Hello Hurricane {English Translation}

2. Daniel - Oberstdorf - Day before qualification

Cozy, Daniel and his teammates made their way from the official team presentation in themarket square in Oberstdorf back to the team bus. It had gone well and secretly he was gladabout the fact that he was part of the elite circle of favorites, among so many first-classjumpers. Even if the press had given him only an outside chance, Daniel knew that he hadthe makings of a tournament winner. He had never been in such good shape as he was thisseason. 

He was satisfied with himself and his demeanor at the press conference that afternoon. Itwas fun answering the journalists' questions. After the team presentation that evening, hejust felt happy. Although the pressure to win the Golden Eagle back home in Norway wasgreater than ever before, he didn't intend to let it bother him. And to be honest, it was downto him anyway. After all, he had jumped in all the successes himself before the Christmasbreak. 

Lost in thought, he walked a little behind his teammates, who were busy evaluating the teampresentation. Daniel, on the other hand, just wanted to let it sink in, and not analyze everysingle detail to death."Hey, Daniel, what do you reckon: why were the Prevc brothers not at the press conferencethis afternoon? It's strange, right? I mean, they obviously weren't sick." Andreas turned tohim questioningly. 

"Dunno. Psychological warfare? Who knows what goes on in the Slovenians' heads."Shrugging his shoulders, Daniel climbed into their bus, sat back and stared out of thewindow."Or maybe Domen was late again," chuckled Anders Fannemel. and the team started tolaugh. Just about everyone had seen the youngest Prevc causing considerable annoyanceamong the Slovenian team since he had joined the World Cup. It was always a realspectacle to watch Goran Janus' expression darken, steam almost pouring out of his ears ashe tried not to crack. 

Daniel looked over at the small square where they had been officially welcomed inOberstdorf a few minutes ago. Neon green jackets. These were either the Germans or theSlovenians. Sighing, he closed his eyes. The journey to Oberstdorf had been long, and thenext days would be exhausting. He should really just focus on the most important thingsfrom now. Nevertheless, he couldn't prevent his thoughts from wandering to theaforementioned Slovenian. He hated that: it distracted him, it just wasn't allowed to be. Therisk was too great. Although he was well under control now, he was always careful not togive himself away with lingering glances or excessive interest. 

So Daniel let the others talk, spent the ride in silence, although of course not without keepinghalf an ear open for any information. With a smile he thought back to his meeting withDomen that morning. He loved to provoke him, especially since an appropriate reaction wasnever long in coming. But he knew that he should be careful, maybe stop it. If he can. He'stried it several times before. 

"Hey Daniel, what're you smiling at?" The blond Norwegian was torn from his thoughts. 

Everyone stared at him."I was just thinking about the team presentation again. It's great that we have so many fanseverywhere. I mean, the whole atmosphere... it's crazy!" He tried to talk his way out of thesituation as quickly as he could. Relieved, he let out a breath as he garnered approving nodsfrom all sides. The team lived from their many fans who always supported them, no matterwhat country they were in. 

A little more relaxed, Daniel realized that the others were turning to a new topic ofconversation: women. 

"Hey Tom, how was Christmas with Sarah? Do the Americans really celebrate it asridiculously as you always hear?" Robert asked interestedly. He hadn't been in the team fora long time, but it had been clear to everyone since his very first day that he liked to talk.About everything and nothing. Very extensively.

"Yeah, they do. But Sarah's family aren't as excessive as- " 

"Wait! Sarah's family? Uhh, is it really getting serious, Tom?" Andreas interrupted Tom,wiggling his eyebrows. Sarah and Tom had been a couple for a long time, but they stillhadn't managed to make the whole thing more official. So far, there hadn't been any publicappearances together, and they avoided meeting each other's family. For whatever reason,the two had difficulties taking their relationship to the next level.