Melody of You | Yuzuru Hanyu

30.

Sophia spent way too much time near him. Almost every single moment she wasn't rehearsing or he was training was spent in his arms.

Yuzuru was addicting, not only because of the intimacy they shared but also due to the huge amount of time they spent rambling about the most stupid things.

His love for headphones managed to be even bigger than hers. The first time Yuzuru showed her the collection of more than 30 different pairs she was stunned. Ranging from intermediate price to crazy in-ear monitors of brands that not even she had heard about, the man had it all. Bass, enhanced, studio balanced, or mid-focused, Yuzu had a different pair for almost every situation possible.

Needless to say, Sophia spent a huge amount of time going through the different pairs, testing them out while he watched. They were all amazing, he knew his stuff, but not even she could justify having so many.

Josh and Hilary had been nagging her for information and an opportunity to enter the coveted TCC. After some effort from Yuzuru, she managed to find a day for them to go all together.

 As much as she loved watching him, Sophia had been avoiding it because of all the staring from the other skaters she didn't know. It was hard to enjoy the privilege while being watched.

The sacrifice she made to go that day wasn't that bad. Sophia knew very well how happy the skater was that she was going, he made sure to tell that to her multiple times through the course of the week.

She met with her friends at the hotel where she gave them temporary access passes for the day and they took a taxi to the Cricket Club. It wasn't like she was that familiar whit the place, but Javi's small tour was enough to know her way around the place.

Their passes were checked and they were allowed to come in after arrival. Soph guided her friends through the halls, not missing the incredulous and curious looks they threw over every single object in the hallways, every single picture and detail exposed.

Once they arrived at the rink, Sophia was sure she heard a squeal from behind, she didn't know from who, but she certainly heard it.

Similarly to the first time, she was in the building, Tracy was watching carefully over the skaters on the ice with another man at her side. Sophia heard Yuzuru speak often about Brian and Ghislain, she knew they were the other coaches, but wasn't sure which one it was.

A sudden tap on her shoulder made her turn.

"Hola Chica!"

"Javi! Are you late again?" she asked, seeing him with a sports bag on his shoulder but skates already on his feet.

"Shh, they might not notice..."

"Sure they won't" The violinist didn't miss the way her friends were looking at her, probably surprised by her interactions with the Spanish skater. "Javi, these are my friends, Josh and Hilary. They are watching today"

"Hello!! Nice to meet you. I'm Javier." he answered with enthusiasm, making Hilary's mouth open slightly in astonishment. "Are you from the orchestra too?"

"Ahh...humm....yes, we are... It's very nice to meet you, I'm a big fan... Hilary too"

Javier laughed at the starstruck way Josh answered and didn't resist commenting on it. "I'm used to seeing this reaction with Yuzu... feels nice being on the receiving end for once."

"Better get on the ice, no?" Sophia told him before things got out of control.

Obviously, and to Javier's disappointment, the coaches saw him coming late from miles ahead and he got the reprimand that Sophia was now sure to be regular. His arrival also made Yuzuru turn and wave once he saw them, gesturing for them to wait a bit and supposedly clearing a short break with his coaches before skating in their direction.

Yuzu gave Sophia a small hug, feet still on the ice, and politely greeted the other two.

"I hope you have a good time." he said with a smile, mostly to the other two people before gliding away, ready to resume his training.

The musician couldn't help but look at him with a huge smile, it simply came naturally to her. Hilary, who sat by her side gave her a nudge when Josh left for a bathroom break. "You make a terrible job of hiding that you love that man"

Sophia looked at her with wide eyes, it couldn't be that obvious. The look on her friends' face told her she wasn't joking.

"What... no..."

"Don't lie, Soph. Not that I blame you, he is handsome and a nice person, it's not like it's hard to like him"

"It's not like that"

"So you're telling me you aren't sleeping together?"

"hum..."

"That's what I thought"

"Doesn't mean anything"

"Not really, no. You could be having sex without the feelings but judging by how happy you've been since we arrived in Canada, I find that very hard to believe. You even play better"

"That's nonsense and you know it"

"Is it? I don't think so. It's also adorable how he lights up around you."

"Don't say those things, Hilary. It's hard enough as it is."

"It's definitely easier to sleep together without talking about how you feel, yes. Doesn't mean you can't properly date despite the distance. It's not like it isn't clear that you are already whipped for each other."

"We can't. Not while living most of the year apart."

"How is it different than what you're doing now? Are you planning on seeing anyone else?"

Sophia knew her friend was right, the prospect of being far from him hurt either way. But at the same time, just the thought of talking about it alone was enough to make it impossible. Talking about it made it real, made feelings deeper and consequences worse.

No, she would never even consider seeing someone else. Yuzuru had probably already ruined every single other man for her with his kindness alone. Still, not using any labels was easier.

"No... I couldn't. But it doesn't matter, we are not talking about it."

"Something tells me you will regret it. Either way, if you need me, I will always be here to talk it through."