Off The Ice

Chapter 1

"Sutton!" My friends, Adeline and Chelsea call at me just as I'm about to dig my toepick into the ground for a double axel, one of my harder jumps of the season. I stumble over my feet and recover myself just before I would have fallen face-first onto the ice. Once I regain my balance I take a moment to glare at the the two of them before skating over to the railing where they are waiting for me. 

"Perfect timing guys. No really. Two seconds later and I would've eaten ice; literally!"

They both laugh at my sarcastic mouth. "Perfectly sassy. I love it," Chelsea says.

"Well? Is there anything specific you need? You guys now better than to interrupt my practice." I look aroung for my coach. Luckily she isn't looking over in our direction. "Lorelai will chew your heads off, spit them out, and then mix them into a protein shake for me to drink after practice." 

"As charming and lovely as that sounds, we were just wondering if you could sneak out of your suffocating training schedule that you call a life and go out with us tonight." Adeline explains.

"That depends, will the loverboys be there?" They know full well that I'm indicating to their boyfriends, Carson and Cory. I love the guys, I do. We've all been friends forever, but I always feel like fifth wheel when I hang out with them all together. They hesistate before asking and I raise my eyebrows at them.

"Okay, yes, but-" 

"No, no buts."

"C'mon, they're bringing one of the guys from school to meet you. If you hadn't dropped out during your senior year you probably would've met him already."  I know better than to fall for Chelsea's persuasion but as I'm looking at Adeline's face I can practically taste the desperation radiating off of her for me to say yes.

I let out a heavy sigh and look at them with begrudging eyes. "What's his name?" They both let out a squeal as Chelsea begins to give me his details.

"HIs name is Troy Cooper, he's a senior like us, he just transferred here from Chicago. Granted that Charleston is only three hours away so it's hardly a transfer but anyway-" She gets herself cut off by Adeline who can obviously tell that she's getting off topic.

"He's really cute and nice and funny and smart and he is really excited about meeting you." Once they finish rambling I hear my name being called across the rink.

"Sutton!!" I automatically know that Lorelai is planning to torture me for the rest of practice for stopping but the way she smiles as she says my name tells me that she won't actually follow through with it.

I'm Lorelai's favorite skater and she tells me that repeatedly. I'm the only one in the rink who is training for the 2014 Olympics next year. She says that if I train hard enough here then I'll get into the training facility for the official Olympic team with no question. The only problem is that the United States team is training in Chicago this year, which is 185 miles away from here and everyone that I care about. I know I should be lucky considering some- no, most- people have to come all the way from different states to train but I still don't like the idea of being that far away. Then add on top the possibility that I won't even make the team and this was all for nothing. I know I still have at least two more Olympis ahead of me but I don't know if I can train for much longer.

I'm snapped out of my thoughts by Lorelai as she skates over to me. "Show me your triple lutz before going for the double axel." She smiles at me before I go around the rink to prepare for the jumps.

It's technically open skate right now. The rink has open skate from noon to five everyday; the rest of the hours are using for skaters like me who need to train but now that I am out of school, I basically spend all of my extra time on the ice. Then, on Sundays when the rink is closed, I go out to pond a few blocks down from my house and practice there.