It was a beautiful, hot summer day. Arjun could feel the heat rising through the pavement, burning his feet as he neared his destination. Behind him, he could hear his sister and mom’s footsteps, but they felt miles away. Tha-thump, tha-thump, tha-thump, his heartbeat pounded loudly. He glued his eyes to the ground and kept on walking, forcing himself to put one foot in front of the other. He couldn’t take it anymore; he looked up. There it stood, a red and shiny roller coaster with a path that twisted and turned. Screams pierced the air every time people flew down the wicked drop.

“Am I truly ready for this?” he thought.

“What should we ride?” his mom asked.

Arjun took a deep breath and pointed out the roller coaster to his sister and mom. “Let’s try The Blaze.”

“What?! You want to ride Blaze?” his sister Neha responded incredulously.

“Yes, I do,” he told her, showing far more confidence than he actually felt. His coaster experience last summer was terrifying, but he was ready to give roller coasters another try before giving them up for good.

“Okay,” she replied, weaving between the crowd as she rushed toward the ride and its endless line.

“Are you sure you want to ride this?” his mom asked, searching Arjun’s face for emotions.

“Yes, I am,” he replied, irritated by their lack of confidence in him. With that statement, Arjun got into line. While they waited, the dread in the pit of his stomach grew, until he felt nauseous.

“I will not back down,” he chanted to himself over and over again.

“How could I have changed this much?” he wondered, as he tried to drown out Neha’s excited chatter.

He sighed; it was almost as though he and Neha had switched personalities in recent years. When they were younger, Arjun was the risk-taker, the one who climbed the highest structures at the playground, rode recklessly on his mountain bike, and sped down the ski slopes. And Neha, even though she was two years older, was the cautious one, the one who kept to the swings on the playground, moving her legs just slightly off the ground. On the mountain, Neha would always take her time skiing downhill, making wide turns. It annoyed Arjun to have to wait for her at the bottom after every run. Now, he was the conservative one, always worried, and reluctant to try new things. He’d even given up skiing and mountain biking.

“Sometimes, I wish I could still be that confident,” he thought.

“Are you ready?” Neha interrupted. For a second, he saw a sliver of concern in her eyes, but it immediately disappeared.

“I guess,” Arjun responded unenthusiastically.

“You’re not scared, are you? Never mind, that’s not even a question,” Neha teased.

“Some people have the common sense to be worried when they’re dropping from 100 feet in the air at a 90 degree angle,” he retorted, exasperated.

“Well, whatever,” she replied, rolling her eyes.

“It’s our turn,” their mom announced.

Uh-oh, the time had come. Arjun got into the car, and peered in front of him. The tracks stretched on for what looked like forever, going higher and higher. Just the sight of it turned his legs into soggy french fries. He trembled, collapsing into the seat. Then, the bar came down over his head, and a moment later, they began to ascend. Tick, tick, tick, they rose into the air, until the people below were grains of sand on a beach. As they approached the top of the drop, panic flooded over him like a tsunami. He held onto the bar for dear life, imagining himself tumbling from the seat, his hands flapping uselessly in the air as he got closer and closer to the ground.

“I can’t do this,” he thought, taking a deep breath. “Why had I agreed? Was it my pride or my stupidity?”

Arjun thought his head was going to burst as he silently screamed, “Stop the ride!” By now, his hands struggled to find traction on the sweat-covered bar.

At last, they were at the top. Arjun tensed, ready for the worst. Suddenly, they were dropping, dropping so fast he couldn’t think; he couldn’t breathe. He was drowning in fear; the air pummeled him like a boxer, and he couldn’t get up. Rocks rushed into view so close he flinched. Behind him, people shrieked in excitement, and still it went, twists and turns, drops and ascents. It seemed like it would never stop. Arjun closed his eyes tight, not looking, not feeling, not moving.

Finally, the ride squeaked to an end; it was over. Relief washed over Arjun like sunlight on a pleasant afternoon. He sucked in a breath, relishing the moment.

“Never, never again,” he thought. He pushed the bar up and exited the car. His legs and feet savored the steadiness of the earth, solid in its support, as Arjun and his family walked away from the ride.

“Arjun, is that you?” Jeremy asked excitedly. Before Arjun stood Jeremy and Shane, good friends from his soccer team.

“Hi, Jer! Hi, Shane. How are you?” Arjun replied.

“We’re great! Isn’t this place so fun? Shane and I are planning to ride The Blaze. Do you want to join?” Jeremy inquired enthusiastically.

“No, thank you,” Arjun refused politely.

“C’mon! Don’t be a scaredy-cat, Arjun,” Shane teased. Arjun felt pressured to say yes, but then he remembered how helpless and scared he’d felt riding it. He’d given it a try and knew that it wasn’t something he wanted to do.

“Like I said, I don’t want to ride it. I just don’t enjoy it,” Arjun said, with more authority this time. “But you guys have fun. I’ll see you at practice!”

Shane and Jeremy looked at each other, shrugged and then waved at their friend Arjun who happily rejoined his mom and sister who were waiting in a long line for funnel cakes. Now that was something he knew he’d enjoy.