She sighed and tossed him the helmet. "Get on." *** "It feels old," he said, sitting down. I wonder who it belongs to."
He pursed his lips and put it on. "Thank you." *** She looked around, leaning out the window. "I've wondered that too."
"Hm. Come on. We're going to be late." *** "Maybe royalty running away from a revolution," he suggested.
Val revved the engine and pulled out of the parking lot, turning a sharp corner as they roared down the street. * * * "Oh definitely," he agreed. "Maybe they're under the floorboards."
She laughed as the cold wind blew past, stinging her cheeks and making them a rosy red. "Hold on," she said as they turned sharply, roaring into a tunnel. * * * "Gold probably."
He held tight, watching the scenery pass by with a nervous expression. *** She pursed her lips, reaching out to touch snow that settled heavily on a branch. "It might be difficult to find at first."
She turned the corner and approached a larger house surrounded by trees. *** "Oh? You don't think it will be easy?"
"Poppy and Francis," she replied. "Poppy's a friend of mine." * * * "I'm nothing if not an optimist," he said smugly.
"Oh," he said. "Okay. I'm sure they're nice. They lost their kid too?" *** She smiled slightly, sitting on the floor. "Optimists are always nice to be around.'
He sighed. "Too much death is happening." *** "I like looking at things with a glass half full," she said. "The world looks nicer."
She frowned as she parked. "Yeah. Well. We're doing our best to fix it." * * * "Some may call it naive, though."
He got off, giving her back the helmet. "That's true." *** "Naive-shmaive," she said, starting to go back on the ladder. "I just call it not being a downer all the time."
She sighed before glancing back at him. "You ready for this?" * * * He laughed as he followed her. "I'm not arguing. That's just what people say."
He nodded. "Yeah. For sure. Are you?" *** "I know you're not arguing," she reassured, climbing down. "I was just sayin'."
She sighed. "As ready as I'll ever be." They got to the front door, and Val knocked three times. * * * They got to the bottom, and he looked at the rope swing. "Is that still sturdy?"
He tilted his head, sympathizing. "You've got this." *** She pursed her lips, glancing at him before going over to it and stepping on, more playing than testing stability.
