal
The disqualification had hurt at first. Not only did the judges ignore the fact that Hamelin had bumped into him, forcing him to shrug Hamelin off, but J.R. had been moving up to a qualifying position that would have taken him into the final. Not qualifying would have been disappointing, but being disqualified was far worse. His hopes for one more individual medal, dashed.
But while they could take away his chance at another medal, they couldn’t take away what he had earned in the 1500 meter. It was more than the medal that had hung around his neck as he stood on the podium.
For eight years J.R. had watched Ohno winning medal after medal in two Olympic games and countless other international competitions. He admired him. Hell, he idolized him. Ohno was the reason that J.R. had switched to skating on ice after seeing him in the 2002 Winter Games. Just skating in the same race was a dream come true. Now J.R. was hungry for more, and the disqualification was disappointing.
But that was the nature of short track. Short track was rock and roll, it was fast, it was uncontrolled, and it was dirty. After nearly bleeding out in the trials, J.R. knew that only too well. He considered it a gift to be skating at all when for a few short minutes he had wondered if he was going to die that day on the ice.
So screw the judges and his disqualification. Not only did J.R. have an Olympic bronze medal, he had something else that they couldn’t take from him: the memory of strong arms lifting him off the ice, the American flag wrapped around him, and a grin that just wouldn’t quit. In the few seconds that Apolo had picked him up in celebration after their race, J.R. had never felt so high.