On Thin Ice

by Dana Burkey

  “It was fun while it lasted I guess,” I told Lilly as we walked home on Friday. Snow was falling quickly around us, so we hurried as we went. “Back to the real world.”

  “Speaking of the real world, do you want to go to Cup O’ Beans tomorrow and work on the history homework? After all that time working on our reports, studying on my own sounds too boring.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” I agreed easily.

  I knew returning to the coffee shop would be weird, especially since I had only been there once since the last time I studied there with Blake. But, it was how things were now, so I knew I needed to get used to it. As much as I liked my time with Blake, it was over and done with. At least I knew I could still enjoy some time with my best friend over coffee if nothing else.

  13

  “Can we steal this chair?”

  I looked up from my book to see a girl with frizzy black hair pulling away the only other chair at my table. She was with a group of girls that were laughing and drinking coffee, and generally making a lot of noise.

  “I’m waiting for someone actually,” I told her, causing her to throw me a massive eye roll before she walked over to ask for a chair from an older gentleman sitting near the windows.

  I thought about moving to a booth closer to the fireplace at the back corner of the coffee shop, but didn’t feel quite like sitting where I always did with Blake. Not to mention the table I had chosen would allow for Lilly and I to people watch while working on our project. Or rather it would if Lilly ever showed up.

  Sending another text her way, I took a long sip of my coffee before going back to reading from my Edgar Allan Poe book. After reading The Raven a few times through I decided to start Telltale Heart to pass the time. I had read it a few times before, but somehow still managed to get so into the story that I was a bit startled when the seat across from me was finally filled.

  “Sorry I’m late.”

  Looking up at the deep voice, I was surprised to see that the empty chair was now filled with Blake, instead of Lilly. He was wearing his usual Red Wings hockey shirt, but I hardly noticed that. Instead my eyes went right to the brown paper gift bag sitting on the table. It had white and blue tissue paper sticking out of the top, hiding its contents from view.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked, then quickly continued. “I’m sorry, that was rude. Hi, how are you?”

  “I’m good,” he laughed, clearly not offended by my initial question. “I hope you don’t mind but I kind of tracked you down with Lilly’s help.”

  “Tracked me down?” I asked in reply.

  “Yeah,” he explained. “I wanted to talk to you, but since I also had something to give you, I thought I should just find a time to meet. But then I wasn’t sure when. Or where. So, I thought I could surprise you. But I didn’t know when to do that either.” He paused to thank the barista who sat down a cup of coffee in front of him. “Basically though, I asked Lilly and she mentioned that she could ask you to meet for studying, and then I could show up instead. So here I am.”

  “You mean she didn’t actually want to study with me?” I was having a hard time wrapping my head around all that Blake had just told me.

  “Nope,” he confirmed simply. “I mean, I guess not. She might still want to work on the homework or project or whatever it is later. But meeting today was totally a trick so I could surprise you.”

  “Well, it worked.”

  “Good,” he said, then we both sat in the silence that followed. “Well, are you going to open your gift?”

  Until that moment I didn’t assume the present sitting on the table was for me. But, at Blake’s words I simply nodded then pulled the gift closer to me. When I picked it up I could tell it was heavier than it appeared, although I couldn’t even begin to guess what it might be. Pulling a wrapped item from the bag, I quickly peeled away the layers of tissue paper to reveal two books. Both were identical copies of Hamlet.

  “So, one of those is actually mine,” Blake explained as I sat staring at the book in shock. “But I thought it would be more fun for you to open them both.”

  “You really got me Hamlet?” I asked, my eyes still glued on the books in my hands.

  “Of course,” he said with a bit of a laugh. “Thanks to you I actually passed that English test and get to stay on the hockey team. So, you basically saved my life.”

  Finally taking my eyes off the book, I looked up at Blake and noticed he was watching me closely. He had a smile on his face, but also looked a little worried. The expression confused me until I realized I hadn’t actually said anything in regards to the gift.

  “Thank you,” I said honestly, truly thankful for the books in my hand. “But, you said one is for you?”

  “Well, yeah, if that’s okay,” he began, looking even more unsure. “I was thinking if you haven’t read it and I haven’t read it, then maybe we could read it together.” He paused for a second, then rushed on when I didn’t immediately speak. “I’m not going to understand it as easy as you will, and it might take me a long time. But you’re really good at explaining things in a way that I can understand. Like Macbeth. I didn’t think I could ever actually like a play and that one ended up being pretty cool. Because you helped me understand it. So, I wanted to give this one a try next.”

  “This is perfect,” I finally interjected on his rambling. “But are you sure you want to spend even more time reading Shakespeare after you finally got rid of me?”

  “What do you mean, got rid of you?” Blake had a smile growing on his face while he spoke. “I’ve spent all week praying the books would get delivered in time so I could finally give them to you. I was so worried I was going to ruin the surprise I was afraid to even talk to you.”

  “Oh,” I said simply, my mind replaying the week quickly. His explanation made me understand our lack of conversation since the test, and caused my cheeks to immediately warm with blush.

  “So you’re okay with reading it with me?” he asked, breaking the silence.

  “Yes,” I nodded eagerly, before handing him one of the copies. “Did you want to start now?”

  “Actually, I can’t,” he frowned, glancing at his phone. “I actually have to leave soon to get to my game. But I was hoping you could come watch. Emily’s going to be there.”

  “Really?” Despite knowing I had heard his request properly, it didn’t seem possible that he had just spoken the words.

  “Yeah,” he confirmed simply. “I was thinking after the game we could start reading Hamlet if you wanted. Or maybe I can finally give you that ice skating lesson.”

  “Well, I like one of those ideas,” I said with a laugh.

  “Does that mean you’ll come to the game?”

  I paused for a second, taking in the look on Blake’s face. He was staring at me, looking both nervous and excited at the same time. When I left to meet Lilly that morning, I never thought I would end up sitting with Blake. But here I was sitting with him all the same, his face eager for my reply. Knowing I couldn’t let too much time pass before answering him, I assured him I would go, causing his facial expression to instantly match his excited expression

  “Not to rush you,” he finally said. “But we should leave now if we’re going to get there in time. I’m not playing in JV but I have to be down with the team still.”

  “Got it,” I nodded then got to work packing up my things.

  I was thankfully wearing a grey cable knit sweater, and pulled my thick winter coat on over it. Hoping that Emily once again had her blankets with her, I finished my coffee as Blake took our empty cups and placed them in the dirty dish bin near the trash can in the corner. I used the time to slip on my messenger bag before meeting him at the door.

  “All ready?” he asked, looking me over as I nodded. “You’re going to freeze out there.”

  Glancing outside I saw that it was once again snowing, the ground coated in a thick layer of white. The forecast was calling for snow most of the day, only stopping for a few h
ours when the temperature was too cold to allow for the precipitation. It wasn’t something I had planned for when I left my house, since I assumed I would be in the warm coffee shop all morning.

  “You need your coat,” I reminded him, instantly thinking of the first special moment we shared.

  “Maybe,” he agreed. “But you can have my hat and gloves.”

  Reaching into the pockets of the same coat I had once borrowed, Blake pulled out a Toronto Maple Leaf beanie and matching blue gloves. I had no time to protest as he handed me the gloves then placed the hat on my head for me. As he moved my hair out of my face to allow the hat to stay in place, I was super aware of how close he was standing to me. Not wanting to look silly in front of him with my bright red cheeks, I mumbled a thanks then turned and walked out into the snow.

  The temperature had dropped a lot since I arrived at the coffee shop, and I could instantly feel the chill even through my coat and layers of clothing. I felt my whole body shiver as I finally slipped the gloves over my fingers. Once they were warming up my hands I turned to give Blake a frown.

  “Now you’re going to freeze out here,” I said simply.

  “I’ll be okay,” he assured me, then put up the hood of his coat in place of the hat I was now wearing.

  “What about gloves?” I asked Blake, falling in step beside him as he turned to walk towards the ice rink.

  “I’ll think of something.” He shrugged, not even glancing at me as he spoke.

  I was about to ask him what he meant when I felt his hand on mine. Glancing down to make sure I wasn’t imagining things, I was both shocked and happy to see his hands curling around mind. He gave my fingers a little squeeze, causing me to look up at him. Unlike a second before, he was looking at me now, a rather serious look on his face. Without knowing what to say to express everything I was feeling, I simply turned my hand in his, allowing our fingers to lace together.

  “See,” he said. He took his eyes off mine for only a second to look down at our intertwined hands. When he looked back at me again, his serious expression had been replaced with a massive smile. “Warmer already.”

  THANK YOU FOR READING!

  If you enjoyed this title please consider posting an honest review to Amazon or Goodreads. Reviews from readers like you can help ensure the future success of this book as well as its author.

  About the Author:

  Dana Burkey is a self-published author living in Washington State. Although she is from Ohio, she has been enjoying life in the Pacific Northwest for the last 7 years. Before moving to Washington, Burkey attended college in Ohio where she majored in theater with a minor in creative writing. Burkey works full time in camping, spending her days with K-5th graders. She began self-publishing her YA romance novels in August of 2014, hoping to write stories that can be enjoyed by YA readers of any age. Her books feature a lack of swearing, drinking, and sex, in an effort to allow younger readers to connect with her stories without bad influences. ! She is the author of the YA contemporary romance series Hearts to Follow and the YA suspense novel Locket Full of Secrets.

  CONTINUE READING FOR A SNEAK PEAK AT BURKEYS YA CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE, PLAYING FOR LOVE

  With only a few hours until the new school year begins, it’s time to start my new journal. If you're reading this, it means one of two things. You're either reading this without my permission, in which case STOP! Not even Corra and Beth read my journal, so you more than likely shouldn't be right now! The other option is that I'm super famous now and everyone wants to know what my life was like before fame and fortune. If that's the case, then this journal is likely being used to let the whole world see the real me. And I gave permission for it to happen. So, I guess if it’s the latter, then I’m okay with it.

  In case you don’t already know, my name is Fiona Mealing and I’m a sophomore at North McKinley High School. I live on 5th Street with my mom, my dad, and my older brother, Ross. My family's always on some kind of adventure since my mom's a travel writer, so we get to spend all of our school breaks going on fun trips with her, and she always brings us back really cool stuff from the trips we don’t get to join her for. Her blog has a few million subscribers, and she's put out so many books we had to buy a new bookshelf just to hold them all! My dad's an accountant for a local law firm, so that helps us feel a little more normal.

  As for Ross, well, he can be a real pain sometimes. Okay, more like all the time! He's two years older than me, so every teacher and person at our school has already met him before me. Basically from the moment I was born I have been in his shadow. He plays basketball and this year got a spot on student council. So, basically, everyone knows him even if they live under a rock. He’s a pretty good brother, in that he looks after me when I need help or anything like that, but he also knows just what to do to get under my skin. Last week he called me “Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum” after we got into a fight about who had to do dishes after dinner. After he decided it was my turn, he stomped around the kitchen making fun of me while I was working on loading the dishwasher. Beth reminded me I need to pray that he doesn't call me that at school or it might catch on!

  Beth Wells, along with Corra Scott, are my best friends. I've gone to school with both of them since I was in kindergarten. Beth lives a few blocks over, but Corra and I are always at her house. Since she's an only child, it's the best place to go when we need to get away from annoying older brothers. Corra’s brother actually went off to college a few weeks ago, so her house is a close getaway for me as well now, since it's right next door. Today, though, as is tradition on Labor Day, everyone was at my house.

  Well, not everyone. One person that I really wanted to see was missing. Having Ross as my brother does have one upside, and that upside is Jordan. Jordan Peterson has been my brother’s best friend as long as I can remember. My whole life he lived down the street, and, for the most part, I never cared. Then, four years ago I got home from a summer trip to New York and everything had changed. I was the same; my braces were still working to make my teeth straight and my hair still tried to curl the second I straightened it in the morning. Jordan, on the other hand, had changed a lot.

  His family had been in California when we were in New York and we all got home the same day. Between the Cali sun, and simply growing up, Jordan went from just some guy my brother hung out with, to a drop dead gorgeous man! He was super tan from his trip and it made his sandy brown hair look even more perfect. But the real thing that made me about flip when I saw him was how tall he was. He grew at least 5 inches over the summer and looked even more buff than I remembered. While he stood there talking about basketball with Ross, I just stared and tried to remember to keep from drooling.

  Ever since then it’s been hard to concentrate around Jordan. I tried not to let it show, but he was so much more than just my brothers’ friend suddenly. Sadly, I was not the only person to notice the new Jordan. He started dating Susan Newburg when school started that year, and after that, he seemed to always have one girlfriend after another. But in a way, it was a good thing. It gave me a lot of people to study. Who was it that Jordan wanted to date? I took notes and waited for my time.

  Now, with the school year about to start, I was excited to announce that Jordan was single again. I even heard him tell my brother he was taking a break from girls for a while.

  Okay, so I guess that last part is kind of bad news. If he doesn't want to date anyone, he may not make an exception for me. But then again, if I can win him over enough, then he might forget all about trying to focus on school and give me a chance. He already knows a lot about me, and we chat here and there when he's over hanging out with Ross, so this should be easy. In fact, we used his absence from the annual party to do some planning.

  “So, when does Jordan get home?” Corra asked, making sure Ross couldn't hear us. Thankfully he was in the pool with some of his other friends from school.

  “Who’s Jordan?” Taylor Danes asked. She had just moved to town a few weeks ago and got to know Beth a
nd Corra while I was gone on vacation. We had only met for the first time yesterday when I hung out with her and Beth as soon as I got home from the airport.

  “Fiona’s future boyfriend,” Beth explained. “He just needs to open his eyes and finally realize it.”

  This was not the first time Beth had made a comment like that, but with Taylor sitting there, I found myself blushing. I guess I was worried how she would react to all of this, being new to town and everything.

  “He’s a senior,” I explained, wanting to make her understand that this was not just some random guy. “Him and my brother are best friends so I’ve known him as long as I can remember.”

  “So he knows you like him?” she asked, glancing between Corra, Beth and myself.

  “Not really,” I said slowly.

  “Fiona doesn’t want to be all crazy when it comes to Jordan,” Corra took over. “She wants to win him over before she lets him know how she feels.”

  It was an odd way to put it, but it was pretty true. See, in the last few years, Jordan had dated three girls that played soccer. And considering he had only had another two girlfriends since he got hot, it was clear that he has a thing for soccer girls. So, with that in mind, I decided to try out for the team this summer. Surprisingly, I made the team, even though I had been out of the country for part of the summer practices and even the first few games of the season. Ross said he thinks everyone that tries out makes at least JV, so I shouldn’t think it has anything to do with me actually being good at soccer. So nice of him, right?