out on a walk

It was almost dark. Plenty of time for homework.

"I can walk you all the way to the park." It was the half way point, actually. He only lived a block or so from there. "I need to walk Henry, anyway." Her old cocker spaniel wasn't as frisky as he use to be, but he still needed some fresh air.

She grabbed her silly crocheted cap with the brim and put it on.

Kyle just laughed. "Is that your Tom Petty hat?"

"No," she didn't like that remark. "I made it myself."

'For real." He giggled more.

Ellie sighed. This was why he was in middle school and she was in high school. OK, so it was a stupid looking hat and deserved to be laughed at, but did he have any idea how long it took to figure out even if she didn't have a pattern.

"Its an original." She told him.

"That's for sure." He added.

They went for their walk then with old Henry in the lead.

"Wish it was summer," Kyle said after awhile with his hands in his back pocket as they strolled along.

"It can wait." Ellie was pretty content with school, kind of, anyway.

"Remember that sleepover we had over at Rogers?" He asked.

"Yeah, and my mother still doesn't know." She shook her head, no.

"Neither does mine," he said. "That was the most fun. All of us in that tent. You girls never shut up. I don't think anyone slept."

"It was a very long night." She remembered. It seemed ages ago now how they'd hunted all night for ghosts that weren't there. The surprise of the night was a flock of deer parading down the street, there hooves clicking down the pavement.

"That's the first time I kissed Kelsy."

"She was there?" Ellie didn't remember her.

"She was there, but Roger had to scare her with his lizard and she went home." About that time they saw Roger, from across the street on his skate board at the park.

Kyle didn't give Ellie a chance to remember Kelsy and the lizard. He snatched her hat and took off running with it on his head.

"See ya!" He yelled.

"Hey! That's my hat!"

"I know and it would be hideous for you wear it anywhere!" He shouted back as he ran. "And you should thank me for taking it!" Off he went.

"That turd," Roger slammed on the back of his board and almost fell as he came to a stand still. "You better stop hanging out with him, you know."

"Why?"

"He's a baby. You want peeps thinking you're going with a baby?"

"Roger, who asked you, anyway?" He hit a nerve.

"I know what I'm talking about if you want to be popular," he said. "You stop hanging out with middle schoolers. They'll start thinking you're sick in the head."

"Thanks for the info." Ellie rolled her eyes as she let Henry sniff around while Roger talked. He loved to talk, but usually about himself.

"Just looking out for you, El." He shrugged.

"Yeah, right." She pulled Henry back, she needed to go.

"How's your sister?"

"Fine."

"You tell her, she's a total babe for me, will you?"

"Is it just me? Or am I the only person you ever talk to this way?"

"Its hard to be popular, you know." He went back to his skateboard and his tricks.

"Especially, when you come up with sick stuff like that for my sister." She didn't even bother to say goodbye. She really couldn't remember the last time they were actually friends.