The next element is the flying sit spin, and there's no wavering on this one; Yuri hits it straight on. It's a chance to pull himself in tightly, to take stock of everything, one last checkpoint before the second half of the program is upon him. The spin is low and tight, and even with the irregular throbbing in his hip it feels right.
(It's better than it was in Hasetsu. He's better than he was in Hasetsu.)
I've been pouring blood, sweat, and tears into this since that humiliation. Working himself to the bone under Yakov and Lilia's instruction, ending his practice days more often than not by soaking his bruised, bloodied feet and ankles in Lilia's bathtub, face buried in a towel to stifle any little sounds of pain that might slip out of his mouth, any involuntary tears that might leak from the corners of his eyes. One fall on the ice can't compare to months of that. So why should he let that one fall stop him in his tracks, if day after day of hard work never stopped him before?
Before he knows it he's out of the spin, into the lead up to the second-half jumps. Why should he feel like this is the end? It's only the beginning. Fifteen years old and skating against men with years of experience in the senior division, already with one silver medal to his name -- and why shouldn't he be able to hold his own here as well? I just lack overall experience, that's all. And that's the thought that carries him into the light, chasing steps across the ice and the graceful whirls that build up to his jump combination. Driving forward into the quad salchow (his jump, always his) and through to the triple toe loop, with all of Lilia's double tours en l'air under his belt to polish his height and flow, and this time the landing is strong and true.
But it's still not the end, as the soprano voice soars above him, calling him on, that search for the unconditional love that won't elude him forever. The audience's cheers have barely died away when the final jump is upon him. Quad toe loop, with the power of Yakov's strict conditioning regimen to give him this burst of strength, and the crowd sounds even more delighted than before.
Only the step sequence and the spins left. He'll give it all he has until the very end.
no subject
(It's better than it was in Hasetsu. He's better than he was in Hasetsu.)
I've been pouring blood, sweat, and tears into this since that humiliation. Working himself to the bone under Yakov and Lilia's instruction, ending his practice days more often than not by soaking his bruised, bloodied feet and ankles in Lilia's bathtub, face buried in a towel to stifle any little sounds of pain that might slip out of his mouth, any involuntary tears that might leak from the corners of his eyes. One fall on the ice can't compare to months of that. So why should he let that one fall stop him in his tracks, if day after day of hard work never stopped him before?
Before he knows it he's out of the spin, into the lead up to the second-half jumps. Why should he feel like this is the end? It's only the beginning. Fifteen years old and skating against men with years of experience in the senior division, already with one silver medal to his name -- and why shouldn't he be able to hold his own here as well? I just lack overall experience, that's all. And that's the thought that carries him into the light, chasing steps across the ice and the graceful whirls that build up to his jump combination. Driving forward into the quad salchow (his jump, always his) and through to the triple toe loop, with all of Lilia's double tours en l'air under his belt to polish his height and flow, and this time the landing is strong and true.
But it's still not the end, as the soprano voice soars above him, calling him on, that search for the unconditional love that won't elude him forever. The audience's cheers have barely died away when the final jump is upon him. Quad toe loop, with the power of Yakov's strict conditioning regimen to give him this burst of strength, and the crowd sounds even more delighted than before.
Only the step sequence and the spins left. He'll give it all he has until the very end.