Excerpt: Plastic on Concrete

No more than half an hour was eked out on the abandoned bridge before their presence was noticed by those in authority and the pair were evicted.
A traffic warden in lurid orange vest tentatively sidestepped Reese to approach Sophie. He politely observed that the bridge was closed to traffic and it might be best for them to move on. He carefully avoided her eyes during the exchange and kept as much distance between Reese and himself as possible.
After the half hour Sophie had yet to conquer the gargantuan challenge of the curb and her body was nearly rigid with frustration, the rage pulling every muscle so taut she was visibly shaking. From his vantage point across the road and with his knowledge of his companion's quick temper Reese could predict a confrontation.
He moved quickly, but not quickly enough.

* * * * * * *

It was a week since the visit to Victoria Park with the others. Reese had been sending her text messages almost every day, 'catching up'. She thought he must be either very lonely or in love with her – she always expected the latter, found it hard to talk to men for shyness of their assessing judgement. She imagined every man she met was sizing her up as a prospective mate, and she had to perform at her peak for fear of disappointing them. Reese had invited her to a skate with some of his friends and again to coffee later when she turned the first offer down. She was busy but regretted not being more social, with more skaters and more opportunity to assess other practitioners of this sport she had made into art. Regretted too that she hadn't heard from the intriguing Therin.

* * * * * * *

As often with her monologues, she finished by tilting her head back to expose some of the underside of her neck in a condescending, superior manner bordering on stubborn.
The other two returned to looking at her doubtfully.
Reese seemed to deflate, dropping his shoulders and his head drooping down so his brows hid his eyes from hers. He looked up again and said with resignation and something that could be either pity or apology, “it's not unique. I've seen it done before, applying a mirror to a skateboard shape to make a modern decoration for the design conscious. My dad showed me it in a catalogue, he wanted to make me a quaint little skate themed bathroom with this hanging over a little sink, these concrete stairs and miniature rail into a Californian pool or bowl shaped wash basin... I'm sorry Soph,” he added.
“My name is Sophie,” she glared at him through narrowed eyes. “And this is not a nic nac for the rich and bored to put in their bathrooms – this is a serious deck to be skated, and I intend to skate it often.”
Therin shook his head at that comment and said clearly, “that's illogical. The design of skateboards in their current incarnation is not just an accident, it has taken more than thirty years of refinement. They've been made from many different materials – thick planks of wood, synthetic materials like thermoplastic nylon and artificially generated materials like the fibreglass used on skateboards, I've even heard of woven and stiffened hemp fibres used to make decks. But the fact is Canadian sugar maple wood is just the best – cut in sheets, seven veneers layered and laminated, adhered with polyvinyl glue then heavily compressed into a mould in exactly the curve desired. The wood is cured and cut into the exact right plan form to be usable. Canadian maple wood has been tried and tested and chosen for exerting exactly the desired properties in the perfect balance – strength, elasticity and suppleness. There is always room for improvement in anything man made, and this is especially true for skateboards where different styles of skating call for different requirements from decks.
“But a glass deck is entirely illogical. Glass is strong but brittle – it shatters readily when impacted at a point. Skateboarding will require that form of contact frequently. Also it has none of the elasticity and response of pure maple, none of the 'feel'. It is a highly impractical decision.”
Sophie shook her head sharply in disgust and frustration.
“Neither is Reese's house and that's still respected! Can't you see, this is an artistic statement?”
“Skateboarding isn't an artistic statement Soph. There's no point in a deck you can't skate...”

* * * * * * *

Therin said nothing. With his expression completely deadpan he leaned over her bag, shuffled through the badges and stood up with one bearing the image of a piece of bright pink ginger kissing a disposable container of soy sauce, and another of a kitten trying to swat at the hand of a little girl pointing at it through the window of a pet store. He silently pinned them to his jacket lapel, beside a larger badge bearing the bright red words 'KILL THE WHALES – SAVE THE PLANKTON'.
This was praise enough for Sophie. She smiled at both her friends, glowing to know her hard work hadn't gone unappreciated.