Don't Ice Me Out | Sam Kerr

5. Sam, please, help

The next morning, Kylie flew back to Sydney, arriving in the evening. Her apartment was small, a temporary one that she had got until she decided what she wanted to do. The skater loved traveling, its one of the reasons why she become an international figure skater. She wanted to wait until after the Olympics before moving. She had told her coach, Helena, about wanting to move, but Helena snapped quickly, upset she was losing her star skater.

Kylie opened to door to her apartment, the place a mess, like she was. She left her suitcases by the door, having no motivation to unpack, the text Sam had sent ringing in her mind. We're not friends.

Kylie didn't have friends. When she began skating as a single at 10, she dedicated her life to it. Her family got annoyed at her, for neglecting them.

And it was at this moment, that Kylie realised. She had no one. She doesn't talk to her family anymore. She didn't have any friends. She used to have her coach, but pretty soon their contract ends. She was moving. And Kylie was alone. Utterly alone. I need to get fucking drunk.

***

After the team meeting, Sam had also flew home. Home, to Kristie's. She had to collect her things, she knew, but it was still hard. The footballer had signed a lease for a new apartment, with nothing in it yet. The first decoration? Boxes upon boxes of Sam's stuff, still residing at Kristie's.

She hadn't seen her since they had won the Olympics, which was just a week ago, but it felt like a lifetime. There, Sam stood, at the same door, she used to open with her key everyday. But now it felt like an intrusion to use her key. So she knocked.

"Oh, Sam!", there she was, the woman that she had been so in love with for years, smiling fondly at her. "You didn't have to knock."

She offered a weak smile, "I don't know, it felt weird." Lightly chuckling, she walked in, going to collected her stuff.

"I could help-"

"No, I couldn't ask you of that."

"Please. Sam, it's fine, it's going to take you ages if you're doing this alone."

"...ok."

The two spent the afternoon, chatting, catching up, whilst moving the boxes into Sam's car. It was awkward at first, but the two had been together for years, of course they had things to discuss. Sam had gone a few back and forths between her new apartment and her old apartment, Kristie coming along with her.

"So this is the final box, huh?" Kristie said, walking along with Sam as she stuffed the final box in the car.

"Yep." She huffed out, slamming the boot of the car closed. The two stood outside the apartment, awkwardly looking at each other.

Kristie spoke, her voice cracking, "I'm- I'm really going to miss you Sammy." How could she look at that beautiful face and not think the same? How could she say goodbye to the person she thought would be her soulmate? The person she thought she would marry?

Their lips met, a sorrow and slow kiss ensued. A melt of emotions, raw, desperate and heartbroken. One of Sam's hands rested on Kristie's shoulder, the other on her waist. Kristie delicately held Sam's face. And as they parted, they rested their foreheads together, and looked into each other's eyes.

They could see it in the other's face. As much as they wanted it to be more than a kiss, they knew what that was. A goodbye kiss.

"Thank you. For everything." Sam whispered as she let go. She drove home, emotions riddled her body and mine. She wanted to cry. And preferably, drink.

***

Kylie had a strong alcohol tolerance, inherited from both her parents. So after a few shots and a few cocktails, and maybe a few others, she let herself sober up to go back to her apartment. The skater didn't live too far from the bar, maybe a 10 minute walk. It was dark, maybe almost around 1am, and it was cold, the winter night air brushing against her cheeks. But she was a figure skater, she dances on ice, and in the words of Elsa, the cold never bothered me anyways.

She raised her phone, going to turn it on, when in the reflection of the screen, she saw the silhouette of a man in the streetlight. Kylie never had any stalkers or anything. Even when she won the Olympics last time. Some twisted part of her thought it was because she was never pretty enough. She always thought that the day she does get one, she would think that she wasn't as ugly as she perceived herself to be.

But this. This was terrifying. Maybe it was because it was 1am in the morning. Or maybe the fact that she's slightly drunk. But tonight, it was because she knew she was alone.

Yet, she wasn't alone, BECAUSE THIS MAN STARTED TO WALK FASTER.

Fuck, fuck, fuck. Goddammit, fuck me. She started speed walking, almost jogging at this point. She tried switching streets but he followed. She felt like the only things she could hear was the two pairs of feet walking, and her heart against her ear.

Thinking as fast as she could, Kylie ran into a nearby park, taking refuge behind bushes, disregarding her fear of bugs. The man followed into the park soon after she hid, wondering around.

The skater pulled out her phone, dialling the one person that might even care at this point. "Helena?" She whispered.

"Oh my lord! Kylie, you already made it clear that you will be finding a new coach, do not try go back on your word. I get it, I'm not good enough for you."

"No! I-"

"Well you're not good enough for me either! I found myself a new star, and I'll make her better than you." Helena hung up.

By this time, Kylie was hysteric. Her hand was against her nose and mouth, desperately trying to hide her sobs. Whenever she and her coach got into an argument, she was always told that she was not good enough, that she'll be replaced with a better skater. It was her biggest fear. So now that her biggest fear, and her new fear, the man wondering around the park, was combined, she was having a panic attack.

They didn't happen that often, maybe a few times a year. At that moment, she was trying to conceal her hiccups, tears blurring her vision and snot running down her face from not being able to sniffle.

She called someone else. She knew they weren't friends. But, she didn't know what else to do.

"Sammy?" Her voice cracked.

***

It was only 4 in the afternoon, but Sam had a bottle of beer in her hands. She was only tipsy, but she was crying. Her phone rung obnoxiously, the caller ID showing that it was Kylie.

"Oh my god, Kylie, what do you want?!" Sam snapped, her tone sharp and pissed off.

"I- I'm sor-ry," the skater's voice interrupted by hiccups, clear that she was crying, "I'll uh- I'll hang... up." This concerned Sam. Yes, she told the girl that they weren't friends but part of her still cared.

"Wait, no Kylie, what's wrong?" And only now had Sam realised that back in Australia, it was 1am in the morning. "Kylie why are you out at 1am?"

"Sam, I- I'm scared there's this," she tried to rush out, but quickly she sunk into a whisper. "There's this man, he's following me. I'm scared, please. I don't know- I don't know what to do." Kylie broke down into hushed crying. "Please help me, I'm scared."