Zev
“Wait for me!”
I was stuck in the middle and had no choice but to stop.
Liam wouldn’t.
Not because my older brother didn’t care. But because he was too far ahead and never would have heard.
I slowed myself down until I came to a stop and turned around to look behind me. Tillie was closing the distance between us.
When she made it to me, she said, “Thank you, Zev.”
I nodded and replied, “No problem, Tillie. Can you keep going?”
“Yeah.”
We only had two more blocks to go to get to the park at the opposite end of our neighborhood, so it didn’t take us long to get there and catch up with Liam.
Once we were there, Tillie got off her bike, threw it down to the ground, and asserted, “You guys have to teach me how to ride a skateboard.”
Liam and I both started smiling.
“Why do you want to learn to skateboard?” Liam asked her as he propped his skateboard up underneath his hand.
Tillie moved toward him. “Because it’s obviously way easier than riding a bike,” she declared.
I started laughing. Skateboarding was nowhere near as easy as riding a bike. It had taken a ton of practice for Liam and me to get good at it. We both started doing it when Liam was eight and I was seven. Considering we were now eleven and ten, we’d had a lot of time to improve and get to the point we were at today.
Liam insisted, “It’s not easier than riding a bike, Tillie.”
“You only have to use one leg to push you and the wheels just take you,” Tillie argued. “You get a break. I have to keep pedaling with both legs the entire time to go as far as you’ve gone.”
“There’s more to it than just that,” Liam told her. “You need to have balance and—”
“I have great balance,” Tillie cut him off as she took the skateboard from him. “Don’t you remember my mom signing me up for gymnastics all those years ago?”
I laughed again. Tillie was nine. When she talked about taking gymnastics all those years ago, she made it sound like she was way older than us.
“You don’t take gymnastics anymore, though,” Liam argued.
She didn’t. She did it for one season, decided it was too girly, and quit. When everyone tried telling her that there were plenty of guys who did gymnastics, she admitted that she didn’t want to wear the leotard.
Tillie lived right across the street from us. She was the only girl in the neighborhood, and it never seemed to bother her. The three of us were all around the same age, so we always hung out together. There were a couple of teenage boys in the neighborhood, too, but we didn’t really talk much to them. Mostly, we’d all just wave when we saw one another.
Being the only girl wasn’t something that ever stopped Tillie from anything. No matter what Liam and I were doing, she’d jump right in and join us.
Tillie dropped Liam’s skateboard down on the ground. She put one foot on it and was about to go when I said, “Wait.”
Looking up from the board, Tillie seemed confused by the fact that I was walking toward her. When I made it there, I took off one of my wrist guards and held it out to her. “You need to wear the right gear,” I explained.
Tillie gave me the biggest smile before sticking her tongue out at Liam. Instantly, he rolled his eyes at her but ultimately helped with getting the guards on her wrists and the pads on her knees and elbows. Luckily, she was already wearing a helmet from riding her bike.
“Okay, I’m ready now. What do I have to do?” she asked.
Liam started explaining what she needed to do as I demonstrated on my board. Then, he held her hands as she tried to mimic what I’d just done. It took her a couple tries, but within a few minutes, neither Liam nor I were worried that she’d fall.
Tillie was a natural. She wasn’t doing anything crazy on the board, but she’d managed to ride around the park like she’d been doing it for just as long as we had.
The three of us spent the next few hours riding. Liam and I would switch off with Tillie. While she rode his skateboard, he’d ride her bike. Then, she’d get back on her bike while he rode and worked on his tricks. After some time passed, I’d switch with her and give her another turn on the skateboard.
By the time we were on our way back home for dinner, Tillie decided, “I’m asking my parents for a skateboard for my birthday. Once I have my own, I’ll need lessons on doing the tricks.”
“You got it, Til,” Liam promised.
“Thanks, Liam.”
Tillie
Two Years Later
The crowd was cheering so loud.
There were two outs and the bases were loaded.
I was standing on the pitcher’s mound feeling the pressure. My team was counting on me to help us win this game. If we did, we’d make it to the playoffs. I tried my best to calm myself, but it was hard. The current batter was the star of the opposing team. I’d thrown three balls and two strikes so far. I knew if I couldn’t figure out a way to get that last strike, we weren’t going to have a chance.
“Breathe, Tillie.” I heard a familiar voice shout from the side.
I didn’t have to look over to know it was Zev.
“Tillie, you’ve got this!” another voice yelled out.
That was Liam.
I couldn’t stop myself from smiling. All the shouts of encouragement that came my way were great, but none of them meant as much to me as having my best friends there to support me.
I took a deep breath, focused on what I needed to do, and threw the pitch.
“Strike!” the umpire shouted.
The crowd erupted into cheers. My teammates rushed to the mound to celebrate with me. We were going to the playoffs, and I’d helped to get us there.
After we lined up and shook hands with the other team, I walked off to meet my parents. Before I got to them, Zev and Liam came up to me. They both held their hands out in front of them. I gave each of them a high five.
“Great game,” Liam said.
“You were so awesome,” Zev added.
“Thanks guys. And thanks for being here for me today,” I replied.
“Are you kidding?” Liam asked. “You never miss any of Zev’s skateboarding contests or my parkour competitions. We’ll never not be there to support you, too.”
It was true. The three of us were inseparable. And we were always there to cheer each other on. I loved having that. Having them.
“Hey, my parents are taking me out for ice cream,” I told them. “Do you guys want to come with us?”
The pair of brothers looked at one another and their faces lit up.
“Yeah!” they replied at the same time.
Zev
Four Years Later
Things had changed.
Things were changing in a way I didn’t know what to do about them.
School was out.
Liam was seventeen, and I had just turned sixteen.
Tillie was fifteen.
Tillie being fifteen meant that Tillie was no longer the tomboy we grew up with all these years.
Sure, she was the same as she’d always been with us.
But it was different now, and if I didn’t already know it, I would have known for sure today.