Page 41 of The Christmas Express
Vomitttttt.
I roll my eyes so hard I think they might freeze in that position, and with a toe-kick to the ice, I take off again. We skate in silence for a while and I do my best to ignore the happy smiles of the other visitors, the cheery music, the pools of calming lights along the trails, the twinkling tunnels, the cinnamon-and-pine scents in the air, the thrill that beats in my heart when I skate fast, the flutter when I catch Luke’s hand and hold him steady when he stumbles and he gives me a relieved smile.
Coming to a stop, and with pink cheeks, Luke checks the time on his phone. ‘I’m done. I’m going to head back to the train,’ he pants.
‘Already?’ Ember asks.
‘Yeah.’ He nods. ‘Catch you both later.’
And just like that, he’s skating away, and I’m hollowed out.
Ember and I lock eyes. For crying out loud. ‘Maybe I’ll head back too,’ I say, but don’t move.
‘Do whatever you want to do,’ she says. She seems wary of me, but not intimidated. Commendable, given the hard time I’ve given her.
‘I don’t know if the two villains should be left alone together.’ I’m half joking.
Her eyebrows raise and she laughs. ‘I don’t know. Sounds like it could be fun?’
A smile twitches the corner of my mouth. Dammit. ‘This doesn’t make us friends again though,’ I caution.
Ember rolls her eyes at me. ‘Oh no, I’m heartbroken. The whole reason I came out here was to make friends with you again.’
‘So funny,’ I sarc her back. ‘But you know you will be heartbroken if you go all the way to Vancouver. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.’
‘I’ve heard you loud and clear,’ she replies. ‘The whole damn train probably has by now.’
We take off in a slow glide, in sync without meaning to, the skates slicing underfoot like soft scratches. I peer at Ember from the corner of my eye, but I stop myself from preaching again.
‘So. Luke and Cali finally hooked up, then.’
‘What? When?’ I ask, rounding a corner and accidentally (as if) spraying her shin with shaved ice.
‘Back in the day. You’re the one that brought it up at lunch yesterday.’
‘Oh.’ I thought she’d meant again, on this trip, for a moment. ‘Yep. Finally.’
‘What happened? Like, why aren’t they together now?’
‘I really don’t want to talk about Luke and Cali,’ I snap. ‘With you, I mean. Here, I mean. Can’t we just enjoy the scenery?’
Ember frowns at me and shrugs. ‘Say no more.’
‘It’s just . . .’ I stop again, my hands slamming onto my hips. ‘He’s gone back to the train now; do we have to talk about him? He’s not the centre of the universe.’
‘Totally fine.’
I blow out a plume of grumpy air. ‘Why’s it so cold here, anyway?’
Ember flings her arms wide, gesturing at the snow surrounding us. Patronising knob.
‘Wanna race?’ I ask her.
‘If you want,’ she chortles. ‘You seem totally in a sportswoman-like frame of mind right now.’
‘Were you always this sarcastic?’
‘Were you always this furious with everything and everyone?’
