Go On Forever

Ariana was glad it was summer. The warm star filled night, and the long sunny afternoons suited her perfectly. It always seemed like summer would go on and on.

Ariana inhaled the air with her eyes closed, taking in all the scents around her. Smiling she poked her head out of the tent. There was a huge bonfire in the meadow clearing, wood smoke drifting lazily in blue clouds, rising on the slight breeze. Twilight was beginning to fall on their campsite, and Ariana was excited. It was the last night of their annual camping trip. Every year since she could remember her family had gone on a week long camping trips in the summer, high in the mountains where the air was still clear.

"Hey Dad! Is it time for s’ mores yet?" Ariana called, she was trying to slip her boots on while at the same time tying back her long hair.

"Almost honey, almost," her dad called back with a grin. "Get David. He won't want to miss what's next."

"Okay Dad," Ariana said as she finally managed to get her boots on. Pulling a sweater on she walked off toward the creek where David and her brother John were fishing. Her parents had relented and let her bring David as long as John and David shared a tent.

"Come on you two, it's almost time," Ariana called to them as she approached the river bank.

"All right!" John said, and began to reel in his line, "Let's go Dave!"

"Go where?" David asked in confusion as he began to roll in his line.

"To the fire," Ariana said, giving him a quick kiss, "trust me, you'll like this."

A few minutes later Ariana and David approached the fire, walking hand in hand and calling out greetings. David jumped back as a long column of flames erupted from the heart of the fire, shooting thirty feet into the air. Ariana laughed as his expression, "It's just gasoline in a bottle. Watch." Ariana grabbed a bottle that was capped and wrapped in duct tape. David could hear it sloshing with liquid. Ariana walked up to the fire and dropped the bottle into the middle of the flames as scooted away. Returning to David's side she took his hand and said, "now we wait."

It was about a minute later when the flames erupted from the fire again. David smiled and gave Ariana's hand a little squeeze. The others were gathering closer to the fire, all armed with long sticks and uncoiled coat hangers, tipped with marshmallows.

Ariana leaned over to David as he put a marshmallow on his hanger, "do you know what the best part of summer is?" she asked.

"What's that?" David asked.

"It feels like it can go on forever," she said.