The New Girl

Skating into the Weekend

Clara- 

I made it through my first week at my new school, and things have been going a lot better. River has figured out that I want to stay away from him, the other guys are mostly leaving me alone too. Also, Victoria hasn't messed with me at all since River stopped talking to me. Best of all, I made new friends. Toni and Chris are both really funny, sweet girls. They enjoy art and reading like me, however, they have pretty different styles from mine. Toni is into horror and darker works, and Chris likes science fiction. While I like those, I also really enjoy fantasy and romance as well, which they aren't so interested in. I get along well with them though and we have had some great conversations. Plus, no drama yet. Hopefully we can keep it that way. They are both in the Thespians Club, but they don't act. They work on the sets together. Mostly, they paint and build parts or backgrounds for the sets. I actually think I would like to join if it isn't too late. 

I plopped down on my bed, which was covered in freshly washed blankets. It felt so good to have everything on my bed so warm and cozy from just coming out of the dryer. It's a Friday night and I don't have anything planned, which I don't really mind, but I'm a little tired of sitting around at home. Although, my sketchbook has enjoyed all the attention I've been giving it. I've added multiple studies of still life items, as well as a few studies from life this week. I can feel myself learning new things as I go. 

Maybe getting out of the house would be good for me though? I don't know, maybe Toni and Chris would go roller skating with me? River had mentioned that there is a really great skating rink here in town. My ankle feels a lot better now and only has bruising left at this point, which would surely not be ideal for skating, but I don't really care that much. I have inline skates that are aching to be used. I won't use those unless I'm on a rink floor. Sure, I have roller blades for using outside around town, but those are so different from my inlines. I got those with the intention of using them outside on sidewalks. 

Okay, I'm going to do it, I'm going to see if they will go with me. The worst they could do is say no, which is alright. I grabbed my phone and found Toni's number then dialed it. She answered after just a few rings.

"Hey, Toni. I was wondering if you and Chris would like to go roller skating tonight? I know there is supposed to be a great rink here in town." I waited anxiously for her response, which came pretty quickly, luckily.

"I'm in! I can call Chris if you want? Does seven work? I can pick you up." I smiled at her response, super excited.

"Yeah that all sounds great! Bring Chris if she wants to come, if not I'll at least see you at seven." I responded, then we said our goodbyes and hung up. I texted her my address so she could pick me up on her way. I really need to get a car, but money is a little tight right now. Luckily I live close to a lot of the places I need to go to like school.

I spent a little while getting ready to go this time. I had actually curled my frizzy hair, which made it look a little bit more tame, but don't get me wrong, I do love my hair natural. I also put on a little soft glam makeup and some black skinny jeans. I felt cute but not too dressed up for a rink. Hopefully this place is as cool as River made it sound. 

An hour or so later I got a text from Toni saying she was here, so I ran downstairs and said bye to my mom before heading out to her car. She drove a cute little silver Toyota. It felt like it suited her quite well. Chris was in the passengers seat, so I climbed into the back with my skates in hand. 

"Whoa girl, you even have your own skates?" Chris asked me, a little surprised. 

"Yeah, I've been skating since I was young. I'm not very athletic or coordinated normally, but I can hold my own on a pair of skates." I smiled at her and looked at my black inlines adoringly. One of them had a blue stripe with pink laces and the other one had a pink stripe with blue laces. I had got them as a gift from my father for my seventeenth birthday. He was the one that taught me how to skate. 

We pulled up to a large purple building after a short drive, and the girls got out and locked the car. I followed them towards the doors, and the closer we got the louder the music was. It seemed like this was a pretty popular spot. The line was long, but moving fast. It didn't take long for us to get to the front where we had to pay. 

"Hello ladies, it will be nine dollars for each of you. If you need to rent skates it will be an additional two dollars." We all smiled at the woman and paid, then she pushed a button behind the desk and the doors opened. I took a deep breath as I walked through the door. It was dimly lit, with flashing lights coming from the rink area, music blasting. It was amazing. I looked at the others and smiled at them, it was probably obvious that I was super excited. 

"Clara, if you go find a bench you can get your skates on. We will meet you over there when we have ours." I nodded and headed over to the benches by the floor. I pulled off my shoes and started putting my inlines on, then heard a familiar voice and looked up. Standing just a few feet away was River and Alex. They hadn't noticed me yet, and I wanted it to stay that way for at least a little while longer. 

Toni and Chris walked over to me with quad skates in their hands and slowed down when they saw who I was looking at.

"Oh, I'm sure he won't mess with us." Toni said quietly with a soft smile. I had told them both everything about what had happened, including the kiss. Was it really even a kiss? I guess so, but not much of one. More of a moment that would leave me wanting more. More of something that would be bad for me. I had tried to keep from thinking about our kiss and how it may have made me feel. 

"Yeah, I think I will just go on out to skate if you guys want to meet me out there." I said as I got up and slipped past  the boys to get to the floor. My wheels hit the smooth wood floor and I exhaled the deep breath I had been holding. Suddenly, I felt completely relaxed and at home. This was exactly what I had needed. I skated to the music for a couple laps before the girls made their way onto the floor next to me. They seemed like they were both decent at skating and could at least kind of keep up with me, which was nice. 

"So, I guess we should have warned you that River is here almost every Friday night." Chris said apologetically. I shrugged my shoulders and smiled.

"It's okay, there wasn't even that much that went down between he and I. I'm still just trying to stay away from him because the last thing I need right now is to have a crush on him. He seems to have a lot of drama that comes along with him." I said. The girls nodded and we skated in silence for a few minutes. 

River and Alex came towards the entrance onto the rink floor. I looked at River and he noticed me. A smile appeared on his face quickly. I smiled back and could tell that my face was turning a little red. Oh man.

"Oh gosh." Toni said under her breath as she watched our awkward smiles. I looked away from River and tried to just keep moving. Him and Alex didn't talk to us most of the night, and we skated together in peace. After a while though, I noticed Alex and River approaching us. 

"You are better than I expected." River said with a chuckle as they skated next to us. Alex was next to Toni, who looked a little nervous. She usually puts on a badass act, but she really is pretty shy. 

"I've been skating almost my whole life." I said confidently.

"Yeah, me too. The owner is friends with my mom." River said with a cheeky grin. 

I nodded and looked away from his cute smile. 

My head was getting foggy again, but I was still enjoying my time. Being around the guys is enjoyable. 

"So, River, I heard you might be getting back together with Victoria." Chris said. I could feel my jaw drop a little. How did she not mention this to me?

"Oh, uh, I'm not sure. She wants to, but I don't know if I can handle her right now." He responded while looking straight ahead of himself. "Well, uh, I guess we should get going. We have a party to go to." River said and then we all said our goodbyes. 

As the boys left I looked at Chris and raised my eyebrows. "What the heck Chris? How could you not mention that to me?" I asked.

"I hadn't actually heard that from anyone," She said with a laugh "but I thought I could get some information out of him if I accused him of it." She had a feisty look on her face. I chuckled at her and shook my head. Oh my goodness.