Unforgettable | Yuzuru Hanyu

4. Natural Ability

"You have Irene gloves?!"

Kana stared back at her friend completely speechless. She couldn't even begin to understand what she meant by such a surprised expression or even what her words meant. Staring back at the gloves in her hands, it was only then that she took the time to actually read what they said: We love Irene.

"Is this some kind of big thing? I had them before the accident, no clue what it all means."

The look of guilt in Stella's expression should have told her that this was bigger than she could have anticipated. There was something about those gloves that made her friend freak out for some kind of reason and now? Now Kana wanted answers.

"They... huh... how to say this..."

The conversation was a mess and you could tell that Stella was trying to find some kind of way to explain this to Kana without it being too much.

"What the hell is going on? It can't be that big..."

"They're just a symbol of a famous ice rink in Japan. Most people wouldn't even know of their existence and they're hard to get if you're from abroad."

At Stella's explanation, Kana was just trying to figure out why her best friend had suddenly been so shocked. It was no secret that she was Japanese. It was only natural that she visited her home country in the past and had access to this particular thing. It wasn't such a big deal.

"Oh! here I was thinking they were some kind of exclusive thing that had made you go nuts."

"No... I mean... not really. But it might mean that you've tried skating before! Why would you have those gloves if you didn't?"

"Yeah, maybe... I don't remember it so it's the same as not knowing how to skate."

"Unless..."

"Unless what?"

"Forget it! Let's just go to the ice! Feeling ready?"

There wasn't a single part of her body that felt ready for it but it wasn't as if she had any choice now. Taking another deep breath, Kana listened to her friend's instructions clearly as she prepared for the nightmare ahead. It was easy to feel fear. She would probably fall and Ice was still hard, it would probably hurt.

Still, once Stella dragged her, she had no choice in the matter.

One foot at a time, Kana slowly braced herself for her imminent death once she hit her head but the truth was far than anything she could've expected. 

Step after step, she entered the ice as if it were familiar territory, a place that she felt not only comfortable but at home. No single part of her could have expected to feel so nice as she glided slowly across the slippery surface as if it was the easiest thing she had ever attempted.

Had all of her fears been in vain? Was it really this easy for everyone?

It was almost easy to forget that there were other people around. It was just her and the ice for a good few moments as she allowed her body to take over.

From the outside perspective, just like her best friend was, you could almost believe that she had been doing it for her whole life. If Stella had been suspicious before, it seemed like now it was all assured. 

There was no way that this was Kana's first time on the ice and it genuinely seemed like she had been doing it far more seriously than just recreationally. Stella has been skating as a hobby for years and didn't come close to that quality of skating.

Now how could she even dive further into the topic and convince her friend to explore this?

For years on end, the topic of Kana's accident and loss of memory had been something that neither of them approached often.

Stella had met her after everything had happened and Kana had, for some kind of reason, been pretty much thrown out by the remaining members of her family. It was hard to even believe that your own blood could treat you as trash but it had happened with her.

The questions had always been there. Stella wished that her best friend explored her past a bit further but every time she even thought of suggesting it, Kana's reactions had told her to stop. It was without a doubt a sensitive topic for the Japanese girl and the last thing she wanted was to hurt her friend.

The truth was that Stella couldn't even begin to imagine being in the same situation, pretty much alone in the world without a single recollection of who she used to be.

Given everything, it was almost a miracle how Kana turned out to be just an incredible researcher in her field when most of her knowledge had come after the accident.  Just like she seemed to be a natural with skates on her feet, science also came easily to her.

It was inevitable that Stella wanted to know more. The mere thought of the gloves on her hands had made her wonder if she had skated at the Sendai Ice Rink. Given what her eyes were seeing, it was easy to believe that she had formal training in the sport.

What if Kana had actually trained there? This was the exact same place where the current male Olympic champion had been raised.

The questions in her head only seemed to increase while her best friend just naturally skated around, doing difficult turns and steps with such ease that almost made Stella jealous.

There was no way that Kana was just a regular skater. She skated like a champion.