“Don’t fall on your ass trying to dance in figure skates?”
He caught Finn’s half smile in the mirror. “Something like that. Have you really never watched the show before?”
Moira made a noise of disapproval when Robbie attempted to shake his head. He was starting to suspect Makeup was, in fact, his first challenge, and that he was failing it. Before he could answer out loud instead, Finn said, “Ow! Jan, easy.”
Jan clucked his tongue. “Why you have so many cowlicks? Did I kick puppies in a previous life?”
Finn scowled, but he was making the face directly at the mirror, so it was probably for Robbie’s benefit.
“Don’t be offended, but no.”
“Okay. So the competition films for eight weeks, runs on air for six, which means we have two weeks’ lead time before the first episode. But we air two episodes a week, so performances on Monday, results on Thursday. The two pairs with the fewest votes do a skate-off on Thursday’s show—the time in between is for them to come up with their routine. But we have guest judges for Thursday shows, rather than putting it to a vote.”
“This seems unnecessarily convoluted.”
“It’s to give us a chance to kick off assholes like Chad,” Finn said wryly. “Holly has a whole spiel about it—you know Holly, right? Anyway, uh, officially I didn’t say that. But like, conflict is good for audience engagement. To a point.”
Robbie wrinkled his nose. Moira stuck a makeup brush in his ear.
“Yeah, that’s the face I made too. And Holly. She poured herself a huge drink about it.”
Isn’t she one of the producers?Robbie wanted to ask, but he feared Moira’s retaliation, so he kept his mouth shut.
Eventually Jan gave up on Finn’s hair, Moira pronounced Robbie camera-ready, and Finn led Robbie down another of the endless mazelike hallways toward the filming gym.
“Finn!” Robbie recognized Holly, a tall, gangly woman with a trendy bob, from his introduction to Stef. “And Robbie. I hope your new partner is treating you well.”
“Well, he refuses to try backflipping onto my face,” Robbie said cheerfully, “but I’ll wear him down.”
Holly must be used to hearing worse, because she didn’t blink. “That’s not very nice, Finn. You don’t want Robbie to think you’re not a team player.”
“I’m a team player,” Finn protested. “I think it’s very team-spirited of me to avoid breaking his neck with my ass.”
Holly opened her mouth to reply, then looked at Robbie and closed it. “Okay, you know what? Let’s see if we can get through the first episode before I have to report us all to HR.” She shook her head. “They’re going to call you in by pairs from different doors, all very dramatic. Just wait here with me until I give the signal”—she tapped her headset—“and then you’ll go in and meet the host.”
Right—Robbie knew the host, Michelle, was a retired figure skater. Or was she an ice dancer? Robbie didn’t totally understand the difference.
“And that’s your cue. Break a leg!” Holly opened the door, and Robbie and Finn walked in.
“And our final competitors for this season,” Michelle was saying into a microphone. “We’ve been teasing the news that this year’s going to look a little bit different. And that’s because we are proud to include our first-ever same-sex ice-dance pair. Please welcome former Toronto Beavers goaltender Robbie Zeiger and his partner, two-time ice-dancing World Champion Finn Graham!”
The introduction felt super awkward, considering the only audience was the crew and the other assembled skaters. Robbie figured they’d make it more exciting in postproduction.
Finn shepherded him toward the host, who shook their hands.
“Robbie, tell us a little about the charity you’re skating for.”
Dutifully, Robbie gave the spiel about the help line for LGBT+ youth. He’d given enough interviews to do it well, which he could tell Michelle appreciated.
“Finn, you’ve got a triple challenge this season. First, you haven’t competed on the show in four years. Second, you’ve got to work up a routine that accommodates having a partner who weighs probably double what you’re used to, and finally, you’ve got the additional task of working with the show’s first-ever goaltender competitor. What’s your game plan?”
Somehow Robbie managed not to roll his eyes.
“Well, first, I don’t think Robbie being a goalie is a disadvantage. It means he’s already used to flatter skates, and he has the flexibility ice dancers need.”
Hm. Robbie glanced up. Were those lights suddenly throwing more heat? Or was he just blushing because Finn was going to call himflexibleon television?
“As for the rest… I guess you’ll just have to wait and see.”
