"So boring..." the detective, Sherlock Holmes, complained as he puffed a ring of smoke in the air.
It was one of those days where everything seemed slow. Since he woke up this morning, he had been incredibly bored. Nothing could entertain him. There was no crime case worthy to be solved and his crush was nowhere to be found. So, for the past three hours, he had been slouched on a park bench, smoking cigarette after cigarette.
Sherlock threw the cigarette butt on the ground and crushed it. As he searched for his cigarette box, he glanced on the side and saw a familiar blond head skating around in the rink. A large smile appeared on his face and he ran toward the ice rink.
"Hey, Liam!" Sherlock shouted.
The math professor, William James Moriarty, stopped skating when he heard his nickname, and he turned his head in the direction of the voice. He smiled warmly when he saw Sherlock and skated to the edge to join him.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Holmes. What brings you here?"
"To see you, of course! I looked for you everywhere!" he crossed his arms on the edge and leaned forward. "I would never have thought that a noble like you would know how to skate."
"I learned when I was younger. I used to go to the rink with my brothers when times were tough at home and I learned eventually."
"Is that so? Then, you must have the attention of a lot of female students... and male students too," he winked.
William laughed, feeling a bit embarrassed by the compliment. "Do not exaggerate."
They kept talking for a while, and Sherlock tried to learn more about William's childhood, but he stayed brief on the details, to Sherlock's disappointment.
When their conversation ended, William skated for a while longer, and Sherlock stayed to watch him, smiling tenderly. There was still so much he didn't know about him. He was impatient to discover all the secrets that were left to be found.
Over the following days, Sherlock went back to the ice rink, hoping to find William there. At one point, going to the rink had become an excuse to see and spend time with William. Aside from the rink, every time he came across him, the blond noble was always busy with something, or he was with someone that stopped him from talking to him, so his visits to the rink were like his own little thing with William.
Sherlock was sitting on a bench and watched William skate. He was completely hypnotized by his performance on the ice. He looked so serene and free. Sherlock never saw that side of him before.
All these new discoveries made him love William even more.
On one day, as they were leaving the park, Moriarty had proposed: "How about we skate together next time?", and Holmes had frozen on the spot.
Obviously, spending time with William – or going on a date with him in this case – was no refusal, but there was one tiny detail.
Sherlock couldn't skate. He didn't know how. Unlike William, no one ever took him to the rink and gave him the chance to learn. The last thing he wanted was to look ridiculous in front of Liam.
How the hell was he going to learn how to skate on ice in only a few days?
Damn it, why are these skates so uncomfortable?, Sherlock thought as he walked awkwardly towards the rink.
The detective watched William enter the rink, comfortably gliding on the ice, and he gulped. Skating was just standing on ice and gliding on it. Just like walking on the ground. It shouldn't be that hard, right?
There goes nothing I guess..., he thought before entering the rink.
But as soon as Sherlock stepped onto the ice, he slipped, almost falling flat on his back. Both his hands clung tightly to the edge, preventing him from falling, and he didn't dare to make another move. He clicked his tongue. Skating was definitely harder than he expected.
"Are you alright?" William asked.
"Yup! No problem here!" Sherlock hastened to answer. "It seems that I'm no longer used to stand on skates!"
The blond stared at the detective, deadpanned. He skated closer to him and asked: "You don't know how to skate, do you?"
Holmes laughed nervously. "No I don't."
William smiled. "It's okay, I'll show you how," he handed his hands towards him. "Come on. Give me your hands."
Carefully, Sherlock let the edge go and grabbed William's hands. He glided in his direction slowly and when Moriarty started to move backward, his grip on his hands got tighter. It made William laugh.
"I won't let you go, don't worry."
"I am not worried," Sherlock said, but then he made a misstep and almost fell on William. The blond chuckled.
"Keep your skates straight. You won't stumble like that."
The detective followed his advice and placed his skates properly. The two men kept skating hand-in-hand and after a while, Sherlock got more comfortable and glided faster than earlier.
"See? You are doing great!" William encouraged him.
"It's normal; I have such a great teacher!"
Liam chuckled. "And you are a good student," they both stopped skating. "You should be proud of your progress."
Sherlock smirked, and he ran a gloved thumb over William's bottom lip. "May I get my reward now, Mr. Moriarty?" he rested his palm on his cheek and leaned closer, happy to finally be able to kiss those lips. When their mouths were only a few centimeters apart, William leaned away and began to spin around with Sherlock.
"Wahh!" the dark-haired detective shouted, holding the blond's hands terribly tight.
"Next time, we will work on your spins, alright?"
"H-hey, wait! I barely can stand on my skates on my own!"
"Then, we'll work on that..." he let go of Sherlock's hands. "Starting from today!" He skated away towards the edge, leaving Sherlock alone in the middle of the rink.
"You little--" Holmes grunted. He shook his head and looked at William with a tender smile.
I can't believe I'm in love with this bastard.
"Come on. You can do it."
Moriarty watched Sherlock as he tried to skate on his own, but he hadn't moved for the last ten minutes. At one point, he wondered if he wasn't doing it on purpose so he could hold his hands again.
"It's okay if you fall, you know."
"The last thing I want is a broken nose!" retorted Sherlock.
"So, the famous detective Sherlock Holmes does care about his image," the noble laughed and the detective grunted in annoyment.
"If you feel like you're falling, bend your knees," William continued. "You'll keep your balance."
Sherlock nodded. He started skating again; at least he tried to but stopped to bend his knees when he felt he was falling.
Maybe he needs some motivation..., Liam thought.
He glided towards Sherlock and kissed his cheek. The detective's heart started to pound hard inside his chest and he looked at Liam, his cheeks slightly flushed.
The blond noble smiled. "If you manage to do a full lap without falling or tripping, maybe I'll consider rewarding you with a kiss on the lips."
Sherlock grinned. "Just watch me!" He began his course, skating near the edge, being careful not to fall or stumble. He was determined to get that kiss.
William never took his eyes off Sherlock. Going to the rink used to be a real-life escape and a way to forget about all the sins he committed. Now, for a few days, Sherlock had become this escape.
Meeting Sherlock was truly the best thing that ever happened to him
