Maybe it's Magic

The park is lovely in the summer, generous with its beauty, opened up to the world. The grass is a vibrant green, soaking up color and light. The sun pours down over the trees and pathways, warming up the earth. It’s lovely, a little escape from the bustle of everyday life, the chaos of it, sometimes the destruction. It’s somehow special, where one can leave their troubles in their cars, on the pavement, ingrained in the burning asphalt. No one really knows how it works, simply that it does.

Jamie is twelve when she first comes across the park while babysitting her little brother. She’s angry as they walk in the hot August sun: at her parents for making her move across the country with them, at her brother for dragging his feet, at her California friends, who barely even remembered to say goodbye, her going away party little more than dinner with the family plus a few balloons.

Her brother races ahead in front of her, skipping on light feet. He’s too young to be upset by a move, only so long as he got to bring his pet lizard (he did). To him, this is but a bright and beautiful day and his skin is warm and he is happy to be here. So when he finds the park, he wants to play in it. He runs back to his sister, grabs her by the hand, and drags her forward.

She follows, but only because she has to. But she sees the park. And the grass is green and the sky is somehow bluer and everyone looks happy here. She steps onto the gravel pathway, and her heart feels lighter. She can breathe a little better, feel the sun kiss her neck. Her brother holds tight to her hand, and she squeezes it, letting go of him so he can play.

He is a joy to watch, suddenly, a fireball of energy. He runs, leaps over rocks, chases the geese, whoops with exultant joy. She suddenly feels as if she might whoop, too. She thinks she likes this little boy in this moment, even though he is usually a real pain. He’s always taking her stuff, see, and leaving it in places that are not her room, usually in some state of disrepair.

But right now she loves him completely, a fierce possessiveness for him in her heart. She sinks into the grass, her muscles loose and relaxed. The sun spreads over her like butter, yellow and softening. Jeffie runs over to her, something clenched tightly in one small hand.

He sits down beside her, crawls into her lap. She holds him, pulls his hand out in front of her. “What’s that you’ve got there?” She says, tugging at his little fingers. He smiles mischievously.

“No, you don’t get to see.” He grins wider, showing his perfect baby teeth. She tickles him, and he shrieks, attracting the attention of the other park goers. They smile indulgently, admiring the pretty young girl and her adorable baby brother, enjoying the display of sibling love in a world filled with so much hate.

She finally unspools his tight grip, revealing the prettiest stone she’s ever seen. It’s as blue as a robin’s egg, warm to the touch, shining like the sun on the ocean. “May I?” She asks, and he nods solemnly. She takes it from him, slips it in her pocket. She can feel it there, like a beating heart. She smiles, broadly. Her brother kisses her cheek.

Lily watches them from across the street, idly turning the pages of the book she’s reading for class. It’s the most boring book she’s ever had to struggle through, and it’s putting her in a bad mood. That, and her boyfriend, who blew off their plans last night to go hang out with the guys and conveniently forgot to call her to reschedule. She’s seething a little bit, but trying hard to ignore it and focus on school. College matters to her, she doesn’t want to waste her - her parent’s - money.

But the cute little kids make her smile just a bit. She’d looked up and seen them first when the smaller one - the boy - had shouted. The girl looked angry, a scowl marring her little pretty face. She was maybe twelve, thirteen at the most, her hair in a plait down her back. The boy was happy, skipping and leaping, looking so impossibly free. Lily wondered if she had ever been like that. Chances were, she was probably more like the girl, scowling with pent up teen angst. Something intrigued her about them, and she followed them with her eyes as they skipped/stomped into the park.

But then, something extraordinary happened. The boy stayed the same, happy and carefree, loving life fully, but the girl - well, the girl changed. Her scowl smoothed, and bloomed into a smile. She cradled her brother in her thin arms, so very tender for someone so young. Lily was entranced by them, by the park, and she found herself standing up, leaving her book on the bench, making her way over to where the grass was so green and so bright as to be brilliant.

She stepped onto the path, and the air seemed warmer. She took another step. She smiled.