"I was looking online for something fun to do and this popped up. It's the last weekend before they close for the year."
We stepped up to the ticket booth, and he asked for so many tickets I didn't know if we'd be able to use them all. My first thought was that it was sweet of him, but then I remembered how poor his family was and that he was at Waterford on scholarship. He shouldn't be spending his money on me and some dumb carnival rides.
"Hey, we don't need that many tickets, do we?" I asked, hoping he wouldn't guess my thoughts.
"Yes, we do." He handed the guy in the ticket booth his credit card. "We've got to ride all the rides and play all the games—and do your favorites twice."
I smiled and looked around at all the lights flashing, kids laughing, people screaming, and lots of greasy food being eaten. "I do love me a carnival."
"Then let's go have fun." He wrapped his arm around me and led me out into the big field area. "What do you want to do first?
There was the huge Ferris wheel, the zipper, the swings, the tilt-a-whirl, the big slide, and so much more, but what I wanted to do most was just behind the dragon roller coaster.
"The pirate ship."
We started with the pirate ship and went from ride to ride and game to game, each of us taking turns picking what to do next. I beat him at the bottle ring toss game, but he beat me at the balloon dart game. It was a battle in the water gun race game against some kids, who were so excited when they beat us.
We also made sure to stop to eat some funnel cake. Somehow Rush got powdered sugar on his nose, but he looked adorable, so I didn't say anything to him. He didn't notice it until we were in the house of mirrors and couldn't believe I hadn't told him about it. He chased me through the rest of the house, and we laughed when he finally caught me.
We made our way through practically the whole carnival until we had one last ride to do. Both of us had wanted the Ferris wheel to be our last ride before heading back to campus, and now we sat side by side in the little cart holding hands.
I rested my head on his shoulder. "I've had the best time, Rush. Thank you."
He kissed the top of my head. "I've had a great time too."
The wheel moved slowly, and I looked out at the black sky, the stars not as bright due to how many lights were shining from the carnival.
We went around the whole circle before I broke the silence. "I have a confession to make."
"Okay," he said slowly.
"When I first got to Waterford University last year, I instantly crushed on one of the football players, but I figured he'd never give me the time of day. And he didn’t." I kept my head resting on him as I spoke. "I admired him from afar, like many of the other girls on campus."
"Is this the part where you tell me you had a crush on Wilder?" he interrupted. "Because I think almost every girl at our school at some point has had a crush on him."
"No, it wasn't Wilder. It's never been Wilder."
"Slate? Because I'm usually everyone's third choice."
"No, not Slate. If you'd let me finish, you'd get to find out," I said, poking him in the side.
"Sorry," he said, and I could hear the smile in his voice. "Keep going."
"Then one night almost exactly a year ago today," I continued with my story. "I had the opportunity to get that boy to notice me, and I took it. He sat on a log around a bonfire, set just slightly away from his group of friends but still close enough to talk to them, and no one was sitting on the other side of him. I decided to take a chance and see if he'd talk to me if I sat on the same log just a little ways down from him, acting like I'd randomly sat down there to get warm by the fire. It didn't take long for him to say something to me, but I kept my response short, acting like I hadn't known who was sitting there or cared that he was talking to me. Inside, I was jumping up and down."
He chuckled underneath me.
"He kept trying to get a conversation started with me, and eventually I held up my end. Somehow through the conversation, we'd moved closer and closer to each other on the log, and before I knew it he was whispering in my ear about going somewhere to be alone. I eagerly followed him and had the best night of my life up to that point."
Silence stretched between us, and I wished I knew what he was thinking. Was he happy and flattered or confused and freaked out? I held my breath while I waited for him to respond.
Finally, he said, "So what is your confession?"
Jerking my head off his shoulder, I looked at him in surprise. "What do you mean, what is my confession? I totally orchestrated our first meeting at the bonfire. If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't be jeopardizing your whole future."
He shook his head at me. "First, I totally noticed you before the bonfire. Even if I hadn't noticed you several times before the Halloween party last year, that angel costume you wore would have gotten my attention."
I gave him a sheepish grin. "I may have dressed up for you last year too."
