s1e7 end games
part three :

an old friends help

a single table sat inside the auditorium, and the raven haired man stared at the board in front of him. he shook my hand, looked me in the eye, and we sat down.

we went through the usual motions of prepping for a chess match, and i focused on my breathing.

the crowd applauded as we sat down, and i took my first move.

i opened with the queens gambit, and borgov took a surprising turn of play from his second move. he seemed to be straying away from his usual patterns, leaning on the element of surprise to deter me. i kept focused though, and kept myself straight as the game played on.

not once did my heart pound, not once did i flick up my eyes to meet his and wonder if he could tell how nervous i was. how much he was winning, or how much i felt like a loser. this, this was the difference between all our games before and now.

this time, i felt like a winner.

minutes felt like seconds, hours felt like half, and my mind was awake. my brain on fire, my focus like a laser. each click of the time button sent a jolt of adrenaline through my veins, and my mind grew sharper with every twist and turn of borgovs play. deep within his seeming to be mad techniques, laid his regular patterns. some part of himself in every move. i was just good enough to stuff it out.

"adjourn." he muttered, and i caught my jaw from falling. the simple word was muttered, a groggy voice said it and his eyes left mine.

i didn't know what this meant. was he tired, or threatened. was he feeling like a loser now, or knowing something i didn't.

hesitation clouded my mind, but i nodded all the same. the man standing next to our table took his next move, and borgov stood to briskly walk away.

loud voices echoed from my next hallway, the one to take to leave the auditorium. camera flashing and men's voices made my feet stop, this was the last thing i wanted to do right now. to tell a bunch of prying men i didn't know what this meant for my future, i didn't know whether to feel intimidated or triumphed.

"paris match, time magazine, the observer..." my guard went on to list all of the important reporters waiting for me, "you're bigger than the monkeys,"

i stayed back, shaking my head, like a little child who didn't want to go close to the lions cage, "please, i just want to go to sleep."

"don't be like that," he shook his head, "tell them how you like russia or how lucky you feel to be an american, and you'll be all set." he brushed it off, and encouraged me to walk out there with my head held high.

i wasn't going to let borgov wear me down. i had adjourned, which is just an opportunity to regroup and strengthen my strategy. an opportunity not a lot of chess players get, and i should be proud that i have made it this far.

the doors opened, and ten flashed greeted me into the hallway.

"one question-"

"do you have a minute?"

"ms harmon!"

i took my first deep breath, and turned to a reporter, "will you put me in the cover?" it shocked me how fast a group like this could quiet down, but within a second i could hear myself breathing again.

"are you going to beat him?" he asked the question tauntingly, and i flashed an award winning smile.

"i haven't made any mistakes yet."

"neither as he."

i turned to my next reporter, "is it true you learned how to play at an orphanage when you were two?" i lowered my eyelids at him.

"i was nine."

"who taught you?" my eyes lit up. this was my chance, to repay the debt i owed shaibel, and to finally get reporters to actually print what i say to them. as i had brought him up on numerous occasions at vegas, and not one paper mentioned him.

"william shaibel." i said it clear and loud, "he was a janitor, and we played in the basement."

"the janitor taught you how to play chess?"

"that's right, shaibel was a fine player." i rose my chin, "he spent a lot of time at it and was quite good." i looked my current reporter in the eye, "now will you please promise to print that."

"absolutely."

"have a great evening, gentlemen." i begun to walk away, brushing away the voices that erupted.

but one caught my ear, and my feet stopped themselves.

"excuse me, miss, i'm with the lexington herald leader,"

i turned just as a man walked around the corner, weaving through the crowd majestically. his curly black hair the same as vegas, and his smile wider.

"our readers back home in kentucky would like to know if it's true. that you're here all by yourself."

townes.

♖ ♞ ♖ ♞ ♖ ♞

he caught me in his arms and hugged me tighter that i ever imagined him to in all my dreams about seeing him again. i felt his smile against my shoulder, and his deep chuckle vibrate through my chest from his own.

"how did you even get a visa so fast?" i asked, shocked, as we finally walked into my hotel room, catch-up already done.

"the newspaper helped me," he smirked, "i'm an associate editor now. and the moscow embassy, i'm guessing they thought i'd distract you."

i blushed, "if they only knew."

there was a silence, and he looked down at the floor, "i knew you were angry with me." he met my eyes, "and i'm sorry. i should've told you the whole story."

i met his eyes, knowing that his sexuality had been kept hidden from me for the first few years, up until las vegas, though, "i'm sorry for not letting you."

"what i really want is for us to be friends."

i smiled at the boy, which i guess now was a man, "do you forgive me?" i reached over and took his hand, and nodded.

he cleared his throat, and the mood immediately changed, "ok, consider me your second. what do we need to do to beat borgov." a lump rose in my throat, but i closed my eyes to settle it.

i groaned, "what i really need is the pills, the booze, my mind fuzzy," i put my fingers to my temples, shaking my head, "i can visualize the games more with them."

he looked at me for a second, "you think that's what brought you here?"

i shrugged, "i think that's what it used to."

"yeah, but you've been doing fine without all that, haven't you?"

i gulped, "yes, i threw away the pills... asking the front desk where i could get more..." i chuckled softly, "i just feel like i really need them right now."

townes gave me a look, a look that told me by myself, i'd do just fine.

or maybe that's just what i wanted to hear.

♖ ♞ ♖ ♞ ♖ ♞

townes awoke me next morning, saying something about how deep i was sleeping and how late it was. i let him crash here, of course, after hours and hours of talking last night.

i took a page from mother's book, and just didn't think about chess. i smiled as i lifted my head from the pillow, thinking it actually might have helped.

the phone rang, and townes handed me my coffee to go get it.

"hello.." his face fell stern, "you all there?" he smirked over at me, "yeah she's right here." something about his tone put a boulder in my stomach, and he pushed to phone closer to me.

i got up, walking over to the small table, and picked up the phone. wondering who this must've been.

"hello?"

"if he goes for the knight hit him with a king room pawn."

it took all i could not to drop the phone at bennys voice, and my vision got watery too fast, "benny?" i said with the remaining air in my lungs.

"if he goes for the bishop do the same thing," i laughed, not believing this was possible, "but open up your queen file-"

"how do you know?!" i held in a sob, forcing out a laugh. my voice was so shaky and my heart felt... warm.

"it's in the times." i could hear the smile on his face, "it's 7am here but we've been working on it for three hours."

"we?"

there was silence, and then another voice, "hi beth."

i blushed, letting the tears roll down my face, "hi harry." i smiled wider than i think i ever have, "it's so nice to hear your voice."

"hang on." there was silence again, and then an abundance of hello's.

"it's matt!"

"it's mike!"

"we're so proud of you!"

i laughed, but the tears continued to streak down my face. my friends, my family, all in one room. cheering me on.

they kept talking, but a voice overruled all of them, "HEY! this is costing me a bundle!" benny yelled, and i bursted out laughing, "beth listen to me, you gotta open up that file okay?"

i sighed, nodding my head. this was great, amazing, but benny was right. they were here to help me, and we couldn't waste a second.

"okay, how do i do that?"