Page 48 of Paging Dr. Hart
The parade finishes and heads away, the music fading from the loudspeakers. Beaming, I turn to find that Ethan is watching me rather than the parade. He has a bemused expression on his face, his lopsided smile gentle and his eyes warm.
“What?” I’m suddenly self-conscious under his gaze.
Ethan shakes his head slightly. “Nothing. It’s just that I’ve never seen you look…”
“Look what?” I ask sharply.
“So happy,” he says simply. “I’ve never seen you so carefree and happy.”
“Oh.” I don’t quite know how to respond to his compliment.
Snapping his focus away from me, Ethan stands tall and surveys Main Street. He squares his shoulders. “Where should we start? We need a game plan.”
I’m all business now. “Don’t worry. I’ve memorized the park maps.”
“Wait, youmemorizedthem?” Ethan asks incredulously.
“Memorized,” I confirm.
“Like all four parks? You memorized the maps forallof them?”
“Try to keep up, Ethan. Yes, I didn’t want to waste time looking at a map. I want to optimize every minute we have.” Looking around, I get my bearings. “We should move through the park clockwise, so we end up in Tomorrowland.”
“Sounds good to me.” Before Ethan can take a step in that direction, I halt him with my hand in the air.
“First, let me download the Disney app onto your phone. You can use my account so we can reserve rides and order food for each other. That way I can look up wait times for the rides on my phone while you reserve them on yours. It’ll be more efficient.”
I take Ethan’s phone and type in my username and password. It’s the same one I use on all my accounts—that way I never forget it. Once I have Ethan’s app set up correctly, I hand the phone back.
“Ready to go?” I’m almost bouncing in my excitement.
“You lead, and I’ll follow,” says Ethan. “Just like in the hospital.”
We smile at each other, remembering those early training days.
Before we go on any rides, we get a churro. It’s warm and soft on the inside with a hint of outside crunch. Licking the sugar off my fingers, I stroll down Main Street. My head swivels, taking in every detail from the old-fashioned storefronts to the elaborate window displays. When the crowd clears enough that I can see the castle in the center of the park, I come to a standstill, staring. The castle is beautiful, with twirling towers of pink and blue. Ornate gold spires sit atop each tower, bearing flags that flap jauntily in the breeze.
It’s almost too pretty to be real.
The image blurs as tears fill my eyes.
Ethan’s by my side instantly. “Tiffy? What’s wrong?”
I sniffle. “I’m sorry. My mom would have loved it here so much. She was the one who introduced me to Disney. She adored all those old stories of Princesses kissing their Prince Charmings. True love that lasts forever.”
A tear slides down my cheek, and Ethan chases it with his fingertip. I tilt my head up to see him better and try to explain. “It’s not that I’m sad to be here. I’m just sad to be here withouther. Does that make any sense?”
He tugs me into his arms, lending me his warmth. I close my eyes and breathe in his clean, minty scent. I’m pressed against his chest, and his deep voice vibrates under my ear. “Of course it does. It’s natural to miss her. I’m sure she would love to see you here, surrounded by characters that you watched together. I imagine your mom would be proud of you. How smart, strong, and successful you are.”
I peer up at him, so tall and confident. I’ve wondered that before. If my mom would be proud of me. I think she would like my job because she always wanted me to care for others. But she would be disappointed in parts of my past. In the bad things I did, even though I did them for her. Ethan doesn’t know about those times, so I can’t correct him.
It’s weighing on me. The closer we get, the more I will lose if Ethan finds out about me. What would he think if he knew about my times on the Strip? Would it sully my image? Would he reject me? It’s too big of a risk. I can’t tell him, but the longer I wait…if he finds out, the worse it will be.
I shake my head and pull out of his arms. These are not the things Iwant to think about during my first trip to Disney World. Dashing the last of my tears away, I say in an overly bright voice, “I’m fine. Let’s go.” I whirl around and take off down the street, with a concerned-looking Ethan following behind me.
Luckily, the sights of Magic Kingdom distract me from my sadness. Ethan and I go into Adventureland first, where we ride Pirates of the Caribbean and the Jungle Cruise. On the Jungle Cruise, the pilot of the boat cracks corny jokes. He says, “You know why a tiger has stripes, right? It’s to avoid being spotted.” Ethan snorts with laughter when he hears that and elbows me until I’m laughing along with him.
Next, we walk past Liberty Square and get in line to ride the Haunted Mansion. Ethan stares at the spooky manor surrounded by graveyards. “Kinda creepy, isn’t it?”
