all my life (by my life)

I

The job at the roller skating rink paid well and was stylish, and it's why Viian went after it. It was a rather nice place, she supposed - large and clean, the floors not creaking as she walked around, aimlessly, almost. Viian just wished it wasn't so dark, illuminated only in red, like some villain's lair.

The door had just been open, and Viian had announced herself - a voice, coming from the interior, ghostly and quiet, had told her to come in, and so, she did. Still, maybe she shouldn't have.

Viian sat down on a red couch in the middle of the skating rink (that was there for... some reason...), adjusting her tie nervously - why she had worn a sweater vest today, of all days, was beyond her comprehension, but Viian had wanted to look professional -, and she jumped in her place when she heard someone clearing their throat. A girl stepped out of the shadows, dressed all in yellow and plaid, looking like a character from a movie. The dark, long hair didn't match, though, and neither did the fox-like intelligence in her eyes. Too cunning to be a good girl, Viian decided.

"Hello there!" She greeted, cheery, voice as clear as a bell and making Viian's heart skip a beat. "You must be the prospective rink manager, right?"

"I am?" Viian asked, and the girl inclined her head, eyes shining with something she couldn't exactly explain. She bit her tongue, and smiled politely. "I mean, I am."

"Sweet! I'm Sooyoung, but you can call me Yves, and I'd run this place, but honestly, I don't think I'm suited for it." And with that, Yves plopped down on the couch, putting down two pairs of rolling skates on the floor, white if the red light didn't make them slightly pink. "Your role is going to be very, very simple. You just have to clean, make sure clients are satisfied and paying, and that's it. Simple, right?"

"Very." She agreed, because it did sound simple. She could clean and deal with people.

Yves beamed.

"Great! Can you skate? Because it's a needed skill," Yves chirped, still speaking, and Viian could feel cold sweat build in her back as she stopped listening.

She couldn't. Viian had never learned how to skate - not like she had even bothered, actually -, but it made sense for the skating rink manager to know how to skate.

"Not really." Viian replied, in the end, and Yves simply slid her a pair of skates, leaning down to undo her perfect, ladylike shoes. Feeling a blush dust her cheeks, Viian leaned down, taking off her sensible, worn shoes, and starting to lace up her roller skates.

She noticed, out of the corner of her eye, that Yves was smiling, but maybe it was just a trick of the light. Viian rose up, quiet, trying to keep herself standing, and Yves - grace and poise, keeping her footing as if still in her own shoes - just offered her a hand.

"I'll help you. Come, it's fun!" Viian accepted her offer, the two slowly skating through the barely lit rink. Viian was almost, almost sure her heart was going to explode in her ribcage, as she watched Yves have fun, even if they were going slow.

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The job was easier than expected, and as such, sort of boring. It fell in a monotony, at times, just Viian, the mop, and the empty rink - now well lit, not the rink with soft red lights that she had first found (it used to be a bowling alley, Yves had said on her first day. "But now it's easier to keep," She had said, waving her hand). At other times, it was hell on earth, starting twenty or so minutes after the closest school let out and going on until closing time.

Yves didn't appear much, and it wasn't like Viian could ask her - Yves had given her her number (for emergencies, Yves had said) and it wasn't like she could just casually text her boss "hey what's up with you never being here".