His Sister

Carnival

 I've temporarily cut off communication with Jay for the past week. It has actually been really nice. I've had time to start a marathon of one of my favorite shows and I've felt very relaxed. I'm halfway through one of the best episodes when my phone starts ringing. I mute the TV for a moment, picking up the phone and scowling at the caller ID. I answer, despite the nagging voice in the back of my head that's begging me not to.

"Hello?"

"Tara!" His voice sounds surprised, "You picked up... Uh—Anyways, tonight is the last night that the carnival is in town and I was wondering if maybe you'd want to go."

"What? Just me and you?" I ask, pulling my knees up to my chest.

"No. Ellie wants to tag along and I'll probably invite my buddy, Sam. He's had a crush on Ellie forever and I've been trying to set them up for months now. I just hope she'll find somebody if it isn't him." Jay sighs.

My face turns slightly red, "I'm sure she'll find someone."

"Hopefully," Jay agrees, "So, do you want to go?"

"Sure. Why not?" I laugh light-heartedly and shake my head.

"Cool. Well, I'll see you tonight around six." He tells me.

"Alright," I say as I hang up.

I set my phone down on the coffee table and look at the clock above the TV. It's only noon. I can laze around for a while longer. So, I do exactly that. By the time I get up and around, it's already five. I smile to myself, proud of the fact that I did nothing productive for the majority of the day. I reluctantly get up and get myself ready. After I embark back downstairs, I grab my keys off my nightstand. I have a text from Ellie, asking if I can pick her up. I text her back and tell her I'm on my way. As I head out the door, I yell up to my parents and tell them I'm leaving. Ten minutes later, I'm at Ellie's. We goof around and she has a few beers before we finally decide to head to the carnival. After a few minutes in the car, Ellie breaks the oddly comfortable silence.

"Man, I do not wanna hang around with this Sam guy all night." She starts, "Ever since I first met him, he's been all obsessed with me."

"Obsessed with you?" I echo as I get onto the freeway.

"Yeah. Like, every time Jay would have him around while I was home, he'd always come in my room and be all weird. He'd be like, 'Hey Ellie! Looking good. How's school?' And then I'd just sit there like—" She makes a straight face and looks nervously from side to side.

I giggle, "That's fucking hilarious."

"Mhm," Ellie rolls her eyes, "He's even more obsessed with me than you are."

I reach over the center console, I lightly smack her leg, "I am not obsessed with you."

"You so are, though." She winks and then turns up the radio.

"I fucking love this song!" Ellie shouts as Misery Business by Paramore begins blasting in my ears.

The rest of the ride results in Ellie and I screaming along to the song at the top of our lungs. We arrive at the carnival, giggly and loud. Ellie leans against me and we make our way toward the entrance. I see Jay standing there and instantly the fun feels like it's gone. I can't remember ever having fun with Jay. It's always tense or uncomfortable or just... Weird. I've never had fun with him. I'm always too busy worrying, I guess. Or maybe it's just because we're too different. He's a sports star, honor student with a ton of charisma and friends. And I'm a reality TV obsessed, friendless teenage girl with straight B's (but sometimes A's) and an awkward laugh. We're two completely different people, which always makes me wonder why he chose to be with me in the first place.

Boys are weird.

Sam appears from behind Jay and holds a bunch of tickets in his hands. He's really not a bad looking kid. Dark hair, blue eyes, tall and thin. As soon as he sees Ellie, he beams. He pulls her into a hug and greets her warmly. After she pulls away, she pretends to vomit as we stroll through the front gates.

"Let's just get this over with." She mutters, trudging on.

Sam is on Ellie's heels, following her like an obedient dog. Jay and I stand there for a bit and relish the awkwardness. We even stare at each other so we can feel the full-fledged uncomfortableness.

"I—"

"We should probably get going! Don't wanna get separated!" I say as I practically race walk to catch up with Ellie.

Jay and Sam end up falling behind us and walking together. I manage to match Ellie's pace as she heads toward the line for a dinky rollercoaster. She stuffs her hands into the pockets of her flannel and looks around.

"Talk about awkward, huh?" I tease, poking her in the side.

She groans, "Tell me about it."

We stop at the end of the line and wait for a solid ten minutes. Halfway through, Jay wanders off to go get cotton candy and Sam has to ride by himself. We end up riding three times all together and somewhere along the way, we split off from the boys. Jay and Sam go to play the games while Ellie and I walk around. We share cotton candy as we walk, tearing off pieces and chewing them thoughtfully.

"You know, Sam really likes you. Jay wants to get you two together." I snicker.

Ellie nearly chokes on her cotton candy, "Gross! I don't even like boys."

I laugh and tear off another piece of cotton candy. Ellie pulls the sugary treat away from me and stops dead in her tracks, looking up. I stop beside her and reach for the fluffy goodness. She turns away a bit.

"How cliché would it be if we went on the Ferris Wheel right now and you kissed me at the very top?" She asks with a laugh, stepping into the line and pulling me along with her.

I roll my eyes and nudge her gently in the ribs with an elbow. A short wait later, we're getting into the "gondola"—At least, that's what the guy calls it. We giggle like excited little kids as we get on the Ferris Wheel. Slowly, we begin the long ascension to the very top. The bright lights look amazing as we get higher and higher in the air. Ellie starts kicking her feet and swinging the chair. I yell at her and she grabs my hands and laughs.

"Why? Are you scared? Do you need me to hold you?" She says in a baby voice.

"I'd love that." I counter sarcastically.

But, being Ellie, she takes me literally. She wraps her arms around me and plants a quick kiss on my cheek. I blush and feel my insides turn to mush. We pull apart and look down at the ground as we're almost all the way up. We're nearly to the top when she places her hand on my thigh. I start to get nervous. Not a bad nervous, though. Not like with Jay. No, this is different. This is a good nervous. I have butterflies. My hands get sweaty and the chair jolts to a stop. I look at Ellie and she smiles widely.

We're at the top.

Almost as if it's an instinct, I lean in. I feel her breath on my lips and I become weak. Her palm meets my cheek and she pulls my face closer to her own. Our lips touch and I practically melt. It feels so... Perfect. Our lips separate slowly and I let out a soft sigh. She presses her forehead to mine as the Ferris Wheel begins its descent. We sit in a comfortable silence for the second time tonight. Once we reach the bottom, Jay and Sam are waiting for us. We go with them to the front of the park and Jay hands me a stuffed bear with a bow tie.

"This was fun." Ellie says with a grin.

Sam shrugs, "Yeah. I guess."

"I can take you home." I tell Ellie, brushing Jay's hand away from mine.

She smiles widely at me and steps closer to my side, "Well, I'll see you later!"

The two of us hurry to my car and get inside. It's a bit colder now, so Ellie asks if I have a jacket. I tell her no, but then I remember that I have a few blankets in the back of my car. She thinks for a minute, her brow scrunching up.

"Can we go somewhere?" Ellie asks.

"Sure. Where?" I pull onto the side road and Ellie flashes me a cheeky smile.

"You'll see." She winks.