Disclaimer: The characters of the Stephanie Plum Series belong to Janet Evanovich and are used here without permission. No copyright infringement is intended.
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Young Carlos, Risk Taker
By TT
Carlos couldn’t help it. He was so proud of his new bike. It may not have quite been the dirt bike he dreamed of, but there wasn’t a whole lot of dirt to ride it.
Even better than his new bike, though, was the fact his parents had told him that he could ride anywhere he wanted without his parents watching, so long as he stayed in the neighborhood.
The freedom he felt was indescribabe. He could go where he wanted without having to have someone go with him. The whole block was his!
Peddling faster and faster, he saw a group of older boys gathering in an empty lot a little further down.
He approached them, curious to see what they were doing.
When he arrived, his jaw dropped open. The boys had set up a ramp and were jumping their bikes off of it.
In truth, it was little more than a large piece of plywood propped up on some old cinder blocks, but to Carlos it was the best ramp ever.
After watching several of the older boys race their bikes toward the ramp and go sailing over, he really wanted to try. Sure he’d seen some of the boys wipe out instead of land on their tires, but the thought of flying through the air proved more tempting than the thought of getting hurt.
“Can I try?” he eventually asked.
The boys all turned and looked at him before exchanging a look and laughing.
“A little baby like you?” one of them said. “You could never do it. Go home and come back in a few years. We’ll see then,” the boy commanded before turning back to the group and ignoring Carlos.
The other boys followed suit. Several of them moved their bikes so that his view was blocked.
Angry about being called a baby and being shut out of the fun, Carlos still knew that he couldn’t force the issue with such big boys.
Instead, he turned his bike away from the lot and vowed to himself that he would come back when they were gone. He would do the jump and prove he wasn’t a baby.
A few hours later, Carlos looked down the road toward the lot and saw that all of the boys were gone.
It was late afternoon now and he knew that his mom would be calling him home soon to clean up for dinner, but she should have just enough time to jump.
Arriving at the lot, he saw that the older boys had torn down the ramp.
His face scrunched as he tried to remember how they had built it.
If he remembered correctly, they had stacked some cinder blocks and then rested the plywood sheet on top of it.
Working as best he could, he was able to move two cinder blocks, but they were really heavy, so he decided that having only one cinderblock under each corner would be enough. Trying to lift one on top of another would be too hard and he didn’t have a lot of time.
Satisfied he had his blocks in the right place, Carlos then dragged over the plywood and settled it on the base he had created.
It was definitely much lower than the one the big boys used, but he was certain it would be fine.
Hopping on his bike, he circled it a few times to begin to build speed before racing toward the ramp.
He hit the ramp peddling full out and went soaring into the air, for a second or two, and then his bike came crashing back to earth.
As his wheels hit ground, he lost control of his bike and fell over, skidding in the dirt.
He felt tears sting his eyes, but struggled to keep them from falling. Only babies cried and, after doing the jump, no one would call him a baby again.
Struggling to his feet and trying to ignore the stinging scrapes, Carlos lifted his bike up onto its wheels. That was when he noticed that his chain had slipped off and one of the tires was crooked.
He could feel his stomach drop to his feet at the sight of his damaged bike. It had been his less than a month and he’d ruined it, all to prove that he wasn’t a baby.
A few tears escaped before he got them under control.
He still had to walk back home.
When he got to the edge of the lot, he looked up the street and stopped in his tracks. His father was standing on the sidewalk leaning against his car, arms crossed over his chest. “Something you need to tell me, son?” he asked, his voice calm and even.
Eyes widening in fear at being caught, Carlos knew he’d been caught. Dropping his head, he explained everything to his father.
When he was finished, his father walked forward, picked up the bike, and put it in the trunk.
He then walked Carlos around to the passenger side door and made sure he was settled before getting in and driving home.
When they walked in the door, Carlos’ mother was right there and started fussing over him.
Though it hurt, she eventually cleaned and dressed all of his wounds.
When she finished, his father instructed, “Go set the table. I need to talk to your mother.”
Carlos only nodded and quickly obeyed.
As he was putting the silverware around the place settings, he heard his mother cry out, “He did what?”
Creeping closer, Carlos listened at the door.
“I know it wasn’t the smartest thing he’s ever done, but compared to what he could be trying, he took a moderate risk. Besides I think he’s learned his lesson,” his father soothed.
“How so?” Carlos’ mother demanded.
“He’s not going to be able to ride his bike until we get it repaired. I’m thinking that might take us at least a month,” Carlos’ father replied.
Silence reigned in the kitchen for several moments before his mother sighed and countered, “Two weeks.”
After another minute’s silence during which Carlos could picture his father raising an eyebrow in question, his mother sighed again and continued, “We don’t want him to lose the entire summer.”
“Babe,” his father said.
Carlos backed away from the door, suddenly feeling horrible. Two weeks without his bike would be forever!
Present
Ranger headed back toward the shore, smiling as he saw Stephanie standing there with her hands on her hips and her foot tapping on the sand. He shut off the Wave runner and let it glide onto the beach.
“Ricardo Carlos Manoso!” Stephanie scolded, lifting a hand from her hip and shaking a finger at him. “What exactly did you think you were doing pulling those stupid stunts out there in the water? Aren’t you aware you could be seriously injured? And what is that ramp doing out there? I thought you said it was nothing to worry about. Nothing to worry about! You…”
As soon as she started her rant, Ranger had ensured his jet ski was secure and started to walk toward her.
Finally, when he was within distance he leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers, silencing her with a kiss. When he eventually pulled back he looked into her eyes. “Babe,” he soothed, “the jump barely qualifies as a moderate risk. You take more risks everyday with your job” Seeing she was about to protest again, he hurriedly continued, “Want to try jumping with me?” He saw the answer in her eyes, but wanted her to admit it out loud. Leaning forward, he whispered in her ear, “It feels like flying.”
Pulling back, he memorized the look in her eyes. He loved making her dreams come true.
“Sure,” she eventually asked, trying for nonchalant. “Why not?”
Ranger smiled and took her hand, walking her over to where he had another life vest. After helping her into it, he took both of her hands in his owned and pulled her close. Looking into her eyes, he smiled and assured, “We’re going to do this, Babe. And it’s gong to be good.”
End