Tom Alan didn’t come back to the house that night, or the night after that. The following day, they were standing on the ice, prepared—or possibly not—to debut their “Sounds of Silence” and “Bohemian Rhapsody” programs.
“I don’t feel like we’re ready.” Those were not the words she wanted to hear from her partner fifteen seconds before taking the ice.
“You do not have a choice,” Irina Mischen told Tom Alan, as they waited to hear the preceding team’s scores. “If you want to make it any farther, if PyeongChang is your goal, it starts right here. Today.”
Trust was important for pairs skaters. For Erika, it was imperative. When Paul Simon’s lyrics spoke of darkness, Tom Alan covered her eyes with his hands, and she relied on him more than ever to guide her. She’d never felt uneasy about it
