Without You

21

The late afternoon sun bathed the backyard in a warm, golden light, creating a cozy atmosphere for our little adventure. Ella and I had set up a makeshift fort using old bedsheets draped over the swingset and held down with rocks. It was our secret hideaway, and we were armed with a stash of snacks, popcorn, gummy bears, and juice boxes.

"Welcome to our fortress, Amore!" Ella declared, pulling me inside with a dramatic flourish. Her eyes sparkled with mischief as she flopped onto the soft blanket we'd laid down.

"Ah, the fortress of fun!" I replied, giggling as I settled in beside her. "What's our first mission?"

Ella thought for a moment, then grinned. "Let's create our own treasure map,  We can hide a 'treasure' somewhere in the yard and go on an epic quest to find it."

I clapped my hands in excitement. "Yes! We can make it really detailed, with secret codes and clues!"

We quickly grabbed some paper and colored pencils, sprawled out on our blanket, and began sketching. We drew the whole yard, marking key spots: the big oak tree, the flower bed, and, of course, the "mysterious pond" that was really just a muddy puddle.

"This is perfect!" I said, adding an 'X' to mark the treasure spot. "Now, what's the treasure?"

Ella rummaged through our snack stash, her eyes lighting up. "How about we use my sparkly bracelet? It'll be the ultimate treasure!"

I nodded enthusiastically. "Great idea! Let's hide it first."

With the bracelet safely tucked away under the swing set, we each took a juice box and pretended to be pirates planning our daring heist. "Arrr, matey! Ready to find the treasure?" I said in my best pirate voice, causing Ella to burst into laughter.

"Let's go!" she yelled, jumping up and leading the way out of the fort.

We followed the map, stopping at each marked spot to uncover "clues." Ella pretended to decipher the hidden codes, making exaggerated faces as she pointed at random bushes and blades of grass. When we finally reached the swing set, I felt my heart race with anticipation.

"Here it is!" I shouted, digging through the dirt to find the hidden bracelet. We erupted into cheers, our treasure hunt a roaring success.

As we settled back in the fort, still buzzing from our adventure, I glanced at Ella. "Promise we'll always have fun like this, no matter how grown up we get?"

"Absolutely, Amore!" she replied, her smile radiant. "We'll always find a way to be silly together."

With the sun beginning to set, painting the sky in shades of pink and orange, we leaned back on our blanket, feeling like the world was ours to explore. The laughter and memories of that perfect day would linger in my heart.

As I stepped out of my car. The streetlight flickered overhead. He leaned against his house, arms crossed.

"What are you doing here, Delilah?" He asked. I smiled at the name, even though he knew my real name was Amore.

"Not sure," I replied, taking a few steps closer. "I was driving and somehow ended up over here."

He nodded slowly, his expression shifting to amusement. "You remembered where I stayed, huh? I'd say it's giving stalker vibes."

Rolling my eyes, I crossed my arms defensively. "Like I would ever waste my time stalking you. I have better things to do."

"Oh really?" He raised an eyebrow, his grin widening. "Because it sure looks like you've got a knack for coincidences. Last I checked, my place is quite the detour from your usual routes."