Chapter 6
Alisa finally landed at home, in St. Petersburg, at Pulkovo Airport. The plane had touched down at two fifteen in the morning, and the moment it stopped, people jumped up from their seats and began to swarm insanely like insects, dragging their luggage down from the overhead shelves.
She hated this rush, when the plane landed and everyone immediately got to their feet and began shuffling around. Alisa simply decided to wait until the chaos settled and only then take her things and leave the plane, one of the last.
Her partner sitting to her left did not seem to have woken up yet.
She decided not to wake Lev for a few more minutes, he deserved to rest; after all, they had trained so hard to win this championship, although the fact that they had only taken silver still upset them a little, the difference of only one point had proved fatal to their self-esteem.
Lev was sleeping peacefully. Alisa looked at him again, at his blond curls, and smiled, then bent down, pulled out her backpack, took out her phone and headphones, and turned off airplane mode.
Zero notifications.
Well, no wonder…
What was I always waiting for? For my mother to text? Ohhh, has my girl landed? But she was probably already on her way to work by now… We are separated by the time zone.
Alisa sighed, feeling the cold seep into the cabin of the plane, and rain began drumming against the windows, rain again…
she hated rain, and yet she lived in one of the rainiest cities on the planet, wasn’t that strange?
But there was no choice, the national team was here, and it was here that she had been sent to train for the future Olympics.
She turned on her music and simply let herself sink into the song. It was one of the rap tracks by her favorite artist, his voice always awakened a certain sadness and nostalgia in her, as though he touched the strings of her soul, and she put on:
Markul “Low Temperatures”
Closing her eyes, she tried to listen only to his voice and to the song itself.
But only a moment later she felt a tap on her shoulder and opened her eyes, noticing the stewardess looking at her and Lev with raised eyebrows.
“You’re the last ones, please leave the cabin, everyone else has already gone.”
Alisa nodded and noticed that Lev was still asleep. She gently woke him by patting his knee. He muttered something unintelligible in his sleep and began to unfasten his seat belt.
Alisa stood up from her seat and took the luggage down from the overhead shelf, and Lev followed her with his own, and together they were the last to leave the plane, stepping into the jet bridge that led into the depths of the airport.
Then border control awaited them, and fortunately there was no line anymore. They passed through it and came out into the arrivals hall.
Lev was immediately surrounded by his family and his girlfriend, who greeted him with flowers and nearly jumped into his arms the moment they approached.
Alisa nodded to him and headed toward the taxi area. Calling a car through the app on her phone, she went outside to wait, shivering slightly in her jacket, because she was standing just beneath the edge of the roof where the rain could not reach her, and she did not want to get caught in it.
Alisa unbuttoned her jacket and wrapped her fingers around the warm medal hanging on her chest, squeezing it tightly and staring at the silver.
Second place.
She drew a deep breath, feeling as though she had failed, but that was not the main thing, was it? Really?
Perhaps she was speaking to herself, perhaps even aloud.
Nearby, people stood smoking while they waited for their taxis too, but Alisa did not smoke, she hated the smell of cigarettes because of her grandfather, who had smoked like a steam train… he had always smelled of cigarettes and that smoke…
But he was gone now too.
And every smoking person stirred something vague inside her, as though she missed him, and at the same time knew that nothing could be changed, that the dead could not be brought back.
Alisa took her phone out of her jacket’s pocket again and looked at the time.
Two forty-six.
“The taxi would be here in another five minutes,” she muttered to herself. Her body was already freezing, she was shivering so badly that her teeth nearly chattered against each other, and then suddenly the screen of her phone lit up with a notification.
Alisa looked down and saw a message in the messenger from an unknown number.
Unknown Number: Did you get there at all? P.S. this is Tora, save my number as Tora, the best figure skater on planet Earth.
Alisa laughed quietly and rolled her eyes, but the smile that appeared on her face glowed so brightly that it was almost embarrassing.
Oh, this is bad…
Alisa: We just landed, I’m waiting for a taxi, and you’re not the best figure skater on planet Earth, calm down.
Tora: We’ll talk about that again, babe. Text me when you get home, okay?
Alisa: okay…
Alisa nearly gasped. She stood there with her mouth slightly open, exhaling steam into the cold air and smiling.
No, no, no, no.
Smiling at messages was a bad sign. Damn, damn, damn.
Alisa muttered it through clenched teeth and immediately tried to wipe the smile from her face.
Because it meant that… she cared.
And Tora cared.
She would not have written otherwise…
It was so strange, so strange to receive concern from someone from whom she had expected absolutely nothing. Did Tora know that no one was waiting for her at home?
Alisa swallowed nervously and looked down at the phone again.
Silence.
Only Markul’s album continued to play in her headphones, calming the frantic beat of her heart and slowly returning a little confidence back into her blood.
His songs had always been like that for her, even if they were about completely different girls, sometimes he said things that gave her goosebumps and somehow made her feel better, made her believe in herself a little more.
“And here’s my taxi,” Alisa said quietly to herself, noticing the correct license plate.
A black Mercedes-Benz W222, it looked like a 2020 model.
The driver, dressed in a black suit and white gloves, immediately got out of the car and said:
“Good evening.”
Alisa nodded, rolling her suitcase toward him, and he took it with obvious ease and loaded it into the trunk.
Then, after closing it, he walked around the car and opened the rear door for her.
“Thank you,” Alisa said quietly and sat down inside.
Soft music was playing very quietly in the cabin.
The driver took his seat, and before pulling away from the curb, he asked:
“Would you like to put on your own music?”
Alisa nodded.
As soon as the car started moving and she connected her phone to the sound system, Markul’s album continued through the speakers, and Alisa noticed how the driver smiled faintly.
“Do you listen to him too?”
“Yes. This old album stayed in my soul somehow… I can’t stop listening to it.”
“I like it too. He did an incredible job recording it, it’s one of my favorite albums. Sense of Human… it’s something unbelievable. Especially those little inserts between the tracks, they add so much atmosphere.”
“Yeah, exactly,” Alisa said, smiling. “I thought so too. I’m glad you listen to him too, that’s rare these days.”
“Yes, I haven’t listened to him in a long time. I should start again, thank you for reminding me.”
“You’re welcome.”
Alisa smiled and turned toward the window.
The lights of the night city flowed along the wet streets, decorating them in gold and white. She listened to the album of her favorite rapper, watched the rain trembling against the glass, and, leaning her cheek against the cold window, quietly fell asleep.
* * *
There was no need to rush anywhere in the morning; the next workout was only after tomorrow, so Alisa woke around 10 a.m. It was Saturday.
She stretched in bed and immediately grabbed her phone.
Noticing only a notification from her mother, she frowned, twisting a displeased grimace, and got out of her warm bed.
She slid her feet into oversized slippers shaped like dragon heads and went into the shower.
After washing, she sat down in the kitchen with panoramic windows overlooking the Kazan Cathedral.
Her parents had bought her this apartment when she moved in.
It had a modern renovation, though the building itself was old, with enormous ceilings that seemed designed for giants, four meters tall or more.
It was a three-room apartment, and Alisa lived comfortably here.
Yet each time she spoke to her parents, especially her mother, her heart raced with nervousness and anxiety.
They always reminded her that she owed everything to them, that they had sacrificed and worked tirelessly to make her dreams come true.
Her mother constantly pressured her to be married and have children.
Well, what the hell—children at 19? Almost 20, she thought, her birthday was approaching.
The phone lit up again, probably another message from her mother.
Alisa quickly made coffee from the machine, noting that only a few capsules remained.
She would have to buy more. Settling at the table, she watched the steam rise from her coffee, dissolving long before reaching the high ceiling.
She took the first sip and gently moaned in pleasure.
Shifting her attention from the rain-soaked cathedral outside, she opened the messages from her mother.
Mother: Well, what place did you take?
Mother: It doesn’t matter anymore, I already found out from your coach.
A pause followed, then more messages arrived.
Mother: You didn’t write anything, you tvar’3!
Mother: Are you alive there? Or did you leave to celebrate your pathetic second place?
Mother: Do we pay so much for you to take second places? Who took first?
Mother: I didn’t watch the competition because I hoped you would tell me everything firsthand, but my daughter is selfish and can’t call her mother right after the competition.
So I had to get everything from your coach.
Fortunately, Valentina knows how to communicate adequately, unlike my damn daughter!
Mother: ALISA!
Alisa: Yes mom, second place, hooray.
Alisa rolled her eyes after finishing reading this flood of negativity, not the messages themselves, just the tone. She continued sipping her coffee while her mother stayed online and quickly sent another reply.
Mother: I’ve seen photos of the winners now, and I’ve already watched the entire competition stream. Well, you could do better than this pair of Norwegians! Anyway, you’ve been sued again, what one point! It’s terrible!
Alisa bit her lip and started typing.
Alisa: Yes, I also thought we would take first place… but it turned out how it turned out. One point is not a huge gap.
Mother: When will you give birth to grandchildren already?
Alisa: Mom…
Mother: You know, sometimes it seems to me that I shouldn’t have listened to Talia and sent you to figure skating! And we would have grandchildren by now and you would’ve have been married already!
Mother: And also you are incompetent!
Mother: You have not been to the Olympics since so many years of training!
Alisa: You can go there from age 16 – first of all, and second, even if we took second place in the championship, the main thing is that we have gone further and will go to qualification for the 2026 Olympics!
Probably…
Mother: Okay, I get it. Congratulations.
Another pause.
Mother: When are you planning to give birth and get married? After the Olympics?
Alisa: Mom, are you serious?
Mother: Yes, how long should I expect grandchildren? When are you going to give birth, at 25? May the doctors call you old-born???!?”
Alisa: Mom…
Mother: You’ll be 20 years old soon, in a couple of weeks! Finally come to your senses that the clock is ticking.
Alisa: You ask this question every month; can’t you ask anything else, like how are you? How do you feel after the competition, are you tired? Maybe you should order your favorite dessert, your favorite poppy seed buns from a popular bakery!?
Mother: The buns are hurting you, then the Lev won’t be able to lift you up and jump.
Alisa clenched her jaw after finishing her coffee in one gulp and went to get ready.
She wanted to walk around the city, breathe in her favorite rainy air, and maybe go for that damn poppy seed bun with milk chocolate.
She deserved a delicious breakfast. She wasn’t a champion, but second place was not an empty achievement; the main thing was that they had passed and would probably go to qualify with other athletes for the 2026 Olympics.
But first some other national championships they have to win…
Or at least perform for high scores. A smile appeared on her face at the thought.
Quickly, she threw on a coat, took an umbrella, tied her hair in a bun, and ran outside.
People strolled leisurely under umbrellas, all going about their business, but Alisa had a goal: her favorite bakery and that divine poppy seed bun. The thought of biting into it lifted her spirits, and she completely forgot the conversation with her mother. The bakery was only 20 minutes away.
She had Markul again in her headphones, the same album, but now the song “Labyrinth.”
And when the verse started playing and the words pierced her like lightning, it felt as if it were a song about her and Tora, about what had happened between them, and how they couldn’t be together in the end.
This whole game between them would obviously end badly for one of them…
well, for Alisa, of course. It was her first time; for Tora, probably the tenth or even the hundredth.
She couldn’t know for sure, but Tora had been like an expert, confident while Alisa had been self-conscious that night.
And those lines from the song cemented her thoughts, taking her back to that night when everything had changed between them.
Я помню всё
Помню твой каждый изгиб, повсюду парфюм
Думала, сыграла в ничью
Но я тебя оставлю без чувств
Увидишь
Ты построила лабиринт, из которого ты не выйдешь
Не выйдешь
Вот видишь4
Alisa felt something tighten in her chest, tears flowing down her cheeks. She had fallen in love—head over heels with her ice rival—and that night, whatever had happened, was a mistake that now corroded her from the inside.
How would she go to the Olympic qualifiers and next championships if she’s there?
How?
If Tora would be there, after the championship furor, she would obviously want gold at the Olympics too… everything was a mess.
But training awaited Alisa; she needed to focus on the next competitions.
They had only a few weeks to prepare for the next championship, damn it! But Alisa was thinking — will they meet again?