Eyes on Ice [EDITING]

EYES ON ICE - 31

XXXI. To Oberstdorf

Luigi wasn't with his roommate when he got out of their hotel room with all his luggage. Unfortunately, because he always woke up late, his teammates were already downstairs, as well as his coach. He knew this would happen and he even thought of setting an alarm last night but he forgot to turn it on. It wasn't that his friend couldn't wake him up in the morning. He really was just a heavy sleeper.

He placed his earphones on one ear and continued to walk in the hallway. He yawned twice, consecutively. Luigi had a normal expression. He wasn't showing a hint of happiness from the awarding ceremony yesterday. It probably was because he's still sleepy and he didn't have that much energy but at one point, there surely was a different reason.

"Come stai?" If the person who approached him had came from the back, Luigi would probably be startled. But upon realizing it was the skater from Spain whom he highly got annoyed at, he closed his eyes for a second and sighed before wearing his earphones off.

"Tutto bene," he replied.

Lorenzo Domínguez threw a confused look. "Sorry. What's that supposed to mean?"

He unbelievably glanced at him. "How are you not supposed to know that?" Luigi retorted and sighed for the second time. "Never mind. Just go to your team and stop bothering me." He'd be lying if he said he liked the way he was approached and he didn't want that. He's always been a straightforward person and he wanted to maintain that.

"Oh? The gold medalist is stingy as hell. Thought you're still the same old Luigi who'd respond to me in Italian," Lorenzo answered, teasing him. Seeing the latter glare, he knew he didn't fail with his insult. "Come on, don't get mad already. I haven't even started. If you keep it like that, you'll only give me a hint that you'd punch me if I mention something about your former rink mates."

Lorenzo had probably expected him to stop. But even though Luigi knew that, he still instinctively froze. He was dying to know if the Spanish skater was just messing with him or if he's actually telling the truth. For a moment, he was curious, especially because it spoke of Yuki and Rob. He was trying to stop himself from asking because he didn't want others to know what he truly feels.

"I'd never waste my time to lay a finger on you and frankly speaking, I don't care on whatever you say about them. I never did like talking to you in the first place."

When he heard a laugh as a response, Luigi's annoyance just reached its peak. "I see. You really have changed," Lorenzo uttered. "Then I guess I don't have to tell you that you're actually the reason why Yuki almost died and why Rob Asher went on a hiatus months after you were gone. Oh, it slipped from my tounge."

It was as if Luigi's body was poured with cold water. It seemed like he couldn't move an inch because his brain was still processing what he just heard. Was it true? Things started to sink in. What happened during those years he was away? Did his decision really affect them that much? Did he actually.. become selfish?

And all along, he thought running away was the only solution. It was just him trying to not get them involved, right? Because he knew they were already going through hell even before he disappeared on them. Because talking wasn't always helpful. Because even if he said he didn't want to leave, it wouldn't change anything. Even if he actually bid them goodbye, it would only make things difficult for all of them. It wasn't that it was the easy way out. He just thought there'd be less pain with his choice.

Before he could answer, Lorenzo walked ahead of him and waved his hand. "Qualify for the Olympics if you want to know more about it. Well, I'd suggest you hear it yourself from them. Stop feeding your ego, Luigi. Whatever happened in the past.. it doesn't matter anymore. What we're waiting for is the way you'd handle things. If you're still undecided, just pick the one that you wouldn't regret the most. Ci vediamo."