Metanoia // George Ezra Fanfic

Skating Buddies

Emma bounced on the balls of her feet, waving her arms to get my attention, "Come on, Everly, let's go! We're supposed to meet them there in fifteen minutes."

I frown, concentrating on the screen in front of me as I scroll through the paper that I've written, studying it for any typos I might have made. I fiddle subconsciously with the pen in my hand, completely ignoring Emma so that I don't lose my train of thought. 

"EVERLY!" She yells, clapping her hands, "Now it's fourteen minutes!" 

I hum, "You make a very good timer."

"Ha ha, you're very funny." Emma deadpans, "You're the one who wanted to go in the first place. Get your butt in gear!"

"Yes," I say, finally reaching the end of my paper, only half satisfied that I have properly edited it, "But I also want to graduate in two semesters. I've got goals, sis. An afternoon of ice skating with boys isn't going to keep me from my dreams. I have to make sure this paper is edited."

"Everly." Emma steps in front of me, carefully grabbing the laptop and setting it down gently on the coffee table, "You work hard all the time. Take a break."

"Breaks won't make me filthy rich one day. Studying will do that."

Emma rolls her eyes, grabbing my hands and pulling me off the couch, "You're a loser."

The shock value of her words makes me laugh, "How am I a loser?"

"Only losers study."

"You say that as if I'm not okay with being a loser." I grin, allowing her to pull me towards the front door, draping my rust colored coat over my shoulders, and placing my yellow beanie on my head.

"Everly, Everly, Everly." Emma says with mock disappointment, "You've got your priorities all wrong. You see - today, we're going to go ice skating with several young men. And one of them in particular, is very easy on the eyes. You are going to flirt with him, make him fall in love desperately with you, and after this is done, he will be so enchanted with you that he will instantly hand his wallet over to you any time he sees you henceforth. This is every woman's greatest aspiration - dare I say it, the purpose of a woman's life!"

"You sound like my sister." I raise an eyebrow at her. 

"Well, at least your family thinks I'm a good influence then." Emma grins, "Now, get your ass out that door before I kick it out there."

    *    *    *    *

I wasn't the best at everything in the world, but I did have one thing going for me: I had always been active and taken good care of my body. No, I wasn't ever going to the Olympics or anything, but I was fairly graceful and balanced, flexible but strong, and had a lot of stamina but decent control.

When it came to athleticism, I was sort of a jack of all trades. 

As Emma and I enter the ice rink, we can see that there aren't very many people there. There's a booth on the left wall for renting ice skates, and another booth not far off where they sell what is probably very disappointing hot chocolate. On the rink, I can see a young family with two children skating around in circles, and an older couple holding hands as they slowly make their way around the rink. 

Near the benches, I notice the three men that have invited us here. 

George appears to be trying to unknot the laces on his ice skates. His hair is unkempt, as per usual, and he wears a brown coat that matches the color of some of his darker strands of hair. Ollie is lacing up his shoes, his glasses nearly falling off his nose as he bends over, and Miguel  - well, Miguel seems to be tempting his luck as he pokes at the blades on his skates for whatever unknown reason.