Aurora stared at the list of ideas in her notebook, tapping her pen against the page.
A picnic. An amusement park. A pottery class?
She paused at the last one, tilting her head.
Would Felix even enjoy pottery?
She imagined him sitting in front of a lump of clay, looking completely lost, and a small laugh escaped her. Actually, that would be interesting to see.
Aurora quickly wrote it down before she could change her mind.
Then she looked at her phone. Perhaps simply asking him what he liked doing in his free time wasn't a bad idea after all. It wasn't as though she had to make it obvious that she was planning something.
She opened their chat and began typing.
Aurora: Random question.
She waited a few seconds before adding another message.
Aurora: What do you usually do when you're not skating?
Felix's reply came sooner than she expected.
Felix: Why? Are you planning to stalk me?
Aurora rolled her eyes.
Aurora: Forget I asked.
Felix: Too late. Now I'm curious.
Aurora shook her head, smiling despite herself.
Aurora: I was just asking a question.
Felix: And I'm just asking why you're asking.
She stared at the screen.
This man was going to be the death of her.
Aurora: You're so annoying.
Felix: You say that like it's news.
A laugh escaped her before she could stop it.
She typed another message, determined not to let him distract her.
Aurora: Seriously, though. What do you enjoy doing?
This time, Felix took a little longer to respond.
Felix: Skating, obviously.
Aurora: I knew that already.
Felix: Then why ask?
Aurora sighed, dropping her phone onto the desk. "Unbelievable."
She picked it up again when another message appeared.
Felix: Besides skating, I guess I enjoy having time to myself. Or spending time with people who don't ask me a hundred questions.
Aurora's eyebrows rose.
Aurora: So I'm already asking too many questions?
Felix: You're catching on.
She laughed, shaking her head.
At least she had learnt something. Felix enjoyed quiet moments, although that didn't exactly narrow down her options.
She added it to her notes before glancing at the time.
There was still plenty of work to finish before the day ended.
With one final look at the list, Aurora closed her notebook and returned to the documents on her laptop.
She would figure it out.
She always did.
...
(Felix's POV)
Across the city, Felix sat at his desk, staring at the thick folder his father had given him.
He had barely made it through the first few pages before his attention began to wander.
Financial reports. Company operations. Future expansion plans.
He rubbed his forehead.
A few hours a week.
That was what he had agreed to. And yet, as he looked at the amount of information in front of him, he couldn't help wondering how his father expected him to manage all this alongside his training.
His phone buzzed.
Felix glanced down, and a small smile appeared when he saw Aurora's name on the screen.
For a moment, he considered replying with another teasing remark.
Instead, he typed a simple message.
Felix: Don't work too hard, Rora.
He placed his phone beside the folder and leaned back in his chair.
Just thinking about her made the day feel a little less exhausting.
Unfortunately, the sound of his father's voice interrupted his brief moment of peace.
"Felix."
He looked towards the doorway.
His father stood there, one hand resting against the doorframe. "Have you started going through the documents?"
Felix nodded towards the folder. "I'm reading them."
"Good. I want you to review the financial summary before Monday. We can discuss it then."
Felix stared at him. "Monday?"
His father raised an eyebrow. "Is there a problem?"
"I have training."
"You still have the rest of the weekend."
Felix exhaled slowly, trying to keep his frustration under control.
"Father, I already agreed to spend a few hours a week learning about the company. I didn't agree to have assignments hanging over my head every time I turn around."
His father's expression tightened.
"These aren't meaningless assignments, Felix. You're going to need to understand the business eventually."
"Eventually," Felix repeated. "Not everything has to happen right now."
"When exactly do you intend to start taking this seriously?"
Felix pushed his chair back slightly.
"I'm taking my skating seriously. My competition is getting closer, and I need to prepare."
"And what happens after the competition?"
"I'll deal with that when the time comes."
His father sighed, stepping into the room.
"That is exactly what concerns me. You keep treating your future as though it can wait indefinitely."
Felix stared at him, his jaw tightening. "Because every time I try to talk about my future, you act as though skating is something I should eventually grow out of."
"That isn't what I'm saying."
"Then what are you saying?"
His father was silent for a moment.
"I'm saying that you have responsibilities beyond yourself."
Felix let out a humourless laugh. "There it is again."
"What?"
"Responsibilities. The company. The family name. Everything I'm supposed to become." He gestured towards the folder. "Is there anything about my life that doesn't have to revolve around those things?"
His father's expression hardened. "You speak as though this family has given you nothing."
"That's not fair, and you know it."
"Then stop behaving as though everything expected of you is a burden."
Felix rose to his feet. "Because sometimes it feels like one!"
The words escaped before he could stop them.
Silence settled between them.
For a moment, neither of them moved.
Felix dragged a hand through his hair, trying to steady himself.
He didn't want another argument. He was tired of having the same conversation over and over again, with neither of them willing to understand the other.
His father finally spoke. "I'm not asking you to abandon skating."
"Then stop making me feel like I have to choose between it and everything else."
His father's gaze remained fixed on him.
"You agreed to learn about the business. I'm simply expecting you to honour that agreement."
"And I will. But I need you to understand that skating isn't some childish hobby I'm going to abandon the moment things get difficult."
"I never called it that."
"You didn't have to."
Felix picked up the folder and placed it neatly on his desk. "I'll review the financial summary. I'll do what I agreed to do. But my training comes first until my competition is over."
His father studied him for several seconds before giving a reluctant nod. "Fine. We'll discuss the rest after your competition."
Felix wasn't sure whether that was a victory or simply another postponement of the inevitable.
Either way, he would take it.
His father turned towards the door, then paused. "Don't mistake my expectations for a lack of faith in you, Felix."
Felix looked up.
His father didn't elaborate. He simply left the room, closing the door behind him.
Felix stood there for a moment, staring at the space where his father had been.
He wanted to believe those words.
He really did.
But sometimes, it felt as though his father had more faith in the future he had chosen for Felix than in the future Felix wanted for himself.
...
Later that evening, Felix finally closed the folder and reached for his phone.
Aurora's chat was still open.
He read their earlier messages again, a faint smile tugging at his lips when he remembered how quickly she had become annoyed with him.
For once, he wished the rest of his life could be that simple.
Just a conversation. A little teasing. Someone who wanted to know him without expecting him to become anything in return.
His smile faded slightly.
He had a competition to prepare for, a family business to learn, and a future he still couldn't picture clearly.
Yet somehow, in the middle of all that pressure, he found himself looking forward to the next time he would see Aurora.
Perhaps that was something he didn't need to figure out just yet.
For now, he would focus on the ice. And whatever happened after that, he would face it when the time came.