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Leo Tilbury pulled the swim cap tight over his head, the latex cap pulling at his hair.

He hated wearing the cap, but he knew that it helped with speed in the water, and he wanted and needed all the help he could get in shaving off even just a tenth of a second.

His other option was to shave his head, which didn’t seem a good option for him at all.

A superior swimmer, Leo realized while in middle school that although he was a good all-around athlete competing at a high level in basketball, track, and baseball, his true gift was swimming. For some reason, he felt at home in the water. His body seemed to glide through like silk on glass.

Having won every possible meet he’d entered for the last three years, even beating boys two and three years older than him, he was now in the final race of his high school career. A race, if he won, could mean scholarships for college if that was the route he decided on.

Leo looked up into the stands one last time, hoping to see his mom.

For all intent, she was a single mother raising a young boy.

His father was around. But that’s about all Leo could say.

Suffering from depression, bipolar disorder, and frequent cases of schizophrenia, he wasn’t the easiest man in the world to love.

Yet his mother found a way to love him to the core.

Thankfully, Leo was a great kid who never gave her an ounce of trouble. An honors student, tremendous athlete, and responsible young man. He worked a part-time job when school or swimming didn’t interfere and gave every dime to his mother to help out at home.

Although his father wasn’t physically disabled, he worked infrequently. Just when Leo thought his father might be on a positive track, he’d have a bad episode and lose his job. Again.

He didn’t hate his father for his illness. His mother had done an excellent job of explaining that his dad wasn’t always the way he is today. She’d helped him to understand that his father just needed help, and Leo was a good enough son to give that help when needed.

Today, he knew that she had a shift to work at the hospital, but she’d promised she would be there for his final race even if his father didn’t make it.

Scanning the stands, he was starting to get concerned.

Finally, he found her smiling face, her arms waving above her head at him.

She wore a blue and white t-shirt, his school colors, that said, ‘ That’s my Son winning in lane four.

’ He had to laugh. Lanes were selected based on preliminary swim times, but Leo’s were always at the top.

His mother had a t-shirt for every possible lane assignment.

Feeling much more at ease, he took one last look up and down the line of swimmers, sizing up his competition. Leo was confident, but he wasn’t stupid. Any young man could win. Anything could happen. A bad start, a cramp, goggles askew, anything.

“On your marks,” said the starter.

Leo stepped up to the platform, shaking his arms and legs, mostly to rid himself of the nerves.

“Set.”

He bent at the waist, his long, lean, muscular body gripping the front of the platform, his left leg set back, ready to push off.

The starter pistol sounded, and Leo pushed off the block, gliding through the water, careful to only move his body until he went above the surface. The 400m individual medley was one of the toughest races to win.

Swimmers must perform a 100m butterfly swim, a 100m backstroke swim, a 100m breaststroke swim, and finally a 100m freestyle. All without error, without breaking form, and as fast as you possibly could.

On his second turn, switching into backstroke, he was slightly ahead. He kept telling himself not to get worried and not to feel too confident. Trust in your training.

By the fourth turn, entering into the breaststroke, one of his strongest swims, he pushed ahead of the competition. By the time he was on his final 100m, he was more than 20m ahead of everyone else.

But Leo didn’t want to slow down. He pushed himself harder, further, and more fiercely than ever before. As he touched the wall, he looked up at the scoreboard and realized he’d done the impossible.

Leo Tilbury had broken a nearly thirty-year state record. One-by-one, the other swimmers touched the wall, looking back at the scoreboard, thrilled to be second or third. They’d all known that no one would beat Leo Tilbury.

“Congratulations, man,” smiled the competitor next to him. He reached over for a handshake and hug, smiling at him. “That was fucking amazing.”

“Thanks,” he laughed, shaking his head.

He looked up into the crowd and saw his mother blowing him kisses and waving at him. She indicated she had to leave but tapped her heart several times.

It was one of the proudest moments of Leo’s young life. As he pushed himself from the pool, his coaches and teammates ran to hug him.

“You pushed us over the top, Leo,” said his coach. “You made the school number one. I’m sure gonna miss you next year.”

“Thanks, coach,” he laughed.

It was a whirlwind of medal ceremonies, photos, and then they hit the showers to change and get on the bus. But as Leo started to board the bus for home, an officer was waiting at the door. He frowned at his coach, who had a terrible expression on his face.

“What’s up, coach?” he asked.

“Leo. Son, it’s your mom.”

“My mom? She was here, but she had to go back to work. She had a shift at the hospital.”

“I know, son. The officer,” his coach stammered, swallowing back the emotions bubbling to the surface. “The officer said there was someone that came into the emergency room, a gang member.”

“Is she hurt?” he asked anxiously.

“Leo, she was shot. The gang member got nervous, took another nurse as a hostage, and your mom was trying to talk to him. Another officer tried to come at him from the side, and he fired. It hit your mom.”

By now, the entire team was listening at the windows of the bus. They all frowned, staring at Leo.

“But-but she’s okay, right? I mean, Mom is really healthy. She’s fine, right?”

“Leo,” started his coach. “She’s alive but not doing well. Your dad is on his way. We’ll take you to meet him.”

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “No! You’re lying! You’ve got the wrong person, the wrong mom. It was someone else’s mom. Not mine!”

“Leo,” said the officer, “son, I need you to come with me to the hospital. It’s my understanding that it’s just you and your dad.”

Leo was so stunned he just nodded.

“My-my grandparents live in Illinois, but they’re really old. They can’t travel right now. Dad tries. He’s not, he’s not normal. He might not know what to do. I bet he’s really scared.”

“Okay. We’ll find a way to contact your grandparents.” The officer gently touched his arm, guiding him toward the patrol car. His coach stepped in line with him as the officer looked back.

“I’m going with him. I’m his family today.”

The officer nodded as the coach turned to the other staff and explained what was happening.

They couldn’t believe it. Mrs. Tilbury was the nicest, sweetest team mom ever.

She baked for the team, in spite of her insane schedule, always found a way to show up for Leo’s meets, even for only one race.

The next few days were blinding confusion and chaos for Leo.

He spoke to his grandparents several times, but they just weren’t able to travel due to their own health issues.

His father could barely control his emotions.

But Leo understood. His dad had his own health issues, mostly mental health, but still.

Between him and his grandparents, they were frail people, his grandparents in their eighties.

His coach and several of his mother’s coworkers helped to plan meals and home visits, hoping to help the family. He didn’t know it at the time, but it would be years of her fighting ongoing issues with the damage the bullet had done, his father’s declining health, and being deployed.

As Leo was contemplating his next move, or if there even was a move for him, he reviewed the dozens of college offers but never expected the visit from the Naval Academy recruiters or the opportunity to swim for the Navy team. It was one of many surprises in Leo’s lifetime.

“I’m damn sorry about what happened with your mother,” said the man in uniform. “Leo, may we come in?”

“Why?”

“We’re with the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, and we’d like to offer you a spot for this upcoming year at the academy and to swim on our team.”

“Seriously?” he asked.

“Seriously, son.”

“So, he would attend the academy, get his four-year degree, swim for the Navy team, and graduate as First Lieutenant, then serve four years. Is that right?” asked his coach.

“That’s about it,” they smiled.

“Leo, it’s an amazing thing they’re offering. Only about a hundred kids a year get accepted into Annapolis. But it would mean you’d have to serve your country as a sort of payment for the education and experience. Do you understand that?”

“Yes, sir. I understand,” said Leo.

“Well, then. I’d say it’s up to you. You’re a smart young man. Smart enough and old enough to make your own decisions. We will support you, and I’ll personally look out for your folks while you’re gone.”

Leo nodded, standing to walk around the small living room and think about his options. He stared at the college acceptance letters on the kitchen table, then at the face of his mother. She gave him a smile and nod, telling him that this was his choice. They would be just fine.

Turning to face the men seated in the living room, Leo stood a little straighter.

“I want to thank all of you, Coach Tom and Coach Andy, especially Dad and you, Mom. I don’t know what I would have done without you. I’m not sure a traditional college or university would offer me what I need. I accept your offer, sirs. I’d be honored to enter the Naval Academy.”

In spite of the multiple offers for scholarships, Leo decided to choose the Navy so that he could make money and help support his parents. He could still get his degree but would be providing much-needed help at home with a paycheck.

It wasn’t easy. Not even a little. The swimming was easy. That always came easy for Leo, but the classes, the training, the running, marching, saluting, all of the rest, weren’t easy.

Yet, on the day he graduated, his old coaches and his mother were in attendance. His father just couldn’t face the outside world. When he deployed, he kept up as much as possible with them, his mother having gone back to work part-time. But neither of them was ever the same.

With both of them continuing to have health issues and needing more care, Leo had to make some changes.

Over the years, the coaches passed away or lost touch, leaving Leo with a new family.

His teammates and fellow sailors. But after sixteen years in the Navy, he wanted a new challenge and wanted to be there for his parents’ last days.

It was one of the many reasons why he moved from the Navy to the Coast Guard. He could be in one place.

Choosing the Coast Guard meant choosing a branch that was the closest to what he’d grown up in.

It allowed him to be there for his parents more consistently.

When his mother died, tired of fighting her constant health issues, his father was only days behind her.

He knew it would happen that way. She was the only thing that ever kept him going.

After his parents’ funerals, his mother’s lawyer opened access to her accounts, including the money she’d earmarked for his college education, and eventually his future. He was completely shocked.

All the pinching of pennies, living in a tiny little rent house, all so she could save for her son to have a bright future. Leo had been sending money to her for more than ten years, and it appeared she’d saved every dime.

“How is it possible she saved this much money?” he whispered to the lawyer after her death.

“Leo, every dime you gave her, she placed in a savings account for you to have later. Every lawn you mowed, every house you painted, every hour you worked at the sporting goods store, every paycheck you sent from the Navy, she saved for you. Plus, she put a portion of her check into the account every month. All she thought of was you. Your father just couldn’t handle the world, Leo.

He loved you, but his mental health was suffering, and she knew she couldn’t give him access to that money. ”

“All these years of her living without,” he frowned. “The times I told her to buy a new pair of shoes because hers were falling apart. Or something as simple as a new pair of scrubs for the ER. She wouldn’t spend a dime on herself.”

Leo knew that he owed his mother everything. He loved his father, but he hadn’t been able to give him what he truly needed. Someone to help his mother live a normal, happy life.

When he was finished with the Coast Guard and with his parents gone, there seemed to be a void in Leo’s life. He needed something to make him feel productive, valued, and part of something that he’d been missing for years.

He was searching for something more. Something that felt a bit like family.

He never guessed he’d find the ultimate challenge of a lifetime.