“Danny, stop it!” I shrieked. “You better let go of me. Stop!”

His arms were wrapped around my waist, raising me off the concrete ground. He took giant, wobbly steps toward the edge of the pool. I struggled to break free.

“Sam, you are such a baby. You obviously couldn’t get into the pool yourself, so I’m just lending a helping hand,” Danny replied. He was about 3 feet away from the edge of the pool, and I felt his hands wrap tighter around my stomach.

“Danny, just put her down,” Nick called from the lounge chair.

“See, Danny? Nick has some common sense. You don’t just pick up girls and toss them into the pool whenever you feel like it,” I said, turning my head behind me to look Danny straight in the eye. I tried giving him my I-thought-you-knew-better face, but he tickled my ribs and I burst out laughing. He continued his trek to the poolside, and I managed to make him stumble by twisting from side to side. I dug my elbow into his chest, and he dropped me onto the ground.

“Ow!” I cried, falling hard on my back. My body was spread out on the ground as I looked up into Danny’s face. He was blocking the sun from my eyes, so it looked like he was glowing. Danny extended a hand, and I reluctantly took it as he pulled me up. I pouted at him and marched off to join the rest of my friends as he followed behind me.

“Danny, you jerk,” my best friend Claire said harshly. She gave me a sympathetic look and handed me my drink. I took a long sip, as the bubbles burned my throat on their way down. I found my bag, took out my phone, and sat down checking the screen for any missed calls.

“Samantha, are you okay?” someone asked.

“I’m fine,” I stated coolly. I didn’t want to let on that my back was actually throbbing from the fall.

“I’m sorry Sam,” Danny said as he walked over to where I was sitting. He took my phone, dropped it into my bag, and put my bag on the nearest table. He kneeled in front of me, and held my hands. He could be so charming sometimes, but I wasn’t going to give in. I looked at him expectantly. “I apologize to you madam! I am sincerely regretful for my immature and childish actions. I can only hope you shall find it in your heart to forgive me.”

“Sam, don’t fall for it,” Claire said, barely looking up from her magazine.

“Hah, I never do.”

We left the pool around 5 o’ clock, and headed over to Stacy’s Diner, where Nick’s mom worked. The diner was crowded, but we didn’t worry. Mrs. Mathers always saved a back table for us. I opened the door and gazed into the familiar restaurant. The immediate smell of greasy French fries and hot hamburgers filled my nostrils. Mrs. Mathers waved to us from behind the counter, a pencil behind her ear and a notepad in her hand.

“Go ahead and sit down at your table. Would you boys and girls like your usual?” she asked us over the commotion of the other customers. We nodded eagerly. We were always ravenous after a long day at the pool.

Nick led the way to the semi-circle booth behind the kitchen. He squeezed his way to the middle, and I sat down next to him. Claire threw her bag next to me and declared that she would be back in a few minutes. Danny sat down on the other side of Nick, glancing over the menu.

“So, are Bree and Lasso joining up with us?” Danny inquired. Nick shrugged.

“I think they’re busy right now, but they’ll be there later when we head over to Claire’s house,” I answered. TJ, the waiter, headed over to us with two Sprites and two Cokes.

“Anything else while you’re waiting? Your burgers are on the grill,” TJ said as he flashed his smile. We all shook our heads and thanked him for the drinks.

Our food arrived quickly, and we gobbled everything up. Soon, we were all discussing dessert, yet we couldn’t agree on anything.

“If you’re all coming to my house later, I have a bunch of food we can eat for dessert. I don’t want to make the D.P. pay for something we can get for free,” Claire suggested. The D.P. was the “designated payer” for the meal. Although Mrs. Mathers had always insisted that any friends of Nick didn’t have to pay, we did to show our gratefulness. We began a cycle, and each D.P. paid for the meal when it was their turn. It was only fair.

“Claire Bear, you’re only saying that because you’re the D.P. tonight,” Danny said, mockingly.

“Oh my gosh, I am? I only have a twenty,” Claire blurted.

“Don’t worry,” I assured her. “I owe you money for that time we went to the mall, remember?” This seemed to calm her down a bit. We laid out the cash and tip, and headed out to the parking lot.

It wasn’t even dark outside. That’s what I loved about summer. There was a cool breeze blowing and my brown hair flickered across my face. I gathered my hair into a messy ponytail and got into Nick’s green Jeep. I ended up sitting with Danny in the back. The ground was littered with art supplies and scratch paper. Nick was an artist, and an amazing one at that.

I felt tired knowing that we’d probably all stay up tonight talking and watching movies. I rested my head on Danny’s shoulder.

“I thought you were mad at me Sam,” Danny said, nonchalantly.

“I forgive you Danny,” I said as I closed my eyes. He threw his left arm around my shoulder and I fell asleep looking at the back of Nick’s dirty blonde hair.

I woke up feeling groggy and tense. I was on the bench in Claire’s hall. I could tell right away because it was an antique bench made out of wood: stiff and uncomfortable. Danny must have put me on here as a joke. I pushed myself up and looked around. Even though I’d been there a million times, Claire’s house was enormous. It was an old Victorian mansion at the end of Willow Drive, where all the “rich” people lived.

I walked over to the living room and lingered at the doorway. Danny was watching some action movie with Nick, and Claire was fixing up some food in the kitchen.

“Hey there sleepyhead,” Claire said. I smiled at her and walked to where Danny and Nick were. Danny was staring at the television, deeply involved with the fight scene. His dark black hair fell into his piercing blue eyes, yet he watched intently.

“Thank you Danny, for putting me in such a comfortable spot,” I whispered, not wanting to bother him.

“Mmhmm,” he said. I walked over to the leather couch and sat down next to Nick. I was still tired, and apparently Nick could see that.

“Have we exhausted you already? Sam, you’re the one who always tells us not to fall asleep before something amazing happens,” Nick said to me. The doorbell rang and I waved him away.

“I’ll get it,” I yelled, rushing back into the hall. I pulled the big brass doorknob and saw Bree and her brother Lake next to her.

“Lasso! You cut your hair!” I said shocked. He looked good, but I missed his long shaggy hair.

“Oh no Sam, not you too. Why does everybody keep calling me that?” he questioned, annoyed with his new nickname. A couple months ago, we had spent the weekend at the farm. Lake had shown up, fully clad in total cowboy attire, determined to show us the proper way to lasso a horse. He approached a newborn pony, whipping his homemade lasso in the air. He tossed it over the pony’s head, and grinned in success. Then, all of a sudden the pony charged forward, and Lake was knocked off his feet and thrown into a pile of cow manure. Danny came up with the nickname Lasso, and it always brought up memories whenever we used it.

“Lake, you know you love that name,” I said, smiling. “Everyone is in the living room.”

I grabbed Bree and Lasso by the hand and pulled both of them with me. All six of us were finally here, the circle was complete.

I loved spending time with my five best friends. I loved Danny and his craziness, the way he could always make me laugh, even if I was mad at him. I loved Nick and how I could talk to him about anything; he was so sweet. I loved Bree and her optimism, always cheering us up. I loved Lake and how he was so down-to-earth and so talented. And most of all, my best friend, Claire, we’d been through everything together, and she had never let me down.

It was only the first week of summer after our junior year, and the summer after Bree’s sophomore year. Five of us were about to become seniors. We still had two months to spend together before we entered the process of stressing over college applications. The feeling was indescribable. Just knowing that we had each other could get me through anything.

I joined Nick and Bree on the couch when I reentered the living room.

“Hey Lasso,” Claire and Danny called out. Danny was no longer watching the action movie. I grabbed a handful of chips from the bowl and ate slowly.

The six of us did nothing for a while. We just hung out, enjoying each other’s company. Claire suggested we go outside into the Jacuzzi, and we all agreed. Only Claire, Danny, Nick, and I got in, because we still had our swimming suits from earlier today.

“So, our mom was talking to us today about this new family that moved in down the street,” Bree began. “She says they have a boy about our age. Jake? Or something like that. I kind of agreed to meet up with their family at the pool tomorrow. You guys don’t mind if we make a detour before we go to the park?”

“No problem,” we said unanimously.

“I’m always up for meeting new people,” I said.

“No, you’re always up for meeting potential boyfriends,” Danny corrected. I gave him an offended look.

“Sammy’s not like that anymore, remember? She’s changed,” Claire said.

“Not helping!” I said, splashing her. Before I knew it, everyone was getting each other wet. Bree and Lake were drenched. I laughed, my voice carrying out into the open night. It was chilly. The night air brushed against my cheek, and I could feel the little hairs standing up.

“You guys are all staying over tonight, right?” Claire asked, even though she knew the answer. We always stayed over at Claire’s house whenever we had the chance. Her parents were rarely home because her dad was a pilot, and her mom was a flight attendant.

“Of course we are!” Bree said happily. “Lake and I should change out of these soggy clothes though.”

“Why don’t we go to bed now then? We have a long day at the park tomorrow,” Nick said.

“You guys!” I shouted, disappointed. “We can’t go to sleep before something amazing happens!”

“You always say that,” Nick said, putting his hands on my shoulders. He turned me to face him. “What do you think is going to happen tonight Sam?”

And then something amazing occurred. It was magic, right on cue. A shooting star appeared across the night sky. I didn’t need to point it out because I knew each one of my friends had seen it. They were each closing their eyes, ready to wish. I copied them and thought to myself: I wish that something amazing would happen this summer.

“Perfect,” I said softly. I looked into Nick’s hazel eyes, and he smiled at me.

“Perfect,” he repeated.