Part 3: Sid

When I reached the top of the Big Slide I saw that there was already someone there. A boy sat with his legs dangling over the edge. I waited for him to go down, tapping my fingers against the top of the blue plastic bars surrounding the platform. When, after a solid minute, he still hadn't moved, I cleared my throat and asked, “Are you going to go down?” He twisted around to look at me. He wore glasses, big square ones, and he pushed them back up his nose for they had slid down.“I...I don't know.” He stammered in response to my question. “It's such a steep drop.”

“What, are you scared?” I teased. He instantly became indignant. “I am not scared!” He snapped. “I'm just...I like it here...at the top. It's nice.” I rolled my eyes. His comebacks were sourly lacking. “I don't have all day, you know.” I told him. I crossed my arms across my chest to convey my impatience. “I want to go down.” I added when he looked unimpressed by my show. He grimaced at me. “There are other slides, you know.” He reminded me I grimaced back. “I want to go down this slide.” I told him. He turned back around and said nothing. I waited for a few more seconds, half expecting him to go down. When he didn't, I decided to take matters into my own hands. I bent down and gave him a hard push from behind. He disappeared down the tunnel, his screams echoing off the walls. Laughing, I went down after him. I landed on top of him at the bottom; he had face-planted in the mulch.

I quickly climbed up off of him got to my feet. I extended a hand to help him up, and much to my surprise and delight, he accepted. He had a mouth full of chunks of mulch which he promptly spit out. He rubbed his tongue vigorously. I started laughing, I couldn't help it.

“That...was...awesome!” He cried enthusiastically. My laughter cut off abruptly. I was shocked by his response. I'd expected he'd be angry with me for pushing him. Instead he looked absolutely thrilled. His cheeks were bright with excitement.

“I want to go again!” He exclaimed. I smirked. “It's fun, isn't it?” I asked, already knowing his answer. He nodded eagerly. “I'm really glad you pushed me.” He admitted. “I never would have gone down on my own.”

“I didn't push you, it was the wind.” I argued. I don't know why I was denying it, we both knew that it was me. Now it was his turn to smirk. “Right, the wind.” He said sarcastically. I'm Sidney, by the way.” He added. He pushed his glasses back up his nose again; they kept slipping. I snorted. “Sidney is a girl's name.” I told him, and then “I'm Lennie.”

“Lennie's a boy's name.” He shot back. I frowned at him. “My name's Eleanor.” I snapped. I wasn't used to being teased by other kids, usually I was the one doing the teasing. Sidney seemed amused by my response. “I go by Sid.” He told me, the smirk returning. “You're really one to comment on my name, what kind of nickname is Lennie?”

“A cool one.” I said. “What kind of nickname is Sid?”

“An even cooler one.” He said. I rolled me eyes. “Whatever.” I sniffed. His smirk widened. “Why did you push me?” He pressed. I shrugged. “I wanted to go down and you were obstructing my path.” I explained. He pursed his lips, and it looked funny. “You're not very nice, are you?” He said.

“That's not a very nice thing to say.” I murmured. He opened his mouth. I waited expectantly but a moment later he closed it. He really needed to work on his comebacks.

“No offense, but you seem kind of wimpy.” Okay, so I kind of meant offense. Sid glared frostily at me, then sighed. “Not everyone can be brave all the time.” He muttered. I shook my head. “If you never take chances then you're going to miss out on a lot in life.” I told him, sharing with him the words of wisdom that my father had shared with me.“Stick with me, and your life will always be an adventure.” I offered. “After all, sometimes you just need a little push.” He smiled and took my hand. Those were the words that had cemented our friendship.

Reviews

[Rae Emeral]

I love this chapter! I love that it is so full of life and meaning even though they are just young children. Fantastic! "Obstruct" is a pretty big word for a little kid though, haha. :) Can't wait to read more.
~Rae Emeral