Page 30 of Chasing Gold, Catching Her

Alisa: You can go there from age 16 – first of all, and second, even if we took second place in the championship, the main thing is that we have gone further and will go to qualification for the 2026 Olympics!

Probably…

Mother: Okay, I get it. Congratulations.

Another pause.

Mother: When are you planning to give birth and get married? After the Olympics?

Alisa: Mom, are you serious?

Mother: Yes, how long should I expect grandchildren? When are you going to give birth, at 25? May the doctors call you old-born???!?”

Alisa: Mom…

Mother: You’ll be 20 years old soon, in a couple of weeks! Finally come to your senses that the clock is ticking.

Alisa: You ask this question every month; can’t you ask anything else, like how are you? How do you feel after the competition, are you tired? Maybe you should order your favorite dessert, your favorite poppy seed buns from a popular bakery!?

Mother: The buns are hurting you, then the Lev won’t be able to lift you up and jump.

Alisa clenched her jaw after finishing her coffee in one gulp and went to get ready. She wanted to walk around the city, breathe in her favorite rainy air, and maybe go for that damn poppy seed bun with milk chocolate. She deserved a delicious breakfast. She wasn’t a champion, but second place was not an empty achievement; the main thing was that they had passed and would probably go to qualify with other athletes for the 2026 Olympics. But first some other national championships they have to win… Or at least perform for high scores. A smile appeared on her face at the thought. Quickly, she threw on a coat, took an umbrella, tied her hair in a bun, and ran outside.

People strolled leisurely under umbrellas, all going about their business, but Alisa had a goal: her favorite bakery and that divine poppy seed bun. The thought of biting into it lifted her spirits, and she completely forgot the conversation with her mother. The bakery was only 20 minutes away.

She had Markul again in her headphones, the same album, but now the song “Labyrinth.”

And when the verse started playing and the words pierced her like lightning, it felt as if it were a song about her and Tora, about what had happened between them, and how they couldn’t be together in the end. This whole game between them would obviously end badly for one of them… well, for Alisa, of course. It was her first time; for Tora, probably the tenth or even the hundredth. She couldn’t know for sure, but Tora had been like an expert, confident while Alisa had been self-conscious that night.

And those lines from the song cemented her thoughts, taking her back to that night when everything had changed between them.

Я помню всё

Помню твой каждый изгиб, повсюду парфюм

Думала, сыграла в ничью

Но я тебя оставлю без чувств

Увидишь

Ты построила лабиринт, из которого ты не выйдешь

Не выйдешь

Вот видишь4

Alisa felt something tighten in her chest, tears flowing down her cheeks. She had fallen in love—head over heels with her ice rival—and that night, whatever had happened, was a mistake that now corroded her from the inside.

How would she go to the Olympic qualifiers and next championships if she’s there?

How?

If Tora would be there, after the championship furor, she would obviously want gold at the Olympics too… everything was a mess.

But training awaited Alisa; she needed to focus on the next competitions.

They had only a few weeks to prepare for the next championship, damn it! But Alisa was thinking — will they meet again?