"Come on, let's go!" a tiny Courtney shouted. She was leaning on her pink bike, a loose tooth wobbling in her mouth. "Dad needs to put on my training wheels." Ali shamefully replied. "Oh, right." Courtney shrugged. "It's alright. Even Timothy needs his still! And he's eight!" Courtney giggled. Ali laughed, and went back inside to hurry her father. "Hey, honey. Remember- be safe. Stay on the sidewalk." Mrs. DiLaurentis kissed her daughter on the forehead. Her perfume was sweet and smelled like peaches. She was dressed up for a cocktail party with friends. "I know mom." Ali peeled away from her mother and tossed her hair back. "Let me put it into a braid." her mother suggested. "Okay." Ali sat down on a stool at the kitchen island and her mother picked up her hair and began to braid it. Ali loved having her hair done- her mother's hands felt soft and tender.
"Ali!" Courtney's voice rang out in the kitchen. She walked in, her eyes landing on Ali, and gestured for her to hurry. "Tristan just stopped by. He wants to hang out with us." She informed Ali. Ali crossed her arms and rolled his eyes. "Of course he does." She smiled at Courtney and laughed. Tristan had a crush on both of them. Ew! He had shaggy brown hair that flopped into his eyes all the time. His face was splattered with freckles, his baggy jeans were always ripped and dirty. His parents were classy socialites, and they were always on a business trip. His mother was best friends with Mrs. DiLaurentis, and they always giggled about Tristan and Courtney getting married. Courtney actually liked him back. The thought of kissing Tristan made Ali's mouth turn sour. "Moo-om. Hurry up!" Ali wiggled under her mothers touch. "Of course, dear." Her mother sent them out, glancing at them wearily.
When they were outside, Ali took one look at Tristan and groaned inside. He was wearing the same shirt he had worn yesterday. She bit her bottom lip. She did this for Courtney. Her father walked outside suddenly with her matching pink bike, identical to Courtney's, because duh, they were best friends! "Okay, okay, let's go!" she hopped onto her bike and began to pedal torwards the park.
"I can't wait for the second grade!" Ali exclaimed. "I know! Then we'll be the oldest in the school!" Courtney grinned. They were hanging out on the "big-kid" slide, sitting underneath the castle roof. "Gee, guys. Don't you already rule the school now?" Tristan asked, smiling. Ali looked at her sister, and giggled. "Well, duh. We are fabulous!" she squeezed her sisters hand. Letting go, Courtney added. "Maybe there'll be room for you, too! You could be the king of the school!" Ali tried to swallowed her laughter, but her face gave it away. "What? You don't think I would make a great king?" Tristan peered up at her. Not if you keep on wearing old, dirty clothes! She wanted to tell him. Ali got up. "I'm bored." She brushed dirt off if her skirt and slid down the slide with her sister. Her sister squealed with delight and grabbed her hand. "Again!" she laughed. Ali couldn't help but break up into a grin. "Hey, let's swing instead." She suggested. She pulled Courtney over to a swing and waved to Tristan. He joined them on the swings and then they began to see who could get the highest. When Courtney and Ali were synchronized, they jumped off at the same time, hand in hand, and shouted, "We're married!" Courtney let out a whoop and hugged her sister. "Hey, me and you should get married." Tristan exclaimed as he sauntered up to Courtney, who gave him a toothy grin in reply. "We'll see. She replied mysteriously. Ali rolled her eyes and grabbed Courtney's hand. Out of the corner of her eye she saw some older kids. "Let's go talk to them!" She pointed and dragged Courtney with her. "Wait what if they're mean?" she wrinkled her nose, and slowed down hesitantly. "Then we'll leave." Ali shrugged. She walked up to the cutest boy and winked at him. He hopped down from the monkey bars and looked at her for a moment. "You're Alison." he stated, not really as a question but as a fact. Alison feigned shock and pointed to Courtney. "She's Alison." Courtney widened her eyes and opened her mouth to speak, but Ali silenced her. "She wants to go on a date with you." Ali grinned. "What?" Courtney snapped. "Oh, really?" The boy began to laugh. "What's a big boy like me gonna do with a puny little brat like you?" The other boys snickered at that. Ali rose her chin. "Excuse me?" she asked, looking up at the big kid who towered above her. "I wouldn't go around calling people names." she replied curtly, and grabbed Courtney's hand. "Come on, Courtney, we wouldn't want to spend our time with these bullies." Alison shot the boy a pointed look and walked away with her sister. How dare he mess with my sister! Her hands balled up and her sister winced. "Sorry." Ali mumbled. Tristan ran towards them, his eyes wide in awe. "That was Thomas Brown! He's a big bully. Wow, Ali, you were so brave, talking to a fourth grader!" he shouted. Ali flipped her hair, her eyes glistening in the sun. "I can talk to whoever I want to."
When it was time to go home, they said goodbye to Tristan and pedaled home on their bikes. Courtney looked at Alison. "Thanks for...saying those things back to that meanie. And you're not a brat, Alison. I can't believe he fell for that!" Courtney giggled. "You need to work on being an Ali." Alison teased. "Hey, you're the braver one!" Courtney mumbled. She looked at Ali, and smiled. "Today was fun." Ali nodded in agreement. When they got home, they parked their bikes in the garage. Alison smiled and hugged her twin. "We're going to have more days like this, too."