AllFreeNovel
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“Is it jumps that use this useless fucking pick thing?”
The only thing Nate’s been unhappy about is his new skates. Unlike his hockey skates, the skates we use have toe picks. We did a quick practice skate at Simone’s after we finished at the mall, and I lost track of how many times he went flying. Not to mention that breaking in new skates can fucking suck.
“It isn’t useless; you’re going to need it. But yeah, you take off by hitting the ice with the ‘useless fucking pick thing.’Edge jumps take off from the inner or outer edge. Simple, right?”
He grunts something that roughly resembles yes, closely watching my feet as I turn, stretching my left leg back and striking the pick against the ice. “Single toe loop.”
Replicating my movements and, to his credit, getting it reasonably accurate, with the exception of his wobbly landing, we move on.
“What move were you doing when you bowling balled a couple of weeks ago?” he asks, standing and brushing the ice from his ass.
“I was trying to do a quadruple Lutz.”Tryingbeing the operative word. “Lutz is a toe jump.”
“It looked hard.”
“It is hard.”
“I sense you don’t want to talk about this.”
“There’s nothing to say.” I sigh. “Brady made us take it out after I hit my head. It’s not common in women’s figure skating and virtually unheard of in pairs. She felt it was an unnecessary risk.”
“So why do it?” He isn’t being rude; I think he’s genuinely interested. “I’m only trying to understand your mentality, Stas. Not make you feel bad.”
I don’t know how to explain it. It feels like a topic for therapy, not part of an impromptu chat in the middle of a training session. But I owe him honesty.
“I wasted years skating with someone who couldn’t match my skill because he was my boyfriend.”Classic. “Don’t get me wrong, we were very good, we just weren’t great. With a different partner, I might have achieved more. I don’t want to be that for Aaron.”
“And Aaron can do it, right?”
“Of course, he can.” I snort. “He’s spent hours and hours trying to help me nail it, even though he never thought I’d be able to. There’s a reason it’s not common, but I’m stubborn. I’ll keep trying, but it’s not going to be this season.”
“I like how determined you are,” he says softly.
“If you two want to look lovingly at each other, do it on your own time!” Coach shouts across the rink, reminding us both we’re supposed to be skating, not sharing.
He sighs heavily, putting his hands on his hips. “She scares the shit out of me. What’s with the coat? Does she know we’re in California?”
“Her aesthetic is Cruella de Vil. You’ll get used to it.”
* * *
Nathan groansand winces loudly as we climb into his car.
“You’re so dramatic.” I laugh, throwing my bag at my feet. “It wasn’t that bad.”
“I’m not built for ballet and yoga, Stas,” he mumbles, putting the car into reverse. “My legs are on fire.”
“You’re not bendy at all, are you? It was like watching a tree trunk.”
Looking over from the driver’s seat, his eyebrow quirks. “I don’t need to be bendy becauseyou’rebendy, which makes us perfectly matched.”
“You did good, Nathan. Seriously, I’m grateful. Thank you.”
“I spent half the time on my knees or face-planting. I’ve never concentrated as hard as I did doing those fucking laps. I was terrified I was going to trip. Are you sure I can’t wear my own skates?”
“I promise you’ll get used to them.”
“Or you’ll get used to seeing me on my knees.” He frowns. “Not like that. Or like that, if you want. That way is my preference.”
