This one may take a little longer posting chapters, as I'm working on my manuscript as well. Plus, the idea is there, but the execution of it hasn't quite hit my brain yet. I'm figuring this out as I go along, which is not unusual for me and my stories, but this seems to be coming harder than most. So, enjoy what I've already written and hopefully I'll have more up soon!
Total Eclipse
By WritePassion
Like everything else she learned, Esperanza took to ice skating, soaking up the skills and practicing them over and over with an intense look on her face. When she first started, Sam thought she would enjoy it for awhile and then something else would take its place before the six weeks were up. Six months later, every Saturday morning, he took her to her lesson and watched with a few of the other parents who stuck around instead of doing their weekly shopping or whatever made them use the time as an expensive babysitting service. As he watched his daughter glide effortlessly around the ice, Sam felt a great swell of pride.
Daddy, can I get a skating dress?
Daddy, I need tights to go with the dress.
Daddy, I can't go to every class wearing the same leotard! And I need blade guards, a bag for my skates, and snowseal, and...
When Michael warned him he heard figure skating was expensive, he wasn't kidding. Good thing Sam was taking jobs with Jack the past few months, or the family budget would never have been able to take the financial hit of all the costumes and accessories. As Espie skated backwards into a spiral, a skill her teacher hadn't even gone over yet, but one she saw the bigger girls accomplish, he noticed that her boots were looking worn, and he knew they were getting too small. The skates that Maddie and his dad gave her were on the way out, and a new pair was on order.
"Esperanza Axe, get over here this instant!"
Sam cringed, expecting her to lose her poise and go down on the ice, but Esperanza coolly spun out of the circle she created and went back to the far side of the ice where her class assembled. She hockey stopped and stood with her weight on one skate, arms crossed, as she listened to the instructor tell the girls how to perform a new skill. Sam could see she was bored.
"That kid is something else," a guy sitting behind Sam off to the left huffed. "Thinks she's some little prima donna out there. Hotshot."
"Maybe some kids have it, and some kids don't," Sam retorted, trying to keep the indignation out of his voice.
"I've seen her do that before. If she's so good, why's she in this class? She should get passed onto the next one."
"Which one is your kid?"
"Libby, she's over there, the one with the kitten on her shirt." He pointed to a jeans-clad little girl who looked anything but comfortable on the ice.
"How long has she been taking lessons?" Too long, if the look on her face is any indication.
"About six months. She's a natural at it. Her mom was a regional champion figure skater, and Libby has always wanted to follow in her footsteps...or should I say, skates." He beamed, too blind to see the truth.
Give it a rest, mister, she's just not into it.
He was still smiling when he asked Sam, "And which one is your daughter?"
Sam glanced up at him and made eye contact before replying. "The hotshot in the pink sparkly leotard. She's also been doing this for six months."
"Oh." He shut up, rested his elbow on his knee, and laid his chin in his hand, hoping to hide the embarrassment that crept up to his cheeks. "Well, she's uh, got talent."
"Thank you."
Sam's phone rang and he picked it up. "Hey Mike...Fi? Where's Mike?" He listened for a few moments, a chill running up his spine, and it had nothing to do with the temperature in the arena. "Okay, I'll be right over as soon as Espie's figure skating class is over. Yeah, she's just finishing up. Once she gets changed, it'll be five, ten minutes tops and we'll be there. Bye, Fi." Sam stood and approached the boards. With the acoustics not being very good on the rink, he had to cup his hands and yell to his daughter as she spun around in the center. "Espie! Espie!"
Her head came up and she saw him. Quickly recovering from her spin, she skated over to him and came to a perfect stop just shy of the boards. "What is it, Dad? You look worried."
"You're done with class now, right?" She nodded. "Okay, go get changed. We have to go to Uncle Mike and Aunt Fi's loft. Right now."
When he spoke like that, she knew not to ask any questions, just move. So move she did. She darted to the gate and jumped off the ice, picked up her gear bag, and hurried to a bench. Sam met her there and helped her untie her skates.
"What happened, Daddy? Is Uncle Mike okay?"
He looked up at her. "He's fine, sweetie. We just need to get over there ASAP."
She loosened the laces on her skate and pulled it off while Sam did the other one. "You want to change," he asked.
"No, I can go like this." She stored her skates properly in the bag, slipped into her Keds, and threw a light pink filmy skirt around her waist and tied it. "Okay, Daddy, let's go."