He shook his head.
“All right. You watch. I’ll ride to the end of the sidewalk. It will be a good test for Kevin, too. Then I’ll teach you how to ride.” After putting the dog in the trailer, she mounted the two-wheeler, pushed off, and pedaled down the street balancing on two wheels.
That looks easy enough! Fast, too.Not as swift as a ground crawler, but it beat walking.
She pulled up next to him and stopped. After dismounting, she lowered the kickstand and ushered Kevin out of the trailer.
Rok mounted his bike, eager to ride.
“Whoa, whoa. Wait a sec. Before you try riding, walk the bike first. Sit on it, but push yourself along with your feet and squeeze the brakes every so often to get the feel of how to slow and stop. Go to the end of the row and back.”
When he returned, she said, “Next, push along with your feet, get the bike moving, and then lift your feet and glide for as long as you can. This will help you learn how to balance. If you start to fall, put your feet down.”
He got the bike moving, but the instant he raised his feet, the handlebars wobbled, and the bike started to tip. Start, stop, start, stop. He did more walking and tipping than gliding.
“This could take a while. Let’s try pedaling,” she said. “The faster you go, the better the balance, and the bike is easier to control.
“Start with one foot on the ground, the other on the pedal in the top position. Then push down on it. When the bike moves, bring your other foot up and pedal faster. Keep your eyes on the distance. Don’t look down. The slower you go, the more you’ll wobble. Ready?”
“Yes!” He pushed with his right foot, lifted his left onto the now-upward pedal, and fell over, hitting the ground with a crash. Kevin darted around yipping.
“Are you all right?”
He’d skinned his arm and knee, but the injuries would heal before the day ended. “Yeah.” He untangled himself from the bicycle and got back on. When she’d done it, riding had looked easy.
“Remember, if you feel yourself falling, put your feet on the ground.”
Another fall and three near-misses later, he wobbled down the sidewalk.
“You got it! You’re doing it!” she yelled, her praise warming him until she shouted, “Pedal faster!”
Faster? He’d rather take a spill going slow than fast! But he didn’t want to disappoint her, so hepedaled a little faster. To his surprised relief, the bike rode straighter. With a boost of confidence, he soloed around the entire quad, laughing the whole way. By the time he returned to Chloe, his grin stretched from ear to ear.
She flashed two thumbs up. “You’re ready to sail.”
He dismounted, and she handed him a tool. “I’m going to the store over there to get some clothes. While I do that, take a look at my bike, see how the trailer is attached, and hook up the other one to your bike.” She’d brought out another carrier while he’d been cruising around the square.
“Why?”
“Extra storage.” She headed across the quad. The dog started to follow. “Kevin, stay.”
The dog’s tail drooped, but he lay down and watched the woman walk away.
Rok knelt and stroked the animal’s clean, dry, fluffy fur. “Don’t worry. She’s coming back. For you, she’ll come back.” Whether she’d return forhimwas iffy, but she wouldn’t leave the dog.
He examined her trailer and got to work on his. Attaching the carrier was easy—fit the shafts onto the bolts, add a nut, and tighten. Chloe still hadn’treturned, and Kevin looked dejected, so he asked the dog, “You want to go for a ride?”
He put him in the trailer and took him for a spin around the square. When he returned to the starting point, the dog’s tail wagged, and he would swear the animal was smiling.
Shortly after, Chloe emerged wearing different clothes and carrying a sack. But then she entered another store.
He looked at the dog and sighed.
* * * *
“Ready?” she asked. They were perched on their bikes, Kevin settled in his carrier. Rok’s trailer had his pack with Grav’s personal effects, the clothing she’d brought, as well as a bag of stuff she’d collected from the Sudsy Paws dog salon.
They rode single file on the walkway with Chloe leading. There were fewer crashed automobiles in Big Creek than other places, but the width of the trailers and his lack of skill made it better to avoid the road.
