Carvings in the Ice

"Well, look who it is."
Jonathan forced his lips upward as he saw his current rival approach, a broad grin on his own rounded face. "'sup, Kaner?" he asked, extending a hand.
"Not much, man, not much. Didn't expect to see you up here."
He shrugged, trying despite his pounding heart to sound relaxed. "Well, you know, I figured I might as well try something different... take the edge off, you know, relax for tomorrow. Didn't expect to see you either..."
"Oh, yeah, well..." Now it was Patrick's turn to attempt coolness. "You know me. Just checkin' out the honeys and all..."
Jonathan snorted despite himself. "Yeah."
"Yeah?" He chuckled. "Well, come on, Jonny. You? Figure skating? Fuck that 'takin' the edge off' crap, we both know you're all about focusing. You losin' it over some sweetie in there?"
"Could you not think we're all like you?" He started walking into the lobby of the arena with Pat at his heels.
"It's true, isn't it? You got a little crush on someone. What's her name? Come on, you can tell me."
"Who's yours?" Jon asked him.
"Psht." Pat stopped and crossed his arms. "Not really a crush. I mean... we've known each other forever. She's a friend of mine."
"A friend ?"
"Yeah. We dated, but... didn't work out. No biggie. Just thought I'd hang with her before the Olympics is over."
"Hey, that's cool." Suddenly Jonathan felt the prickly, uncomfortable presence of being somewhere he didn't belong; even with all of these other people, these other athletes around, he felt suffocated, closed in, as though people were going to turn around and start pointing and laughing. Haha, loser, what makes you think you can catch her eye? they'd say. He felt his skin flush to burning with embarrassment, and suddenly, his breath left him entirely.
Annabelle was coming straight toward them, damp from the showers, with her skate bag slung over her shoulder. She had on little makeup, and her skater's body was covered by the baggy track suit the Olympians wore, but something about her still wrapped itself around Jon's head, refusing to let him shake it clear. As she approached, her eyes flickered for a moment, then narrowed, and Jonathan knew this was not going to be easy.

Anna had been walking in a daze, head spinning over the scores she'd received. Fourth place... fourth. In a sport alongside Yu-Na, Mao, and others, she supposed it could have been foreseen, yet... even third would have been nice. Joannie Rochette had stumbled twice through her routine... then again, she had her mother's memory to guide her. Anna shook her head suddenly. No. Don't do that, don't be bitter. The game is a fickle one, you know that. The words echoed through her busy mind and kept her from harboring the thoughts of someone bitchy, egotistical... the thoughts of a sore loser.
As she entered the lobby, she saw Patrick, standing next to someone tall, dark- someone she recognized yet again.
Shit, it's him, she thought, nearly dropping her skates. It's him... standing next to Pat, holy... did he SAY something?? Christ, I'm going to kill him, oh my God...
Jonathan looked as stricken as she felt. His neck was bright red, his brown eyes wide. Suddenly she suspected he didn't know anything at all. So what the hell is going on?
"Hey, Anna," Pat asked, oblivious to everything that had happened to his two companions in the ten seconds it took for her to walk toward them. "Great job. Hey, they totally marked you down way too much for that one stupid-"
"Are you stalking me?"
Pat stopped mid-sentence. Jonathan's eyes went wide. "What?" he sputtered. "Stalking you? No. I just-"
"Okay, so what did you say to him, then, Patrick?" She turned, pinning him to his spot with flashing amber eyes. "Don't tell me nothing."
"Anna, I swear, I didn't."
"Yeah, okay."
"Wait- you know her?" Jonathan asked him.
"Heh, well.... yeah. I mean, I, uh... this... is the girl! Yeah, the girl I told you about. Annabelle, Jonathan. Jonathan, Annabelle." Pat chuckled, attempting to keep the gathering civil, but Jon had had enough.
"I see," he said quietly, insides filling with disappointment. He looked away from Pat, and couldn't dare to try and meet Annabelle's eyes. "I see perfectly. I'll catch you later, Kaner."
"What-"
But he'd already turned, walking out of the arena before the laughter began.