A/N: Although this fic won't be in French, there are a few phrases here and there. Keep a translator tab open lol. Thank you all for 12 followers, 10 favorites, and 7 reviews! Your feedback is so important to me and I'm so glad you're all willing to give this story a chance. Truthfully, I didn't think people would be interested in a backstory regarding the ice dancers, but I was proven wrong! So here you go... Chapter 1! Usually my chapters aren't this long, but they are fairly lengthy. This is slow burn, after all.

Song in parenthesis by The Foreigner.

Chapter 1- The Start of Something Wonderfully Awful
(Cold As Ice)

In years to come, Josée will wonder why the hell Jacques hadn't made a move much sooner, because although she admittedly didn't think about Jacques in well... that manner at first, it had certainly been on her mind throughout the race; not that she fully realized what this meant, of course.

Jacques would occasionally remind her that she was supposed to be the fearless one out of the two, therefore she should have made the first move.

Then Josée would remind him that she knew nothing about romance, that she really didn't understand it herself, so how was she supposed to know how to initiate it?

Then, they would proceed to bicker back and forth on who should've made the first move then; not that that mattered anymore, since the result would be the same - they would eventually come to be.

It took a while; hell - it took them a while for them to become friends, let alone a couple. To build any sort of relationship with someone can take time, especially when these two people are different from one another and have different approaches to life. But one always balances the other; such is the case when they're meant to be. But to get to that certain point in a relationship, remember - takes a lot of time.

Sometimes, it depends on what is meant by a lot of time. It could mean a few months, a couple of years, several years.

Or in this case when it came to how they came to be a couple - roughly fifteen years.

Josée was rather cold and domineering, and had a specific mindset on how to do things, while Jacques was more of a free spirit and liked to go with the flow. Even at the ages at six and eight, when they met, this was acknowledged and they recognized these traits in each other - not that they knew those exact words, of course - just that they were very, very different, in a sense. Both wondered in that moment in time how their partnership would work; and Josée assumed that they wouldn't last a week. Jacques liked to tease her every now and then on how wrong she was. Josée would roll her eyes at his teasing that she had gotten used to over the years; he was lucky that she liked him so much.

She didn't like him at first - oh no, far from it. In fact, he irked her. Eventually, he wormed his way into her seemingly cold heart that was once reserved for the rink. Through their shared passion for ice dancing, it became more for Jacques, and Josée realized there were things worth more than gold. Perhaps she knew that all along, but wouldn't dare to admit it aloud.

Jacques didn't dislike Josée, he was just, well... he was intimidated by her! He just moved with his family from Quebec City to Montreal and met this girl who would dazzle on ice; how could he even compare to her beauty? He was mesmerized by her at the start as much as he was afraid of her - and the fact that he was to be her partner for couples' skating almost sent him into a heart attack.

But it was safe to say that Jacques definitely cherished their bond over time, as did she.

They weren't always so villainous; they were once normal people - well, at least as normal as they could be, considering that they achieved a decent amount of fame in Quebec due to their ice dancing abilities. So they at least tried to have a sense of normalcy. They went to school, had some friends, and each even had a lover or two. But above all that nonsense, they were performers; ice dancers with an ambitious and passionate dream to reach a level of greatness that no one could ever compare and sacrifices had to be made. While they tried to be normal kids and teenagers, they were winning competitions left and right in their age divisions - it was their norm.

Yes, they have lost some friends on the way - as well as made some enemies, too - but what was important to them was they had each other, and their drive for ice dancing. What people failed to understand was that you don't insult someone's passion or minimize it in any manner, especially not Jacques and Josée's - it was asking for trouble. It took so much time and effort and dedication, you don't knock someone down for that. Ice dancing was everything to them; because ice dancing played a significant role in how they came to be. They finally became friends after winning their first competition together, as for how ice dancing helped them become a couple... well, more on that later.

Though it's important to note that the course of the Ridonculous Race also helped play a major role in how they came to be.

But more on that much later, because this story is - first and foremost - about the ice dancers themselves.

Throughout their fame, there were many people that loved them - their fans were held dear to their hearts and they would do anything for them, but the ice dancers were loved as much as they were hated. They weren't unfamiliar with controversy (the incident at the olympics didn't help) as well as infamy (the Ridonculous Race especially didn't help). But throughout it all, with every obstacle they had to face, every tragedy, fight, and heartbreak, they didn't face it alone, they did it together - forever and always.

Yes, they weren't saints; but there was a reason how and why they turned out the way they did. Not everything could be solely blamed on them. There was always another side to every story. This one just so happens to be their side; and everyone deserves to have their side heard... even the so-called villains.

It is important that we start at the very beginning, when they met, because remember - to reach a certain point in a relationship takes time.

For Josée and Jacques, it took a lot of time.

An eight-year-old boy with a mop of blonde hair smiled in content, clinging to his mother's side on the piano bench as she played - it was an elegant piano piece that his mother would play for him every night an hour before bed - Clair De Lune. His father often said that he was much too young to ask such a request every night, but his mother insisted that it was healthy and that she enjoyed playing it. He wouldn't stop smiling - it was just his nature, really. When his mother played the piano, it was the most beautiful sound in the world because music was something for all languages to understand.

Despite his family being originally from Montreal, Jacques' family moved to Quebec City - which heavily spoke French in comparison - because of his father's opportunity to practice medicine there as well as give medical lectures of his time as a surgeon shortly after Jacques was born. His mother Fleur used to be in the medical profession as a nurse, but stopped right after Jacques was born to be a stay-at-home mother. But exactly five months ago, their family decided to move back to Montreal and his father would continue his medical practice there instead. Compared to his two older sisters by three to four years, Gabrielle and Bernadette respectively, his English wasn't as good as theirs. Although Quebec was predominantly French, they lived in a wealthier area of Montreal where speaking English was becoming increasingly common.

"Magnifique!" cheered Jacques, giving his mother a tight hug - that was another thing, he was very affectionate. "One more!"

"Non, non..." Jacques' mother said gently, with a smile as she took her hands off the piano. "You have to get ready for bed."

"Mamannnnn..." Jacques whined. "I don't want to!"

"Mon grand, you have a big day tomorrow," his mother said.

"I mean," started off Jacques' father, peering up from one of his medical books. "If he doesn't want to go-"

Fleur frowned disapprovingly at her husband. "Hector," she said in a warning tone. Jacques' father wasn't very keen on the whole business with figure skating yet, even after three years. What he truly wanted was a hockey star, but he learned quickly that his son much preferred moving around gracefully across the ice rather than getting a puck into a net. Hector shrugged and went back to reading his novel. Fleur, however, smiled warmly at her youngest. "Aren't you excited?"

Jacques nodded eagerly. "I ah... never had a ice dancing part-ner!" It was decided two days ago. Jacques was practicing his layback spins - which were getting progressively better, he wasn't the best at spins yet even though it was impressive to be attempting them at his age - up until one of the instructors pulled him aside along with his mother. One of the most advanced girls at the rink that was around his age, perhaps a few years his junior, was planning on going into couples' figure skating, known as ice dancing.

The key difference between figure skating and ice dancing was that the latter required two people instead of one. Since Jacques himself was quite good - compared to other boys' in the class - he was offered the chance to be her partner. Still, he had seen this girl ice skate before, always accompanied by her mother, and she was no pushover. He had seen figure skating moves from her that he hadn't seen in his life that looked too advanced for him to do. Of course he longed to learn, and by being with this girl would help him, he supposed - so he leapt (no pun intended) at the chance.

So really, Jacques couldn't contain his excitement if his life depended on it - even with the piece his mother played on the piano.

"I'm sure she'll be a lovely match for you, mon ange."

But most of all - this would be fun, Jacques was absolutely sure of it...

...though it would take a while; these things take time.

"Se lever!" Jacques cheered the next morning as he jumped on his sister's bed. The figure, belonging to his older sister Bernadette, turned over. But Jacques wasn't having any of it. He shook her excitedly. "I am starting today! Ice dancing starts today!"

Bernadette sat upright and rubbed her eyes. "I'll alert the media," she groaned sarcastically. Jacques' furrowed his brows confusedly, but Bernadette sighed. "Jacques, why are you telling me this at..." She glanced at the clock nearby. "...six in the morning!? You have three more hours until you go skating. Jacques, did you even sleep?"

"Oui. I... heared papa go out. It ah... got me up."

"Heard," the twelve-year-old corrected instinctively. She ran a hand through his hair affectionately. "He probably had a shift at the hospital," she remarked, more to herself. Then she sighed at the excited state of her brother. "You need to sleep. No one wants to wake up early, especially during summer." She got out of bed and helped Jacques to his feet, holding his hand as she brought him back to his room and onto his bed. "Jacques, stop pouting. You need to go back to sleep."

"But I'm not tired!" Jacques whined, while he yawned on top of his covers.

"I swear, the house better be on fire," a new voice entered. Jacques and Bernadette turned to see that it was their sister, Gabrielle, the middle child of the family. She looked increasingly agitated at being woken up at six in the morning. Instantly at the sight of Jacques pouting, Gabrielle rolled her eyes. "What is he bitching about now?"

"Gabrielle!" Bernadette hissed.

"What?!"

"You can't just say things like that in front of him!"

Jacques blinked confusedly. "Huh?"

"Nothing, Jacques. Go back to sleep," said Bernadette, then she turned to her sister. "You too."

Gabrielle scowled. "And I thought maman was annoying." Nonetheless, she retreated back to her own room.

Bernadette looked back at her little brother. His eyes were drooped slightly. She smiled fondly and tucked him in. "Mon petit frère, I'll wake you up later. Bonne nuit." Jacques was already fast asleep before she shut the door.

A few hours later, Bernadette shook Jacques to wake him up as promised. "Up." The eight-year-old groaned and sat upright. Bernadette couldn't help but smirk. "It's not fun to be woken up when you don't want to, hmm?" Jacques pouted at his sister. "Oh don't look at me like that. You start ice skating today."

"Ice dancing," Jacques corrected. He shooed her away and got dressed.

Jacques got the living room soon after and spotted his mother in the kitchen and his sisters on the sofa watching a French soap. Jacques' mother fixed up breakfast for him while his sisters bickered over the remote.

"We're leaving in ten minutes, mon ange," Jacques' mother said to her son as he put his dish away in the sink. However she saw that Jacques was already waiting at the door, ice skates dangling from his hand, and bag over his shoulder with a show-ready smile.

"Wasn't he just whining thirty minutes ago about getting up?" remarked Gabrielle, with a scowl. "Oh mon dieu..." Jacques smiled vanished at once.

"Gabrielle, stop trying to pick a fight with your brother," Jacques' mother ordered. Then she turned to her youngest. "Give me a moment, Jacques." Naturally of course Jacques huffed and crossed his arms impatiently. A moment passed, and before Jacques' mother left the house, she turned to her two daughters: "We will be back in a few hours. If there's an emergency..."

"We'll call you," Bernadette interrupted.

With one last goodbye, Jacques' mother shut the door behind them and started to walk. They had the luxury of being within walking distance of the skating rink, which was at most a fifteen minute walk. As Jacques happily chatted with his mother about what today was going to bring, an odd sight interrupted his thoughts as they drew closer to the rink. Two people, a boy and a girl who looked no older than fourteen, were leaning against the building smoking cigarettes. Though it wasn't uncommon for teenagers to smoke - Jacques had seen it back when he was around Quebec City - he had never seen it around the ice rink there unlike this one in Montreal.

Not only did the teenagers stare back at him, it was more like judgmental glares. It made Jacques feel very uneasy. Thankfully, he didn't stare for long as his mother diverted his attention to the receptionist's desk. After they checked in, they headed out to the rink. The instructor, a man in his early thirties, noticed them arrive and waved them over. He had taken gold in the olympics twice and was a undefeated champion back in his day. His name was Isaac, and was also set to be he and his partner's private instructor for ice dancing.

While his mother was talking to the instructor, Jacques couldn't help but notice the two occupants of the rink. One happened to be a woman in her early thirties, with a disapproving glare and her arms crossed in disappointment at the other person who was on the ice, which Jacques knew to be her daughter and future partner. She skated hard, and did not wobble once. Jacques remembered when he would wobble on the ice, but from the looks of it, it seemed like this girl never wobbled once in her life.

"'Allo, Jacques."

The eight-year-old realized he had gotten so lost in his thoughts that the girl and her mother were no longer at the rank, but standing beside their instructor. "'Allo, Isaac." His eyes were still on the little girl across from him, who stared right back in assessment. Her mother's hands were on her shoulders.

"Jacques, this is Josée. Josée, this is Jacques," Isaac introduced. Jacques looked at Josée. She looked no older than six, yet she had an expression as serious as a forty-year-old, not unlike her mother. "You're going to be ice dancing partners! Isn't that exciting?" he asked enthusiastically. Jacques smiled just a tad at the excited tone of his instructor, but it wore off once he saw that Josée's expression didn't change.

"Enchanté," Jacques offered, trying to be friendly. "You skate good!"

"Well," Josée's mother corrected in a stern tone. "Not good." It sounded like she didn't believe the statement in itself. Jacques' mother smiled awkwardly, uncomfortable not unlike her son. Josée's mother looked down at her daughter, who looked at her for permission on what to say. "He is the best boy for you to work with for now," she grumbled.

Josée looked back at Jacques - who noticeably stood up straighter under the girl's cold glare - and assessed him one final time, before saying: "You better be good."

The blonde boy gulped. "...Oui, I am."

Beat.

Isaac cleared his throat, noticing the uncomfortable tension. "Alright then," he started, clasping his hands together. "Jacques, put your skates on, and then we'll start with some chasses around the rink first. Then you'll learn how to do it together as ice dancers!" Isaac took off, as well as Josée, nearly matching his speed (who was intentionally going slower) but Jacques took a little longer and got to the end of the rink five seconds after they did.

"You skated," Josée observed, narrowing her eyes at Jacques.

"Uh, oui."

"It was not good," Josée said bluntly.

Jacques' face faltered significantly. "Oh..."

"Josée," Isaac warned lightly. "Everyone skates at a different pace."

The little girl crossed her arms and pouted. "We have to be beautiful on ice! How can we get gold if he's not good?"

"G-Gold?" Jacques stammered. He blinked rapidly in confusion. "What's that?"

Josée gasped in disbelief and stared up at Isaac. "He doesn't even know what gold is!" Josée took a breath and turned to Jacques, who was biting his lower lip. "Gold," she started matter-of-factly, "...means you're the best! It means you're a winner!" Jacques noticed a gleam in her eyes as she went on, it was the first time he seen her genuinely excited and happy, and had a big smile plastered on her face. "It means everyone loves you and you're not garbage."

While the instructor looked unsettled by this definition, Jacques wanted to learn more: "Ah, I see. And how do you get some of this... 'gold?'"

Just like that, Josée's smile vanished and her glare returned. "By not doing what you just did!"

Jacques gaped like a fish out of water. "What did I do?!"

"You skated too slow!"

"S'il vous plaît, s'il vous plaît!" Isaac tried to get their attention. The bickering children turned to him. "Let's remember another thing, which is having fun!" Josée huffed at this, while Jacques weakly smiled - that was something he could do fairly well. "Now that you two skated across the ice for a bit, it's time you learn how to do it together." Jacques and Josée watched as Isaac called over Darcey, one of the choreographers of the rink always ready to assist when it came to needing a partner for a routine. Isaac put his right arm on Darcey's upper back, while Darcey put her left arm on his upper back. Isaac's left arm was extended outward as was Darcey's right arm, and their hands held together. They did a few glides around the ice, demonstrating how Isaac guided Darcey and how they steered with no issue. "These are chasse swing rolls in a waltz," he told them.

Jacques blinked. Those were too many words to comprehend. "What?" He desperately tried to ignore Josée's annoyed grumbling.

"It happens a lot in ice dancing," Isaac explained. "The boy is forward, while the girl is backwards. The boy has to guide the girl across the ice. Then you have to learn tricks, but we'll get to that later."

Josée stood on the ice, perfectly balanced, her arms already in position impatiently waiting for Jacques to take charge. He grew uncomfortable under a state - a very common occurrence today - as he didn't exactly know where to put his hands, and looked back at the instructors. "Um..."

"For the love of gold!" Josée exclaimed in frustration, yanking Jacques' arms and putting them in the right place. "There. Now lean forward, I have to skate backwards." Jacques did so, pushing forward trying to imitate the movement he saw about two minutes ago. He wobbled just a bit, which in turn resulted in Josée's anger. "You're too slow! You have to guide me, not me guiding you!"

"I'm trying!"

Josee pushed him away frustratedly. "Not trying hard enough!" Jacques' eyes were already brimming with tears. This wasn't fun at all... "We have to be beautiful on ice and you're making it ugly!"

Jacques was in total astonishment at her harsh words. He felt his cheeks grow red. "You are mean as you are beautiful, which is a lot!" and then with a final huff, Jacques burst into hysterics, tears streaming down his cheeks as he rushed off the ice crying for his mama. Josée on the other hand groaned, rolling her eyes at the babyish behavior while Isaac and Darcey exchanged a look of exasperation.

"Well," stated Isaac, sighing deeply. "What a way to start lessons." Darcey face-palmed and nodded.

"Don't look so sad, mon ange," Jacques' mother cooed to him as soon as she and her son got home. The entire walk consisted of Jacques crying and sniffling about how that 'Josée' girl could be so mean. His mother tried to explain that it was probably because she wasn't taught that way, and muttered something about her 'getting it from somewhere' but wouldn't explain on it when Jacques asked what she meant. "It was probably just a bad day, I'm sure with some practice you will be magnifique, oui?"

Gabrielle and Bernadette were on the sofa watching television and turned to see they were home. Concerns went up a notch when they saw that Jacques was crying. They rose from their seats and over to Jacques. "What happened?" Bernadette took a more nurturing approach, running a hand through his hair which ceased his cries. "Was it bad?"

"We had a little bit of a rough start," Jacques' mother put mildly. At the mention of this understatement, Jacques began to wail and ran to the sofa, burying his face in one of the pillows and sobbed into it, starting his hysterics all over again. She sighed and rubbed her forehead while her daughters looked on. "Oh, great."

Bernadette and Gabrielle sat on each side of the sofa of where Jacques was sobbing. "My partner is beautiful on ice but she's mean!" Bernadette rubbed his back while Gabrielle's arms were crossed. "She... she said I skated too slow and that I was making everything ugly!"

"I'm sure that's not true!" Bernadette tried to comfort, but to no avail as the blonde boy kept crying. "You just need some help, and that's not a bad thing!"

"I'm going to deck the little chienne..."

"Gabrielle-"

"What?! Only I can make my baby brother cry!"

Bernadette sighed at her younger sister's foul language and turned to her brother. "I'm sure you weren't bad, Jacques."

"He was bad, mama," Josée remarked coldly at the dining table. Her arms were crossed in a dignified manner, with that same facial expression she had at the rink, perhaps a little colder based on today's events. Her mother didn't reply immediately, instead she was focusing on the papers in front of her. "But he has a pretty face," she allowed.

Her mother rolled her eyes. "Don't be stupide, Josée. This probably won't last very long. Clumsy lazy boy..." she muttered the last part under her breath.

Josée looked down at her hands and didn't say much after that. She figured her mother must have been right; after all she was once an ice dancer with a dream to get gold in the Olympics. Josee knew the story all too well, her mother liked to continuously remind her whenever Josée messed up on the ice that she was the one that had to give up her own ambitions to raise her daughter after her "pathetic ice dancing partner" split after revealing she was pregnant. The "pathetic ice dancing partner" in question happened to be her father, who had been out of the picture since the revelation.

"Your moves weren't that great either," Josée's mother went on harshly. "This morning's layback spin before the lesson was pathetic, don't think I haven't forgotten about that."

Josée's eyes were downcast. "Yes maman," she stated obediently. "I'm sorry. I lost balance, if I didn't..."

"Nothing's ever your fault, is it now?" Her mother interrupted rhetorically, narrowing her eyes at her daughter. Josée immediately tensed up; she should have kept her mouth shut instead of initiating conversation. Josée knew very well where this could lead up to, another cramped stay in the closet her mother would lock her in whenever she screwed up badly. But Josée's mother sighed irritably instead. "You're lucky that boy was a thousand times worse. Just remember your place." Then she went back to her paperwork.

Josée almost let out a sigh of relief. The closet was her worst nightmare, really. She wasn't a baby, she rarely cried, but the closet her mother made her stay in was one of the few exceptions. Just thinking about it sent a shiver down her spine. Without even thinking, Josée's thumb rubbed against her lips uncomfortably.

Unfortunately, her mother noticed. "Don't be a baby, Josée. You're pathetic," she snapped. Josée immediately retracted her thumb from her mouth. She mentally slapped herself for being such a child. She went into her room and decided to leave her mother alone before she changed her mind about the closet.

She picked up her rabbit's foot, bun-bun, which was from a pet rabbit she had when she was five. It was the first time death was explained to her. What made it worse was that it was the day after one of the worst times she's skated and then her rabbit mysteriously died. She rubbed it in effort to calm herself down, and unconsciously chewed the string attached to it.

It took almost a minute for her to realize. This time Josée literally slapped herself.

Don't be a baby.

Pathetic.

The next few weeks were only slightly better. Josée was surprised that they even lasted a week. Jacques was surprised he didn't have a heart attack from her complaining. Still, with this in mind, their lessons were slightly better. At least in comparison to Jacques running off the ice crying and Josée throwing a fit. But Jacques did manage to learn the chasse swing rolls in a waltz form, which Josée didn't complain about anymore. Isaac said they were both improving tremendously and making leaps - both literally and figuratively. It looked like Josée wasn't too sure if she believed him, but Jacques was happy about that.

Today Jacques insisted that he got some extra practice on the rink early. His mother couldn't take him because she had to go grocery shopping, so Bernadette volunteered to take him instead. Bernadette's words of encouragement helped Jacques a lot with ice skating, considering that she gave him a long talk right before they entered the building. Jacques spotted the same group of kids again, who looked a little older than Bernadette and were smoking, but didn't stare too long this time.

"Bernadette," Jacques asked curiously in a hushed whisper. They had just checked in. "You don't smoke, right?"

His older sister made a face. "No, that's gross. It makes your teeth yellow and you get sick. Mama says so. Those kids that are doing it are gross too."

"They ice skate too," Jacques told her. He learned that they were one of the older kids that were in an age division higher than them. "They also smoke."

Bernadette glared down at her little brother. "Jacques, as long as I'm alive, you will not smoke a single cigarette."

"What if you're not alive anymore?" Jacques asked cheekily.

"If I die and you smoke a cigarette I will come back from the dead and slap you. Comprendre?"

Jacques' smile vanished. He didn't need to be told twice. "Oui." They entered the rink, and there were only a few people there. Jacques was surprised to see that Josée was already there, practicing with what it looked like were camel spins. They were absolutely stunning, Jacques had never seen them executed so perfectly before.

"Keep that leg straight!" Her mother shouted from the side of the rink.

Bernadette raised an eyebrow. Jacques put his skates on and explained, "That's my partner there." He pointed to the girl doing camel spins. "She's so good..."

"She is," agreed Bernadette. "She's very tiny. You let that girl make you cry?" Jacques shrugged it off and was about to go on the ice, before Bernadette tilted his chin up to get him to look at her. "Show her what you got. You're talented, Jacques."

Jacques smiled eagerly at her encouragement and made his way on the ice to warm up. He skated a bit, and he could feel Josée's eyes on him. Good, he thought. He started to practice his layback spins that he had been working hard on. The issue was not so much the spin itself, but stopping it gently instead of it stopping at a halt. This time, however, he managed to slow it down with ease. Just as Jacques was about to get into position, there was a small tug on his shirt. He turned to see that it was Josée.

"You're skating faster which is good," she remarked cordially. Jacques could feel himself beaming at her compliment. "But your layback spin could use more work." In the blink of an eye, Jacques felt discouraged. Josée shook her head. "Your back should be arched more." She then demonstrated the spin, her back perfectly arched as she spun effortlessly and landed gracefully. "See? Like that." Jacques frowned. She made it look so simple. Nonetheless, he gave it another go, trying to arch his back more. When he landed, it was a little unsteady, and it looked like Josée noticed that. He looked expectantly for her reaction. "Better," she allowed. "Do you want to practice our routine Isaac showed us?"

Jacques nodded and smiled widely, stars in his eyes. "Mais oui!"

Josée furrowed her brows together at his enthusiasm. "You're never serious. This is important."

"Oui," Jacques agreed, but he went on: "But it's fun too!"

Now Josée was seriously wondering how the hell they lasted two weeks of partnership. "Fun?" she echoed, as if it was a swear. "Getting gold is fun. And we have to work and be beautiful to get gold, so we have to be serious first!"

Jacques shrugged. "We are beautiful, Josée! You are beautiful, Mais oui!"

Josée blinked slowly at his odd compliment, then shook her head. "Boys are silly." She stood up balanced perfectly as she did as Jacques got into position of the chasse swing roll waltz they were going over. Josée didn't even have to position his hands this time. He started it - usually Josée would be the one trying to take control, but found herself letting him do it instead. Josée realized that Isaac must've been right; that they had improved a lot since the first day, especially Jacques.

Meanwhile, as they practiced, Bernadette tried to initiate conversation with Josée's mother. "Is that your daughter? She skates wonderfully," Bernadette praised. Unlike her younger sister, she liked to converse with others. "She's like an angel on ice."

"Oui, and no she's not, she's garbage, especially today," Josée's mother stated without even looking at the chatty girl. "I'm guessing that's your brother? He's awfully clumsy."

Bernadette frowned. "Oui, and no he's not," she retorted, echoing the older woman's words from before. "He's getting there with practice."

"At this rate," began Josée's mother icily, "They're never going to be beautiful."

Bernadette couldn't help but scoff as it finally hit her. "Oh, so that's where she gets it from."

Josée's mother lifted a skeptical brow at the twelve-year-old. "Excusemoi?"

"Your daughter," Bernadette stated, not backing down. She really couldn't help but laugh, because of course. "That's where she gets it from, non?" Josée's mother merely stared at her as if she hadn't a clue of what she was talking about. "Well she is beautiful," Bernadette continued, then added in a mutter: "...unlike you."

Josée's mother's eyes grew wide with anger. "Excuse moi?!" This caught the attention of Josée and Jacques, who had stopped mid-routine. She glared at the two. "Did I say you could stop dancing, start the routine again!" Josée immediately directed Jacques' attention back to the start of their little routine, not without trying to listen in on what they were saying, however. It was difficult not to pay attention, since they had gradually gotten louder. "I'm giving you a chance to redeem yourself. What did you say before?"

"You heard me."

Josée's mother clenched her fists tightly. "What do you know about ice dancing you insolent brat?!"

"Oh, not a thing. It's a very confusing sport," Bernadette allowed. "But I do know that you shouldn't be calling your daughter trash!"

At this point, Jacques and Josée stopped dancing and stared at them arguing, which had gotten the attention of the whole rink. Once they saw Josée's mother being one of the perpetrators, they turned back to their own business; it wasn't unfamiliar. Jacques however kept his eyes on them. That was, until, he heard a little whimper beside him. He was surprised to hear that whimper belonged to Josée, who was trembling just a bit at the arguing and clutching onto bun-bun and rubbing it.

"Josée?" Jacques asked with worry in his voice. He looked at his bickering sister and Josée's mother before turning back to his partner. "What's wrong?" Josée didn't look to be near tears, but Jacques couldn't make of what her state was. She just harshly shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut. "Josée?" he repeated. Josée shook her head and ran off the ice rink in hysterics while the bickering was still going on. Jacques, uncertain as to why, ripped his skates off and ran in the direction she went in. He couldn't find her at first, until he heard a scream and a locker slamming. Jacques heart raced, and despite his instincts telling him to leave, he ran into the direction he heard the noise in.

Jacques found her on the bench holding onto her fist, to which he assumed was the cause of the locker slamming. From the looks of it, Josée punched the locker. Jacques found her on the bench cradling her fist, to which he assumed was the cause of the locker slamming. "Josée!" Jacques exclaimed in concern at the state of her slightly bruised hand. "Are you okay - ow!" Josée had slapped his hand away from hers. "Josée..."

"Go away!" Josée snapped furiously at him. Jacques was taken aback by her sudden mood change. "You don't understand! We have to be beautiful..." she whined.

Jacques felt his heart ache. "J-Je suis désolé," he said quietly, full of shame. "I'll do better, I promise!"

"Mama says there's two types of ice dancers," Josée went on, rubbing her hand, but kept her eyes locked on Jacques'. Jacques saw they were a little red. "Mama says one type has natural talent, and the other is a talentless hack and they work hard to cover it!" Her lower lip trembled ever-so-slightly. "I'm the second one! Mama says so..." Jacques frowned deeply at this revelation, because he thought Josée was a natural. If she wasn't, then what did that make him?

"Josée but you are good!" Jacques tried to protest.

"Not good enough for the olympics, and not good enough for mama!" Josée shouted. "And you're worse! Go away!"

Jacques felt anger well up inside him. "Fine," he huffed, and fled out of the room before he could lash out at her.

Two months pass without another incident. In terms of Josée and Jacques 'getting along,' they weren't really friends. There of course was a lot of civility, there had to be - but still, what seemed like what was "temporary" was actually going a lot longer than Josée and Jacques anticipated. It was a wonder how they managed to stay together after nearly three months, that was until you saw them on ice.

Despite their differences, both were doing exceptionally well. Isaac remarked they were doing so well that he thinks that they're ready for their very first competition. This was a very surprising statement, because most ice dancers don't compete until they get a lot more experience ice dancing, regardless on how long they've been figure skaters. Josée had been absolutely excited at the news, that they would finally get this "gold" she had always talked about, that Jacques didn't really quite understand yet.

Jacques arrived with his mother bright and early to the rink for another lesson, but frowned when he saw that a certain dark-haired girl wasn't here, nor was her mother. Usually Josée got to the rink way before he did, already warming up and practicing. Jacques looked over to see Isaac practicing with Darcey a very advanced routine on the ice.

Jacques cleared his throat and waved. "'Allo, Isaac!"

His instructor and choreographer stopped dancing upon sight of the blonde boy and skated over to him. "'Allo, Jacques," Darcey greeted warmly, with a cheerful smile. Isaac had greeted his mother who was beside him. "You're here very early," she remarked. "How come?"

"Jacques wanted to get some extra practice with Josée," Jacques' mother answered, smiling. "They had been working so well together!"

"Oui," agreed Isaac. "I believe Josée's in the locker room. Her mother dropped her off because she had to run an errand." Jacques swore he heard Darcey mumble a "thank god" beside Isaac, and he elbowed her stomach lightly before she add anything further to that. "You should probably check there."

Jacques waved to his mother goodbye and made his way to the locker room. As he got closer to it, he heard obnoxious banging on the locker and muffled sobs. Frowning, he picked up the pace and froze at the sight he saw when he arrived. The two older kids that he frequently saw outside of the rink smoking were there, malicious grins plastered on their faces. He knew it was them because he could vaguely smell the smoke off of them. The girl's arm was pressed harshly against the locker, Jacques assumed that there was an occupant trapped in their based on the sobbing. Meanwhile, the boy crossed his arms in a smugly manner.

"Let me out!" The voice shrieked hysterically, her breathing getting more and more shallow. "I mean it, p-please! Let me go, I-I-I c-can't!"

Jacques' stomach dropped. He recognized that voice.

"Can't what?" The girl taunted, as her male companion laughed beside her. "You can't breathe? Josée, you're pathetic!"

Josée.

"What a little baby!" The girl cooed menacingly. "Are you crying? Sucks for you!"

Suddenly Jacques remembered that lesson Isaac had about trust. It was a month ago when Isaac mentioned there would come a time where they would learn more tricks that involved catching your partner mid-air, and that you needed to have a good bond with them that involved a lot of trust in order for that to occur. Josée needed to trust him, and how was she ever going to trust him if he sat by and watched this idly?

"Let her go!" Jacques' voice boomed angrily, getting their attention. It was quiet between them, other than Josée's sobs. "You're hurting her!"

The boy scoffed and towered over the blonde. "And who are you?"

Jacques gulped nervously; the other boy had quite the height advantage over him. Despite this, Jacques scowled and stood his ground. "I'm her partner!"

The girl and boy exchanged a look at Jacques' display of chivalry and snickered. Nonetheless, the girl finally let go of the locker. Jacques rushed over and yanked it open to see Josée's eyes wide and laced with panic, her breathing labored significantly, and her tiny body trembling. Jacques got her out of there so she wouldn't escalate much further into her panic, but from the looks of it she hadn't realized he was there.

The older girl pushed Jacques to the ground. "Mind your own business next time, yeah?" She stormed off, and her partner followed shortly behind her.

Jacques groaned and got up, facing Josée who's breathing was still abnormally shallow. "A-Allo... Josée? It's okay! You're not in that ugly locker! It's..." Jacques bit his lip nervously, pondering what to do. He knew the right thing to do was to probably get a grown-up, but he wanted to help her. Trust is important. He hesitantly took his hands into hers. "Breathe! Josée! It's okay..." he tried saying again. Josée's breathing wasn't as labored, but it was still a little uneven. Her tears, however, were evident on her face.

Josée stopped breathing as harshly and took in her surroundings, still hiccuping with her cries and saw she wasn't in the locker anymore. It was cramped, dark, and scary, and it made her feel like a baby. Suddenly, her hands felt warm, it was because her partner was holding them, with his eyes fixated on hers with concern. Jacques, without even thinking, pressed a kiss on the top of her head. Josée wasn't mad at this display of affection like she would've been, but entirely confused by how it was so out of the blue.

Jacques blushed wildly. "That is ah... what Bernadette does when I'm sad," he offered as an explanation, now taking his eyes off hers out of embarrassment.

Josée let go of his hands. "I don't like small spaces," she admitted sheepishly, looking down at her shoes. "They make me sad." She sniffled and wiped a tear that had fallen out of embarrassment. "It's scary and I hate it! I'm such a baby..."

"Non, Josée," Jacques disagreed. "You have ah... comment dites-vous... phobia? The one with Santa Claus?"

Josée had a ghost of a smile touch her lips. "Claustrophobic," she pronounced carefully, wanting to make sure she got it right. "It's a big word. That girl uses that word a lot when she pushes me in lockers."

Jacques gasped. "You mean she does this all the time?"

Josée nodded sadly. "Yeah..." she said in a small voice, full of shame. "...and her partner, too. Their names are Liv... that's the girl... and Leo's the boy. They're all special and up there 'cause they won gold in a World Junior Championship... and they're only thirteen."

"I see them smoke outside, it's yucky," Jacques pointed out.

Josée made a face. "Oui. They do that 'cause it makes them skinny." Jacques frowned at the unfamiliar word at the end, so Josée tried to rephrase. "It makes them not fat. A lot of ice dancers do it, but I won't, 'cause it's gross."

"Me neither," agreed Jacques.

Josée's breathing improved tremendously. "We should go on the ice to practice," she told him, after clearing her throat. On the way to the rink, Josee spoke softly, "Merci."

Jacques stopped walking. "For?"

Josée stopped as well, her eyes were on the floor. "Getting me out of there. No one has done that before."

Jacques couldn't help but feel a little sad at the revelation. "Well, ah... that's what partners are for!"

They continued walking. Jacques couldn't help but notice that Josée was fully smiling now.

Around three weeks later was their first competition. Jacques had never competed in figure skating in his life, but Josée had. This was mostly for local competitions which Josée had a lot of experience in winning, even at her young age. She had beaten children almost twice her age in solo figure skating. But as for ice dancing, both of them were fairly new to the competition. However, according to Josée, there was a thing or two she needed to teach him about how competition in the figure skating world works.

Once they got to the locker room, Jacques had his questions. "So someone will call us up to perform?"

"Oui," Josée replied, starting to stretch. There were other kids around them also competing that were under the age of eleven. Jacques put his bag down and started to walk away, until Josée grabbed his arm harshly. "No!" she nearly yelled.

Jacques was lost. "Wh-what? What did I do?"

"Don't leave your bag all alone!" Josée snapped. "Someone could mess with it."

"What do you mean?" Jacques asked, picking his bag back up. "You're here. You wouldn't mess with it..."

Josée scoffed. "Of course not. I don't mess with other skaters. We have to stay with each other. People are mean here..."

"I don't get it."

Josée resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "They will do anything to make sure you don't win so they could. Someone put ants in my bag once, it was gross."

"Really?" Jacques shuddered at the thought. "But they're like us, why would they do that?"

Josée twirled a strand of her hair. "I've heard coaches make them do it sometimes..." she explained quietly, almost like she was paranoid of being overheard. "Mama says lots of stuff goes on 'behind-the-scenes' but I don't know what that really means, but she said it's not good."

"That's really bad," said Jacques, a bit horrified. "Will anything happen to us?"

"Only if you leave your stuff everywhere," Josée answered. "One time, a girl's skates were messed with, and she had to go to the hospital 'cause she fell. It was scary." She picked up bun-bun and started to rub it nervously. "And... and this one time, Liv cut a girl's ankles as she skated past her, so she couldn't compete." She stared down at bun-bun, as she confessed this quietly: "I think Liv did it on purpose. Liv's a really good skater. She's the best I've seen, other than Isaac. She wouldn't make a mistake like that."

"That does sound scary," Jacques agreed, frowning deeply. "We should tell someone."

"No," Josée said at once, very sharply. "That's a bad idea. Something bad could happen if you tattle."

Jacques didn't quite understand, but he took her word for it. Another team was called up to perform, and it wouldn't be long until Josée and Jacques were next. Josée unconsciously started to bite the string from her rabbit's foot.

"You always have the bunny foot around," Jacques pointed out. From the looks of it, Josée hadn't realized she had started to nibble on the string. To Jacques' surprise, instead of continuing the habit, she slapped herself in the face. "Josée! Why did you do that?" Her face was red as she put bun-bun away. "Did I... Did I say something bad?"

Josée shook her head from embarrassment. "No... Maman doesn't like when I do that. She said it's for babies."

"Your maman says lots of things," Jacques told her, almost uncomfortable. "She's very mean."

Josée gasped. "Maman is the best in the whole world," she said defensively. "She was a skater too! And really, really, good."

Jacques was quiet for a moment, until: "You can hold your bunny foot... I won't tell."

Josée looked hopeful. "Really?" But then, it was followed by skepticism: "Why?"

"Because we're partners!" Jacques told her, as if it were obvious. He smiled at her gently. "And you're nervous... but we're going to win, chouchou!"

"Yes, I know we're partners, and - wait... what did you call me?" Josée had processed the rest of that statement.

Jacques' face turned red as a tomato. "Ah... nothing! It was ah... nothing." He looked away from her.

Josée furrowed her brows, then broke into a giggle. "You're so strange, Jacques." It was a very angelic giggle. Jacques wasn't sure if she was making fun of him, but her laugh was cute and the most genuine one he had ever heard from her. She brushed her thumb against the rabbit's foot. "We should be going on soon."

"Can I see the bunny's foot?"

"No."

"Ah... okay."

Minutes later, they were called up to perform. Josée kissed the rabbit's foot and put it away. She turned to Jacques with a show-stopping smile. "We're gonna win the gold!" There was a special part in this dance that Isaac assured that none of the other teams would do, and it was something they had practiced very hard on. It was, however, a risky move that was very rarely seen in competitors under eleven years old. Josée and Jacques were hoping to make an exception.

"Of course we are!" Jacques cheered. "We're the best!"

One of the announcers called them up, and Josée and Jacques took off on the ice, with wide smiles on their faces while the stadium cheered for them. Jacques had never felt such a feeling in his life, it was absolutely liberating. He looked over to his partner, who was taking it all in with pride. The announcer stated that this was their ice dancing debut, and one of the youngest competitors of the competition, and that they could be something special. Damn right. Josée and Jacques were about to show them right now.

They were in in-hold position, waiting for the music to start. Once it did, they took off. Of course there was their usual moves in ice dancing for beginners, consisting of a lot of twirls - it was a miracle that Josée wasn't dizzy yet with the way Jacques was turning her everywhere. But even if she was dizzy, Josée didn't care. It was quiet in the stadium, every eye carefully assessing their moves. She remembered what Isaac told them; find the judges, and smile as wide as you can. Her mother said this too, so while they skated Josée's eyes wandered to the judges' table, who were eagerly smiling. It was probably because they thought were 'cute.' Josée couldn't wait to show that they were much more.

"I have to say it's... whoah, what's this?"

It's now or never.

It's all about trust.

As Josée skated closer to Jacques, she lifted her right leg up holding it in a bent position. As Jacques drew her closer he grabbed her by the waist and kept her right leg bent while her left leg was completely straight. He lifted her slightly above the ice as he spun around two times, with her body facing the ceiling then he set her back down. This took place in a matter of three seconds, and when the crowd saw it, they gasped and erupted into applause.

"Fascinating! Absolutely thrilling! I haven't seen this before from a pair so young!"

"Oh, well isn't that something!"

Even though they were still dancing and had about thirty seconds left, Josée's smile was evident, genuine, and not just one happy for the onlookers - she really, really meant it. They had excelled the move perfectly, and the crowd was going wild for them. At this rate, it was a guaranteed win. By the time their performance ended, everyone was cheering for them. Josée and Jacques smiled like they were told to - wide, energetic, and youthful, as they were.

It was a total wipeout. When the announcer was about to say who won the competition, Josée was gripping Jacques' hand so tight she nearly crushed it. And then they heard their full names, and once more, the audience went insane. Jacques felt a rush; an indescribable feeling in which his heart raced more than when he was on the ice, and when he looked at his partner, it was then he realized why this meant so much to her.

And then he heard it, right after the judges awarded them with gold medals. Josée said beside him on the podium, "We did it, Jacjac!" Jacques turned over in shock at the affectionate nickname that she had given him, and she didn't even recoil after it - she genuinely meant it. And her smile too, it was very real - radiant as well.

Jacques smiled back at her. "Of course we did! We're the best - oof!"

He was caught off-guard by the younger girl suddenly wrapping her arms around his waist. "You're the best partner! And... and..." she hesitated just for a moment, before deciding with a shy little grin: "...and a best friend!"

Jacques couldn't believe his ears. "Oui, mon ami! We're a great team!" he cheered.

Josée hugged him once more; winning was nice. "And you caught me!"

"That was quite the performance."

Josée and Jacques stopped their cheering and hugging as one of the judges interrupted them. He was accompanied by the three other judges. "I see that we can expect great things from you two in the future!" One of the judges said to them, with a warm smile. "Very promising!"

Oh, and neither of them knew the half of it. They all had no idea.

"Everyone, the winners - Josée Boyet and Jacques Clemont!" The announcer shouted once more, earning more cheers from the applause.

Josée and Jacques looked at each other. The younger of the two flashed her partner a grin. "Ready, Jacques?"

Jacques nodded once, smiling as well. "Ready." Just like they practiced, they waved to the audience with smiles plastered on their face.

They would have to get used to being the darlings of the figure skating world, so they might as well start now.