Icebound Rivalry

Chapter 13-Distance

Chapter 13- Distance

Maya did not move first. She held Alex’s stare across the short distance of the living area and refused to be the one who stepped back.

The quiet stretched until it felt like a challenge instead of a pause.

Her pulse moved fast in her throat but the feeling that came with it was not softness.

It was irritation at the fact that he could still get under her skin this easily.

“Don’t mistake this for weakness,” she said.

Something hardened in Alex’s expression.

The set of his jaw tightened and the scar through his eyebrow stood out more clearly under the low light from the desk lamp.

“I wouldn’t make that mistake.”

He turned toward his bedroom without another word.

The door closed with a controlled click that sounded louder than it should have.

Maya stayed where she was and stared at the empty space he had left behind.

Anger burned hotter than anything else she had felt that night.

Whatever this was between them, it was not trust. It was not forgiveness. And it certainly was not peace.

She walked to her own room and shut the door harder than necessary.

The bed felt too large when she sat on the edge of it. She did not open the notebook.

She did not write a single line.

The conversation in the living area kept replaying in pieces and every piece made the irritation sharper.

He had stood there long enough to force the moment and then walked away the second she refused to give ground. Typical.

Sleep came late and broken. When the alarm went off the next morning she felt the weight of it in her shoulders and behind her eyes.

She dressed quickly and stepped into the living area ready to leave for the morning skate.

Alex was already there near the counter with a glass of water in his hand.

He looked up once and then returned his attention to the glass as if she were not worth the extra second of eye contact.

“Morning,” he said, voice flat.

“Morning.”

That was the entire exchange.

He set the glass down, picked up his bag, and left the suite without waiting.

Maya followed several minutes later and kept her distance on the bus and at the arena.

The day moved in the usual rhythm of meetings, video, and preparation. She did her job. He did his. Neither of them sought the other out.

The private session was scheduled for late afternoon.

Maya arrived at the conference room on time and set her materials on the table.

Alex walked in three minutes later and closed the door. He took the chair across from her and waited in silence.

The air between them carried the leftover charge from the night before and neither of them seemed interested in clearing it.

Maya slid the printed sheet toward him.

“Same recovery sequence as last night. I want consistency after a back to back.”

Alex picked up the paper and completed the first round without comment. His movements were precise.

His expression stayed closed. When he finished he set the sheet down and looked at her directly.

“You are still angry about last night.”

“I am focused on the work.”

“That is not an answer.”

Maya met his eyes and kept her voice even.

“You do not get to walk away from a conversation and then demand clarity the next day.”

Alex’s jaw shifted. “I walked away because the alternative was worse.”

“Worse for whom.”

“For both of us.”

The words landed with more edge than confession. Maya felt the irritation rise again and refused to let it show beyond a slight tightening of her fingers on the pen.

She closed the notebook and rested both hands on the cover.

“We still have time on the schedule,” she said.

“If you want to use it for something other than drills, say so. Otherwise we finish what we started.”

Alex leaned back in the chair and studied her for a long moment.

The silence felt deliberate on both sides.

Neither of them looked away first.

“Finish the sequence,” he said at last.

They completed the remaining rounds in near silence.

Every instruction and every response stayed clipped and professional. When the hour ended Alex stood and pushed the chair in with more force than required.

He walked to the door and paused with his hand on the handle.

“The suite is still a problem,” he said without turning around.

“I know.”

“We have one more night here.”

“I know that too.”

He left without another word. Maya stayed seated until the hallway went quiet.

She gathered her materials slowly and tried to ignore the fact that her pulse had not settled.

The irritation sat in her chest like something solid.

She hated that he could still affect her this way.

She hated even more that she could see the same frustration in him and still wanted to push harder instead of stepping back.

She returned to the suite later than usual.

The living area was empty. Alex’s bedroom door was closed.

She set her bag down and stood near the window for a long time without turning on more lights.

The city moved below in the usual pattern of headlights and distant sound.

Inside the suite the quiet felt heavier than it had the night before.

Maya finally walked to her room and left the door open a few inches. She did not expect him to come out.

She did not want him to. But the fact that part of her was still listening for the sound of his door made the anger return sharper than ever.

Whatever this was, it was still a fight.

And neither of them was ready to lose it.