Winter Swan

The ski resort in Ekeberg was a popular place for families. It was very crowded and the lines for the lift were endless.

The first thing Kail did was to rent ski gear for both of them. Then he took her to the store to buy her a ski outfit.

At first, Silje adamantly refused, "Kail, I don't need that. It's not like I go skiing often."

Kail looked at her silently before emphasizing his reply, "Then let me ask you one thing. Will you never go skiing with me after this? Is that it? Are you saying it will never happen again?"

He was always like this. He didn't outright force her, but he convinced her by cornering her with his own logic. Silje had no choice but to reply, "You don't have to be like that. And no, I'm not saying I will never go skiing with you again."

Nodding in satisfaction, Kail handed his credit card to the clerk.

"Here, put everything on this."

Silje glared at him, who looked smug in his black cashmere coat. On top of that, the ski outfit Kail picked out for her was pink. She felt embarrassed to change into such a girly color.

When she did, Kail chuckled and patted her hair indulgently.

"You look pretty."

When Silje gave him an annoyed look, he winked at her devilishly and placed the pair of black goggles over her eyes.

"Now, let's go ski."

Kail walked outside into the light like a black panther. Or was he a white panther?

Today, he was wearing a snow-white ski outfit. She didn't want to admit it, but Kail looked gorgeous. He was no doubt the most beautiful man at the ski resort.

He guided her to the ski lift expertly. It was such a beautiful day, and to Silje, everything felt surreal. Being here in a ski resort with Kail… It felt like a dream.

What was she doing here?

Even the sunlight looked unreal; it looked golden and made her feel incredibly warm.

The resort was much bigger than she expected. There was the deep white snow, the artificial snow machines, and professional ski guides. It was a luxurious place.

Silje glanced at Kail who looked right at home. After they got off the lift, he took her to the D level slope which was the most difficult and dangerous course in the resort.

"Let's start."

Kail lowered his black goggles and started to ski down like a magnificent bird. It was a very complex course, yet Kail went down in a blink of an eye. Silje stared at him in awe.

After watching him go down the slope, she shrugged and murmured, "What the heck?! How is he such a good skier? It looks like he should enter the Olympics."

Kail looked like he was flying. In his white ski suit, he roamed past the slopes easily and she couldn't stop staring at him. Other girls were also watching him, and it was no wonder. Kail looked like a movie star. Silje was used to it. Even at school, he had always been the most popular guy.

"People are going to notice me too because of him. Dammit… He is so annoying."

She was murmuring to herself when she suddenly heard his voice.

"Who's annoying?"

Silje flinched in surprise and when she turned around, Kail was standing beside her with his arms crossed. He smiled at her like a villain and asked, "Are you getting bored by yourself? Let's see how well you ski. I'm excited to see what you can do."

When Kail gestured for her to go, Silje had no choice. She put on her goggles and replied, "I was going to anyway. I'm not going now because you told me to, Kail."

Kail just looked at her with interest and asked, "When will you start?"

When he chuckled, Silje shrugged her shoulders.

"Right now."

She wasn't as good as Kail, but she was still very athletic. Silje went down the slope quickly and confidently.

Kail murmured to himself, "Excellent."

He watched as Silje swiftly maneuvered her way down. What he didn't know was that there was a sad story behind her skill.

When she was little and her adoptive parents took her to a ski resort for the first time, Silje was terrible. She couldn't ski at all, and when she didn't learn fast, Frank showed his obvious disappointment. In her young mind, Silje was terrified that she would be un-adopted if she didn't get better quickly, so she practiced with unusual determination. She fell countless times in the snow, but in the end, she got the hang of it and became a fair skier.

Silje enjoyed the D course comfortably at a good speed. She reached the bottom, and when she got back up to the top of the slope, Kail grinned and suggested, "Let's race. Let's see who is faster."

"What?"

Silje gasped in surprise. She continued, "Are you kidding? It's obvious that you are a much better skier. I have no chance against you."

"Then why don't I give you a head start? I will wait till you reach that pine tree over there."

Silje didn't want to race, but Kail insisted on it. In the end, he succeeded in convincing her.

"Kail, what do you get out of it if you win this race?"

When she asked nervously, he laughed. He replied mysteriously, "I will think of something. For now, I just want to enjoy skiing with you, that's all. And if you get better by practicing with me, it would be a nice bonus."

"I don't think anyone can get better with just one race."

She murmured, but it was nice to know that Kail thought of her. Silje got ready and the race was on.

"Then you go ahead first."

Kail bowed jokingly and Silje started to go down the slope.

"Oh, Kail… You're so annoying."

He heard her and laughed out loud again.

Silje went down fast, feeling a bit out of control as she sped down. Perhaps it was because it had been so long since she last skied.

She could feel the wind against her body. As she looked ahead at the beautiful snowy scenery, she could feel Kail's stare from behind. Somehow, she felt like she could guess what Kail was thinking.

Silje was getting close to the pine tree. Once she reached it, Kail was going to start. When she glanced back, she suddenly saw a middle-aged woman coming towards her at an incredible speed. Silje's eyes widened as she saw the woman's face. The middle-aged woman looked scared and it was obvious that she had lost control.

Silje realized this was not a good situation, but it was too late. The woman was getting closer to her very quickly. There was no time for Silje to avoid her.

Was she really going to crash? As the woman got closer and closer, Silje closed her eyes in fear. She waited for the pain, but suddenly, she realized that she should keep her eyes open in case there was something she could do.

When she did open her eyes, to her shock, she saw Kail coming for her. Silje froze in surprise.