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It was the post-work dinner rush in Crossbell and the crowds milling around the harbor district seemed much larger than usual. Not that Van was an expert on the city - he’d only been through on business a few times- but he distinctly remembered not waiting in line at Ozelle’s Noodle Stall in the park in the harbor, and yet, here he was. Waiting.
Obviously, there was a huge influx of folks in town for the West Zemurian Trade Conference, filling the public spaces with suits of many nationalities. Technically he was here because of that as well, although the motivations of Prince Sharid (his client) were far less serious minded.
Still, it didn’t explain how they all knew about this place. Did Liberl even have Soba?
He was about to give up on waiting when he turned and spotted long, blonde hair and a sheathed saber heading straight across the park towards him.
Van sighed. He hadn’t known Elaine was going to be out here. And Crossbell was possibly one of the worst places to run into her unannounced, due to how he’d made a promise to her about Mishelam that he fully and spectacularly failed to keep.
Despite his better instincts telling him to make a run for it, this close to the cart he could smell the rich umami of the broth. And he was starving. If he kept his head down, she might not even see him, and they could both finish their trip in relative peace. The man in front of him accepted his noodles and left, which put Van in front of Ozelle himself.
Ozelle didn’t even look up from the broth. “You want noodles, yes?”
Elaine’s voice cut through the chatter behind him. “Van?”
He winced. Ozelle looked at him impatiently.
He nodded to Ozelle. “Two, thanks.”
A moment later he had two bowls in his hand. Van turned to her. “Dinner? Or late lunch?”
Elaine was in the tidy pale green and white gear she wore when working; and while her braids were still neat, she looked a little tired and very annoyed. “I’m on patrol, Van.”
“Come on,” he waved it towards her face, pushing the aroma of broth in her direction. “You skipped lunch, I bet, and this is the best place in Crossbell.”
She stared at it suspiciously, but he was absolutely right about her missing lunch, and despite the upcoming event, there really hadn’t been much of anything going on so far.
“Hand it over.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“No sense letting perfectly good food to waste,” Elaine replied primly.
Van still felt smug as they migrated over to one of the benches in the nearby park, looking out over the harbor. The first few minutes they were both too occupied with eating to say anything, but when the noodles ran out they were still left with an awkward silence. It seemed like every time they ran into each other, they had to negotiate their way back to their old childhood familiarity.
“Didn’t realize you were going to be out here, is the Guild short-staffed?” Van finally said.
“Yes. As the conference is particularly high profile, they requested a member from each of the international branches to come.”
“They asked for you specifically? Damn. How’s Zin feel about that one?”
“Zin volunteered me for it, and as the situation is still delicate, I couldn’t exactly refuse.”
“I’m sure Michel is overjoyed to have you here,” Van mumbled around bites of noodle. “He loves having a celebrity stop by.”
Elaine scowled. “I am certain that no one outside of Calvard considers me particularly famous, and even then, the only reason is because of that magazine-”
Van snorted.
“What brings you here?” she said.
He shrugged.
“Elsaim?”
“Got it in one,” Van slurped the last of his broth. “Too bad the ice cream vendor’s closed up for the day. I wonder if the one by Arc en Ciel is still open…”
“If you’re trying to change the topic of conversation, you’re doing a terrible job at it.”
“I don’t know what else you want me to say. I’m not going to start blabbing about my clients to a bona fide Bracer.”
Elaine rolled her eyes. “No, but many of the reasons that Prince Sherid would have you poking around before he arrives could be signs that there might be trouble coming. Trouble that you should warn others about.”
“Nah, he’s got Naje for all that security stuff.” Van set his bowl by his feet. “I’m just here to scope out the more interesting stuff.”
“A list of all the hostess clubs in the Entertainment District?” Elaine said drily.
“No,” Van said, unconvincingly.
“Or did he get some angle on this rumored Revache return that nobody else has?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Van said, his poker face near flawless. “Everyone says they’ve been gone since the whole cult incident.”
Elaine winced but pressed, because she knew that he was trying to get her off of this subject by any means necessary. “If he knows that the Guild and the CBPD are looking into them, why did you need to come?”
“Because you’re stingy with information and nobody with half a brain trusts the Crossbell Police Department.” Van snarked. “Although again, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“This could be a matter of international security-”
“That’s why he called me. I go international.”
Elaine shook her head. “How much of your information did you get from Renne?”
“A normal amount. She’s supposed to be heading out this way herself sometime soon.”
“That is not reassuring.”
“No, no, she’s coming out for a family thing.”
“The Brights are coming to Crossbell?”
“As far as I know, they’re already here.” Van squinted at her. “Michel didn’t mention that?”
Elaine looked back over the bay. “I’ve been in security meetings for most of the day, and I wanted to get a patrol in-”
“Did you sneak into Crossbell, Elaine?”
“No.” She sat up a little. “I just completed my previous job in Anchorville earlier than expected, and I never have any spare time in my schedule, so I thought I could get a good look around before the conference-”
“You come all this way, and you don’t even bother skipping out on work. I would have thought you’d have camped out in Mishelam for the day,” he said, and then immediately regretted it when he saw the look on her face.
“I could have gone years ago…” she muttered.
“Elaine-”
She stood. “Before this interruption, I was patrolling, which I really should get back to-”
Van caught her arm. “Hey, I’m sorry. I can shut up, I promise.”
“I don’t need you mocking me.”
“I’m not. I just thought- well you deserve a break more than most, that’s all.”
Elaine turned back to him. “I don’t know that that’s true.”
“Even if only half of what the papers are saying is true, you’ve more than done your fair share these past few months, and I trust Marielle’s nose for this stuff.”
“It’s true, I have been busy, but…”
“And you’ve always wanted to go to Mishelam, so why don’t you take a day and head over there?”
“Michel is expecting me tomorrow-”
“There’s nothing going on for three more days, it’ll be fine. Hell, it’s Crossbell, he might refuse you entry to the Guildhouse until you’ve been.”
Unfortunately Elaine was very aware that if Michel got wind of this idea, he’d be more insistent than Van was. Michel only liked to torture the local Bracers with too much work.
“It’s not exactly something you do by yourself,” Elaine muttered.
“What was that?”
“Nothing.”
Van closed his eyes. He had just gotten an idea, but it was the kind of thing that might really set her off if he hadn’t judged this situation correctly.
However, there would probably never be a better moment for him to make up for some of his past failings.
“Elaine, since we’re both here, and there’s no crisis happening or big jobs to do: would you go to Mishelam with me?”
She felt a rush, just like when she was seventeen, and she’d seen him in the Aramis uniform for the first time, her first hint at how much he’d changed in the years since they were kids.
Now was not the time for nostalgia. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“I did promise you.”
“When we were dating. In high school.”
Van winced. “Yeah, but, we’re friends right? And I know you really want to go.”
“Friends.”
“Just like when we were ten. It doesn’t have to be any more complicated than that.”
It was forever infinitely more complicated.
“Absolutely no strings attached. I promised to take you to Mishelam sometime, and since we both happen to be in Crossbell…”
“We’re both working,” Elaine protested, her brief moment of joy overshadowed by the usual specter of undone work. “We shouldn’t be running around an amusement park-”
“The conference doesn’t start until Wednesday, none of the fancy people are here yet, and the whole city’s quiet because the CBPD’s patrolling like crazy. If there was a time to take some time off, it’s now.”
“The Guild here is still short-staffed, and Michel-”
“Michel would probably tell you that visiting Mishelam is a sacred rite of passage or something, he’s from Crossbell.”
“He did mention that the Guild has a few season passes if I ever wanted to go…” Elaine muttered.
“Oh really?”
“I’m not going to take the Guild’s tickets.”
“They’re season passes. They’re good for the whole season.”
“I am already bending the rules enough by going, Van, don’t try to talk me into unethically using Guild resources for my own amusement.”
“But you’re going?”
Elaine took a slow deep breath and wondered yet again why she had so much trouble saying no to him. “Yes, I’ll come to Mishelam with you. Meet me here tomorrow morning at 8 am, sharp. If you’re late, I’ll go on patrol instead, like I should be.”
“Eight it is,” Van winked. “See you then.”
Elaine watched him leave and tried to ignore how bad her heart fluttered. It wasn’t like she’d been daydreaming about Mishelam for years. She’d been too busy.
Despite her unwillingness to take anything, Michel absolutely insisted on her taking the season passes as soon as he found out she was going. (He was wise enough not to probe too hard about who she was going with, although he did check in with absolutely every informant the Guild had at the park just to let them know Elaine was going to be there on with a friend .)
But since he had gotten her to take the tickets out of a sense of obligation, Elaine was still in her work clothes, badge pinned neatly to her chest. It was good Van didn’t have to worry about his reputation in this city; spending all day walking around with a Bracer would not give off an impartial impression, which was fairly key to his continued cash flow. But he was more dreading the inevitable hoards of citizens who were likely to ask assistance for every little problem once they saw that badge, especially on a very beautiful woman.
She met him by the docks to board the ferry, which took them the more leisurely away across Lake Elm to Mishelam. They crowded on the top deck with everyone else, swapping rumors about Detective Nate’s latest disaster of a romance and comparing notes on the Arc en Ciel shows they’d seen while letting the sunshine and the breeze wash over them. It was a short ride over, and it barely took them any time at all to walk through the resort building and get their tickets for the day.
And then they went through the gate and finally saw Miselam Wonderland in all its garish glory: the fantastical fairy-tale castle soaring over the cutesy imitation of the old city streets; the Ferris Wheel and Haunted Mansion capping the ends of the main thoroughfare; and, most importantly, Mishy. Mishy on the banners, Mishy keychains and shirts, Mishy’s face made of flowers. Mishy himself greeted visitors as they passed through the Central Plaza.
Elaine took two steps forward and then just stopped, trying to see it all at once. Van had to gently tow her out of the way of an incoming group of teenagers. For a moment, a decade’s worth of stress and responsibilities fell away, and she was a teenager again.
“Where to first?” Van said, reaching for her hand, but catching himself and stuffing that hand in a pocket instead. This situation was luring him into old, overly-familiar habits, and he could not afford to ruin his big apology moment by pushing things too far.
“This time of day, the lines by the Horror Coaster will be the longest, but everyone says that the Ferris Wheel should be saved for last, and I don’t want to start with the Castle of Mirrors-”
His guilt was multiplying rapidly. “You, uh, really thought this through.”
“There was a possibility back when I was a Junior Bracer when I thought I might get posted here for some time. I did some research on the park while I was looking into the city. There’s a fairly large forum on the orbal net that has advice for schedule planning.”
Her general demeanor was so graceful and regal Van often forgot that Elaine was living in the same century as him.
“Is this the forum where they also sell those 15,000 mira limited edition Mishy dolls?”
Elaine got really invested in her Xipha. “I- I wouldn’t know.”
“Don’t tell me you bought one of them.”
“No… they always go up when I’m working and sell so fast.” She sighed. “There’s supposedly someone who invented monitoring software just to make sure they can get their bids in first.”
“The Mishy fans are that serious about it, huh?” Van said, trying to wrap his head around it. Mishelam was fun, sure, but that was a lot of work for what was just a plush doll.
“Of course, with the mira you spend on your truck, I’m sure the Mishy collector’s market looks very tame.”
“That’s not really the same…” he protested.
“It’s not?” Elaine crossed her arms.
“I need that truck for work, it’s a business expense!”
“When exactly is the illegal booster necessary for Spriggan work?”
“Sometimes being fast is important!”
“I bet,” Elaine said, turning towards the thoroughfare. “Let’s start with the Haunted Coaster, and you can spend the time we’re stuck in line explaining.”
Van held back a grumble and followed her. Sure she had comments about his beloved truck, but they weren’t necessarily unjustified. This was how he was going to make it up to her. He probably deserved worse.
The line turned out to be fairly short, surprisingly, and the other people in it provided Van and Elaine with a steady stream of wildly personal conversations to eavesdrop on, saving them from having any of their own. The park was high-tech enough to have an introduction video in the waiting area to explain the gimmick and remind people not to hold their limbs out where they could be smashed by bits of scenery.
“It’s good that Rene isn’t here,” Van muttered, seeing the small orbal laser pistols mounted to the front of each car. “He would demolish us.”
“Speak for yourself.”
“When did you get so cocky?”
She sniffed. “I call it ‘an accurate assessment of my skills.’”
“If you’re so confident, why don’t we bet on it? Loser buys drinks.”
“You’re on,” Elaine grinned, as the cart started to accelerate.
It wasn’t a particularly long ride, but the stress of aiming while hurtling around what was basically a mine cart with some fancy paint stretched the time. Both took confident shots at the various spooky targets, and both were not that great at aiming the notoriously laggy and imprecise laser pistols.
The cart rolled slowly into the disembarking station, and they both quickly pushed past the nearby photo booth to the ride’s leaderboard.
“5285,” Elaine read. “Wish I had gotten more, but not bad for the first time.”
Van grinned smugly. “5290.”
She groaned. “That’s basically a tie.”
“Close isn’t close enough, Sweetheart.”
“It has to be a fluke.”
“If you’re so sure, we can come back here later, and you can prove it.”
They made their way down the exit stairs and into the plaza again.
“Fine.” She pulled up the park map on her Xipha. “Next ride is-”
“Excuse me,” said a small child, who had crossed the plaza to gaze hopefully up at Elaine. “Are you a Bracer?”
“Yes, I am,” she said, pointing to the pin on her shirt. “Do you need help?”
“Have you seen my teacher? Or my class? I thought they were coming over here but I don’t know where they are and I can’t find them.”
Van crouched a little. “What does your teacher look like?”
“Her hair is weird and orange and super curly and she’s wearing a dress with Mishy on it, because we’re at Mishelam today.”
“Makes sense to me,” Van nodded. “Where did you see them last?”
“We all came through the gate, and then Mishy came over for pictures, and I got my picture taken first so I was just waiting, and one of the other kids said he saw Mischneidner so I went looking for him and then I went back and my class was gone.”
It took both Van and Elaine a moment to work their way through that deluge of information.
“Why did you think they were coming here?” Van continued.
“The teacher said so this morning, because she needed to know if anybody didn’t want to ride it.” They dropped their voice. “In case they’re scared.”
“Sometime today, kids on the Haunted Coaster. Great.”
Elaine glared at Van. “In that case, why don’t we talk to some of the staff here to see if they’ve seen them? Are you okay to walk with us for a little while?”
They looked up at Elaine with the widest puppy dog eyes that a human child was capable of. “Yeah!”
“I guess we’re taking a detour, then,” Van said, and followed her back into the central plaza.
As big as the park was, it was designed to keep people looping back through the main thoroughfare, so a few conversations with staff members later, Van and Elaine had managed to track down the class. They hadn’t been too far, just inside one of the smaller buildings, watching Mischeider’s Science Show. The kid insisted that interrupting it would be rude, so instead they all sat on a bench across the way to wait.
“What’s it like being a Bracer? Do you get to beat up lots of bad guys?”
“Being a Bracer is about keeping people safe,” Elaine said gently. “We only fight when absolutely necessary.”
“How many fights have you been in? Did you win?”
The kid continued to badger Elaine with questions (Van was not interesting enough to bother with.) and Elaine continued to answer them with grace and patience, even if Van could tell she was a little out of her depth. She usually relied on social cues to disguise what old people called “stand-offishness” and Rene referred to as ‘aristocratic reserve’. Van just thought she was shy. Kids often weren’t too great at reading that kind of thing, however, and once they realized that Elaine was friendly, they often barrelled right through her barriers, leaving her a little tense.
It was a shame. Most people never got past her appearance or her swordsmanship, and the few that understood how persistent she was as an investigator still missed how deeply kind she was. She had put up with him far longer than anyone should have. And unfortunately, she kept getting more and more famous, which only made her more cagey. There was very little time these days when she didn’t have to be perfect. The Guild had rewarded her skill and expertise and cool head with even more crises to solve.
It was why she deserved a day off in Mishelam, damn it.
“Look, there they are!” the kid stood and pointed at a gaggle of very loud children exciting the main door of theater, all singing some kind of song about orbal energy and a Pom.
“Yes, it seems to be them.” Elaine said, trying to hide her relief. She hadn’t been prepared for the onslaught, even if it was from a sweet kid. “Do you want me to talk to your teacher?”
“No, I can explain.” the kid grinned. “That way I’m the only one who met the Bracer!”
“Of course,” Elaine said, now fighting a smile. “It was very nice to meet you as well.”
“Thank you, Miss!” the kid said, and ran to the back of the pack of schoolchildren.
They waited until the class had all filed inside the Haunted Coaster before turning back towards the Central Plaza.
“Just can’t turn it off, huh?” Van grinned.
“You helped too, Mr. ‘I Only Work When They’re Paying Me.’”
“That kid is lucky I was in a pro bono kind of mood today.”
“Sure.” Elaine said, humoring him.
“Where does your fancy schedule say we should go next?”
“Castle of Mirrors.” Elaine hesitated. “But we’ve been here for awhile already, so if you had some other business…”
“You kidding me? We’ve only been on one of the major attractions. There’s a lot more to this place, even I know that.”
Elaine smiled.
“I told you I was going to take you to Mishelam Wonderland, and I meant it. We’ve only done two rides. You want to go after only two rides?”
“No.”
“Well, then, let’s get going before one of us gets a phone call and we actually have to leave.” He started walking again.
Elaine caught up to him a moment later, wrapping her arm around his. “We should do the hanging ship and the teacups on our way to the Castle of Mirrors.”
Van watched her smile, and smiled back instinctively. And then he remembered that he was the only reason she hadn’t come here years ago.
The Castle of Mirrors had all kinds of rumors around it: that it was filled with ancient magic because it’d been built over a ruin constructed by Crossbell’s alchemists; that ethereal monsters roamed its halls at night; and that it had somehow been responsible for the giant blue tree that had popped up here right after the mayor declared himself president.
Van and Elaine were aware that much of this was true, except the bit about ancient magics - the place was barely five years old, and before it was a resort it had all been swamp. Neither of them had expected that they’d be able to feel mystical energy, in the middle of the day, as part of a theme park. Stepping through the large entry doors, every sound was suddenly hushed, and the very air itself seemed to sparkle. Even the boisterous group of teenagers that had followed them inside went immediately quiet.
As the mirrors reflected them all winding their way up the stairs, Van started to feel like someone was trying to make a point to him personally. He was about to have an epiphany if he stayed around too much longer, and he’d rather continue to live his life unexamined.
The wishing bell that was the former star of this attraction had been removed at some point, so instead the top of the tower had become the home of the park’s resident fortune teller, a fact that Van did not realize until they’d climbed all the way up to the top and were staring down the door to her.
“Really?” he whispered to Elaine. “You want to do this?”
“Why are you game for every other thing in this park besides the fortune teller?”
“I don’t know, seems like tempting fate,” Van shrugged. “Knowing my future might make me do something stupid to fix it.”
Elaine sighed. “Well, I would like to go, and you do owe me, so if you don’t want to see her, I’ll go in by myself.”
“Fine,” Van shrugged, trying desperately to play nonchalant. He found a spot on the wall to lean against that didn’t require him to stare at himself, and settled in to wait.
He knew that an unwillingness to make plans for the future wasn’t exactly healthy - there had been a revolving door of sisters before Bergard took over who constantly told him that. But it wasn’t like he was entirely without plans - his truck’s next three mods were on order with the Bradleys, and Anges had promised him one of Anadulsia’s signature tartes when the new seasonal speciality dropped. But big plans? Long-term plans? Van was awfully short on those.
It was undoubtedly part of what had made him run in the first place. It was hard to convince yourself that the demon in your head wouldn’t cause complete disaster when there weren’t any viable alternatives. And he wasn’t naive enough to believe that things would stay the same forever. No, it was more like he was so used to whatever BS Adios had decided to shower on him, ruining all his plans, that he’d stopped caring. A spriggan’s life was a chaotic one, and to a certain extent, that’s what he appreciated about the job. He didn’t like routine.
Unfortunately, with Elaine and Rene back around it was hard to pretend that Edith was just some temporary gig, that office Montmartre just a cheap and convenient place for an office. And if he didn’t bat his thoughts down enough, he might even imagine the impossible circumstance that Elaine was there with him. It wasn’t likely; there were far more probable options; but left ot their own devices, his heart and libido were in agreement about what they wanted. He had to make sure that his brain remained in charge.
Elaine came out shortly thereafter, looking pleased but puzzled.
“What was the verdict?”
“I didn’t expect her to be so… acute.” She replied slowly. “It was far more specific than what I’d expected from an Amusement Park attraction.”
Van tried not to look skeptical.
“She said that the only thing keeping me from family was choosing one, and that my old connections would be peacefully resolved.”
“That’s heavy.”
Elaine smiled up at him. “For some reason, I feel lighter about a few things.”
“Huh,” Van said, trying not to encourage this conversation to take any swings into dangerous territory.
“The few forum posts about this Fortune Teller seemed hyperbolic about her abilities, but I can see why people are impressed by her.”
“What’s up next?” Van asked, subtly leading her down the stairs. Maybe all the time in Mishelam was getting to her. Maybe she was dehydrated or something. “We could go see what they have at the Food Court.”
“Yes,” Elaine checked her Xipha. “Right now should be between the crowds.
Van kept his mouth shut the entire way over.
The sight of the Mishy Ice Creams were enough to make both of them momentarily revert to 10 year olds, eating sweets after Sunday School was done, and before Elaine got drug back to her mansion. She didn’t bother arguing when he paid for hers, it was far nicer to play along for the day.
They had been there for hours, and every additional minute fed Elaine’s guilt a little more, but a whole day with Van was even more precious to her than her at Mishelam was, and it was one of the few reasons she’d ever be so selfish as to skip out on her job. She couldn’t keep holding off reality forever.
“Today was lovely,” she said.
“What, are we done? I thought the Ferris Wheel was last.”
“Well, yes, but it’s already late, and we’ve seen so much of the park already…”
“Absolutely,” Van replied. “If your fancy schedule says that we’re doing the Ferris Wheel last, than that’s were we’re going.”
Everyone who said he was a bad influence had a point, but Elaine was already here and already indulging. After all, it was just a day.
“All right.”
And they headed down to the Ferris Wheel.
Soon they boarded the tiny pod, and the wheel began its slow turn again. The sun was setting, and the light was just at the right angle to drape them both in a warm, soft glow.
Van leaned back as much as the awkward bench seat would allow and watched the world spin around them. It was a nice night, and overall he hadn’t screwed anything up, so as long as they could make it off this ride and out the gate, his conscience would be clear. He would have finally kept one of his promises, a small one in the grand scheme of things, but at least it was something.
Their car reached the top of the arc and the Ferris Wheel paused for a moment, giving them time to appreciate the full view.
It was at this point that Elaine gave up on pretending that this situation wasn’t what it was. It may have come too many years too late, and it probably wouldn’t change anything in the future, but this was absolutely a date. She was finally at Mishelam with Van.
“Do you ever wonder what would have happened if you hadn’t left?” Elaine asked.
Van snapped to attention, causing their car to wobble. “Uh-”
“If you hadn’t dropped out of Aramis.”
He shrugged. “What’s there to wonder about? We both know how this would have gone.”
The car started to move again, but she was still looking at him, waiting for an answer.
He half-smiled. “You would have realized that while dating the bad boy was fun as a teenager, it would be unsatisfying to the future heir to the Quincy Company, and find yourself some lesser version of Rene to spend the rest of your days with. Even now I have to wonder if I’m the reason you-”
She leaned forward and cupped his face in her hand. “Listen. You don’t get to act like all of this is your fault forever, especially when it comes to my life.”
“Elaine-” Van said, as worried about the way the car was swinging with her as he was about where this conversation was going.
“Look at my father and tell me that he wouldn’t have ended up in the same place had you not existed.”
Van closed his eyes.
“I have no regrets for what I’ve chosen in life. Becoming a Bracer gave me the means to ensure that he was accountable for what he’s done.”
“You shouldn’t have had to arrest your own dad…”
“That’s all on him,” she said firmly. “So stop beating yourself over things that were never your problem to solve.”
Van stared out over the park, with the families and the teenagers milling about. It was bright and cheerful… and hollow. Artificially manufactured happiness. Even if the lake was beautiful at sunset.
“That’s not exactly something I think I can do.”
“Pretend, then. For a little while.” Elaine smiled softly. “You owe me, remember?”
“That was never part of our agreement.” He wrapped his hand around hers. “But I guess I can for the rest of today.”
And he held her hand all the way out of the park.
They were some of the last passengers off the ferry, and they stayed at the dock long past when it had gone, leaving Lake Elm stretched out beneath the stars.
“Well,” Van said, scrambling for something to prolong this day.
“Thank you,” Elaine leaned her head against his shoulder. “I’m glad I finally got to Mishelam.”
“Sorry it took this long.”
They were silent for a moment.
“Did you have fun?”
He laughed. “I don’t think anyone’s asked me that since I was ten years old.”
“Answer the question.”
He paused. “Yeah. Yeah I did. It may be fun to bring the whole crew out here sometime. You and Rene, too.”
“Oh really?” Elaine smirked. “You’d let us crash such an important work outing?”
“Or we could just come again by ourselves,” Van replied, leaning closer.
“We could. It would even be nice.”
They were barely a few rege apart now. Very close. So close.
“Hey man, that’s my car!” a voice shouted from behind them, shortly followed by the sound of tires screeching.
Elaine sighed. “I believe work is calling me. See you later, Van.”
He exhaled, and let the moment pass. “Bye Elaine.”
She ran off towards the city, and Van turned back to the Lake, watching the breeze rustle the waves, and tried to pretend just a little longer.