Take my hand

my CSSS17 story for hook-come-back-to-me with a quick glance-over by hookedonapirate

Katie, it was so much fun talking to you the last few weeks, it was great to see and hear what you like and what you are expecting. I was a bit afraid I gave myself away when I accidentally started to follow you. I am happy I can finally show myself. It's always nice to meet new people in the fandom, to look through their dashboards and - like in your case - check out their stories.

I hope you like what I created for you, it's a bumpy but fluffy little ice skating story just for you. Enjoy, Katie! Merry Christmas and have some nice days with your family and friends.

Emma was watching the glistening surface of the frozen lake. Oh how much she wished she would be the one on the ice, but she wasn't - she couldn't.

She never learned to skate and nobody had the nerves to teach her. Emma was impatient and stubborn; she hated not being able to do anything and because of that she quickly started to snap at anyone who tried to teach her.

One day her best friend Mary Margaret tried to teach her how to skate which ended in a disaster. The day ended with an emotionally hurt Mary Margaret and an angry David, who yelled at Emma while protecting his girlfriend and guiding her off the ice, leaving a thunderstruck Emma behind. They didn't talk for over a week after that.

Another year her ex-boyfriend Neal tried to teach her but after one and a half hours he gave up and sent her off the ice to "finally have a little fun." She had left shortly after, not able to watch him chase others (mostly girls) around the ice while she stood at the wall feeling like a complete idiot. They broke up six months later when Emma found out he dated this one girl behind her back since that very day.

It was freezing cold outside, a chill breeze blowing through her blonde locks, whirling the snow off the ground, letting the snowflakes dance around her. The last people left the lake, hurrying home to their beloved ones, huddling up in front of their fireplace together, but Emma stayed outside. There was no one she could go to.

Another cold breeze let her tighten her scarf and pull her beanie lower into her face. She looked around and stepped onto the slippery surface.

—

Grumpily he put his phone back into his coat pocket. She stood him up again - the third time this week. She wanted to go ice skating at this freezing temperatures and now she excused herself because she forgot she had an appointment at the spa. Bloody hell, he didn't even know why he was still with her, why he didn't end it for god's sake.

Killian shook his head and walked towards the little village again, passing the lake. His eyes suddenly fell on the silhouette on the ice. "Oi, lass, what are you doing on the ice without skates?"

Clash. Oomph.

"Bloody hell." As quickly as possible Killian put on his skates and rushed to the woman who fell down in the middle of the small lake the moment he called out for her.

"Lass, are you alright? I am sorry, it wasn't my intention making you fall."

He stared down at the blonde woman who desperately tried to get up on her own again. When their eyes met his breath stopped for a moment. It was like staring into the depth of the jungle; her eyes like two emeralds sparkling in the light. He had to clear his throat and blink several times before he was finally able to speak again.

"Are you alright, love?" He held out his hand to help her up, but she refused and tried to get up again without his help. On wobbly feet she finally stood in front of him, her hat deep in her face, her scarf around her neck.

"Yeah, I am alright, thanks," Emma snapped and started walking towards the shore. Killian watched her in amusement. She was making baby steps, balancing with her arms to not fall again. After about five minutes (in which Emma only was able to get away two normal steps/ barely 5 feet), he decided to help her.

Gliding towards her in a gracious way which made her roll her eyes and cursing again inwardly for nearly falling down, she heard him speak again. "What are you doing on the ice without skates?"

She ignored him, stubbornly looking straight ahead, her tongue poking out in high concentration.

"Do you want me to escort you off the ice?"

He now skated backwards, his eyes on her, ready to catch her if she fell again. Again no answer.

"Bloody hell, woman, why don't you answer a single question?"

They finally reached the shore. Emma obviously happy to have solid ground under her feet again. When her eyes fell to the discarded skates on the ground she turned around. "Are these yours?"

Killian scratched behind his ear; he didn't expect this question. "Uhm, well these are the boots of a friend, but she stood me up and well, do you want to skate?"

Surprised by his boldness the tips of his ears turned bright red, which were thankfully covered by his beanie. He observed her, watching her eyes flicker towards the skates briefly before she tilted her head, looking at him.

"I can't skate," she suddenly confessed and turned again, ready to leave. She walked away slowly, not even looking back when she heard him call after her. "Do you want to learn how to skate? I can teach you."

Emma turned again surprised by his offer but she composed herself quickly. She thought about it for a moment - she didn't know the man, so what could happen anyway? The worst case was her yelling at him and walking away, never seeing him again. Best case, she finally learned how to skate.

"Oh please, you couldn't handle it!" She yelled back, turning around again. No. She wouldn't embarrass herself in front of this gorgeous man. She wouldn't give him a single chance to touch her, to see her fail and laugh at her. Surely not. She wasn't even sure why he offered her to help her but she was sure he didn't have good intentions. All men were the same.

"Oh, maybe you are the one who couldn't handle it," he suddenly retorted, plopping the t in a ridiculous sexy - and the same time annoying - way.

Emma Swan never backed away from a challenge. She turned again and stomped over to the skates, grabbing them and switching them with her shoes.

Well, it's been a while, but it didn't seem to be so difficult, she thought while still walking on the snow covered solid ground.

"Do you want to stand there all day long or do you want to learn how to skate?" Her head snapped up, she looked at her teacher and narrowed her eyes. She made another step forward, slowly planting a foot on the ice.

She followed suit with her second foot, proud of standing on the ice without falling flat on her face.

"Well done, lass. Now come to me, one step after another, slowly; get a feeling for the ice. It's different to be on ice with skates as opposed to shoes."

Emma rolled her eyes, looking at him. "I've been on ice with skates before, thank you, Mister." She stopped herself before saying something stupid or, rather, she had to stop to not lose balance.

"Woah, easy, lass. Give me your hands; it's easier when you have something, or in this case, someone, to hold on to."

"Surely, I will not give you my hands, I can do that on woah-woah-wo," Emma snapped at him but suddenly lost balance. Killian reacted quickly and steadied her.

"There you go, see? You can do it - you just need a bit of help. No harm done by letting me help you, is there?"

Emma didn't respond; she looked at him irritated by his kindness and understanding. He didn't know her, yet he was willing to teach her, to accept her harsh words and help her without being obtrusive.

"Well, uhm," Emma nodded slightly, laying her hands into his larger ones.

"I'm Kilian by the way, Killian Jones." Killian held her hands tightly but not with too much pressure. He slowly slid back a bit, never breaking eye contact.

Without noticing Emma followed him slowly. She tried to concentrate, tried not to fall down and got lost in his eyes, studying them and his face. She had never seen blue eyes like his in her life. They were captivating; his face was already a bit red from the cold weather outside, but he was still very handsome. There was a small scar on his right cheek and Emma asked herself where he got it from.

"See, you are doing great; look how far we came." His words brought her back to reality.

She let go of his hands and looked around. They were indeed already far away from the shore, which surprised and also scared her. Turning again a bit too quickly she stumbled and was about to fall down, but Killian caught her and instinctually pulled her closer.

"Careful, we don't want you to fall and break anything," he smiled at her and broke the intimate position, taking her hand in his, looking over the ice. "What do you say, shall we try to skate over there?"

Emma followed where he pointed at; the little snow heap didn't look that far away. "Okay, let's go."

"No, no, no, no more walking, now we start phase two: gliding," he smirked at her tugging at her hand slightly.

"Wait, no, I am not ready, I- I-" Emma started to stammer but he didn't give in; he tightened his grip and pulled carefully. "No, Killian, I can't do that."

"Yes, you can, lass; see, we are already doing it," he smiled at her encouragingly, still skating backwards, his eyes never leaving hers.

"Emma." She returned his smile when Killian suddenly stumbled. They hadn't even noticed that they had reached the snow pile. With a loud oomph, Killian landed on his backside, dragging Emma with him, so she landed on top of him.

"Pleasure to meet you, Emma," Killian suddenly said, his face just mere inches from hers. She stared into his eyes, not able to retort anything. She was lying on top of him, his hands around her in a protective, but not uncomfortable, way. They stayed like that for a minute before Killian shivered slightly and broke the silence. "And sorry for the fall."

Emma blushed but wasn't sure why exactly. She tried to get up, but only ended up lying on Killian again. This caused an even deeper shade of pink colouring her cheeks. Carefully Killian got up and helped Emma.

After the fall, they kept practising, every now and then beaming at each other when Emma managed to not fall down or when she skated without holding at least one of Killian's hands.

"Bloody hell, Emma, you did it – you can skate!" Killian called out after her, and Emma looked over her shoulder proudly. She made a bend and skated back to Killian. She still felt uneasy on ice, but she knew now she only needed to go on to solidify her skills. They continued skating for about half an hour. Slowly Emma's toes went numb and she became tired, but she didn't want to stop. She enjoyed skating and she enjoyed the cold wind on her skin whenever she followed Killian or tried to race him. She liked the way she felt when he grabbed her hand to prevent her from falling. She felt so alive and happy – she didn't want this afternoon to end.

Killian watched her circling a snow pile. Although she only learned skating today, she looked like a swan who glided over the water graciously. He could watch her for hours. She was a great lass. Beautiful, a bit rough around the edges but still very enticing. He slowly skated to her and was about to grab her arm when she suddenly made a move into the opposite direction.

He stopped immediately, looking at her thunderstruck and watching when she was falling like in slow motion. She slipped on the ice, sliding across the surface directly into a huge snow pile.

She didn't scream; she was too shocked to react in any way. She fell face first, her beanie falling off her head.

"Emma!" Killian's concerned call made her open her eyes again. Snow surrounded her her coat was open, her hat and gloves missing. "Emma!" Suddenly she felt a pull on her feet and the next moment she was free again. She was cold and stared at Killian, shocked.

He on the other hand looked at her relieved. He pulled her up and into his arms, holding her tightly. "Are you hurt? Are you alright?"

Emma couldn't answer, she only nodded and pulled him even closer.

"How about we end our training now and I buy you a cup of hot cocoa?" Killian still didn't let go; the memories of her falling were running through his head like a film on an endless loop.

"With whipped cream and cinnamon?" Emma asked against his neck, burying her cold nose into the crook of his neck, letting her hands slip off his shoulders and hiding them between their bodies.

"Aye, with whipped cream and cinnamon," he chuckled amused when he suddenly realised how cold Emma was. "But first we have to get you off the ice. Come, I'll get your beanie and gloves; put on your coat, love."

Emma nodded and wrapped her coat around herself tightly. She watched Killian retrieve her things and waited for him on the ice. She was still too startled to skate to the shore on her own.

Because of that she allowed Killian to take her hand into his - he had removed his glove as well - allowed him to intertwine his fingers with hers. The feeling of his skin against hers set her hand on fire, a warm sensation crawling up her whole body, warming her from the inside.

Maybe, just maybe this was the beginning of something wonderful.