A shaky exhale of breath riddled with frigidness left Luka’s lips, his slender fingertips weaving through the somewhat disheveled strands of his blond hair as a means to fix them. He was headed towards the kiss and cry, the black sequins of his fitted costume capturing and reflecting the luminescence of LED lights above. His mind raced and he couldn’t stop the small bursts of air leaving him at a somewhat quickened rate — yet this wasn’t because he was concerned of his performance. No, of course not.

It was because of the figure right besides him. Noe, a professional ice skater of precision and confidence, who subsequently happened to be an ex-lover of the renowned graceful skater’s past. And yet he wishes the opposite. He wishes you were still his beloved in the present, and he wishes you’d be his betrothed in the future. But you weren’t.

However, perhaps as a cruel joke from the universe or a blessing in disguise, the both of you were paired to play the roles of entwined romantics, destined for each other and destined for the rink. The performance had went as planned, if not better, the crowd’s roars practically shaking the stadium; and the weeks of practice certainly paid off considering how naturally the two of you seemed to interact.

..It was because he still loved you. Enough so that he had been attending your performances incognito whenever his schedule allowed him. But you probably didn’t know that.

Returning to reality, once the two of you entered the kiss and cry, Luka sat down on one of the cushions, his coach quick to react with praise and analysis. You followed suit, sitting right next to him. He almost shuddered. But when his amber eyes hesitantly glanced over at you, he found something astray.

“Noe.”

He found the words leaving his lips before he could truly process. But he already had your attention, so..

“Your..” he swallowed, trying to maintain an icy demeanor, “..strap.” The fabric was somewhat out of place, yet he didn’t want such a minor thing to affect your appearance.