Billie White

Chapter Three

CHAPTER THREE

The chain rattled on the rack, as I secured it back onto my bike. My eyes felt dry and heavy, and I really didn’t have the energy to cycle home ... but I had to.

I pulled out my bike, then wheeled it out of the shed. It was truly what you’d call “night time,” now. The fire had died down, and all the parents and children had disappeared; leaving, single adults and teens to roam the streets. Roman was standing alone, his dark eyes flickering round manically. They then fell on me, and he gave me a shy smile and wave. I wheeled my bike over towards him, and returned his smile. “Hey, Roman,” I said then glanced at the trees; to see that John, Max and Logan weren’t there. “Where’re the others?”

“They’re drunk as hell, so I went solo,” he said and laughed at the end.

“Well, it looks like you’re gonna stay that way, Roman.” My grip tightened on the handles, and I started to wheel my bike away. Roman followed.

“You’re wrong,” Roman said, as he walked briskly by my side.

“Why?”

“We live on the same street, Billie,” Roman reminded and I sighed. 

“How do you even know that?” I said as we neared the end of the field. Roman and I got to the end, crossed over to the path and exited through the iron gates.

“Billie,” he began as I got on my bike. “Just because we never spoke in school, doesn’t mean I hadn’t noticed you cycling there every day. And plus, our parents work together.” I placed one foot on the sidewalk, and stared straight over at Roman. He bit a pink lip, then stuck his hands in his pockets. “Do you want me to walk you home?”

My eyebrows furrowed, and I bit the inside of my cheek; trying to process what he just said. I looked down at my bike, and then back up at him. “Um, Roman ... I’m riding a bike.”

“I know,” he nodded then looked round. The breeze blew his hair into a crazy style, but he tamed it quickly and looked back at me.

“You can’t walk me home, if I’m cycling.”

“I can walk by you,” he said then looked round again. “It could get a little messy, you know. There are a lot, or drunk people at the moment and you could get hurt.” Sighing, I stepped on the pedal and pedaled slowly so Roman could keep up. I honestly didn’t mind him “walking me home,” since that was a sweet and considerate gesture. It’s just the fact that I was on a bike, which just threw me off.

We moved in silence, distant shrieks just filling it in. I cold feel his eyes scan over my body occasionally, but I didn’t mind. I liked it. I liked knowing, that he didn’t mind looking at me. “You like me, right?” Roman said as we neared our street.

“Yes, why wouldn’t I?” I joked and he shrugged.

“Apparently, I can come across as rude,” he said then sighed heavily. “I’m working on it, though.”

“I don’t think you mean to be,” I said and glanced at his face. It’s fallen, and his eyes were fixed on the floor.

“Yeah, I guess,” he mumbled and then we continued moving in silence. He was strange. First he was this confident, appealing to the visual eye sort of guy. But now he was this small, lonely guy who is trying to fix his life ... Well that’s what I’ve made out anyway. 

We carried on walking, a comfortable silence in between us. When we got to my house though, I stopped cycling and Roman abruptly stopped walking. “Is this your house?” he asked and I nodded; half smiling.