“I didn’t just hear the word ‘fire’ come out of your mouth,” Jack says as I wriggle the fuel cell into place under the center of the lantern. “This has to be banned. Has anyone checked?”
“Fudge this city. I hope we burn it all down,” I mumble.
“Fudge this what?” Jack asks, slightly horrified.
I lift my eyebrows. “Nothing. It’s been a long day.”
We’re huddled in our corner of the rooftop, the wind blowing my hair around. I fluff my bangs back down over my forehead.
“We have to be careful that the flame doesn’t touch the paper when we’re lighting it.” I strike a match against the little boxes provided on each outdoor table.
“I notice you saidwe. I can’t be part of this. Or even witness to it.” Jack turns his head and shields his eyes as I light the fuel cell.
“Why? Are you a firefighter?” I ask.
“I’m not.” He says this directed away from me, his hands still covering his eyes.
“Ex-arsonist out on parole?” I add dramatically. I’m having too much fun watching Jack squirm. It’s the most animated I’ve seen him.
Jack finally turns back to me and looks me straight in the eyes.There’s a hint of playfulness behind them, even though his lips are firm. “No.”
“I hear your concerns,” I say reassuringly. “Rumor has it that the host of the party worked with a local artist to make these. They may even be biodegradable and fire resistant. Once the fuel runs out, the lantern will drift back to earth safely.”
Jack frowns. “Have those claims been tested? What’s the plan? Do we go collect them around the city afterwards?”
“We’re about to test them right now.” I set the used match on the table. “The plan is this: I just lit the fuel cell, and now I’ll lift this up by myself, which is, of course, even more dangerous to do alone.” I peek over at Jack out of the corner of my eye.
He doesn’t move.
“Your wish is definitely not coming true now,” I continue, maneuvering my way under the lantern. “Only people who help get wishes.”
Jack watches on stubbornly as I try to balance the lantern in my arms. I gasp at a light dent I’ve made in the lantern, trying to be dramatic enough so he’ll help. Jack finally gives in, grasping for the lantern as it wobbles against me.
“You’re a bad influence,” he says.
“Am I really so bad?”
I carefully move my hands under the lantern. Jack overcompensates and extends his long arms under the entire rim to the point where we’re practically holding hands. We push the lantern down low enough so we can see each other over the top of it. In the yellow glow, I see pink blossom across his cheeks. I feel my face warm in the same way, and I know it’s not because of the heat from the flame below us.
“If we do this, we have to do it the right way,” Jack says. “I can do some quick math. Figure out the coordinates and proper angle torelease this. Preferably away from the police station. Do you know where that is?” He looks at me expectantly.
I wave one of my arms toward downtown, and the lantern is thrown off balance. “Somewhere over there.”
Jack steadies the lantern and looks up at an angle. “The wind is blowing west. That’s good. Let’s use that to our benefit. Lift it higher. Come slightly more toward me.” I shuffle three baby steps in his direction. “We can aim it toward the river and away from all the buildings and people.”
Jack looks up toward his forehead doing what I assume is mental math. It’s endearing watching him become this involved.
“What else are we not considering?” he asks, looking over at the other couples releasing their lanterns. “Okay, there. See? They’re releasing the lantern straight over their heads. But it needs to stay low enough and at an angle. Theirs will hardly make it a mile.”
“Lantern Wars. Nice. What do we win? Free lanterns for life?” I joke.
Jack shakes his head, but it’s not directed toward me. “Now just look at those people,” he says under his breath, leaning in closer to me. I catch a faint scent of clove on him, chased by an earthy hint of oak. Or is it cedar? Something woodsy. His scent alone warms me up.
“They’ve pushed the lantern out too forcefully over the edge of the building,” he continues. “All that swaying is going to throw it off its trajectory.”
“There’s no need to overanalyze the magic of releasing lanterns. Once it’s out of our hands, we can’t control it anymore.”
Jack furrows his brows. “We’re not leaving ourpaperlantern fueled byfireup to… fate. Or destiny. Or whatever it is that you’re referring to that is out of our control.”
