AN: *biggest smile you will ever see* The response for this story is so freaking crazy! I'm real excited about it all! You guys, seriously, are the best readers in the whole entire world. I can't thank you enough. I wouldn't be writing without all of you! *hugs and squeezes* I love you all so very much! Here is more of our skaters, trying to figure out what's going to happen next!!

I have a banner for this story that you can view in my profile made by the lovely CarolinaGirl96a !! It's SO SO PRETTY! I ADORE IT!

Thanks to the loveliest beta, elbly! :D She got this into me before she succumbed to sleep -- what an awesome being! LOVE!

On Edge: Chapter 2

Eric sat in his house later that night at the computer, youtubing clips of Sookie's past performances. She was only twenty years old and she'd been competing professionally since she was eight. She was good – she could be excellent if she had a decent partner. Bill had been fine, but the reason she only won fourth place in the Olympics nine months ago was because they, as a couple, seemed...off.

He checked out interviews that the two of them had done. Again, Bill was rather stiff and would only answer with one word, maybe two. Sookie was giggly and personable as she talked about their routine and their relationship. She admitted that they were dating. The interviewer asked if she felt that that took away from their performance without that sexual tension. Sookie hesitated before Bill interrupted with a sound, "No."

What an asshole.

He looked between old clips of the two of them when Sookie was only sixteen compared to her at twenty and Eric noticed a difference. Their chemistry was better in the beginning; it was probably because she was too young for them to date. Either way, he wondered why their relationship had such an effect on their skating. Maybe it was just Bill.

Curious, Eric looked up the death of Bill Compton. It was in newspapers, more prominently in Sookie and Bill's home state of Louisiana. He was in a car accident. There were photos from the funeral and Eric saw a devastated Sookie. He closed his laptop, leaned back in his swivel chair and thought.

Was he really going to do this?

He wasn't going to go back to skating, he reminded himself firmly. He had never done pair skating – only single men's figure skating. He had only practiced with pairs a few times for fun, he knew the logistics but he had never had a partner. He didn't think he could do it, no matter how sweet Sookie might be. But, he wanted to do it.

Fucking Pam.

Fucking Sookie.

Fucking Sam – he was awful!

He had received a text from Pam asking him to be at the rink at five-thirty the next morning. And dammit, he knew he'd be going. Shit.

Pam had been trying to get him to get back on the ice for three years now, and suddenly a young girl comes along and he's inspired to get back on the ice? He went up the stairs. Vigorously, angrily he brushed his teeth and found himself under the covers by ten. Like clock-work. His body knew when to get back into the rhythm of a skater's lifestyle and he was dragged into a deep sleep before he knew it.

His inner skating timer woke him up at five without an alarm clock. He struggled out of bed and pulled on some jeans, a t-shirt and a sweater over. He was heading to his car ten minutes later as if he hadn't lost the past three years.

Since it was November, the mornings were very dark. The snow had finally stopped as he pulled up across the street from the arena. He got out of his car with the coffee and doughnuts like the day before. The janitor opened the door for him. He walked in and past the stands as he went to the small door that led onto the ice. Only Sookie was here so far. She was skating around in circles warming up. He balanced the items on the ledge and walked onto the ice. A huge smile spread across Sookie's face when she saw him, gliding in front of him.

"Hey," she said. She was in black yoga pants tucked into her skates and a simple light blue long-sleeved shirt, her hair pulled back into a pony tail and no make-up. Her cheeks were flushed pink and he noticed her hands were rather red in the cool icy air. She'd warm up soon enough.

"Hi," he said, feeling weird. He still had his gloves on but opted to take his winter jacket off and put it next to the food. "Coffee?" he asked.

She shook her head, her hair swinging. "No, I don't drink the stuff. I prefer tea," she shrugged. He'd have to remember that. She slapped her thighs and he saw her red hands again. He wanted to warm them. "So," she said shortly. This was turning into an awkward situation. She fluttered her eyes as she looked around quickly. "I just wanted to say, I've been Googling you since I met you two days ago. You're...amazing," she breathed. "I mean it, you are just – it's a shame you quit, you know. I mean you've won a gold medal! And, gosh, it was well deserved. I don't," she flushed brighter, shaking her head, looking down at her skates. "I really admire you. I'm so thankful that you're helping me and Sam out."

Eric let her praise sink in. He nodded, trying to keep his cool. "Sam needs it, you don't. I've uh, looked you up on the internet too." Their eyes met and he felt that compulsion – he wanted to skate with her.

"You have?" her voice was small, her mouth open in an 'o' shape, her eyes bright and excited. He wanted to fuck her. That was all he could rationalize in that moment.

"Good morning! Eric, look at that, you do remember how to wake up early. Yum, coffee. Hi, Sookie." Eric cursed his sister. He wanted to splash the hot coffee in her face. He turned around and got a coffee of his own. "Brother, I brought your skates. Think you'll use them today?"

"No," he said shortly, sipping away. He saw Sookie's face flash in disappointment before she twirled back onto her warm-ups doing a little jump here and there. "Where's Sam?" he asked Pam.

"He'll be here soon. He's not a morning person," she said giving her brother an awful look. As if there was more that Sam could be bad at.

Sam wasn't late, but he did arrive one minute before five-thirty, hastily tying his skates and stumbling onto the ice. Eric's eyes widened at this guy. Where the hell did Sookie find him? When he had tried looking him up on Google last night, he found nothing about Sam Merlotte. So, he was a newbie. What was someone like Sookie doing with someone like Sam?

Eric stood by the boards while Pam skated around with Sam and Sookie. They were doing twirls on the ice today, no air, no jumps – just regular twirls, alone and with one another. Sookie spun like the expert she was while Sam was good...Eric, being experienced, could see his rough edges. He couldn't help but shake his head in astonishment the entire time.

And when it was time for Sam and Sookie to be in sync or to spin together, Sam would be a half-second off of Sookie's perfect timing.

"Eric," Pam called out to him. He nodded that he heard them. "Do you think you could help us out? You've been watching for a while, do you have any suggestions."

Fire Sam.

"Nope."

"If you got your skates on, you could show them what I'm looking for. No offense, darlings but something is off."

Yeah, Sam.

Eric inhaled. He was not putting those damn skates on. At least, not today.

He ended up retreating to the stands and watching from there, memorizing and familiarizing himself with Sookie's mannerisms, her style and her rhythm. He was pretty sure he knew all her tricks, even though she hadn't displayed them. He could tell just from the way her body moved what she could do and what she couldn't, Sookie could do a lot more than she gave herself credit for, as much confidence as she had, she was just as self-conscious. Sam wasn't helping much.

His muscles, his bones were aching to get on that ice and show Sookie what it's like to be handled on skates. She had had crappy partners – Bill and now Sam. He knew he could show her a better way, even though he had never done pair skating before. He felt as if he'd get the hang of it quick enough and then he could toe pick the crap out of Merlotte.

Eric gritted his teeth as Sam twirled Sookie; she had perfect form and he had his elbows jutting out. Pam kept her distance so she wasn't wailed in the face with pointy bones. His sister's annoyed gaze met his and she was calling a break. Eric saw Sam glaring at him as Sookie glided over to stop in front of the board.

"You decide to get those skates on, yet?" she asked, leaning against it, her head resting on her arm giving him a sweet expression. Was it so wrong that he was twenty-six and she was twenty?

"I won't be doing that," Eric said when he saw Pam look hopefully at Sookie's persuasiveness. He couldn't let Pam see that Sookie was actually swaying him to tie those damn laces up. He had to be firmly sitting on his ass.

"Next time, then," Sookie said. "Well, do you have any comments, questions...concerns? I'm dying to know what you're thinking." Sookie's Southern drawl was really prominent in that sentence. Eric wondered how long she'd been living up here, where snow existed.

Eric gave her a strained smile. Her beaming face fell.

"What?" she said, straightening up, looking panicked at his response. "What? Was I doing something wrong?"

Eric felt his heart leap at her anxiety. He couldn't call Sam out though. "You were fine, Sookie."

Her eyes widened. "Fine?!" she shrieked. Pam wasn't kidding when she mentioned something about Sookie's perfectionism. No matter how involved, how far Eric got in skating he was always easily relaxed like his mother taught him to be. Sookie was high strung, self-conscious and on the verge of tears.

Eric found himself standing up slowly approaching Sookie. She pushed herself away from the stands, turning around, hiding her face from him.

"What did you say?" Pam asked, skating over, with Sam putting an arm around Sookie. Eric hated how she leaned into his hold.

"I said nothing, she misinterpreted it," Eric said, his voice clipped. He wasn't going to put up with this prima donna bullshit. He grabbed his jacket and began to exit the arena.

"Eric!" he heard Pam shout after him. Once again, he found himself storming out, pissed off. The sun was up now, and he slammed himself in his car.

He took a few minutes to take deep breaths, reigning in his rage – something his mother always tried to remind him to do. His anger had gotten him into trouble more than a few times. Sookie probably read about that too. He'd been arrested once, he remembered, at a bar, he was drunk and nineteen and a guy was hitting on his girlfriend. Needless to say he was nearly disqualified from the World Tournament that year, but he ended up winning it that first time with his skill and not his reputation.

He was not going to subject himself to Sookie's erratic emotions and her unknowingly annoying attachment to Sam. He started the car, letting it warm up in the below zero morning.

Just when he was about to start the car and leave, someone opened the passenger door. He looked over and saw Sookie settling into the seat beside him. She had run out with hardly a jacket and her guards on the bottom of her skates, too big for them. She had no doubt struggled quickly outside. He wished he saw that.

She turned in her seat. "Hi," she said. Eric gave her a cross between a look of amusement and annoyance.

"Yes?" he asked tensely.

"I don't know what happened in there," she said quickly. She smoothed her hair back, it was becoming loose from her ponytail. "I'm a bit of a perfectionist I guess –"

"Then why are you with Sam?" Eric found himself saying before he could filter it. She gave him a look that reminded him of a deer caught in the headlights.

"You're..." she looked away out the windshield, shivering. Eric turned up the heat, the car finally warming up. "You're not the first person to ask me that."

"If you truly cared about your craft you'd ditch him," he said, shaking his head, looking away from her twisted expression.

"He's from home and..."

"Is that all? Sookie, I watched you and your a thousand leagues better than Sam. He's going to be the end of your career as long as you keep him."

She exhaled loudly. "That's harsh."

"You've met the judges, you know harsh."

"Yeah," she murmured. He looked at her and realized how young, how naive despite her years of experience she was. She hadn't ever had a good partner. "It's just, after Bill...I couldn't imagine myself going with just anyone. Sam used to be a part of the small group we had in Louisiana," she smiled slightly. "And, I don't know. I saw him again at the funeral and...He's a good guy," she looked over at him and gave him the most earnest look he ever saw. She was loyal, he'd give her that. "But...I think you're right. And I think he knows it too."

"Pam knows it."

Sookie shook with silent laughter, looking back out into the snow covered lawns of the slow, early morning neighbourhood surrounding the community center. "I don't know how to tell him."

"It's just like a break-up."

Sookie frowned. "I've never had a break-up." Eric was startled but from her history, he realized that this might be true. Death did not equal a break-up; they were two completely different devastations. "Can you tell me what I have to say? Or should I look for a new partner first?" he could see the panic rising in her once again.

She stared at him and he knew she had the thought – the thought that he could be her partner. He wanted to shoot that notion down before she could say it out loud but he found that he couldn't, that he paused and waited for her to ask first. She didn't though. She shook her head and looked away.

"I don't want to hurt Sam," she sighed, wringing her hands together in her lap. She straightened up and put her hand on the door, ready to open it. She glanced back, staring him in the eye. "I hope you come again tomorrow morning."

He cleared his throat, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. "I have work," he said.

"Oh," Sookie smiled shaking her head, her hair bouncing along. "I forgot." She forgot that retired ice skaters needed money too. She opened the door, wincing at the cool air. "I want to see you again, Eric. I hope you decide to come. And maybe put on your skates next time," Sookie winked. She hovered at the door a bit. Besides the freezing temperature, and her shaking legs, she waited. She rolled her eyes and smiled slightly, "Thanks for what you said. I like you. I'll put on my big girl panties next time I ask for your honest opinion. I'll see you soon?" she ended on an uncertain tone.

Eric felt his throat close up. Why did she have to bring up her panties? Maybe it was a Southern-ism. "Yeah," he found himself saying. "I'll see you the next time you practice at night."

"Oh," she said. "That'll be on Thursday." She looked sad at how far away that was.

What the hell are you doing? Eric asked himself.

"Goodbye, Sookie," he said.

"Oh, right, bye!" she closed the door. He watched her stumble back to the arena, her moves ungraceful compared to on the ice, her guards flying off once and she stopped to slip her skate back into it. He smiled slightly, feeling a spread of warmth through his body from watching her.

He couldn't bring himself to drive away just yet. He found himself thinking about Sookie and skating, all swirled into one. He rubbed his eyes feeling as if he should just go home and sleep.

"I don't know how to skate. But I know how to review."