KINGS MEADOW USUALLY ESCAPED THE WORST OF summer heat, surrounded as it was by mountains. But this year the month of July had already broken high-temperature records for ten days running. Which was why Brad, his sister—home from college on summer break—and a bunch of their friends were trying to escape the heat at a favorite swimming hole. The oval-shaped pond was fed by a clear, cold-running creek, the water tumbling down out of the mountains, then in turn emptying into the river a quarter mile below.
A few years ago, a rope and tire had been hung from an ancient tree, perfect for swinging over the pond and dropping into the water, hopefully making a big splash that would catch sunbathers unaware. On his turn, Brad planned to aim his spray at Penny and her boyfriend from Boise, Curt Lansing. Neither Penny nor Curt had been swimming yet. Instead, they’d spent all of their time sitting on large beach towels, heads close together—talking, smiling, laughing.
Brad stepped onto the tire with one foot and grabbed hold of the rope between two large knots. Then he pushed off with the other foot, swinging out over the deepest part of the pond. He let go, and as he plummeted toward the water, he grabbed his knees to his chest to form a cannonball. He hit the water just right. He’d done this often enough to know the direction of the spray.
Breaking the surface, he swirled toward Penny. She and Curt were standing now, shaking the water off their hair like wet dogs. Penny caught Brad’s gaze, and for a second or two she looked genuinely angry. But then she started to laugh.
Penny never had been able to stay angry with her little brother for long. Brad had figured that out when he was still a kid, and if he was honest, he’d taken advantage of it on more than one occasion. He missed getting to tease her and play practical jokes on her when she was away at college. But maybe that made it all the more fun once she was home for the summer.
He swam to the side of the pond near his sister and pulled himself out of the water onto the ledge, still grinning. “Oops. Sorry, Pen.”
“Sure you are. Pest.”
He shrugged as he slicked his wet hair back from his face. Penny responded by snapping a towel at him, missing his arm by no more than an inch.
He feigned a glower. “Oh, you would’ve been in so much trouble, big sister.”
She laughed again, dropped the towel, and then dove into the water, swimming with strong arms toward the opposite side. Curt followed right behind.
The guy had it bad for Penny, no two ways about it. But Brad knew his sister wouldn’t let things go too far. She wouldn’t let herself fall in love until she’d graduated. Maybe not until Brad had graduated from college too.
She’d been after him all summer about deciding what he wanted to do after he finished high school, where he wanted to go to college, what he wanted to study. His best subjects had always been math and science, and Penny thought he should become an engineer of one kind or another. It was a practical career, she said. He could make a good living at it.
He didn’t have the heart to tell her he would much rather study music. In fact, if he didn’t have to think of anybody but himself, he would skip college altogether and become part of a band—the sooner, the better. But his dad and sister both placed a premium on higher education. He wouldn’t do anything to disappoint them if he could help it.
Only someday he was going to follow his dream. Someday he would have to, no matter what.