Page 19 of Chasing Gold, Catching Her

Something inside Alisa seemed to tighten painfully at the thought, because if they met there again, if they had to compete against them again at the Olympics, then perhaps they would simply destroy each other, and Alisa herself would lose her mind long before then, because that one damn point would haunt her forever, and if the same thing happened there, on the biggest stage in the whole world, she wasn’t sure she would survive it.

“And you?” Tora asked, glancing at her again. “You’re going too?”

“Well…” Alisa shifted uneasily in her seat. “We’re planning to go to the qualifiers too, but first we still have to get approved at home and then also get some good results in other competitions, so I don’t know if it’ll work out.”

“It will,” Tora said simply. “You skate well together. There’s chemistry between you. Are you dating or something?”

“No, of course not, with him?” Alisa frowned immediately, perhaps more sharply than she meant to.

Tora laughed.

“Sure,” she said with a grin. “The girl who definitely isn’t a lesbian. Totally believe you.”

“No, I’m not talking about that,” Alisa said quickly, feeling herself flush. “It’s just that we’re only partners, and I would never… with him… ugh.”

“Well, he’s handsome, strong, and clearly crazy about you, so why not?”

“I just…” Alisa looked away toward the window. “I don’t know.”

“Okaaay…” Tora drawled, stretching out the word teasingly.

They had already driven past the arena where they had competed, and after that the city gradually began to thin out around them, the streets becoming emptier, the lights more scattered, and soon they seemed to be driving out toward the mountains. Alisa couldn’t tell exactly where they were going, but the landscape outside the window was beautiful in a strange, severe way, dark forests, snow-covered slopes, lonely lights somewhere far away, and although at first glance it all seemed cold and distant, something about it unexpectedly pulled at her, as if some quiet voice inside whispered that it was good here, that she could belong here, even though she was impossibly far from home.

“Well, here we are,” Tora finally said.

They stopped in front of a large two-story house where several cars were already parked, which meant there were definitely people inside. The house itself was huge, minimalistic, all in black and dark gray tones, with enormous windows and old pine trees surrounding it on every side, and it looked less like a house and more like one of those expensive cottages hidden deep in the forest.

Alisa reached for the door, pulling her jacket back on, but before she could open it, Tora had already gotten out, walked around the car, and opened the door for her, holding out a hand so she could climb down more easily from the high seat.

“Thank you.”

“Anything for a pretty girl.”

“Are you hungry?” Tora asked as she led Alisa toward the house and opened the door.

Warmth hit her immediately, along with soft music, laughter, and the sound of voices echoing from somewhere deeper inside, and the whole house smelled faintly of whiskey and cola and some kind of sweet pastries.

Tora took her by the hand and led her farther in, into a huge living room where everyone was gathered. There were not that many people yet, maybe fifteen in total, and among them Alisa recognized a few of the Finns, the Lithuanians, and the Danes from the competition.

She waved awkwardly at them, and then Tora leaned closer and murmured in her ear:

“I’ll be right back.”

And before Alisa could answer, she disappeared somewhere into the other side of the house, leaving her alone among unfamiliar people who were all talking loudly about something, laughing and drinking, while Alisa exhaled nervously and stepped farther into the room toward the people who were already smiling at her kindly.

* * *

Alisa did not hesitate. She crossed the room to the couple sitting on the black sofa, listening to the music. They were a pair of Danes, and she slipped down beside them.

“Congratulations on the medals,” she said.

They both nodded calmly. The girl, blonde hair cut short beneath the square cap, smiled sincerely and dipped her head, while her partner, a tall Japanese Dane, nodded as well.

“Are you planning to go to the Olympics?” Alisa asked.

They immediately shook their heads.

“We’re unlikely to qualify,” the girl replied. “We only came here to compete for ourselves. It was an interesting experience.”