Freeks(20)

“So, you snuck out pretty early this morning,” he said, giving me a sidelong look.

“Yeah, sorry.” I smiled sheepishly at him. “I had some things I needed to do today, and you were sleeping soundly, so I didn’t want to wake you.”

“I was afraid that my snoring had frightened you off or something.”

I laughed and shook my head. “No, you didn’t snore.”

“I didn’t? Well, that’s good to know.” He smiled, then looked around, as if something just occurred to him. “Are you here with anyone? I’m not pulling you away from your friends, am I?”

“No. My friends, um, are watching a show,” I said, since it probably would seem weird if I came to the carnival alone.

Then again, I had gone to a party last night by myself. But that was all the more reason to make up friends now. I didn’t want to give him the idea that I was some kind of strange loner.

“Show?” Gabe asked.

“Yeah. There’re acrobats in the tent.” I pointed to the end of the midway, where a large red-and-white-striped circus tent was set up next to the rides. The Fantastic Flying Phoenixes was painted across the top in big letters, with a poster of Safēda and Mahilā off to the side, advertising the tiger show.

“Really? And you didn’t want to check it out?” Gabe asked.

I shrugged. “I’m just not that into acrobats, I guess.”

“So, you’re too good for acrobats, and you’re an expert at the milk bottle game. What do you wanna do next? Do you like any rides?”

“Yeah,” I said. “I am kinda partial to the Ferris wheel.”

I did actually love the Ferris wheel, but I was also looking for an excuse to get away from the bright lights of the midway and the prying eyes of nearly everyone I knew. My mom was busy in her tent, but if she came out, she’d spot me, and I wasn’t entirely sure how she’d react if she saw me flirting with a townie, no matter how cute he was.

“How about this? Since you won me this handsome bear, I’ll pay for your ticket,” Gabe suggested. “Sound fair?”

I nodded. “Yeah. That sounds perfect.”





10. rota fortuna

When we went over to the Ferris wheel, we had to wait in line, and I was surprised to see that the line was already so long since the carnival hadn’t opened that long ago. It worked in my favor, though. The guy running the ride was so busy that he didn’t even notice me when Gabe handed him our tickets, let alone comment on knowing me.

Gabe held the door open, letting me climb into the lavender gondola first, and he got in beside me. He put his bear on the far side of the bench, and he had to slide up next to me so his leg pressed against the thin fabric of my dress.

The ride jerked to a start when it began moving, causing me to lean against him. I laughed and moved away when it smoothed out again, as the car rose slowly into the night sky. Some of the lightbulbs that ran around the edge of the wheel had gone out, so the farther we went from the ground, the darker it became.

Each of the sixteen gondolas was painted in a different color from a pastel rainbow, but it had been a very long time since they’d been touched up, so the paint was chipped and faded from the sun. The logo for Gideon Davorin’s Traveling Sideshow had been painted on each of the doors, but it was almost unreadable now.

The wheel came to a stop again when we reached the top, as they unloaded and loaded passengers at the bottom. The gondola jerked a bit, and Gabe moved closer to me. His arm brushed up against mine, but he didn’t move it. His skin felt warm and tempting, the back of his hand resting against mine, but I didn’t take it.

Above us, the moon was fat and bright. It was warmer today than it’d been yesterday, though it had begun to cool since the sun had gone down. The humidity had stayed the same, and a white halo danced around the moon.

“It’s a full moon,” I said, mostly just to say something.

“Almost full,” Gabe corrected me. “Not quite, though.”

I tilted my head, looking at it harder, and realized he was right. An almost imperceptible sliver was missing from the side. The wheel moved back again, making the gondola sway slightly, and Gabe finally took my hand, sliding his fingers loosely through mine.

“My mom always said the full moon brings out the crazies,” I told him as the ride once again came to a stop.

“Yeah, my mom always said something similar,” he agreed, and there was a weariness in his words that made me look over at him. He stared down at our hands, a pensive expression on his face, his thumb rubbing gently on the back of my hand.

We’d reached the highest part of the Ferris wheel, and I looked out around us. Below us, the carnival was so far away, it looked almost magical. All the lights and colors and the soft sounds of the music all mixed together, and we weren’t close enough to see how faded and run-down everything had become, so it all seemed rather pretty.

“This is my favorite part,” I said.

Gabe lifted his head to look at me. “What?”

“Sitting at the top of the Ferris wheel when it’s paused like this. You can see everything, and the whole world seems so quiet and far away. It’s peaceful.”

“You spend a lot of time on Ferris wheels?” Gabe asked with an arched eyebrow.

I smiled demurely. “Not as much as I’d like.”