Reckless

Ten

*Lil*

"PUSH LILAH!" Maddy screamed from the edge. I had no idea where Coach Compton was on a weekend but she never seems to be here. Maddy had been here last week when I showed up at 8am still pissed off from Owen's little show at the bar. We'd spoken a little bit before that morning. We'd been paired for an icebreaker during the first session, the coaches go through expectations and standards and schedule are set and we're given personalised plans, program numbers. That kind of thing.

We'd skated together since and had decided we'd work as a team on a weekend. Pushing each other to do better. It helped us both out really. Forced us to pick up on what the other did better or worse and gave us a good push to do better too. Because skating for peers was different to skating to coaches. They were made to look for tiny details, where as your peers can see the most obvious things that don't look right.

"YOU'VE GOT IT! COME ON!" My next program was still being worked on. The choreography wasn't finished yet so there was no point looking at it without a coach here for updates. No. Instead I just did old routines to keep my skills up. The most challenging ones I always used to practice with jumps I always need to work on no matter what. "THAT WAS TWO TRY AGAIN!"

I can do this. I've done it before. It's just one extra spin in the fucking axel why is it so fucking difficult to do?! I blew air out through bloated cheeks, tugging at my loose pony tail until my hair was free and pulled to a stop beside her.

"You're only hitting a double."

"I know. Compton wants the triple."

"You know you can do it Lilah." I sighed. "Look just take it easy. We've got all day. Try it again." I nodded at her as she restarted the music. I don't know why it's easier with the music on. I guess it gives me something else to focus on rather than screwing up. The only reason Compton wants me to nail this is because I did it accidentally on the first day and now she's hyper focused on it. I have no idea how I did it then either. I just kind of, pushed off a little harder tucked my arms in tighter.

Focus Lil. Focus. You can do it again. You have to nail this. Think about how much further this is going to get you.

I nodded at myself, hyping myself up and starting the run up. I jumped. Spun. Landed on my hip with a crash.

"HOLY SHIT." I laid my head back on the ice letting out a breath with the shooting pain and slowly sitting myself up. "Lil. Are you okay?!"

"Yeah. Crash pads. Shit that hurt more than it should have."

"Yeah you - uh- Crompton's gonna go mad."

"What? Why?"

"You pulled a quad." She almost laughed. "I'm sure I counted four."

"No, I didn't." I stood up. Ignoring my name being shouted from the other side of the ice. Whoever it was could wait. This was huge. This was- god- this was fucking record breaking. I grabbed my phone off the tripod, stopping the recording and rewinding it, slowing the speed down. My phone rung in my hand and I declined it, scowling at Theo's name. Honestly. A week of not speaking to the guy, you'd think he got the idea that I didn't want to talk to him.

Theo- Are you okay? That was a nasty fall.

I looked up for a second, peering at the man from across the ice. Why was he even here? Shouldn't he be brown nosing my brother somewhere?

"Play it." Mads demanded and I shook my head out of the frustration, focusing on the slowed video. "One, Two, THREE-"

"four."

"HOLY SHIT LILAH DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS?" I sat down on the ice, rewinding it again. I clipped the video down and sent it to my mum. I needed another count on that because, I didn't. I couldn't have. "I both hate you and am obsessed with you so much right- why is there a man on the ice? He's gonna-"