In My Blood (Eli Moskowitz/Hawk FF) (Cobra Kai)

Chapter 20: Roller Rink Woes

CHAPTER 20: 

Zelena's POV

Music blares from every speaker in the building and my eyes are immediately drawn to the middle of the large place where lovey-dovery couples and goofy friends are circling the the rink. A pair of two younger kids, about seven or eight are by the wall where one clings to the wall and the other is skating backward beside him. Her lips are moving, most likely sputtering out words of encouragement, but clearly her friend is not having any of it.

"Demetri, once you let go, you're going to be fine! I won't let you fall on your own!" My voice pleas to my close friend who's got his fingers clutching whatever wooly fabric he can gather from the slightly cushiony wall. "Eli did, and he's doing well!" My hand gestures over to the copper haired boy who stumbles at the sudden attention on him, causing his arms to immediately outstretch. He balances himself once more, bringing his feet closer just a pinch, and smiles up at me.

I beam back, lightly knocking the back of my hand against Demetri's shoulder to get his attention. His frown is evident and his frustration is most definitely not going anywhere- at least not any time soon. My hand outstretches to him. He eyes it in suspicion. "I'll walk you over to the exit of the rink. I promise."

Young Demetri huffs, but reaches for my hand and tightly grasps it before flinging the remainder of his body over. I nearly go crashing down with the already tall-for-an-eight-year-old tossing his weight into me, but somehow I manage to keep myself upright on both feet. With soft apologies to passerbys, I very, very slowly roll Dem against the flow of traffic to get to the exit. I lightly push against his back to help him slide up the little drop off from the carpeting onto the rink's actual flooring. "We'll meet you at the tables in like 10 minutes. Is that okay, Dem?"

He doesn't turn back to me, attempting to inch further and further away from the rink without losing his balance. He however, does nod in acceptance. "Use the toe thingies!" I call out in a reminder.

"Stoppers," Eli's soft voice flows from the space to the left of me. My head cocks to the side as I turn to face him and my eyebrow raises. "Toe thingies- they're called toe stoppers."

My lips form an 'o' before sliding a little to the right to avoid any bumps on the edge of the rink meant for a sense of protection for those not enjoying themselves. "Come on, E!" I skate just a little bit faster to merge into the flow of traffic, finding Eli hesitantly shuffling alongside me with his head down. His head shakes at my encouragement and he avoids grasping my helpful hand. I slide over, getting closer to him only for him to practically press himself to the carpeted wall. "E?"

I quit moving my legs, allowing my speed to dwindle to match his. As we near the turn, where the biggest pockets were to hang out, my eyes catch sight of the plague infecting Eli suddenly. A group of the 'cool' kids lean against the corner where the two walls meet, the girls giggling behind hands while the three boys point and take turns with their lips uttering most likely mean things about Eli's lip scar. Caught up in watching them watch him, Eli loses focus on his footing and they slide too close to one another. His wheels brush against each other and it sends him tumbling to the rink's flooring, his knees slamming onto the tiling. The titters turn into full blown laughter, the entire group no longer hiding their amusement at the expense of my friend.

I bend over slightly, offering my hand to which he slowly grasps. He leans forward, using me more as a balance post than a weight balancer as he pulls himself up. "I know it isn't easy, E. But-" His eyes draw back over to the group the second he turns his head. The group hadn't given up on their laughter and instead, some of them were doubled over in it. "Hold on a second."