These Magic Moments

An apology letter is a silly thing to send to someone, especially when your apartment is right next to that person's. So, when Apolo walked into my room holding an envelope in his hand covered in J.R. Celski's scribble, I stared at it in disbelief.

"He's literally right next door," I yelled at my cousin. "Does he really not have the balls to come and apologize to my face?!"

Apolo looked at me, a sad look in his eyes. "Sometimes, it takes a while. He talked to me, he's actually really sorry. Just read it, it'll explain things. You may not like it, but it will explain things."

I didn't know what to say to him as he dropped the envelope in my hands and walked out of my room. He looked back at me with a smile before he closed the door, motioning that I begin to read. I shooed him away and felt the envelope in my hands.

The envelope was heavy and covered in song lyrics, which were framed around my name. I stared at them and his perfect penmanship. Most were from songs I hadn't heard- I hadn't expected too, he was a big time music buff- but, the lyrics were beautiful. I stared at them, still not opening the envelope. The lyrics seemed to tell a story. They flowed in a circular motion, seeming to say sorry, but still not telling the entire story. I felt that inside the envelope, everything would be explained, that J.R. Celski would truly make an apology.

I opened the envelope gingerly, not wanting to destroy it and its beauty. Inside, there was one page, but the page was cardstock. I moved my fingers over its thickness as I unfolded it. Once it was unfolded, all I could do was stare at it. In the center of the page was a letter written in tiny print, surrounded by even more song lyrics. They formed a border around what I assumed was his story.

I brought myself to my bed, laying down in my Team USA pajamas, preparing to read it. I let my eyes adjust to J.R.'s tiny handwriting and smiled as soon as I began. His letter was sheer perfection.

Dear Lilly,

If you never want to speak to me again, I will understand, but maybe I should tell you everything first. Maybe then, and this is a big maybe, you won't want to kill me.

When I came here for rehab, I met Raechel. She was nice, but I kept thinking about you. All the time. I would stare at my phone and wonder what to send to you, I couldn't come up with anything. My lack of originality was terrible, and that's no excuse because I know you would have accepted song lyrics or a simple hello, I just didn't want to seem lame. I've never really courted a girl before. All throughout high school, my schedule was too much to handle a girlfriend, so I didn't even try. Then, I saw you and I was trying to figure out how to win you over. The first time I saw you, it was the first day of Olympic Trials, you were laughing with Apolo. I envy your relationship with your cousin, you two are so close, more best friends than related. You looked so genuinely happy, it was at that moment that I realized, you were the infamous Lilly. Apolo had always raved about you, he loves you so much. He would tell us how stories about you, I knew I liked you before I saw your face. Apolo had hyped you up so much that it was inevitable that I not like you.

The next day, he admitted he hyped you up so much in an attempt to play matchmaker. I didn't know what to say in return, so he just laughed at me, ruffled my hair, and continued on with his training. He really is an interesting human being, you're lucky to have him.

Now, onto Raechel, she and I were talking when I got here and the publicity lady, whose name I can never remember, saw us and basically said one thing, "Publicity stunt". So, I started "dating" Raechel and quickly, she became a close friend, but never was she at the point of you in my mind. She was merely a friend, and the day that you walked in, I was confused. I had been talking to her a lot and was wondering what I would feel if I kissed her.

In all honesty, I felt nothing. Your kiss was the only one that made me weak in the knees, your kiss was the only one that kept me up at night, your kiss was the only one that left my lips tingling, and your kiss was the only one that made me lose my mind.

You're all I can think about, Lilly, and I've fallen in love with you.

I apologize,
J.R. Celski

~ ! ~

I had to run next door in my pajamas. I tossed the letter onto my bed, threw my hair up into a ponytail, found some slippers, and ran out the door. Apolo didn't say anything as he watched me run, he just smiled.

I made it to J.R.'s and banged on the door, waiting for him to open it. When he arrived, I threw my arms around him, ignoring his confused face. "J.R.," I unwrapped my arms and stood in front of him. "I love you too."

The smile that spread across his face was incredible as he took the step towards me, closed the gap, and kissed me deeply. I smiled into it as I ran my fingers over his hair. He pulled away, looked into my eyes, smiled at me, and whispered, "I love you too, Lilly, so much."

With that said, he pulled me into him again and placed his lips on mine. That night, I caught a cold from standing in the cold, Colorado night in just pajamas, but it was well worth it. J.R. Celski was mine, and I was not going to let him go.

~ ! ~

I let out a scream as the South Koreans fell to the ice, but unlike my scream of terror when J.R. fell in September, this was a scream of joy. I watched as Apolo and J.R. crossed the line and stood up, clapping. My cousin had won the silver medal and my boyfriend had won the bronze medal. I hugged Mr. and Mrs. Celski as well as Uncle Yuki and looked down to the ice, there looking up at me was my incredible boyfriend who was wearing a grin. I waved at him and he waved back, pointing to me then to his heart.

That night as the bronze medal was placed around his neck, I smiled. That night, as he let me wear his bronze medal, I smiled. That night, as he kissed me sweetly, I smiled.

That night was just the perfect middle to our love story.