Brave

Chapter 19: A Day Out

The shuttle bus is packed, so Ethan and I stand and hold onto the bar. A young guy gets up and offers me his seat, but Ethan wraps his arm firmly around my waist, and I'd rather remain close to him, so I politely decline. "I've got her," Ethan confirms and the guy gives him a funny grin.

Our first stop is a little art studio where we can create our own paintings. I look at Ethan skeptically. "You're the artist, not me! I can barely draw a stick person."

"Oh, come on, it will be fun," he begs me. "If yours turns out really horrible, we'll just say that a three-year-old did it."

"Thanks a lot," I say, while he ties an apron around my back.

While Ethan paints a beautiful nature scene, I fumble around with two stick-ish people, one with brown hair and one with fiery red curls, and they're holding hands. When he looks at my finished product, he holds back a laugh and says, "Okay, we can say it was a two-year-old."

I give him a mock dirty look and smack him with a paint brush. The attendant gives us a warning glance, so I decide not to engage in an all-out paint war. I just tell him he can have it since it's probably the best painting I've ever done.

After our painting adventure, we make our way through downtown, watching live music and dance performances, tasting samples of all kinds of food, and getting very hot and tired. After a while, we find a bench in the shade and sit down with gigantic lime slushies.

"I need to fix my leg," I tell him.

"Where are your socks?" He asks, referring to the different covers I have for the the liner that fits onto my leg. I have to adjust them throughout the day depending on how much wear I'm getting.

"In my bag." I had brought a small, bright pink knapsack instead of a purse, since I have to carry a few additional things from time to time, like prosthetic socks.

He removes it from my back and digs inside. "Tight or loose?" He questions.

"It's feeling pretty loose right now," I tell him. "But I've never really done this in public."

"It's not like it's your underwear or anything," he chuckles.

"I know, it's just weird, maybe, if I take off my leg. What is some kid sees me and has nightmares for the rest of his life about the crazy lady with the bizarre removable leg?"

"Yeah, because you look like such a freak," he says, laughing. "It's not a big deal, I'm sure. Besides, I'm more scared by tattoos and stretchers and spikes. That stuff gives me nightmares."

I break into laughter and then relax and let him detach my leg, while I nervously watch people's reactions. A lot of people look over in curiosity as they walk by but most people are absorbed in the sights, sounds and smells around us. Of course, a lot of kids stare, craning their necks even as they move farther and farther away.

One little boy, a tiny little thing who can't be more than three, stops while his mom steps up to a concession stand. He looks at me, then at the leg, then at me again. Ethan finishes putting the sock on and re-attaches my leg. The little boy's mom grabs his hand and walks away, oblivious to what had caught his attention. But Ethan and I burst into hysterical laughter as we hear him exclaim to her, "Mom! That lady was a robot!"

"See?" Ethan says. "You're pretty cool!"

We walk a little way and then Ethan remarks, "Maybe this is too much walking for you."

"I'm good so far," I insist. "Really. I'll tell you when I've had enough, okay?" We walk a bit more, but then I realize that I really am getting wiped out. And it looks like it's going to rain.

"Hey," I say, stopping Ethan. "I guess I am getting tired. Maybe we should head back?"

With a quick nod, we turn around and head to the nearest shuttle stop. On the drive back to my house in Charlotte, the skies open up and pour buckets of rain onto everything in sight. There are some pretty good lightning strikes and soon the thunder starts.

"Oooh, you know what I like to do during thunderstorms?" I ask.

"What's that?" He asks with eager curiosity.

"Cozy up in the living room and watch movies," I tell him as we pull into my driveway. "Or maybe play board games. Can you stay for a while?"

"I'm free all day," he grins. "Was planning on spending it with you."

My parents aren't home, which surprises me until I remember that my father had a meeting near Detroit, so my mom went with him so she could shop and then they could have dinner together. So, Ethan and I have the place to ourselves, which isn't unusual, since our families are so busy. But I like the idea of us hunkering down together during the storm and having no interruptions.

"Since it's storming, we could watch The Perfect Storm," Ethan suggests, rifling through our movie collection. My dad is a huge movie buff and has an enormous collection, which is ironic since he's hardly ever home to watch them.

"Ugh, no. That movie was so sad. Something a bit more lighthearted."

"How about Jurassic Park? There's a big storm in that one, too."

"It doesn't have to be about a storm, you goof!" I say, laughing.

"Jurassic World?" He asks with his eyebrow raised.

"No dinosaurs!" I yell.

"Ten Things I Hate About You!" He practically yells back.

"Chick flick? Are you sure?" I tease.

"I have sisters, remember?"

We end up watching that, and then Grease, followed by Titanic. It's a sappy love fest kind of afternoon, I guess. And evening. During the movies, we snack, chat, change positions, and we end up close, with his arm around me and me snuggling in tight against his chest. This isn't exactly just-friends behavior, but I think we both know we're moving beyond that.

I'm still just a little too scared to say it.

* * * * *

Did you catch my little break in the 4th wall there near the end? LOL. I have to watch Jurassic World on a weekly basis so I can keep up my Chris Pratt inspiration ;) Look at him in that picture at the top - could he be any cuter???

I don't know if it matters or if anyone will really care, but the town that Sarah lives in is actually pronounced differently here in Michigan for some dumb reason. It's called, "Char-LOTTE" with the emphasis on the 2nd syllable. So if you say it like the name Charlotte or Charlotte, North Carolina, people will just look at you like you have no idea what you're talking about, lol.