Chapter 2 : Just An Innocent Day At The Fair

2

Just An Innocent Day At The Fair

  As I looked at myself in the mirror, I posed shamelessly as I always did. I’d gone through 6 or 7 outfits tonight, finally settling on a pair of skinny jeans, a plaid shirt, and brown cowboy boots. It deemed appropriate for a fair, and I had to look good, really good.

  I through my hair up in a messy bun, or a birds nest, as my mom liked to call it. It supposedly comes across as “casual yet chic.” Or atleast, that’s what Seventeen Magazine says. As I took a comb and teased the style to make it look more messy, I thought of Kyle. My Kyle!

 He wasn’t technically “my Kyle” yet, but hopefully by tonight, he would be. He texted me yesterday to ask me to go to the fair with him, so hopefully that was a good sign. I’ve been crushing on Kyle for years, so tonight had to be perfect.

  Here was the tricky part: makeup. I had to look put together and cute, but it was only a fair, so I couldn’t overdo it. Using a wedge sponge, I rubbed in some tinted moisturizer and then applied some black mascara from Maybelline. 

  There. I gave a satisfied nod to my mirror. But as I was grabbing my purse to make my way out the door, I noticed a miniature Mount. Everest sprouting on my forehead. Concealer time!

  Perfect.

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  The inside of Kyles car smelled like the cologne section in Hollister. I’m not the only girl I know who admits to smelling the cologne everytime they go in, so the guys must of caught on. He had a red Ford truck, probably a new build, that drove easy and was very quiet. Not that I needed the silence. If there had been a little noise, it might have drowned out the souund of crickets. 

  He finally broke the ice as we drove into Starbucks. As soon as we walked in, the smell of coffee hit us like a tonne of bricks. 

  “I’m getting a coffee. What do you like?”

  “Uh, a Vanilla Bean.”

  “Alright then.” He hauled out his wallet. 

  “I can get it,” I mumbled, my cheeks turning bright red as I fumbled through my purse.

  “Don’t worry about it.” He winked at me as he stepped up to the cash. My heart must have dropped into my stomach. Kyle. Henderson. Winked. At. Me.

  “Can I have a medium Vanilla Bean and a medium Peppermint Mocha please?”

  As Kyle paid for our drinks, I gazed out the window overlooking the river. The water ran right through our small, coastal city, and it was really fun to gaze out at the sunset at this time of day. The sky had turned a lovely shade of pink, and only about half the sun was still visable.

  “Amber?”

  “Huh?” I jumped up and turned around to see a very confused Kyle.

  “Oh, hi.” I said meekly.

  “Are you alright?” He looked a little alarmed (and more than a little cute!)

  “Yeah, I was just was watching the sunset. It’s really pretty this time of day.”

  He gazed out at the water, and smiled to himself. I wondered what he was thinking. Was it a Oh my God, I think I really like her smile, or a Oh my God, when will this nightmare be over smile? Was I sweating? Could he tell I was obsessing?

  “Yeah, it is really pretty. Oh here’s your drink.”

  Exactly what you need, Amber, I thought to myself, Caffeine.

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  “I’m having a really good time,” Kyle said earnestly as we walked around the fairgrounds.

  “Me too,” I replied, holding up the bear Kyle won me in balloon darts. He was huge and pink, with a bright yellow bow tie.

  “You act like you like that bear more than me,” he joked.

  I’d been set up. This was despicable foul play. Now I had to say I liked him. Out loud. My heart started to speed up, and my butterflies intensified.

  “No,” I said quietly, staring at the ground. “Not even close.”

  “Really?” Kyle acted like he was genuinely surprised.

  “You didn’t know I liked you?” I asked suspisciously.

  “Well, did you know I liked you?”

  “Well, no. But-”

  “Aha.” He had a very triumphant grin on his face.

  “Oh whatever.” I replied grumpily. I hated losing arguments.

   We walked around a bit more, just talking and having a good time. It was amazing how much fun I was having. I was surprised it had gone so well after that awkward start. Oh the magic of Starbucks!

  “Let’s ride the ferris wheel,” Kyle suggested.

  “Okay. When I was little, my dad and I used to ride this every year. You know, back when he still lived here.”

  After my parents separated, my dad lived in a nearby apartment for the longest time. We still got to spend loads of time together. But after he met this new chick, Gabrielle, he moved to Wisconsin and got married. Now he has a new wife and 2 stepchildren and a picture perfect life. And guess what I got out of this whole thing? Two letters a year (birthday & Christmas) with a $150.00 cheque attatched to each. 

  The carnie helped us into a car and I watched as the people and tents started getting smaller and smaller. This was one of the largest ferris wheels in the state, so it went very high. I hauled some blue cotton candy out of my bag, and ripped off a piece. Blue was my favorite, though everyone else seemed to have an unexplained obsession with pink.

  “Uh you have some cotton candy right here,” Kyles fingers brushed my upper lip. He stared at me for a moment. I knew what was coming, I just knew it! 

  He tucked a loose strand of hair out of my face.

  “You are so beautiful,” he whispered. Omigod!

  He leaned in closed and wrapped one arm around my waist. He used his other hand to tilt my head up slightly. As soon as our lips touched, a shock of energy ran right through me.

  Fireworks.