A shadow darted across the porch, swift and sudden, and before Lara could even turn her head, a hand slipped tightly into hers.
The next thing she knew, the ground was flying beneath her feet. Her breath caught as she stumbled forward, dragged into motion by Nora's unrelenting grip. Dust rose around their ankles, curling in little clouds as their laughter rang out in the morning air.
"Come on!" Nora shouted over her shoulder, her braids whipping wildly as she pulled Lara faster.
Lara could only laugh in surprise, her voice tumbling out in uneven bursts as her heart hammered against her chest. She hadn't even managed a "good morning," yet here she was, swept away before her thoughts could catch up with her feet.
Behind them, Mr. Evans nearly toppled from his chair, his pipe clattering against the porch rail. "Blasted girls!" he barked, coughing as smoke trailed from his lips. "You'll trip and break your necks, the both of you! Nora! Don't you drag her off like some wild horse—" He puffed, pointing his pipe after them. "And you, Lara, you little brat— tell your grandmother she must stop telling all those lies".
Lara twisted her head just enough to shout back between gasps of laughter, "Bye, Grandpa!" Her voice echoed down the lane, teasing and sweet all at once.
"Don't you call me that!" he roared, his face red as his pipe smoke. But the girls were already gone, their giggles carrying on the wind.
Villagers turned at the commotion. A woman balancing a basket of apples shook her head with a smile. "Mind yourselves, you two!" she called as the girls nearly clipped her side. A dog barked and gave chase for a few steps, tail wagging furiously before losing interest. Boys in the square abandoned their marbles, watching wide-eyed as Lara and Nora flew past like a sudden summer storm.
But Lara hardly noticed. All she could feel was Nora's hand tugging her forward, the air rushing past her cheeks, and her own laughter spilling free, bright and unstoppable.
The morning sun shone warmly on the two girls as they finally reached the top of the hill, the meadow stretching out before them like a sea of color. Nora's chest heaved with each breath, hands on her knees as she tried to steady herself.
Lara collapsed onto the soft grass, her legs sprawled, hair sticking to her damp forehead, trying to catch her breath. She looked up at Nora, who was standing a few steps away, equally exhausted but grinning from ear to ear.
For a moment, neither of them spoke. Then, without warning, their laughter erupted—bright, free, and unstoppable—carried across the meadow like wind through the roses. Lara rolled onto her side, clutching her stomach as she laughed, while Nora doubled over, hands on her knees, trying to steady herself but failing.
It was the kind of laughter that made the world pause, that filled every corner of the meadow with warmth and joy. Even the roses seemed to sway in time with their mirth, petals fluttering in the morning breeze as if joining in their happiness.
The roses swayed, as if storing the sound of their joy in every petal, keeping it safe as the seasons turned and the years slipped quietly by.
"Lara! Slow down!" Nora's voice cracked over the meadow, carried on the morning breeze. She clutched at her skirts with one hand and reached out with the other, but the distance between them only grew. Ahead, Lara darted like a wild bird, her braid streaming behind her, her laughter ringing out so freely it made the roses tremble.
"You'll never catch me!" Lara shouted, glancing over her shoulder with a grin that lit up her whole face. She spun through the petals, scattering them in clouds of pink and red, her feet hardly seeming to touch the ground.
"Lara, I swear—" Nora gasped, nearly tripping on a tangle of grass. "You're going to fall flat on your face one of these days, and I'm not carrying you home!"
But Lara only threw her arms wide, twirling, her voice soaring with the wind. "Then you'll have to drag me! Come on, Nora, faster!"
By the time Nora reached her, her chest was heaving, her face hot. She collapsed into the grass beside Lara, who dropped down with a dramatic sigh, arms flung out, grinning at the sky. Both of them burst into laughter, the kind that left their stomachs aching and their cheeks wet with tears.
For a long while, they lay there side by side, their giggles breaking into quiet aftershocks. The roses swayed around them, their petals drifting lazily on the breeze as if the meadow itself shared in their joy.
Finally, Nora turned her head, still breathless, and gave Lara a mock glare. "You're impossible, you know that? I can't believe you're nineteen and you still run around like some wild child."
Lara smirked, rolling onto her side to look at her. "Maybe that's why you can't catch me. You're too busy acting old."
Nora snorted, shoving her lightly on the shoulder. "Old? I'm only a year older than you!"
"Exactly," Lara said, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "One year closer to being boring."
Nora laughed despite herself, shaking her head. "You're hopeless."
They lay in the grass for a while longer, listening to the wind rustle through the petals, the birds singing from nearby trees, the faint murmur of the village in the distance. The sun climbed higher, bathing the meadow in warm light, turning the roses into rivers of color that glimmered with dew. Lara rolled onto her back, arms folded behind her head, letting the sun catch her face.
"You think we'll ever get tired of this?" Nora asked, still catching her breath, eyes tracing the outline of clouds drifting lazily across the sky.
"Never," Lara said without hesitation. "Even when we're older, even when life gets serious, we'll come back here. These roses… they'll always be ours."
Nora smiled at that, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face, eyes following Lara's with quiet affection. "Even if you act like a child the whole time," she teased.
"Even then," Lara said firmly, sitting up and brushing dirt from her dress. She turned toward the swaying petals, taking a deep breath. The scent of roses filled her lungs, sweet and fresh, mingling with the earthy aroma of soil and morning dew. She could feel the sun warming her back, hear the distant chirping of birds, the hum of insects, and the quiet whisper of petals brushing against one another.