Forever This Time by Maggie McGinnis

?” Josie laughed. “Does my father know about this?”
    â€œSure does. He said anytime she’s wearing it, she can walk up to any snack cottage in the park and ask for a free Slush-Bomb.”
    Avery started jumping up and down. “I love it! I’m never going to take it off!”
    Ethan pointed to the bag. “I was afraid of that. Look inside again.”
    Avery peered into the bag and pulled out six more shirts, all with the same letters on the front. “You got one for every color of the rainbow!”
    â€œEvery day of the week, Aves.”
    Avery flung herself into Ethan’s lap, hugging him hard around the neck. “You are the best boyfriend-of-a-pretend-big-sis in the entire universe, Ethan. Thank you thank you thank you thank you!”
    â€œYou’re welcome, munchkin. Happy birthday.”
    â€œCan I go test it and see if it works?” She jumped off his lap and danced in place.
    â€œGo for it. Have fun!” Off she went in a blaze of purple, leaving Josie alone with Ethan on the bench.
    Josie turned to him. “That was really, really nice of you. She’s never going to wear anything else, you know.”
    â€œI know. Thus the seven colors. At least she can mix it up a little.”
    â€œYou’re going to be responsible for her teeth rotting, however.”
    â€œNope.” He grinned mischievously as he reached into the glittery bag. “I knew you’d say that. Ta-da!”
    Josie laughed out loud as he produced a shiny red toothbrush and sparkly toothpaste tube. “Omigod, you think like a parent.”
    â€œNah, a parent would never let a kid eat that many Slush-Bombs. My cool-guy status is still intact.”
    Josie leaned over to kiss him. “Thanks for doing this, Ethan. She’ll never forget it.”
    He sat back, smile fading. “It’s the least I could do, Jos. Who knows if anyone at home will even remember it’s her birthday?”
    *   *   *
    Josie shook her head to knock the memory loose. She was not going to walk around this park and see Avery everywhere. She was not going to remember Ethan as the caring, sweet, eighteen-year-old he’d been then.
    Everything was different now.
    Wasn’t it?

 
    Chapter 7
    In the distance, Josie could see more young guys in red shirts erecting the portable misters that would keep the walkways cool and give toddlers something to play in while their exhausted parents camped out on the green benches. She knew from experience that the on-call medic was probably on the way to the park, and that Mario would be delivering fifty extra cases of Popsicles within the hour from his massive freezer at the supermarket.
    No. Not much had changed. Even on a day where intelligent humans should be in a pool or a lake or an air-conditioned building, hordes of people would fill the park, running the employees through ice, Popsicles, and patience before noon. And through it all, those employees would paste on those fake smiles and chirp Have a happy ho-ho day! even though they just wanted to herd everyone to the exits, strip off their polo shirts, and jump into the river behind the maintenance garage.
    Josie had woken up determined to go to the hospital, but Mom had quashed that plan quickly and efficiently. It’s Saturday. It’s August. Ethan can’t run that park by himself, no matter how good he is. I know it’s asking a lot, but the best thing you can do this morning is head over there and help. It’s what your dad would want, honey.
    Then she’d almost stepped close enough to give Josie a quick hug, but had pulled back and bitten her lip instead. I’ll call you if anything changes.
    Once again, Josie had tried to stomp out the spark of hope Mom’s actions had ignited. The woman was acting almost … Mom-ish, and it was unsettling as hell.
    Ten, twelve—heck, fifteen—years ago, Josie would have given anything for a mother