eighteen | trip like I do

[strike_you_out]

Around
[On a fine Friday morning, Slugger stands at the top of his driveway overlooking the perfect yard and perfect street in this perfect 1950s "utopia", and knows that this reality was born of someone else's delusional madness. He yawns. Well, better find some way to kill the time. Not looking back at the house on Anderson Lane, he rolls down the

Comments

Around

[miss_enma_ai]

[Also roller skating. She's much better at it now. She's perfected the skating aimlessly bit.]

[strike_you_out]

[Hearing the sounds of wheels that aren't his own, Slugger looks around until he spots where it's coming from. He's almost a little surprised to find Ai skating on her own and turns to catch up to her.]

[miss_enma_ai]

[Looks over.]

Hello

[strike_you_out]

[He nods in greeting, gaze fixed on Ai's feet as she skates. He's definitely noticing the progress.]

You got better.

[miss_enma_ai]

Yes.

[Lots of free time does wonders for practise.]

[strike_you_out]

Is it fun now?

[miss_enma_ai]

[She nods.]

I like it.

[strike_you_out]

[He'll just continue skating alongside her for a little while, until--]

Ai. Have you been there?

[pointing to Mayfield's only roller rink]

[miss_enma_ai]

[Looks over.]

Once. I wasn't skating.

[Just exploring]

[strike_you_out]

[gradually rolling to a stop]

Was it strange inside?

[miss_enma_ai]

I'd never seen a place like it before.

[strike_you_out]

[Slugger was curious before but now he's really curious.]

...I'm gonna check it out.

[And he heads toward the building.]

[miss_enma_ai]

[Follows.]

[strike_you_out]

[If she keeps at it, she'll follow him straight through the wall and will find herself standing beside him between the rink and the booth for renting skates.

Slugger looks around. He could stand to do without the music and the bright lighting, but it isn't impossible to tune out. There's a number of drones skating in circles around the rink while others stand by watching or are seated on benches.

Venturing closer, he'll watch for a moment before looking at Ai and then stepping into the rink.]

[miss_enma_ai]

[And there they are. She watches and then steps onto the rink herself.]

[strike_you_out]

[He starts rolling forward with the flow of the rink. There's something awkward and obscene about being in such a public place especially when outnumbered by drones. But by the third or fourth time around the rink, he'll come to ignore them and focus on Ai.]

How fast can you go?