Beginning || Alexandra Trusova (on hold)

Chapter 18 - Fun and Games

A/N: Sorry for the long delays between chapters. Explanation at the end.

Following our lunchtime meal, we made our way to our next destination which was only a short walk from where we had been.

Traveling through the cold Russian temperatures, I am glad that our destination will once again bring us inside.

Finding an indoor place where miniature golf could be played had been hard, but I hadn't expected it to be even harder to get started playing. Everything that I had seen online suggested this place wasn't visited often even during this time of the year, so finding the place packed was quite a surprise.

Thankfully both of us had chosen to wear something other than our normal attire, so it would be less likely that either of us would be recognized amongst the crowd.

What we didn't know at the time was this crowd came from a local school as part of a class trip.

We thank the receptionist as we collect our balls and putters before exiting the lobby and entering the main playing area. As we do, the large indoor area consisting of three eighteen-hole courses comes into view along with the large crowd of people.

"You know," Alexandra says from beside me, "I was hoping to not be recognized today."

I let out a chuckle as I gently placed my hand on her back. "Given the city we are in, someone will likely figure out who we are."

Many people assume Moscow is the home of Russian figure skating, and while this is partially correct thanks to it being home to Tutberidze's school, St. Petersburg is still home to some of the largest skating rinks in Russia. Regardless, we decide to continue on with our plans and enjoy our day together just as we had planned.

Afterall, it won't be long before our full focus is turned towards the upcoming season.

"Ladies first," I gesture with a smile as we approach the first hole.

"How kind of you to let me go first so you can better know how to hit the ball." Alexandra gives me a teasing look as she places her ball on the mat. "Better watch closely as you will never see a better shot in your life."

I chuckle as I watch her set up for what is a straight shot to the hole.

As Alexandra hits her ball, the two of us watch on as it rolls across the artificial playing surface only to stop just short of the hole. 

While it wasn't a disastrous shot like I had been expecting, I can't resist the urge to tease her back. "This is why you don't skip arm day."

"Well it is the reason my skating jumps are better that yours, so you wont see me complaining." Alexandra taps the ball in as I ready up for my own shot.

Making sure to put more power into my swing then she had, I managed to do the complete opposite of her. Instead of stopping short of the hole, I managed to send the ball flying past the hole in comedic fashion as the flew up into the air after hitting the back side of the hole.

Alexandra instantly bust out laughing. "So much for having more experience at this than me."

I chuckle along with her. "Yeah, maybe I have done too much arm strength training over the years. I guess I know why I can't land my Lutz correctly."

"Unnecessarily raising your center of gravity will do that."

During the fourth hole, I snap a quick picture of Alexandra to use as an Instagram post later in the day. Even though I tried to be sneaky about it, she managed to catch me red handed.