"I am at peace. I am at peace. I am at pea-" Hartley peeked out at the ice rink from between his hands. "Nope. False alarm. I am not at peace."
"Hart, you're going to be fine," David said, rubbing Hartley's shoulders reassuringly. "It's just like rollerblading, except you're on ice instead of linoleum."
"Alright then! Since I can't do either of those, maybe we should just do something else. Preferably something that won't involve me falling on my ass," Hartley said, turning towards the exit door. He didn't exactly consider himself prideful, but - well, he had some dignity.
David sighed. "Hartley… C'mon. It'll be fun! It's not as bad as you think. I promise." Hartley shot him an incredulous look. "Look, you can hold on to me the whole time if you want."
"I… Fine." Hartley gripped David's arm like a vice. "Okay. I'm counting on you to make sure I don't fall."
David led him slowly out onto the ice. "Do you want to hang on to the wall or do you want me to lead you around the rink?"
"Um… I think I would like it better if you could help," Hartley said shakily, giving David a panicky smile. G-d, he really wasn't sure about this.
"Alright." He took Hartley's hands and squeezed them gently. "You don't have to skate like a speed skater or anything, you know. You can just glide along with me pulling you."
So Hartley begrudgingly let him do that. And he was surprisingly okay with it. It was pretty easy, just hanging on to David as he pulled him around the ice. He had to admit that it was a lot of fun, too. His long hair flying behind him like a kite, the artificially cold air turning his cheeks pink and freezing his breath, the exhilarating out-of-breath feel he got after a while; yes, he could definitely admit he was having a good time.
David skidded to a hard stop at the railing and grinned, his cheeks flushed a glowing, rosy color. "Are you having fun?"
Hartley nodded and reached up to kiss him, softly pressing his chapped lips to David's. "Yes," he whispered, beaming. And that was the truth.