by Jake Maddox
“Miles Vaughn,” Alex said. “He’s new.”
Miles set the snowboard and boots down like he’d been caught trying to steal them.
“Well, good thing you’re here, Miles,” Alex’s mom said. “Because I bought way too much food.” She hung her coat on a hook near the door, then grabbed plates from a cupboard.
“Oh, I . . . can’t stay,” Miles said.
“Too late.” Alex’s mom added silverware to the stack of plates and began to set the table. “Do you need to call your parents?”
“No, ma’am,” Miles said quietly.
The garage door opened again, and Alex’s dad entered, followed by his little brother, Beckett. Beckett’s nose was buried in a handheld game console, his face nearly hidden by his mop of brown curls. The game squawked as Alex’s dad said, “Sorry we’re late.”
“You’re right on time,” his mom said. “Alex brought a friend for dinner. Miles.”
“Hello, sir.”
“Miles, welcome.” Alex’s dad put a hand on Beckett’s shoulder and directed him toward the dining room. “Time to shut it down, kiddo,” he said.
Alex and his family had a rule: no electronics at the dinner table. His mom had set up a ceramic bowl on a wooden hutch. As he walked to the table, Alex dug out his cell phone and dropped it into the bowl.
He nodded at Miles. “Resistance is futile.”
“I’m good,” Miles said, looking away. Alex shrugged and didn’t push it.
The two boys took a seat next to one another as Beckett dumped his console alongside Alex’s phone.
Dinner was a whirlwind. Neither of Alex’s parents were good cooks; his dad joked that the “best cookbook ever written was a take-out menu.” They filled their plates with rice and chicken and veggies from the white paper containers.
“So, Miles,” Alex’s mom said. “Your family just moved here?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Miles said. “From Milwaukee.” He shifted on his feet.
Alex realized that he’d been so concerned with Miles’s snowboarding abilities that he hadn’t even asked about his family.
“What do your parents do?” Alex’s dad asked.
“It’s . . . just my mom,” Miles said. “She works a lot. My aunt comes over most nights, too, though. Like tonight.”
“Do you have siblings?”
Alex was beginning to think his parents’ barrage of questions was an interrogation. Miles looked like he felt the same way.
“Yeah,” he answered. “Two brothers and a sister.”
Alex caught his dad opening his mouth for another question and interrupted him. “Miles is going to join the boardercross team. He’s really good,” he blurted out.
“Oh, that’s wonderful,” Alex’s mom said.
“You’ll have fun,” his dad added. “Bunch of good kids on that team.” He took a bite of food before adding, “That is, when they’re not eating every crumb of food in my pantry.”
When they’d finished their meal, Alex helped clear the table before showing Miles to the door. “Thanks for dinner,” Miles said to Alex’s parents.
“You’re welcome — anytime,” Alex’s mom said. “Do you need a ride home?” The expression on Miles’s face was thankful but shocked, like that was the last thing he’d expected.
“Nah, I’m good. It won’t take long,” he said, looking down. “I’ll get home before dark.”
“Dude, we’ll give you a ride home,” Alex said, looking out the window at the sun just starting to set. “You have things to carry.”
But Miles shook his head adamantly. “No. I’ll get home myself.”
Alex shrugged and passed off the snowboard and boots as Miles gathered up his things. He shared a look with his mother, but she raised her eyebrows like, “It’s his call.”
“Thanks again, man,” Miles said.
“No prob.”
Alex stood in the door frame as Miles walked down the drive, snowboard slung over one shoulder, boots and deck cradled in the other. He gave one last wave as he reached the street.
“See you on the slopes!” Alex called out.
CHAPTER 5
NO-SHOW
He didn’t, though.
In fact, Alex didn’t see Miles Vaughn at all the following day.
He looked for him during class, at lunch. He wasn’t there. After school, when Alex told their coach about the new kid who was bound to dazzle the team, he anticipated Miles bursting into the locker room. He didn’t. When the bus to Mount Kingsford left with the boys and girls of the SBX team, Alex crossed his fingers that Miles would come running up. Nothing. Even after arriving at the slopes, Alex hoped for Miles to be there, snowboard in hand, smugly saying, “What took you so long?”
But there was no grand entrance.
“What’s the deal?” Kevin asked as Alex glanced over the group milling around the chalet. “You looking for someone?”
“I guess not,” Alex said, defeated.
“Listen up!” Coach Gregg called out. He was in his late twenties with dreadlocked hair hidden beneath a wool stocking cap. The school wanted the team to call him Mr. Paulsen, or Coach Paulsen, but nobody did. He was Coach Gregg, and he cringed if you called him anything else. “First day back, so nothing fancy. Take some runs, loosen up. We’ll work on gates in an hour. Got it?”
Alex and the others nodded.
Kevin beelined for the chair lift. Alex followed. “Want to make a run down Jagged Boulder?” Kevin asked.
Jagged Boulder was the black diamond trail Alex saw Miles navigating during the field trip.
“Coach said to take it easy,” Alex said.
Kevin gave him a playful shove. “Come on,” he said. “If that dork in the yellow coat can rock this course, so can we.”
“All right.” Alex waited beside Kevin as the next chair swung toward them. He almost added, That dork’s name is Miles and, p.s., he’s not a dork, but the idea drifted away as the lift chair jerked against his knees. He sat quickly, and they were whisked into the sky.
They rode up in silence, feet dangling in thin air, boards clacking together with each sway of the lift. Alex looked down at the curving lines cut into the powder by passing skiers and boarders, like a freeway map traced in the snow.
Kevin didn’t stop after the lift dropped them at the top of the mountain. He headed directly for Jagged Boulder. Alex tailed him, his mind drifting to the field trip, to Miles and his yellow coat sailing down Boulder like it was a backyard hill.
I can’t believe he didn’t show up today, Alex thought as he took a deep breath, slipped on his goggles, and followed Kevin down the difficult trail.
The two friends navigated the tight curves and jumps. Kevin was in his usual spot in front of Alex. Alex didn’t know Jagged Boulder as well as the other trails. On a normal day, his instincts would take over to guide him down.
But he couldn’t stop thinking about Miles being a no-show. The dude had talent, and he’d promised he’d be at practice with Alex’s gear.
The one time I follow through on something, and it’s a huge bust. What happened?
“Head’s up!” Kevin’s voice cut through the fog. Alex’s daydreaming had caused him to drift. He saw the evergreen approaching fast and cut back, narrowly missing it.
That was close.
Alex cursed himself for losing focus. He couldn’t believe that he’d been so preoccupied that he’d taken his attention off the course — especially on such a treacherous trail. It was a dangerous move, and he was fortunate he hadn’t biffed hard on the first run of the day.
* * *
King’s Crown, one of the slopes’ back trails, was set up as a boardercross course. It wasn’t terribly steep, but there were gates at the top, a rhythm section of berms, followed by S-shaped curves dotted with colored flags. During the summer, Alex and his friends spent time practicing at an indoor simulation of gates inside the chalet. But those were nothing compared to the real deal, to staring down at the course below and feeling the w
ind bite at exposed skin.
Coach Gregg had them work on getting out of the starting gates quickly. “Reaction time is everything,” he said. “Know the cadence, be ready for it. First group, you’re up.”
Alex slid into position. Kevin rode next to him. Handles were set up on either side of the gate, along with a foot-high strip of metal. Alex tapped the nose of his board against the metal for luck.
“Riders, ready!” Coach Gregg shouted.
Alex slid back, stretched his arms out, still holding the handles. He looked down at the snowy course.
“Attention!”
The gate could drop at any moment during the next five seconds. Alex had to be focused.
“Go!”
The metal strip slammed down. Alex pulled himself forward with all his might. He shot out of the gate alongside four other racers. The wind cut through his helmet, across his cheeks.
“Good!” He could barely hear Coach Gregg shout at them as they maneuvered the rolling hills. His board bucked and swerved under his feet. Beside him, Kevin raced down the hill full-tilt.
Since they weren’t practicing full runs yet, Alex’s group eased up, taking the turns lazily. Most of them did, anyway. Kevin roared down the course like he was in the middle of a race. When Alex reached the bottom of the hill, he slid up to the lift. Kevin was waiting for him.
“Slowpoke,” he said.
“You know we’re not racing yet, right?” Alex said.
Kevin shrugged. “Backing down is for losers,” he said. “I never give up on anything.”
They practiced gates until the sun was swallowed by the mountain and the sky was left ablaze in orange and pink light.
“Bus’ll be here any minute,” Coach Gregg informed the team after they’d stored their gear and gathered near the chalet. “Hang tight. Great practice today, team.”
Eddie leaned against the rack, which protested against his weight. Kevin complained that he wanted one last run before they left. Tia’s hair stuck to her face, even after being freed from her helmet. “Anybody else’s arms feel like JELL-O?” she asked.
“I’d raise my hand,” Eddie said, “but I don’t have the strength.”
Alex said nothing. Instead, he stared at the base of Jagged Boulder, and recalled the first time he saw Miles carving down the trail. How impressive he’d looked, how his moves rivaled those of even Kevin.
Alex needed to find Miles and ask him why he’d flaked out on practice.
CHAPTER 6
MILES IN REAL LIFE
Alex had a good idea of where to find Miles. Sure enough, as he walked into Skate Kings, he spied him sitting in a booth, sweatshirt hood covering his head, scribbling in a notebook. A pair of earbuds snaked from his hood.
Miles didn’t seem surprised to see Alex.
“Hey,” Miles said. He pulled down his hood and yanked on his headphone cord. Both earbuds popped out in unison.
“Where were you?” Alex asked. “You missed practice.”
Miles shrugged. “I decided not to go.” He gathered up his things and shoved them into his backpack.
“What?”
“Sorry, man,” Miles said. “It’s not my crowd.”
Alex was confused. “What do you mean, ‘not my crowd’? I told Coach Gregg you’d be there. I stuck my neck out for you.”
Miles shrugged. “I’ll bring your board back to you.”
Alex didn’t know Miles very well, but he knew when someone wasn’t telling him the whole story. This was one of those times. “What’s really going on?” he asked.
Miles eyed him, like he was judging whether or not to trust Alex. Finally, he stood and grabbed his skateboard. “You want the whole story?” he said. “Then follow me.”
Alex didn’t question him; he followed Miles out of the skate park and back into the cold evening. Miles dropped his deck to the sidewalk, climbed aboard, and pushed off. Alex hurried along in his wake.
Miles wove his deck around slick spots on the sidewalk and chunks of ice and snow in the road. Alex could see why the kid was a talented snowboarder. Some of the skills needed to ride a skateboard translated well to the slopes. Balance. Instincts. Awareness.
Miles had all three.
They reached a neighborhood Alex had hardly been to before. He knew a couple of places in the area — his dad’s favorite hole-in-the-wall pizzeria was down a few blocks, and he could see Kingsford Junkyard in the distance — but he didn’t know anyone who lived here. The houses were one-story ramblers, not much to look at and not kept in very good shape.
They reached a tan house with dirty white trim and shutters. Spindly brown evergreens flanked the front door. A small porch was cluttered with plastic toys.
“Welcome to Casa de Vaughn,” Miles said. “It isn’t much to look at, especially after seeing your pad, but it’s the best we can afford.”
Alex didn’t know what to say.
“My dad drove a truck,” Miles explained. “He took a route from Milwaukee to Houston about a year back, driving a load of freight, and he just . . . stayed there. Didn’t come back. So Mom moved me and my brothers and sister here. She’s working two jobs just to keep us from drowning.”
The front door flew open, and a small child darted out. “Miles!” A girl, maybe six, with pigtails and two front teeth missing, vaulted off the porch steps. She ran up and wrapped her arms around Miles’s leg.
“Hey, Daisy.” Miles scooped the girl up.
“Mommy said you’d read to us at bedtime.” Daisy said.
A frazzled-looking woman came out. Her smile was warm but worn. “Daisy has been talking about you reading to her all day. We saved a plate for you since you were so late at the skate park. Again.” She eyed Miles but then winked at Alex, so Alex could tell she wasn’t that mad.
“Okay, okay.” Miles said, ducking his head, grinning. He waved at the front window, where another kid waved back from behind the curtains.
“That’s Johnny,” Miles said.
“We’re twins!” Daisy added. “We sleep in bunk beds!”
“My other brother, Oscar, will be three in a month,” Miles continued.
“And?” the woman said.
“Oh, yeah. This is my mom. Mom, this is Alex.”
“Nice to meet you, ma’am,” Alex said.
Miles’s mom smiled at him. “Nice to meet you, too, Alex. Now, you’ll excuse me but I have to go get ready for work. I bet Miles will share his dinner with you if you want.” She kissed Miles on the head, even as he tried to duck out of the way, and then walked back inside.
He turned to Alex. “Look, man, let me run inside and grab your gear. I just . . . my mom works overnights a lot, and I’m in charge of these guys while she’s gone, especially if my aunt can’t help out. I don’t have time for snowboarding — I sneak in skateboarding when I can as it is. Anyway, I wouldn’t have time to hang with you and your . . . well, rich friends. Sorry to let you down. I hope you understand.”
Alex nodded slowly. He’d never had to worry about money, about getting ten bucks here and there for lunch or to go to a movie, or to store his snowboard at the chalet.
But one of the reasons Miles didn’t want to join didn’t sit right with him. He was clearly afraid he wouldn’t fit in. Not with people who could afford to snowboard all the time.
Johnny rapped on the window. He gestured wildly for Miles to come inside.
Before Alex could say anything, Miles said, “I have to run.”
He set Daisy down, and the girl took off toward the house. “He’s coming!” she shouted as she went. Miles followed, laughing. “Come grab your gear.”
“Keep the gear,” Alex said, making a split-second decision. “In case you need it. You’ve got real talent, dude. The team would be lucky to have you. The bus leaves after school tomorrow,” Alex continued. “We meet in the locker room. You should be there.”
Alex couldn’t stand the idea that Miles thought he wouldn’t fit in. It seemed like it was hard for him to plan for practic
e, but not impossible. Which meant the biggest obstacles to Miles joining were Alex and his friends. He just needed a chance to show Miles how welcome he really was. He crossed his fingers his pleas would work.
Miles stopped and looked for a while at Alex. After a pause, he shook his head with a smile. “I’ll talk to my mom,” he said. “Maybe we can work something out. No promises.”
“I’ll take ‘maybe,’” Alex said. “Maybe’s good.”
CHAPTER 7
YARD SALE
Some of the guys were already in the locker room when Alex showed up the next day after school. Among them was Eddie. Alex scanned the locker room. “Hey,” Eddie said. “Who you looking for? Kevin?”
“No,” Alex explained. “Miles.”
“Miles?” Kevin stepped up behind Eddie. He had his coat slung over his shoulder. A twinge of jealousy lay inside his tone. “You still trying to get that kid on the team? Thought you’d give up by now.”
Alex shrugged. “Guess not.”
“All right,” Coach Gregg said, coming out of the locker room’s small office. “Let’s ship out, team! Everyone on the bus!”
Most of the boys filtered through the locker room and to the school parking lot.
Alex hung back. He glanced over his shoulder at the locker room door. Still no Miles.
He’s going to bail on me again, isn’t he? Alex thought.
And then the door opened, and Miles came hurrying in with Alex’s board slung under his shoulder. “I’m not too late, am I?” he asked.
Alex smiled from ear to ear. He made it!
“Who’s this?” Coach Gregg asked.
“He’s the kid who’s going to impress you in about an hour,” Alex said.
“Miles Vaughn,” Miles said, holding out a hand.
“Nice to meet you, Miles,” Coach Gregg said. “Tryouts for the team are over, but if Alex is vouching for you, let’s see what you’ve got. There’s always room for good boarders.” He smiled at him and then walked off, headed for the exit and the bus beyond.
“I thought you weren’t going to show again,” Alex said.
“Yeah, well . . . ”