Friday nights in New York were always the busiest. The crowds suddenly got larger, like ants scuttling out from their nests to rush home from work. The traffic was horrendous, tired business men beeping their horns as they queued for hours on end in the bustling streets, anxious to get home to their families, or in Sam's case, his dog. Living alone in the big city could be lonely sometimes, with most of his family back in Lima where he left them, but with a few of his friends from high school living just down the street, he managed to get by.
After finally making his way through the city, just as the sun was going down and the evening sky was closing in around them, he reached his small apartment in Manhattan. Sam rummaged in his trouser pocket, pulling out his worn out set of rusty keys to the place and unlocked the door. Entering the flat, he chucked his keys on the wooden kitchen counter, wandering over to his phone and pressed the dial-back button, hearing he had a missed message from Puckerman.
"Hey, bro. Just wanted to let you know there's a load of us going to this ice-skating rink tonight. Rachel and a few of her friends are going, and she's insisting I come too. Come for moral support for your bro? We're leaving at 7, give me a ring back if you're interested." The familiar click sounded as the message finished, and he hung up. Considering he had nothing better to do, he pulled out his mobile and sent his friend a quick text confirming the fact that he was coming, and realised the time. They were leaving in five minutes.
Sam immediately started taking his suit off, unhooking his tie from round his neck and discarding it on the floor. He shook off his jacket, not even bothering to undo the buttons off his shirt as he pulled it over his head. He quickly scanned his wardrobe for something appropriate to wear and opted for a navy V-neck sweater, slipping it on over his head and shoving on a pair of jeans. He jogged out of his apartment, slamming the door as he flew down the stairs, speed-walking round the corner until he reached their apartment block. He ran into the group as they were coming out, knocking into a small blonde woman at the front. He caught her eye, smiling softly at her as she looked up at him, a smile tracing her lips before looking away.
"Bro! Didn't think you'd make it." Puckerman grinned, slapping his back as he greeted Rachel.
"This is Quinn. She works with me." Rachel introduced the small blonde girl, as she turned to face him. "Nice to meet you, Quinn." Sam smiled, holding out a hand. She shook it, this time fully returning the smile. "I'm Sam."
"Well, we better get going." Muttered Santana from the back, her boots clicking on the ground as she led the way to the busy rink, the lights from nearby buildings now guiding the way for them as the sun disappeared out of sight. Rachel and Puck walked hand in hand, staring up at the massive buildings. No matter how long they had lived there, the sheer beauty of the city never ceased to amaze them as they walked along open-mouthed. They walked along, making aimless chatter as they came upon the beautiful outdoor rink, lit up by fairy lights and decorative lamps. The group paid their entrance fee, struggling to put the heavy skates on until they got out onto the cold sheet of ice.
Sam had always been rather good out on the ice, spinning along the frozen ground almost effortlessly as his jacket caught the air, making it flap behind him. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the girl he had met earlier struggle to stay standing and he quickly turned around, getting to her just before she hit the ground as he grabbed her arm, stopping her from making contact with the cold ground.
"You okay?" he chuckled, helping her steady herself as he took Quinn to the side. "Yeah, I'm... I'm fine." She giggled, blushing slightly. "Thanks..." she murmured, her hair falling into her face.
"Don't sweat it." Sam laughed, his breath clouding in front of him. "How about we get off the rink for a bit, go to the café? Wouldn't want you having any more accidents." He smiled, still supporting her arm, almost not wanting to let go. "Yeah, that sounds… that sounds nice." Quinn replied gently, moving slowly round the rink to the café on the other side, the hand holding her up making her feel better about moving on the slippery surface.
"I don't even know why they brought me here, Rach knows too well I don't ice skate." She laughed breathlessly as they reached the seating, shuffling along the comforting carpeted floor to some seats. They sat there for quite a while, talking about themselves and just generally getting to know each other. The collection of empty coffee cups on the table grew larger and larger as time went on, until Santana stumbled upon them.
"Where the hell have you guys been?" she asked, sitting herself down next to Quinn. "We've been looking for you lot. We were supposed to leave half an hour ago." Sam looked down at his watch. "Oh god, yeah… sorry about that." He chuckled, getting up.
"The rest of them are off their faces, I probably shouldn't have left them by themselves. I swear, every time we go out together, I'm like their babysitter." Santana rolled her eyes, getting up too as the group changed back into their normal shoes. They walked back round to the lobby, were Puck stood up, stumbling over to Sam.
"We found 'im! Ay.." he slurred, embracing him in a tight hug. "Hey man.." Sam laughed, prying the drunk man off him. "We should probably get going."
"Guys? There's a, uh, bit of a problem.." Quinn muttered, looking around. "I can't find my shoes…" She sighed, bending down and looking under all the benches, even asking at the counter to see if anybody had handed them in. "No luck." She sighed, staring down at her bare feet.
Sam chuckled, untying his shoes and throwing them over to her. "Here. Might be a bit big, but.." he shrugged, laughing. "They'll do." She smiled softly, thanking him as she slipped them on, shuffling out to the exit as the rest of them followed, Sam now almost holding Puckerman up as he gave Santana the responsibility of him as the other girls giggled along the pavement. Sam walked along side Quinn, linking arms with her as they laughed at Puck stumbling down the street singing some slurred song nobody could make out. They eventually reached the block, Santana herding the drunken adults upstairs as Sam waited outside with the petite blonde.
"Tonight.. tonight was really fun, Q. I hope we can do it again sometime." Sam said softly, staring down at the beautiful girl. "Yeah, me too." Quinn replied, looking up at him.
"Can you two lovebirds please break it up, I need some help carrying Puckerman up the stairs." The Latino yelled from the first flight. She chuckled.
"I should probably go help her… I'll text you, kay?" she smiled gently, turning around and making her way up to the drunken male.
Sam grinned to himself, almost bouncing along the pavement as he made his way up to his apartment, thinking about what a success the night had been. The cold wind blew up his soft blonde hair as he jogged along, making his way into his home and closing the door gently, realising his neighbours probably didn't want to be woken up at half-12 by a slamming door.