Free Picture Perfect #5 by Cari Simmons

matter that they were later than they’d wanted to be—all that mattered was how awesome it was to actually be here, having fun with Mari and her family. By the time they piled out of the minivan to buy their lift tickets, Gracie’s face felt stuck in a permanent smile.
    â€œI’m first!” Jon said at the bottom of the ski lift.
    â€œMe too!” Robert said, pushing in front of Mari to get to the front.
    â€œI’m with you!” Mr. O’Hagan cried, squirming through the rest of them to stand with the twins.
    â€œI guess they don’t want you guys alone on the lift, huh?” Gracie asked Mari. “My parents are like that—one of them always goes with me.”
    Mari shook her head. “No, my dad just likes to be the first one to the bottom. He’s competitive.”
    â€œBut getting to the top first doesn’t mean he’ll make it down first,” Ms. O’Hagan put in. “I’ll still beat him. I always do!”
    Mr. O’Hagan stuck out his tongue at her, and they all laughed.
    On the lift up, Mari and her mother talked about the different slopes and all the family’s fastest times. Gracie started to feel a little nervous—she went skiing every year, but it was always just for fun. She never truly raced anybody. She had been assuming that the O’Hagans were kidding when they talked about beating one another down, but now she wasn’t so sure.
    The slope they chose was a Black Diamond rating. Gracie hadn’t skied this mountain before, so she took her time at the top, watching as people went ahead of her to see how they took the first turn. But the O’Hagansdidn’t wait—they all took off the instant they reached the slope, whooping and trash talking as they went.
    Gracie blinked in surprise as Mari raced away without even a backward glance to make sure Gracie was with her. She’d figured that they would ski down together, but Mari clearly had other plans.
    I guess I’m going to lose, just like last night, Gracie thought. It was funny that Mari said her father was competitive, when in fact Mari and her brothers and her mom competed every bit as much. She just hoped that the prize this time wasn’t being first in the bathroom again. That cold shower hadn’t been fun at all.
    On the way down, Gracie noticed another girl her age skiing nearby, wearing a bright purple helmet and gloves. She kept pace with Gracie, and every so often she got close enough that Gracie could see the smile on her face and her long blond ponytail flying. Once their eyes met, and Gracie smiled back. She loved skiing, and this was a beautiful day for it.
    At the bottom, Mari and her dad were waiting.
    â€œWhat took you so long?” Mari asked.
    Gracie shrugged. “I was learning the slope for next time. And I like to look around when I ski—it’s so pretty up here.”
    â€œBut we were racing,” Mari said.
    â€œI wasn’t,” Gracie replied.
    â€œWell, you can make it up on the next one,” Mari told her.
    Mr. O’Hagan chuckled. “I don’t think there’s any way you’ll catch up to the boys now, let alone your mother, Mari.”
    Mari made a face, and Gracie felt bad. “I’m sorry, Mar. You didn’t have to wait for me. Maybe I should just stay out of this race.”
    â€œYou can’t stay out of the race, Grace,” Mari joked. “If I didn’t wait for you, how would we have any time skiing together? I mean, that was the whole point of our awesome weekend—to be together.”
    â€œTrue,” Gracie said. “But you didn’t wait for me.”
    â€œI thought you’d be right with me,” Mari replied.
    â€œOh.” Gracie frowned, not sure if Mari was kidding or if she was really annoyed. “Sorry. I didn’t realize that.”
    â€œI’m going to go check on Jimmy on the Green Circle slope,” Mr. O’Hagan said.