Page 23 of Five

“Wake up, Sleeping Beauty.”

“God,” I whisper, because I don’t want to wake the others. “You’re so stupid, Five.”

“Princess Aurora. That’s Sleeping Beauty, right?”

“Shhhh,” I say, untangling my legs from Sparrow’s as I try to maneuver myself off the glider without making it… you know. Glide.

He takes my hand as soon as I’m up, and pulls me towards the squeaky screen door. He opens it carefully and we slip out and run across the grass towards the brook.

This is a ritual now. He came to me three times last summer in the middle of the night. Three times he woke me up. Three times he took my hand. Three times we ran across the grass to the creek.

But this is the first time this summer. And this summer we’re older. He’s much taller than me now. Almost six feet tall, even though he’s only fifteen.

When we get to the edge of the water I look up at him. It feels like the moon has a spotlight on us. Like the stars only twinkle for us. Like the night is only here so we can steal a moment together.

“Wanna go in?” he asks.

I just stare at him and nod. I don’t care where he wants to take me, I want to go. I want to say yes to everything. So I say, “Yes.”

Going in doesn’t mean swimming. The Colorado nights are too cold to swim in a river, even in the summer. Plus, it’s not a river, it’s a brook. So going in implies getting our feet wet.

“Come on, then,” Five says, leading me over to the rock.

It’s large, and long, and flat, and gray. Every one of us kids has played on this rock over the years. But Five is the only one who brings me out here at night. Alone.

I feel like this is the night. A kiss? Maybe?

And could there be a more perfect place and time for it?

Not in my mind.

Sometimes, usually in the early spring, but sometimes after a hard rain, the rock is under water a few inches. Us kids have spent many a hot summer afternoon in the pouring rain enjoying that special treat from this rock. But tonight the water level is low, so we can sit on it, keep dry, and dangle our bare feet in the water.

Five likes to wear suits, but not when he comes to steal me away in the night. On all those nights he’s been wearing shorts, just like he is now. Tan cargo shorts with a white t-shirt that makes him look so utterly different than he normally is. And he never wears shoes.

I like this about him. Because it means he plans for our special alone moments. He spends hours, maybe days, possibly even weeks planning for them.

We sit down, me in my night shorts and him in his secret shorts, and dangle our feet over the edge.

“I’m leaving in a few days,” he says.

“I know,” I say, squeezing his hand. “Stanford should be fun though, right?”

He smiles at me. It’s both regretful and satisfied at the same time. “Robots, right? It’s so hard to say no.”

I smile back, feeling both of the same emotions. “You be you, Five. That’s all I want.”

“What are you gonna do this summer? Shows?”

“Yeah,” I say, kicking my toes back and forth in the slow-running water. “We’re hitting all the big ones this year. Even taking a trip to Maryland.”

“I bet you win all the ribbons, Princess. You’re gonna sweep that horse show circuit and turn every head while you do it.”

“And I bet you build the best robot that school has ever seen, Five. You’re gonna wow the world this summer. And then everyone will know just how special you are.”

We’re still smiling at each other. Our eyes are perfectly matched. His brown ones. My blue ones. It’s…

“Princess.”