Feels Like I'm Letting Go (Kensie)

[LEVI SEBASTIAN ELLIOT]

[Title from www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnV4xOHp1a4&feature=endscreen&NR=1 because it is what I am listening to at the moment.]

Despite there not being a single cloud in the bright blue sky and the sun shining merrily down on Cresting Grove, the temperate outside was freezing. Some might have groaned at the sun's trickery, but Levi didn't mind in the least. He wore khaki shorts, a bright red and white Hawaiian, and flip flops as if he were heading to the beach in the middle of summer and not going into the snow in the middle of winter.

Levi opened the door to the white-washed farm house that his family had bought several years when they first moved here and stepped out onto the sidewalk, his hands shoved in his pockets and a bag slung casually over his shoulder. Flecks of white, powdery snow settled into his red-brown hair. His body heat quickly melted them, and soon enough, his hair was lightly soaked. He began to whistle a cheerful tune as he turned off the sidewalk and across a field of frozen grass.

His stormy blue eyes sparkled as he took in the lake nearby. The entire top seemed to be frozen solid. A large grin spread across his features, and he sprinted the remaining couple hundred yards to the ice. Levi slowed to a walk at the dock and set the brown bag he had been carrying on the planks. He sat down at the end of the dock and carefully stepped out on the ice, searching for any sort of crack in it that would signal something was wrong. When nothing happened, his grin became even wider.

He walked close enough to the shore so that he could reach the bag then opened it. Several pairs of ice skates fell out. Levi choose the biggest pair and left the others where they were. Order was not exactly his strong suit. After kicking off his flip flops (they landed with a crunch in the frozen grasses near the shore), he hastily pulled on the ice skates.

"Dear god, I love the winter," he said excitedly, his face alight with childish joy. Pulling himself up into a standing position, Levi looked out of the ice and began to skate. The ice wasn't at all smooth, and Levi wasn't at all that good at skating, but he still enjoyed it.

[KENSINGTON MAE DAVENPORT]

Kensie liked the sun, honestly. She always knew it was going to be a particularly spectacular day when she woke up with the sun luminously shining through her bedroom window. However the weather had clearly deceived Kensie, because the moment she stepped outside in her snuggly pajamas and slippers, she immediately began to miss the warmth she felt under the blankets of the bed. “I should’ve known,” she muttered to herself, leaning across the side of the front door. She laughed at herself for her gullible ways as she looked out at the melting snow on the ground. Turning around back into her house, she decided that despite the fact that it looked like a warm day out, she would bundle herself in many layers – including a scarf and a hat.

Normally, on a day like today, she would cuddle up with her kitty, with a mug of hot chocolate and her nose in a book, but in an attempt to follow her mom’s becoming-frequent badgering for her to get out more, she made a decision to step out past the front porch of what had been her sanctuary for the past few days. Kensie waved hello to a few of her neighbors on Spring St as she walked along the path, not exactly sure where her destination was. Maybe she could get a bite to eat, or maybe call up a friend before heading down to work that afternoon.

Her thoughts and her aimless wandering was interrupted by her noticing of an older boy, she had seen quite a few times around town since she had moved to Cresting Grove. His name was Levi, she remembered her mom saying once, nice boy. She glanced over the shimmering crystal lake, and his smooth maneuvering over the rough ice. She paused, standing there almost like a little girl glancing at a shiny new toy, as she watched him skate. “Wow,” she murmured, a smile beginning to spread on her face.

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[LEVI SEBASTIAN ELLIOT]

Levi gleefully continued to skate across the ice, being careful to avoid going too close to the center. While it looked stable enough to him, he wasn't going to risk it. He remembered the first winter his family had spent here. He had been thirteen at the time, and his father was really excited to be living in Cresting Grove because it actually became cold here. Before, they had lived in Atlanta, and it was fairly moderate all year round. At the very least, there weren't any lakes in Atlanta that they could have gone ice skating on. Mr Elliott brought Levi and two younger sisters, Terra and Alessandra, to this very lake and taught them to ice skate.

It had been a funny learning experience. Levi had always been very tall, so his sisters always thought it was hilarious to see their six and a half foot older brother wobbling around on ice skates. Of course, they teased him less about it when they didn't fare much better. But that first winter they were here, Terra went a bit too close to the middle, where the ice was thin. It didn't hold her weight, and she fell in. At the time, Levi was terrified, but their father leaped in and saved Terra. To this day, Terra refused to ice skate anywhere near the middle, going on so far in so that if the ice did break, she would be able to stand on the bottom.

Levi spun in a circle, laughing wildly. The laughing turned to a yelp as he lost his footing and fell onto the ice. He had been going fairly fast when he slipped, so his momentum launched him across the slippery ice. His vision had become blurry because he was dazed and moving so quickly, so he couldn't exactly see what he crashed into once he reached the shore. Groaning, he closed his eyes and shook them slightly to get his head straight. When he opened his eyes, he realized he had literally crashed into someone. "Oh! Hello there!" said he cheerfully, flicking a few pieces of snow off the girl's face before standing on two wobbly feet. He held a hand out to her, "You alright?"

[KENSINGTON MAE DAVENPORT]

Kensie loved to ice skate, though she wasn’t spectacular at it at all. Falling was mainly what she did when she was on the ice, having no sense of balance at all. Ice rinks back in DC didn’t seem as great as the real thing she was experiencing in front of her. This boy in front of her seemed to be having a lot of fun, laughing as he spun in circles as she watched in all. How could you not fall? She had wondered, she could hardly stop herself without falling, much less spin around in a circle. Then what seemed like the inevitable happened, as she watched him lose his footing and being launched right – at her!

A panic-induced heart attack, that’s what she felt as the very large, especially compared to her petite figure, slammed into her and caused her to fall into the snow behind her. Her eyes widened in shock, as she had hardly registered what happened. It had happened too fast! Laying flat on the cold snow, a little flustered, she blinked several times. He seemed cheerful, almost like he hadn’t just knocked her over – as if he was just meeting her on the street for the first time or something. “Oh! Hello there! You alright?” Kensie, still incoherent from the fall, stared blankly at the outstretched hand in front of her for a few seconds before taking it.

And then, she didn’t know what quite came over her, but she began to laugh at herself, and him as well. “I think with that move, you could totally be in the Olympics,” she teased, as she began to brush the snow off her shirt. “I’m Kensie, by the way,” she introduced herself, offering a hand to shake to him. She gave him a meek smile as she looked up at him. He towered over her and made her feel small compared to him, but he seemed charismatic enough, and that was enough for her.

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[LEVI SEBASTIAN ELLIOT]

Levi continued to grin merrily down at her as she stared blankly at him, probably in shock from his huge body knocking down her tiny one. As he studied her for a moment, he realized that she was quite tiny, even by his standards. She couldn't be much taller than five feet, and he would be surprised if she was much over 100 lbs. He also noticed that despite her small frame, she had large, pretty green eyes and dark brown hair that was probably very carefully style before he had come and knocked her into the brush. After helping her up, he reached up to his head and pulled up a dead piece of grass.

"You must certainly have a low opinion of Olympic athletes if you think that!" he replied, laughing vivaciously. Levi scratched the back of his head and pulled out another piece of straw, then ran a hand throw his auburn hair to rid it of the snow. It wasn't doing too much good, though, seeing as it was snowing. "Nice to meet you, Kensie. I'm Levi," he said, taking her hand in his larger one and shaking it enthusiastically.

His cheerful expression turned slightly concerned, "But you are alright, aren't you? Broken limbs? Colorful bruises? A concussion or two?" Levi paused, frowning as he thought about what he had just said, "I'm not sure it's possible to have two concussions, though."

[KENSINGTON MAE DAVENPORT]

This boy was certainly a talker, she noted to herself as she watched his eyes light up and his speech very animated and enthusiastic. He had a nice laugh, she caught herself thinking, before blushing and looking down at her feet. She enjoyed people like this, people who did a lot of the talking and never let the conversation run dry, it saved her from a lot of quiet, awkward moments. She was a listener, a thinker, most of the time. "You must certainly have a low opinion of Olympic athletes if you think that!" He had laughed loudly as he replied that, and she smiled at him in response. She had just begun to get to know this guy, and her first impression of him was nothing short of good.

“I think that I’m a very good judge of talent. And that wipeout deserved a perfect ten!” She laughed as she remembered how shocked she was to be knocked over, and how hilarious the event truly was as it replayed in her mind. He had introduced himself just as cheerfully, his name being Levi. What a nice name, she had thought to herself, looking at their hands as they greeted each other. His hand wrapped around her hand perfectly, though his large palms seemed to overshadow her small fingers. When Kensie looked back up at him again, she noticed that his mood had changed quickly – like a light switch, he seemed concerned or worried of some sort. She raised her eyebrows, curiously as she waited for him to say something that was reflect his sudden mood change.

He had asked if she was alright, if she had anything broken, or any bruises. Though the fall was hard, nothing seemed to be hurting, and she appreciated his concern. He seemed to puzzle himself with the thought of two concussions, which she responded with a laugh. “Only if you have two heads, though I’m pretty sure that I don’t,” she replied, a smile spreading across her face. “But I think I’m okay, thank you!”

Kensie glanced out towards the lake, peering over the frozen waters. “Do you skate a lot?”

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[LEVI SEBASTIAN ELLIOT]

Levi chuckled at her, flashing her another pearly grin as she rated his wipeout a ten. Some people might have been offended of someone teasing them, but since Levi himself had started it, it didn't bother him in the least. It actually probably wouldn't have bothered him anyway. He saw the world through rose-rimmed glasses, always seeing and pointing out the brighter side of things. To Levi, there was always a brighter side. There just had to be. Otherwise, he mused, what was the point?

His concerned countenance softened as Kensie assured him that she was alright. Having two younger sisters who he adored, Levi always had to be on the lookout for them whenever they were out together. Some older brothers thought their sisters were irritants, but Levi had never thought that about Terra and Alessandra (though he was sure they had probably thought it about him a time or two). "Well, good! I'm glad you're alright," said he, once again cheerful, as he plucked a piece of dried straw out of her hair, "And that you don't have two heads. Not that I would judge you or anything...I just don't think it would be very healthy."

Levi took a step back to imagine Kensie as having two heads, then shook his own. At her inquiry, he laughed again, turned to look at the frozen lake, "Only in the winter. My dad taught my sisters and me a few years ago when we moved here from Atlanta. I'm the only one crazy enough to do it right now," he added, turning back to her then looking up at the bright sky. A sudden idea popped in his head, and it was as if a light bulb had gone off. He looked at Kensie and beamed brightly.

"Do you want to skate some?" he asked excitedly, gesturing to where the various pairs of skates were on the dock, "I just grabbed the entire bag when I came here. I'm sure one of my sisters' pair would fit you!"

[KENSINGTON MAE DAVENPORT]

“And that you don't have two heads. Not that I would judge you or anything...I just don't think it would be very healthy,” Levi had told her, and she raised her eyebrows in amusement. How odd it was that they were talking about people with two heads – she attempted to picture Levi with two heads, though she realized was a silly thought that was and felt ridiculous for doing so. “I would have to agree with that,” Kensie replied, laughing freely. She tapped her temple twice as she looked up at him thoughtfully. “Though maybe if I had two heads, I would be smarter and doing better in school.”

A sudden chill hit her, a slight cold breeze against her face and blowing her hair to the side. She pulled her jacket closer together before realizing Levi’s attire. Her mouth nearly fell open with shock as she realized he was wearing shorts and flip flops. He seemed like he was dressed for summer, much less winter! Her thoughts were cut short as his cheerful disposition raised yet another question. "Do you want to skate some?" He had asked, telling her that he had brought a whole bag of extra skates. Kensie regained her composure, from glancing at his flipflops to looking at him again.

“I’d love to skate,” she answered, her voice quiet. She bit her lip as he offered her his sister’s skates and seemed very friendly to her. Her mother did say to get out more and have a little fun, and this seemed like a great opportunity, to get to know Levi as well as have a little fun during the beautiful day. She glanced at his bag on the side of the lake, with one of the skates peeking out of the bag before timidly glancing back at him. “I’m a truly awful skater, though. Every single time I get on the ice, I fall.”

She had a sudden flashback as a kid in DC, being first on the ice, one of the few moments she could remember her mom and dad being together and happy, holding their hands and trying to skate on the ice. Her movements were jagged, and she felt like she was going to slip every single time, but she held onto her parent’s hands in a tight grip and they made sure she wouldn’t fall. The memory brought a smile to her face every single time. The minute they let go, she was confident, skating across the ice, only to realize that she didn’t know how to stop. She had slammed into the side of the rink, and fallen flat on her bottom. Being five-years-old, Kensie was horribly embarrassed, and refused to skate for the rest of the time.

The idea of skating brought warm feelings to Kensie, and maybe she knew she was going to fall again, but it’d definitely be worth it. Finally, she decided, a bright smile spreading across her face again. “Let’s do this!”

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[LEVI SEBASTIAN ELLIOT]

Levi smiled at her encouragingly as she seemed to contemplate the intelligence of going skating with him. He grinned when she said she would love then and her mentioning she was an awful skater and would most likely fall, "That's alright. I'll catch you if you fall," he told her, then added as he chuckled cheerfully, "Besides, you've already had me fall on top of you. What's a small fall compared to that?"

He responded with much more enthusiasm than was probably appropriate when she said "Let's do this!". "Alright!" he exclaimed brightly, grabbing the bag of skates and loose skates on the board. Levi picked up a few of the skates and eyed them and Kensie's foot. After a moment of contemplation, he handed her a pair of dark blue and silver skates that seemed to have hardly ever been used before. "These are Terra's skates. She doesn't skate too much. Terra is my sister," he explained, adding the last part as an afterthought.

[KENSINGTON MAE DAVENPORT]

“That’s alright, I’ll catch you if you fall,” Levi had assured her, his voice light as he chuckled. She noticed that his eyes lit up whenever he laughed, his grey-blue eyes that somehow reminded her of a storm becoming a little less cloudy and a little more full of sunshine and happiness. “Besides, you’ve already had me fall on top of you. What’s a small fall compared to that?”

She laughed, nodding along in agreement. “That’s very true,” Kensie responded, beginning to walk towards the dock where the skates he had told her about with placed. Her pace was fast, her walking a little jump to her step as she felt very excited to get on the ice once again, though albeit a bit anxious. “How kind of you to offer to catch me though. Hopefully I won’t do a faceplant! That would be super embarrassing!”

His enthusiasm was apparent as he handed her a gorgeous pair of skates, dark blue and silver, that seemed almost new. He had explained that they belonged to Terra, and that they hadn’t been skated in much. She took them from her hands, cautiously, almost like if she grabbed them too quickly, it would lose its beautiful, though she knew that was impossible. She slipped them on her feet, they fit snugly on, just right. She felt a little nervous as she tied the laces and stood up, feeling much taller than she had earlier.

“Here it goes,” she said, trying to hide her nervousness with a laugh. She closed her eyes briefly and took a deep breath, and then she stepped onto the ice.

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[LEVI SEBASTIAN ELLIOT]

"Well, considering I've already done a face plant worthy of a ten on your Olympic scale, I have a lot of doubt that any faceplant you may or may not do would outdo mine!" he said, pretending to be a snotty athlete who thought the world revolved around them. His face relaxed into its more natural, kinder pose, "But seriously, if you do, just remember this: I'm laughing with you, not at you."

Levi watched as she took the skates in her hands carefully and began to slowly tie them up. He didn't know how much she had skated in the past, but her fingers nimbly tied them up better than Terra ever had. 'Although, Terra was always determined to tie them when she was standing up....I never really understood that. She was just making it difficult for herself,' he thought to himself, amused. When she stood up, his straightened, letting go of the dock and standing easily on his own skates. "Here goes!" agreed he enthusiastically, stepping out onto the ice in front of her.

He skated in front of her, backwards so that he could keep an eye on her. "You're doing great! Fantastic! Absolutely spiffing," Levi said in a loud, cheery voice. His hair still stuck up a random angles from when he crashed into the shore, probably adding to his already fairly bizarre appearance. He spread his arms out and looked up at the sky, "Caw! Caw!" said he, laughing.

[KENSINGTON MAE DAVENPORT]

Ice Skating – or even balancing for that matter, was never something Kensie was really good at. But standing there with Levi, who seemed so cheerful and confident, she seemed to feel the same way. His happiness was certainly contagious, it made her feel lively and fun as well, and not as reserved as she’d normally be. It was something she had never pictured herself doing, getting out of the house and ice skating with a nearly complete stranger. He had tried to reassure her, in his childish cheerful way, “But seriously, if you do, just remember this: I'm laughing with you, not at you."

Kensie rolled her eyes playfully as she tried to adjust the uneasy feeling of herself on skates. She felt taller, but way more out of balance than usual, and began to try to walk with them, her blades sinking in the snow. “If I break a bone, it’s totally on you,” she teased with a smile. “But I’ll try to remember that you’re laughing with me, as I’m screaming in pain.” She laughed and tried to joke away her nervous energy, but she was still afraid of falling regardless.

Cautiously, she stepped onto the ice, feeling a slight bit of panic in her heart as she realized that it was much more slippery than she had anticipated. Her eyes widened quickly as Kensie suddenly felt as she was going to fall – but she didn’t. Slowly, she began to skate, a smile beginning to form on her face. The lake was a little bumpier than she was used to, but nothing she couldn’t handle. “Levi, I’m doing it! I’m doing it!” she exclaimed with joy.

[LEVI SEBASTIAN ELLIOT]

He enjoyed the feeling of complete freedom as he glided across the ice, careful to keep Kensie within a few feet of him at all times. The rough ice below him also played a part in that; if he went too fast, he was sure to hit a bump that would knock him over. The wind ruffled his red-brown hair, and the sunlight sparkled off his his blue irises as Levi watched Kensie with a grin. When she exclaimed that she was skating (and therefore not falling flat on her face) the same kind of joy on her face was reflected back on his.

"Whoot, whoot!" he shouted, his voice echoing over the mostly frozen lake. To his right near the shore, a few red birds flew up from the trees at his noise, but Levi merely laughed it all away, "Now, just don't let the ice crack!" Levi said teasingly, though perhaps the warning should be heeded; nearby, just a few feet towards the center of the lake, there were small cracks in the ice.

[KENSINGTON MAE DAVENPORT]

Kensie spread out her arms and closed her eyes as she skated across the lake, the cool breeze no longer threatening as it blew softly along her hair and against her face. She let out a smile as she began to laugh as she skated, the feeling of almost flying and being invincible something entirely new to her. She turned behind her to glance at Levi, who seemed to be having just as much fun as she was having. The skates made her feel taller, as she lifted her arms up high, as if to touch the sky.

She began to skate near the center of the lake in her bliss, before realizing that the ice near the center was thinner and had several cracks in it. “Now, just don’t let the ice crack!” Levi had warned her, nearly moments too late. Her eyes widened in fear as she felt the ice crack around her as she tried to stop herself suddenly. The lake was not completely frozen solid, there was some water under the thinner ice.

“Too late!” she nearly squeaked as panic took over.

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