Romancing The Umbramancer 3

Lunch with Skylar goes quickly, and soon we find ourselves finishing up our meals and asking for the bill. We split the bill and she leads me back to her car for the second part of the date. Despite my cheeky prodding, Skylar refuses to tell me where we’re going.

She laughs off my faux annoyance and smiles at me once more in that carefree way. Her smile says everything that her words never could. Previously, I wouldn’t have questioned or read into that kind of a smile. Now though? I’ve seen it on Mia and Ivy enough to know what it means. I don’t need to look at her observe sheet to know that she’s falling for me.

After about twenty minutes of driving, Skylar parks in front of an ice rink. “Ice skating?” I ask, and she nods happily. “You said that out of all the elements, you chose to learn ice magic, because you thought it was cool. I wanted to do something fun, and I guessed that because you chose ice magic, you might enjoy ice skating.”

I smile happily at her. “You’re right, I would really like to do ice skating. I haven’t been in years though, so I have no idea how good I’ll be. Also, aren’t we both wearing the wrong clothes for this?” She smirks at me and pops open the boot of her car, pulling out a small bag full of clothes. “A change of clothes for the both of us. I do think ahead, you know?”

Going inside and paying for entry along with skate rental, we go into the change rooms and change in separate stalls. The outfit that Skylar packed for me is resizing fortunately, so I don’t have to worry that the two of us have different body proportions. A simple shirt, jacket and yoga pants is what I’m now wearing, and Skylar comes out wearing the same thing but in different colours.

We put on our skates and I stand up tentatively. Stretching my arms out for balance, I wobble around for a moment before steadying myself. “Let’s hope I don’t fall over.” I tell her, laughing. She giggles and stands up herself, managing to stabilise her unsteadiness quickly. “I’ve only been ice skating once or twice when I was really young, so we’ll learn together.”

Taking hold of each other, hand in hand, we slowly clomp onto the rink, sliding as soon as we step onto the ice. I sway uncertainly, holding onto the railing on the side to maintain balance. Skylar grips onto the railing similarly a second later. “This is so strange!” I giggle happily. “It feels weird! Maybe we should stick to the edges for the moment until we get the hang of it.” She suggests. I agree, and so we start a lap around the rink.

We slowly start to get the hang of moving with our skates and balancing on the ice, as we tow ourselves around the edge of the oval shaped arena. I remember that you’re supposed to turn your feet outwards to push against the ice and build up speed, and I try it with middling success. I relay the technique to Skylar and soon we’re both practicing propelling ourselves.

Thanks in part to my increased agility, it doesn’t take long for me to get the hang of the technique properly, and I’m soon gliding around the edges with something resembling confidence. Skylar takes a little more time but she too is able to let go of the railing and skate on her own. We hold hands, keeping our arms outstretched for balance and bonding over the experience of learning to skate.

Not only is this my first time ice skating in years, and my first ice skating date, it’s also the first time that I’ve really been able to feel the results of icy temperatures while under the effects of my powers. Even though it is the middle of winter, it really doesn’t get very cold here, certainly not cold enough for snow.

Seeing as how I haven’t been out during the coldest parts of the day in weeks, this is the coldest temperature I’ve experienced in a while. It feels really comfortable somehow. I feel like I don’t need my jacket at all, and eventually, I take it off. The chilly air feels lovely on my skin. Energising, invigorating. A side effect of my frost resistance ability is that it increases my comfort in cold temperatures, and I can definitely feel it now.

Skylar and I get ever more confident in our skating abilities as our date goes on, and soon, we’re racing swiftly across the ice. We take a fall here and there, but we’re always quick to recover, after laughing of course. Our superhuman abilities mean that no simple fall would hurt us. We break away from the edges and start to skate up and down the middle of the rink.

Given that it’s a Friday afternoon and most people are still at work, the ice skating arena is pretty deserted, with only a few other people skating. As such, Skylar and I are able to skate through the centre at ever increasing speeds and confidence, racing against each other to the other side and laughing heartily as we slam into the barriers, breaking our momentum with our hands.

Within an hour of practice, falling becomes a distant memory. Both of us are skating confidently like we’ve been doing it for years. Laughter, yelps of play fights, chasing each other in circles, the smiles and cheers of two people enjoying themselves to the fullest, are heard and seen all over the rink. The time slips by unnoticed as we continue to enjoy each other’s company.

A moment comes, just after one of our races. We each slam into the barrier, breathing heavier than usual from the exercise. “I won!” I giggle, and Skylar chuckles softly, looking at me and smiling. “I’m having an amazing time.” She says. “Me too.” I reply simply, smiling back. She leans in closer and before I know it, her lips are pressed against mine. We kiss gently, closing our eyes and giving ourselves to the moment. Then we separate, each of us blushing.

“Was that your first kiss?” I ask her, fighting my embarrassment. She nods, colour rising to her cheeks. “You’re a great kisser.” I tell her, and her smile widens. “So are you.” Without another word, we hold hands and head back to the change rooms, grabbing our bags and changing back into the clothes we were wearing before.

Still hand in hand, we return our skates and head back to the car. Not a word is spoken between us, and not a word needs to be spoken. The look in her eyes, the smile, the sheer happiness she radiates, say it all. The silence is comfortable as we start the drive back. Skylar and I remain holding hands the entire time.

Once we arrive back in front of the Burgess property, Skylar stops the car and turns for me. “I know what I want. This date was to see if it feels right. It does feel right.” I kiss her hand gently and smile at her. “I’m glad you feel it. It feels right to me too. Are you alright?” I ask, as Skylar’s smile turns slightly strained.

She nods, looking down for a moment before looking back up at me, her eyes locking with mine. “I’m alright, just nervous about what’s going to happen.” I rub my thumb softly over the back of her hand to reassure her, speaking as warm as I can. “You’ll be fine. The other two love you just as much as I do. Whatever happens, we all share a special bond. Whether or not you join our polycule, that isn’t going away.”

Her expression softens and she nods. “Thank you Gemma. Let’s do this then.” We get out of the car, and she presses the button on her keys to lock it, before we head inside the barrier. Opening the gate, we cross the grass area hand in hand, a gentle but happy swing in our step. We knock on the door and there’s only a second of a delay before Mia opens it.