’ Pausing in her cleanup, Becky straightened. She looked toward the trees, and said, ‘An adventure! I have a costume for that! Is it all right if...I wear a costume?’ That seemed a little weird, but I said, ‘Yeah, I guess so. Nothing flimsy. We’ll be in the woods, and it will cool off.’ ‘Great!’ Her cleaning pace picked up. ‘I need to get some things out of my van.’ ‘The garage door is unlocked. Help yourself.’ ‘What time do we leave?’ ‘Around 9:00.’ ‘I’ll be ready!’ she said, as she. Maya had an excellent sense of humor. She set the house on fire with her one-liner. Her timing would be impeccable and dialogues short and crisp.We would meet every weekend, visit beaches, watch movies, hang out with our friends, go for drives together. We were inseparable now. Our families were also happy that we both were best friends. That reassurance, comfort, and trust were always there when she would go out with me.Sometimes if she got late, she would stay back at our place. They were. In those days, I was like an itinerant preacher, dispensing the gospel in the wilderness, using makeshift Temples. My creativity was stretched to the max as I found it necessary to hold services inthe most unlikely of Temples. However, I discovered that bedrooms strewn with baseball caps and layers of dirty clothes, posters of rock bands, and dried-up spaghetti from last night’s dinner were actually quite sensual, and their earthy odors strangely enticing, when no parents were at home. Ever. I picked her up and carried her out to the deck once the water stilled. Sitting her on the lounge, I wrapped the towel around her inert body and dried her with the utmost care. After we were both dry I carried her up to bed. It was early, but it had been a long and tiring day.My appointment with Doc Crawford had gone exactly as I had hoped earlier that afternoon. He praised the person who had applied the ointment, telling me that it had been done perfectly and that my back, although still.