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“Alright, here we go! All you mood makers and hip shakers, round and round we go; keep your groove on and your threads tight because we’re about to be here all night!”
Kevin called into the speaker microphone, his pink strawberry bubblegum tucked away in the corner of his mouth as he grinned almost cheesily. Sure working in the roller rink wasn’t snazzy; it was minimum wage and he often went home smelling like grease from the deep fried food he had access too on his break at the diner bar, but for a college student it was plenty enough to keep him going. Plus he would be lying if he said he didn’t really enjoy dancing from time to time.
He leaned an elbow against the barrier of the rink, watching as young teens on dates and people his age skated in a clockwise direction. The loud disco music, Don’t go breaking my heart by Elton John, only slightly overshadowed by the blaring sirens and foghorns from the bowling alley inside the establishment as Kevin’s eyes glazed over from the shining, multicolor strobe lights reflected from the disco ball above him.
“Kev, aren’t you gonna swing in?” his colleague Eric jabbed him in the side. Eric, the insanely peppy new recruit, had quickly become one of his favorite people to work with. He had dance moves, and all of these groovy ideas, Kevin just loved chilling with him out the back on breaks, but also dancing with him on the rink.
“You not got your skates on?” Kevin glanced Eric up and down from his head to his feet. Eric was wearing a bright blue get-up; them flared out pants and his navy blue sneakers. Eric’s striped shirt had the typical top buttons undone and the collar popped off over his ribbed jacket; with a neat golden name badge pinned onto the chest.
“No they have me on the counter today, they’re short handed.” He almost seemed to sulk. Kevin twisted a finger through his dark hair while pouting, catching strands of the warm blonde streak he had recently added to his bangs; Kevin really knew how to be ahead of the style it seemed.
His own dark navy high waisted jeans made his already impossible slender figure cinch in even more. The red pleather jacket tucked into his pants was well coordinated with a spotted neckerchief, and his spiffy two-toned white and blue skates were definitely not borrowed from the rental closet. Kevin knew he looked good. He always showed up to work in the best, jazziest outfits.
Kevin wrinkled his nose up. Dancing alone was never as fun, especially not among all the loved up couples. Kevin didn’t need a reminder he was single, after all. But a job was a job, and he knew either way he would enjoy it in the end.
“I’ll go when the song changes.” He said, hearing Eric scoff at his procrastination, but honestly Kevin was only contractually obligated to grace the rink one song every thirty minutes. Usually he was out there much longer, often getting lost in the groove of things and dancing the night away, but without Eric with him it made him feel less inclined to do so.
“You know if you didn’t look like a peacock every time you hit the rink maybe somebody would take a chance on you.” Eric hinted. He caught the glint in Kevin’s eye as he watched the couples unsteadily make their way around the oval, hands clasped tightly together so if one of them fell then they both would. Partners trying to impress one another by boogying on down but always being just that little too afraid to truly let themselves go out of fear they would fall.
Kevin just loved to dance, though. He wanted to be flashy and hip, and show people the best of times constantly.
“I’m not peacocking.” He huffed with a fold of his arms. A peacock was a flashy dresser, which yes, sure Kevin could be at times. Somebody who pushed the frames of fragile masculinity a little more than usual, wore their hair a little longer than average, wore bright and coordinated colors- okay maybe he was a peacock just a little.
Eric didn’t answer back to him, and almost as if on cue the next song, Dancing Queen by ABBA, began to play.
Kevin tutted as he chewed his gum. Eric grinned because he secretly knew it was one of Kevin’s favorite songs and he was just trying to act cool about it. He picked the microphone back up once more, switching the button on before announcing his arrival into the rink.
“Let’s switch it up dudes and dudettes, opposite direction let’s go let’s go!” His voice rang out towards the end as he skated over to the entrance. He called to Eric ‘ watch my microphone ’ as he stepped out onto the floor.
The usual folks who came to the rink were just content with not falling over as they skated around, but Kevin was employed to help spice up the atmosphere just a little and have some fun himself.
“That game was crazy, man!” Juyeon patted Jacob on the back as he passed by him.
“Yeah dude, you were outta sight!” Changmin joined in with the praise. Jacob chuckled at it, unlacing his bowling shoes before slipping on his oxford boots back on.
“It was nothing man, just a good game!” But his modesty was met with laughter from his group of college friends he had decided to come bowling with.
“You bowled a 180, you totally blew us out of the water!” Hyunjae added onto the praise. Jacob was far from a superb bowler, he just got lucky this time around. His friends knew that, but the way they were complimenting him so much felt like they were buttering him up for something…
“Burgers and shakes on the winner? Thanks Jakey!” Sunwoo hollered as he escaped towards the diner. Ah yes, there it was. Jacob could never really say no either so as his friends rushed off to check the menu Jacob slowly fixed his dark corduroy jacket.
He was new to this area, a student from out of town. He was very grateful for Sangyeon who practically took him under his wing and adopted him, although that could’ve been the fact that being Jacob’s RA had something to do with it. Most of his friends came from inside the college town, and brought their younger friends from back at school along with them to the alley to play. Jacob checked his shoes for scuff marks before deciding to belatedly join everyone and pay for their food.
“Roller rink.” He huffed as he walked past it. Jacob wasn’t a fan of roller skating, mostly for the fact that he couldn’t skate. But also just going around in circles constantly, listening to the same music, didn’t that get tiring? You could probably barely hear your friends over the speakers.
The bright colored lights dancing around the smooth wooden floor reflected in every possible direction and made this half of the room truly look like a disco. Couples laughed as they gripped each other’s hands tightly. Yet another reason Jacob didn’t like roller discos; they always seemed to couple orientated. He was sad, single. Fishing out of his safety zone wasn’t something Jacob was used to doing, and that usually led him to never scoring even a small fry in his net.
The comfort of the crashing sound of pins being struck in the background faded, and quirky tunes caught his ears instead. In fact, he kinda liked ABBA, he wasn’t immune to all the trends it seemed. And then something caught his eye.
Or rather, someone.
They came as a blur at first; passing Jacob by in a flash, leaving his freshly dyed, half slicked back blonde hair to flutter against his forehead and sides of his face. He felt a little stunned by the speed at which somebody had just passed him, creating a small whirlwind as they did so and it was very unlike the entire pace of everybody else out on the rink. Jacob turned his head to see what was happening. And that’s where he saw him.
Beautiful, effortlessly flowing across the floor. There was no lack of confidence in his ability to move with wheels under his feet, instead it seemed almost natural to him as he turned on his heels and began to skate backwards in retrospect to everyone around him. Jacob was stunned. He had never really paid attention to the apparent art of roller skating before but this boy was making himself a masterpiece on center stage right now as Jacob watched with astonished eyes.
For the moment he forgot about dinner, he forgot about the fact he was supposed to be the one paying too. Instead the only thing he could suddenly think about was this beautiful creature weaving their way through the bodies surrounding them with minimal expenditure, with a smile gracing his face almost like he was laughing as he rolled his arms together in mid hustle. Jacob could stand here all day and watch him as he moved to lean against the barrier to do just that.
The unnamed boy continued to skate circles around everyone. His bright personality brimming from the seams. He was captivating without even trying, Jacob was in awe with jaw slacking as he continued to gawk at him, and surely it hadn’t gone unnoticed. The boy gave him a look, it wasn’t long enough for Jacob to understand as he spun around on his skates, switching direction effortlessly again as he moved his hips to the music; but still it was enough to send electric shocks throughout Jacob’s body.
A group of girl friends passing him by must have complimented his dance moves because suddenly he was glowing with laughter as before he nodded with certainty and began to move his body with passion to the music once more, and once again he checked to see if Jacob was still watching him. Which, of course he was.
“Hey, whatcha doing? We’re starving over here!” Juyeon bumped his friend out of his trance by the hip. Jacob barely jumped, his eyes still trained on the boy in the rink as he looked like he was having the time of his life. Juyeon was all too quick to catch onto Jacob’s train of thought and smirked widely at his infatuated friend.
“Oh you scoping on Kevin, are you?” Juyeon made the statement as he joined Jacob leaning on the side. Jacob looked up to him in shock.
“You know him?”
“Yeah, goes to our place. English major, we have a class together.” And already Jacob’s eyes were back on the floor looking for him.
Kevin. Dancing around to the next song as it played, finger pointing up and down with a roll of his hips from side to side. He was so light on his feet as he skated over to the opposite side of the rink to take the microphone from another worker.
“Alright cool cats, are we feeling groovy yet? Let’s mix it up a little, grab a partner and let’s bump to this next song!”
Even his voice carried some air of playfulness, something idiosyncratic to him as he pushed back out onto the floor and began to take strangers' hands and make them dance with him. Jacob watched on in amazement. He certainly was whipped for a man he has never met before, and somebody so seemingly opposite from himself.
“You should go talk to him.” Juyeon said with a bit of a bump to his hip. Jacob’s hands gripped the barrier tighter at the thought.
“What? No-”
“Stop ogling him from across the floor.” Said with another push of his hip against Jacob’s.
Jacob gulped a little harder and felt his Adam's apple bob with anxiety.
“What do I even say? I’ve been watching you skate for the past ten minutes and thought you were pretty sweet, wanna grab a cooler? That’s square!”
Juyeon laughed at how nervous his friend was becoming at the thought of picking up Kevin. Jacob’s hands turned clammy as he gripped the rail tighter, Juyeon gave him a heavy pat on his shoulder to snap him out of it.
“Let it all hang out, y’know?” Juyeon teased, waving his fingers supposedly in a mysterious manner at him. “You’re a cool guy, I think you’d get along.”
Jacob mused over it for a moment. He didn’t even know the guy, so what exactly did he have to lose if he did try?
“But do it soon, yeah? Sunwoo gets rowdy on an empty stomach.”
“More than usual?” Jacob laughed as he reached into his pocket for his wallet and removed some cash from it. He slung it out for Juyeon to take from him before turning his attention back to Kevin.
“Just don’t trip on your shoelaces or something-”
“Yeah, yeah.” Jacob waved him off finally. He took a deep breath for himself as he watched Kevin drift between other bodies. His clothes were so stylish, his hair curled just slightly at the tips with a shimmering streak at the front. Kevin caught his eyes again and this time Jacob saw the intent behind them; come play with me . And he was about to take him up on it.
The song changed into Jive talking by the BeeJees and Kevin brought his speed down to a saunter as he skated over to the side to rest himself against it. Eric leaned over the rail, talking to Kevin who, with a smile on his face as he tilted his head back to listen. Jacob took this as his chance. Following the rail around the side he approached Kevin who was staring out onto the rink watching everybody else have fun on it.
“You were pretty groovy out there.” Jacob tried his best to act cool without looking desperate. Maybe it came across a little too sleazy, because judging by the look in Kevin’s eyes he seemed pretty unimpressed. He glanced at Eric on his other side before looking back to Jacob. Jacob felt his composure crack, as Eric looked at him too with curiosity in his eyes.
“Wanna grab a shake? I can-”
“I work here, I can grab a shake anytime, fox.” He nodded at Eric and the boy took that cue to leave Kevin with the stranger. The twist of Jacob’s stomach at that compliment was apparently as clear as day as Kevin quickly ran his eyes over his body.
He was cute, his corduroy jacket catching Kevin’s eye; he was less disco and more proper than Kevin’s usual type. More square than hippie, more papers than peace. Still Kevin admired his confidence to walk up to him in Kevin’s clear domain and ask him out in a sort of manner. Kevin supposed he could get down with that.
“You skate?” Kevin nodded to the rink, and the smile on Jacob’s face was very quickly wiped away.
“Uh no, actually-”
“Ah, too bad.” Kevin tsked. He tilted his head to the side, letting his neck elongate prettily as his waves of dark hair covered his face. Jacob felt weak at the knees again, there was something so whimsical about Kevin, in the rink and off it, that was proving to be addictive.
“I was gonna say, maybe if you came for a dance with me I’d let you buy me a burger.” Kevin pushed off the rail a little, his propulsion taking him back a few inches on his skates.
“We could split the shake.” He teased. Jacob’s jaw dropped and before he could sneak in a word Kevin moved off with the flow of the crowd.
For a second Jacob followed him around the ring, one foot stumbling over the other in an attempt to keep up. Kevin couldn’t hide the grin on his lips as he sped up a little more and left the boy behind in the dust. Jacob was dumbfounded. Was Kevin interested? He called him a fox, and was keeping an eye on him as he spun around the oval, wheels gracefully gliding as he turned backwards and forwards, shaking his hips to the music as he moved his head from side to side.
Such a tease , Jacob thought.
As Kevin came back around Jacob steadied himself. He leaned over the barrier just enough to make sure Kevin didn’t miss him, and judging by the look in Kevin’s eyes he had been expecting just this.
“Can we just-”
“Nope,” Kevin grinned playfully as he sped on past once more. His tone way too full of cheer to be an actual rejection. Jacob felt like he was being toyed with. He sucked a breath between his teeth. Feeling his pride slip a little more just knowing that Kevin knew how hard he was trying right now.
Kevin was having the time of his life. Here was a handsome guy hanging over the rink, waiting for him to come back around just to ask him on a date. Of course he was a tease, he couldn’t help but swing his hips a little more freely with that knowledge, knowing that he would be watching. The song changed again to Disco Inferno and suddenly the atmosphere in the rink rallied and other skaters cheered.
Kevin threw his head back, spinning around on his heels as he held his arms over his head happily, Jacob could feel his cheeks beginning to ache with the stretch of his smile. As Kevin kicked off to skate once more he checked to see if Jacob was still there watching him, tongue swiping over his lip as he did so. Kevin truly was a free spirit, and Jacob wasn’t shy to say he was quickly falling for him the more he watched him dance his way around the rink. His heart began to beat faster in pace to the music as Kevin once again made his way back to him.
“What about-”
“Nu-uh!” Kevin laughed one more time and now it was Jacob’s turn to throw his head back in laughter. Kevin was frustrating, but Jacob always liked a challenge. He leaned back on the barrier, letting his body extend back as he tried to think of a new plan. How could he get Kevin to stop and pay attention to him? He tapped his fingers on the rail as Kevin made his way back around and then quickly jolted forward in a bid to catch his attention once more.
“What if I-”
Kevin came to a skidding stop. Jacob thought he had won, beaming a smile from his face and almost puffing his chest out in victory until something glistening in Kevin’s eye told him not to count his chickens just yet. Kevin grasped the bar, his hands sliding his inches away from Jacob’s as he pulled himself towards him until his skates hitting against the barrier were the only thing that stopped him.
“I’m not interested unless you’re out here with me.” Kevin curled up ever so slightly underneath Jacob’s nose. It made the blonde’s heart flutter, catching the bubblegum scent of his breath as Kevin chewed on it a little more, pushing it over his tongue and blowing it into a bubble in such a teasing manner Jacob thought he was going to pass out.
Before Jacob could make a move or answer Kevin popped the bubble. Pushing off the barrier with force he disappeared back into the crowd. “Don’t be such a square!”
Jacob’s stomach churned at the thought of joining him. Gosh, he really couldn’t skate. Would it be that bad to admit it to him? To admit that he was as clumsy as a sloth with two left feet? That he had as much rhythm as a beaten up tin can? Yes, because Jacob didn’t want to appear any more of a loser than he currently was now. Besides, how hard could it be? It was kind of like riding a bike, right? Jacob could do that.
Jacob watched the others on the floor, observing how their feet moved, what they would do so they didn’t fall. Most of them seemed to move around easily with a little aid from their friends or partner’s hand. Could that be an excuse to hold Kevin’s hand? Even the thought of that was enough to fill him with the courage he needed to get out there.He could do this. He was psyching himself up because he knew it was the only way possible to get Kevin’s attention and respect once and for all.
So without anymore hesitation Jacob walked off to find the rental booth.
Kevin was entranced by the music, Disco Inferno being one of his all-time favorites he happily weaved around the scuffed wooden floor, moving perfectly to the beat of the music as he swept his hair out to the sides. Music was like a second language to him, something he understood with very little effort. It spoke to him, made him feel up and down, joy and power. It was freeing, especially on roller skates which made him feel more lightweight than he already was. The atmosphere of disco really made him shine, and he was happy even a stranger could see it.
That boy, even if Kevin knew nothing about him seriously was keen. He was handsome too, with slicked back blonde hair and a well dressed look to boot; if he could dance that would be the cherry on top of the cake as far as Kevin was concerned.
He looked back up, fully expecting Jacob to be glued in the exact same position with that cute bunny smile slapped on his face. Something Kevin had noticed first about him when he caught him gawking from the sidelines before he gathered the chutzpah to approach him. Ballsy, by Kevin’s books; that definitely ticked a few boxes. However it was Kevin’s smile faltering as he no longer saw the handsome nameless guy standing there waiting for him and something inside Kevin wondered if he pushed him too far.
He pouted to himself. Maybe being a bit too freewheeling was his problem after all, maybe he didn’t always need to be so teasing with anyone who was interested in him. Even more than that, he had hated that Eric had seen his shoddy attempt at flirting and would probably lord it over him for at least the rest of the shift if not longer.
Kevin began to skate around aimlessly, feeling less enthused now that he had missed his shot, yet still wondering if maybe Jacob had just moved to a different part somewhere.
Jacob slapped the money down on the counter in exchange for a pair of blue suede roller skates. The girl serving him originally confused as to why he was going to skate alone since it was an odd thing to do. People usually came to this place with their friends or partners. Luckily Jacob didn’t have time to explain, he ran back to the benches parked near the rink; knocking his shoes off with a kick to the back of each ankle he froze just before he was about to slip on the first skate.
Was he really going to do this? Just for a boy? One whose name he only knew from a friend, a boy who didn’t even know him at all? He looked over the rim of the barrier and noticed Kevin now seemingly lackluster as he waded around the rink. His heart sinking that the glorious aura of Kevin had been dulled by his brief absence.
Yes. Yes, he was.
He laced the boots up, steadying his breath with a heavy sigh before he tried to stand up.
Which turned out it was much harder than he thought it was going to be because in a split second he was sitting back down on the bench like he had never left it. He huffed once more, standing up even more slowly as he reached a hand out as far as he could to grab a hold of the barrier of the rink and drag himself towards the entrance.
Kevin sighed. The song changed to ‘You’re the one that I want’ by John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John and Kevin figured it was best to stay on the floor at least until this song was over. It helped that it was one of his secret favorite songs too of course. Eric announced a change in direction, the crowd shifting from anti-clockwise to clockwise. Kevin followed the flow, spinning slowly in a small loop and letting the wheels do most of the work to carry him around and then his eyes fell on the handsome face he was just missing from moments ago.
With the added bonus that he was inside the rink.
Kevin was ecstatic. Jacob’s hands were very firmly gripped onto the rail and carrying him around the edge of the rink at a glacial pace compared to everybody else, but still Kevin’s heart swelled at the fact this total stranger was even trying so hard for him. Kevin took it upon himself to finally introduce them.
“What’s the name, Mary Jane? You really came all the way out here for little old me?” Kevin grinned, he took Jacob lightly by the elbow to help keep him steady. Jacob felt his heart almost implode at the slight touch.
The growing tightness in his chest knocking him clean of any air inside his lungs, his mouth felt almost too dry to answer but as Kevin’s eyes implored more from him eventually words began to leave his mouth in a rush.
“I’m Jacob. Can we go now-” Gosh he wanted to get off this floor as quick as he got on it. With every second making him feel a little closer to the danger of falling, physically, not emotionally for Kevin.
Suddenly Kevin’s hand began to pull at his arm, erasing the safe feeling of his hands on the barrier as he found himself being pulled into the center of the rink. This was dangerous territory, yet for Kevin it was his center stage.
“Nonsense! You just got here!” Kevin beamed brightly. Jacob thought if he could just concentrate on that, that maybe he could be saved. “I asked for a dance, didn’t I?”
Kevin let out a laugh, a little more coy than Jacob had seen from just before, something so charming and sweet about it. Jacob’s lips formed a smile back, albeit a much more nervous one than Kevin’s as he felt Kevin’s grip slip away from him.
“I’m Kevin, by the way,” He said as he let go. Jacob felt frozen to the spot, the fear that one wrong move would end up in him being flat faced in many different ways. Kevin showboated a little, skating a backwards loop around Jacob who simply cranked his neck to try and watch him.
“Come on, don’t you love this song? I loved the movie.” Kevin called to him, this time his hands moving to feather over Jacob’s side to almost tickle him. The crowd continued to move around them, almost encasing them in the center as if it was becoming a private show. Jacob did his best to steady his breath.
Kevin moved in ever so closely, making sure to have either of his legs on each side of Jacob’s thigh as he twisted his hips a little as he sunk down into a half squat.
“You better shape up, because I need a man,” The moment Kevin began to sing Jacob let out a laugh. The irony sinking in of the song only hitting him just now as Kevin pressed up against his side as he came back up, wheels aiding him in a smooth turn around Jacob’s back; his hands gliding over Jacob’s shoulders.
“And my heart is set on you,” Kevin’s palms came over the top of Jacob’s jacket, fingers working their way through the ribbed material and over his chest. Surely this was a spectacle to be watching for anyone enjoying Kevin’s teasing, but no one quite as much as Jacob himself was.
As Kevin got carried away Jacob made sure not to move a muscle. Having the other practically serenade him in dance, hands contorting with the material of his jacket as Jacob’s skin flushed under it, the smile on his face began to ache with just how much fun he was having watching Kevin enjoy being in his element.
“ You’re the one that I want, ” Kevin swiveled in front of Jacob again, his own grin matching the electricity they both were feeling. True chemistry was undeniable, even if they barely knew each other and Jacob was suddenly glad he took a chance and made a totally out of the box move for himself. Jacob felt like he could live in this moment forever, feeling Kevin’s fingers lace through his own was like a dream until he realized the reality of that notion.
“Come on!” Kevin laughed as he tried to get Jacob more into the mood. He tugged on Jacob’s clasped hand to get his skates moving finally.
Quickly the smile on his face began to fumble away, his other arm coming out in reflex to maintain balance.
“Oh what, no- Kevin I can’t skate-” He protested but apparently it wasn’t strong enough to deter the will of Kevin Moon.
“You got this, ace! You’re out here, aren’t you?” And even with Kevin’s palm flat against his own he wished he could have believed those words.
Kevin must have thought it was all an act. Considering how many times others had tried to pick him up in this joint, he had seen just about every trick in the book; including the bambi legged ‘I can’t skate, can you hold my hand?’ stunt a thousand times. He let his hand slip a little from Jacob’s grasp, making the doe eyed boy panic a little bit more as he almost stumbled to take a hold of him again.
“I really can’t-” Jacob reminded him. Being unable to feel the solid ground under his feet was nerve racking, not knowing how to control the wheels on the bottom on his shoes. How did Kevin do this day in and day out? How did he make it look so effortless and not like the jellied squid Jacob was making it out to be like now.
Kevin pushed just a little more. Letting his fingertips dance on the edge of Jacob’s fingers, feather light touches imploring Jacob on to want to recapture that feeling of safety, Kevin moved just out of reach of him. Giving his body a twist as he let himself writhe to the song still playing he watched with hopeful eyes that Jacob would do something to impress him finally. But instead the boy was struggling more and more.
“Kevin, I can’t skate ” His voice strained a little more. He felt his thighs turn weak from the stress of keeping himself standing and it made him wobbly.
“Of course you can,” Kevin cooed to him with a coaxing smile. There was no way a complete novice would brave the rink just for a shot at him, that would just be unheard of.
“No really,” The wheels beneath his feet felt like they were moving of their own accord. Back and forth, back and forth. Jacob leaned forward in hopes of getting them to move in the correct direction, constantly checking the floor as if it was going to magically disappear if he took his eyes off it.
“It’s just a dance!”
Kevin chuckled a little, letting himself waver on the spot as he watched Jacob fumble. It was like watching Bambi take his first steps. Unsteady and uncertain, surely Jacob was a better actor than anyone else who would’ve given the jig up by now. His legs began to split in opposite directions as he tried to keep himself upright, and quickly Kevin was smacked with the reality of ‘ hot damn, maybe he can’t skate after all ’.
“Jacob-” Kevin’s voice was a little more serious despite the giggle of disbelief caught at the end of it. He saw the panic in Jacob’s eyes, fully round and wide as he almost began to kick to stay on his feet. Kevin was a little too late in reaching his hands out to steady him.
Jacob floundered. He flailed and faltered and stumbled in almost every direction like an octopus with its head chopped off. Limbs uselessly blundering but it was too late to save himself, or even fall with dignity as his legs flew up in the air. His body met the floor, he wasn’t sure which part of him hit it first. All he could remember was the black that came with the sharp thud which shook his brain from back to front as it met the hard wooden floor of the rink.
The music scratched to a stop. Gasps filled the air as audio was the only thing Jacob could sense right now as the ringing pain in his head didn’t let him focus on anything else. He felt like he had just boxed ten rounds with Muhammad Ali, and he definitely didn’t win a single one of them.
“Jacob? Oh my gosh, are you okay?” That was definitely Kevin’s voice he was hearing but he couldn’t tell where from. Suddenly he realized that his eyes weren’t even open, and yet the moment he tried to correct that he was filled with regret.
The disco ball was still spinning but the lights had stopped dancing. It made Jacob feel dizzy, almost nauseous as he tried to sit up, only for his body to fail him and he reached a hand to his head to try and stop the spinning.
“Can you try to sit up? Are you hurt?” Kevin’s hands came warm across his shoulders with a gentle grasp, helping Jacob sit up as the blood rushed to his head and gave him a pounding headache.
“I’m alright, I think.” He blinked a couple of times and began to realize that Kevin wasn’t the only one watching him. The entire rink had come to a standstill, eyes on him and watching with quiet whispers as Kevin knelt down by his side. “I feel like I just whited out right there.”
He felt his cheeks burn up with embarrassment. The strong pounding at the back of his head not helping as it thumped with every beat of his heart, he couldn’t believe he had just hit the deck like that in front of Kevin, never mind so many other folks who were now standing around the rink and watching him. Oh god, he knew his friends were somewhere among that sea of faces but he was too disorientated to point them out right now.
“You pretty much did.” Kevin told him, he quickly was checking Jacob for any injuries to the back of his head after his ginormous fall, eyes scanning over his hair for any matted clumps of blood but thankfully he saw nothing serious. Eric had run onto the rink to hand him a first aid kit just in case he needed it. “You really hit the deck.”
Kevin couldn’t help but stutter out a small laugh at what had just happened, which prompted Jacob into doing the same thing. It made his head throb harder, but golly did he sure feel stupid for trying to impress Kevin this way.
“So you really can’t skate huh?” Kevin pressed a hand to the back of Jacob’s head to check for any bumps, making him hiss in discomfort and wince his eyes shut as Kevin pressed down on a tender area.
“Not really.”
Kevin smirked a little, letting his fingers comb through Jacob’s hair in gentle affection.
“So you did all this to impress me.” It was a statement more so than a question and Jacob felt his face heat up more; thank god he could blame it on the concussion.
Oh he was foolish. Making a joke of himself in front of a stranger just because he thought Kevin was hotter than the sun. He wished he could run away, or even crawl at this point since he still had his skates on. Anything to get rid of the embarrassment of having to see him right now as he kept his eyes glued to the spot on the floor between them.
“That’s pretty far out.” Kevin hummed to him.
Well… Maybe it wasn’t too bad, actually. His eyes flickered up to Kevin, who was smirking just a little. Jacob chewed the inside of his lip in anticipation as he held back a laugh which would surely add to his mounting headache.
They managed to get Jacob off the rink, skates and all; and after a few minutes of his friends teasing him and not very skillfully acknowledging Jacob wanted to be alone with Kevin, he finally got what he wanted. Just him, and Kevin, and away from that hideous death trap of a rink.
“So is that shake out of the question now?” Jacob tried to hold back the wince from the coldness of the ice pack on the back of his head that Kevin had just fetched for him. The condensation already began to run through the strands of his hair, soothing the heat of his body as it dribbled down the back of his neck.
Kevin gave him a questioning look with an arch of his eyebrow.
“I don’t think the hospital serves good milkshakes, my man. You have a concussion you need to get it checked out.”
Jacob clicked his tongue, even the sound resonating from his own mouth made his headache bang harder and his ears ring louder. He knew Kevin was right. But he was worried; if he walked away after all of this… Would he ever be able to face Kevin again? Would Kevin even give him the time of day? Oh god, the shame was building up in the pit of his stomach.
He looked back up at him. Eyes running along that svelte figure, the way his high waist jeans pulled in so tightly and gave him a beautiful shape. Jacob almost thanked his concussion for making the blood rush to his head, because he could blame the blush on his cheeks on it right now as Kevin looked at him with curious eyes.
“But I heard that the diner down the street has a great juice bar, maybe you can try there.” Kevin shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, chewing his gum as he turned his head away from Jacob, yet kept his vision on him from the corner of his eye. Jacob almost fell off the bench at how chic Kevin could be.
“Is this just my concussed thoughts, or was that an invitation?” Jacob confirmed with a bit of cheek. Kevin snorted slightly as he swung his feet freely; Jacob found that adorable.
“It’s a quid pro quo solicitation.” The big words confused Jacob’s currently impaired and fuzzy mind and Kevin could instantly tell by the ruffle of his eyebrows as they almost knitted together. Kevin wrinkled his nose a little as he winked to make sure he got his message across this time. “I get off at eight tomorrow. Come pick me up, ace.”
Kevin stood up and took a few steps away, much to Jacob’s dismay because that meant their encounter was almost to an end, but his mind was still trying to catch up with what Kevin meant by his invitation.
“Quid pro quo,” Jacob muttered under his breath, the muscles of his eyes aching as he seemingly searched as an answer until it finally clicked. “What do you want in return?”
Kevin turned around; that sassy brush of his hips to one side as he placed a hand on the smallest part of his waist. Jacob gulped with a mouth as dry as the desert, the cat-like glint of Kevin’s eyes caught him off guard as he awaited his answer.
“Let me give you skating lessons.”