Oh. My. Goodness. Guys, I am sosososo sorry for not getting this out. I'm honestly not overly happy with how it turned out, I had almost all of it written (apart from the last paragraph or so) and then the devil disguised as Writer's Block decided to come stay in my brain for a week, and then soccer (and school) snuck up on me, and then at that point, I was just clueless how I was going to end this chapter, so this chapter has actually been rewritten twice, and the third draft had some major edits made to it as well, and... arrgh, I'm just not happy with myself. And because I felt really bad about this being around 3 weeks late, I decided to just end the chapter where it was, so it is short, and honestly pretty lousy. I will possibly go back and do some major edits to this in the future, but for now, here ya go.

Sorry it stinks, I promise the next one will be better. Please don't hate me? At least not a lot...? (Though I understand if you do...) :'(

Ever since their kiss, Vechs and Aurey had been spending more time with each other than ever before. They were around each other nearly every day. About a week after it, they organized their first date as an "official" couple. So when there was a knock at her door one day, she knew exactly who it was.

"Hey, Vechs."

"Hey Aurey. You ready to go?" He asked. She retrieved her scarf from its hook and nodded. Once she had wrapped it around her neck, Vechs reached for her hand with one hand and reached around her to close the door with his other. As they began the walk to spawn, Vechs started a conversation.

"So, are you excited?"

"Well, I guess so." She said, sounding unsure. Vechs picked up on the uncertainty in her voice.

"Hey, I'm sure you'll be a natural." He reassured her. Despite his reassurance, Aurey was still unsure. She had never been ice skating before, so when Vechs first asked her, she didn't jump on the idea. But he eventually convinced her that it would be fun, and she gave in, saying she would go. And as they neared the frozen pond, she began to have second thoughts on her decision. He led her forward, pulling ice skates off the shelf for both himself and Aurey. He helped her put her skates on before putting on his own, allowing her to get used to the feel of hobbling along on the thin blades. They walked to the pond together, Vechs supporting Aurey, who could've been mistaken for a small child first learning to walk. Aurey stopped once they were on the edge of the ice, leaning against a tree for support. Vechs continued onto the ice, carefully stepping with one foot, then the other, picking up momentum and spinning a small circle, sliding to a stop when he faced Aurey. He held out his hand to her.

"C'mon, it's easy. Trust me." He coaxed, talking softly, yet reassuringly. One of her arms slowly began to unwrap itself from the trunk of the tree to reach out for his hand, and the rest of her came with it. She placed one foot on the ice, the sudden transfer to the wet, slippery surface causing her leg to wobble slightly. She quickly reached for his other hand as she stepped onto the ice and the two of them stood there, facing each other. Once Aurey had settled (well, as much as you could while standing on ice with only a sliver of metal holding you up), Vechs gently leaned backwards, pulling her with him as they began to slowly slide along the surface. Aurey's muscles tightened slightly at the movement, but relaxed as she got used to the pace, Vechs gently pulling her along. A small giggle escaped her mouth as she began to enjoy the situation more and more with each passing second.

"See, it's not bad at all." He said with a smile. Her nose and cheeks were colored with a bright red from the cold, and she smiled back at him as she shook her head.

"No, I guess not." She said with a small laugh, and Vechs noticed that for the first time that day, she didn't sound anxious.

"Okay, well let's try this," he said. He gently began pulling his hands away from hers, but she quickly grabbed them back, her cheeks becoming even redder as she blushed slightly. She gave a quick shake of her head, and Vechs let out a small sigh. They continued slowly around the edge of the pond. He continually tried to separate himself from Aurey, but it was to no avail. He eventually just gave up, but the situation wasn't a total loss; it was the first time he had been this close to Aurey, had this much contact with her, for an extended period of time, and he liked it.

After they had been around the circle a couple of times, Vechs decided to try and let go of just one of her hands. She held on at first, but then reluctantly released him. Their pace slowed as Aurey adjusted to the new feeling. She began to pick up her foot and attempt a walking motion, but she fell towards Vechs, knocking him to the ground. They laid for a few moments, Aurey on top of Vechs, before her cheeks grew redder from embarrassment. She moved off of him, Vechs smiling as he sat up. She stuttered out an apology.

"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to—" She was silenced by Vechs pressing a light kiss to her forehead. He pushed himself off the ground, pulling her up once he had settled himself.

"Here, like this." He said once his hand was safely in hers again. Aurey watched as he slowly pushed his right foot out and away from his body, shifting his weight to it as he repeated the motion with his left. The movement created a rhythmic swaying motion, and Aurey began to move her feet in unison with his, slow, small motions at first, but gradually picking up speed. She became very focused as she matched the rhythm. So focused, in fact, that she didn't notice when he gently slipped his hand away from hers, her arm still suspended in air, her hand holding on to an invisible one. He slowed to a stop and watched as she skated, a satisfied smile forming on his face. She snapped back into reality once she noticed that Vechs was no longer beside her. The smile faded from his face as she saw her suddenly stop and crumple to the ice. She had made it about twenty yards from him, and before he could get to her, someone else was helping her up.

"Hey, are you alright?" It was Guude who had helped her, and she smiled as he pulled her back to her feet.

"Mmhm, thanks." She said, nodding her head as she did. She turned and slid over to Vechs. He suddenly remembered he hadn't taught her how to stop, and she crashed into him, the impact nearly knocking him down. He instinctively put his arms around her to keep himself from falling, and Guude raised his eyebrows slightly at the "hug". As Guude skated over, Vechs noticed some of the other Mindcrackers were watching from the outskirts of the pond, and his face reddened, the additional color going unnoticed through his already tomato-colored cheeks.

"Hey, Aurey, you okay?" He asked, trying to break the silence that had formed. He released her, dropping his arms to his side, attempting to make it look casual. She turned and slipped to his side, facing Guude. One of her hands snaked its way into his, holding it gently. It was her way of establishing that she wasn't going to be letting go of him anytime soon—not that he minded. A sly grin spread across Guude's face.

"My my, aren't we close?" he teased, his grin widening. He saw their faces get even redder, and his face relaxed as he moved closer. "Relax, guys, I'm just kidding. I'm happy for you two." he said, patting Vechs on the back. They looked at him questioningly. They hadn't out-right told anyone they were dating, so they wondered how Guude knew. He picked up on the question they sent him. "Oh, come on, it's pretty obvious that you two are together. It's not like you try to hide it," he said, gesturing at their clasped hands. They quickly released each other, their faces a mix of surprise and embarrassment. Guude reached out, grabbing the now-unclasped hands and putting them back together. He gave a soft smile. "It's nothing to be ashamed of, I'm sure all the others would be happy for you." He skated off, leaving the two alone. They stared at each other, dumbfounded. Vechs was the one to finally break the silence.

"So, do you want to keep skating?" He asked awkwardly, his eyes still on Aurey. She looked from the edges of the pond, where people had previously been standing and watching, to the sun, which was still fairly high in the sky. She turned and gave him a small nod, and he smiled as he and Aurey took off again. This time, Aurey would occasionally squeeze Vechs's hand to be sure that he was still there. And every time she did, he was still there, right by her side as they skated.