Roller Rink Blues

"Come on. Get up."

The southern voice of Operetta rang through Jackson's ears, and he groaned. He rolled over on his bed to face away from her and pulled the black covers of the bed up and over his shoulders.

"Jax. You've been in your bed all day! Come on, we're going skating."

He turned his head to glare at her and stuck his tongue out. She was not in the mood for his antics and walked over to snatch his covers off.

"Up. Get."

He groaned loudly and sat up with his feet over the edge of the bed. He glared up at her but eventually got up and walked to his clothes cupboard. Operetta went around his room, tidying up a little while the normie got dressed.

He came out in a comfy looking yellow sweater and some loose-fitting brown pants. His hair was pulled into a sloppy bun at the top, and he grunted as he reached down to pick up his roller skates. They were a shiny green colour with blue wheels. A gift from the phantom girl in front of him.

She took his hand and led him down the stairs to the garage. She threw her own skates in the back of Valentines car and hopped in the passenger. Jackson stared at the driver's seat and lazily dropped his skates into the back of his boyfriends car.

"You want me to go skating, and I'm the one driving?"

"I can't drive, darl." replied Operetta with a sympathetic smile.

He sighed and hopped into the driver's seat, turning the keys and getting the car started. The drive to the roller rink was relatively quiet. The radio was on, but quiet enough to not trigger Holt out.

They pulled into the carpark for the rink, and Operetta quickly got out to grab both their skates. Jackson walked inside and pulled his card out to pay for admission before Operetta pulled out her own cash to pay.

"Come on, Jax, I might have made you drive, but I'm not letting you pay."

He smiled softly at her and walked over to the plastic chairs that lined the outside of the rink. They both sat next to each other to change into the skates.

Operetta slid her covers onto her calves before putting on her skates, lacing them tight, then slipping the covers over them. Jackson slid his skates on, laced them to the 2nd top, then rolled his feet back and forth quickly to gauge the speed.

Operetta stood up, fixed her outfit, and spun around to pull Jackson up. He stumbled slightly but smiled and gripped her hand. The pair glided over to the entrance of the rink, where Operetta let go of Jackson's hand and spun around to look at him.

"I haven't skated in like... a month." He mumbled while shakily stepping onto the smooth surface of the roller rink.

"That's the point of going today! And also cause some sad sack wouldn't get out of bed." She poked the joke at him, and he held his tongue out at her.

Once he found his balance, he managed to get a good enough speed to catch up with Operetta.

From playing Skulltimate Rollermaze, Operetta was a wicked skater. She shot off fast and was across the rink in a matter of seconds. Jackson just blinked and pushed on his back foot harder to drive himself forward.

He caught up to her again, slightly panting, and she spun around quickly to skate backwards, facing him. She took his hands and gently crossed her feet, one behind the other to turn the corner. Jackson did the opposite, crossing one foot in front of the other to turn the same way.

"Ready to spin?"

"Ready to wha-!?"

Operetta stepped her feet over hers sharply and quickly, managing to swing Jackson so he was now the one skating backwards. He yelped in surprise and stumbled on his wheels, almost falling over. Eventually, his brain kicked in, and he bent his knees and slowly glided back, occasionally flicking his feet out in front of him to glide back slightly faster.

"That's it, darl! Keep that rhythm!"

Jackson looked up at her for a brief moment, and she saw that he was smiling. The first smile she had seen in a while. He stared back at his feet, making a very hard effort to cross his feet over correctly so he didn't fall while turning.

He looked back up to her with a wide smile and gripped her hands tightly.

"I think I'm ready to spin back around..."

She nodded and grinned, stepping her feet around again and swinging Jackson behind her so he was skating forward again. He stumbled again before gliding easily next to her.

The pair skated forward and held hands as they turned the corner, their feet stepping over in a synchronised glide. Operetta sped up and turned the next corner to the longest straight of the rink. She sped up again and bent her knees deeply. She then sprung off her heels and jumped a far amount before landing and gliding speedily towards the next corner.

She threw her arms into the air and shouted a celebration while Jackson watched with his mouth hung open in shock. God, she was amazing...

He sped up himself to try the jump. He sprung off his heels and did a small bunny hop before landing shakily back onto the track. He clutched at his chest and laughed nervously.

"I- I did a little jump." He squeaked out to Operetta, who skated back over to him and patted his back.

"And you did great, sugar!" She cheered for him.

He smiled thankfully at her and skated to the exit to sit down for a break. He realised that he had forgotten his water bottle and groaned. He was about to get up to pay for one from the counter when Operetta came swinging by again.

"Hey! What did I say about paying. Here, take this."

She passed him a $10 note, and he smiled at her softly. He bought the water and sipped on it slowly while he sat down to watch the beautiful Phantom dance to her favourite songs.

Maybe coming out to skate wasn't as bad as he thought.