Lost Atoms

Chapter 12

My knees scrape against pavement like a grater to cheddar.

            I shift onto my back and moan as Cail comes running. "Are you okay, Zen?"

            "I don't think so," I reply. "I'm pretty sure I'm dying."

            Cail rolls their eyes as they extend their hand. "I told you it wouldn't be easy. I fell down, like, a hundred times when I was learning."

They pull me to a sitting position and I carefully lift each leg of my shorts to assess the damage. It's not too bad, but the skin on both knees are specked with red.

"Maybe that's enough for one day," I say. Cail smirks as they go after their skateboard which rolled into the grass when I fell.

A gust of wind sifts through my hair as I check my phone. I swipe down to refresh my inbox, hoping it will reward me with a new email.

No such luck.

Cail comes from behind and puts their hands on my shoulders. I look up and their freckled face is right above mine. Their red hair tickles my cheeks and I can smell their conditioner. "Hey again," I giggle.

They lean down and kiss me softly. "Oh, hey there," they whisper back. Their blue eyes flick to my phone. "There's still time. Don't stress so much."

"I know," I sigh. "It's just, I want this."

"More than you want me?" Cail teases, and they kiss me again. Then they lift their head and look around. "Where did Tryvon go?"

"I think he biked home. Probably didn't want to get caught in the storm."

"Speaking of which, should we get going?" Cail is looking up at the sky. Just an hour ago it was blue, but now great grey clouds dominate the space.

As I get to my feet, I notice something in my peripheral vision. I cautiously do a double take.

"Cail," I say quietly, "Don't make it obvious I told you, but there's some guy staring at us from the bushes past the bowl."

Cail spins swiftly and I cringe. So much for subtlety.

"Hey!" Cail shouts, causing the boy to jump. "Come out here right now!"

Emerging from the bushes is a teen, probably our age. He's taller than Cail, closer to my height. Golden skin, messy brown hair, and wearing a green track suit. I've never seen him before.

"Did you have a nice peep show?" Cail asks. "Maybe stick to the internet, bud."

"The internet?" the boy responds. There's something off about how he says it, like it's a foreign concept. "No, um, I wasn't trying to spy or anything."

"But that's exactly what you were doing," Cail says, pressing him. "What's your name?"

"I'm Asher," he replies slowly. "And you're Cail, and that's Zenith."

            Cail and I exchange a look with raised eyebrows.

"Have we met?" I ask.

            "Uh, no, not technically," he says. "Well, we have, but..."

            Asher trails off and I can't help but feel bad for the poor kid. He seems all out of sorts, struggling to find his words.

            "So, are you a stalker, or not?" Cail asks. "Or... oh. I know exactly what you're doing. You're trying to go through us to get Tryvon's autograph, aren't you?"

            Now Asher's the one to raise his eyebrows. But his eyes aren't filled with any sort of skepticism. They're hopeful. When he speaks, his tone takes a higher pitch. "Tryvon? He's alive?"