Epilogue

One year later

TERRY CHANGED into his bathing suit and met Steve out by the Olympic-size pool. Steve directed him to his lane, and Terry slipped into the water. After pulling his goggles down over his eyes, he swam a few slow laps to get his muscles warmed up. Then he went faster, zipping through the water for a single lap. He had to make sure he was ready. When he returned to the end of the pool, he climbed out of the water’s comfortable embrace and into the towel Steve placed around his shoulders. Only then did he take a minute to take a good look around.

Many of the other men were wearing fancy racing suits that covered their entire body. He’d looked at them with envy but couldn’t afford one. They cost way too much, so he’d stuck with his lucky bathing suit. This one was as pink as they came. It was lucky because Red loved it, and that was reason enough for Terry to wear it.

“Is Red coming down?” Steve asked.

“He’s going to try,” Terry answered, his gaze shifting automatically toward the door.

“I’m positive he’ll be here.” Steve rubbed his shoulders lightly to help keep his muscles warm.

Terry swallowed. “I hope so.” What he was doing was as much for Red as it was for him. Terry had trained hard, but Red had been there to support him the entire time. Red had put up with his dedication and given up time they could have spent together so Terry could spend the hours at the pool required for him to get into top competitive shape. He glanced toward the door as a very familiar large-size frame came through the door. Terry would know his Red, his lover, friend, confidant, and the most important person in his life, anywhere. It was the two people who followed Red that nearly made him fall into the pool.

“Go over and say hello. Your heat is in ten minutes.” Steve patted his shoulder, and Terry walked around the pool as quickly as he could. Red met him and scooped him into his arms. Terry returned the enthusiastic hug and then turned to his mom and dad.

“I thought you couldn’t make it.” Not that he was complaining in the least. They were both working, so getting the money together, as well as the time off to come, was difficult.

His mother cleared her throat, and Terry knew she was trying not to cry… and on the verge of failing. “We got a call from Red, and he explained that he wasn’t going to allow us to miss our son’s tryout for the Olympic team.” His mother turned to Red, looking at him the way Terry often did, like the hero he was. Terry hugged them both, getting his mom and dad slightly wet, but they didn’t seem to mind. His dad held him tight, and Terry felt his dad’s shoulders bounce slightly. His dad never cried.

“You better go get ready. We’ll find seats with Red.” His father’s eyes were definitely full, and Terry hugged all three of them quickly before hurrying back around to where the athletes were waiting.

“You’re going to be fine,” Steve said as he approached. “Don’t worry about what’s to come. Take each heat one at a time, and give it your all for each one. You only have to swim twice today, and that’s if you finish first or second in the first heat. If you don’t, you won’t move on.”

Terry knew all this. He also knew he would have a few hours before the second heat. The freestyle preliminaries would come first, with the final race in the afternoon to give competitors a chance to rest.

He watched the first heat, the energy of competition coursing through him. Terry was as ready as he was ever going to be. When his name was called, he got into position and waited for the starter’s gun. As soon as it went off, he dove into the water, glided, and then took the first strokes of his 400-meter swim. Terry settled into his rhythm and sliced through the water. He felt good and concentrated on going as fast as possible. He checked a few times on the progress of the man next to him but didn’t see him. Terry pushed on. He didn’t know if he was lagging behind or in the lead. All he knew was that this was his chance, his only chance, and he was going to make the most of it.

By the end of his sixth lap, he was ready to go forever. Terry sped up, giving it every ounce he had. Lap seven was perfect. Over time he had developed an internal clock, and he knew he was swimming well. Terry made the last turn and swam for his life. He zoomed the last fifty meters flat out.

He touched the wall and came up for air. The first thing he heard was the crowd yelling and screaming. He had no idea how he’d done until he heard Red’s yell over the crowd. There was no mistaking it. Terry checked the board and saw that he’d won the heat. He jumped and pumped his fist in the air before climbing out of the water and into Steve’s waiting towel.

“That was amazing. You were on fire, and that last hundred meters was your fastest.”

Red’s yelling hadn’t let up, and when Terry looked to the stands, he saw his whole three-person cheering section on their feet. Terry waved and wrapped the towel around his shoulders. He went to meet Red and his parents in the stands. Tears ran down his mother’s cheeks, his dad’s expression was pure pride, and Red, his beautiful hero, stood straight and tall. The expression on his immaculately bearded face was worth all the work and hours in the pool. So much had changed for the man he loved. His perfect beard hid most of his facial scars, and Terry only noticed the Invisalign tooth straighteners when he kissed him. The biggest change was in his smile, which he did a lot now.

Red wound his way down to him, hugging him hard. “You were beautiful. I yelled myself hoarse.” Red was beautiful to him too, not for the outer changes, but for the happiness and contentment that permeated him. He got more and more attractive every day, and Terry couldn’t imagine a day without him. Red held his heart when he held him, and Terry never dreamed that such a huge man would treat it with such care and gentleness.

RED SAT with Terry’s parents and watched the competition for the next few hours. Terry joined them when he could, but most of the time they sat alone and talked. He’d spent time with them several times over the past year, and they were quickly becoming like surrogate parents for him.

“I used to take him to all his swim meets when he was in high school,” Terry’s mother said. “He was always fast, but I never really thought he’d be here and this close to the Olympics. Have you thought what you’ll do if he makes the team?”

“Yes. We’ll all plan a trip to Rio.” Red didn’t hesitate for a second. He was going to make sure they would have the chance to see their son compete on the world stage. Terry’s parents were speechless, and Red was fine with that. “Now we need to see if he makes the team.”

Finally Terry’s event was called. Red was on the edge of his seat. He was rarely nervous, that was Terry’s area of expertise, but Red could not sit still. Terry had told him stories of what he’d dreamed as a kid, and he wanted Terry’s dream to come true. It was one race away.

Red watched as the racers were announced. He would know Terry anywhere by his pink Speedo. Terry stepped onto his platform, swinging his arms.

“Look at the one in the pink,” a woman giggled. “How can he compete? He’s shorter than the others.” She had just come in and hadn’t seen the earlier heats.

“Maybe, but he’s gorgeous,” the young girl next to her said, fanning herself. “And his arms are long. You know what they say….”

Red smiled and held his breath until the starter’s gun went off. Then he was on his feet, yelling his fool head off, in full cop mode. Other spectators turned toward him, astonished looks on their faces, but he ignored them and watched the pink as it moved through the water. It was hard for Red to tell what place Terry was in. He ended up checking the timing board occasionally but hated to take his eyes off Terry, as though he could channel some of his energy to him and help push him through the water.

By the eighth lap, Red alternated between watching Terry and glancing at the leader board. Terry was neck and neck with two other men. Only first and second got to go, with the third place finisher designated as an alternate. Red willed Terry on, pushing him, yelling and stomping his feet until the stands reverberated with his exuberance. The three men touched the wall, and Red was afraid to look to see what had happened.

Terry’s mother grabbed his arm and then turned to her husband, hugging him as the older couple jumped up and down in each other’s arms. Red hazarded a glance at the board. “Baumgartner” was displayed in bold letters at the top of the board. Terry had won by fractions of a second.

Red hugged both of Terry’s parents, and then his feet carried him out of the stands and close to the pool. He saw Terry jump out of the pool, hug Steve, and then, holding his towel like a flag, he hurried over to where Red stood and jumped into his arms. Red didn’t care one bit if he was getting soaked. Holding Terry to share his moment was more than enough. The man in his arms had already made his wildest dreams come true just by being in his life, and now Terry’s dream was a reality too. Red stared into Terry’s eyes and then kissed his Olympian.