Ava leaned in next to my ear. “Ridiculous.”
This was the closest we’d been since I found her again. I wondered what had made her change her mind and contact me.
I didn’t dare ask. For now, we would ride.
If I had thought to worry that any part of the carnival was bad for our conditions, my fear was quickly put to rest. Ava was hooked. The most intense rides thrilled her, so we tried them all. The Shaker. The Spinning Cups. The Tilt-a-Whirl.
“My guts are scrambled!” she said. “It’s the best feeling ever!”
“I know. It’s like you’ve taken on a death challenge.”
“Huh. You’re exactly right. I’ve survived something terrible, and I’m elated that it didn’t kill me.”
We wandered through the lines of booths on the Midway.
“These games look rigged,” she said.
“A lot of people would agree with you. But I’m the master of Whack-a-Mole.”
“The master of what?”
“Whack-a-Mole. It’s a game. I’ll show you.”
We both sat in the semi-circle of stools.
Ava picked up her rubbery hammer. “Do I whack you with this?”
I laughed. “No. Those five circles will have moles pop up randomly. You’re supposed to whack them.”
She practiced her swings, slamming the mallet down on the empty holes. “I might like this a lot.”
I passed tickets to the operator. Another couple sat down on the other seats.
Ava watched them, her hammer on her shoulder. The girl picked up her mallet and pretended to whack her date. He laughed and leaned over to kiss her.
As she studied them, I wondered if she was trying to compare their behavior to ours. A relationship might not come naturally to her.
The lights blinked on, and the first moles popped up.
Ava let out a shriek and smacked her first mole. I paid little attention to the game, content to watch her. She had her full concentration on the circles, smacking the mallet as hard as possible.
The buzzer sounded.
“How did I do?” she asked.
Our scores lit up the display.
“Looks like the bright yellow lady wins!” the man said.
“What? Me?” She tried to stand up with the mallet,plunking back down on the seat when she came to the end of the tether. “Oh!”
“What would you like?” He gestured to the stuffed animals hanging from a beam above the game.
“I don’t know!” Her glee was so childlike, so pure, that several people stopped to see what she chose.
She selected a soft brown bear and clutched it to her chest. “I’ve never had a bear.”
The man bowed. “Then enjoy this one.”
