[color=LightSeaGreen][CENTER][h1][b] Elle Miller [/b][/h1][/CENTER][/color]
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[youtube]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ewRjZoRtu0Y&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]


[indent]Elle’s visit home had been brief and uneventful. Pete and her mother had long gone. The silence at home without them was welcoming. The cash left on the table for her was just enough to cover simple groceries for the weekend and a small pizza delivery order. It would be enough until they returned Monday. Elle stuffed the cash into the back pocket of her 90’s straight jeans and pulled on a white hoodie to wear under her denim jacket. She emptied her backpack of all things school related leaving only a well used phone charger and a borrowed copy of the latest John Green novel. It wasn’t cold enough outside for it yet, but Elle pulled on a black beanie in case she would be out after dark.

Elle was now coasting along an empty suburban street leading out of her neighborhood. Her headphones tucked into each ear to prevent anyone from stopping her to chat. The houses in her neighborhood had a lower-middle class aesthetic. Most were simple one story homes like Pete’s with a few of those 70’s split-level homes stuck between. The ones that gave two options upon entry, down into the lower level or up into the main level. In Elle’s opinion, those houses were just disguising the basement as a livable area. If she imagined living in one, Elle assumed her room would be in the basement, tucked away from Pete and her mom’s sight. She’d like it that way.

The pace she kept was even and casual. She had nowhere to be in a hurry, so she was enjoying the ride and the chilly breeze against her cheeks. Where she ended up going didn’t matter much. Her current plan was to ride until she found a spot she liked, and then she would sit and enjoy the last of the sun before winter came to swallow it up at 6 in the evening.

Time felt as if it was going in slow motion. Elle held her hands out beside her and let the wind catch the tips of her fingers. She bent low and let momentum take her, just drifting along. Up ahead she spotted a pothole and she grinned. She lowered her foot to the ground and kicked off to go faster. The pothole was coming up now, but Elle wasn’t planning to crash. A second before her board would have nosedived into it, Elle kicked her feet out in separate directions. Her board jumped into the air with her and for a moment both bodies were suspended. Elle was weightless. She floated over the pothole and readjusted her feet to land on the board as it found its way back to the pavement. Gravity returned and Elle bent her knees to absorb the impact. Once she felt balanced, Elle stood straight and let her board return to its casual speed before gently kicking off again. There’s no way anyone could tell her skateboarding was boring.

[youtube]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mkGT1c98soU&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]

A new artist, Mac Miller, was playing through Elle’s headphones as she made her way onto Main Street. Elle’s head swayed with the melody as she looked down the road. At the end was Summer Park, but in between there were plenty of things Elle could do. Nothing she was particularly interested in, really, but she had options. Henry would be at Saturday’s carefully putting comics on their shelves, Helen would be busy making frappuccinos or espresso for those kid’s parents, and Willow would certainly be at her favorite window table. Elle wasn’t planning to stop in to chat at either location, but she planned to at least wave as she went by. Just in case they’d see her. 

First stop was Saturday, so Elle slowed her board as she rolled past to look inside. Henry wasn’t hard to spot, and it made her grin. It looked like he was distracted, his headphones in to block out the nerdy rambling of the Leesburgh High D&D Club in the backroom no doubt. Elle raised her hand to wave just in case he noticed, and then turned to continue down the sidewalk. There were a group of students up ahead. Upperclassmen she didn’t really know, so she quickly swerved around them to keep her pace. It took one easy alley to hop the curb and cross onto the other side of the street when there was a broad gap in traffic.

Once she was on the other side, she only had a few groups of walkers to pass before she made it to Mooncash. Sure enough, Willow could be seen sitting in her favorite spot. Elle slowed to a stop in front of the window and used her foot to prop the skateboard up on its rear end. Elle gently tapped on the window and smiled. [color=LightSeaGreen] “Hey, Willow.”[/color] Elle said, even though to Willow it was most likely just mouthing words. Elle glanced down at the other girl's sketches and gave her a thumbs up. The wire figures were pretty cool.[/indent]