[Kitsumi]

"Can you help me move some of this stuff?" Kaleb's voice was a bit strained, as he struggled to lift a heavy box. Immediately Trixie turned back towards him, wanting to make things easier. Placing her hands under the other end of the box, she helped him lift it and move it to the side.

[Kitsumi]

It took a few minutes, but finally Trixie and Kaleb had managed to clear out the corner of the garage. There, hidden away, was the sled that the boy had received as a gift from his grandparents, two Christmases ago.

"We finally found it!" Kaleb exclaimed happily. "Let's go meet the guys."

[Kitsumi]

The two walked side by side down the sidewalk, with Kaleb dragging the sled along behind him. They talked a little bit on the way, mostly idle chatter about school: their teacher, their classmates, the homework they had been assigned that week. It was just an attempt to fill the silence.

[Kitsumi]

Before they had even reached the park, the two could hear the sound of children's laughter. From the looks of it, there were already about eight or ten other kids on the hill. And Luke and Adam were two of them, waiting at the bottom of the hill for their friends.

[Kitsumi]

"Finally!" Luke said. "Come on, let's get to the top of the hill."

Kaleb rolled his eyes. "You guys could have started without us," he said. "It's not a big deal."

"But we wanted to race," Adam explained. "We thought it would be fun to see whose sled would be faster."

[Kitsumi]

"Would you want to race, Trixie?" Kaleb asked. "We don't have to, if you don't want to."

The girl shrugged. "It sounds fine to me." She was honestly just happy to be going sledding, especially knowing that she would be able to sit so close to Kaleb while sharing his sled.

[Kitsumi]

The four trudged up the hill, finding it a bit more difficult than they had expected due to both the incline of the slope and the snow. By the time they reached the top, all four of them were huffing and puffing. But they were also excited for the payoff that would soon come.

[Kitsumi]

Once they reached the top of the hill, they had to find a good spot. Luckily the hill was a huge one, so there was plenty of space even with so many other kids already sledding down it. Once they found a clear spokt, Luke and Kaleb set up their sleds.

[Kitsumi]

"Come on, Adam!" Luke hopped in the front of his sled, leaving Luke to sit behind him. They struggled to find a comfortable way to sit, both of them fighting to have enough room.

"Hey, get off my leg!" Adam yelped.

"It's not my fault," Luke replied. "There's not a lot of room."

[Kitsumi]

While the other boys argued, Kaleb turned to Trixie. "You can sit in front," he offered. "I'll take the back." As he spoke, he sat down towards the back of the sled, and waited for her to sit as well.

She sat in front of him, her heart pounding at their nearness.