• If I could turn back time •

7. He Can Love

"You don't understand; it's not that he can't love, it's that he's afraid to."
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A/N: There is a part where I recommend playing music! I'll tell you when and what song to play! Please do it, it'll make the scene so much better!
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Dinner was amazing. The food tasted better than anything I had ever had before, and Steve was even kind enough to buy milkshakes after I told him about the memory. It really was just like old times again, except we were older and the world had changed more than we could possibly fathom.

It was still snowing when we left the diner. A light layer of white dusted the sidewalk, revealing the paths of those who walked through it. It wasn't very late, probably only 7 o'clock. Steve was telling me all the things I'd missed, like the Star Wars movies, new music, etc. I couldn't write any of it down since I didn't have my journal, so I had to trust my memory.  I loved listening to him talk. He got so excited over little things, just like he used to. I was smiling so much that my jaw was actually starting to hurt. It was a good thing, though. I was becoming happier.

We were about halfway back to Steve's apartment when he got particularly excited about something.

He lightly nudged my shoulder and pointed to a big circle of ice that was surrounded by short walls. "Buck, you have got to try ice skating. It's so fun!" He exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear.

I chuckled and stared at the ice for a moment. I had never tried ice skating, I wondered what it was like. If Steve said it was fun, it had to be. I trusted him. "Okay. If you say so, Stevie. But if I fall on my ass, you better not laugh at me." The last word had barely left my mouth when Steve took me by the hand and led me over to the rink. My cheeks grew hot, but luckily it was too dark to see my blush at the moment.

He brought me over to a small building with a window, where a person was standing on the inside of the building. He gave them money and got skates in return, handing me my pair and gesturing for me to follow him over to a bench. It took me a while to figure out how to lace them up because my fingers were like icicles, but I eventually figured it out.

When I stood up, I felt like a giraffe on stilts. My legs  wobbled this way and that and my ankles threatened to snap sideways if I couldn't keep my balance. "Geez, how're you supposed to stand with these?" I snickered, trying to walk around and ending up grabbing for the wall before I fell. "It's like standing on toothpicks!"

"You'll get the hang of it." Steve replied, laughing at my attempts to stand while he easily walked over to where the ice met the rubber mats of the bench area. "Just watch me." He grinned and stepped onto the ice, immediately gliding across its glossy surface like it was nothing. I was dumbfounded.

I was determined to show Steve I didn't need help, so I wobbled my way over to the ice. As soon as I stepped on, my feet flew out from underneath me and I fell on my ass. Of course, not listening to what I had said earlier, Steve started laughing at me as he came over to help me up. I huffed, but took his hand anyways and hauled myself up. My face flushed up again when I almost fell into Steve and I quickly backed up, grabbing the wall for support. Steve was just giggling at me the whole time and I shot him a playful glare.

"C'mon, Buck. I'll help you." Steve smiled, holding out one hand for me to take. "You'll get it in no time!"

"Says the guy who can just glide effortlessly across the ice like an angel." I retorted, graciously taking Steve's hand and gripping it tightly when I felt my skates slipping again. God, this was harder than it looked. I didn't even realize what I had said until I saw the heavy blush on Steve's face. What did I say?

"You think I'm an angel? Aw Buck, you're so sweet!" Steve laughed, playing it off rather well by smacking me on the shoulder.

Oh god, I really said that out loud? Now I was the one blushing as I ducked into my jacket. "Yeah yeah...." I mumbled, silently dying on the inside. Why did I say that?!

Steve just laughed again. "Okay, just try to keep your balance. I'm right here if you fall."

He slowly started to skate along the wall, making sure I was alright before continuing. I tried to imitate the smooth movements he was making with his skates, but the front part of the blades on my skates kept catching on the ice and jerking me forwards. Eventually, I got the hang of it and wasn't stumbling as much anymore. I had been focusing so much on not falling that I didn't even notice the music that started playing.

[Start playing "It's been a long, long time" by Harry James if you want the full experience!]

Steve looked equally surprised too. It was an old song, one that would've most likely been popular during the time we were just young men. As it played, I found myself blushing even harder than before. It was a love song, of all songs! I took a quick glance at Steve and saw that he was blushing too. My grip on his hand tightened when I felt one of his hands slipping around my waist. "S-Steve..." I stammered.

"It's okay, just relax." Steve whispered back, giving me a reassuring smile as he turned and went in front of me, essentially going backwards. He slowed his pace so that it wasn't too fast for me to keep up, adjusting his hands so that one was holding one of my hands and the other was set on my left hip. He wanted to dance! I don't know how to dance, especially on ice!

I gulped nervously, trying to relax and listening to the song as it played. My face felt like it was on fire as Steve led me along in the slow dance. I couldn't meet his gaze for the first minute or so, I was too scared to. Eventually I gathered the courage and looked at him. Those baby blues, those ridiculously long eyelashes, those rosy cheeks, and those perfect lips... it was almost too much for me to bear. I slowly relaxed into the dance and moved smoothly with him across the ice. It was like it was just us out there. I was loving every moment of it.

When the song slowly began to fade and we stopped our dance, Steve did something unexpected. He pulled me closer and leaned forwards, tilting his head ever so slightly. I was too surprised at first to even do anything. When I snapped out of it, I couldn't help myself and just closed the distance between us. Kissing him felt like there were pop rocks on my lips, almost like tiny fireworks going off. The kiss quickly became more passionate and I closed my eyes, enjoying the moment I had been waiting so long for.

It was the end of a perfect night.

A perfect night with the man I loved.

A/N: YESSSSSS! Gosh, you have no idea how long I've been wanting to write that! I had to write some stuff before it to make it fit and I was so excited to finally write it!

I think I might die from the cuteness.... 😂 I kept listening to the song while I wrote because it's such a good song!!