Hell to the No

The Beginning

There are few streetlights on the top of this giant hill, and we carefully make our way down in the light of the rising moon. Roman is on his skateboard, rolling a few inches and stopping, rolling and stopping, over and over to keep a consistently slow pace down the sloping street. He teases me periodically about how I should try riding down the hill on his skateboard with him, but I refuse profusely. I pad along barefoot again, the asphalt still pleasantly warm from the long-gone sun. At the bottom of the hill now, Roman stops under a streetlight.

"Want to ride now?" he asks with an adorably imploring look, hopping off the board and nudging it toward me. I stare down at it with raised brows, blinking rapidly.

"I don't even think I could stand on it," I mutter. Roman laughs, taking my hand as he sets one foot on the board to keep it steady.

"Up you go, Allie." He tugs me towards him and the board when I hesitate. "Come on, I got you," he croons with an effective smile. I hesitate just a moment longer to enjoy the feel of my hand, small and slender, in his. After shooting him a skeptical glare, I grip his hand tightly as I carefully step up onto the skateboard, feeling wobbly even before I lift a second foot up. I welcome the hand he places on my waist for support. Rigid and clutching at Roman, I honestly feel like I wouldn't even be able to just stand on this thing without holding onto something. My bare feet grip the rough, sandpapery surface of the board.

"There we go," Roman says as he lets go of my waist and takes a step back, and the board wobbles underneath me.

"Hey! Wooooah, don't you leave!" I trill, my flip-flop-occupied hand flailing as I totter on the skateboard. Roman takes a step back toward me, transferring my hand from his to around his shoulders as he stands beside me.

"I'm right here, Kenevil," he says with a smirk as he wheedles my flip-flops out of my iron grip, "One foot in front of the other. Find your balance, and just hold onto me." I narrow my eyes at his smugly amused expression as I reluctantly obey him.

"Gettin' a kick out of this, huh?" I say as he slides his arm around my waist and pushes me gently forward. I give a jolt as the board moves and my balance is thrown for a second, but I quickly regain it with Roman's support. I can practically feel the amusement radiating from him.

"Oh, hell yeah," he says with a devilish grin.

I find it easier to get used to being up on the board the more we go, and I end up only needing to hold onto Roman's hand as he pulls me along by the time we reach my house. He hands me my shoes back after I hop off the skateboard. I look over my shoulder at my home, the light from the living room window casting a golden glow over our yard.

"Mom wanted me to invite you and your mother over for dinner sometime soon to talk about arrangements for this summer, so if you could talk to her about that..?" I ask, turning back to Roman. He nods, rolling his skateboard back and forth with one foot, his hands in his pockets.

"Absolutely. Do you have your phone on you?" I look down at my pocket-less skirt before shrugging at him with a lazy grin.

"It's in the house."

"Useless," Roman teases with a smile as he shakes his head, pulling out a shiny Droid, the screen lighting up his face as he taps away on the touch screen. He plops it in my hands. "Put your number in. I'll text you after I call my mom tonight, I'm staying at my father's house." I nod as I punch in my number awkwardly, completely unfamiliar with the touch screen. I hand it back to Roman once I'm done. We stand there for a moment, and I feel the need to hug him or something before going... Anything less would seem too formal at this point.

"Well, goodnight, Roman," I start when he doesn't, "Thanks for walking me home." I lift my arms to offer a hug, and I can't quite make out his expression as he hesitantly accepts. Warmth blossoms in my chest as his arms enclose me, and his scent fills my senses.