Chapter 25 — Bridge Yard Beats

On the day he returned home, the international airport was filled with fans, banners welcoming the Olympic champion were spread across the aisles, and the cheers were as loud as the moment of victory at the Olympic arena just a few days before. Vy and Long walked out of the security door to a warm welcome unprecedented in the country's sports history.

Vy's mother, Nguyen, along with many family and friends, were among the crowd, unable to hide their tears of happiness when they saw the gold medal sparkling around their daughter's neck. "My daughter is an Olympic champion!" she shouted, unable to hide her extreme pride, hugging Vy in indescribable happiness.

"I did it, mom," Vy replied, tears mixed with a bright smile on her face, holding up the hand with the engagement ring on it for her mother to see. "And I have more good news."

Vy's mother was stunned for a moment before realizing the profound meaning of that ring. Tears flowed even more in indescribable double happiness. "My daughter just won the Olympics and is about to get married," she said, her voice so choked that she couldn't fully express her emotions.

The official honoring ceremony was solemnly held at the Presidential Palace, with the participation of senior leaders and a large number of domestic and foreign media. Vy and Long were awarded noble medals for their outstanding contributions, bringing glory to their country's sports at the largest sports arena on the planet.

"Your victory is not only the pride of your family, but also the great pride of the entire nation," the leader said during the ceremony, his voice full of solemnity. "You have convincingly proven that, with enough strength and determination, Vietnamese people can absolutely reach the highest peaks of world sports."

After the ceremony, when returning to the small house in her coastal hometown, Vy took Long to visit her father's grave, bringing with her the Olympic gold medal and the familiar bouquet of white chrysanthemums. She placed the medal gently in front of the grave, her eyes filled with emotion.

“Daddy, I did it,” she whispered, her voice choked up. "I brought home the Olympic gold medal, something I never dared to dream of when I was a poor girl growing up on this beach. And I also found the man who will accompany me for the rest of my life."

Long stood quietly beside him, bowing his head before the grave with sincere respect. "I promise you, I will always cherish, love and protect Vy to the fullest, so that you can rest assured in your life, proud of what your daughter has achieved."

The sea breeze blew gently, carrying the faint scent of chrysanthemums, like a warm response from far away. Vy stood there for a long time, clearly feeling a complete peace that she had never had during the years of struggling alone to face the loss and difficulties of the past.

That evening, Vy's mother prepared a cozy family meal to celebrate both good news at the same time. Mr. Trinh Bao Son also personally returned to his hometown to attend, bringing a small gift to congratulate the future in-laws.

"I have to be honest," Mr. Son said during the meal, his voice filled with sincerity, "I never thought that the bold pairing decision that day could lead to such a wonderful result - not only in terms of sports, but also in terms of family love."

"Me too," Vy's mother replied, raising a glass of water to congratulate the whole table. "I always believed that my daughter would find her own happiness, but I never imagined it would be this complete."

The entire banquet table raised their glasses and clinked glasses in joy and warm connection between two families from completely different backgrounds but with the same pride and love for two talented young people.

In the following days, Vy and Long spent a short time resting with their families before returning to the busy schedule of Olympic champions - interviews, honor events, and countless invitations to participate in community activities, promoting sports to young people across the country.

"Our lives are about to get much busier," Long said on a rare peaceful afternoon, as the two sat watching the sunset on the beach of Vy's hometown. "But I believe, we will overcome it together, as we have always done throughout the past journey."

"I believe so too," Vy replied, leaning her head on his shoulder, watching the sunset dye the sky and sea orange.

A few days later, when she returned to the city, Vy was invited by the national badminton federation to participate in a special ceremony, where she was asked to become an image ambassador for a community badminton development program for disadvantaged children across the country. She accepted immediately, without any hesitation.

"This is my opportunity to give back what I have received," she shared with Long after the ceremony, her eyes filled with enthusiasm. "I want to help children who are in the same situation as I was in the past, showing them that their background does not determine their future."

"I will always accompany you in this meaningful project," Long replied, holding her hand supportively. "We can use our newfound fame to create real positive change, beyond just medals."

At the same time, Mr. Trinh Bao Son also announced the good news about the scholarship named after the Trinh family - thanks to the attention that the Olympic victory brought, the number of sponsors registering to contribute to the scholarship fund has skyrocketed, helping to expand the scale of support for many young athletes in difficult circumstances across the country.

"I can't believe it, in less than a year, the scholarship has been able to support more than fifty talented young athletes across the country," Long said when hearing the news from his father, unable to hide his emotions. "It all started with Vy's story."

"That is the power of truly inspirational stories," Mr. Son replied, his eyes filled with pride as he looked at the two young people who had created so many meaningful things together in such a short period of time.

On the last evening before the two had to return to the routine of training to prepare for the next tournaments, Vy and Long spent time sitting together, reviewing the entire magical journey they had gone through together over the past year.

"If someone had told me, a year ago, that I would fall in love and propose to the very opponent I had a heated argument with in my first training session, I definitely wouldn't have believed it," Long said, smiling softly at the sweet irony of fate.

"Me too," Vy replied, smiling, her eyes sparkling with happiness. "But now, I really can't imagine what my life would be like without you, without this wonderful journey."

The two sat together in silence for a long time, hand in hand, filled with gratitude for what life has blessed them with - not only medals and titles, but also sincere love, deep understanding, and a bright future that is wide open ahead, ready for them both to continue writing meaningful new chapters of their shared journey not only on the field, but also in their upcoming married life.

"We should start talking about the wedding day," Vy said, breaking the sweet silence, her voice full of excitement, her fingers unconsciously twirling the engagement ring on her hand. "I don't want to wait too long."

"Me too," Long replied, squeezing her hand. "I think, after this year's season ends, when the competition schedule is much less dense, it will be the perfect time to hold a wedding."

"So we have a clear milestone to work towards together," Vy smiled, her eyes sparkling with happiness at the beautiful prospect that was waiting ahead, a future that just over a year ago, she never dared to dream of in her days of self-doubt.

They both looked out at the night sea, the moonlight reflecting sparklingly on the water's surface, a peaceful scene in complete contrast to the fiery matches and suffocatingly tense moments that the two of them had experienced together throughout the past year. But from those challenges, a strong, sincere love has been nurtured day by day, ready for a new chapter, more beautiful than anything they ever dared to imagine when starting this unexpected journey, from that fateful first practice session, a beginning that seemed full of collisions but in the end led them both to the most complete happiness.