Page 48 of The Favorites
“You asked Bella to talk to me?”
“Yeah. Why, what did she say?”
“Only that you two were splitting up. Looking for new partners for the next quad.”
“I honestly wasn’t trying to mess things up with you and Heath. But I could see how much you two had been struggling lately. And when we did the photo shoot together—well, I thought…I mean, it might just have been me.”
“It wasn’t just you.”
That was the first time I’d admitted, to myself or anyone else, that I felt something during the shoot. It wasn’t attraction, exactly, beautiful as Garrett was. More like compatibility. We’d shifted from pose to pose so seamlessly, I couldn’t help wondering what it would be like to skate with him.
Garrett’s playlist faded into the next track, and a thunderclap of memory rattled me.
I’ll be your dream, I’ll be your wish, I’ll be your fantasy.
Heath and me at sixteen, driving to Cleveland, belting those lyrics over the whine of the car engine, thinking we’d love each other forever. And now I didn’t even know what continent he was on. I had no idea whether I’d ever see him again.
“You okay?” Garrett asked.
“Yeah, I…” I swallowed. “I love this song.”
“Me too.” He held out his hand. “Care to join me?”
I hesitated. If simply posing with Garrett had been a betrayal, what would this be? I’d never skated with anyone except Heath.
“I understand that you two…” Garrett shook his head. “Well, okay, I don’t understand you two at all. But I know there’s a lot of history there.”
Heath knew me when I was a gangly little girl with bloody kneecaps and prairie grass in my hair. He’d seen me sobbing and weak and shaking with helpless rage. He knew my pressure points. He knew how to provoke me.
Garrett had never known me as Kat Shaw from Nowhere, Illinois. I could leave her behind, as abruptly and heartlessly as Heath had left me. With Heath, I could be myself. But with Garrett, I could be someone better.
And if Heath wanted to see me again? He could watch me on television, winning goddamn gold medals with Garrett Lin.
Part III
The Champions
In front of the Lin Ice Academy’s glass atrium, Katarina Shaw and Garrett Lin pose for photos next to Bella Lin and Zachary Branwell as their new partnerships are announced in spring 2002.
Jane Currer:New skating teams typically take a while to gel.
Garrett Lin:Kat and I worked well together from the start.
Both teams hold hands and beam at the cameras as if they’re on homecoming court. Katarina has a new look: blond hair, professional makeup, clothing chosen to coordinate with Garrett.
Ellis Dean:From Hot Mess to Ice Princess. Incredible what a makeover can do, isn’t it?
Jane Currer:I didn’t see Ms. Shaw’s potential until her partnership with Mr. Lin.
A clip of Shaw and Lin’s original dance for the 2002–2003 season: a smooth waltz to the song “Kiss from a Rose” by Seal. They spin across the ice in perfect sync, Katarina’s skirt—layered to evoke rose petals—swirling around her legs with each turn.
Jane Currer:Katarina Shaw grew into a lovely young lady during those years.
Inez Acton:They made her look like fucking Figure Skater Barbie. It was some bullshit.
Garrett Lin:Kat and I brought out the best in each other. Everyone talks about her like she was so difficult, but that wasn’t my experience at all. She made everything easier for me.
Kirk Lockwood:Shaw and Lin were unstoppable. They won the U.S. title the first year of their partnership, which is practically unheard of.
