Young Forever

It was the summer of ‘68. Just a hot, breezy day. Abigail and her best friend, Sarah, were sitting in her treehouse, watching the day go by just like they did every day that summer. As she looked out the window, the wind swept up her strawberry blonde curls and tossed them in front of her face. She only smiled.

“Hey, Abigail,” she heard quietly from behind her, “whatcha looking at out there?”

Abigail plopped onto the ground next to Sarah, wincing as she felt the wood underneath her and the sharp pain that went through her. I should know better by now, she thought to herself, I’ve only had this for seven years. “Just the world. Isn’t it so... so amazing?”

Sarah laughed. “You find beauty in everything, Abi.”

Abigail exhaled, the sweet summer air and grass mixing and making her sneeze. It was true. “Of course I do; it’s the small things in life!” To prove her point, she went to the window and pointed. There was life everywhere: in the farms, in the trees, in the animals. Even the wind seemed to agree with her because it blew all sorts of nice aromas of the country around them.

And, as she found out in a few seconds, there was life on the ladder of the treehouse. “Hi, girls!” a new girl, Sam, shouted, her head barely visible as she climbed. The two other girls didn’t flinch when they heard her, they laughed; Sam was always a few minutes late. It was what she was known for, after all.

”Hey, we’ve been waiting for ten minutes!” Abigail protested as the blonde raced closer to the two of them. Sam simply rolled her eyes.

“So! What do y’all wanna talk about?” she asked, ignoring their amused faces. Her braided hair bounced as she sat down. When neither of them said anything, she sighed. “Alright, there’s a reason I was late. I overslept. Again.” She mumbled the last part, a sheepish smile stuck on her face.

The girls gasped in unison, laughing quietly to themselves. “How interesting!” Abigail teased her. “Up late again last night?”

Sam had the decency to blush this time. “Yeah, maybe, maybe. The stars are just so beautiful at night, and it’s so still and peaceful! One thing led to another and it was five am and I was asleep. And then it was seven am... And here I am now. But look on the bright side: I’m not asleep anymore!”

Sarah and Abigail smiled at each other, eyes twinkling with laughter. Then Abigail noticed Sam was holding something behind her back. “Hey, what’s that?”

Sam's face broke out into a grin. “Peace offering?” she asked, pulling a pitcher and a few plastic cups from behind her. The cold ice clunked against the pitcher as Sam moved it, and while she poured it, too.

The world seemed to slow down for a few minutes as they drained the pitcher. The lemonade was sweet and refreshing, and it woke them up all over again. They talked about their summers and how their day was going, same as every day, but the air was special that particular afternoon. It was charged with energy and fun. The trio giggled about random things, from boys to school to the summer in general. Anything under the sun, including themselves.

“So, what’re you two doing this summer? Anything interesting that you haven’t told us?” Abigail asked, still in a fit of giggles from the things they were talking about before.

“Not much,“ Sarah shrugged, looking around and frizzing her already humid hair a bit in the process. ”Maybe just staying here? What about you, Abi?”

Sam scoffed. “Um, hi! I’m here, too!“ She pretended to be offended, but the two girls knew she was only kidding. “And I’m doing something very interesting, in fact! I’m a very interesting person, after all!” she told them as she fought back a yawn. They raised their eyebrows at her. “Me and Ethan found a new spring and are planning on practically living there! It’s beautiful, really, girls, and it’s never too cold or too warm. I think I could spend the rest of my life there if you two weren’t up in this treehouse.”

Ethan, her younger brother, only seven years old (which was five years younger than the girls), always loved adventure. He also had a bit of a crush on Abigail, but that was a different story for a different time. It still made her uncomfortable, though, so she changed the topic.

“Well, I've found a job! I’m going to be working at Uncle Martin's Convenience Shop! It’s going to be so fun: stacking shelves and... other things, I think.“ Abigail trailed off. In all honestly, she just wanted to save up her money for some watercolors. She smiled thinking about it. It was a chance for something new, too. She’d never had an official job, just helping her family with the crops and animals. It excited her, actually.

Abigail laid her head down on the floor, ignoring how the wood clunked against her skull. The breeze came through the window, carrying the sounds and smells of summer in their beautiful town. If she closed her eyes, she could pretend that it was night already. In fact, she would’ve fallen asleep right there in the comforting warmth of the treehouse if Sarah hadn't shaken her awake.

“Come on, sleepyhead, daylight isn’t gonna last forever, and we're not done talking yet.”

“You’re never done talking,“ Abigail teased her, getting right back into a natural conversation.

And they talked for a long time, talked until their throats hurt from talking and laughing, talked until the sun itself started sinking. They wordlessly agreed when it was time to go, and smiled at the stars on their way back to their respective houses. The wind whipped around them, a little bit harsher now, but still enjoyable. If only every day could stay like this, if only they could stay young forever.