There's a certain magic in the mountains, where the snow-covered peaks become our playground. It's a place where worries melt away, and the only thing that matters is the next run. In the mountains, time slows down, and all that matters is the present moment. It's a dance with gravity, a symphony of speed and control, and a celebration of the natural world around us.
But before someone can enjoy the dance with gravity down the mountain, everyone starts learning from the first step or glide.
Learning Zone, Mountaintop Station, Musdurn Mountain.
This zone was a part of the mountain that was flat, which made it easier for beginners to start learning.
That's where Theo and the others had been for the past 3 hours as they learned how to ski and snowboard from Ayia, Kaori, and other girls.
Just like Ayia and the other girls expected, it would take a while for most of them to be able to ski and snowboard without any problems.
There were a few exceptions though, Theo and Aurora were extremely skilled and were able to follow the girls' instructions without any sweat. Especially Theo, he was so skilled in it that after a couple of hours of practicing, he was already able to glide down a small slope without any difficulties.
Ayia and the other two girls were beyond impressed by how fast he was able to learn all the basics. Especially because snowboarding was much harder to learn than skiing.
That could evidenced by how fast Kaori and the other two were able to teach their students how to glide down a small slope. They were as fast as Aurora!
And Aurora was only one hour behind Theo.
However, after 3 hours of practice, most of them could feel getting more and more tired.
"How about we stop for a while and have lunch?" Ayia asked out loud when she noticed their fatigue.
Suzuka, Kaori, and the other girls heard that and immediately agreed.
They knew that these lessons couldn't be rushed, so if they stayed there forcing themselves would be more detrimental than productive to their learning.
That was how Ayia and Kaori announced the pause of the lesson for them to have lunch.
When everyone heard that, they heaved a sigh of relief.
Even with all the falls and difficulties, everyone still had fun learning how to ski and
snowboard, but after hours of practice, they were tired and hungry.
They soon took out their equipment and walked toward the station carrying their equipment and as they walked they excitedly talked about their experience.
"It is much harder than I expected."
"Yeah, the snow can be so slippery!"
"Thank god that the snow isn't so hard or I would be more bruised than I already am with all these falls."
"Sliding down the slope is exhilarating!"
"I can't wait to slide down those big slopes we saw the others taking on."
"I think it will take a while for us to be able to do that."
"Well, at least us mere mortals. Theo and Aurora learned so fast!"
"And they were learning the difficult snowboarding!"
"Theo! Aurora! Stop lying! You two already how to snowboard, right?"
"Maybe yes, maybe not."
"Look! He is being mysterious again! Let's get him!"
Just like that, they had fun as they walked on the snow toward the station.
A few minutes later, they entered the station and were assaulted by the hot air from inside.
"It seems that the heating system here is top-notch." June commented.
"After all this workout, I'm gonna start sweating if I keep all this winter wear on me." Sam said as she started taking some of her winter jackets.
The others soon followed her example and took some jackets as well.
Afterward, they found a nice restaurant where they would be able to keep their equipment in a safe place.
It was one of the most fancy restaurants in the place, but as everyone there was well-off, they didn't care much about it.
A minute later, they were all seated at a big table where they were able to see the stunning mountain view outside through a door-to-ceiling glass window.
The table was really big as it was able to accommodate the 19 of them.
They looked at the menu that the waiters just gave to them when Gwen asked out loud, "What are you guys going to order?"
"I don't know, but I want something warm down my body after having to roll down the cold snow for hours." Sayuri replied as she contemplated what she should order.
"What are you going to order, babe?" Ayia asked Theo.
Theo had Ayia on his right side and Aurora seated on his left side.
"I think I'm going with Bean Soup with Vegetables. It sounds like a good soup to have on a cold day, especially if it comes steaming hot." Theo replied, "What about you? What are you going to order, babe?"
Ayia looked at the dish that Theo mentioned before replying, "Hmm, I think I'm gonna go with Creamy Tomato Soup with Cheese Toasties."
It was then that Aurora exclaimed, "Oh, there's Creamy Tomato Soup?"
"Are you going to order the same as me, Aurora-chan?" Ayia smiled.
"I think so. It sounds so delicious." Aurora smiled back.
"I guess I'll have to ask for them to bring some Cheesy Toasties with my soup as well." Theo commented.
Soon after, everyone made their order with the waiters. As it was a fancy restaurant, they wouldn't have to wait for long.
But as they waited, they started talking to each other about their experience in skiing and snowboarding and their plans for the rest of the day.
"I'll be serious now, skiing is much harder than I imagined. I fell down so many times!" Sam commented with a sigh.
"That's because you weren't learning snowboarding. At a certain point, I spent more time with my butt on the ground than I was standing up." Max exclaimed sullenly.
Everyone laughed out loud when they heard that as they could recognize themselves with
"If envy looks could kill, we would be mourning Theo and Aurora at this moment. These two were so natural that it seemed like they did this before." Lauren commented.
"Hey!" Theo protested.
The others laughed out loud once again at Lauren's comment.
"Seriously, Theo, how did you learn so fast?" Kin asked.
"I don't know. I just followed Ayia's instructions and everything else came easy." Theo
"It was the same for me." Aurora agreed with him.
Everyone else felt a pang of pain when they heard the siblings' brag.
'Why the two of them have to brag so strongly!'
"Do you guys also want to attack the two of them?" Sam asked suddenly.
"Yeah, let's get them!"
"No, It's not my fault that I followed my beautiful girlfriend's instructions so easily!" Theo
exclaimed when he saw their shining eyes.
"How brazen! He brags about his skills and now about his relationship!"
"Let's only get him, Aurora was only following his bad example."
"No! It's not my fault most of you guys are single!"
When they heard that, they became even more avid to give him a piece of their mind.
In such a way, they had their fun as they waited for their meal.
It was a nice day for all of them.