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I want to make yummy food like my mom.
Theo doesn’t look up, entranced by a ladybug that crawls along his finger. “You mean like a chef?”
“I think so. Sure.”
“That’s cool.” He nods. “I want to be a saver.”
My brows knit together in confusion. “A saver?”
“Yeah, I want to save people one day. You know, like when we play superheroes and we defeat all the monsters and bad guys. We always win,” he explains, still staring at the ladybug, watching transfixed as it wriggles over his knuckles. “I want to be a saver. That’s what I want to do.”
I love that idea. Theo would make a great saver one day. He’s always taking care of June and watching over me, making sure the other kids aren’t mean to me.
Even though we moved into a different house, we stayed at the same school. I still have to deal with the dreadful Nippersink twins, Wendy and Wyatt, along with their gaggle of bullies.
One day, on the school playground, Wyatt threw a rock at me. He said he’d heard about what I did that night, when I threw a rock through my old house’s window, so he threw a rock at me. It didn’t really hurt, but Theo saw him do it.
Theo marched over to us from the swing set and punched Wyatt Nippersink right in the belly, saying, “If you ever hurt Brant again, I swear on my sister’s life I’ll break your kneecaps then hide your wheelchair so you have to crawl around like a little baby and we can all laugh at you.”
He got sus-tended from school, which meant he got to stay home for a few days.
So cool.
Wyatt didn’t talk to me much after that, and all the other kids left me alone. Even Wendy stopped sticking her tongue out at me.
That’s how I know he’ll make a great saver.
“Lay-bug!”
June drops to her knees, her curtain of shiny curls falling over her face. She bends over to stare at the tiny speckled creature skittering along the back of Theo’s hand, then gasps with awe.
“That’s right,” I confirm, moving in closer. “That is a ladybug.”
A smile brightens her face, showcasing her dimples and the glints of starlight in her eyes. It always looks like she has stars in her eyes, even in the daytime. June pops her head up, looking right at me, then points to herself. “June…bug!”
I’m confused at first, and then she flaps her arms like a bird…or a bug?
“June…bug,” she repeats, motioning like she’s flying through the air. “Pwetty bug.”
“Oh, a butterfly?” I ponder.
She bobs her head in agreement.
A few months ago, I told June that Theo and I wanted to name her Butterfly. Then I found some picture books in her bedroom detailing a variety of fascinating insects, and I zeroed in on the butterfly with apricot wings. She was amazed.
“June, bug,” she repeats, pleased with her association.
I smile. And then the words settle in, poking and tickling me like some kind of revelation brimming to life. “Junebug.”
“Junebug,” she parrots happily.
Theo pokes his head up, inquiring, “What’s that?”
“That’s what I’m going to call June,” I say.
I bet it’s a beautiful bug. I bet it’s as beautiful as a butterfly.
June smacks her hands together, clapping with delight, then scoots her way back to my lap and climbs up. She nuzzles into me, her little sigh warming my chest. “June wuv Bant.”
