An- Let me know what you think!
"This isn't where I wanted to go, Mom. You know this", complained Josh as him and his family passed the crowded gates and into the entrance of the Magic Kingdom.
His mother muttered something about not the perfect time to discuss this. Her and her husband were looking at the map, all the while pushing their two year old son in his stroller, and made sure to keep holding the hand of Josh's 6 year old sister, Heidi. Ever since she was told by her parents they were coming to Disney World, she wouldn't stop blabbing about it to Josh, who felt differently about this trip.
Besides being the target from his sister's carsickness, and the long, hot hours spent in the car, this was the last place he wanted to spend his time. Sure, he liked it when he was a little kid, but he was a teenager now. His parents didn't seem to care though. And now he had to endure more of the hot weather, all the while pushing his way through crowds of people.
Josh looked at his father, whom he resembled, who still was upset with him when he wouldn't dress up as Peter Pan, to follow his family as they wore their costumes, his father was Captain Hook, his mom was Wendy, Heidi as Tinkerbell, and his brother, Wyatt was Michael. But Josh decided to wear his plain black t shirt with his jean shorts, leaving his black mop of hair, as messy as always.
"Mom, we have six more days here. I'm 15. Old enough to walk around by myself. How about it?"
She sighed, showing her exhaustion she desperately wanted to hide, all so the little ones would have fun. "This is supposed to be a family vacation. I know you don't appreciate us enough to spend time with us any other time. But-"
Dad lifted his hand to silence his wife. "No, no Jillian, he wants to act like an adult. Let him. And since he doesn't want to be seen with us for the rest of the day, he can pay for his own food and meet us when the park is about to close."
"But dad, you know I don't have any money."
His dad looked sarcastic, one of the things his parents were that Josh hated. "Dad!"
Throwing his hands in the air, his dad picked up Heidi. "If you need us, we'll be in Fantasy Land. So, try not to need us. Come along, Darlings." And with that, Josh watched as his family disappeared into a crowd.
Sulking, and shoving his hands in his pockets, Josh mumbled some fowl words under his breath, and made his was down the main street. As he looked at the other cosplayers in suits pretending to be Disney characters, horse drawn carriages, and the endless carts selling toys, snacks, and balloons, not to mention the water fountain and the statue of Walt Disney holding hands with Mickey Mouse, he couldn't help but roll his eyes, and sit down on the nearest bench that was to the side of the castle.
It wasn't that Josh didn't want to have fun, but he knew all this stuff was childish, and there was just had to be a point in your life when you had to grow up. Obviously his parents hadn't learned that like he had.
Suddenly over all the noise, he heard a girl screaming. He turned around on the bench and saw a girl dangling from a really tall tree, her arms the only thing supporting her. But she didn't look frightened, instead she looked like she was having the time of her life. She spotted many people looking at her curiously, some trying to figure out a way to get her down. The moment she looked at Josh directly, she seemed to brighten up even more.
"Hey kid, come here!", she yelled. He hesitated for a moment wondering if it was worth it. He thought, if she were to fall and he was there to catch her, he'd look pretty manly. So, reluctantly, hands still in his pockets, very slow paced, he walked over to the tree, looking up at her.
"Yeah?", he yelled back up. Because of the sunlight, he could tell she had short, curly, auburn hair, a red and black plaid shirt, and dark blue jean overalls. Her shoes were black sneakers.
"Wanna come up here, too? You look bored!", she asked, happily.
"Yeah, I think I'll pass. Thanks anyway, though." As he turned to walk away, he heard, "Wait!". Before he could turn around to look up at her, she was falling towards him, until the next thing he knew, she land on top of him. He landed flat on his back, and she landed on top, her face very close to his.
She had dark blue eyes, along with the scent of pine trees. "I didn't hurt you did I?" she asked, still completely full of joy.
Josh took a deep breath. Her knees landed directly on his stomach once they collided. "No, of course not", he said sarcastically, gasping for air.
She giggled. "You're funny", she said, smiling, as she stood up, offering her hand to him. He took it, and the minute he stood up, he noticed she was almost the same height as him, but just barely. She looked about 14.
"What were you doing up there, anyway. Pull-ups?", asked Josh, staring at the branch she was dangling from. That had to be at least 5 feet from the ground.
"Sometimes. I usually do those for fun. But no, my friend, Elliott put me up there just to help me see how high I could go. He's quite the prankster."
Josh looked around, and besides the dozens of people walking by them, he saw nobody else remotely near them. "Well, where is he?".
She looked at him like he was losing it. "Don't you know anything? He's invisible. How can you be at Disney World, and not know that?", she scoffed.
"Okay", said Josh, uncertainly. This girl was dangling from the tallest tree in the park, talking about an invisible person, and she thought he was crazy?
"Hey, Elliott went back, and since I did see your family go on their own. Wanna hang out with me? It could be fun!", she asked, almost too enthusiastically.
"I don't normally hang out with girls."
"Oh, cool, then I guess I'll be the first! Let's go to the Haunted Mansion ride. Don't be fooled by the ghosts. Those fake ones are made to look scarier than they actually are. The real ones are really mellow." The moment she grabbed his hand, and pulled him away from the center of the Magic Kingdom, he knew two things, she was definitely crazy, and he regretted how hot he suddenly felt at her touch. "What's your name, by the way?"
"Josh."
"Cool name", she said, still pulling him along, not looking back. "I'm Wesley."
