Angela checked her skates and peered out at the ice. Its smooth, mirror-like surface reflected the flood of lights inside the auditorium. “Soon it’ll all be over,” she thought. The judges would tabulate the scores, and the skater with the most points would be the city figure-skating champion. She glanced at Sandra Collins standing confidently next to the ice. Sandra had been champion for the last two years. “It’ll probably be three after today,” Angela thought glumly.

“Don’t worry about Sandra,” Coach Lewis said, noticing Angela’s concerned expression. “Show the judges what you can do.”

Angela nodded as the announcer called her name. She skated out on shaky legs, going through her routine one last time in her mind. One part in particular worried her: the double axel, a jump in which she spun two and a half times and landed backwards. It had taken her months to learn, and she still sometimes missed it.

“I probably can’t even do a single jump right now,” she thought as the lights dimmed and the crowd grew silent. Angela’s eyes met Sandra’s icy blue stare, and a chill crept up Angela’s spine. She realized that Sandra wasn’t nervous at all. “She’s probably never missed a jump in her life,” Angela thought.

For one horrible moment as her music began, Angela felt frozen, locked in the cold grip of fear. Then she pushed her arms back, slid one skate forward, and began racing over the ice. Suddenly her mind went blank; what was she supposed to do first? Then, as if by magic, she glided gracefully into a spin. Her body had remembered what her mind had forgotten.

Angela made it through several small spins and jumps, but as the double axel approached, she felt more and more anxious. Her heart raced as she prepared to jump. What if she missed? She took a deep breath and leapt into the air, feeling an incredible sense of freedom as the crowd rushed past her eyes in a dizzying swirl. Then, arms out, she landed and—slipped. Her skate slid sideways ever so slightly and her balance wavered momentarily. It had been the tiniest of errors. Had the judges seen it? How much would they deduct from her score?

Angela didn’t even notice the crowd’s loud ovation when she finished. She skated off the ice right past Sandra. As defending champion, Sandra would compete last. As they passed, Angela saw a flicker of a smile cross Sandra’s lips, as if to say, “Too bad.”

Angela watched carefully as Sandra skated. She was extremely confident and very good, but not perfect. Angela noticed a couple of small mistakes. “Will the judges notice?” Angela wondered. Were they as bad as her own mistakes?

“Well, second is pretty good,” Angela thought as Sandra skated off to the roar of the crowd.

At last the scores came up. Angela stared in disbelief. She had done it! She was the city champion! Her eyes filled with tears as people hugged and congratulated her. Sandra came over and shook Angela’s hand. Angela noticed tears in Sandra’s eyes, too. “Congratulations,” Sandra said. “You skated very well.”

“Thank you,” Angela said. “So did you.” Watching Sandra walk away, Angela couldn’t help but wonder how she felt.