Mavi was walking back and forth inside France and Dravie’s hotel room. He was clutching the sleeve of their team jacket while sighing from time to time. From the looks of it, he was obviously nervous. And it wasn’t because the short program segment was just hours away or because he was having a hard time trying to set a calm state of mind. It was something bothersome but important. He was well aware of that.
“So.. ano ang naisipan mo at gusto mong umamin?” France who was tying the lace of his shoes, asked. The worried look about what came into his friend’s mind wasn’t something new though it wasn’t like he showed that more often. “Sana ay mayroon ka nang lakas ng loob. Dahil kung wala pa ay baka mabatukan lang kita.”
“I.. figured that confessing after a competition sounds romantic. Hindi ba’t ganoon sa mga movies at novels? Magco-confess ang isa pagkatapos ng importanteng laro o palabas. Ideal siya kasi kahit matalo o manalo, love will save it all.”
France unbelievably stared at Mavi. He then took a deep breath and stretched his arms out. For a moment or two, he glanced at his phone to check the time and later on said, “The past few months.. lagi kang in denial sa feelings mo kahit obvious naman na may gusto ka kay Jess. Napapansin kaya naming lahat. Tapos ngayon ay darating ka para sabihin na gusto mo nang umamin. I’m not doubting what you feel pero pag-isipan mo muna nang mabuti. Hindi ka naman siguro nagmamadali.”
Those words hit Mavi. He was definitely turning a blind eye on his actions but it’s not like he realized that too soon. Of course, he always acted that he didn’t like her but he thought that he had already given assurance. France said that he was obvious, after all. He’s aware that what’s going on between them was kind of complicated but there’s no way that Jess didn’t see his feelings for her, even for just a single time.
“Do you think I’m a pushover?” France’s knitted eyebrows showed that he’s a bit baffled. “I’ve just realized recently that I can’t be the only man in her life. Kahit ayaw ko ay wala akong magagawa kung may magkakagusto sa kaniyang iba. Natatakot akong matalo kahit hindi pa siguradong may laban, that’s why I want to confess first.. in case something happens. That won’t give me certainty but at least, there’s a chance that my feelings will be reciprocated,” Mavi answered.
He sounded desperate. The way he played with his fingers made him look hopeless. There’s more to what Mavi was feeling than that, though.
France stared at Mavi for a second and sighed. “Okay. I mean, I had no say on it. You’re going to confess, after all. Ilang taon mo ring tinatago ‘yan kaya hindi kita masisisi,” he said and smiled after. “Isa pa ay wala na naman akong magagawa kung mutual ang feelings niyo. I’m not the type to ruin other people’s relationships, you know.”
“France…”
“Don’t think of thanking me. Wala pa akong ginagawa. Go and tell her what you feel. If you plan on getting in a relationship with her, I don’t mind as long as you both agree with it,” France uttered as Mavi flashed a genuine smile.
•••
There was silence around the arena when it was Luigi’s turn in the short program segment of the U.S International Figure Skating Classic. People were watching the way he bended his knees and closed his eyes in front of his coach near the entrance of the rink. His tight, black sleeve shirt that had a white flower designed on the left side near his chest was eye-catching. Of all terms, it was described as simple, although one would really wonder why they picked that kind of costume.
Simone Alessi stood head to head with his student. He cupped his hands on Luigi’s cheeks and stared at his eyes. “Go kill that performance,” he said with a firm tone.
It made Luigi smile. When he finally skated on ice to fully present himself to the audience, applauses were heard. “A comeback skater on ice at the age of twenty-four, representing Italy.. Luigi Danesi!” He stretched his arms sideways and held his chin up. After doing a couple of steps and turns to warm himself up, he stood at the center with his one leg behind the other, bending his knees to give the crowd a bow.
“His indefinite break in figure skating had apparently made his name appear on the headline of sports news. Presumably, his programs will give us a hint of what he’s up to recently. Choreographed by Simone Alessi, he’s skating to Condolence by Benjamin Clementine.”
Shivers went down Luigi’s spine when the music started playing. He still hadn’t gotten over with how it mesmerized him. Throughout the last several months, he was stressed on picking his short program’s music. It wasn’t that he had never been like that. In fact, bothering about his programs wasn’t something new. However, this season was different. As a skater who hadn’t gone in competitions for years, it was pretty troublesome, considering that he wanted his return to be remarkable.
At the entrance for a jump, the commentator stated, “A triple loop for the first planned jump.” The sound made by the blades during the takeoff was satisfying, at least for Luigi. His clean landing with arms spread out looked honestly beautiful and he knew that the judges felt the same.
Keeping up with the choreography, he then skated backwards to execute his second solo jump. His left foot stepped forward as he drew both of his arms and right leg back, with the takeoff starting on the outside edge. On three and a half rotations on air, his closed fists stayed at the center of his chest and were later extended at the landing. “What a great speed and height for the triple Axel! That was insanely clean!”
It was immediately followed by a camel spin with one change of foot that was executed by a jump. When Luigi exited the spin with a step, he saw Simone clap outside the rink.
Luigi could feel the anticipation of the crowd when he skated the step sequence because he, himself, had it too. There was an indescribable feeling crawling up to his skin and it was giving him goosebumps. When he executed the toe steps, twizzles, three turns, cross rolls, and other steps and turns, he wanted to smile though he knew he shouldn’t. It was hard to keep a straight face that would later on depict sadness, especially when he was exhilarated.
“Ooh, that step sequence sure had complexity.” He had lost count of how many elements was executed. Their plan was to make it ten in order to achieve the variety level but if he did perform at least eleven, then that’s great. He was sure that he utilized the entire surface and did not forget the rotations, body movements, and combinations so he should get a positive grade of execution.
At the second half of the program, he did the flying sit spin before entering the preparation phase for his jump combination. There wasn’t a single hesitation when he approached it on a forward direction, switching backwards at the right outside edge before the takeoff. With the help of the toe pick, he jumped in a total of four revolutions and did it again from the edge of the landing in a total of three.
Luigi received a standing ovation. “A quadruple toe loop and triple toe loop combination! He has landed all his jumps and they’re all flawless,” the commentator said.
Upon finishing the program with the spin combination, bullets of sweat started to show across his face as he gasped for air. Luigi felt restless when tiredness started to creep in. He didn’t spend a longer time on ice. After thanking and bowing to the audience, he abruptly skated towards the entrance of the rink. He was still breathing rapidly when he rushed into the arms of his coach.
“You’re okay, Luigi. You’re okay,” Simone whispered and helped him wear his skate guards. “Tu sei stato bravissimo.”
As Luigi placed his arms around Simone’s shoulders in order to get support while walking to the kiss and cry, he was gritting his teeth secretly. And it wasn’t because of his performance because he knew he gave it his all and he’s certain that he’d get a high score.
It’s just that he looked pathetic. Getting tired over a tough program that lasts for not more than three minutes was normal but that wasn’t the case for him. He was feeling too tired. So much that he felt like he’d be down on his knees any minute now. If it wasn’t for his coach, he’d be probably lying on the ground and the fact that he seemed wretched wasn’t okay at all. On top of that, he didn’t want the other skaters to see him like that. That’s the last thing he wanted to happen.
“A top-level performance. He executed the jump combination in the second half of the program and considering that he didn’t mess that up, he’d get a high score for that. Not to mention, that triple Axel was clean. Step sequence leveled up to four and the difficult exit of his spin had gotten a feature. Luigi Danesi is really living up to his title.. the Italian legend!”
“La ringrazio tanto,” Luigi said in front of the camera to express his gratitude. He drank water from his tumbler before finally giving attention in his surroundings.
“Scores for Luigi Danesi of Italy in the men’s short program..” He felt like his heart skipped a beat. “94.12!”
His eyes widened as Simone tapped his shoulders and gave him a hug. It wasn’t that he was so surprised. He actually expected that kind of score. It’s just that it felt surreal. As far as he could remember, there were times that he felt like giving up. Because of his situation, he had thought that maybe the sport wasn’t for him. He probably was wrong about that, though.
When they got off the kiss and cry, Luigi was immediately surrounded by interviewers. His coach placed his jacket around his shoulders as they presented themselves in front of the flashing cameras.
“Mr. Luigi, how did it feel? You know, skating in a competition for the first time after three years. Did it ring a bell?”
It was a very emotional question for him. Although he wanted to cry so bad, he didn’t. “It felt great,” he answered with a smile. “People got to see me again in the rink and their cheers.. their applauses were everything. I’m happy to be back.”
“How were you able to get back on your feet? And what are your preparations for this season? Will we see you in action at the Grand Prix Series?”
Luigi glanced at his coach and they both knew what it meant. “We refuse to answer questions related to his hiatus,” Simone replied. “Regarding the preparations, please expect a tough free skate program because we planned on adding about two quads in his solo jumps and one in the combination. We were trying to keep an eye on the technical score without letting go of the program components. And yes, Luigi will be entering the Grand Prix Series. Please support him and his appearance on his events. Thank you.”
The reporters still had a lot to ask but because Luigi wasn’t in a good shape, they declined a set of questions. As they walked at the corridor, he glanced at one of the televisions which showed the next skater on ice. Upon realizing it was Rob, he quickly shifted his eyes away and turned to his coach. “I’ll try to get past the 200 point barrier in the free skate,” he said, determined.
Simone chuckled and tapped his arms twice. “I don’t want you to try.” His expression went serious when he uttered, “Do it.”