I Don't Love You

Do You Wanna Be My Lover Tonight?

Day Seven

"You sure this is going to work?"

I sigh, falling onto the bed. "Holy hell, stop asking me that."

"But... are we sure this is going to work?" Gerard repeats. He's asked me a million times already and, though we've had this planned out meticulously since last night, he's still not entirely convinced.

"Yes," I state. "This is going to work. Now put your shoes on so we can go. Bob and Mikey are meeting us there."

"Don't forget Pete," Gerard hums. He sits down on the end of the bed to tie his shoes. "Mikey invited his new friend."

"Boyfriend," I specify. "You can say the word, Gerard. Pete is Mikey's boyfriend."

Gerard grimaces, shrugging one shoulder. "They've only known each other a few days," he disagrees. "How can they be dating if they barely know each other?"

"That's sort of how dating works," I tell him. "You don't have to know their entire backstory to like someone. And Mikey likes Pete. They've seen each other every day since they met at the bar. They're having sex and going out to lunch. That's dating, dude."

"I don't want to think about my brother having sex," Gerard says.

"Well you can threaten Pete when you meet him tonight. If we ever get there, that is. Hurry the fuck up."

"I'm ready," Gerard stands, grabbing his wallet. "We can go now."

"We're gonna be late," I mutter, but follow him out the door anyway.

"We're not gonna be late," Gerard frowns.

As it turns out, Gerard was right. We weren't late. When we meet Bob, Mikey, and Pete at the festival, we're right on time. Bob makes a face when we walk up together, but he says nothing. Mikey interrupts him before he has a chance to. He practically throws a strange man in our direction, beaming, as he says, "Guys, this is Pete. Pete, this is my brother Gerard and my friend Frank."

Pete sticks his hand out to me first, a nervous smile tugging on his lips. "Uh... Hi. I'm Pete."

"Frank," I shake his hand, then jab a thumb in Gerard's direction. "That's Gee. He's probably going to threaten you because you're boning his brother."

Pete nods slowly, casting a wary glance at Gerard.

I grab Bob's arm and start dragging him down the sidewalk. The others follow behind. "Okay, we have like twenty minutes before the ferris wheel starts going--"

"It's not just a ferris wheel, Frank," Mikey says seriously, sounding disappointed in me. "It's the High Roller. It's over five-hundred feet tall."

"Oh right, sorry." I roll my eyes. "We have twenty minutes before the really big ferris wheel starts going without us. Which means that we have time to play festival games before we go!"

Lining the sidewalk on both sides are booths, shouting workers and bright lights. It's like a fairground, right in the midst of the Vegas casinos and strip clubs. A few rides blast carnival music as they spin and whirl and groups of people chatter while stuffing their faces with cotton candy.

"Step right up!" Calls one of the booth workers. He points a grungy finger in our direction. "Come on! Don't be shy! Win a goldfish!"

"Fish!?" I turn to the booth. The guy behind the table beams at me with unnaturally white teeth. "How do I win a goldfish?"

"All you've gotta do," He yells. "Is get one of these rings onto a bottle!"

He throws three plastic rings onto the table, gesturing toward the row of glass bottles behind him. I hand over a few dollars and grab the rings. The first one just barely nicks a bottle, the second misses completely, and the third wedges itself between two glasses. "Ooh! Tough luck!" The man yells, still grinning. "Try again?" He waves a few rings in front of me, tempting.