Alternative Ballad ✔

Chapter 1

[Alyssa Hicks]

Sitting at a bench at the Skate Park, I'm cooling myself down, drinking loads of water and trying to refrain from sweating needlessly. The boys are whistling at me, waiting for me to reach them, though I hesitate.

For some reason, I'm not very keen on skating today. Perhaps it's because it's too hot, or just because I'm bored and want to try something completely different.

However, it seems as Kendall and I are the only ones who'd rather do something else. Still, the others are insisting that we stay here.

"Come on, girls. Don't tell me you want to leave. Stop acting like old women and just have fun with us." This coming from Jaylin's mouth is somehow inappropriate. I mean, he's not the biggest lover of fun in town.

On the other hand, I consider myself funny. Or, at least, this is what I thought until two minutes ago. I'm not having fun here anymore. Probably it's because Kendall has been sitting at that freaking bench all the time, without having a single ride.

My life has never been so unexciting, especially since Kendall has attempted to spend some time with me alone, without our other friends around doing boring stuff such as watching sappy movies and - guess what - trying out clothes and doing each other our make-up.

I hate staying with her alone, I don't know why. Or maybe I do. Her presence alone is somehow intimidating. She can be really possessive, when she can.

Okay, enough about all this shit. After all, I don't want to ruin this amazing day with my friends. Kendall's antics can wait. Seriously. I don't want to be infected by her anxiousness.

Meanwhile, Griffin and Jaylin are trying some new tricks on their skates. Wow, I have to admit I'm kind of impressed. The way they spin and flip without losing control of the skates is amazing. Seriously, I wouldn't be able to do a flip even if threatened.

Nonetheless, I try and copy their moves, even though I know I'm more than likely to fail, since I'm not an advanced skater. Not that I'm a beginner, anyway...

The others laugh at me, sounding a little disdainful, but, to be honest, I don't care at all. They can do whatever they want, who am I to tell them what they have to do?

Suddenly, I feel someone touching my shoulder. I turn suspiciously, before finding Jaylin smiling mischievously. I hear him laughing under his breath, which causes me to raise an eyebrow. "What's going on?" I ask, making him stutter and quiver his lips.

"N-n-nothing, I swear," he replies and turns back to skating in a huff. I follow him and do exactly the same. I need to know what's going on with the others, before it's too late.

Meanwhile, I watch Griffin and Oscar performing yet more dangerous stunts, but this time wearing very little protection. Isn't it a security hazard? This may get us kicked out the Skate Park! Oh, never mind, not that I'm a regular follower of rules, anyway.

The more time we spend on our skateboards, the best. Seriously, I'd stay here till night. No judgement, no family always questioning what I do, no peers criticizing every single action of mine. This place is perfect. Or, this is what I think, at least.

While the boys and I are skating like this is the last thing we do before dying, I notice that Chiana is sitting on a bench, next to Kendall. I don't know what she wants to do, but I'm sure she's probably trying to convince her to do something.

I stop doing what I'm doing now to reach the two girls. "Hello, what's going on?" I ask, smiling.

"Oh, we were just talking," replies Chiana, looking away. However, her answer isn't convincing me for some reason. Oh, it doesn't matter, honestly, since she's turning back to the boys.

Well, her behavior isn't exactly convincing me. There's something she hasn't told me lately, but this is not a priority. What matters now is finding out what's going on with Kendall, since she's been acting strange.

"We can talk, you know, right?" I say, showing off a toothy smile, but she isn't very convinced and looks away. But why would she look away from me? We're best friend, we've never hidden anything from each other. There's definitely something wrong, and I believe it can be sorted out only if we talk to each other.

"Come on, I'm here to listen to you. If you have a problem, we can sort it out together," I insist. This time, however, she stares at me, studying my glances, the position of my eyebrows and the movement of my lips, which are trembling faintly.

"Okay, Alyssa, I noticed something strange with you," she points out. After all, she's right. "Would you mind telling me what it is?"

"Oh, no, I can tell you," I answer. I really hope I can tell my best friend that I really care about her, that she's the most important person I've ever had in my life, even more than my parents. In other words, I'm in love with her. I love staying with her, she makes me feel special in a world where no-one seems to care about feelings at all.

But, do I have the courage to confess my feelings for her? She knows that I love girls, but not that I love her. If it were easy, anyway, I wouldn't be here, struggling to find the right words to tell her. Instead, I'd be back skating with all my friends, including her.

"Well... you're special, you know..." I can't believe I only managed to say this. I thought I'd have far more courage than this. This is just proof that I'm either a coward or I'm confused about me loving her. But, as long as she doesn't look too disappointed, everything is okay.

Without saying another word, I get back on my skateboard to try some new stunts, with Kendall staring at me in awe. I'm not as good as Griffin or Jaylin, but at least she appreciates me and my moves. She, not wanting to look uninterested in what the rest of us is doing, picks a skateboard, wears her protection and joins us.