Kill Switch by Penelope Douglas

We run deep into the backyard, our clothes wet and cold as
we near the forest line, and I see it right away. I shoot my eyes
up, taking in the long trail of wooden boards nailed to the tree
trunk, and at the top sits a treehouse disguised above a line of
branches and leaves.
Sort of.
It doesn’t look completed, but there’s a really big floor and
a railing around the outside. It sits between a split in the tree,
two trunks locking it in and surrounded by green. You aren’t
just in a treehouse. You’re in the tree.
I let go of his hand. “Wow. You’re so lucky.”
He stands next to me, looking up at it. “You like it?”
I nod, not taking my eyes off it.
I wonder if he did it himself or if someone helped. It didn’t
look all fancy like some others I’ve seen, and his dad doesn’t
seem like the type to build treehouses, either.
“You go up first,” he tells me. “In case you slip, I’ll be
behind you.”
I dart my eyes over to him, his dark ones looking at me
under black eyelashes. A somersault hits my stomach, and I
turn away.
Why am I nervous all of a sudden? Am I scared? It’s a tall
tree, isn’t it?
“I think my parents might get mad,” I tell him. I’ve never
been that high before.
His face falls a little, and after a moment, he just nods,
looking disappointed. “Okay.”
I feel bad. I want to go up. I want to do things with him.
He’s so fun. He’s not calling me ‘chicken’ or getting mad at me
or anything.
I like him.
“You won’t let me fall?” I ask, making sure.