Work Text:
Thomas and James always did something special together on the weekend. Whether it was going to the library, going on a small shopping trip, or even just staying home to watch movies and snuggle, they always found something fun to do.
And this weekend? They were going to the rollerskating rink.
They had already paid for their tickets and their skates, and now they were getting everything laced and ready. Thomas had gotten blades, since he found them easier to use and thought they were more fun than skates. James, on the other hand, had chosen skates, because they seemed much easier to use. He had only roller-skated once before, after all, and that had been a long time ago. He doubted he could balance properly with blades.
Thomas sighed happily as he finished lacing his blades. Then he leaned back on the bench, rolling his feet back and forth. Nice and smooth, just like he remembered. He looked up at James with a smile. “You ready to go?” he asked.
James finished tying his own laces, before looking up at Thomas. “Yeah, I guess so.” he said with a slightly unsure shrug.
Thomas grinned playfully. He hugged James against his side and nuzzled against him. “C’mon, you’ve gotta be more enthusiastic than that!” he teased. James let out a small laugh and rolled his eyes in mock-annoyance. “Alright, alright! I’m ready!” he said, his expression shifting to something a little shyer “I’m just a bit nervous… I’ve only skated once before, and it didn’t go that well.”
Thomas let out a small laugh of his own, though it wasn’t at James himself. “Well, worry not, Jemmy! Your boyfriend just so happens to be the rollerskating master.” he said with a slightly cocky grin “I can show you all the ropes, and you’ll be skating smoothly in no time.”
He pushed off of the bench and got to his feet…. or at least attempted to.
He was thrown off-balance almost immediately and fell forward, just about managing to catch the railings right before he hit the ground.
“Are you okay?” James immediately asked. Thomas nodded. “Yep, I’m alright…. I guess I’m just past my rollerskating prime.” he said with a chuckle. He supposed it made sense, though. His “prime” had been when he was fifteen, skating with his cousins during family reunions. And seeing as he was twenty-seven and everything now….. Yeah.
He managed to find his footing, before holding out his hand and helping James up. James held onto Thomas’s hand for dear life as he got to his feet. Once he found himself to be steady enough, the two men made their way to the rink.
Thomas looked over at James. “You wanna go first?” he asked. James hesitated, before giving a small nod. He let go of Thomas’s hand, holding onto the railings instead as he stepped out onto the smooth surface of the rink, then slowly, carefully started to move his feet.
Left, right, left right….
Before he knew it, he was actually starting to get the hang of it.
“This is easier than I thought it would be.” he admitted. But he didn’t get a reply.
He looked up, and it was only then that he realized that he’d made it a quarter way around the rink without Thomas. In fact, the other man was still at the entrance.
Oh. Now he felt bad.
He looked around to make sure he wouldn’t be disrupting anyone by going back. Once he was sure, he grabbed the railing and turned around, skating his way over to Thomas again.
Thomas looked up from his uncooperative skates when he heard James coming back. “Uh…. I guess I’m even rustier than I thought.” he said with a bit of playful self-deprecation.
James smiled with slight amusement. “I’m sorry for leaving you behind… I really thought you were following me.” Thomas waved it off. “Don’t worry about it, it’s nothing. You just really got into it, and you got distracted.” he said.
He took James’s hand into his and tilted his head a little. “You don’t mind going a little bit slower, right?” James shook his head. “No, I don’t mind…. I wouldn’t enjoy it if you weren’t enjoying it too.”
As they started to skate together, they stayed close to the railings at first just in case either of them fell. But eventually, they got into the rhythm of it, and started to venture further.
Thomas grinned again, his heart fluttering with joy and exhilaration. He looked over at James once more with a sparkle in his eyes. “Look at us, we’re pros already!” he exclaimed playfully.
Just as he said it, he accidentally let his right foot drift just a little too far, and James almost tripped over his boyfriend’s skate. He fell against Thomas and nearly knocked the other man down. They only managed to stay upright because Thomas planted his brake firmly on the ground before he could lose his balance completely.
They looked at each other.
They both blinked.
Then they burst into laughter.
“I don’t think we’re pros quite yet.” James said between laughs. Thomas snickered and pressed his temple to James’s. “Yeah. It’s probably best that this happened before I suggested twirling you, huh?” he remarked.
They leaned against each other a bit more firmly and corrected their positions, then they started to skate again, gradually becoming more and more steady.
“You’re doing great, Thomas.” James said with a small smile. Thomas smiled back at him. “You too, Jemmy.”
Before long, they had made their first full lap around the rink. They were pretty steady now, so Thomas started to go faster, with James following suit. And soon enough, they were gliding along gracefully, unable to keep from laughing together from how fun it all was.
“Do you think we could try that twirl now?” Thomas asked playfully. James took a moment to think it over. He was still nervous, but he wanted to try it. “Well… alright.” he finally replied.
Thomas held James’s hand up and twirled him around, before pulling him back in against his chest. “See? We’re getting the hang of it!”
James - who had had his legs locked to keep from falling - leaned against Thomas and let out a soft huff, half-amused, half-exasperated. “We’re getting better, at least.” he said.
The music that had been playing in the background stopped, and someone’s voice came over the intercom. “Hey, skaters! Please clear the rink, the games will be starting soon!”
Thomas’s eyes immediately widened in delight. He looked over at James with an excited expression. “Oooh, I wonder if they’ll play ‘six sections’.” he said eagerly.
James raised an eyebrow as they skated over to the exit. “What’s ‘six sections’?” he questioned.
Thomas genuinely looked surprised. “You don’t know what ‘six sections’ is?” he asked in return. James shook his head and stepped out of the rink. “Mm-mm. I’ve only done skating once before, remember? And I didn’t stay long enough for the games….”
Ah. That made sense. Thomas probably should’ve considered that. How would James know about skating games when he hadn’t been participating in the sport and its culture for years like Thomas had?
They sat down on one of the benches against the wall. James’s lack of knowledge was nothing to worry about. The game was fairly simple, and thus, it’d be simple to explain.
“Right… So, you see those numbers on the different parts of the wall? Like in the corners and stuff?”
“Mhm.”
“How the game works is they play some music for about fifteen seconds or so. While the music is playing, you have to go to one of the six sections of the rink. When the music stops, they roll a huge foam die, and if it lands on the number of your section, you’re out. Whoever’s left at the end wins.”
James nodded as Thomas explained. It was a lot simpler than he thought it would be.
“I actually like the sound of that. It sounds…. pretty fun.” he said. Thomas grinned again. “It is, trust me. It was one of my favorite rollerskating games when I was younger. It probably still is.”
One of the employees walked out onto the rink holding a giant foam die. “Alright, first up, we’ll be playing ‘six sections’!” she announced into her microphone.
She explained all the rules, and then everyone that wanted to play the game skated onto the rink again - including James and Thomas, of course.
“Ready?”
“Set?”
“Skate!”
Some upbeat, disco-esque music started playing over the speakers, and everyone started to make their way towards the section of their choice.
“So, where are we going?” Thomas asked. James looked around. “Uh… I think three would be good.” he decided. They went to the center of the wall on the left side of the rink, and the music played for a few more seconds before stopping.
The die was rolled, and it landed on five. Those that were in the “5” corner left, and once they were off of the rink, the game continued.
Eventually, only James and Thomas, another couple, and a lone person were left.
The next time the music started playing, James and Thomas headed over to the “6” section. “Man, we’re doing good, Jemmy.” Thomas said “This is more fun than I remember.” James nodded “I’m a little upset I didn’t get to do this sooner….” he said, his expression becoming a little embarrassed “But then again… it might be my fault that I didn’t.”
Thomas chuckled. “Well, at least you’re making up for it now, right? And I think you’ve earned the title of ‘rollerskating master’ too.” He sighed dramatically and leaned against the railings on the wall. “I can’t believe I’ve been dethroned by my own lover… oh, the tragedy.”
James huffed in amusement. “Thomas, I could barely do a twirl with you guiding me. I don’t think I can be considered a master.” Thomas reached his forehead against James’s temple and pressed a quick, playful kiss to the other man’s cheek. “Not yet, anyways.”
They looked up as the die hit the ground again. Two. The lone person was out. It was the two couples now.
The girl who had been rolling the die must have noticed it too, because not even a moment later she said: “Looks like it’s time for a change of rules! Since we don’t want to separate either of these lovely couples, instead of doing last person standing like we usually do around here, we’ll be doing last duo standing!”
Thomas let out another dramatic sigh, though this one was relieved. “Phew. I thought I was gonna have to betray you, babe. But it looks like we’re stuck together.” he said with a wide grin, taking one of James’s hands into his again.
James smiled mischievously as he and Thomas skated over to the “4” corner. “Who said that I still can’t betray you?” he asked, giving Thomas’s hand a small squeeze.
He rarely ever found himself in the mood to be mischievous - the most he ever was was “teasing” or “playful” -, but this whole thing was just so fun, he couldn’t help himself.
Thomas found himself feeling even more excited (if that was even possible). It was a real treat whenever James got more playful like this. Don’t get him wrong, he loved James’s usual calmer, sort of witty sense of humor, but he still really liked it when James let himself loosen up a bit.
He put a hand on his chest and gasped. “Jemmy! I just got over the stress of betrayal being a possibility, and now you’re insinuating that you’ll actually go through with it? Do I even know you anymore?” he said in an almost sob-like tone.
They both laughed as they stopped in the corner. Their attention was quickly drawn to the die again. Now it would be rolled until it landed on either four or six… and of course, James and Thomas didn’t want it to be the former of the two.
The die was rolled, and it rolled, and rolled, and rolled, spinning on its corner until it landed on….
“And six is out! We have our winners!”
A few people around the rink clapped. Thomas playfully bowed, nudging James to do the same. James smiled in exasperated amusement before bowing as well.
Thomas glanced over at James with an incredibly mischievous grin. “You think it’s time for a little victory twirl?” he asked.
James let out an incredibly amused sigh as a small smile crept onto his face once more. “Oh, alright.” Thomas twirled James around again, before pulling him in for a kiss.
They eventually pulled apart and made their way off of the rink again. They’d definitely found a new favorite thing to do together. And the best part was that their day of skating had just started.