Eyes on Ice [EDITING]

EYES ON ICE - 16

XVI. Day 3 - Intoxicated Love (Asian Open Figure Skating Trophy, ISU Challenger Series Part V)

"What happened?" Mason asked Jay while watching the men practice on ice. It's early in the morning and France looked worse than yesterday. The moment the kid got in the skating rink, he wasn't smiling at all. He wasn't his usual self, for sure. The way he seemed gloomy was already a sign for a bad performance and that needs to be altered.

Sir Jay sighed as they sat on a seat. His eyes were focused on their skater, wondering what's running on his mind. "I actually don't know," he answered. "I was expecting he'd cheer up today since I did everything to talk to him last night. But when I got in their hotel room earlier, he's still asleep, which is unusual. He has always been a diligent boy, that's why I knew right away that something was wrong. I couldn't figure it out. Even the other two boys at their room didn't know what was going on."

Mason placed his hands at his chin as if he was thinking really hard. "Somebody might have pushed the wrong button," he commented and looked at Jay. "You think you can talk to him again? I'd love to do it myself but I have to keep an eye on Yuki. I'll try calling Rob so he can talk to France. They're a bit close so maybe he can help."

"Okay," Jay said as he stood up. "He's unusually quiet and I'll doubt he'll listen to me but I'll go try-"

He wasn't able to finish what he was going to say when Mason, whose eyes were on the rink, immediately stood up and rushed inside, quickly putting his skates on. Jay was quick to notice what's happening, leading him to their medical staff when he saw France lying on ice.

•••

"You sure you're not injured somewhere? Your leg and ankle? Does it still hurt?" Yuki asked France who sat on a bed, drinking water.

"I'm alright," France answered and forced a smile. "I just happened to bump into someone after landing a double axel. Don't worry, I'm not injured anywhere. Sorry for worrying you and Mason." His voice weren't as loud as normal. Though his expression says that he's really okay, something is really odd. It's not that Yuki can actually figure that out because even he sometimes, can't understand what's up with himself.

Yuki sighed and looked at France with concerned eyes. "You know, Francey, don't push yourself too much. For whatever's wrong or ruining your composure, it may be rude for me to say it but I want you to set it aside for a while. I know it's not that easy but it's not like everything can be solved in a single snap," he said and scratched the back of his neck. "Sorry, I don't really know what to say since I'm never good at this kind of things. I'm all funny and cheerful but I don't know how to handle problems or feelings. It would've been better if I'm Rob but I'm not."

France felt as if the heavy feelings inside him was starting to become light. He wasn't completely okay but hearing Yuki say things like that eases the pain he felt last night. "Say, Yuki, do you actually.. see me as one of your rivals?" he suddenly asked.