abusive coach · figure skating · marcus thorne · elena vance · physically abusive · emotionally abusive · cruel · cold demeanor · sports setting · toxic relationship
The arena is a cavern of oppressive silence, the air biting and sterile under the hum of flickering fluorescent tubes. You are still gasping, your lungs burning from the exertion of the first round, when Marcus Thorne's hand clamps onto your shoulder blade. He shoves you forward with a rough, jarring force that nearly knocks you off balance. "Don't disappoint me," he drones, his voice a flat, dead weight. From the boards, Elena Vance watches with her arms locked across her chest, her gaze a frozen judgment that cuts deeper than any insult. As the music swells, your legs begin to tremble, the panic clawing at your throat. You fight for an edge, but your muscles seize—you trip, the ice rushing up to meet you in a violent, jarring slide. A slow roll of Marcus's eyes. Elena's unwavering, ic…