jean jacket just like Timmy, but heâs got a Mötley Crüe patch on the back of his.
âYeah, Iâm going,â I say. I donât want to look chicken in front of Starla, so I head toward the trees and then stop, waiting for her.
She doesnât follow. Her eyes are really wide.
Jeff and Timmy are still laughing and saying things like, âShe ainât gonna go.â
Starla looks back and forth. Then she walks over to me with her head down.
We move away from Jeff and Timmy, and Starla grabs my hand. This makes me feel brave. I hear Jeff and Timmy run to the edge of the woods to watch us go.
âDonât be scared now!â Timmy yells. They laugh at that.
I want to punch them both.
Starlaâs arm touches my arm, and she asks, âHow far do we have to go?â
âI donât know. Iâve never been back here before.â
Most of the leaves have already fallen off the trees. They swish and crunch as we walk through them. There are other noises tooâwhistling bird sounds and echoes everywhere.
Iâm not sure what the ravine looks like. Someone told me itâs like a big ditch. I donât know how far weâll have to go to get to it, either. Everything is brown and gray and taller than we are, so we keep walking because nothing looks like a ravine yet.
Weâre far enough that we canât hear Jeff or Timmy anymore. Itâs cooler in here and a little wet. I try to keep us in a straight line, but there are a lot of stumps and fallen branches, so we have to go around them.
Starla follows me, and I still have her hand. I notice her breath and ask her if sheâs O.K., because I donât know what else to say. She says she is, but I donât believe her.
It feels like we walked forever when we finally get to a ledge. Thereâs a bunch of dead weeds in a big ditch below. It must be the ravine because it goes in both directions.
Iâm not sure how weâll both make it down. There are a lot of stones and roots in the way. The other side is mostly dirt.
âDo we have to go across?â Starla asks.
âYep, Mr. Cressupâs shack is on the other side, and Timmy says we have to touch it with our own hands.â
âCulver, I donât like it back here,â Starla pulls on me. âI wanna go back.â
âWe canât go back yet,â I donât tell her that I want to leave too. Iâm worried about getting back before the bell rings.
âBut I donât wanna keep going!â she says like sheâs about to cry. âIâm scared.â
âHow âbout I go then? You can stay here and wait till I come back.â
âO.K.,â she says and then sniffles.
The ravine isnât too steep where weâre standing, and I think I can get down it if I run. I take one step back and then start down the edge, running as fast as I can so I wonât stumble. I reach the bottom and then stop myself two steps up the other side.
âSee? Itâs not so bad,â I yell to Starla.
She sniffles again and smiles. I climb my way up the other side. I turn to see Starla again when I get to the top. âAre you going to wait?â I ask.
Starla nods. âUh-huh, I promise Iâll wait if you promise to come back.â
âI promise, cross my heart and hope to die.â
âStick a needle in your eye,â she says.
We both smile, but sheâs so pretty I have to look away. I walk in the other direction.
I canât stop thinking about Starla as I move further from the ravine. She wore her new dress today. Itâs blue with a white collar, so she looks extra pretty. Maybe I should tell her that when I get back. I could say sheâs prettier than the flowers. No, thatâs dumb. Maybe I shouldnât say anything at all.
I wonder if sheâd hold my hand on afternoon recess. What would Jeff and Timmy say? Theyâd probably make fun of me. Iâd slug âem both if
Rebecca Hamilton, Conner Kressley