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It’s been a long, long time since I last put on my skates and took a turn around the ice. We used to go all the time when I was a kid, finding a frozen pond and strapping on our vintage skates was a way to get some family time in without spending any money. We’d skate for hours, until our toes and noses were numb, then hurry home to a special treat — powdered hot chocolate with crispy marshmallows. Somehow, I’m the only one suffering today. Mom glides by, with the confidence of an Olympic figure skater.
“Have you two been practicing without me?” I turn to my Dad, eyes narrowed.
His eyes move from side to side. “Once or twice, maybe.”
“Liar,” I say with a laugh. “You weren’t even this good a decade ago. You’ve been practicing!”
“Fine, fine. Your mother and I still go by the pond a few times a year when winter sets in. We’ve invited you, do you remember? But you were always too busy.”
Yeah, that does sound like me. Too busy to see my parents, even though they’re the ones I’m working so hard for. I wonder how many other things I’ve missed over the years. Even though I tried to visit them as often as possible, it was always onmyschedule, wheneverIcould find the time, which meant missing out on spontaneous things like this.
“Well, not anymore. I’m working on balance. Some school, some life, and that means you’ll be seeing more of me,” I say, taking a few tentative steps around my father. My ankles are wobbly, struggling to keep me stable on top of the narrow teetering blades.
“You know, your mother and I were thinking of moving to Florida. Or maybe Spain. Somewhere far, far from here.” Dad winks at me.
“You’d never,” I gasp.
“We’d never,” Mom agrees, skating up behind me. “We’re just so happy to have you around again, especially with a little life in your eyes. Did you patch things up with Cole?”
She takes my hand and we take a slow lap around the ice, her steady pace keeping me gliding even when my ankles threaten to derail us both.
“I did. We’re good now. I should’ve just been honest with him from the start.” I shake my head, then regret it when it sets my feet to wobbling. Mom grabs my elbow to stop me from falling. Again. “But I won’t make that mistake again.”
“He’s a good man and a good friend. Have you ever thought about maybe—”
“Mom, no!” This is not the first time she’s asked the question. In fact, it comes up every couple of months. “He’s just my friend, and that’s all I want him to be. Feelings aside, and I assure you they are completely platonic, imagine two doctors living together. We’d never see each other.”
That’s one of the thoughts that has made it even easier to avoid anything resembling romance with any of my classmates. We’re all in med school, we’re all already too busy. Dating another med student would be an exercise in frustration. Tyson is busy, but he makes his own schedule, mostly. There’s a certain amount of flexibility that comes with being the owner of a company, and having as much money as he does. I can imagine him waiting for me at home, kissing me as I walk in the door. He’d draw me a bath, and we’d tell each other about our days, his fingers rubbing my neck.
“You’ve got that look on your face again,” Mom says, smiling.
I rub my face with a mittened hand and return her smile. “Just spacing out a little. It’s been a long couple of days.”
“And were you thinking about a particular person during this ‘spacing out’?” She makes quotations with her fingers.
I sigh. Some things moms will never grow out of.
“Oh no, it looks like Dad’s about to fall.” I skate off toward Dad. I’d rather take the risk of falling on the ice than risk Mom digging too deep inside my head right now. She’s far too perceptive.
Dad is practicing his balance on one foot, first left, then the right. I skate up beside him and he holds his arms out to catch me as he used to when I was a kid. Braking is still the hardest part so I let him grab me and spin us around until my momentum is gone.
“Shaking off some of that rust, I see. I don’t know about you two but my knees are telling me I’m not as young as I used to be. Who’s up for a fire and some hot chocolate?” he asks.
“Me!” I skate over to the side of the pond and edge my way off the ice. Once I’m clear, I sink down to my butt and start pulling off my skates. My ankles rejoice. “I’m going to be feeling this tomorrow.”
“We all will,” Mom says, sitting on the ground next to me.
She doesn’t look tired. Her cheeks are flush with excitement and her eyes sparkle as she looks at my father. I feel a pang of guilt that all it takes to make her happy is a visit from me and I’ve been too busy to make a regular habit of it.Not anymore.No matter what, I’m going to make the time for them.Theyare a distraction I must find time for. If not now, when? If my doctoring is all about them, but I don’t ever see them, what’s the point?
We all pile into the battered sedan that Dad has been keeping alive well past its normal lifespan. Even now, not needing to pay for my tuition, they probably could afford the lease on a new one. Some day, I’ll buy them each a new car.
Riding in the backseat on my way home makes me feel like a little kid again. If only I were goinghomehome. Where there were no responsibilities. No worries. But I’m not that little girl anymore, and I have more responsibilities than I can handle sometimes. A brief getaway with Mom and Dad is all I can afford now.
I breathe against the window and draw a smiley face in the steam patch there. If only Tyson were here. I’d teach him how to ice skate, never mind that I was wobbling around like a baby giraffe, and he’d get to know my parents over cups of hot chocolate. They’d love him, the real him, if they ever got to meet him.
Which they won’t.Stop it. I pull out my phone and study, using the flashcards app, until we arrive at home.
Jordan
