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"Not today, please. I’m already done with all of this. I’m done with you."

“Kendra, please… Baby…”

“I'll ask for a car.” I cut her off, leaving with long, heavy steps. I entered the room again, being welcomed by my father's hawk eyes. He always caught me in corners, even if I tried to hide from him.

I continued my way outside and picked up my cell phone, entering the correct app. A part of me waited for my father to come up behind me, hug me and tell me it would be okay, but he never came. However, my annoying mother appeared with Colleen behind her.

“Kendra, wait!”

I stared at her running in her high heels towards me.

“No! For what? You're leaving, you're going to New York, isn't that it?”

A confused expression formed on my mother's face.

“Yes, I am, but that's because, despite everything, I know that your father is competent to manage the hospital that I inherited.” Her voice came out harder. “Because I know that, despite all his flaws, he loves you and I know that Nick is incapable of doing anything that would harm you. But, above all, because I love you and one day, who knows, you will learn to see that!”

“I don't know if I'll make it...”

She laughed, disgusted.

"You always gave him more credit than you gave me, but the truth is, we tend to give more credit to those who are farther away." Mom replied and what she said caught me off guard. The sentence echoed in my mind, but I didn't have time to assimilate it all very well, as my ride had arrived and the last thing I wanted was to continue staring at her.

The photo in her Instagram story, already inside the plane, had been Kendra's last update. And we didn't even exchange texts properly during the weekend. I didn't want to disturb her at a time when she would be busy with her family, so my only action was to like the photo and start getting ready for another Monday full of training and classes.

I put everything I needed in my bags and pulled my hair into a single boxer braid. I took my sneakers and went to put them on in the living room, finding Emily stretching and Troian watering the plants.

“Good morning, girls! Ready for another week?”

“Good morning, Roni. I'm super ready for Karlee to make the team for Daytona!” Said the blonde one.

“I think we're all looking forward to it.” Troian added.

“Everyone, including your new boyfriend?” I provoked her. Last weekend, Troian went missing and was left in front of our dorm last night by Becker. Emily and I watched everything from the window, it was incredible to see her arriving all awkward while we peppered her with questions.

“Including him, but he'll get in easily, right?!” She commented. ‘We have few boys on our team, most of them graduated last year and left the team, so it's more likely that he'll stay on the main team.”

“That's true and it sucks!” I declared. It was horrible competing with each other for a place in the main team, but that was the way it was. “Well, nothing better than a breakfast to ease anxiety.”

Emily looked at me like I was crazy.

“I don't know if that's true.”

“Oh, let's go! I'm very hungry.”

They both laughed, but soon we were in the main dining room eating our first meal of the day.

Classes dragged on and, as much as I loved the introduction to the history of marketing, everything seemed too painful while we didn't have an answer about who would qualify for the competition's main team. After all, we had worked hard for this.

I left the last class of the day and walked slowly to the training center. Somehow, my brain made me believe that calmness would reach me if I delayed getting to the gym a little.Which didn't happen. The nervousness was already in me when I arrived, and it made me even worse when I saw Kendra there, smiling in front of Zorah. The two were talking while I felt a twinge of discomfort when I saw the scene.

“Hey, you can't just stand at the door, Roni.” Logan called my attention.

I took a few more steps forward and then faced him.

“Sorry, I got distracted.”

“No worries.” He smiled weakly and went to Becker. The two were always together during practice, they seemed like very good friends. I continued my way until next to Emily, who was stretching.