take a leap and fall

chapter one

If there is actually a place of refuge, Aiko would kill to have one. To her, there is no such thing as a sanctuary where the water tastes good and a blanket is enough to warm you up. Even such person you could call 'home', they say.

So she's homeless.

To be fair Aiko's life isn't that bad. She lives in a house with a roof, eats food three to four times a day, and has people to spend time with. She's loved yet alone. Holding onto a newly bought skateboard, all she could do was wander.

So she wanders.

To god-knows-where.

It was an endless cycle Aiko's been going through over and over again but it doesn't matter now for it is the last. She let her feet walk on their own, doesn't matter anywhere.

A warm wind gently caresses her face. Aiko closes her eyes and takes a deep breath to smell the earthly fragrance wandering around like her. When she shot her eyes open, the lighting of the setting sun struck her eyes, too mesmerizing for her to see.

An unutterable smile crosses Aiko's face as she climbs up a high ramp in front of her with her skateboard to get a better view. When she already did, she faces the sun. "Ah..." Aiko exhales with her mouth wide open. "Today is a good day to die," She mumbles under her breath, the smile still remains.

It didn't take long enough to ruin her moment when Aiko's leg hits something— no. It's more like something hit her leg from behind. "You won't die on a ramp that high. Do it somewhere," An unfamiliar voice says.

Aiko turns around to see a wavy-haired brunet, about sixteen years old like her, riding a skateboard. He wears a baggy top, a cuffed jeans, and a pair of black chucks. Pretty good fit for a boy, Aiko must say.

Aiko shakes her head and jumps off the ramp instead with a frown displays on her face because of the boy's attitude. At first, she wanted to whine at the boy but on her second thought, it's not worth it. "No shit sherlock," Aiko mocks. "Like hell anyone would think they could kill themselves in a ramp like this,"

The boy chuckles. "Well, I was joking but alright. Sorry for hitting you with my board. Maybe you shouldn't do drama at a skatepark though," He says. The apology is visibly genuine but the last thing he said is getting into Aiko's nerves.

Aiko narrows her eyes. "Skatepark, you say?" She asks, not playing dumb but rather because of pure confusion. The boy nods which makes her look around. "Holy shit," She curses, eyes are twinkling more than ever.

It was because of the fact that it's Aiko's first time at a skatepark. Perhaps she didn't notice it right away because her mind was a waste. "What? First time at a skatepark?" The boy asks, almost like mocking her.

"W-well..." Aiko stutters as she scratches the back of her head. Obviously embarrass for not noticing the place and acted like a kid who just enters a mall for the first time.

The boy chuckles once again and tries his best to not burst out laughing. "Pft. It's because you've been walking around as you look at the sky without seeing your surrounding," He says.

"You were watching me the whole time?"

"Don't get the wrong idea. I'm here to cruise," The boy says as he gently pops the skateboard's tail and grabs the board simultaneously. "By the way my name is Uno, people call me Ace sometimes," Uno adds.

"Eh... how do you even pop as gently as that," Aiko says in monotone. "Cool name though. The name's Aiko," she introduces herself and lifts up her fist for a fistbump. The two's fists meet each other.

Uno starts to ask Aiko if she wants to cruise around with her since he noticed that the girl was holding a skateboard as well. He finds out that Aiko is a beginner and only knows how to push and ride the board properly, but only on a flat surface.

"I'm also about to throw this board away. Skateboarding is harder than I thought it would be," Aiko says. It is crystal clear that she lost her hopes before even trying to seek the world beyond skateboarding in which Uno rolls his eyes at because of disappointment.

"Seriously? Why did you start skateboarding in the first place?" The brunet grumbles.

"Eh~ maybe I would look cool and because of skate the infinity?"  Aiko says, talking about an anime series and seemingly unsure of her answer. Although she's internally kidding, her face belongs to a death parade for Uno to take the joke.

"Fucking poser. You're frustrating," Uno cusses in monotone. His face looks so nerve-racking, you won't even be able to see the lack of guile on his face that was there a few seconds ago. "Let me show you what skateboarding really is," He adds as he grabs Aiko's wrist and forces her to hop on her board.

Aiko's eyes become wide when the brunet holds her hand still and starts to push his skateboard, dragging her along. "Wait idiot! I might fall!" She complains—almost stumbling on her skateboard—but Uno becomes deaf.

It took a bit of time before Aiko gets comfortable being drag along by Uno as she stands on her moving board. She feels the vibration of the bumpy road and little cracks. Her gaze goes to the boy in front of him and from the back, she can still see his expression.

It seems like Uno is raging but somewhat excited, it is unutterable. It widens Aiko's eyes when the brunet's face beams. She tears her eyes away from the boy and wanders her eyes instead.

Riding a skateboard board outside feels new and weird yet Aiko feels at ease.

So she lets Uno take her to god-knows-where. If Uno is a bad person and would murder her by any means, it wouldn't be something she should be worried about. And if Uno would do such thing, she would even say thank you. It's not like she has something to lose after all.

The two ride their skateboard beneath the enthralling sky painted in orange with soft clouds scattered all over it as the sun bid its goodbye.