For the Rest of Our Lives
Eleven (2003)
Sally and I spend the majority of the summer outside, with our small group of friends. We're spending as much time with Keegan as possible before he has to move- which is only one week before the start of the next school year. None of us want him to go. Despite scrunching up our faces and praying that he wouldn't be the husband to one of us in the future, he made a great friend.
We all have a huge sleepover at Keegan's house- even Ryan is allowed to spend the night. We're sat in Keegan's living room- which is almost completely bare now, save for the sofa and the TV set up. It feels lonely in there, but I don't breathe a word of it. We have a board game laid out on the floor surrounding us, and Spongebob plays quietly on the TV as background noise.
"No! You can't do that," Keegan scolds Sally. She's rolled the dice, but moved in a way that the rules of the game didn't allow for. Keegan grabs the small figurine that is Sally's character and moves it back a few paces. "You can't attack AND move at the same time. You have to pick one."
Sally's face scrunches up as she concentrates, staring at the board and worrying her lip. She sucks in a deep breath and then lets it out slowly. She looks up at me, her eyes shining.
"You got my back if I move closer to the monster?" she asks. I nod, hardening my face.
"Of course, move on in," I say. I'm playing an archer, so I can defend her from afar as she sneaks closer to the monster.
"I'm counting on you," Sally says. She moves her figurine back to where it was, and leans back as her turn is finished.
"The monster doesn't notice you yet," Ryan begins. He's the dungeon master. "He's luckily sick with a cold and can't smell right now." Alice and I giggle. It's my turn now.
"Okay, Alice!" I say. "I need you to be prepared to heal. I'm going to attack the monster and start this battle." Alice nods. I roll the dice, but the roll doesn't turn out the best. I grab the monster's attention, and barely deal any damage toward it.
"Curses," Keegan mutters. The monster attacks, and nearly wipes my character out. Keegan rolls, and move closer.
The game continues on, until finally we defeat the monster. We pack up the board game and its pieces for another time, and then the group decides to spend the rest of our time outside playing hide and seek tag.
We gather in a circle to decide who's IT first.
"We'll rock paper scissors, until the last two people," Ryan explains. "Whoever loses then is IT." We all nod and agree.
We take our turns playing rock paper scissors, until the last two people are up against each other. It's Sally and I. I try my best to let her win; but she still ends up losing- it is a game of chance, after all.
"Alright! I'll count to twenty!" Sally says. "The rules are, we have to stay within the yard! We can't go beyond Keegan's fence!"
She turns her back to us, and covers her eyes, and then she starts counting.
"Let's go!" Alice whispers loudly. She grabs my wrist, and we're off running to hide. The boys are running too and we're all trying to stifle our laughter.
Alice and I hide in the lower part of the tree house. I feel a sense of loss; once Keegan and his family move, we'll no longer be able to play here.
"Ready or not, here I come!" Sally yells then; we can just barely hear her. Keegan's yard is huge- with so many places to hide. It's always the spot we pick to play hide and seek. Alice and I exchange glances, our hands over our mouths covering our grins. I wonder where the boys have hidden.
Alice peeks out through the crack in the door of the tree house. She freezes, and then waves at me violently.
"Go, go!" she whispers. "Go up! She's coming this way!"
I obey, and just as I disappear out of sight Alice is discovered by Sally.
"Found you!" Sally says.
"Dang it!" Alice groans. I hear her leave the tree house, making her way to where we all have to wait once found.
My breathing accelerates and I bring my hands back up over my mouth as I crouch in the darkness of the upper level of the tree house. But Sally seems to sense that I'm here anyway, and I see her blonde hair pop up through the hole in the floor as she makes her way up.
"Oh Luna!" she says, dragging my name out for a while. "I know you're up here." Once she's made it all the way up, she crouches low to the floor and looks around through the darkness.
She starts opening the windows and I dash toward the ladder.
"Gotcha!" Sally says, grabbing me before I can make it down. I shriek with laughter, and let her pull me away. "Now you have to go wait with Alice." Sally joins me in the laughter.
"Aw, fine," I say. She pats my back and allows me to descend the ladder finally.
We continue on like that until it's time to go inside; the sun has set. We spend one last night at Keegan's house, all together as a group with sleeping bags laid out on the floor of the living room.
We all have a huge sleepover at Keegan's house- even Ryan is allowed to spend the night. We're sat in Keegan's living room- which is almost completely bare now, save for the sofa and the TV set up. It feels lonely in there, but I don't breathe a word of it. We have a board game laid out on the floor surrounding us, and Spongebob plays quietly on the TV as background noise.
"No! You can't do that," Keegan scolds Sally. She's rolled the dice, but moved in a way that the rules of the game didn't allow for. Keegan grabs the small figurine that is Sally's character and moves it back a few paces. "You can't attack AND move at the same time. You have to pick one."
Sally's face scrunches up as she concentrates, staring at the board and worrying her lip. She sucks in a deep breath and then lets it out slowly. She looks up at me, her eyes shining.
"You got my back if I move closer to the monster?" she asks. I nod, hardening my face.
"Of course, move on in," I say. I'm playing an archer, so I can defend her from afar as she sneaks closer to the monster.
"I'm counting on you," Sally says. She moves her figurine back to where it was, and leans back as her turn is finished.
"The monster doesn't notice you yet," Ryan begins. He's the dungeon master. "He's luckily sick with a cold and can't smell right now." Alice and I giggle. It's my turn now.
"Okay, Alice!" I say. "I need you to be prepared to heal. I'm going to attack the monster and start this battle." Alice nods. I roll the dice, but the roll doesn't turn out the best. I grab the monster's attention, and barely deal any damage toward it.
"Curses," Keegan mutters. The monster attacks, and nearly wipes my character out. Keegan rolls, and move closer.
The game continues on, until finally we defeat the monster. We pack up the board game and its pieces for another time, and then the group decides to spend the rest of our time outside playing hide and seek tag.
We gather in a circle to decide who's IT first.
"We'll rock paper scissors, until the last two people," Ryan explains. "Whoever loses then is IT." We all nod and agree.
We take our turns playing rock paper scissors, until the last two people are up against each other. It's Sally and I. I try my best to let her win; but she still ends up losing- it is a game of chance, after all.
"Alright! I'll count to twenty!" Sally says. "The rules are, we have to stay within the yard! We can't go beyond Keegan's fence!"
She turns her back to us, and covers her eyes, and then she starts counting.
"Let's go!" Alice whispers loudly. She grabs my wrist, and we're off running to hide. The boys are running too and we're all trying to stifle our laughter.
Alice and I hide in the lower part of the tree house. I feel a sense of loss; once Keegan and his family move, we'll no longer be able to play here.
"Ready or not, here I come!" Sally yells then; we can just barely hear her. Keegan's yard is huge- with so many places to hide. It's always the spot we pick to play hide and seek. Alice and I exchange glances, our hands over our mouths covering our grins. I wonder where the boys have hidden.
Alice peeks out through the crack in the door of the tree house. She freezes, and then waves at me violently.
"Go, go!" she whispers. "Go up! She's coming this way!"
I obey, and just as I disappear out of sight Alice is discovered by Sally.
"Found you!" Sally says.
"Dang it!" Alice groans. I hear her leave the tree house, making her way to where we all have to wait once found.
My breathing accelerates and I bring my hands back up over my mouth as I crouch in the darkness of the upper level of the tree house. But Sally seems to sense that I'm here anyway, and I see her blonde hair pop up through the hole in the floor as she makes her way up.
"Oh Luna!" she says, dragging my name out for a while. "I know you're up here." Once she's made it all the way up, she crouches low to the floor and looks around through the darkness.
She starts opening the windows and I dash toward the ladder.
"Gotcha!" Sally says, grabbing me before I can make it down. I shriek with laughter, and let her pull me away. "Now you have to go wait with Alice." Sally joins me in the laughter.
"Aw, fine," I say. She pats my back and allows me to descend the ladder finally.
We continue on like that until it's time to go inside; the sun has set. We spend one last night at Keegan's house, all together as a group with sleeping bags laid out on the floor of the living room.