One
Sochi, Russia
Ruby's expression was somber. In all reality it was a perfect reflection of her entire attitude right now. The world around her felt like it was slowed to a stop and the bright blues and pure whites of the hall seemed as dull as a monotone grey. The young woman was deaf to the hustle and bustle of the production crews that scurried through the halls. Deaf to the applause of the audience that were seated in the arena. Dead to the victorious cries of the skaters who had made it to the podium. The only thing that could hold her attention was her phone. More specifically the article that was assaulting her vision with its content.
"Ruby!"The Raven haired girl had barely heard the call that came from her coach. "Come on now, don't get hung up on the news"
"Skater Ruby Rose sinks to sixth place in Grand Prix Final. Is this season her last?"She read to herself and shook her head lightly.
Without a word she stood up, turning to head down the hall. Ruby absolutely could not believe herself. There was no way that she could have done that awful. Err- scratch that. She was not even going to bother sugar coating it. Considering the circumstances Ruby was shocked that she had not done even worse than she already did. Truth be told the girl had not been one hundred percent, mentally nor physically. What with nerves being at an all time high, and add into the mix the fact that her childhood dog had passed on recently it was a recipe for disaster. 'I didn't even get to see her a last time'Ruby thought, the fact echoing in her mind over and over again.
All the stress that had piled up ended up causing her to revert to her old habit of stress eating. By the time her time came she felt like she was going to vomit. Ruby made a quiet noise of distaste, she did not even want to think of the feeling. Her stomach had cramped up and the experience was just awful.
Reaching out blindly, Ruby shoved open the door to bathroom, with her gaze remaining focused on the ground. She felt completely numb as she sat down in a stall. Pale fingers moved as if they had a mind of their own, typing the familar phone number of one Summer Rose. Ruby held the phone up to her ear, heaving a shuddering breath.
"I can't do this"Ruby murmured to herself "How am I supposed to talk to her after this. I let her down"She whimpered and choked on her next word when she heard the tired voice of her mother. "Hello? Oh, heh heh sorry Mom, were you sleeping?"She laughed nervously, trying to disguise the tremors in her voice. 'Keep it together'
"Wait, you held a public viewing?!"Ruby asked, her voice subconsciously raising in pitch when the thought of so many people back in Hasetsu watching her fail so spectacularly. "Mom! That's so embarassing"She finished and tried to fake a small laugh but couldn't do it anymore. The first tear left a burning trail down her cheek and the brunette released a shuddering breath. "I'm sorry..I messed up"Was all that left her mouth before hanging up. Ruby just couldn't bear to hear what her mother would say.
Ruby heard the choked sob pass through her lips and once it started she just couldn't stop. A river of tears flowed down her face, and a small puddle collected in her glasses. She couldn't bring herself to care though, considering a problem such as that wasn't even a true problem.
The young woman jumped in her skin when a crashing boom resonated from outside the stall, and judging by the way the stall door had jumped well Ruby didn't need to be a genius to realize that someone had kicked it. Actually, kick is an understatement. It was as if someone came at the door with a battering ram.
Shaking her head Ruby wiped her eyes so she could see without her vision being clouded. She slid her phone into her pocket. She reached a shaky hand to unlock the door, pulled it open only to be greated by the angry face of one of Germany's rising skaters. Cinder Fall, the Junior Grand Prix gold metalist. 'The German punk' Ruby's brain supplied. 'Why is she glaring at me like that? What the hell?'She practically screamed in her mind
"What are you doing?"The teenager in front of her growled out
"I'm sorry, I don't und-"
"I'm making my senior debut next season and there's no room for someone like you. A loser like you should just retire already. Moron!"With the last word, the tiny female stalked out of the restroom, leaving Ruby frozen in place and stunned completely.
Ruby felt her phone vibrate from her back pocket and finally snapped out of her reverie. Taking out her phone she saw it was a message from her coach, questioning her on where she was because they needed to go back to the hotel. She typed out a simple reply, gathered her senses, and took quick steps to the exit. Ruby was thrilled to finally leave. All she wanted to do at this point was crawl under the covers and die.
The Next Day
The sounds around her were strangely comforting. The sounds of the busy rushing of the airport just seemed so familiar that it was relaxing. Which was strange considering that Ruby avoided crowds like the plague but she didn't want to think about it too much.
Ruby has her left had in her jacket pocket, the other tugging her carry-on behind her. Her gaze, as always, was focused on the ground instead of the scenery around her. She was still a bit sore about her loss yesterday and she was so ready to get back to Detroit. Then she could move on with her life, maybe.
"Ruby!"
The woman in question turned around upon hearing her name, to be greeted with the face of one of the news casters that had present during a great deal of the competition.
"You can't just retire like this!"
"I haven't even made a decision yet, please don't make assumptions about this"Ruby said simply, trying not to sound rude.
"Are you still going to train in Detroit, what are you going to do?"
Unfortunately the question had fallen on deaf ears. For Ruby's mind had wandered elsewhere upong laying on the corgi that a stranger held in her arms. 'it looks just like..'Ruby thought miserably. Ruby shook her head to clear her head of the fog that was settling in.
"Cinder! We have to talk about your free performance" Ruby's head snapped around at the sound of the familiar voice. The same voice that she had heard so many times as a child on television programs and interviews
"Weiss Schnee"Ruby muttered under her breath and her gaze remained in the woman. Sure she was staring but she couldn't care less. Of course that was until the skater turned to look at Ruby and Ruby nearly died on the spot.
"Oh!"Weiss said as if she remembered something. "Would you like a photo?"She offered with her signature smile plastered on her lips.
Ruby only wilted further and turned around dejectedly. She had always dreamed of meeting her idol but not like this. 'She didn't even know I was a competitor' The thought echoed in her brain, making her feel worse than she already had. 'I knew I was nothing special, but jeez'
Ruby released a quiet sigh as she simply walked towards her gate. She had a plane to catch anyway.