A/N: Hey LITs! I'm so glad everyone loved yesterday's chapter. Also, sorry, sorry, sorry this is SO late. I had a busy day, and then a doctor's appointment, and then HW, which took longer, because I was distracted and fangirling, because...SEASON 3! I'M SO EXCITED YOU GUYS. I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! Anyway, the chapter's here now. Hope you enjoy!
Chapter 15: Underneath the Tree
It was a beautiful day in New York City. The Librarians had taken to Rockefeller Center for a day of ice-skating. Above them, the world famous tree glittered and shined, even in the broad daylight.
All around, different skaters glided around the ice: parents holding up their children, friends holding hands and falling down together, lovers with their arms wrapped around each other, skating as one. The Librarians had their own diversity among them.
Eve stumbled and slipped, nearly falling every so often. Flynn, who was surprisingly good at this, held her up and guided her around the rink.
Jake, this being his first time on the ice since he was a kid, hung on to the wall, unable to hold himself up for more than five seconds at a time.
"I don't know how you do this Cassandra" he shouted.
The red-headed Librarian was towards the center of the rink, gliding with ease in smooth circles and shapes. She looked like a professional skater, even spinning and jumping without a single mistake.
"It's all physics" she explained. "Once you can see the math of the jump and the landing in front of you it's pretty simple."
"Well good for you. But for some of us this is impossible"
As Jake spoke his hands slipped from the wall, and he immediately fell on his butt. Cassandra's gloved hands flew to her mouth, stifling a giggle.
Jake was lying there on the ice when suddenly he looked up and saw Cassie standing above him, her hand outstretched.
"Come on" she said. "I'll help you"
Hesitantly, he grabbed the wall with his one hand, and her hand with the other. Working together, they got him on his feet again.
"Now you let go of the wall Jacob" Cassandra insisted.
"What? No!"
"You're never going to learn if you stay there forever. Now come on. You've got me, nothing is going to happen"
Jake looked into her bright blue eyes, and stared at her sweet smile. Ever so slowly, he removed his hand from the wall and immediately stumbled. Rather than falling though, he found himself steadied.
"You're fine" Cassandra assured him. "Just stand tall, find your balance, and then glide your feet."
"I thought you said this was all physics."
"It is. But I may have had a few lessons when I was a little girl"
Jake raised his eyebrows, the revelation not one he had expected from her. He followed her advice though, and now the two approached the center of the rink slowly, she still holding his hand.
Suddenly, Ezekiel zoomed towards them, skating backwards.
"Oh come on! Really?" Jake shouted. "Even Jones can skate better than me?"
"That's not a very high bar to meet mate" the thief snapped. Jake was about to lunge at him when he felt himself start to slip again, and allowed himself to calm down.
Nearby on the ice, Flynn and Eve were skating along, the Guardian finally getting the hang of it all. That still didn't stop them from standing as close as they possibly could. Unfortunately for them, Eve's newfound balance did not last forever, but Flynn's guard was now down. So, when she slipped again, they both went tumbling to the ice.
After the initial shock and wince of pain, they looked at each other and started laughing. They kissed, and were about to climb back to their feet, when they heard Cassandra calling from a few feet away.
"Smile!" she chimed.
They looked up, and before they could protest, she'd snapped a picture of them with the phone. The couple found their way to their feet, regained their hold on each other, and skated away.
The mood was cheery and light, until the all too familiar smirk on Ezekiel's face disappeared. He was staring at something in the distance, the look on his face unlike anything they'd seen from him before.
"Jones" Jake said, unable to not be worried. "You okay?"
"Yeah" the young Librarian stumbled. "It's just…"
"Just…"
"That girl over there, the blonde in the blue windbreaker. I think I used to know her"
"What?!" Cassandra gasped. They knew nothing about Ezekiel's past. If something was about to come up, she wanted to absorb every bit of it.
"Yeah well, it was back when we were teenagers, in middle school. I was in this foster home and she lived next door. We went to school together. I guess we were sorta best friends"
"You had a friend?" Stone asked.
"Haha very funny Stone." he was serious, more so than they had ever heard him, save for that day in the video game. "No, really. We were really similar. We taught each other tricks of the trade for making mischief. She was the only reason I stayed as long as I did"
"What do you mean?" Cassandra said.
"I ran….look this is not explore Ezekiel's past day! You don't need to know everything"
Cassandra pouted, but Jake was now engaged with the kid he'd begun to see as somewhat of a little brother.
"Dude, you've got feelings for this girl?"
"NO! Maybe? I don't know. I thought, at one point. It doesn't matter. It was almost 10 years ago! She probably wouldn't even remember me"
Cassandra looked like a puppy.
"What are you waiting for? Go say hi!" she urged. Ezekiel hesitated, but before he knew it, Stone had shoved him forward, and he found himself a foot away from her.
He was sure now. The way her blonde hair fell on her shoulders: this was the girl. He took a deep breath and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned, confused, and he recognized her eyes immediately.
"Melody Finch?" he asked. She looked befuddled for a moment, before a bright smile lit up her face. Ezekiel's matched it immediately.
"Zekee!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms around him. He stumbled for a moment, taken aback by the affection, but soon returned the embrace.
"Dude!" she shouted, after they parted. "It's been so long!"
"Yeah I know" Ezekiel muttered. "It's good to see you Mels"
Behind them, Jake and Cassandra were skating slowly, practically stopped, leaning into each other and staring at their friend intently.
"Oh I hope he doesn't blow this" Jake said.
"SHHHH!" Cassandra protested. "I wanna hear everything!"
Ezekiel and Melody skated together now, immediately having fallen into a deep conversation.
"Do you remember that time we broke into Craftstein's drawer and stole the tests?" Melody said.
"Of course!" Ezekiel exclaimed. "How could I forget out first heist?" Melody laughed.
"We were heroes that day."
"Please. We were legends" Both of them laughed now, smiling at each other with renewal.
"Mel!" Someone called from the other side of the rink. Melody turned, immediately looking upset.
"That's my roommate" she said. "I've gotta go. But let me give you my number, we should totally catch up sometime, grab a coffee or something"
"Sounds good to me" Melody pulled a pen from her pocket and quickly scribbled the information onto the back of Jones' hand.
"Please don't tell me you've forgotten how we say goodbye." She said.
"How could I ever?!" Jones proclaimed.
Jake and Cassandra watched as the two started doing some complicated handshake. Jake was silent. Cassandra giggled.
"Text me!" Melody called as she skated away. Ezekiel smiled down at the number on his hand, and turned to find that Stone and Cassandra were right behind him.
"Oh Merlin what's wrong with you two?" he shouted. "And you call me a creep!"
"Wait" Cassandra called as he turned away.
"Are you gonna call her?" Jake asked. Ezekiel looked back and forth between them and couldn't contain his smile anymore.
"I think so" he said. "Yeah"
A/N: I've gotten a few requests for Ezekiel centrics and romance, and this wasn't a part of my plan initially, but then I devised this character for him in my head and I couldn't resist. And now I want to write a whole multichap about them. But I have like 5 other ideas and a bunch of other ones I still need to finish. Also, thanks to my friend Becky for the "Flynn was surprisingly good at this" line. Ten days left! See you tomorrow with "Wrapped in Red". HAPPY SEASON 3 LITS! WE DID IT!