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Skating had been my only source of peace for so long, the one place where I could experience something beautiful and graceful. I couldn’t let this chance slip through my fingers.
“You ready, Punk?” Jasper murmured as we struck our poses, giving his nickname for me a teasing lilt.
“As I’ll ever be.”
I found that I was actually telling the truth. All anxiety had fled my heart. I was left with nothing but quiet resolve.
The moment the familiar melody began to play over the speakers, my heart started to pound. On the third beat, we pushed off across the ice in graceful synchronization.
Our measured breaths became one, our heartbeats thudding along in the same rhythm. Confidence wrapped around me like a warm blanket, more than I’d felt performing the same routine yesterday, even if there were more onlookers this time.
Jasper and I would do our best. I knew every move, every spin, lift, and jump, and I simply had to show it.
It seemed that Jasper felt the same way. I caught his expression: the gentle, expressive smile that curved his full lips up.
Even as we swept into our first sequence, I had to marvel at his grace. He was all broad shoulders and powerful limbs; it didn’t seem like he would be able to glide across the ice with so much elegance, but he seemed more at home on the rink than off it.
We spun, jumped, and landed together to spiral around each other. I imagined a trail of color, sparkling silver and gold flowing behind me as I swayed in time to the music.
Jasper and I swiveled toward each other. At the music’s highest trill, my hands found his. Our arms twined together, necks lilting, backs arching.
The melody swelled, the sweeping arrangement filling both my ears and my heart. I barely felt myself land the next jump.
There was nothing in me or around me but the resounding symphony and the beauty of our routine. My heart soared along with every note, every spin, every pose.
No matter what any psycho stalker did, no way could I ever give this feeling up.
We breezed through the first lift without even the slightest hint of a quake in my skating partner’s arms or my own stance. I’d been so caught up in the joy of the routine itself that I’d had no time to worry about whether we would struggle.
I swung through the air, perched on Jasper’s palm, without a care in the world. The routine felt as natural as breathing.
When he lowered me back down to the ice, I reveled in the power and strength contained in his brawny arms.
We shot into our synchronized double Lutz without hesitation, our bodies twisting midair simultaneously. This routine had followed me into my dreams, replaying over and over like a tape stuck on repeat, but one that I could watch for eternity without getting tired of it.
I backpedaled until I was flying in reverse, my dark ponytail whipping around my face. These were the moments I lived for.
My heartbeat quickened as I circled back around, facing my skating partner. We were coming up on the lift that had always been hardest for us.
If we could just pull that off, then I could believe we’d really see this through to the end as the entire routine was meant to be.
Resolution shone in Jasper’s eyes as he glided forward. His hands reached for me, and I leaned into his hold, giving over my trust to my partner.
He lifted me up, higher and higher until I was truly soaring now. His powerful arms supported the pose I struck with a surge of strength that made my body crave his touch even more.
One rotation.
Two.
A third time, each whirling motion perfectly in time with the music.
As he lowered me, my arms swept outward. I landed soft as a dove feather.
We’d done it. We’dnailedit.
A grin stretched across my face. My body careened through the last part of the routine as if floating on joy.
Jasper caught my hand and held it up in our final pose. Even if the power had gone out right then and there, my partner’s bright smile would have been enough to light the room.
