Brave

Chapter 19: A Day Out

After a ridiculously full and fast spring, it's the brink of summer, and I'm here saying good-bye to my best friend for three months. My mom had dropped me off at Sam's early this morning and Ethan is going to pick me up in a bit so we can spend the day together.

"I'm not okay with this," I say mournfully as we finish breakfast. "I need you."

"Hey," she says, sipping the last of her coffee, "you've been needing me less and less now that Mr. Blue Eyes is in the picture."

In a way it's true. I've opened up to Ethan about a lot more in my life, and sometimes – but only sometimes – I find myself wanting to tell Ethan about something new before I even tell Sam.

"You'll always be number one," I insist.

"Stop it now. Of course you'll always be my best friend," she says. "But we'll probably both get married some day, and we can't always be number one to each other. And that's okay by me. Ethan is the cream of the crop. And if you don't marry him, I will!"

I laugh at her. "I'm not going to marry him, Sam! We're just hanging out. We're just friends, remember?"

"Bullshit!" She scoffs. "I've known you since we were in grade school. I can tell something has changed in you, and it's not just your missing leg or the peace you seem to have about it now. Even if you don't know it, I do. You're in love with Ethan."

I close my eyes. I want to tell her she's wrong, but I can't.

And she knows it.

We're interrupted by the doorbell. She runs to open it and comes back with Ethan. "Good morning," he smiles at me and gives me a kiss on the forehead. Sam gives me an I-told-you-so look and I roll my eyes.

"Good morning to you," I return Ethan's greeting.

Mrs. Carlisle yells from another room, "Sam! Come get your stuff! We have to get moving!" Ethan disappears with her and comes back with all of her bags, lugging them out to her mom's van. I follow them outside, not even trying to hide my misery at her imminent departure.

"It will go so fast, you won't even miss me," Sam tells me, hugging me one last time before climbing into her mom's van.

"I'll miss you like crazy!" I say, pouting at her.

Her mom starts to pull away from the curb while she yells back to me, "You have him to keep you company now!" Ethan is standing close behind me and we both start laughing. It's no secret to either of us that Sam has been playing matchmaker since Day One.

"Ready?" He asks.

"Sure."

"I can't believe you've never been to Be A Tourist In Your Own Town!" He says, smiling like a kid who just got out of school for the summer.

I guess it never caught my interest before. But now that I'm going with Ethan, I'm much more into the idea. We drive into Lansing and park as close to downtown as we can get. Luckily, I have my handicapped parking placard, so we get a decent spot at least to catch a shuttle.

I still find stairs challenging from time to time since I don't have my permanent leg yet. I will probably get one with a microprocessor knee, but the temporary one is just the base model. I've done stairs at therapy, but the step onto the bus is quite high, so Ethan lifts me with ease and plants me on the top step. I might have been embarrassed a few months ago, but now I'm fine with it. I'm actually starting to think it's sweet the way he always looks out for me.

I had finally let my mom talk me into wearing shorts. I knew I'd get a lot more stares today, especially with all the small children and families who come from all over to take advantage of the myriad of free activities downtown. But in a way, it seemed like the best idea, just jumping right in and letting everyone stare so I can get used to it. Besides, it's already blazing hot despite the fact it's only the first weekend of June.