✔ Icebound » Justin Davis » Spinning Out

S e v e n t e e n

━━━━━

Breaking The Barrier

━━━━━

Her feet dragged her entire awareness through the substantial snow as the infamous blond came into the horizon. Her skates were laced together, resting in between her fingers, unrehearsed for what was to come. Justin lifted himself off a distant bench the moment his eyes landed on hers in order to greet the brunette, who had her lips formed into a scowl of distaste, one indicating she wasn't happy to be there.

"Thanks for coming" He aligned his gesture as he spoke, staring at the girl sincerely, his brief breathes turning into glacial steam, the only sign of heat there was that moment, not only due to the temperature, but due to the barrier that rested between the two, one colder than even the weather could imagine, voicing the isolation that weighed on them at once.

"Don't thank me yet" Alaska adjusted her behavior to fit the acknowledgment she had received. In her head, she spent her walk to the destination envisioning her demeanor, how she'd arrive, what she would say, but the way the boy greeted her had caught her off guard. She couldn't explain it, but it was different than before, and so she chose to refine herself, threw all of her previous overthought plans away "Why am I here? Last time didn't cut it for you? Here for round two"?

The blonde briefly looked down at his feet, as though he was aiming to say something, but couldn't quite gain the voice to "Because you were right, sort of" He shared a minuscule glance with her, before motioning towards the bench with his head, bidding her to come join him with a seat, signaling to her that what he had to say to her was of length "I was jealous today. I thought you and I were going somewhere, that things were finally looking up, but then your old partner showed up and I realized how horrible we were really doing. I guess it just made me feel all sorts of ways. I was hurt" She saw through his eyes, the pain of it all, one she had never quite noticed before "Not my-not my pride, just, I don't know. I thought there was something. I guess I was wrong, but that's on me, not you. If that's making it harder for you to skate with me, I get it".

Alaska sunk in her seat, not sharing a response with him, as she looked at the tall trees that engulfed them, those that swayed to the melody of the icy breeze, providing a distraction for the lost souls that night, a perfect piece of heartbreak to hearken to "Thing is, I have to tell you something. My old partner, he-uh, asked me to skate with him again".

For some reason, the sudden, what should have been a surprising statement, didn't hassle the blond, didn't even flinch one of his muscles. He sat there, frozen, his leg bouncing to the thought, unaware if it was because he had anticipated the news, or because he was far too fear stricken to react, as though if he wouldn't, the future would never come "What did you say"? He felt his heart skip a beat, the blood within him cease to flow, as though as he waited to hear of her response, his entire being froze alongside him, waiting for the answer he would have to endure, one that could bring him to much relief, or the great opposite.

"I said yes" The girl brought the palms of her hands together, rubbing them for warmth, but perhaps also for comfort. Her eyes were hung low, inspecting her feet, as the blond studied her features, finding himself hoping there would be a continuation, any sort of explanation.

"What the fuck"?! Justin exclaimed as he lifted himself off the bench with a swift motion, feeling the sudden urge to get away from it all. He couldn't believe that after all they've been through, Alaska would just leave the first opportunity she got, then again, he could, because why would she stay? Why would she work on a relationship that seemed to go south each time? Why would she cling onto the hope things would be alright the way he did? The same hope that inevitably failed him each time, the one that told him that a day would come, and someone would be there to stay.