Chapter 19Fueled by all sorts of emotion that manifested as frustration, I had one hell of a first day in the pool. The news conferences following were the same torment they had always been, though. It didn’t matter if I beat the man whose name was never mentioned or not. I still dreaded that portion of the day. Mathias, on the other hand, continued to bask in the spotlight. If he was acting, it worked for him. Even after being referred to as “the bridesmaid and never the bride” twice, for always coming in behind me, and now others, he managed to keep a smile plastered on his face and a positive attitude. He was coming in fourth and fifth this go-around, against the ringers, so to speak, and some other competitors who were supercharged for the qualifier, finishing with numbers they had nev
