Favorable (Jamilton)

32. Hamilton

Alexander liked the feeling of having no jobs to do. 

He'd obviously have to find a new one soon, just to keep him alive and all that, but he was enjoying not having other people hire him to do their dirty work. For the first time since before his mother got sick, Alex could say that he was really happy and not stressed. He was on top of his classes, he had a kickass boyfriend, he had great friends, and no illegal job ring to worry about.

As soon as he was back on the campus, he dropped the phone in the mail slot of King's house and walked away without another thought. He didn't even knock or go inside, he just dropped it and went to avoid any conflict that he could, for once. Thomas insisted that they celebrate with something because apparently he really didn't expect his siblings to be a turning point for Alex's moral compass. 

Whatever worked, though. 

Thomas's idea of a celebration, Alex figured out, was actually a first date, which he wanted to spend ice skating. Hamilton didn't see what was so great about sliding with blades strapped to your feet on solid water, but Jefferson seemed excited about it. 

"We used to go all the time when I was a kid! Well, whenever they were doing the dollar-skate days at the closest rink," Thomas explained as the walked up to the rink. "Trust me, you'll love it."

"Yeah, no offense but I trust you about as much as I trust a rabid squirrel. It's just a disaster waiting to happen!"

"You'll be fine," Thomas assured one last time before opening the door to the building. 

They strapped their skates on and made their way to the actual rink. As soon as Alex saw the sheet of ice, he wanted to sit out. Thomas insisted that it was easier than it looked and helped him onto the ice. Alex gripped Thomas's arms for balance when he almost fell as soon as both feet were on the ice.

"Okay, now you have to relax. You can't skate if you can't move your legs."

"'You can't skate if you can't move your legs'," Hamilton mocked. "Yeah, well, I can't skate if I'm dead either but here you are forcing me to do this!"

"How could you possibly die from this? Worst case scenario, you get a cut on your fingers."

"Can't they get cut off if I fall?!"

"Not if you bring 'em in quick enough!" Thomas laughed as Alex nervously tightened his grip. "I'm just kiddin', that finger thing is just a myth, the blades aren't sharp enough to cut a finger off."

"Are you sure about that?"

Thomas pulled slightly on Alexander's arms and started slowly skating backward, steering and letting Alex gain some balance as they went. 

"Positive," he said. 

Eventually, Hamilton got himself balanced enough to skate mostly on his own. He still had a tight hold on one of Thomas's hands, partially to keep himself balanced and partially because he wanted to. 

They skated together for around an hour, lightly bickering about whether or not the blades were sharp enough to cut off a finger. Alex still insisted that it was possible and a rational fear, even though by that point he was having more fun than he expected. 

"You think you can skate on your own now?" Thomas laughed after a while of skating hand-in-hand.

"I probably could. Doesn't mean I want to, though," Alex smiled and shrugged like it was nothing, but a man skating past them thought that his opinion was the most important thing that he could have possibly contributed to the conversation. Of course, it wasn't the most polite comment in the world.