Rites of Passage | Damian x OC

23. A Good Friend

"'Cause I got everything right here

If I just open my eyes...Yeah, I want to be better,

But somehow I keep falling apart again...I just wish you knew how, how hard I try

It never gets easier to work things out

All I want is to find the peace inside

Yeah, all I want is you to feel alright"

~ Rnla & yaeow, "Try to Be Better (Again)"

Chapter 23: A Good Friend

Damian Wayne hated being late.

Even more, he hated when others were late... and today, that happened to be Jess. Usually, she tended to be more punctual, especially having learned that he was a meticulous and timely person, but at the moment, it was nearly ten minutes past three in the afternoon, and Damian's patience was wearing thin.

After quickly parking in the lot of the arena building he'd taken her to nearly two weeks ago, he made his way inside. The rink was relatively busy today, ice skaters moving at different speeds and sounds of chatter and blades accompanying the pop music that was playing on the speakers. His gaze landed on the girl who was performing a sit spin—he'd learned the term after she'd enthusiastically shared some of her old videos with him—in the center of the rink. As he headed down the stairs, Jess came out of the spin and straightened up, grinning at a figure who was approaching her across the ice.

Damian hadn't been aware that she was here with someone. That particular someone was... a young man he'd never seen before. Analytical skills kicking in, Damian took in the blond locks that fell over the shaved, brunette roots in the back, the long-sleeved t-shirt with sleeves pushed up to his elbows, the lollipop stick hanging from his mouth, and the sly expression on the stranger's sharp features as he returned Jess's grin, saying something to her that earned her laugh.

Green eyes narrowing, the former assassin made his way to the bottom of the stairs and then to the edge of the rink, wondering how long it would take for her to notice his presence.

It was only a moment or two. Her eyes fell onto him across the rink, the laughter morphing into realization before she glanced at her watch, then said something to the young man beside her. She skated effortlessly towards the entry door near Damian, her friend following closely behind.

"Sorry!" she told him, heading towards the benches and lockers further away where she'd locked away her belongings.

Damian said nothing, following her and feeling her friend's eyes on him. He didn't return the look, keeping his own eyes on the girl who was scrambling to open the locker and pull her sneakers out.

"I completely lost track of time," she was saying as she quickly unlaced her skates and pulled them off. Her hazel eyes turned towards Damian, filled with sheepishness and apology.

"That's unlike you," he simply said, arms crossed as he stood and watched the two of them. The blond-haired teen wasn't as much in a rush as she was. He must have been their age as well, but Damian was still trying to determine whether he had seen him anywhere before.

Jess shoved her feet into her slip-on sneakers, not looking at him. "I know, sorry. Oh... by the way," she stood and gestured with her hands. "Um, Damian, this is Kade. Kade, Damian."