14. Aria
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
My stomach is in knots as Leo and I stand on the other side of the glass and watch the pair before us finishing up their routine. They were both decent skaters and they scored high on the technical side, but their routine comes nowhere close to how good ours is. All we need to do is make sure we execute every move perfectly and we should be taking home gold.
The palms of my hands are sweaty and I wipe them on the hand towel hanging from the pocket of my warm-up coat. Leo looks over at me, a touch of concern laced within his expression.
“Are you okay?” he asks me softly. His voice is like a warm embrace that I want to bury myself in. “Are you going to get sick again?”
I shake my head, half smiling at him. “That’s just a one-and-done thing in the mornings of important competitions. It doesn’t always happen.” I pause and look back out at the ice as their routine ends. “I’m just ready to get out there.”
The score for the pair ahead of us is announced as they come off the ice. My stomach rolls and anticipation builds inside me. There’s a touch of anxiousness that mixes with the adrenaline in my veins, but I ignore it. My chest rises and falls as I suck in a deep breath and let it out.
Leo reaches out and takes my hand in his own before giving me a gentle, reassuring squeeze. “It’s our time.”
I look over at my partner, squeezing his hand in response before he lets go of me. He looks back out at the ice and I allow myself a moment to really look at him. My eyes start at his black skates, trailing up the length of his legs and his torso. He’s wearing black pants with a black dress shirt tucked in. His sleeves are unbuttoned and rolled up, stopping just before his elbows. He looks good—really good.
Leo glances back at me as he brushes a lock of his hair away from his forehead. Hues of golden brown shine brightly in his eyes as he winks at me. I shrug out of my jacket and hand it to Alanna before falling in step with Leo. He walks over to the door and steps out of the way for me to get on the ice first. My gray chiffon skirt flows around the backs of my calves as I skate to the center of the arena and come to a stop.
As soon as I'm on the ice, the anxiety I was feeling completely dissipates. The lights cut out momentarily and Leo skates up behind me. I lean back, melting into him as he slides his arms under my armpits. Both of his hands find the sides of my head and he tilts my chin up to the ceiling so the crown of my head presses against his firm chest. My eyelids flutter shut as my heart pounds erratically against my rib cage. The soft sound of the music begins to play and I feel Leo's breath against my ear.
"As close to perfect," he murmurs the reminder as the lights flash on, illuminating our bodies and the ice around our feet. "I promise I won't let you fall."
We begin our performance, skating together flawlessly. We've been through this routine countless times, we know exactly what we need to do. Leo moves with me, both of us skating in rhythm together. It's harmonic and beautiful, even if every move has to be so precise and technical. We don't miss a single beat as we both spin in the air, our skates hitting the ice at the same time in our landings.
Confidence rolls off Leo, cloaking me as I begin to feel it too. My legs feel strong and stable. I'm centered and grounded. He helps to create that inside me. His hands grip my hips as we begin to skate backward together, my feet crossing over one another. He's calm and steady, strong and solid. I trust him with every part of me. I know he won't let me fall and he'll catch me before I hit the ice. With Leo, I feel completely safe. He will always protect me.
He bends his knees before springing upward, lifting me into the air before I launch higher up and out of his grip. I close my eyes, spinning in three rotations through the air before gravity begins to pull me back down to the ice. Leo catches me, his hands grabbing my hips again before he lowers me down onto the ice while he's still moving.
It all happens so fast that I don't feel like I even have time to process what's happening. It's complete muscle memory and from us practicing the movements repeatedly. Leo is completely effortless in the way he carefully helps me back to my feet while he's still moving around the rink.
We continue through the rest of our routine, going through another jump where he throws me into the air and instead of catching me, I land on the ice myself. There's a fluidity to the way we move together, yet there's a push and pull, a subtle tension that's stretching between us. It's like a rubber band. He pushes and I pull; I push and he pulls. In the end, we end up coming back together, melting into one another in the center of the rink as the music trails off and the light cuts off once more.
We're both completely breathless and Leo helps me stand upright. There's a pause before the lights flicker on. One passing moment, where he's standing in front of me, his breath fanning across my face as his hands reach up to cup my cheeks. My eyelids flutter closed as I anticipate the feeling of his lips caressing mine before the lights flash on, illuminating the entire arena. A loud applause erupts from the crowd, echoing throughout the entire building.
My stomach flips and my eyes quickly open as I find Leo still staring down at me. His nostrils flare, his throat bobbing as he swallows roughly before he pulls away from me. His hand drops down to mine and we face one side of the arena as he bows and I curtsey. We repeat the same action to all four sides of the stadium before we begin to skate to the exit together. Leo steps through the door first, his hand still in mine as he leads me out.
We head over to the bench where Coach Kincaid and Coach Davis are both waiting for us. The four of us sit down with Leo and I sandwiched in between them. His hand only leaves mine for a second as he drapes my coat over my shoulders and then slides his fingers through mine again.
"You two looked amazing," Eva says with so much excitement in her voice. "Seriously, such a beautiful performance."
Luca nods as he hands me a water bottle. "I had chills watching the two of you." He pauses for a moment and chuckles. I twist the lid of the bottle and put it to my lips to take a sip. "I was almost waiting for you two to kiss afterward."
I choke on my mouthful of water and Leo clears his throat as the tension grows thicker. I start to cough, drawing attention to myself as my eyes begin to water. Way to play it cool, Aria.
"Are you okay?" Eva asks me with a touch of concern in her voice.
I finally get my shit together and wipe the tears from my face. "I'm good," I tell her in a hoarse voice. Leo chuckles under his breath and I see him shaking his head in amusement from the corner of my eye. I resist the urge to drive my elbow into his ribs and focus my attention back on the ice.
The judges announce our score right before the next two skaters enter the rink. We're currently sitting in first place and have enough of a lead that it should be difficult for anyone else to have a better score than us. The four of us sit in silence as we watch the last four pairs go through their own performances before it's time for them to announce the winners from our group. The day is going to be filled with different skating events, but the pairs were scheduled first, so by the time the winners are announced, it's already close to lunchtime.
"You guys did it," Coach Kincaid says with a smile on his face as he claps his hand over Leo's shoulder. He and Eva both stand up, Leo and I following suit.
Leo squeezes my hand lightly and I look up at him as a soft smile touches his lips. My heart begins to pound harder in my chest. Based on the scores, we were sitting in first place for the gold medal, but I didn't let it fully sink in until it was announced. Not until after we were on the ice with our medals would I feel like we actually won.
The announcer works through bronze and silver before there's a pregnant pause over the speaker. Leo and I stand by the door, the coldness radiating from the ice as it slides up my legs. My heart pounds erratically and I hear the sound of it in my ears. I've never been more aware of my own heartbeat than I am at this moment. Leo's palm is warm and comforting against mine. I don't realize it, but my knuckles are turning white by how tightly I'm holding on to him.
"And our gold medal pair, Aria Reed and Leo Wells!"
I turn to look at Leo, the shock written across my expression even though there wasn't a chance we weren't going to win gold. "Oh my god, we did it."
"Yes, we did." He smiles at me, nodding. "I told you we would."
"Oh my god." I can't help myself as I let go of his arm and wrap my arms around the back of his neck. Leo's hands find my waist and he lifts me into the air as we embrace one another. I bury my face against the crook of his neck, inhaling the scent of him as I feel his skin against mine. He feels right, like this is where I belong. The world around us fades for a moment and the only thing that matters is the way it feels to be in his arms.
He holds on to me for a moment longer before he lowers me to my feet and presses his soft lips against my forehead. "Come on, tiny dancer," he says softly as his hand drops down to mine.
I let him lead me onto the ice and our feet move in sync as we skate to the center. A woman stands next to the announcer and she hands me a huge bouquet of flowers. I hold them in my arms, watching Leo as he ducks his head and she slides the medal down over his neck. I do the same, feeling the weight of it as it hangs down between my breasts. Leo's still holding my hand that isn't supporting the flowers and he looks down at me and smiles.
The crowd around us claps loudly, but the sounds and the sights around us don't exist in this moment. Time is suspended. All I can see are Leo's golden brown eyes as they shine down on me. I never want to step outside of this light. I want to live here forever, with his hand in mine, everyone going crazy around us.
We take our time, bowing and curtseying around the arena before we exit once again. Our entire team is there when we get off the ice and Leo and I are pulled away. The girls all surround me, fawning over the flowers and the medal. The air is filled with nothing but congratulations and I can't help myself as happy tears spring to my eyes. Today's been filled with stress and emotion. When the relief finally hits and the weight is lifted, it's hard not to feel emotional. I wipe my tears away as Eva and Alanna both hug me.
Eva links her arm through mine and she starts to pull me in the direction of the locker rooms. "We need to go celebrate."
"Oooh, yes, champagne please," Alanna says from where she's walking ahead of us.
I glance over my shoulder once, catching Leo's gaze as he stands with Coach Kincaid and a few of the guys. A soft smile sits on his lips, but it isn't as wide and as bright as it was before. There's a longing dancing in his eyes, but he doesn't call out for me. He simply watches as I'm pulled in the opposite direction of him.
And fuck me for wanting to turn around and run back into his arms.