“Hm,” she hummed, taking a huge bite of her hot dog.
“Where did you even get that?”
“At the concession stand. These events always have the best food,” Erin mumbled around her mouthful.
“Do you go to a lot of Emmie’s competitions?” I asked.
Erin swallowed. “I try. As a writer, my schedule is pretty open, so I can travel to certain ones, but it can be a little difficult when they’re all over the country.”
“That’s nice of you to go and support her.”
“I’d do anything for Emmie, even if that meant sit in a cold ass arena for hours.” Erin looked over at Coach and raised her voice so he could hear it. “Emmie is going to be really happy to have both of you here.”
“Wouldn’t have missed it,” came Coach’s gruff response.
“Yep, he’s still mad,” I muttered, uncapping my water and taking a sip.
“Oh well, not his decision to make.” Erin shrugged, not at all bothered.
A few skaters were about to come out onto the ice for warm-ups, and I prayed the rest of the afternoon wouldn’t be too awkward.
“That’s her.”Erin gestured with her head to the blonde woman stepping onto the ice. I studied her as she skated in our direction. So, that’s the person who tried to trip Emmie.
“That blue dress washes her out so bad,” Erin snickered beside me.
My lips pulled into a smirk, loving how snarky Erin was. Sitting next to her the last two hours, as skater after skater went, was the highlight of the day. Without her making snide comments, telling me all the gossip on each skater, I probably would have been bored out of my mind. It didn't help that Coach was pretty much silent on my other side.
The competition was nearing the end with only Keira and Emmie left to go. From what Erin told me, the better skaters went last. Which made me smug that Emmie was better than Keira.
“When do we boo?” I asked as Keira breezed past us.
“Once her routine is over, we let it rip. She will regret the day she tried to trip Emmie.” My eyebrow raised as I turned to look at Erin. An evil smile graced her lips, eyes narrowed at the woman on the ice as if she could mentally make her fall. She scared me a little.
I glanced at Coach, who stared at Erin with the same bewildered expression I did. I was pretty sure if we were any closer to the ice, she would spit at Keira. I made a mental note to never get on Erin’s bad side.
With Emmie’s biggest competitor about to go, I turned my focus to the ice. Let's see if she’s as good as what people say.
The beginning notes of a slow ballad played through the speakers, instantly earning a groan from beside me as Erinflopped back in her seat, arms crossed. I chuckled at her reaction, although I agreed with her. We’d had four skaters in a row do routines to slow songs that seemed to drag on and on.
The arena was quiet as Keira moved across the ice. All of her movements were precise and technical. Every step exactly where it should be, arms moving in beautiful arcs, landing jumps and twists like she’d run the program a thousand times before stepping out there.
I couldn’t find a single flaw. I wasn’t even a pro at the sport, and it seemed perfect to me. It should have been mesmerizing but…it wasn’t. It was boring.
It was like watching someone go through the movements without really feeling anything. It was clear Keira had talent and her routine was better than the others before her, but that was it. I couldn’t help but wonder if she had a checklist in her head as she skated.
“She’s boring,” I said without thinking. Erin snorted out a laugh, and Coach chuckled under his breath. “Sorry, she is.”
I leaned back in my seat, wishing the routine would finish. The song she skated to was on piano only and seemed to be repeating the same part over, and over, and over.
“Wake me when she’s finished.” My lips twitched as Erin cackled. It was nice to hear Coach chuckling in agreement next to me as well.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, Keira twirled to a stop in the middle of the rink, her music ending. Thank god. It was rude to think that about someone, but I was only here for Emmie, the rest didn’t matter.
While everyone around us clapped, Erin and I let out boos. Albeit mine was a bit softer than Erin’s. Multiple people turned in their seats to give us glares and shushed us. I hid my chuckle behind my hand as Erin booed even louder.My shoulders shook with laughter. Erin would have a blast at a football or hockey game.
She finally settled down when Keira skated off the ice, waving as she went. “That was pure torture.”
“The worst,” I agreed.
