I've Got a Brand New Pair of Roller Skates

[Laurels]

((Alba Reyes continued from So Sorry For That, Man!))

"Okay, I'm going to pull you along, then let go. You should be able to skate like that."

"You think so?"

"I know so. Alright, let's try it out."

Alba reached her hands out and held onto her little sister's. Sofia had been interested in learning to roller skate lately, mostly after seeing Alba in a roller derby match. She had never gone roller skating before, so Alba offered to help teach her the basics so she could get better. Alba found an old pair of roller skates from when she was younger that fit Sofia perfectly. Once they were both padded and protected, Alba began to teach her sister the basics.

"Now," Alba said, keeping a tight grip on Sofia's hands, "try not to move too much. I'm going to start backing up and pull you along."

"Okay," Sofia responded.

Alba could see Sofia looked a bit nervous. Sofia wasn't the most physically active person in their home, and she was prone to worrying whenever trying something new. However, Alba had given her a promise as a big sister to look after her, so she was certain she could get Sofia to love roller skating by the time they were done.

"Here we go," Alba said, kicking back her roller blade, pulling Sofia down the road in front of their house.

Immediately, one of Sofia's legs moved forward, while the other slipped back. Alba quickly pulled up, lifting Sofia a few inches off the ground. She could see the shock in Sofia's big, brown eyes, and set her back on the ground.

"Okay, slipping is common," Alba said, her heart starting to race a bit. "Let's try again."

"Okay..." Sofia stuttered.

Alba began to pull Sofia again. This time, Sofia didn't immediately go into the splits.

"Just keep going," Alba said. "We're going to stop moving on the count of three. Got it."

Sofia nodded, keeping her gaze to the skates. Alba slowly inhaled.

"One..."

"Two..."

"Three..."

Alba stopped moving, but Sofia didn't. Sofia rolled forward and bumped into Alba.

"Okay, that was good," Alba said.

Alba let go of Sofia's hands. Her hope was to give some space between the two so they could start again. However, as soon as she did, Sofia tried to move on her own, pushing herself away from Alba. In an instant, Sofia's skates moved forward, causing her to fall on her backside. Alba tried to catch her, but Sofia fell too quickly for her to catch her. After Sofia hit the ground, Alba picked Sofia back up and stood her up.

"Oh jeez, are you okay?" Alba asked.

Sofia was silent. Suddenly, the tears started to flow and Sofia began to cry. Alba bit her lip and started to pat Sofia on the shoulder.

"Hey, don't worry," Alba said. "It happens to everyone. You just have to get back up and try again."

"I don't want to!" Sofia shouted.

"Come on, this is only the first day we've tried this," Alba said.

"I want to go inside!" Sofia cried out.

Alba looked up and sighed. Sofia often got like this if things were too rough or hard.

"Fine," Alba said. "We can go inside. But just so you know, this isn't the end. I'll help you, Carlos can help you, but we're going to try again."

Alba realized Sofia wasn't listening to her. Alba sighed and reached down. She hoisted Sofia up by her waist and lifted her up to her chest.

"Here," Alba said, "put your arms around me. Let's go inside. Hold on tight."

Sofia put her arms around Alba's neck, and Alba began to skate back towards their house. Sofia felt heavier than she did the last time Alba picked her up. Alba wondered if it meant Sofia was finally starting to grow up. Sofia didn't look like she was growing up, but Alba could tell things were starting to change.

((Alba Reyes continued in V6))