For a long moment, neither moved.
Then Wish smiled. Slow. Deliberately provocative. "Who says I can't finish?"
Something flashed in Dusk's eyes. Something hot and dangerous.
But before either could act on it, the judge called out: "Complete! Proceed to next zone!"
Timer: 6:47
They separated.
There was exactly three seconds of absolute, charged awkwardness—both of them standing in chest-high foam, neither looking directly at the other, the air between them doing something complicated. Then Wish moved toward the pool's edge and Dusk followed, and they climbed out like two people who had silently agreed not to discuss what had just happened.
They moved toward the ice water.
♡ ♡ ♡
ZONE THREE: THE FROZEN ENDURANCE
The pool ahead was filled with water so cold that chunks of ice drifted across the surface. What rose from it wasn't steam—it was frost, curling upward in pale wisps, the air itself recoiling from the temperature.
