My 3 Dedications And Me

The next night they were walking around in the dark as the lights lit up, "Excuse me, can I have a picture?" a voice said and they both looked around. "Sorry what did you say?" "I said can I have a picture with you? I watched you swimming and you're great! You were brilliant in the 4x100 IM" the girl smiled and Dolly looked at her. "Me? Wow, thanks and sure" she said and when the girl left she looked at Michael "Okay that was weird! Can we go back to you being the picture person?" "Nope! You're in control of that now! So Dolly why are we out here at this time of night?" he asked as they walked towards more lights.

"Not really sure! I guess I just wanted to see the world in the dark. I'm weird Mikey" "You really don't have to tell me!" he teased and she laughed. "Mikey thanks for recently, I know I must be a...well nightmare sometimes but you made me realise what I always wanted and you've given me it. So thanks" she reasoned and he nodded "You did the hard work, it's yours alone" he replied and she smiled at him as they saw the village walking back in.

They were all out at dinner the next day when Ryan turned in to a qualified photographer again and she smiled at him. Ryan was officially the new best friend in her life and she was looking forward to having him around at future meets. All their parents got along and that was something that seemed to make everyone happy. She was sat on her phone later when Ryan sent her pictures on twitter and she laughed 'My three dedications and me' she retweeted before seeing one of her and Ryan with their medals.

'Oh and my lucky kiss!' she retweeted smiling 'Been out to see Rio at night, been to see other sports and been sightseeing...this has to have been one of the craziest trips on my life!' she tweeted before leaning against the wall next to her bed and the door opened to reveal Allison.

"Oh, Missy gave me her key to fetch her jacket!" she explained as Dolly nodded, "Hey look I'm sorry about before, I was mean and all that without a cause. I was stressed and under pressure and acted out and I'm sorry" she offered after it was silent for a bit. "Yeah well I'm not buying it!" Dolly grumbled. "What?" "I'm not buying it! You don't like me and I don't like you, I'm not buying into your excuses. If it wasn't for Mikey you'd still be being a bitch so forget it because I don't want you to be nice to me!" Dolly lectured.

"I...well I just thought seeing as Michael and I are such good friends" "That good that you knew nothing about me and in the last almost 4 years there's been no popping in to see him! I train at the same pool and you've never really hung around to see him. Look be friends with Mikey! I am not competing with you and I won't make life awkward, he's a grown boy he can play with whoever he wants. I just don't want to be involved in it because honestly I can't stand you!" Dolly answered her and she glared at her slamming the door as she left.

Dolly sat on the chair in a makeshift studio, as Michael leant against the back wall texting away on his phone. "So here we have the American swimming sensation that is Dorothy Phoenix and today were going to ask her some quick fire questions and some more in depth questions to get to know her some better" the girl said and Dolly smiled at her.

"Okay so Dorothy, cats or dogs?" "Dogs" she laughed, "Favourite stroke?" "Butterfly!" she answered. They kept firing questions at her and she was just honest "Phelps or Lochte?" "Ergh, I can't do that! I would say it depends! Phelps for his free and fly but Lochte for his back" she admitted as Michael smiled to himself as he text his mother.

"So Dorothy it seems like there's a generation of swimming fans and you're becoming a favourite" "That's a nice thing to hear, we should encourage people to learn to swim and take it as far as they can. When someone knows what they want to do we should encourage that not tell them no" she smiled. "Is that something you dealt with?" the guy sat next to the girl asked.

"Actually far from it! My dad wanted me to swim, my mom went swimming when she was pregnant and really it's all I've known. My parents put a lot in to letting me swim but I never felt pushed to do it, once I said I wanted to be the best my parents just went 'Well let get going then' so that was a great background of support to have" she explained. "Surely it's harder than all that?" "Oh I'm romanticising it completely! My decision and the support was easy but the training is hard! It's very difficult as a child to understand that people won't always want to be your friend if you can't dedicate time to that friendship. It can feel incredibly lonely sometimes" Dolly answered.

"So it's damaging to you?" the girl pushed and Dolly shook her head, "No! It's just difficult to understand it as a child and you spend time alone with your coach. You have an older coach and you don't get that time with younger people, but at the same time it makes you stronger and you can make some friends that way! As a swimmer you understand what others do and do you have an understanding already" she replied.

"Talking of swimmers being friends it appears Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte and yourself have been out and about together a lot recently!" the guy pushed and she smiled. "Ryan and his mother are lovely! We'd never met until here and he was great. Full of advice and helped keep me relaxed and calm when I needed it, he's going to be coming to visit me on training and I'm going to see him too! He's really funny!" she admitted. "And surely you want time away from Michael Phelps seeing as he's your coach as well?" the girl quizzed.

"Far from it actually! As I was saying about friendships with swimmers and training as a child, well Michael and I trained from the same pool and we were good friends from me being 10 until I was 15. He was a good support and friend when I found things difficult, when I didn't fully understand why things were happening he was there to advise me and help me. And since I took swimming back up as a coach and friend he's been great!" she explained "So you've known each other a long time?" "Yes! His family are lovely as well and they get on with my parents, but I think what makes it easier is that Michael and I have a relationship outside of the pool that's completely different. We both separate them fully and I know I can trust him to be fair. He is a very kind person outside the pool, totally different when I'm in the water" she laughed.

"So we're all dying to know, what's he like as a coach?" they said and she laughed, "Relentless, unforgiving, harsh, critical, a perfectionist, competitive, punishing and a plain unnice boy! But that's what it takes sometimes and it's clear that it works. Out of the pool he's very different though, with things being difficult for me at home he has been the almost rock like person in my life" she explained making him smile. "So the future?" "Is going to be more hours in that pool and me learning to go faster and further. I'd love to be back here in 4 years doing all this again and trying to set new records, I also like the idea of trying myself out in more races. I've never really tried to go past 200m since taking this back and so the thought of trying that out in a competitive way interests me massively but Michael and I will have to sit down and chat about all this when we get home and set out the future plans" she admitted as he nodded at her.

"So no retirement plans?" "Are you trying to get rid of me already? Nope not yet! But when I do I think swimming is where I want to stay, this is something I feel comfortable in doing but retiring? No way! Someone asked for my picture the other day, I wasn't used to that and I'm not sure if I'll get used to it" Dolly laughed. Dolly pulled her clothes on before walking out to see Missy sat waiting for her "Last night here! Let's go out with a bang" she smiled and Dolly nodded, the girls all grouped together with pictures being taken before the boys turned up and Ryan wandered around taking pictures with people as Dolly spoke to Cullen.

Katie Ledecky appeared having pictures with Dolly, Ryan and Michael before she spoke to Missy as the other 3 had pictures together. "Lets go! We'll stick together yeah?" Ryan asked and Michael nodded, they walked down to the stadium together, it was full of people walking down and Dolly felt someone grab her wrist and she looked to see Michael. "Do you have your earplugs in?" she nodded rolling her eyes and he laughed as they kept walking.

She looked up at the sky as they stood waiting trying to make sense of what had happened in the last 2 weeks. They started to move again and everyone walked in to the stadium slowly, Ryan stuck to Michael and Dolly's side as they walked. There was people everywhere as they got channeled in to specific areas, Dolly looked up at the stadium and people surrounding them.

She felt someone nudge her "Isn't it weird? I really can't wait to get back to working but I really don't want this to end" she admitted and he smiled winking at her. "This feeling? Hold on to it as a motivator, capture this and remember it forever!" he said back and she nodded. Ryan grabbed her hand as music started and danced around before people moved around them as well, "Ryan! We lost Michael and the others now" she complained at him and he laughed.

They tried to find their way back through people to find them, "Ryan!" she screamed as he picked her up "Mikey's over there!" she said as he put her down making their way through people further. "Mikey!" she shouted running at him and he spun around grinning as she jumped on him, there was a bang as fireworks set off and he pushed his hand over her ear pinning her other to his shoulder and she smiled against his shoulder.

By the time the fireworks had finished he let go and she kissed his cheek, they walked out later and Michael pushed his hand in to Dolly's "Party time!" Ryan shouted grabbing her other hand as they walked through people.