Take a Breath and Hold On Tight

"Come on, Harper, catch up!" Levy yelled.

I stared down at the skateboard beneath my feet and felt my heartbeat increase. I had never ridden one before, but Levy insisted that I learned. He was halfway down the street, waiting for me to catch up with him. I knew I wouldn't make it that far, though. And if I did, I'd probably end up with an injury along the way.

"Harper!" he called again.

I sighed and squinted my eyes to see him, as the sun was blinding me. "I can't do it, Levy!"

He threw his hands in the air and shook his head. "Yes, you can, Harper! Just push with your right foot!"

I swallowed hard as I set my right foot on the concrete of the sidewalk and inhaled a sharp breath of air. Levy believed I could do it, and that was enough reason for me to at least try. I pushed the ground with my foot, and began gliding across the sidewalk. I was shocked that I had managed to do even that much, without hurting myself.

"There you go, Harp! Keep coming!" Levy smiled and waved me over.

I gave him a smile in return and kept pushing myself, gliding smoothly. However, I hit a jagged piece of the sidewalk, and the skateboard stopped, but jerked my body forward, causing me to fall face first on the ground. I groaned as the flesh over my cheek scraped against the concrete.

"HARPER!" Levy's voice was now panicked and he was running towards me.

I pushed myself up with my hands and realized that they, too, were scraped. I touched my right cheek and felt liquid - blood. I sighed and shook my head, hoping that it wouldn't leave a scar.

"Are you okay?" Levy asked as he kneeled beside me.

I nodded my head. "Yeah, just have a few scratches."

He smiled. "You did good, you know. For your first try and all."

I laughed. "Sure, Levy. I sucked. Big time."

He shook his head. "It was your first time. We all fall." He stood up and extended his hands out to me. I placed my hands in his palms, and he pulled me to my feet. Once I was standing, he picked up my skateboard with his right hand and crossed his left over my shoulders. "We'll try again another time."

"Levy, I suck. It's just a waste of time," I told him.

"Nonsense. You'll learn in time, just like you learned to ride a bike."

"If you say so," I sighed.

"I do. And stop being so hard on yourself."

I smiled and looked down at the ground. "Sorry."

"Don't be. Just believe that you can do it, and you can," he told me.

I'd survived my feet of week Tempe. Although I was still skeptical of the city and the people in it, I was learning to adjust. Well, in my opinion, I was adjusting. Libby was still pushing me to venture out and explore the town, but after a few polite declines, she'd left me alone the majority of the week. However, today was Friday and Libby and John had paired up and insisted that it was time I learned how to drive.

"I can't do it," I said.

Libby rolled her eyes at me and swung her car keys in her hand. "Yes, you can, Harper. It's not that difficult."

I sighed and looked at John. "What if I crash the car?"

"That won't happen. You're just going to be driving around the neighborhood, Harp," he told me.

I bit down on my bottom lip, and knew that there was no escaping the both of them. Libby pressed the keys into my palms and smiled.

"Come on, love, it won't hurt to try."

"I guess."

We walked outside and I pulled on the ends of my purple tank top as we walked to the car. Libby's car shined and sparkled in the sunlight and I felt my heart drop to my stomach. I was not ready to do this - I wasn't ready to get behind the wheel of a car like this. I slid into the driver's seat, as John got in the passenger side and Libby sat in the back. John turned on the AC and looked at me with a smile decorating his face.

"Just breathe, okay?"

I nodded my head. "Okay."

He set the radio on a low volume and I put on my seatbelt. I set my right foot on the brake and shifted the car into reverse.

"Now, just ease on out and I'll tell you when to start turning the wheel," John said.

I did as he instructed and as the rear of the car began to hit the end of the driveway, he told me to start turning the wheel right. I did, and once we were on the street, I shifted the car into drive and gently eased my foot on the gas.

"The speed limit's fifteen miles, here," Libby told me.

I eyed the speedometer and made sure I wasn't going over the speed limit. When the needle hit fifteen, I tried to keep my foot in balance.

"When we get to the stop sign, take a left, okay?"

"Where does that take us?" I asked John.

"Just onto another street."

As we approached the stop sign, I tried to ease my foot on the brake, but the car still ended up jerking forward. I felt my cheeks heat up and I kept my eyes on the street in front of me.

"It's okay, Harp. It's your first try," John told me.

His tone was so much like Levy's that it took everything I had in me not to tear up. I made the left as smoothly as I could, and we came onto a long, narrow street.

"How're you feeling?" Libby asked me.

"Fine," I told her.

I tried my best to keep a straight path on the street, and I ended up doing pretty decent. I followed the instructions John gave me, and after a good ten minutes, I was pulling back into Libby's driveway.

"See, Harper, it wasn't that bad!" Libby gushed.

I exhaled as I shut the engine off and stared out of the front windshield.

"You okay?" John asked.

I looked at him. "Yeah, I am."

Libby got out and yelled something about going to call Garrett, but John stayed in the car with me.

"You know, for never having driven before, you did really good."

I nodded my head. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

There was a small silence in the car and I felt like getting out, walking into the house and just laying on my bed, but I couldn't be rude to John. He was only trying to help.

"So, did you ever listen to the CD I gave you?"

"Yeah, I did."

He smiled. "Did you like it?"

I nodded my head. "It's really good. I love all of the songs."

He laughed. "I told you. Death Cab is sort of a remedy for me."

"Um, I can give it back to you when we go inside."

He held up his hands to me. "Don't worry, Harp, keep it. I have all the songs on my laptop."

"Are you sure?" I asked him.

He nodded his head. "Positive."

"Thanks."

He patted my shoulder and began to get out of the car. I followed his actions and began to get out as well. When we entered the house, the AC immediately hit me, relaxing my tense body. Libby came running out of the kitchen, smiling and clapping her hands together.

"Guess what?!" she squealed.

"What's up?" John asked.

"Acey's having a pool party. You know what that means!" She placed her hands on her hips and sent John a smirk.

He laughed. "Is everyone going?"

She nodded her head and looked at me. "You up for it?"

"Um . . . " I looked back and forth between the both of them and saw that they both looked anxious. "Sure?"

Libby smiled and ran over to give me a hug. "It's going to be fun, trust me! It's just us, this time."

I nodded my head. "Okay."

"Well, I better get home and get ready. What time does she want us there?" John asked Libby.

"She said around six."

He nodded his head. "Alright. I'll see you guys later, then."

"Bye," Libby and I replied in unison.

Once he was gone, Libby jerked me towards the stairs. "Do you have a swim suit?"

"Um, yeah."

She looked at me. "You seem unsure."

I looked down at my feet. "I just . . . I'm not really comfortable swimming in front of people."

She scoffed and waved her hands at me. "It's fine, Harper. Trust me."

I followed her upstairs and when we entered my room, she went searching for my swim suit. When she finally found it, she held it up in the air.

"This is it?" she asked.

I nodded my head. "Yes."

"Hmm . . . maybe you can borrow one of mines." She walked out of my room and I sat down on my bed.

I wasn't comfortable wearing a swim suit in front of my family, much less in front of people I didn't know. I fiddled with my fingers and waited for Libby to come back. When she did, she held a pair of black short shorts and a blue and yellow plaid swim top in her hands.

"It's the best I could match together," she told me as she held them in front of me.

"Thanks," I said.

"No problem. Now, get in there and change. We've got ten minutes before Garrett shows up."

I walked into the bathroom and changed into the shorts and top. My stomach felt bare, as did my legs, and I debated on whether I should just put back on my normal clothes and tell Libby that I didn't want to go to this swim party. But then I remembered her face, holding such excitement, and I couldn't bring myself to do it. I stepped back into my room and saw Libby had already changed into her pink swimsuit.

"Awe, look at you," she said, staring me up and down.

I held my arms over my stomach and tried to smile. I walked over and slipped back on my shorts and tank top. Libby was texting on her phone, but a minute later, she looked at me.

"Ready to go?"

"Yeah," I said.

She slipped on a long white tee shirt and grabbed her purse. I grabbed my phone and slipped my feet into my sandals and followed her down the stairs and out the door. Garrett's bright yellow car sat in the drive way and he leaned out of his window, smiling.

"Look at these beautiful girls," he said.

Libby giggled and waved her hands. "Shut up, Garrett." She walked over to the passenger side and I followed her. She pushed the seat forward, allowing me to get in the back.

As I leaned into the car, I noticed John sitting in the back, wearing a white tank and blue swim trunks. He smiled when he saw me and I sat beside him. Garrett's car was small, and John's knees touched mine. Libby got in and shut the door, and we started off towards Acey's house.

"You kids behave yourself back there," Garrett said, earning a slap from Libby.

I felt myself blushing and I leaned my head on the window. So much for trying not to get embarrassed.