Iceskating on 4th Street

Our skating adventure ends with a rump-tingling move.

The tree hung just behind the tiny rink. They’d crammed this ice rectangle in between two skyscrapers; it was mostly just a lounge area for launchers during the work week and they weren’t using it in this weather. A metallic ramp that you’d find at the fair led up to the Skate Shack where they rented out a few hundred ice skates to romantic couples pandering for the same Christmas photo. It was a good business most winters.

Meghan coiled herself around my arm as we shivered our way up the ramp. I’d forgotten our plans to go ice skating three times already so when it was brought up again right after dinner I couldn’t admit a fourth instance of my mind wandering off. “I want to pay for this alright?” She stated pulling her debit card out of the little wrist purse that never seemed to leave her person.

“No way! I’ve got this one,” I said lightly pushing her towards the railing. “Why don’t you pay for the rental skates and I’ll pay to actually skate- that’s fair,” I offered. There were two lines in front of the skate shack; every other couple must have had a similar discussion.

Little red netted benches were dropped on the platform in a patio design- three rows of two. Various shoes were tossed under the benches so we did the same, careful to keep Meghan’s shoes close to mine so neither of us would be a victim of a shoe thief. Skates fought my ankle, I was too swoll for my regular shoe size so I returned them for a size up; the clamps easily snapped over my feet with this pair and we wobbled off, balanced on blades and each other, towards the tiny rectangular rink.

Meghan used to dance daily; now it was a common enough occurrence but her balance wasn’t what it used to be. We treated our first trip around the rink like we were climbing mount Everest, anchored to a sturdy line atop the railing the entire way. Meghan’s legs wobbled whenever she jumped her hands forward on the rails. “Step step glide….step step glide...step step,” she recited.

I pushed off the wall, just to test myself, I was fully expecting to crash and slide across the rink blocking traffic in two ways. It would be a success if I didn’t knock anyone over. Letting my hands release from the wall, I glided forward, easily pushing my feet against the bladed shoes so they could slice into the ice. Keeping my body low, I kicked up a few more ice shavings to gain speed- unfortunately, the rink was a square and I bounded right into a wall. A gang of girls slurring their compliments to one another through freshly minted braces blockaded the tree. Through their hair lights of blue and green lit up the otherwise dull lunchroom patio space the ice rink imposed on. Meghan was taking the corner just behind me, grappling from one hand hold to the next. She was capable of small bursts forward without the wall but for some reason stayed glued to it. “We need a picture in front of this,” I said waving to the tree.

“Duh, it’s Christmas,” Meghan said, reeling herself towards me. An older man walked over to the group of girls, shooing them away.

“Now folks, we can’t stand around for too long, people’ll crash into ya,” he said motioning us along. I reached my hand out to Meghan. She took it and I led her forward, leaving the wall inches from her grasp. Just after the next corner of the rink, but three feet away from where we were, our blades hit independent rivets in the ice. Little chunks another skater had taken out with their braking had left the rink a variable moon of craters but with the constant cutting into the ice from the herd of skaters on the outside bounding from wall to wall like Meghan, most of these craters had been smoothed over.

We fell first, waving one hand like a decapitated chicken and pulling my hand down with the other. I sank with the ship, falling centimeters from her skates. “See, nothing to be afraid of now.”

“Yeah, now I’m definitely going to hurt tomorrow, and we look like idiots,” Meghan said as she reached from the rails.

“You always look like an idiot with me P.L.,” I said while pulling myself up. She offered me a hand up.

“True. Let’s just make it back to the tree, look those folks are trying to take pictures they’d probably help us out,” Meghan said already pulling her way along the wall. I brushed the ice scrappings off my jeans and bounded forward quickly going around Meghan and through a pack of children and parents. I could control it a little better if I stayed upright. Two men bounded past me, crossing through each others’ path and weaving between as many couples as they could. In an attempt to keep up, I lowered my body back down and kicked back the skates, rushing through the crowd.

All control was lost as I ricocheted off one portion of the rail back towards the tree’s railing. Meghan was eeking along, she’d meet me here before the man in the sneakers could say anything. “Excuse me, would you take a picture of us?” The couple we’d seen posing earlier asked. “She couldn’t keep her balance for the last few shots,” the gentleman said with a smirk.

“Of course, would you all take a picture of she and I when she makes it over here?” I pointed to Meghan who was about to round the corner. The couple nodded.

I stepped back and aimed the phone to frame the tree just over their heads. The young woman splashed her hair backwards and grinned. Meghan waited in the wings while I snapped three more shots of them at varying focuses. “Are these good?” I asked handing the phone back.

“Yes perfect thank you,” I smiled. Meghan handed the young woman her phone and leaned back into the wall. I grabbed her waist and balanced my back against the railing. Four pictures later and the sneakered man snuck up on our photo group, shooing our photographer away.

“You’ll cause a wreck if you just stand there,” he bellowed again.

“Yeah Meghan, get cho back up off the wall,” I skated backwards mockingly.

“You better come back around, I want another picture,” Meghan said, putting her phone away in the little wrist pouch. I made a few quick laps testing my balance with figure eights and braking. The skates could grip the ice well enough while you hit a rivet as long as you didn’t flinch and speed was better if you lowered yourself but so was your maneuvering. Every lap I could see Meghan watching me. I refused to make this just about getting that age old cliche relationship shot on an ice skating rink. We were more than that. I stopped at the far corner in front of a group that looked scary enough to withstand the sneakered man’s bellow.

“Could you take a few shots of my girlfriend and me as we come around the rink?” I asked, passing my phone off.

“Yeah, just like two or?” The girl in white cashmere but blackhole dark eye shadow.

“That would be great, we’ll be right around.” I sped off, with the phone following my every move.

Coming around to Meghan’s current spot on the railing, I grabbed her arm and tugged. “Ahh, oh Sam, jeez- a little warning next time?”

“Maybe. Come on I’ve got this picture staged. It won’t be as cheesy as the tree.”

“Won’t be as safe either,” we slid forward looking right into the nuzzle of the camera. The clink of a skate in a rivet is something you barely hear with all the other music and blustering people about but I heard Meghan’s impact. Somehow she stayed balanced on my arm and the shot was perfect; our favorite photo of the night. The white cashmere dressed lady smirked, told us what we already knew, and received our thanks with gratitude.

The photo perfectly captured Meghan nearly falling face first and my obliviousness to her crash until it was already in motion. “I told you this shot would be way better than the tree one,” I said skating backwards again. She smirked, shaking her head in silent acknowledgement. Meghan looked up and her face crashed into a look of worry like none other. A small child was millimeters in front of me, I bobbed and weaved around her but clipped a rivet and my feet flew up to a ninety degree angle of my body forcing me to crash like Newton’s infamous apple- straight down.

The pain shot up my spin. Passersby circled and bit their knuckles in sympathy. I walked on my knees to the rail and balanced myself, it was over. My legs hurt to move and my butt, the truly damaged part, shot waves of pain up and down everything else. Meghan pulled herself over to me as quickly as the wall would allow, sliding under my arms to help me along out of the rink. “This is why we just do a tree photo, definitely why we don’t skate backwards,” she said setting me down on one of the benches.

“I might like the tree shot better now…” I winced.

“Gosh, you friggin idiot...here let me help with your skates,” she pulled at the clips and yanked them off my feet. “Your photo is just a little more fun,” Meghan conceded. I leaned over, kissed her cheek and smiled.

“See, my pain in the a*s was worth it,” she laughed. I turned at gandered at the tree behind the rink. The cliche pine was beautiful this time of year.

Author's Note

A few grammar issues left unresolved.