All My Days

cheryl and toni back in the day

xxx

"Just be careful, don't talk to anybody you don't know," Cheryl and Jason's nanny let go of their hands, letting them go off to the playground at Pickens Park. The Blossom twins usually didn't get to go on fun trips like this often. But today, their French tutor had to cancel their lesson, leaving the five year old twins with nothing to occupy their time. Normally their schedules were so jam packed with lessons and activities that it left them with no time for fun. They couldn't remember the last time they'd been to the park.

"I'll be right over by that tree if you need me," the nanny pointed to a nearby tree with a wooden bench beneath the leafy branches, "Stay together."

Cheryl brushed her hair from her face, holding tightly to Jason's hand with her free one. She looked over at her brother before they turned around to face the array of playground equipment. It was overwhelming with so much to look at, play with, and listen to. Where would they even start?

"Come on, there's an empty swing," Jason pointed, speaking much more clearly than your average five year old. Cheryl just held tightly to his hand as he lead the way. She'd never seen so many kids in one place before. They didn't go to kindergarten. They had their nanny and private tutors. Besides each other, the Blossom Twins didn't interact with anyone but adults. Which explained their coherent and well-mannered way of speaking at such an early age. They were expected to act beyond their years.

Jason lead Cheryl by the hand to the swing set, wrapping his tiny fingers around the chain link and helping his sister onto the seat like the little gentleman he'd been raised to be. But Cheryl stumbled back when the seat disappeared out from under her, landing her flat on her bottom amongst the wood chips that covered the playground.

"I saw it first," a kid about their age with dark hair clutched onto the other chain, having pulled it towards him to claim the swing for himself.

Jason was helping Cheryl up, wiping wood chips off her clean white skirt when a little girl in an all pink outfit came running up to them in worn, light up sneakers.

"Sawyer, that wasn't nice, they got to the swing first," she put her hands on her hips, her curls still bouncing from the jog over.

"But I saw it first," the boy fought back.

"You have to wait your turn," she scolded him.

Cheryl glanced between the two, holding tight to Jason's hand. "We can share the swing," she mumbled shyly. Jason was always much better at talking to new people than she was.

"Okay! You can go first," the tanned girl grinned, taking Cheryl's hand to help her back onto the swing properly.

"Sawyer! Toni! Come see my new Pokemon cards!" a pale boy in a grey beanie called from the sandbox across the way.

The taller boy immediately ran over, while the girl in pink shouted "I'll be right there!" over Cheryl's shoulder, starting to push her gently on the swing.

"Cheryl, can I go see too?" Jason asked, standing beside where Toni was pushing her.

"Sure," she nodded, her red hair flying a bit in the wind as she went back and forth. She watched as her brother ran off towards the boy in the beanie, letting the nice girl push her on the swing.

"Your hair is pretty," Toni commented with a smile, though Cheryl couldn't see it behind her.

"Thank you," she smiled, holding tight to the chains beside her, "What's your name?"

"To-"

"Jason! Cheryl! Come over here now!" their nanny yelled from the edge of the playground, causing Cheryl to halt the swing as best she could with her feet before she could get off. She looked over at Jason, who was running back from the little assembly of boys in the sandbox.