Somewhere along the way, my hand lands in Chase’s. The heart fluffies are giddy because this feels like a date. Smells like a date. Sounds like a date. Looks like a date.
“It looks like there will be a long wait wherever we go,” Chase says, overlapping my thoughts.
Lights shine from the west. “I forgot. There’s a seasonal fair. Can you handle fried food and a Ferris wheel? That’s not too high, is it?” I ask.
“As long as I channel my superhero.”
I giggle. “Who’s that?”
“Superman, of course.”
“Okay, don’t hate me or shame me, but the only thing I know about Superman is he wears tights and a cape.”
Chase halts. “I can’t tell if you’re joking or not.”
“I’m quite serious.”
“Your brother was Freddie Thompson and you don’t know about Superman?”
“That was his thing. Phoebe and I kind of hated it because Mum would always let him watch the shows, movies, and get him the comic books, specially because he was the only boy in the family.”
“Let me guess, usually you and your sister got the first pick with the TV?”
“Yep. He’s seen more girly movies and rom-coms than he’ll ever admit.”
Chase snaps his fingers. “I’ll have to remember that next time I see him. So, Superman 101. He was born on another planet, but it was destroyed and he was sent to earth. A couple adopted him and named him Clark Kent. He quickly realized he had powers and was super strong. He used those abilities to fight crime.”
“Where do the tights come in?” I ask.
“That was part of his disguise, and you know, they’re more aerodynamic than a baggy pair of jeans.”
“Fair point,” I say with a laugh as he defends his hero.
Our hands drop as we move through a crowd and walk down the cobbled lane of the village and he goes on to explain how Clark Kent went to work as a journalist, fell in love with Lois Lane, and vied with his main opponent, Lex Luthor.
“So, was Lex Luther his only enemy?”
“No, there were loads. Probably the biggest thing that threatened to defeat him was kryptonite. It was this crystal stuff from his home planet that would weaken him.”
“I’ve heard it in a song. Good thing there’s nothing like that here or at the fair.”
The joyful squeals of laughter and sounds of people on carnival rides grow louder as we near the entrance, lit up with an array of bright, blinking lights.
“I’m not so sure about that, Pippa.”
I swallow. “Are you saying that we might come across crystal stuff from your home planet among the bumper cars and fried dough?”
Chase’s voice gets deeper, yet louder, like he’s delivering lines on a stage. “Are you suggesting I’m Superman? Because if that’s the case, I’m not sure how much longer I can resist you.”
My jaw drops.
His dimple grows. “How was that? Did I make the cut? Could I play the next Clark Kent?”
I swallow because for a second there, I thought he meant that I was his kryptonite.
“How about you? Do you have any heroes?” he asks, bumping my shoulder.
“Hmm. I’d have to say, my dad. He’s an amazing guy. My mom and I are close, but he just gets me. In a lot of ways, we’re alike. He also sometimes needs to take refuge from the world. He turns to books.”
