Endurance

Michael is in his apartment, seated at his desk, watching marathon videos on YouTube. He comes across a video of the 2017 Chicago Marathon, and he watches Adrian Dunne cross the finish line, finishing in first place overall.

As he watches the video, he is eating a sandwich and drinking his bottled water. He watches Adrian's post-race interview.

Adrian- (on the video) I wanted to run with the pack and then take off at around the 20th mile. That was my plan.

Michael continues eating his sandwich and watching the video. As he continues watching, he observes Adrian hugging Paul O'Rourke. Paul is very emotional as he embraces Adrian. Adrian then embraces his wife with tears flowing down his face.

As Michael watches this moment, he starts getting frustrated.

Moments later...

Michael watches as Willie Davis wins the 2018 Chicago Marathon. Willie celebrates with his family, and he starts posing for the cameras, flashing his bright smile.

Nigel Barnaby- (from video, off-screen) We have a new Chicago Marathon champion, and his name is William Davis, III. Davis breaks the Great Britain national record with a time of 2:05:11.

Michael sighs with regret. He shakes his head with disgust as he continues watching the video. Jealousy is taking over.

Moments later...

Michael reads an article about a former runner named Katie Wheeler and her accusations against Paul. The headline of the article simply says, "Wheeler Accuses O'Rourke of Doping."

Michael also reads an article about Katie leaving "The Pond Project" and teaming up with Sketchers after leaving Nike in 2014. As he is reading this article, he is eating ramen noodles.

Michael finds another article about Katie undergoing two knee surgeries after her last marathon at the 2016 Olympic Trials. The more he reads about Katie, the more sympathetic he becomes. Curiosity begins to take over.

Moments later...

Michael finds an article about another female runner named Maggie Cameron, a once-promising phenom whose career took a turn for the worst soon after joining "The Pond Project." Michael reads more, and he finds out about the alleged abuse Maggie has suffered by the coaches of "The Pond Project," most notably Paul O'Rourke. The more Michael reads, the more disgusted he gets.

Michael finds another article. This time, he starts reading about Paul. He finds out that Paul has won multiple races, including three New York City Marathons in a row and a Boston Marathon. He also finds out that Paul once pressured Katie to take thyroid medicine to lose the weight gained during her pregnancy in 2010.

Michael finds more articles about Paul's treatment of Maggie and the fat-shaming she has endured at his hands, all due to his demands that she become thinner because he believed she could run faster by being smaller. Now anger is taking over.

Moments later...

Michael watches the 2016 Olympic Trials Marathon race. He watches as Adrian wins the men's race. He skips forward to the end of the women's race. Another Nike athlete named Amanda Gray wins the race. Diane London finishes second. Amanda's teammate, Sharon Flahrety, finishes third before collapsing at the finish line. A very exhausted Katie finishes fourth, just missing the USA Women's Olympic Team. Michael watches as the other female runners console a heartbroken Katie. He sighs as he watches.

Michael starts looking up Katie's running career, and he finds out that her last race ever was that Olympic Trials marathon in 2016.

Moments later, Michael's phone rings. He checks the screen, and he answers his phone.

Michael- (on his phone) What's up, Steven?

Steven- Hey, are you busy?

Michael- I'm just doing a little research. I was going to call you in a bit, actually.

Steven- Well, what's the word? You in or you out?

Michael continues staring at his laptop screen. He takes a deep breath.

Michael- I'm in.

To Be Continued...