Awaken | Book 2 | DISCONTINUED

CHAPTER 17

We were all gathered outside an ice skating rink and we all stared at each other.
"You're crazy." Said Zara to Ethan.
"I thought it would be fun to step out of our comfort zones." Suggested Ethan and Matthias scoffed.

None of us knew how to ice skate here, apart from Valentina. Just to add in as well, Matthias, Ethan, Sebastian, Matteo and Lorenzo were in suits and me and the girls were still in our bridesmaids dresses.
We probably looked like a real show to everyone, but luckily there only seemed to be a few people around.
Iris and Grayson ushered us to all go, claiming that they wanted to spend more time together to themselves.

"A bunch of Italians in the mafia, going to ice skate. What can go wrong." Matteo said and Valentina snorted.

"Whatever, let's just do this." I sighed as I made my way in first.

"I can't do this!" I grumbled, frustrated with myself. With Caterina's help, everyone seemed to get the hang of ice skating pretty quickly, me however, I was struggling. We had hired the ice rink to ourselves for an hour.

"Caterina you haven't even let go of the sidebar." Matthias smiled, looking to be amused at my state.

"I can't believe Sebastian managed to get the hang of it before me." I muttered.
"Hey! I heard that!" Shouted Sebastian and I rolled my eyes at him.

"Come on, hold my hands." Matthias stuck his hands out towards me. I eyed them warily before very slowly placing my hands in his. He clasped them tightly.

"Okay, now just follow my lead. Don't do anything, just move with me." Instructed Matthias and I nodded, glancing down at the ice, hoping I wasn't going to fall.
I never thought I would see Matthias ice skating, but I wasn't complaining, the sight was definitely something eye-catching.

"Do you think you can start with some basic steps or do you want to keep staring at me?" Marcello said and I rolled my eyes at him.

"Okay, march forward two steps." Matthias said and I instantly froze in worry.
"Caterina, I've got you okay, don't worry." He peered into my eyes, letting me know that I'll be safe with him. I nodded and took two steps forward.

"Now try and lift one foot off and try gliding, like what we just did." He suggested. It took my quite a while to get it, with a few 'almost' falls, but Matthias was quick to catch me.

"You're getting it! I'll let go of one hand now." He coaxed and I practiced more, the warmth of his hand offering me comfort.
"Bend your knees and you can faster."

Soon enough I got the hang of it. I squealed in excitement, suddenly forgetting that I was on ice, I jumped and tried to move to Matthias to hug him, but to my horror, I slipped and fell onto Matthias. He didn't see me coming and our bodies collided. We fell on the floor, me on top of him and he winced.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" I asked him instantly and I cupped his face with my hands.
"I'm fine Caterina, although it's a bit cold down here." He said and I instantly got off of him.
"Sorry." I mumbled, my cheeks darkening in colour. He got up and shook his head, laughing at me.

"It's okay, let's go join the others." He said and I nodded.

                                 * * *

I glided as fast as I could on the ice, attempting to get away from Matthias. I giggled as I looked over my shoulder, he was gaining on me, so I pushed further, trying to get away from him.

"You can't catch me!" I shrieked as the cold bit at my face. It felt nice gliding on the ice, like I felt free.
Sebastian was standing in my way and it was too late for me to stop as I was gliding in his direction too fast. Before I could collide into him, Matthias came up behind me and quickly grabbed waist, steering me in another direction. We sort of stumbled into the in the sidebars, but luckily we didn't fall.

"I caught you." Matthias whispered, squeezing my waist.
"Thank you." I said, looking over at Sebastian who seemed to appear completely oblivious to what was about to happen, which wasn't very surprising of him.
"I really want to kiss you right now." Matthias mumbled lowly and I snapped my gaze back to his.
"We can't here." I said looking around and he sighed.
"I know. You look pretty incredible in the dress, I wonder what it looks like off." He grinned cheekily and my mouth dropped at his quick and cheesy pick up line.
"God you're so corny." I laughed, slapping his chest lightly.
"You love it anyways." He said and I smiled at him genuinely, knowing it was true.

And I love you too.

* * *

We were all sat down in a park which was completely deserted for the night. It was a beautiful park, with the pretty pink spring flowers blooming on the tree, and the long and narrow river which gleamed under the moon. The trees were big and slightly hunched, making us all feel safe as we all sat under the tree in a circle. We had gotten a few snacks and ate them as we all laughed and talked with each other.
I leaned against the tree and Matthias did the same, slipping his hand into mine discreetly. His thumb caressed my hand and my heart warmed at the gesture.

"God it feels the same as when we were all just kids." Ethan said aloud and I agreed with him, looking around us. Although Zara and Valentina didn't exactly grow up with us, they seemed to fit in right with us, like they've been with us all along.
"Definitely one of the things I've missed and will always miss." Confessed Lorenzo and we all seemed to agree with him silently, each of us mulling over our own thoughts.

I felt Matthias lift my hand up and pressed a soft kiss to it. No one seemed to notice as it was dark. I rested my head on his shoulder, squeezing his hand back.

I want to stay here forever.

A/N:
I hope you guys liked this chapter. It was kind of a filler chapter, which I sort of struggle to write at to be honest, but I really liked this one. There's a lot more to come in this story, so be prepared arghhh.
Hope you guys enjoyed and stay safe!
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Until then