he moments following my win are chaos. The media surrounds me, taking photos for the local papers and shoving their recorders in my face. Public speaking is not exactly my forte, but when one of the reporters asks a question, Tyler's encouraging squeeze of my hand gives me the courage I need to face them.

For the next five minutes, we smile and grin as I'm asked question after question about my glorious victory. I have to admit, despite not liking being the center of attention, it feels nice to be recognized for something I've worked hard for; it feels validating. And having Tyler beside me, knowing he's as happy for me as I would have been for him, means everything.

As time goes on, more and more people start to gather around us. They're busy asking me where I go from here and what's on the cards for me as a racer, but just as I open my mouth to speak, I glance at Tyler and freeze. He's standing behind me – half-obscured by a reporter trying to get a close up of my face without my helmet – completely forgotten in my glory.

For a moment, I just stare at him. From the gleam in his eyes, it's easy to tell that he's happy for me, but there's an air of hollowness in his expression as he looks past the crowd in search of his father, thinking about the disappointment he knows is waiting for him. And just like that, my heart breaks. Not just breaks but shatters into pieces for him. Here I am, living one of the best days of my life while he's living what I'm certain is one of the worst.

I turn back to the reporters, smiling, and say, "I'll let you know when I figure it out." Then I reach out behind me, take Tyler's hand back, and lead him away from the crowd.

His fingers wrap around my palm as we walk. I wait until we're back in our spot, away from the crowd, before turning to him. I hadn't noticed before, but his eyes look tired, as though he's had no sleep. I reach up gently and brush my thumb across the hollow of his cheek, my stomach now in knots.

"I'm sorry," I say, and I think this is it, the moment that everything changes between us, the moment I've been dreading. "I know you're upset, and–"

He frowns at the same time he pulls me in closer. "You think I'm upset right now?"

I pause, and then, "Aren't you?"

He shakes his head in disbelief. "No, sirenita. Tired as hell, maybe, starving, but not upset. How could I be?" He steps even closer, taking my face in his hands to look at me. Slowly, he grins. "My girl's a champion."

Something delightfully warm fills my chest and makes itself at home. "But I saw your face during my interview," I say. "You looked...I don't know."

There's a second where he doesn't speak; he just reaches out, brushing his thumb across the side of my cheek. "You want the truth?" he asks.

I nod. "Always."

"For about a second, a part of me wished I'd been the one to cross that finish line first," he says, "but then I realized I didn't even want it for me, sirenita, I wanted it for him. And the longer I stood there listening to you talk, the more relieved I felt. Maybe now that my dad has no choice but to accept my defeat, he'll finally let go."

Suddenly, my arms are around him, hugging him tighter than humanly possible. It's hard to say what comforts me more, the fact he's still happy for me despite losing the race or that he's ready to stand up to his father. Either way, I have never been prouder of him.

"Whatever he says, just know that I'm proud of you," I say, and he holds me tighter. It's the kind of thing his father should be saying, not me, but I know he needs to hear it, and not just the times when he wins a race, but the times he loses too.

He presses his mouth to my jaw and says, "You know how lucky I am to have you?"

"I know," I say, "I'm amazing."

He grins. "Modest too."

I bury my face in his neck and breathe him in. It's hard to believe that at one point, I'd wanted this thing between us to end. I'd been so caught up in pushing him away for the tournament's sake that I didn't stop to think about how without him, winning this tournament wouldn't have mattered. After all, what's the point in glory if there's no one you love to share it with?

"Come on," Tyler says, "I can't keep you all to myself today. Unfortunately."

Just as we break apart, our friends come running over and lock me in a hug. Between the death grip of Niko, Alex and Vanessa, I can barely breathe, but at the same time, my heart fills with warmth. A few months ago, I'd been terrified I'd get to this town, and I wouldn't make friends, or I'd never be happy again. Now I'm standing at the tournament, basking in my win and surrounded by the people I love most; I have never been so happy.

Alex breaks away first to look back at Tyler. Quietly, she says, "You remember what I said last night?"

His eyes soften at the same time he nods. "I remember."

"Good," she says, and she steps toward him before pulling him into a hug. For a moment, he is stiff, but he slowly relaxes and holds her back in a way that tells me he needed this. Not just him, but her too. "Come on," she says, taking his arm, "let's go and face Dad together."

He hesitates before looking over. I give him a nod, letting him know that it'll be all right, and the pair of them set off through the crowd. Turning to Nico and Vanessa, I say, "I kind of can't breathe."

Vanessa laughs and lets go of me first, followed by Niko. "Come on," Niko says, "can we go and get a snack now? Vanessa wouldn't let me eat the whole time."

"If you left, you would have missed it!" she says with a light push of his arm, and he grabs her wrist before playfully pushing her back. "Oh, by the way," she says to me, "pretty much the whole town will be at Mojacks tonight to celebrate the championship. Our parents, your parents, Tyler's parents. It's a big parent fest. Happens every year."

"Well, not my parents," Niko says, "they're on a cruise right now, but you get the drift." He nudges Vanessa with his shoulder and grins before adding, "Seriously, can we eat now?"

I roll my eyes at their unbearable cuteness, about to lead us over to one of the burger stalls, when Sam makes a beeline for us. It's automatic the way a swirl of dread starts to seep through my bones, poisoning my happiness.

The second he gets to us, Niko folds his arms and says, "What do you want now?"

"Just came to congratulate Roxy," Sam says as he turns his head. A lopsided half-smile follows, and maybe it's supposed to be somewhat friendly, but it only makes me nauseous. "You earnt me some money today. Hell, you earnt yourself some money. Where's your boyfriend gone? I say we find him and make him pay up."

I scowl and step forward, but whatever is about to come out of my mouth is interrupted by Niko, who puts out a hand to stop me before stepping up to his brother.

"You're betting again?" he asks.

Sam gives him the dirtiest look. "What's it to you?"

"Nothing," Niko says, "but I'm sure Dad would be interested. Hasn't he spoken to you before about this crap?"

"And who's gonna tell him?" Sam wants to know.

Niko stares back blankly. "Do you really not see where I'm going with this?"

"Tell him what you want," Sam says, "but I'm not leaving Wakeford alone until he pays up."

"Oh," Niko says, "well, in that case–" he reaches into his pocket, pulls out a wad of cash from his wallet, and throws it at Sam's chest. "There ya go, I'm paying it on his behalf. Enjoy. Buy yourself a nice hat or maybe a shirt. Something fancy, you know?"

Sam practically simmers before us. Just when I think I'll have to step between the two, I turn and catch Tyler in the distance, embroiled in what looks like a shouting match with his dad, and just like that, I no longer care about what happens with Sam – I should never have cared in the first place.

Instead, I take off through the crowd toward Tyler. My heart pounds harder as I imagine how he must be feeling right now. This tournament, for him, was only ever about his father and how much he didn't want to disappoint him. From the sound of things, he's done just that.

By the time I get to them, Alex is standing between them and telling them to calm down. But from the look on Tyler's face, he's anything but calm.

"Don't you get it?" he says, and I hear the slight shake in his voice. "I don't want this anymore."

Around us, the crowd is so loud that only those directly around can hear the commotion being made, and they look away awkwardly, pretending not to hear. But as I look at Tyler's dad, it's clear he heard everything; he just doesn't believe it.

"What do you mean you don't want this?" his dad asks. "You're just going to throw away your life like that? Your talent? What was the point of all that training we did for you to just quit on me?"

For about a second, Tyler is as still as anything. Silent. But I can see it in his eyes, this fury desperate to be unleashed. And truth be told, his dad would deserve it. Instead, Tyler runs a hand down his face, breath shaky, and says, "I'm sorry I couldn't be good enough for you today." Then, with a last look at me, he says, "I'll see you at Mojacks tonight," before walking away.

The rest of us stand awkwardly. I'm acutely aware of the people around us giving us the side-eye, trying to catch a glimpse of the drama between Parkwood's old champion and its new one. Of all the ways I imagined this day would end, this was not one of them.

Tyler's dad's friends all look at each other before mumbling something about needing to leave, so then it's just him, Alex, and me. Alex shakes her head, her voice soft as she says, "Dad, come on. You can't see he hasn't wanted this for ages? He's doing it for you."

But I can't. I can't be that calm to a man who would put that pressure on Tyler. "I get that your relationship with racing is complicated," I finally say, and to my credit, my voice is calm. Somehow, I don't think it will last. "I get it. You gave your whole life to this sport. You sacrificed your time, your family, your health. But–" I take a deep breath, able to feel the build-up of pressure in my chest, "that isn't a reason to force Tyler to continue to do something he doesn't want to do."

His dad shakes his head and runs a hand down his jaw in a way that reminds me of Tyler. "Every rider goes through this after a loss," he says, "and Tyler is no different. In a day or two, he'll get that motivation back. I know he will – he's just like me."

"Yeah," I say, "and maybe that's the problem."

He jerks as though he's been slapped. "Excuse me?"

Alex flinches, and I get it. This is her father, the man she's grown up admiring, the man she takes care of day to day. If somebody spoke to my father like this, I'd hate it too, but sometimes the truth is too important to keep quiet, especially when it involves protecting the people we love.

"You can't keep living through him," I say. "Don't you get it? You think you're helping him when all you're doing is making him miserable. He's wanted to quit racing for ages. The only reason he entered this tournament was to make you happy, and he's still not good enough for you."

"Roxy," Alex starts, "this isn't the place," but I'm not finished. I'm getting through to him; I can see it in the way he swallows hard, forcing down the lump that's formed in his throat, the same one forming in mine.

"If he hated it that much, he would have told me before," he says, but his voice sounds thick and filled with emotion as he fights to keep it steady. Maybe, deep down, he truly believes it. Maybe his regret at giving his life over to racing has blinded him to the truth, but now it's time to set him free.

"He's telling you now," I say softly. "You think you've lost everything to racing, but you haven't. You still have your children, and they need you, but if you keep this up, soon you won't have even them."

He jerks his head up to meet my gaze, something dark in his expression. Maybe nothing will come of my rant, maybe some people are too set in their ways, but at least I will know that I tried, and sometimes, even if things don't end up working out, that's all we can do.

"If you care about your son at all," I say, "you'll be at Mojacks tonight celebrating with the rest of us like a decent parent." Then I turn and push through the crowd to find my own parents, of which I have never been more grateful for.

❤️