Once Upon a Time, I Lived

Previously

…Leo’s heart felt as full and bright as the afternoon sun. He swung his leg over the saddle, his hands gripping the handlebars. He pushed off, tentatively at first, then with more confidence. The wheels turned, the chain whirred, and the bicycle, his bicycle, moved forward. He was riding. He was really riding. The wind rushed past, just as he had imagined, and the familiar ache in his chest was gone, replaced by a pure, unadulterated joy. He had built his own bike, and in that moment, pedaling down the dusty path, he knew his dream had come true, not in the way he had always imagined, but in a way that was even better, a way that was entirely his own.