It was a bright sunny Saturday afternoon and Seth was on a bike ride with his cousin and best friend Roman. Roman wasn't really his cousin, he had been adopted by Seth's aunt and uncle when he was one year old. They had grown up right next door to each other so they spent almost all of their time together. Roman was 9 and Seth was 8. Seth was small for his age and he got bullied for it, but Roman was always there protecting him. It was the first day of summer vacation and they had a full 2 months of fun planned. Today was a day Roman planned. Roman was big for his age and he liked doing sports and any kind of outdoor activity, Seth didn't care for it, but Roman always did things that he didn't like for Seth so he wanted to return the favor.
"Slow down Romie." he panted, pumping his legs harder to catch up to Roman's bike. "I can't keep up."
"Sorry Seth." Roman said as he slowed to a stop. "I keep forgetting that your bike isn't as fast as mine."
"It is." he said sliding to a stop next to Roman. "I'm just not as strong as you."
"Don't worry about it." Roman said digging through his backpack. "We'll spend this summer making you stronger."
"I'm too small to be strong." he said sadly.
"Don't talk like that Seth, I was as small as you last year and I grew." Roman said handing him a bottle of water. "You will too."
"Maybe." he said taking a drink of water. "I just wish I didn't have to wait."
Roman patted him on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it so much. There's no school for 2 months and it's time to have fun."
He smiled a toothy smile at Roman. "Yeah."
They got back on their bikes, going at a pace that Seth could keep up with. Soon he got lost in his thoughts. Roman was his hero and he wanted to be just like him. He wanted to be tall and strong and he was letting his hair grow longer like Roman was, but it just made him look like a girl. Roman was everyone's friend, the nicest boy in town, smart, funny even animals liked him. He was impossible not to love. When he was five years old, he had been convinced that Roman was an alien and that his aunt and uncle had adopted him just like Superman because he was perfect.
"Earth to Seth." Roman said, breaking him out of his thoughts. "I asked you if you wanted to have a race."
"Sorry." he said sheepishly. "I was thinking."
"You think too much." Roman said slowing to a stop. "So are we going to race or not?"
"Where to?" he asked.
"Just to the tallest tree." Roman said pointing down the hill.
"Okay." he said smiling. "On the count of three."
"One." Roman said.
"Two-Three." he said quickly, taking off fast before Roman could react.
"Cheater." Roman yelled as he started after him.
"Sorry." he yelled over his shoulder as he peddled as fast as he could towards the hill, wanting to beat Roman just for once in his life. He kept pumping his legs harder, picking up speed down the hill and he felt his tire slip over some gravel and a second later, he was airborne. He flew towards the side of the road and landed hard on the grass.
"Seth!" he heard Roman scream as he lay there dazed from his fall. He tried to turn over but his knee started hurting and he was worried that he might have broken his leg.
"Seth?" Roman said, skidding to a stop close to him and running over. "Are you okay?"
"I don't know, Romie." he said, scared. "My leg hurts."
"Let me help you turn over." Roman said and he held him gently by feet and waist and turned him over onto his back.
He groaned as his knee throbbed, but he was scared to look at it.
"Does anything else hurt?" Roman asked him as he started running his hands over his body, looking for broken bones.
"No. Just my knee." he said, tears starting to well up in his eyes.
"I'm gonna have to touch it." Roman said, looking in his eyes. "I'll try not to hurt you too much."
He nodded and he felt Roman gently picking his knee off the grass and slowly turning it and touching it.
"I don't think it's broken and it's not swollen, but there is a really big scrape that's bleeding." Roman said looking down at him. "I'll clean it with some water and wrap it until we get home, okay?"
"Okay." he said, lying on the grass trying hard not to cry and make Roman think he was a wuss.
Roman put his backpack on the ground and brought out a new bottle of water. He bent down and poured the water over Seth's knee and washed the grass and dirt out of it before tying his bandana around it. "I'm done. Can you get up?"
He sat up slowly and Roman grabbed his arms to help him stand. He stood up on shaking legs and when he tried to straighten his knee, he cried out and he almost fell back down.
"Don't put your weight on your knee." Roman said, trying to help Seth balance. "Get on my back and I'll carry you home."
He bit his lip in pain and limped behind Roman and jumped up on his back. "What about your backpack?"
"I'll come back for it and your bike after I get you home." Roman said as he started to walk.
They weren't that far from home but his knee was hurting and he started crying quietly, not wanting Roman to know. They started passing people so he tightened his arms around Roman's neck and hid his teary face in his shoulder.
After what seemed like forever, Roman was walking up the steps of Seth's house and he opened the door and walked Seth into the living room and put him down on the couch. He tried to wipe his wet eyes before Roman saw, but he wasn't fast enough.
"Are you crying?" Roman asked, kneeling down on the floor in front of him. "Why didn't you tell me it hurt that bad."
He looked down at his hands in shame. "I didn't want you to think I was a baby."
"You're not a baby if you cry when you're hurt." Roman said wiping his tears away. "Besides, we're family and you shouldn't hide things like that from me."
He nodded.
"I'm gonna go and get the first-aid kit and fix up your knee." Roman said, standing up. "You'll feel better soon."
"Thank you, Romie." he said, smiling up at his cousin.
"No problem Sethie." Roman said, leaning down and ruffling his dark brown hair.
Roman went into the bathroom and got the first-aid kit and went back to the living room. He kneeled down in front of Seth and took the bandana off slowly, trying not to hurt him any more. Seth winced, but didn't say anything.
"This might hurt." Roman said before cleaning his knee thoroughly with an anti-bacterial spray and ointment and putting a large band-aid over Seth's wound.
"How's that?" Roman asked, standing up.
"It feels better already." he said. "Aren't you going to kiss it like our mothers do?"
Roman scoffed. "No way. I'm not your mother."
He pouted up at Roman. "But they say kissing takes the pain away and makes it heal quicker."
"Forget it." Roman said, picking Seth's legs up gently and laying them on the sofa.
He turned his body so that he was laying on the sofa comfortably with a pillow behind his back.
"I better get back and get our bikes." Roman said as he draped a blanket over Seth. "I'll be back soon so don't move."
He smiled at Roman. "I wont."
Roman leaned down and kissed him on the forehead. "Don't tell anyone I did that." he said as he walked towards the door.
"Thanks Romie." he called over his shoulder as the door opened.
He closed his eyes and lay back against the soft pillow. He felt so much better after Roman took care of him, and all the pain was gone. Maybe Roman really was an alien after all and his kiss was magic.
*I wanted to write some non-romantic stories too. Hope you liked it.
