“Come see the world’s fattest pig!” A guy cried from a few yards away. Jason and I walked along the dirt path. We stopped behind the crowd of onlookers. The pig was huge, but I pitied the beast. The poor thing was in such a small cage it couldn’t even turn around.
I winced, not wishing to see more. “Let’s go. Seeing animal cruelty gets to me.”
“It’s a shame. That’s why I refuse to go to the circus. That entire place is filled with cruelty.”
I looked at him, seeing something new. “I never thought someone would agree with me on that.”
Jason hit his chest proudly. “Well, you finally found someone.”
I smiled like a fool and linked my arm with Jason’s. At first I wanted to pull away, but Jason felt safe. He guided us past the animals. There were more. People screamed about all kinds of things. There were alligators, the smallest horse in the world, and oddly colored birds. I closed my eyes and forced us to walk faster.
We came to a turn in the road. On either side was a little shop selling random things. In the corner was a guy with a cage of huge snakes behind him. The sign read, ‘TAKE A PICTURE WITH THE SNAKES’! It made my skin crawl.
The shops were okay. Jason and I window-shopped. Many of them were selling old fashioned clothes, cheesy fake jewelry, and stuffed animals. The state lottery was there, which was weird. People were spinning a wheel, trying to win something.
“We should go in here.” Jason was already taking me to the place in question. I looked up at its name and saw it was an Old Western place that took pictures. Inside, there were countless Old West costumes for all ages, sizes, and genders.
I lingered in the doorway. “Why do you want to do this?”
“Because I pass it every year, but never did it. I always thought it would be fun to try.”
I wanted to protest, tell him to return later with another victim—I mean, girl. Something inside me told me to do it. Jason studied me with those silver eyes. Why was I panicking? It wouldn’t take long and it wasn’t going to be posted online or anything.
“Fine,” I said, marching inside.
We dug through the trunks of clothing. Jason found something worthy and disappeared into a dressing room in the back. I tugged a dress out from the bottom. It was a long, ruffled saloon dress with black trimming. The dress was like a red rose with death on the edges. I could picture a woman singing and risqué dancing in it as men got drunk around the wooden bar.
It fit me, which was a surprise. I thought it was going to be too small and we’d have to leave without the embarrassing photo.
The photographer came out of the woodwork and demanded money. Guess we weren’t supposed to come in unannounced. Jason gave him what he wanted and like a switch was turned, he was nice to us.
We did a few shots, one with us standing by each other awkwardly. I couldn’t smile normally with the dress clinging to my form.
When I took Jason in with his goofy outfit on, my smile almost cracked my face. He wore black trousers with a white long-sleeved shirt. He had on boots with spurs on the back. In his mouth was a toothpick and on his head was a ten gallon cowboy hat.
“You two don’t look natural. Show me some love.” The photographer told us how to pose and would even step away from the camera to physically move us into the position he thought was right. He also took the toothpick from Jason and tossed it to the ground.
The man gave me a scarlet umbrella and then a fan. Props he thought would help, but to me it was something to hold. The last picture was when the photographer pushed me into Jason.
The guy waved Jason on. “Kiss her. Make it real nice and all.”
Jason looked at me, as if asking permission. I nodded. Under my breath, I muttered, “Whatever will get this lunatic off our backs.”
He smiled, as if he planned this. I was swept off my feet. Jason held my entire body in his hands. I locked my arms around his neck and kissed him. The cameraman said positive comments and took photos.
I wanted to devour Jason. Our kiss became more than a peck on the lips for a silly picture. Our tongues danced together, making me crave more.
Someone cleared their throat behind us. A couple was waiting for their turn. Jason put me down and ducked into a dressing room. I blushed, dashing into the dressing room next to him. His taste still lingered on my lips. Oh, how I loved to kiss that man.
We bought two of the last picture, one for each of us. The rest were left to the recycle bin. Jason held my hand as we made our way down the shops. I felt more comfortable after the photo shoot. I left all my negativity and doubts in that saloon dress.
“Wanna play some games?” Jason asked, pointing to where the games were.
“We can try, but they’re all a scam.”
He pulled me to the game section like a kid excited to see Santa Claus. “Yeah, but they let some win. They have to or no one would play ‘em.”
That was true. As we walked to the booths, a boy, about thirteen, whacked my arm with an oversized, blue gorilla. The closer we got, the more I could see the jumbo-sized animals hanging from the ceilings. All prizes waiting to be won. I never saw the value in them, even at the age of nine. Why did someone want a stuffed animal that was bigger than a toddler? What the hell would you do with it once you got home? More importantly, it sucked carrying it around the fair since you couldn’t take it to the car due to the one entry rule.
“Let’s play that.” Jason passed the basketball games and went for the game in the center of it all.
I studied the little pond before us. The objective was to grab a floating rubber duck and look at the number on its bottom. You then had to pick another duck with the same number. If you did, you won. If not, then you’re out some tickets.
“You wanna play?” an overweight guy eating a corndog asked Jason.
“Yeah,” Jason said.
“Fifteen tickets, please.”
Jason whistled, but handed them over. He then looked down at the pond. His hand circled the surface of the water, trying to get a vibe from one of them, or so it seemed.
“This one!” He choose a pink duck with the number eight written in fat black marker on its butt.
“So, which duck you think has an eight too?” I asked, scanning the water.
He nudged me with his shoulder. “You pick one.”
I pointed to myself. “Me?”
“Yeah, just pick.”
Oh sure, so if we lost it was my fault. That was peachy. I licked my lips nervously and picked up a green duck. My eyes were squeezed shut as I lifted it up to see the number.
“You look,” I said to Jason.
He took my hand, making the duck come closer to him. “It’s a nine.”
“Bummer.” We put the ducks back and walked away, kicking rocks out of anger.
“I wanted to win you something,” Jason grumbled.
“No worries. I don’t even know where I’d put a huge thing like those anyways.” I pointed to the giant stuffed animals on the ceiling.
“There are smaller ones too.”
“Oh?”
He pointed to the next booth. He was right. There were smaller ones, normal sized. My gaze stopped on Scooby-Doo. I wanted that one. Actually, the nine-year-old girl in me did.
“Scooby-Doo,” I said to myself.
“Scooby?” Jason asked.
Shit, I couldn’t believe I said that loud enough for him to hear.
“Yeah, I love him,” I admitted, trying to hide my blush with a curtain of hair.
“He’s a cool cartoon. The sixties version is the best.”
I looked at Scooby again. I wanted him deep in my gut. “That’s no lie.”
“I’m going to win you one.” Jason sounded determined as he went to the game that held my Scooby hostage.
It was the dreaded bottles and ring game, the one where you have to throw plastic rings on bottles, making at least three. They only gave you five rings and it cost ten tickets each round.
Jason paid and playe
d, losing by a landslide. “I’m a bit rusty. That was practice.” He paid again and received the rings once more.
My stomach knotted itself into a ball. I loathed those damn games. They were the cheap version of casinos. People get addicted too damn easily.
He lost again. “Damn it!” he shouted.
A mother with three children cruising by shot Jason a death glare before moving on.
I laughed at Jason as he cowered, like she was going to slap him.
“Are you going to play again? You were close,” the weasel said who ran the game.
I took Jason’s arm. “No, we’re good. Thanks.”
“Hey, I could win,” Jason said, protesting.
My grip tightened. “I don’t care. Wasting tickets here is pointless. Might as well light them on fire.”
He gave into me. We walked by the food. The strong odor of fried anything made me ill. The fair was ten times worse since they felt everything had to be fried, even candy bars.
I spotted a Scooby plush toy on a table nearby. It belonged to a teenage girl with a blue shirt. Her blonde hair spilled over one shoulder. She didn’t seem all that pleased to have Scooby.
I nudged Jason and nodded to the couple with my chin. We watched them for a few moments.
The girl pushed Scooby away from her and said to her boyfriend, “I wanted the cat, not the stupid dog.”
Her boyfriend tugged on his short black hair. “I’m sorry, baby. What can I do to make you happy?”
The guy was a lap dog.
She pointed to a food booth. “Get me a cherry icy.”
He got up and left. She sneered at his back and pulled out a phone. Scooby sat all alone. He needed me.
Then a sinister, but wonderful idea hit me.
“How are you on dares?” I asked Jason, giving him a wicked smile.
He faced me, curious. “Pretty good. Why?”
“I have one for you.” I pointed back to the girl. “Look at her.”
Jason leaned in closer. “Yeah, what about her?”
“She has a Scooby-Doo and I dare you to steal it.”
His eyes were huge when they came back to me. “You want me to do what?” he asked, alarmed.
“It’s simple. Steal the damn toy. She doesn’t even like it.”
He gave me a once over. “So?”
“So? Scooby needs to be saved from that inconsiderate bitch.”
“I guess, but I can’t go up and take it.”
I leaned into his ear so no one passing by could hear. “Sure you can. Just walk up, grab the thing, and haul ass like hell.”
He laughed. “You’re kidding, right?”
Jason’s negativity rained down on my rebel spirit. “No, the games are fixed and I want a Scooby.” I gave him my best pout. “I want that Scooby.” I nodded my head toward the unhappy girl.
He took a deep breath, pacing in front of me. “Fine, I’ll do it, but you better be right next to me. You’re an accessory.”
I motioned between us. “I’m the brains of this operation.”
“Just wanted to be clear, I go down, we’re both going down.”
“I hear you.” I laughed. “You’re acting like we’re robbing a bank, not taking a silly stuffed animal from an uptight bitch.”
“On three,” Jason said.
“Am I counting or you?”
“Shh, I’m counting to myself. You better run when I run.”
“Okay, we’re on the same page now.”
“Okay…” he muttered. His lips were moving silently as he counted in his head.
Jason then lifted his head and walked away. He strolled casually, as if he wanted to go to the greasy food booth and order something disgusting. Our target was looking down at her phone. She had no idea what was about to go down.
My stomach clenched and my breath stopped as Jason got within a foot of the girl. I looked for the route I should run. Around the table to my right and straight ahead through the eating area looked safe. No people or strollers in the way.
I flicked my eyes back to Jason. He looked at me. I nodded him on. He shook his head and grabbed Scooby.
The girl realized someone was too close for comfort and looked up. She saw Jason’s grip on her stuffed animal and yelled, “That’s mine!”
Jason took that as a cue to run.
I ran too. The girl continued to scream, almost sounding like she was going to cry. I caught up with Jason and we ran together until we couldn’t anymore.
We were both bent at the waist, huffing for breath. My heart hammered hard against my chest, making it ache. “That was such a rush!” I declared.
“You need to find new highs.” Jason stood straight and handed me Scooby. “Here’s your prize, my dark angel.”
I took it in my arms, giving the stuffed animal a hug. “Thanks.” Without thinking, I kissed Jason on the lips.
He grinned. “That was a pretty good high, but don’t expect me to do that again.”
I laughed. “No worries. Honestly, I didn’t think you’d do it.”
“I had to prove myself,” he said, puffing out his chest like some kind of wild cave man.
“You’re definitely not a coward. I think she was crying at the end. Not sure, though. Got too far away to be certain.”
His smile wilted. “Why did you tell me that?”
“It was funny. She’s spoiled. That girl has the look and a brand new, top-of-the-line phone. She’s doing just fine.”
“Wanna ride some rides?” Obviously he didn’t want to dwell on the issue. I was fine with that. I got what I desired.
“Sure,” I said and hugged Scooby to my chest as we walked.
***
We rode almost every ride. The only place we didn’t go was the fun house because we didn’t have enough tickets. It was pleasurable being with Jason. He knew how to make me laugh.
“Let’s take a picture with the cutouts!” I said excitedly.
We went to the boards with people painted on them. Their faces were cut out so people could place their own there. We posed and even used Scooby in a few shots. A random stranger who was old enough to be my grandpa took a photo of us together. I was a princess and Jason the prince.
After using our last few tickets on our favorite ride, The Alien Cyclone—it was a disc that spun super-fast, making you stuck to the walls—we were hungry.
“Do you think anything is edible here?” Jason asked, surveying the menu of a booth.
“Does road kill count as a food group?” I joked.
“It’s meat, no?”
We laughed.
“Why is everything fried?” I queried, reading the menu to myself.
“They want to kill us,” Jason replied.
“Just shoot us. I’d rather have that.”
“Ruins the fun.”
Jason’s arm brushed mine as we stood looking over the list on the board. I swallowed the moths flying up into my throat and said, “Oh well.”
“Let’s get something to try.”
“Fine.”
Jason ordered fried bacon covered in chocolate and honey.
One bite and I spit it out. “That’s fucking gross!”
Jason nibbled on a piece and gagged. “Yup, they really do want us dead.”
We tossed the bacon and took in the lights of the fair. The sun went down, making all the colorful, dancing lights come to life. It was wondrous and a bit blinding if you stood too close to them.
“Do you want to call it and go somewhere to get real food?” Jason asked, hooking his thumbs into the loops of his jeans.
I resisted the urge to kiss him again. “If you feed me, you’ll be my hero.”
Jason snaked his arm around me as we went back to the Jeep. I leaned my head on his shoulder as we walked to the parking lot. We didn’t speak. All we did was watch people pass by, look at the attractions, and enjoy each other’s company.
Chapter Eighteen
Jason pulled into a neighborhood. It looked familiar. “Where ar
e we going? I thought we were getting something to eat.”
“We’re going to my place. I’m going to cook.”
I was confused. “Oh…”
“It’s midnight. There aren’t many places open now. Do you want to find a diner and eat with weirdos of the night and truckers?”
I smiled in the dark. “No, that doesn’t sound like fun.”
“Good.”
Jason turned into a driveway. I looked at the house and was flooded with memories. The last time I was there, I had slept with Jason and left in a cab. I didn’t want to have sex and ditch him again. I didn’t want to ruin the memory of our date.
I quietly followed him into the house.
Jason motioned toward the living room. “Make yourself at home. I’ll be in here if you need me.” He disappeared into the kitchen.
I sat on the couch and grabbed a magazine from the coffee table. It was about astronomy.
“Do you like steak?” Jason called out from the kitchen.
I looked up from the article on the moon I was reading. “Yeah.”
“Great, cause that’s all I have to cook.”
“So we’re just having steak? No side dishes?”
“Let me see.” He opened and closed cabinets. “I found two potatoes, but they’re growing something.”
I stuck my tongue out. “Gross!”
“Yeah, I thought so.” I heard him toss said potatoes into the garage. “I also have a bag of vegetables. It’s a bit frostbitten, but I think it’s still good.”
“What kind of vegetables?”
“Umm…broccoli, corn, and cauliflower.”
I wrinkled my nose at the mention of cauliflower, though I could pick out the nauseating white food. “Okay. Do you need any help?”
“No, you stay there and look pretty.”
It was kind of nice having a guy insist on cooking. Flipping through the magazine, I listened to Jason hum a tune as he worked.
***
“Bon appetite!” Jason said, standing behind the couch, beckoning me into the kitchen with a charming grin.
We sat at his table, across from one another. I poured steak sauce onto my plate before cutting into the meat. We ate in silence. When I swallowed the last bite, I said, “Very good. You’re skilled at cooking steak.”
Shades of Sydney (Sydney West #1) Page 13
