Chapter Text
When his mother’s car pulled up to a rustic barn at an orchard in the middle of nowhere, Declan wasn’t sure what to expect. Certainly not this tastefully decorated, well-lit interior kept warm with fireplaces, cozy seating areas, and a full bar. There’s a whole wall of shelves covered in books with little reading nooks. It’s lovely. He might even be comfortable if not for the fact that there are at least a hundred people at this party, and other than his parents, he doesn’t recognize a single face.
Is it strange to read a book at a party? There are so many on the shelves. More print books than Declan’s seen anywhere outside of the Historical London Public Library. They don’t let people read the old ones there; they’re too delicate or something. He still doesn’t understand the point of a book that can’t be read. His fingers itch to hold one in his hands. All the novels he owns are on datapads. More easily available, and easier to pack when they inevitably move again.
He carefully pulls a book off one of the shelves without even looking at the title and sits on the padded bench tucked into one of the reading nooks. It’s not until he’s comfortably leaning back against the side of a bookcase with one leg propped up on the bench that he realizes the book is in French. He can’t even read it. And isn’t that just the bloody way.
Setting the book down next to him, he sits up properly and looks out at the crowd of smiling adults. He leans against the bookcase with a frown. He hates this place with its party, its crystal chandeliers, and its books he can’t read. Declan wants to go home. Not to the Vancouver townhouse the Alliance provided for them to live in, either.
To London. To friends he’ll likely never see again. Even to the stupid library that won’t let him read the fancy books.
His mother is in her dress blues, talking to the largest, most imposing man Declan’s ever seen. It’s unlikely that she’ll let him leave. She’s actually enjoying herself. The Alenkos have a son close to your age , she’d said. It’ll be an opportunity to make a new friend. He makes a face. If she’d let him stay with Gran like he’d done while she was stationed on Arcturus, he wouldn’t need new friends.
He’s so wrapped up in his own misery that the soft “Hey” from a voice he doesn’t recognize makes him jump nearly out of his skin. Declan looks up at a boy probably around his age. He’s tall and lanky, with warm golden eyes and a kind smile. Declan almost tells him to bugger off, but he bites his tongue.
“Sorry,” the boy says, holding a mug out toward Declan. “I didn’t mean to startle you. I just thought you might like a drink.”
Declan narrows his eyes suspiciously. This is almost certainly the boy his mother wanted him to meet. “Did my mum send you over?”
“I’m not sure who your mom is,” the boy responds, brow furrowing slightly. “No one sent me over, though.”
“Alright,” Declan says with a sigh. He takes the offered mug and looks into it. Warm apple cider. “I didn’t mean to be rude.”
“That’s okay.” The boy sticks his hand out. “I’m Kaidan.”
“Coats.” Declan shakes his hand and winces. “Declan. Sorry. Only mum and Gran call me by my given name.” He takes a sip of the cider and sputters. “Is that—”
“Rum,” Kaidan says quietly, leaning in with a wink and a cheeky grin. “You looked like you needed it.”
Declan’s face burns. Had he been that obvious? He’s more prepared for the second sip. Kaidan waits for a moment, then picks up the book he’d set aside and sits on the bench next to him. “So. Do you do this often?”
“Sneak booze to the new kid, or attend fancy parties?”
“Well, I meant the party,” Declan says with a chuckle, “but I’d like to know the other bit as well.”
“That’s a no on the sneaking booze. But it’s hard to avoid parties like this when your mother likes having them so often.”
“It’s a lovely party,” Declan says as if he’s not desperate to leave it.
Kaidan nods. “They usually are. Not really my thing, though.” He takes a sip from his own mug and turns to face Declan. “I was actually gonna walk down to the lake and ice skate. I probably have a spare pair of skates if you want to come along.”
“I don’t know how to ice skate,” he replies.
Kaidan gestures toward Declan with his mug. “It’s not hard. I can teach you.”
Declan looks at him. It’s on the tip of his tongue to say no. The last thing he needs is to embarrass himself in front of the first kid he’s met here. But Kaidan has been nothing but kind to him so far, and the alternative is staying at the party and sulking in a corner. “Alright. But you can’t laugh at me when I’m terrible at it.”
“I would never.” He sounds so sincere that Declan cracks a smile. “Besides, I’m sure you’re gonna be great. I’m a very good teacher.”
“Lead on, then, coach.”
Kaidan takes Declan up a set of stairs he hadn’t noticed before. The loft is cluttered with boxes and crates of what mostly seem to be party decorations, but Kaidan seems to know exactly what he’s looking for. He makes a beeline for an open crate in the far corner, and after a moment of rifling through it, he holds a pair of ice skates out to Declan. “I think these will fit you.”
They’re a little tight when he tries them on, but not uncomfortably so. Kaidan’s got his own skates slung over one shoulder by their tied-together strings, so Declan does the same. “Should we tell our parents we’re going?”
“Nah,” Kaidan says, shaking his head. “It’s a New Year’s Eve party. They won’t even notice we’re gone.”
Declan just nods. He’s probably right. Mum had looked pretty engrossed in her conversation. He follows Kaidan down another set of stairs out into the frigid December air. He should have grabbed his jacket, but Kaidan’s only wearing the thick knit sweater he’s had on the whole time. Declan will just suffer the cold.
The lake turns out to be more like a pond. Kaidan sits on a fallen log to put his skates on, but Declan hesitates. He swears he read something somewhere about bodies of water like this not freezing enough to hold weight. “Isn’t it dangerous to go out on ice like this?”
Kaidan shrugs. “I’ve been skating here since I was a little kid, and I’ve never had any problems.” He ties his laces and looks up at Declan. “It’s okay if you don’t want to, though. I just figured you’d like to get out of there.”
If there’s one thing Declan can say for certain about his mother, it’s that she didn’t raise a coward. He takes a deep, cold breath and straightens his spine before sitting down to put his own skates on.
“I’m gonna go ahead and go out,” Kaidan says, pointing over his shoulder at the frozen pond with his thumb. “Whenever you’re ready, let me know, and I’ll help you.”
“Thanks.” He takes his time lacing up the skates and tries to pretend he’s not nervous. Kaidan very clearly knows what he’s doing. He’s more graceful on the ice than any boy his age has a right to be. Which will only make it more embarrassing for Declan when he faceplants and breaks his nose. He’s not even sure he can stand up without falling while he’s got these things on his feet. “You’re good at this.”
Kaidan slows to a stop at the edge of the pond, then carefully walks over to the log. Even with the ground being mostly frozen, the blades of his skates cut into the dirt. He doesn’t even wobble. “Thank you. I’ve had lots of practice.”
He holds out a hand, and Declan just stares at it for a moment. This is a terrible idea. He’ll make a fool of himself, and then before he even has a chance to make friends, everyone will already be laughing at him. Kaidan has given no reason to believe he’d be the sort to tell anyone if Declan does, in fact, fail miserably, though. He takes the offered hand and lets Kaidan help him to his feet.
“Actually getting to the ice is the most awkward part,” Kaidan says as he grips Declan’s forearm with a strong, sure hand. “Once you’re out there it’s smooth sailing.”
It is not smooth sailing once they get onto the ice. Declan wobbles horribly. The only thing keeping him upright is the desperate grip he has on Kaidan’s arm. Kaidan does turn out to be a very good teacher. He’s patient and encouraging, and he doesn’t complain that it takes nearly an hour for Declan to stop digging his fingers into his forearm.
By the time Declan is willing to fully let go, Kaidan has made him so comfortable that when he wobbles and falls almost immediately, he looks up at him and laughs. “I told you I’d be terrible at this.”
Kaidan grins and helps him up. “You’re doing great. Everyone falls sometimes.”
“You haven’t fallen.”
“Last year I broke a finger trying to catch myself.” He waggles the finger in question. “Hadn’t even made it to the ice yet and tripped over my own feet.”
“I’ve never broken a bone.” Declan replies primly.
“No time like the present.” Kaidan takes his hand with a smirk and guides him around the edge of the pond.
Declan doesn’t break any bones. He doesn’t even fall again. An alarm goes off on Kaidan’s watch, and he slows to a stop to look at it.
“Hey,” he says, looking over at Declan with a smile. “Happy New Year, Coats.”
Maybe being forced to move to the other side of the world won’t be so bad, after all. “Happy New Year, Kaidan.”