Phos sat in the corner in her room, legs brought up to her chest as she hugged them close. A deadpanned look on her face as her blueish green eyes followed the intruder in her room, who looked around at her stuff. She wasn't an intruder, per say, but she didn't like the fact that Antarc was looking at all her belongings on shelves, which held snow globes and knickknacks galore. On the pale cream walls held signed posters of famous ice skaters and pictures of her family. Cousins, best friends, her own father, you named it. Amid the messy room held an array of soft, small stuffed animals, which either laid on the ground or were scattered along her bedroom wall. Bookshelves lined near her tall, white door were filled with books and novels, all about ice skating or just random fictional stories.

Despite the comfort of her chaotic room she came to love, she sat in the corner on her bed, curled up as she kept a close eye on Antarc. The white-haired woman ran her fingers along the shelves, looking at the dusty finger when she was finished before she rubbed it on her black leggings. She spared a glace to Phos, silver-blue eyes narrowing a bit before she curtly turned to her, hands going to her hips.

"From what I can tell," Antarc huffed. "you don't take care of your room much. Meaning you can be quite careless."

Phos blushed deeply, finding embarrassment within that statement and utter offense. She held her mouth agape, shoulders tensed.

"Wha- What?! I do take care of my room! I'm not careless!"

"Then clean your room. I barely know you, after all, so this is a bit of a bad first impression."

Phos grumbled as she hid within herself a bit more before she dramatically got up from her bed. She picked up the papers from school and her stuffed animals, mumbling minor insults about Antarc, which she didn't mean. Antarc watched, her face remaining harsh as she moved her arms from her hips to her chest, crossing them in a motherly fashion. Every time Phos tried to stop and look to Antarc, the woman just glared back at the teen, who squeaked and went back to work.

This kept going until the room's floor was visible, causing Phos to groan dramatically once again and fall onto the bed, face in the pillows. Antarc narrowed her eyes before walking over and slapping her back. Phos yelled out as she grabbed her back and rolled off the bed and onto pillows, causing a held back snort from Antarc. The two had met a total of three days ago and they just now got the chance to talk. Antarc said it was important for a coach to know their students' weaknesses and strengths. So, like any sane coach (not), she barged right into Phos' room and began looking at everything. Kongo apparently thought it was a grand idea, being that he was in the hallway the first five minutes with a smile on his face, having a nice conversation with the coach.

And now they are here, the two bickering over the whole secrets of Phosphophyllite and how Phos denies all the weaknesses. She just didn't see it! And she was embarrassed if others did.

"Like I said: Careless." Antarc spoke up as Phos laid on the ground, a complaining groan coming from the teal haired girl. Slowly, Phos sat up, looking at Antarc with another deadpanned look. Antarc simply stared back. "Careless for your surroundings, and in turn for yourself. Your bed isn't even made."

"Is this some kind of ploy to make me clean my room? Did Dad set you up to this?" Phos asked, being oddly skeptical as she stared at Antarc, who seemed more irritated now. She had no clue that this soon-to-be adult was acting like a child. Just who did she think she was?

"If you must know, this isn't what your father put me into. My job is to coach you. I am simply doing this for my own benefit to see what kind of person you are."

"What?! But all you've done is insult me!" Phos said as she stood to her feet. She probably had done it a little too quickly, because she felt her balance shift, causing the girl to squeak as she tripped over her own two feet. She yelped as she began to fall before a pair of gloved hands caught her, making her blink in surprise. She looked up with those curious pair of eyes before seeing it was Antarc who caught her, who held the serious face that Phos was starting to get used to.

"I haven't finished." Antarc said as she tightened her grip on Phos' arm, who blinked in surprise once again. "You're clumsy, which will be your end if you don't work on it, since you have that dreaded disease. You're reckless, always saying without thinking or acting without the same. You're spoiled, thinking that everything will go your way, when obviously it has not."

Phos felt her ears slowly glow red from all the insults about her, an angry pout on her face as she tried not to yell out in anger. She knew they were all right. Every single insult. But she didn't want to admit how much of it was right. So, in the end, she stayed quiet, letting Antarc say all that needs to be said. And when Antarc stopped, she expected that to be all. Just insults, denial of teaching her, and giving up on her dream again. Until...

"But, there are other things about you that are good. To every bad, there's a good... You have a heart of gold, Phosphophyllite. Your dreams are important to you and you try to do them, no matter the costs. You follow you heart and always think of others before yourself, even if its reckless sometimes. You make all these friends easily and you do nothing but care for them." Antarc slowly let go of Phos' arm, the stunned girl staring at the other, pure shock residing over her face. "You're a good kid, Phos. Even with all those negatives, your positives shine through."

Antarc smiled a bit. It was barely visible, but Phos saw it. And for a second, she forgot that this was a coach. HER coach.

"So... you won't drop me as a student?" Phos mumbled out the question as if it was hard to breathe, Antarc almost taken aback by such a thing. Soon, she shook her head.

"No, I won't give up on you. I was asked by your father to take you on, and at first, I was a bit skeptical, seeing as every kid I tried to teach just had no passion. But you? You showed promise. Your father told me how much you aspire to be, and when you gave up on such an amazing dream, he was worried. So, he came to the ice rink and asked for the most skilled ice skater who wanted a challenge. Everyone referred to me and I stepped up. Truth is, I love a challenge. And you, with the disease that causes your bones to break with the slightest impact, were the perfect challenge."

"So," Phos started, amazed. "My dad... found a coach for me... and you're willing to take me on?"

"Of course." Antarc said with the tilt of her head, smiling. This smile was much gentler than the other ones. "Anyone can do anything. Including a weak girl, like you, to skate. It just takes immense balance, which you can gain with practice. And that is why I am here."

So, in the end, Phos figured out why she had a coach. Kongo was worried for her and went to find a coach once and for all. He ends up meeting Antarc and asks her, explaining her situation. After thinking about how she loves a challenge, she accepted and apparently arranged a spot for them to meet. So, that's why Kongo said they should go for a walk. In the winter cold. In the outside. Out of nowhere. It all made sense. Especially when Kongo told her to sit down in a bench, right across from the ice-skating rink. Just so she could see Antarc skate as beautifully as she did.

In the end, she guessed she owed her father.

Phos laid in her room, lights off as she took in the smell of her dinner that sat on her nightstand. Tonight's dinner was her favorite: Spaghetti with garlic bread. She had no idea why she adored such a dish that would be so simple to someone else, but she loved it. Anyways, she laid in her bed, hands behind her back as she stared up at the glow in the dark stars that she had recently put up on the ceiling. Many thoughts were in her head, but none as major as a promise. A promise she was making to herself.

She must be a great student. No matter what. She cannot let Antarc down.

Phos sighed as she moved her hands over her eyes. How she became her coach wasn't the only thing she learned.

"What about you? Will I ever get to know more about you?" Phos asked as she pouted to Antarc, the two now folding her laundry. Antarc pondered at the idea of telling her stories, before she sighed. She sat down a blue shirt onto the floor, moving her legs to be crossed so she sat more comfortably.

"Let's see. I am from Russia. My parents and I were born there, but they were raised there. They moved here after I turned 7. I began my lessons at four when my father, Barbata Floes, retired his ice skating career."

"BARBATA?!" Phos squealed, a huge blush on her face from complete shock and amazement. Barbata was Russia's greatest figure skater! Phos' idol, practically! No wonder why Antarc was so good! "H-He's your father?! I heard he moved to America years ago, but I had no idea it was so close to me!"

"You learn something new every day." Antarc smiled. Phos smiled gently. She supposed that solved the mystery of what accent she had. It was light, but noticeable. She was glad that so many questions were being answered.

And then they went to grab the dinner Kongo made, Phos being the one to grab hers and walk to her room while he went and showed Antarc the guest room she'll be sleeping in. She figured out her parents were out of town for a while, about a few months, due to Christmas being around the corner. Antarc had no interest in going to Russia, though, and declined. For the time being, she was staying with Kongo, who were good friends with Barbata and his wife.

Phos sighed for the hundredth time today, nodding to herself about the promise earlier. Yeah, she had to make Antarc proud. She seemed to have a lot of expectations for her.

The next morning came fast, the cold air causing Phos to shiver away. She began to wonder why she was so cold suddenly before she cracked open her eyes, looking up at Antarc, who held the blanket in her arms. Phos whined in response before curling up on herself. The coach sighed before walking to the window and opening the curtains, the teal haired girl screaming as she covered her eyes and fell off the bed again. Good thing the pillows there always stay. She was known for rolling out of bed a lot, after all.

"Wake up. Today is the first practice day." Was all Antarc said before she turned back to Phos, draping the blanket over a nearby chair. She crossed her arms as Phos slowly stood, rubbing her head with a whine.

"What's today?..." Phos asked with a yawn, trying to open her eyes a bit more. Antarc was surprised by the question, not sure how Phos didn't know before she figured it was just a tired mind working.

"Sunday. The 15th of December."

"What time is it now?"

"It's 7 o'clock."

"Why so earlyyy..." Phos whined as she slowly fell back onto the bed, using what was left of her pillows to cover her head. Antarc sighed before she walked to the bed and picked up the pillows, tilting her head.

"Because the ice rink is open this early with barely anyone there. I rented it out today just for the both of us. Come on."

"In the cold?! The cruel, cold, winter world?!" Phos gasped, sitting up as her messy teal hair bounced.

"Oh, you'll live." Antarc said before she walked to Phos and ruffled her hair, causing her to pout in response. After a bit, the two finally finished their bickering and went to go and get ready for the day. By seven thirty, they were leaving the house, with Phos giving Kongo a goodbye kiss on his cheeks. The two walked, both wearing heavy coats as they went to the nearby ice rink. Phos made small talk, trying to get rid of the silence of the wind, which brought chills to her back and arms every time.

When they eventually got there, it was about 8 o'clock, and the ice rink was empty except for its workers. Antarc placed a few chocolates on the counter and smiled to the girl behind the counter. The girl, Bri, seemed to be spending her first hours of her birthday at work, but that didn't seem to bother her. After checking in, the two walked to the locker room, where a very excited Phos was about to jump every which way in excitement.

"My very first-time skating! I can't believe it! I never ever thought I'd make it this far! Oh, you have no idea how excited I am!"

"Hold your horses, kid." Antarc said as she placed one of the pair of skates down, showing it was Phos' as she sat down on a nearby bench and began placing the pair she still had on. "You still need to learn balance. It'll be a long time before you can skate without falling."

"Kid? I'm a year younger than you!" Phos said as she pouted before she tilted her head. "I'm sure balancing will be easy! I doubt I'll be there for a long time! A long time is... what? Two weeks?"

Antarc looked to Phos for a split second before going back to tying her skate's laces. "Even at a young age, where everything being learned was easy, it took me a year at the least to balance."

"Oh boy..." Phos sighed as she sat down on the bench across from Antarc, blowing a piece of hair from her face. She leaned forward a bit, hands going to her cheeks as she rested her elbows on her knees. "You aren't good at motivating people."

"I'm not motivating, I'm saying facts." Antarc snapped a bit before she stood and walked over to Phos, helping her into the skates since she was done. "Anyways, I'll keep my hands on you to make sure you don't fall. I don't need you breaking a bone the first practice, after all."

"Oh~ Take me to a movie first!" Phos teased before she received a flick on her forehead, causing her to yelp and hold her head. "That hurt!"

"Be serious, I'm trying to make sure you don't paralyze yourself or something..." Antarc said with a small sigh.

Once the two had skates, Antarc stood, holding onto Phos' hands as she slowly stood as well. Phos let out a shaking sigh as she stared down at her feet, knees beginning to buckle a bit. She would have fell if she wasn't trying so hard to impress her coach. Even while standing, she felt useless. It took a bit, but she managed to shuffle her way onto the ice, her hands around Antarc's neck as the other held Phos' waist, trying to make sure she didn't fall. Despite the nervousness of falling, Phos was excited to have her feet planted on the ice.

Slowly, Antarc let her go after confirming it was alright, Phos nodding once Antarc skated away. She didn't go too far, just enough for Phos to have room. Phos slowly looked down at her feet as her legs shook from the unbalanced work, yet stayed still on the ice, as she was too scared to move. Immediately, she felt herself slowly look up, panting as she looked to Antarc with a smile. She didn't even do anything yet and she was already beyond excited. Slowly, she laughed, her laughter echoing throughout the empty rink. Antarc found herself smiling gently, not realizing that she found joy in hearing such a laugh.

"Antarc!... I'm on the ice!... I'm on the ice and no one is stopping me from it!" Phos exclaimed, laughing as her arms that were in mid air for balance slowly went to her chest. Overwhelmed in happiness, she kept her arms close as she lowered her head, her laughter turning into happy sobs. Antarc, in worry, skated over.

"O-Oh uh..." Antarc reached a hand out to Phos, hesitating a bit. She had no idea why Phos was suddenly crying or how she was going to comfort her. She awkwardly placed a hand on Phos' back, patting it before tilting her head. "Don't... cry?"

"I'm sorry!" Phos said as she laughed a bit between sobs. "I-I'm just! So happy!... I never thought..." Antarc stared at Phos as she waited for her to finish her sentence, noticing that Phos was shaking a bit too much, perhaps from the overwhelming excitement and trying to stay up. Phos looked up to Antarc, smiling with tears rolling down her cheeks. Her face was red from all the embarrassment. "I never thought I'd be on the ice!... Just standing here means so much!..."

Antarc slowly removed her hand from Phos' back, her eyes scanning over her face as her eyes were wide in confusion. Soon, she chose to not ask any questions and instead enjoy the happiness Phos seemed to feel. She sighed as she shook her head, a small smile appearing. She can see why she is happy, at least.

"I'm glad."

Phos smiled to Antarc when the Russian responded, slowly nodding. Soon she stood up straight, wiping her tears. She felt herself moving backwards unintentionally next and squeaked, panicking as she tried to get her balance back. She flailed her arms around to try and grab something, hating the fact that she was in the middle of the rink before she was suddenly grabbed. She gasped as Antarc grabbed her waist and brought her close, the woman staring at her with those intense eyes once again.

"Be careful!... I have you. Stop panicking... See, look. You're fine."

Those words causing Phos such comfort and she had no idea why.

After taking a deep breath, Phos felt her cheek grow red. If anyone were to talk in, she'd be embarrassed from how close the two were. However, Russians are very affectionate, so it was no wonder why Antarc was the same.

"I'm okay now... Can I try moving across the ice?..."

"Only if you are ready."

"With you being here I am..."

Such an innocent comment and yet, Antarc blushed from it, the woman gasping a bit. Soon, she shook her head before she moved around from Phos a bit, just grabbing her hand.

"Alright, go as slow as you need. I am here to catch you if you fall, yes?"

"Yeah..." Phos felt like that will happen a lot.

They took a bit to get Phos used to the skates before they began to glide, going along the edges. They were slow, but it was a start. Phos squeaked every time she swayed and almost fell, eyes always on the ground. Eventually, she could glide without staring at her feet.

"Antarc?" Phos broke the silence, the other looking at her with interest.

"Yes?"

"Can I have more information on you?... I feel like I still don't know you."

"That's a good thing."

"Antarc..."

"Fine." Antarc sighed as she looked away from Phos and looked forward, keeping her hands on Phos' hand. "About a year ago, I was released from the hospital."

"Huh? For what?" Phos asked, surprised at the sudden fact. She expected to know about a pet or something.

"Cancer."

Phos' eyes widened and stared at Antarc as they kept gliding. Those silver-blue eyes were dark and distant, as if she was thinking.

"More specifically, Leukemia. It's a cancer where there are too many white blood cells and they attack your body. They get confused. I had AML, which was usually found in the elderly..." Antarc explained, causing Phos to frown a bit.

"Are you cancer free?..."

"I won't know until four years. It could come back any time. My bone marrow donor was only a 56 percent match. My body could deny it any day now."

"Bone marrow donor?..." Phos was confused now.

"Yes." Antarc said before she looked to Phos before blushing a bit and looking away. "Nevermind that, I doubt it'll be back. Many patients leave without it coming back."

"And what if it does?"

Antarc was silent. Phos watched her, waiting for an answer before she stopped, almost tripping in the process.

"Antarc, what if it does?"

Antarc looked to Phos, a sad smile on her face. "I'll enjoy life as much as I can. Like I've been doing." Soon she changed the subject. "Let's try something else for practice, maybe going a bit faster."

Phos frowned. She didn't like that answer, but she supposed she understood a bit of the context. From her guess... Antarc is doomed if it did come back. She'll do research when they get back.

They kept going.

"And you? What about your disease. Can you tell me a bit more about it?" Antarc asked, keeping her eyes forward. Phos hummed.

"Well. Just by falling I can break any bone I land on. My bones are so weak and brittle because when I was forming in my Mama's stomach, I guess I never got the calcium needed... in result, I am just a teen who can't do sports, P.E. and... skate. But this! This will prove that wrong!" Phos nodded before looking to Antarc and smiling. Soon she looked down with a frown. "And even if I did break a bone, I don't just break a bone and cry... I get sick. High fevers and my head gets all dizzy... I get panic attacks if it gets bad enough..."

"You broke your bones before?..." Antarc asked, quite surprised. Phos smiled sadly.

"That's part of the reason why I gave up on skating. A kid punched me and my jaw broke. That's why I missed school for that week and came back with a weird looking thing on my head. It showed that I was fragile, that I can't get close to my goal. I'll just fall again... and again..."

"Oh... that explains it. I usually saw you in the cafeteria during lunch, so I was worried. That was my Junior year."

"Sophomore year for me, yeah."

"I am sorry."

"I am too."

They two remained quiet as they skated, Phos having too much on her mind to even think about her excitement for even skating. Too much on her mind...

She wondered if Antarc was the same as her right now. Too much on the mind.

Honestly, Phos found it amazing. Both had illnesses that hinder their health, both had rocks or gems for names, both has a supportive father and who them beyond their limits and comfort zones... How interesting did Phos think this was.

Phos laid in her bed again, staring up at those stars. At the end of practice, she was told that next practice, they will work on more balancing and more gliding, which Phos was excited for. She had no clue that she'd enjoy it so much. Phos was excited and Antarc seemed like she was, as well.

Phos sighed as she closed her eyes and went to sleep. They had grown close... And she was glad. All great ice skaters had a close relationship with their coach. Some parents, others best friends.

Lovers.

Phos snapped her eyes open and felt her face flush into a deep red. She shouldn't be thinking about that!

Yet... She knew she had to keep that promise she made for herself.

In these days she knew Antarc... She really wanted to make her proud.