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Gary took a lot of time thinking about inviting one of his best friends to hang out some place where he could tell her about his feelings for her. Over the span of a few weeks, inspiration barely graced his brain until the perfect idea came to him while watching a hockey game on TV.

He had decided to invite Robin to go ice skating with him.

He visited her by her locker on a Monday and shot out his idea to his reserved friend. Before she could actually reply to the eager, questioning gaze he gave her, she had to ask him something first.

"Are there even any ice rinks open in May?"

Gary replied that yes, indeed there was one. One that their school used for the hockey games in Spring.

Robin accepted his invitation and gave him a warm hug before skipping off to government. Just the contact and warmth of their quick embrace made him smile like optimism itself all day, even when his mother picked him up from school early to get a shot. Yes, Garrett was smiling even despite the fact that he was about to face his creepy pediatrician and a three inch needle.

The next Saturday came soon enough. Gary picked up Robin from her house right before lunch and they grabbed overpriced, greasy pizza and Coke at the food court before heading to the rental counter.

“Size ten hockey skates and… Robin, what’s your size?”

“Eight.”

“Size eight in figure skates.”

Garrett knew to get Robin figure skates because she never was very good at sports or staying upright, especially at the same time. When he was done lacing up on a bench, Robin had still yet to finish looping the laces of her first skate.

“I’ll get it, Robbie.” He bent down in front of her and gently took the dirty white laces from in between her fingers. When she timidly muttered her thanks, Gary just looked up and gave her a lopsided grin.

The second they stepped onto the nearly unoccupied rink, Robin skidded backwards into Gary, almost knocking him off his own feet. He was able to hook an arm under her elbow before both of them could fall on the cold, carved ice.

“Whoa there, Robbie,” Gary laughingly exclaimed, taking his hand from her elbow and grasping her hand.

They skated slowly around the guard rail to the nineties’ rink music, talking and laughing. Gary kept his hand in Robin’s; she in turn firmly grasped it, hoping her best friend would keep her from falling on the scratched ice.

When they were ushered off the ice to let the Zamboni do its work, they headed back to the food court for some soda. As they waited behind a young boy clasping his mother’s hand, an oldie filled the dinky building from the random speakers hung all over the walls. Tweets and tweetly-tweets drowned out the distant sound of the Zamboni as they inched nearer to the counter.

“An oldie, but a goodie,” Robin commented, looking to her side to Garrett.

“It’s practically your anthem,” Garrett suggested, sending her a warm smile.

After they finished their drinks on a crooked, uneven table, they headed out to the freshly resurfaced ice. Once again, Robin lost her balance just a few feet in on the slippery rink. Garrett wasn’t paying attention; one of his friends had just texted him to ask how his wannabe “date” was going. He was about to reply when Robin’s body collided with his, sending his phone flying and sliding on the ice like a puck. Their bodies hit the ice with a loud smack.

“Oof!” Gary grunted as his back hit the ice, Robin landing directly on top of him.

“I’m so sorry, Gary,” Robin muttered, eying his phone a couple of yards away from his head. She attempted to push herself off of her friend, whose face was reddening and embarrassed. But she could barely budge: one of Garrett’s hands lightly held her upper waist in place.

“Garrett, what’re you-” She was silenced by Gary setting the back of his fingers from his limp, phoneless hand against her cheek. He shot his eyes directly to hers, but their focus flickered from below her nose to back to her eyes repeatedly.

Robin could never stand eye contact. This time was no different.

“Hey,” he gently prodded. She glanced nervously back to his face, but went back to watching the few other people skating by and shamelessly staring.

“Robbie, I…” Gary cleared his throat and tried again. “I really want to kiss you right now.”

Robin’s ears perked up as she looked back to her awkward friend, his expression almost fearful. Her face was relaxed and expressionless.

Garrett quickly took the opportunity to crane his neck upward and meekly kiss her: quick and simple, just enough to get a point across. When he dropped his head back against the burning ice, his face reddened even more and his lips were slightly agape in surprise.

Robin’s features were the same as Garrett’s: shocked and confused. “Do you…” She paused for a second and thought about her words. “Do you like me, Gary?” She was never one to beat around the bush.

“Y-yeah,” he stuttered out, deeply exhaling a breath he’d caught a while ago.

The tiniest smile appeared, tugging at the intricate muscles of Robin’s face. “Really?”

“Heh.” All he could manage was a flustered, guilty half-smile. “Surprise!”

“I’m kind of taken aback, but no, it's not really surprising,” she murmured as her hint of a smile vanished to another calm face. She bent her elbows and set her forearms on the freezing ground as her fingers reached his disheveled hair and found a few clumps of messy brown fluff to fondle.

To Garrett’s complete surprise (Robin was never very audacious), she angled her head down and kissed him back. His grip immediately tightened on her waist and his fingers gently brushed her cheek as he smiled into the kiss.

By then, a balding ref in a striped jersey skated forward to kick the kissing kids out of the family-friendly rink. After all, they were in a public place.