Synonym

I wouldn't say I was nervous, but there were definitely butterflies in my stomach.

My eyes darted to Finn in the living room. He was sitting on the couch, scrolling through Instagram while waiting to leave. Finn was looking sexy as fuck in a leather jacket and light wash ripped jeans. Since he was absorbed in his phone, I had the perfect opportunity to check him out.

That seemed to distract me until I realized Finn was talking to me and I was just starring at him blankly.

Oops.

I shook my head slightly and straightened up on the island bar stool under me. Finn's lips formed a smirk as he stood from the couch. He ran his ran through his hair before grabbing his school lacrosse bag off the floor with his school stick. "I said, are you good? I was going to head out now. The interview should be in five minutes."

My eyes wandered to the clock on the stove before finding their way back to Finn, standing by the door. "Yeah. I should be good. I'll see you at practice after. Love you."

"Love you too. You'll do great. Just stay calm." Finn reminded me and opened the wooden door to leave the apartment. His frame was halfway through the doorway when he paused and turned around. "Don't forget to add what you want to the grocery list." He added before I acknowledged him and the door shut.

I adjusted my hair in the view of my laptop. I wore an emerald green dress that complimented my brown eyes. CNN would be calling me in minutes for a live interview. After airing the trial and hearing the political commentators, they wanted an interview with me. I had just found out about it yesterday after Finn and I were with our friends. Obviously, I said yes.

Finn was leaving the apartment to make sure it was quiet for the call. He and Owen were going to hang around his dorm and go to practice together.

I was pulled out of my thoughts when the Skype ringtone on my computer started to go off. I accepted the call and the news anchor from CNN appeared on the screen. Her golden blonde hair was perfectly styled and fell around her tanned face like a veil. "Ms. Mason, welcome to the show. I'm sure you've seen the buzz around your name in recent weeks." Her voice was like liquid gold to the ears. No wonder she was on television.

I smiled politely, "Thanks for having me. It's nice to have a platform to speak out on."

"Well let's get right into the questions then." She'd smiled and glanced at her notes for a millisecond before meeting my eyes through the screen again. "Let's start out with your most recent headline. It is my understanding that yesterday you engaged in a twitter fight with ESPN host John Wilson in front of your 789K followers. Would you care to explain why you tweeted at him?"

I let out a small breath of relief. I got this. The only surprise was when she mentioned my follower count. My twitter and Instagram had been skyrocketing since I made the Olympic team. Then the trial and a twitter fight with a man amassing over 3 million followers. I was blowing up. "Well, I first tweeted him because he was implying that it was my fault since I was playing on a men's team. I want to set the record straight, that women should be allowed to do anything men can. Sports is just another example of a situation where plenty of women have the skill and strength to play with men but aren't aloud too. I'd also like to point out that saying my position on the team was the cause of my rape is senseless. Men can rape other men and women can rape other women. That should not be a reason to stop women from reaching their goals."

"If you are in support of women on men's sports teams, would you say that men should be allowed on women's sports teams?" The woman, Cheryl, asked.

"For the sake of this argument, yes. But realistically this is where the issue of an advantage comes into play. I have no advantage over the men I play with. I think the better argument should be for Co-ed professional sports not just men on women's teams or women on men's teams." I responded confidently. Obviously, I didn't have all the answers but I could try and voice my opinion. Men had all of the television coverage when Women play just as well. That's why women should be able to play with the men.

"That was very well spoken, Sylvia." She complimented. "Let's get into some nitty gritty of the trial. Do you believe that rape of an adult by a minor should be prosecuted as statutory rape?"

This was probably the easiest answer I would ever give. To me, it was blatantly obvious. "No. Rape means that the act was not consensual. If an adult is raped by a minor, the minor did the perpetrating. The adult should not be charged for doing something under duress that they couldn't stop. People shouldn't be punished for something they could not control no matter how hard they begged for it to end."

"Would you like to comment on Judge Dennis's previous case? The Sacred Heart rape? Do you think she made the right choice in that case and do you worry about the dangers of the court ruling?" Her smile was long gone and her serious reporter face had taken over. Somehow I found it more comforting than her fake smile.

"I think that false rape claims should be punished. She made the right call in that case but that doesn't mean I don't worry about the optics. I fear it will stop people from coming forward about their rapes for fear of being called a liar. It's a double ended sword." I spoke confidently. I was never one to openly state my political views despite my strong feelings. Especially since I was on such a large platform. Shockingly, it didn't bother me at all right now.

Cheryl seemed pleasantly surprised with my answer biased on her genuine grin and slightly raised eyebrows. That was a confidence booster. "Now you know I have to ask," she shifted in her seat and tried to hide a minuscule smirk. That made me nervous. "The video of your fainting episode is all over the internet. Do you want to comment on that?"

I closed my eyes briefly and let out a small smile. "In all honesty, it was a panic attack. I've never had one at that magnitude but I suppose the whole court thing was catching up to me. Luckily, I was okay and I'm grateful that my symptoms haven't been as traumatizing as many other peoples. It definitely hasn't been fun, but I think things like these need to be talked about more often; So people don't think they're alone." I took a pause before letting myself smile again. "I have to admit, after watching the footage over, it is pretty entertaining to watch. Granted, my boyfriend and some of my friends didn't exactly agree with that sentiment." I laughed lightly.

Cheryl laughed along with me. "I can imagine your sense of humor is an acquired taste."

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"Most definitely."

"Now, Sylvia I'm afraid our time is running out but it was wonderful hearing from you. Best of luck on your Olympic journey." She congratulated me. I nodded and offered a small 'thank you' before a screen cut out.

I let out a deep breath that I hadn't even realized I had been holding while I slouched against the back of the island chair. I ran my two hands over my face in relief before staring at the ceiling for a moment. My nerves hadn't been there before, but with the amount of relaxation in my stomach, you would think I almost just died.

After a few moments of silence, my phone started to ring. My eyes left the whole ceiling and found the IPhone sitting next to my laptop on the counter. A smile broke out on my face when I saw the caller ID. Without hesitation I pressed the green button and held the device to my ear.

"If it isn't Miss Texas in the flesh." I teased.

"Well, Miss Olympian, I just watched your interview. Cheryl was singing your praises once you hung up. 'Such a smart and talented young woman' 'so brave and inspiring'." The cheery voice of my female best friend vibrated through the phone. Al and I hadn't had the chance to talk in weeks and it was depressing. I needed some girl time especially being surrounded by two teams of guys 24/7. Emma and I talked, but we weren't as close as Al and I. After all, I'd known Al for a whole year longer.

"Glad CNN likes me." I laughed back. "How's college life treating you?" I asked while leaning back into the cool chair once again.

"It's good. Busy, but good. I only have like three friends but I hear I'm doing better than Sam." She joked.

"Yep. He's got a killer roommate and that girl, Kelsey."

"Do you think they have something?" Al asked.

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"Honestly? I don't see Sam as the relationship type right now but who knows. I could be eating my words in a week." Kelsey seemed like a nice kick ass girl. I definitely wouldn't be mad about my best friend dating her. She would fit in just fine. I'd only met her for two hours at a time, but we got along wonderfully. "What about you and Chris? How's long distance working for you?"

Al groaned on the other side of the phone and my nerves spiked. I hope they were okay, they were my OTP. Sorry, Finn.

Luckily, Al cut my suspicions off. "It's great but the distance is hard. I just miss him so much. We talk every day though. It's been difficult with our schedules and the whole time zone thing, but we're making it work. What about you and Finn?" I couldn't help but smile like and idiot. Thank God she couldn't see my face. "I was worried about moving too fast or spending too much time together at first, but I'm glad I moved in with him. I swear, I'm in love with him more and more everyday."

Me from a year ago would have puked at the thought. Love. With Griffin Riley. At this point last year I was sleeping around and getting into daily fights and pissing matches with Finn. Never would I have foreseen this coming. But that made it all the more magical. He was my everything now.

"I love that." Al responded. "Girl, I got to go but I need to fly out and see you guys. Maybe all five of us can reunite for Christmas in Connecticut."

"Definitely. I got to go to practice now, but I'll text you. Love you girl."

"Love you too."

The line clicked indicating the end of the call. When I pulled the phone away from my ear I saw the unread text message on my home screen. My hand grasped the glass cup of water and the cool and somewhat metallic tasting water slid down my throat. The water filter must need to be changed.

That was the last thought on my mind though, because I was busy suppressing a smile as I drank. Finn's latest text message made my heart melt.

I think I just fell in love with him even more.