“I need ice time.”
“You need sunlight and carbohydrates,” he corrected. “You also need one day where nobody talks about component scores or medal projections or whether your quad edge was under review for six milliseconds. Right now your entire vibe screams man one heartbeat away from buying a cabin in the woods and communicating exclusively through grunts.”
“You know what? That sounds restful.” I tipped my head back against the wall. “I just don’t know how to stop thinking.”
Ethan nodded as though that answer made perfect sense to him. “Then let other people interrupt it for a while.”
God. Why were all my friends suddenly emotionally intelligent?
He stood. “I’m going to leave you to enjoy your own company, but I’ll expect you to join us in the morning. I’ll text you the details.” He walked over to the door, and paused. “Oh—and before you ask, yeah, other skaters are joining us too.”
I stared. “Who?”
He shrugged. “People. You’ll survive the mystery.” Then he grinned. “Try not to spiral too hard tonight, okay? We need your face symmetrical for the free skate.”
I snorted despite myself.
Ethan saluted mockingly before disappearing into the corridor.
I sat there staring at the closed door. Before I could stop myself, I reached for my phone.
No messages. Nothing from him.
I set it face down on the nightstand and switched off the light. For a while I listened to the sounds of the Village drifting through the open window.
Then I rolled onto my side.
The room was exactly the same as it had been yesterday.
I wasn’t.
.
Chapter Thirty
February 11
Luka
Mila adjustedthe scarf looped around her neck as we crossed the street toward the café.
“Tell me again why we are doing this.” She hadn’t sounded convinced when I told her of the plan.
“Because we were invited.”
“Yes, by Americans.” She glanced at me. “And since when are you close enough to Ethan Miller that he casually invites you sightseeing?”
I shrugged. “He saw me last night when I was in the cafeteria. He was with the others.”
Her eyes twinkled. “Oh, so now they’re ‘the others.’” She lifted both hands in exaggerated quotation marks. “Forgive me. I did not realize you had developed an international social circle.”
I managed a laugh. That only encouraged her.
“You have spent years acting as though casual human interactionwas a dangerous distraction from training, and now suddenly you are collecting extroverted Americans.”
“I had breakfast with them earlier this week,” I reminded her. “They were funny. Kind.” I hesitated before adding, “And Ethan thought it would be good for us to leave the Village for an afternoon. We are not competing again until Sunday. Even Sokolov would struggle to object to coffee and sightseeing.”
Mila made a thoughtful sound. “Ah. So this is emotional avoidance.”
