His hands were unusually warm, though his cheeks were blushing from the cold. We walked out to the parking lot and made our way to buy some poutine to go. The restaurant was already serving to several hungry tourists that had gathered around the food court parking lot. The steam was coming off the blazing hot and fresh fries with warm brown gravy enveloping each potato sticks and cheese curds.
"I haven't had one this good in such a long time. The good place in my neighborhood closed down a few months ago," I munched on my food without a care.
"Uncle Smith's?' he was gorging down on his too.
"Yea! That's the one. I heard that his son opened a store in LA, and they went there to help out."
"I was in the same class as him in high school, but I haven't seen him in ages."
"Weird how people just don't exist in your life anymore, huh?" I stare out the car window, into the mountains around us.
"I know exactly what you mean. Sorta why I kept my circle small," he winked and dumped his empty food container in a plastic bag.
We drove up to the ice rink area in silence as the food settled in our stomach and the warmth spread from within our body. A handful of tourists clustered the ticket booth, but not enough to overcrowd the rink. We got out of the car and bought ourselves some tickets for a four-hour session and shoe rental.
I hadn't prepared myself for an ice-skating session and didn't bring any gloves with me. I didn't think it would even be this cold. I could feel the cold air piercing my bone through my mauve puffer jacket.
"Here, let me help," Vernon bent down from the bench to tie my shoes.
"Sorry, I wasn't sure how to secure it," I felt a bit of shame and incompetence.
"I guess people just assume everyone knew how to tie a skating lace. It could be dangerous if you do it wrong. Wouldn't want you to fall face first into the ice."
"You'll be there to help, right? I really don't know how to skate. Don't leave me. I'm serious," I started to feel the fear creeping in as we made our way to the edge of the rink.
"Don't let go. Just hang on tight and step in one foot at a time."
I followed him closely and glided along. The top of the ice was smoother on some parts and rougher with deep gashes on others. Some of the locals were skating on hockey skates and were zooming around the arena.
I was trying to be cautious as to not be hit by one of them on accident. Vernon grabbed both of my hands and taught me how to move on the ice. He pulled me along as he skated backwards, and I only almost fall twice. It wasn't as scary as I remembered.
"You're doing it! Try with only one hand now," he smiled enthusiastically.
"Okay," I furrowed my brows in concentration as I struggled to keep my balance.
"Yeah, just like that. You're doing great. Bend your knees and push out more," he skated along beside me.
I couldn't help but catch the whiffs of his perfume as the wind hit my face. By the end of our session, I could do a whole lap on my own. Though I was moving relatively slow, I only lost my balance once on a turn. I was turning to avoid hitting a toddler.
All in all, I was really proud of my own progress. Vernon seemed to be having so much fun gliding elegantly as the wind graced his face. His perfect bone structure probably made him more aerodynamic too. He was sweating and panting heavily as we skated out to the resting area.
"That was a workout and a half," he said as he took off his coat.
"Yeah, I can't believe my sweat soaked through my jacket," I wiped the sweat on my forehead.
"Here, wear mine instead. You'll get sick," he offered it.
"What about you? You're drenched."
"I'll change shirt in the car. C'mon, get warmed up."
"Thanks," I took off my jacket and wore his.
"Let's go grab some lunch with the rest of the group," he carried my jacket on his arm.
"Hey! I can hold it myself!"
"It's ok. We're just walking to the car," he smiled and held my icy hand.
We took our shoes off and walked back to the parking lot. I sat in the passenger seat as Vernon got changed at the backseat. He drove us back to the cottage and met up with the rest of the group in the hotel's restaurant area. We picked the table closest to the fireplace. The rest of the place was empty as most of the tourists had left for their adventure.
"So, what have you guys been doing since this morning?" Taylor nudged my elbow.
"We grabbed some food and visited the ice rink," I averted my eyes to the menu.
"That's all? What did you do last night then?" Lily chimed in and stared at me.
"Nothing! We just sleep peacefully," I skimmed the pages.
"You guys are boring. I thought you would've fu– "
"Afternoon, what would you like to order?" the waiter cut Eric off.
We each ordered our meal and waited awkwardly as the girls forced their boyfriends to take pictures of them. I sat opposite to Vernon in our currently empty dining table. He was breathing in the décor and view of the room as I try to play with my phone to avoid the awkward silence between us.
"Do you wanna go see the stars tonight?" he asked casually.
"What? What about the rest?" I asked.
"We can try to ask if they would like to join. But, would you want to hang with me?'
"Sure, I've never gotten the chance to see that many stars in my city. I heard that you could see the milky way sometimes."
"Hopefully the sky will be clear tonight," he started to blush.