Skater Boy by Anthony Nerada

Author:Anthony Nerada
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Soho Press

13.

I’LL KEEP YOU MY FLIRTY LITTLE SECRET

Tristan and I meet behind 7-Eleven after school on Thursday. I figured if we’re going to be spending all this time together, I might as well teach him a thing or two.

“You have got to be kidding me.” Tristan gawks when I hand him the extra skateboard I dug out of storage this morning. I hid it in my locker all day to avoid any questions from The Tripod. Not that I saw either of them.

This whole thing between us is fucked up. We’ve gone from sixty to zero, best friends to complete strangers, in a matter of days. It’s like they’re blaming me for what happened. The first time I saw Brad at school since the party, he physically turned around and went in the opposite direction to avoid me.

Tristan takes a step backward over the curb and shakes his head. “Not happening.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll go easy on you.”

The sun is shining for the first time in weeks as we walk the three blocks to the skate park. It’s warmer out today, so I’m wearing a plaid shirt beneath my jacket with gray pants cuffed up to show off my Vans.

I force Tristan to put on the helmet and kneepads I pull out from my backpack, and he does so willingly. He looks like a sexy Michelin Man, if you’re into that sort of thing.

I take his hands, and Tristan steps onto the board, his knees wobbling like he’s forgotten how to walk.

“Aren’t you a dancer?” I tease.

“I’m used to solid ground, thank you very much.”

We circle around the park so Tristan can get used to the motion. He holds on to my shoulders the whole time, flinching at every turn.

“You actually like doing this?” he asks, shifting his weight when he begins to tilt.

I shrug, and it causes him to temporarily lose balance. His fingers dig into my jacket, his grip tightening on my shoulders.

“We can’t all have electric cars,” I say with a smirk, feeling the crisp January air on my face before adding, “There’s something about the wind blowing through your hair on a hot summer day while you cruise down the street, rocking out to music, without a care in the world. I forget myself sometimes.”

When it’s just me and my board, nothing else matters. Not school or the way everyone’s eyes follow me as I’m sent to the principal’s office, not my grades or graduation. When it’s just me and my board, I feel like I can breathe.

“I’m the same way with dancing.”

It’s still wild to think we have anything remotely in common. I drop my chin to hide my blushing. “How do you feel?”

“Good, I guess,” Tristan says, laughing when he accidentally lifts his foot and the skateboard thuds beneath him.

I help him step to the ground and run over to collect my own board.

“Now,” I say, throwing it down with the tilt of my ankle, “the trick with a basic ollie is to have your right foot straight just behind those front bolts there.

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