The Last Echo

“Wanna go to da park, Daddy!” Her tiny voice pealed throughout the room and Violet found herself envying her cousin’s exuberance.

Glancing at her uncle Stephen, Violet offered, “I’ll take them.” She looked at Kat. “Really, I don’t mind.”

Kat nudged Joshy. “What do you think, guys? You wanna go to the park with Vi?” And then she turned to Stephen, her face expectant. “I might even be able to fit a quick Starbucks run after I drop you at the station.”

Uncle Stephen kissed his wife on the forehead. “Seriously, Kat, you gotta get out more. You need to dream a little bigger than Starbucks.”

Violet waved as Jay crossed the field. Not that he hadn’t already seen her, or rather Cassidy. The moment the little girl had spotted him, she’d started squealing his name and running in lopsided circles.

Clearly Violet had some competition.

After all the safety checks and double-safety checks—her aunt making sure the car seats were properly secured in the backseat of her Honda—Violet had texted Jay and told him to meet her at the park as soon as school got out.

She whistled when she checked the time on her phone. “You made record time, my friend. What’d you do, ditch class early to get here?”

He winked at her as he dropped to his knees to let Cassidy come barreling into his arms. “Jay! You’re here!” She shrieked when he caught her, and then he tossed her in the air, catching her before she came all the way back down. She was still laughing when she shouted breathlessly, “Wanna push me?”

She clutched his fingers and dragged him to the swing set. He waited patiently as the little girl wiggled back and forth, adjusting and readjusting her position. When she finally stopped squirming, Jay asked, “Ready, Cass?”

She just nodded up at him, her expression intent as her fingers clutched the chain.

“I have to admit, Ambrose, this was a pretty good idea.”

Violet took the swing next to Cassidy’s and pushed herself with her feet, leaning backward as the swing glided upward. She felt Jay’s hand at the small of her back, and he pushed her, propelling her forward.

“Higher!” Cassidy squealed from the swing beside Violet’s. Even at three, the little firecracker wanted to do what everyone else did as she tried to keep up with her older cousin.

Violet dropped her feet, letting them drag through the gravel to slow herself down. “No, Cass. That’s as high as you can go. Maybe when you’re older.”

“I’m older,” the little girl pouted. But her argument was forgotten when Jay pushed her again, jolting her just the tiniest bit higher. Her small fingers tightened around the metal links, and she shrieked with unconcealed delight.

Violet wrapped her elbows around the chains of her swing. “It was a good idea, wasn’t it?” Without waiting for an answer, she went on. “I just didn’t want to sit around the house anymore. I didn’t want to hear my mom talk about me and the team and Sara. I hate the way she looks at me, like she can’t decide whether she should hug me or scold me.”

Kat brought the kids to this park all the time, and Violet glanced over to watch Joshua play with a little girl he seemed to know. The two of them made their way up the ladder to the top of the slide; then they sat one in front of the other—forming a very short train—and slid down together, falling in a heap in the gravel at the bottom. The little girl’s mother watched from the bench she sat on, glancing up occasionally with mild interest to make sure neither of the kids got hurt.

To Violet, watching the kids play was like glimpsing into the past. She could see herself in the girl, and Jay in her little cousin. They had once been like that. They had been those carefree kids.

And then she giggled as she thought about where they were now, on the swing set, in the park, and she realized they still were like that.

“What?” Jay asked slyly, taking Cassidy’s place on the swing as she hopped off to go join her brother and his little girl friend.

“Don’t climb the ladder, Cass,” Violet called after her. “It’s too high!” And then, shrugging, she mused, “I was just thinking about us.” She leaned her cheek against her hand as it clutched the chain.

Jay nudged his swing sideways, so it nearly brushed Violet’s. “What about us?”

“I was just thinking how cute we must have been, when we were their age.” She glanced toward the kids, who were racing up the ladder again.

His arm snaked out, capturing her before the momentum of his swing could drag him away again. When the swing did pull, they both moved in that direction. “We’re still cute,” he said, but his voice was low and filled with unspoken longing.

She lifted her chin, their faces just inches apart now, and Jay’s grip around her waist kept them together. “Yeah?” she breathed. “You think so?”

His other hand moved to rest on the side of her face, covering her bruise . . . not concealing it but cradling it. His thumb shifted, stroking the tender path of skin. “I do, Vi. I think we’re perfect.”

She felt vibrations throughout her entire body. Even her lips tingled. She couldn’t imagine being loved more. Didn’t think there was anyone she’d rather be loved by.

His mouth grazed hers, intensifying the tingling sensation until she felt like every nerve in her body was alive . . . alert. “Jay,” she whispered.

“Vi, I’m glad your parents are making you quit the team. I just . . .”