Her Mysterious Ways

Chapter 17: Rocky strikes again

"Okay Gracie. You have to be good tonight. If you're not, you won't be allowed to come with my friends and I again." I lectured Gracie while I helped her put on her coat. It was a little blue one with black buttons that we found at a thrift store one day. I gotta say, it looked pretty adorable, even on a little red headed devil.

"I promise. Is Andy going to be there? I like Andy. We are going to be best friends!" Gracie smiled broadly and grabbed the doorknob.

"Are you now? What if she doesn't want to be best friends?" I tried to ease her into the idea that her and Andy most likely wouldn't be best friends

"She will. Can't you tell? She loves me! I would be the one not wanting to be friends." She looked at me like I was stupid and walked out the door in her little blue coat and little black boots.

"Okay then." I shook my head and laughed a bit to myself. She was sure something all right.

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Gracie and I walked to the traingazing place in the cold of winter together. Well, it was more like me carrying her after the first few steps into the journey. It was a little frustrating Gracie had to come, but I was the big brother and I had my duties. As I learned, life wasn't always fair, but we just had to deal with it anyway.

"Are we there yet?" Gracie whined as we took the first few steps onto the train tracks.

"Yes we are. Now stop complaining or Andy won't want you to come and we'll have to go home. Do you really want to make Andy mad and me mad?" I asked sternly. She didn't really deserve the bitterness, but I was mad that I had to take my whinny little sister to a movie that she couldn't even watch.

"Okay. I promise I'll be good." Her big green eyes got me. Although I was mad at her, those eyes always made me want to hug her, but I couldn't. I was mad at her and I had to stay mad at her. But those eyes... No. I couldn't do it, oh but those eyes. Nope.

"Okay. I know you will. Do you want to see something cool?" My stature melted and I took her hand. The sun was just setting and the painted sky was a piece of art in the never ending view. If I brought my camera, I would've took hundreds of pictures of that sky, of that moment. If only I cared a little bit less of what people thought of me...

"Show me!" Gracie demanded. I picked up her skinny body and carried it over to a train car ladder.

"Can you climb that all by yourself?" I asked, giving one last glance at the perfect picture, praying that we would get there in time to see the colours blend until the whole sky was devoured by darkness.

"Yes!" She answered enthusiastically. I lifted her up onto the ladder and waited until she climbed up the first two rungs. Then I started to climb.

When we got to the top, both of us just stayed there for a minute. Even Gracie was speechless. I don't think she had anything in her mind other than that sky at that moment. It was a moment of total peace and harmony.

"ANYONE HERE? OR IS IT JUST ME AND MY THOUGHTS?" Andy yelled to the sky that was now a periwinkle color.

"WE'LL BE DOWN IN A MINUTE!" I yelled back to her. Gracie and I scrambled to get down, and when we did, there was Andy, a crooked smile on her face, waiting for us. Gracie ran to hug her, and Andy welcomed her with open arms.

"Andy! I missed you so much!" Gracie shrieked. Andy just laughed and shook her head.

"You saw me yesterday silly!"

"Yes, but best friends see each other every day!" Gracie pulled away to reveal a face that was so serious. It was so cute it actually made both of us laugh.