"Whoa! Ho! Oh no!" Nathan's arms pinwheeled and the blades of his skates made chopping noises as he fought valiantly to maintain his balance. He teetered back and forth from the waist. Trying to keep his feet underneath him had proven to be harder than he imagined. And just when he thought he had it, his arms down and hands horizontal to the ice, an eight year old on hockey blades zoomed by a little too closely. "Oh crap!" he yelled as his feet flew out from under him and he landed on his bum. "Ow."
Tali heard the pinwheeling and yelling from behind her, turning easily on her own skates to watch as Nate went down under the momentum of a tiny child brushing past. She couldn't help it; she let out a laugh that only barely escaped being a guffaw as she glided back toward him, a wide grin on her face. Looking down at the over-confident Antipodean who had insisted he knew how to skate, she somehow managed to school her expression into something a little less mocking. "Would you like some help there?"
Nathan looked up, chagrinned. "Yeah, that's if you can lift me." He chuckled and lay back on the ice, then rolled over. Soon he was on his hands and knees, crawling towards the safety of the outer wall and the concession stand beyond it. "Tell me again why I agreed to this?"
Skating back and forth behind him with sickening ease, Tali giggled as she answered, unashamedly admiring the view he had presented to her with his crawl. "Because if we'd spent another minute in that studio, we would have started to carve each other up into little pieces," she suggested, bracing herself against the outer wall as she leant down to grasp the back of his jacket and arm, pulling to get him back on his feet. "And you insisted that you knew how to skate."
"I think you need your hearing checked," he chuckled. With her assistance, he finally got back onto his blades. Clinging to the wall with a two handed white knuckled clutch of life, he daren't even move his body. "I insisted that I didn't know how, but was willing to learn." Okay, so maybe only part of that was true. But his ego was as bruised as his bum at this point!
Still laughing, but somehow managing to make the sound almost apologetic for her mirth, Tali moved to help him get his balance again. "Look, lesson one," she chuckled, blowing her hair out of her face. "Relax. The worst that can happen is that you fall over, and you've already done that, right?" She skated back a little way, holding her hands out to him. "'C'mon, it really isn't that hard."
"The ice is!" He looked at her as if she'd grown two heads. "Uh uh. There's a nice, hot cup of cocoa with my name on it. Has little marshmallows and cinnamon. There's one with your name, too. Only get me off the ice or it'll all disappear!" He smiled his most charming smile, his eyes pleading with her. "I promise, I'll give it another go in a little while."
She murmured something that could have been likening him to a baby, covering it with a wide smile. "You're still going to have to let go of that wall to get off the ice," Tali pointed out impishly, twisting to point to where the opening off the rink was. On the opposite side to where Nate was clinging. "I promise, you won't fall over. And if you do, you can take me with you."
His eyes shifted to where she pointed and he gained a look of frustration. "Well, alright. But don't be surprised if we both end up on the ice." He let go of the wall then and remained as still as he could. After a few long moments, he blew out the breath he was holding. "Ok, I've got this." Slowly he lifted his arm to reach out to her.
Calming herself so that she didn't giggle at the wrong moment and drop him to the ice again, Tali let him take hold of her hand, offering him the other one to steady himself. She was more than happy to skate backwards if that's what it took to get Nate off the ice in one piece.
An elderly couple skating past looked over at them with a shared smile. "Remember when that was us?" the woman asked her husband, who chuckled as he replied, "I remember you landing on the ring when I fell over."
Nathan looked up when the older couple skated by and he couldn't help but smile. Slowly they made their way around the rink. "How do you not fall on your ass when you're not looking where you're going?"
"Practise," Tali grinned to him, smoothly releasing one of his hands to reverse her position, skating alongside him with the other hand held safely in her own. "The rink's going to be open all winter - plenty of time for you to get good."
"After my bum heals, I'll think about it." He was laughing, of course. When she released his one hand he bobbled a bit, but managed to stay upright. "This uses muscles I never thought I even had!"
"I'd offer to kiss it better, but you'll get all scowly on me again," she teased laughingly, easing to a halt by the opening in the outer wall. "There we go, safely delivered." She let go of his hand, and since he had mentioned his backside, gave that a pat to urge him off the ice.
He gave her a pointed look before she let go of his hand. And when she did, he realized he was still upright, with no support! But then he moved his foot. Arms pinwheeled and he wobbled. Running on the skate blades, he did not stop until he got to a table and was able to land in a chair.
Snickering at the dramatic exit from the ice, Tali stepped off with a lot more grace, sheathing the blades on her feet before moving to join Nate at his chosen table. "Feel better for that, Mr Smooth?"
Already he was bent over, untying the long laces. He couldn't get them off fast enough! "My ass will feel a lot better with this place far behind it!" He kicked off the skates, then sat up with a grin on his face. "Ah, better!" Stretching his legs out in front of himself, he wiggled his toes.
"Trust me, you want to put your shoes back on before walking anywhere around here," Tali grinned, bending double to untie her own skates. "Regretting the suggestion that we do something fun already?" she teased warmly.
Tali heard the pinwheeling and yelling from behind her, turning easily on her own skates to watch as Nate went down under the momentum of a tiny child brushing past. She couldn't help it; she let out a laugh that only barely escaped being a guffaw as she glided back toward him, a wide grin on her face. Looking down at the over-confident Antipodean who had insisted he knew how to skate, she somehow managed to school her expression into something a little less mocking. "Would you like some help there?"
Nathan looked up, chagrinned. "Yeah, that's if you can lift me." He chuckled and lay back on the ice, then rolled over. Soon he was on his hands and knees, crawling towards the safety of the outer wall and the concession stand beyond it. "Tell me again why I agreed to this?"
Skating back and forth behind him with sickening ease, Tali giggled as she answered, unashamedly admiring the view he had presented to her with his crawl. "Because if we'd spent another minute in that studio, we would have started to carve each other up into little pieces," she suggested, bracing herself against the outer wall as she leant down to grasp the back of his jacket and arm, pulling to get him back on his feet. "And you insisted that you knew how to skate."
"I think you need your hearing checked," he chuckled. With her assistance, he finally got back onto his blades. Clinging to the wall with a two handed white knuckled clutch of life, he daren't even move his body. "I insisted that I didn't know how, but was willing to learn." Okay, so maybe only part of that was true. But his ego was as bruised as his bum at this point!
Still laughing, but somehow managing to make the sound almost apologetic for her mirth, Tali moved to help him get his balance again. "Look, lesson one," she chuckled, blowing her hair out of her face. "Relax. The worst that can happen is that you fall over, and you've already done that, right?" She skated back a little way, holding her hands out to him. "'C'mon, it really isn't that hard."
"The ice is!" He looked at her as if she'd grown two heads. "Uh uh. There's a nice, hot cup of cocoa with my name on it. Has little marshmallows and cinnamon. There's one with your name, too. Only get me off the ice or it'll all disappear!" He smiled his most charming smile, his eyes pleading with her. "I promise, I'll give it another go in a little while."
She murmured something that could have been likening him to a baby, covering it with a wide smile. "You're still going to have to let go of that wall to get off the ice," Tali pointed out impishly, twisting to point to where the opening off the rink was. On the opposite side to where Nate was clinging. "I promise, you won't fall over. And if you do, you can take me with you."
His eyes shifted to where she pointed and he gained a look of frustration. "Well, alright. But don't be surprised if we both end up on the ice." He let go of the wall then and remained as still as he could. After a few long moments, he blew out the breath he was holding. "Ok, I've got this." Slowly he lifted his arm to reach out to her.
Calming herself so that she didn't giggle at the wrong moment and drop him to the ice again, Tali let him take hold of her hand, offering him the other one to steady himself. She was more than happy to skate backwards if that's what it took to get Nate off the ice in one piece.
An elderly couple skating past looked over at them with a shared smile. "Remember when that was us?" the woman asked her husband, who chuckled as he replied, "I remember you landing on the ring when I fell over."
Nathan looked up when the older couple skated by and he couldn't help but smile. Slowly they made their way around the rink. "How do you not fall on your ass when you're not looking where you're going?"
"Practise," Tali grinned to him, smoothly releasing one of his hands to reverse her position, skating alongside him with the other hand held safely in her own. "The rink's going to be open all winter - plenty of time for you to get good."
"After my bum heals, I'll think about it." He was laughing, of course. When she released his one hand he bobbled a bit, but managed to stay upright. "This uses muscles I never thought I even had!"
"I'd offer to kiss it better, but you'll get all scowly on me again," she teased laughingly, easing to a halt by the opening in the outer wall. "There we go, safely delivered." She let go of his hand, and since he had mentioned his backside, gave that a pat to urge him off the ice.
He gave her a pointed look before she let go of his hand. And when she did, he realized he was still upright, with no support! But then he moved his foot. Arms pinwheeled and he wobbled. Running on the skate blades, he did not stop until he got to a table and was able to land in a chair.
Snickering at the dramatic exit from the ice, Tali stepped off with a lot more grace, sheathing the blades on her feet before moving to join Nate at his chosen table. "Feel better for that, Mr Smooth?"
Already he was bent over, untying the long laces. He couldn't get them off fast enough! "My ass will feel a lot better with this place far behind it!" He kicked off the skates, then sat up with a grin on his face. "Ah, better!" Stretching his legs out in front of himself, he wiggled his toes.
"Trust me, you want to put your shoes back on before walking anywhere around here," Tali grinned, bending double to untie her own skates. "Regretting the suggestion that we do something fun already?" she teased warmly.