5. The Tradition
M ila, at eight years old, was giddy with excitement. She pulled on Rafael’s sleeve, her small body barely able to keep still.
“Rafael!” she whispered loudly. “My daddy read me a wizard book, an’ it said—”
“Wizard book?” Rafael raised an eyebrow, his twelve-year-old self more mature. “Mila, you’re crazy. Wizards aren’t real.”
She pouted, but her eyes were still full of excitement. “No! It’s not crazy! It said if you make a wish by the fountain, it’ll come true. You just have to do it right! You need to wrap your hair around the wish!”
Rafael squinted, studying her face for a moment, seeing how serious she was. He could tell she really believed it. He sighed and rolled his eyes. “That’s dumb. It’s just a fountain.”
“Please, Rafael? Please? You have to do it with me. I wanna try! Just for fun!”
Rafael grumbled under his breath but could never resist when Mila begged him with that look on her face. “Fine, fine,” he muttered. “But I’m doing this for you. This is just stupid.”
“Thank you! Thank you! I knew you’d do it!”
Once they reached the fountain, they crouched low on the stone edge, their feet dipping into the cool water.
Mila pulled out a small, crinkled piece of paper from her pocket. “I’m gonna write my wish now!”
“Mila, this is dumb. I’m just doing this to get you to shut up.”
She shot him a playful glare.
Rafael rolled his eyes again but took the small wrinkled piece of paper from her. “I hope you’re happy,” he muttered.
They both scribbled down their wishes, and then Rafael fished the scissors out of his pocket. He cut a small piece of his hair and handed it to Mila, who did the same with hers, her tiny hands shaking a little as she worked.
“You’re sure this is gonna work?”
“Uh-huh. It has to.”
They both tossed the scraps of paper into the fountain at the same time, their eyes following the small pieces as they sank beneath the surface, disappearing into the rippling water.
Rafael squatted down beside her, his arms crossed. “So, what did you wish for?”
“I can’t tell you! Then it won’t come true!” She giggled.
“That’s dumb,”
Mila gave in, her eyes full of childish wonder as she looked at him. “I wished for us to always be together, Rafael. Forever.”