Eyes on Ice [EDITING]

EYES ON ICE - 11

XI. A Biellmann for a Young Man (On-Ice Training Part V)

"Magpapaturo ka sa 'kin ng biellmann?" Kelsey surprisingly asked France when he showed up in Ice Palace at ten in the morning with his three rink mates. She skated to their direction with Dravie following her. "Let me remind you that it's not that easy at mas lalong hindi ako ang dapat mong nilalapitan. Well, if you want to compete in the women's singles, go ask Sir Peter."

"No, it's not that.."

"Oh? France?" Dravie interrupted with a grin. "Hindi mo ba nakaya ang training mo ro'n kaya nandito ka? Wala pa man lang isang buwan, oh. And what's up with the biellmann spin? Are you that desperate to go ahead of me?"

France raised his eyebrow, a little bit triggered. "Actually, hindi ka dapat ma-concern sa 'kin. After all, I'm just doing what I want. Whether it's for reaching my dream or going ahead of you, it doesn't matter to you, does it?" he said and glared back at him.

"Stop it or I'll kick the two of you out," Kelsey said with a serious voice. She caught both of their attention, as well as the other three behind France. "Your body's not flexible enough to do a full biellmann. Might as well do some stretching and exercise first. Pwede ring half-biellmann muna ang gawin mo since 'yon din naman ang starting line mo. Either way, 'wag ka sa 'kin magpaturo kasi hindi gano'n kaganda ang position ko. Kausapin mo ang coach mo. And stop fighting here. Hindi na kayo elementary students."

France rolled his eyes the same way Dravie did and looked at the three at his back. "She's that stingy," he whispered and sighed. "I can talk to Mason about the spin but you were the ones who insisted on going here. What're we going to do here? We already paid for the entrance fee."

"You can ask her some tips, Francey," Yuki suggested with eyes roaming around, showing excitement. The skating rink is at its usual condition. There were a couple of skaters around, others were the competitive ones. To everyone else, the place was probably just a usual training area but to Rob and Yuki, it's something that brings them nostalgia, one that never makes them sure if they're longing to be in it again. "It's been long since I last came here so I don't feel like going back yet. Plus, we can all just practice here. It's not like someone else is gonna mind."

When they started warming up, France approached Kelsey once again, aware of the unusual mood that had been filling up between Rob and Yuki.

•••

France approached the jump from a forward approach on the inside edge of the blade, switching backwards just before the takeoff where he jumps from the right back outside edge with assistance from the left toepick. In a total of four rotations, he lands on the back outside edge of the same foot, with the free leg swinging backwards. "And that's how you do a quad toe, though mine's a little wobbly," he told Benjamin whose eyes were fixed on his movements.

"So it's like a loop, with the assistance of toepick?" Benjamin asked.

"Yeah. That's why it's called a toe loop," France answered and placed his hands at both sides of his hips. "It's also one of the easiest jumps you can add in combinations. If I'm not mistaken, Rob has one in his short program. A quad lutz and triple toe combination. That guy's really amazing so you should consider talking to him if you're going to try it in a combination."

Benjamin nodded and smiled. "Thanks. I'll be practicing it then," he replied and glided away.

"France!" Just as he's about to face the same way, Jess, who just entered the rink with Mavi made her way towards him. She was wearing her usual training pants with a legging style, paired with a long sleeve top and a warm up jacket. "You should've told us na pupunta ka rito para inagahan namin ng dating. Nagulat tuloy ako no'ng nag-text sa 'kin si Kelsey. What made you come here? And are those your friends? Ang popogi naman. Pakilala mo ako ro'n sa nakasalamin, dali," she said and giggled.