Ties of Skis and Skates

Chapter 2

"Are you sure this is where she is going to show up?" Kaiden asked. He tugged his padded jacket closer and shivered. Can't they make it thicker? He thought in irritation.

"Yes!" Sky snapped at the Italian. "She warms up here every day. Just wait until she comes up the lift, then we ride it down and observe her. Got it?" The other male nodded.

"It's so c-c-cold!" Kaiden's teeth chattered together. Asking Sky to bring him out onto the slopes to see Glaucia ski was a big mistake, On the other hand, he needed to see her ability; she was infamous among the other students from what he had heard.

The lift manager exited from the lift control shack. "I got a call from the bottom. Says she's coming up," he announced. "You owe us for this one, Sky." With that final statement, the man re-entered the warmth of the shack.

She came into sight on one of the chairs, dressed thinly mid you, as the duo of boys passed by her going down. How did she not notice us passing? And is she only wearing a jacket and ski pants?! Kaiden thought worriedly. It was way too cold to be out in this weather with how thinly the raven haired girl was dressed.

Glaucia pushed off the chair and went around the lift to the right. They watched as she drifted towards the run trying to put her pole straps on. Despite the thinness of her gloves, more like glove liners, Glaucia struggled to slip on the straps.

Finally, she got the right pole on, but continued to have issues with the left one. Much to Kaiden's horror, Glaucia kept drifting down the level part of the run until she went over the steep end. She plummeted down at full speed, but focused on getting her pole on without batting an eye at the high speed. An occasional turn would happen as if to slow down a little.

At this point, Kaiden and Sky had already reached the bottom on the lift and were circling back up. Considering this was a high speed, detachable lift, it wasn't unusual to be going around so quick. The lift wasn't in green territory, it was in an area of blues, so everyone should already be used to getting on and off lifts.

He turned his body to look backwards down the lift. Glaucia had reached the bottom and was approaching the lift line. Unfortunately for her, the female skier had finally gotten her left pole strap on after finishing the run. When the female skier looked up, she realized that she was at the bottom in the lift line.

"Dammit!" She yelled.

"That was..." Kaiden struggled to find the correct word, "...impressive..." He and Sky exited the lift.

"Now the only way out of here is down!" Sky took off down the run in a rush. He followed after the other male, but found himself unable to keep up. Kaiden lost his balance and tumbled down the hill.

Standing straight up, the Italian brushed off the snow. "It's so cold!" He exclaimed, not paying attention to his surroundings.

"Of course, it's snow." Glaucia was on her way down again for who knows what time. She passed him up, still fumbling with her pole strap. Kaiden started to follow her only to have her ski tips get caught on each other.

"Wait! Glaucia!" She gave him no mind and continued, "I need to ask you something!" Kaiden tumbled down the last of the hill.

Sky, already at the end of the empty lift, dug his poles into the ground and started poling his way back to his fallen friend. Glaucia came flying past him in the other side of the roped line and entered the lift once more.

Having finally poles back to Kaiden, the blue haired male heaved out laboured breaths, "And this is why I'm not one of those Cross Country skiing psychopath!"