The wrinkle on her forehead loosened. She took a sharp breath and said, “Thank you.”

  Aiden let out a snicker, “For what?”

  She shook her head and wiped her face before saying, “For thinking that. Most people would assume that I got ditched, or that I’m just a loner…”

  “And the real story?”

  “A mixture of both,” She admitted. “But I’m going to stick with your story. I’m…badass.”

  She nodded to herself after saying that word, as if she’s convincing herself to play the part.

  “Who would cancel on spending a full day at Funtastic World ?” Aiden asked out loud. At the back of his head, he thought, maybe a person who preferred Happy Adventure Land . His friends were actually in Happy Adventure Land right then, without him, of course.

  “I guess it’s not as funtastic as the name suggests.”

  Aiden pursed his lips. Fair point. Maybe Alec was right about freaking out. There were fewer visitors that summer than the past. Even he couldn’t deny that.

  “Does it count if I didn’t exactly invite the person?” She asked.

  “Uhm, no, most definitely that doesn’t count.”

  “Great,” she clicked her tongue. “So it’s really just the latter.”

  She continued walking, passing by The Midnight Owl Train’s rail.

  He leaned in, “I’m Aiden, by the way.”

  She squinted her eyes, taking a moment before she responded, “And I’m not supposed to talk to strangers. My mom made me promise.”

  “Interesting,” Aiden grinned. “Is that your given name or just something your friends call you? It’s pretty long. Do you have a nick name or something?”

  She laughed, although it was very much reserved, “No, you know what I mean. How do I know you’re not a predator? Or some creepy guy with a fetish?”

  Aiden smiled. Well, she did look like a prey. Like a tiny deer with her doe eyes.

  “I’m not,” He just answered. “Ask me anything, I’m an open book.”

  “What do you do here?”

  He looked offended, “Alright, anything but that.”

  “Do you do this often?” She asked.

  “Chase after girls in the park? Not really. I’ve been told not to talk to strangers too. I think we’ve all been told that. But I have no candy, no van, if that comforts you. I’m just a boy in a park.”

  She raised an eyebrow. Aiden nervously offered her a smile instead.

  “What’s your favorite book?” She asked suddenly.

  Aiden’s brows lifted as he made a noise with his mouth, “Now that’s some question I haven’t thought about answering in my life.”

  “Really?”

  “I don’t have one,” He answered. “That’s an answer, right?”

  She veered away from him and started walking again. Aiden raised his hands and dropped it on his head, watching her go.

  He pursed his lips and then ran up to her again, “Hey!”

  Aiden stopped right in front of her, blocking her way. “Is that like your ultimate question?”

  “Kind of, yeah.”

  “I read The Lorax when I was a kid?” He said quickly. She looked up at him, her eyes boring into him. “I probably read it a bajillion times.”

  “Okay.” She just said.

  “Okay? I pass?” He asked.

  She shook her head and kept walking, “It’s not a test.”

  Aiden laughed, “Sure it is. You wanted to know if I’m capable of reading. I know all the alphabets. I can recite them right now.”

  She turned to him, “You can always tell who a person is by the stuff they read. Or at least for me, that’s the case.”

  “ James and the Giant Peach !” He snapped his finger.

  She took a deep breath and finally nodded. “Alright.”

  From a distance, the Exit Gate loomed in with the words We Hope You Had a Funtastic Day ! Aiden quipped, “So are you really just going to leave without even trying the rides?”

  “I tried,” She sighed.

  “You call that trying?”

  She shot him a look.

  Aiden raised his hands in surrender. “I’m just saying. Don’t try, do.”

  “It’s easy for you to say, you probably rode Big Red Dragon like a bajillion times.” She was obviously mocking his usage of that word.

  “I did ride the Dragon a bajillion times. So as The Eagle Eye . And everything else.”

  “Well, congratulations.”

  Aiden didn’t know what to say next. How did this thing go exactly in his head? Talk to the girl, make her laugh? The mission was a bust.

  “Alright,” He gave up. “I guess…that’s it then. Have a good day. We hope you had a funtastic day. I doubt it, but…”

  “Thank you.” She turned around and proceeded towards the exit gate. Aiden scratched his head and retreated back to The Eagle Eye . He would have to pass the office on his way. He groaned at the thought of it.

  “And you know what,” He heard her say. He felt like he turned around too quickly, and he lost his balance while doing so. “I didn’t have a funtastic day. I had a sucky day. And the worst part is, it’s my birthday and it’s been the worst –”

  “It’s your birthday?” He cut her off.

  Her mouth opened but she only managed to give him a nod.

  “Do you know that you could get a refund for that?”

  He watched as she blinked once, and the corner of her lips turned upwards. A beautiful sound came out of her mouth. He did it. She laughed.

  Mission back on.

  ***

  Gemma had never cried in public before. At least, not to her knowledge. Also, with the exclusion of being an infant.

  She had one incident with the swings where she stood on the seat, jumped out, and scraped her knee on the ground. Nobody was there but Gemma didn’t cry. She felt that someone must be watching her from somewhere, so she kept a brave face on, rubbed her knees, and walked limply out of the playground.

  But after running away from The Eagle Eye , Gemma swore she was so close to bawling her eyes out. Until this boy came up to her.

  Was she turning into a child? Now that she’s actually turning into an adult?

  She wondered if it was happening only to her. It must be. Jane wasn’t having a meltdown. This boy didn’t even look like he’s got any problems in the world.

  He looked just about her age. The tie wasn’t working for him, either. He looked like he was choking on it.

  “So where are you from?” The boy asked her.

  Gemma blinked, noticing his face better. He didn’t look dangerous. But she should be cautious, just in case.

  “Why?” She asked.

  He gave her a look, “I don’t know. I’m making small talk.”

  She scratched her nose, “Not from around here.”

  They walked over to the ticketing office where she had to show the cashier her ID to confirm her age and birthday. Aiden grabbed it quickly before giving it to the cashier and grinned at her.

  “Gemma,” He said. “That’s a good name.”

  She didn’t say anything. When the cashier returned her ID, she snatched it so he wouldn’t look at it again. He could see her address. It’s already enough that he knew which school she goes to. That’s already too much information.

  “So I have a very personal thing to ask you,” Aiden said when they were walking towards the park again.

  “I’m sure I won’t answer it.”

  “Where are your friends?”

  She was taken back with the question. Where are her friends? It’s a good one though. It was, after all, her seventeenth birthday. She should be surrounded by family or friends, or better, both. But she decided to come here alone instead, despite the number of messages on her phone from her friends, including Jane, greeting her a happy birthday. Today just seemed to be the day for her to do something on her own.

  Gemma just shrugged.

  “Do you have friends?”

  Her eyes bugged out, “Of course I have friends. Where are your friends?”

  “They’re at Happy Adventure Land .”

  “Why aren’t you there?”

  Aiden spread his hands out, looking like a typical tourist showing off Funtastic World . “Loyalty.” He dropped his hands, “Plus, I’m not really allowed to go there. It’s a family issue.”

  Gemma looked around her, paying better attention to the park. She’d been to Funtastic World before, and it looked pretty much the same. There’s a huge block of letters at the front, reminiscent of the Hollywood sign that says Funtastic World instead.

  On her right is The Nightingale Carousel, followed by a couple of kid-friendly rides: The Midnight Owl Train, The Hawk’s Nest , and The Swan Boat Lake . Her left side led to the more thrilling rides: The Flying Herons, The Raven Pendelum, Free Fall, The Big Red Dragon . Then there’s The Aviary Cinema left, the food strip with the gift shop, and her latest failed conquest: The Eagle Eye .

  Gemma thought about riding the carousel first. That one’s easy. No deaths, probably, just plenty of wailing babies.

  “So why’d you come here?”

  She sighed and took a minute to answer, “I don’t know. It’s a silly thing.”

  “Have you been here before?”

  “You’re really committed to asking questions, aren’t you?” She shot back.

  “I barely commit to anything, but when I do…”

  “Alright,” Gemma rolled her eyes. “Once. About ten years ago.”

  “How young were you then?”

  “Seven?”

  “That makes you seventeen now.” He stated.

  “Hey, you can add.” She mocked, “Plus you saw my birthday. Shouldn’t you have figured that out by now?”

  “I didn’t notice the year, I was looking at your photo,” Aiden made a face. “So, you came here before, decided it’s not cool? What?”

  “No, are you kidding? This place was really cool then. Every summer, I’d hear my classmates talk about spending a day here and it always seem fun. When I first came here, this place just opened and it used to have a bird sanctuary. Whatever happened to that?”

  “Closed the aviation sanctuary,” Aiden answered. “The animals got stressed out with all the noise and the people and the camera flashes.”

  She frowned, “Too bad.”

  “The birds are fine. They’re…at the owner’s house.”

  Gemma wondered what this boy is exactly doing in Funtastic World . He claimed that he worked there, but what kind of work involved what he’s doing?

  “Anyway,” She continued, “I was little when I first came here so I wasn’t really allowed to ride most of the rides. I rode the carousel though, I remember that.”

  “So you rode the kiddie rides,” He simplified.

  “I thought it’d be a good time to ride the others, I’m kind of taller now.”

  He snickered, “Kind of? You’re like one of the tallest girls I know.”

  Gemma looked down at her legs. She was also one of the tallest girls in her high school class, so she was always seated in the back. It made her feel more distant from the crowd. She knew her classmates better through the back of their heads than their faces.

  This also made it harder for boys to approach her now that she’s in college because she was way taller (and awkward) than most. Except for Pete. He was taller than her, smart, and a people person – an obvious shoo-in for the student council. She smiled at the thought of him, but was reminded of the boy standing next to her when his shoulder rubbed on hers by a quick moment.

  “Does it make you feel small?” She squinted her eyes.

  Aiden leaned next to her again, looking over his shoulder, “Nah. I’m a quarter inch taller than you. I’m good.”

  “Would it make you feel any less of a guy if I was taller?”

  He considered this, “I don’t know. Maybe.”

  “What is it with guys and height?”

  “I don’t know. Did you ask the guys from your class about that?”

  Gemma hadn’t thought about asking the guys at school how they felt about her being taller than they were. Meanwhile, she got asked about her height a lot. “I went to an all-girls school. So the whole co-ed thing in college is pretty new for me.”

  “Nice,” He grinned.

  “And what is it with guys and all-girls schools?”

  Aiden scratched his chin, “You wouldn’t want to know. Hormones. Hyperactive imagination. Girls.”

  “I think I can manage to make out what you meant with that.”

  “So, back to the rides, height requirement?”

  “Right,” She nodded, “Back to that. I don’t know. I just felt like I’m getting to a certain age and this feels like something I should have done, and I should at least make my life more exciting or something before, you know. Before ‘life happens’ or something.”

  She’s being so cliché saying all these things in the scope of living life to the fullest. But that’s how she’s been feeling lately. Before, she was blissfully ignorant of all the things she wasn’t doing. She felt like there was nothing wrong being the kind of girl who stayed at home with her next book or the remote control until college started, and all of a sudden these kids were introducing themselves to her, trying so hard to be distinctively apart from each other. For now, she was just distinctively the ‘tall girl’.

  “A certain age?” He repeated, making her sound even sillier. “You’re seventeen.”

  “I know.”

  “And isn’t life happening now?” He asked her. She didn’t answer. “You’re weird. In an interesting way. I like it.”

  She sighed, “You only say that because you don’t know me.”

  Aiden leapt and stood in front of her, making her halt. “I can come with you.”

  “To where?”

  “To your Quest to YOLO,” He beamed. He looked so proud saying that.

  Gemma pouted, “Don’t you have to go back to work now?”

  He dropped his shoulders, “Hey, I’m seventeen. I shouldn’t even be working.”

  “Why would you even want to do this with me?”

  “Honestly?” He paused, cracking his knuckles. “I’m really bored and your life’s looking pretty exciting to me now.”

  She scoffed, “You think my life’s exciting?”

  “Yeah. It’s your birthday, you’re here alone, and you meet this stranger, who is not a creep by the way. He just invited you to an exciting day at Funtastic World . It’s pretty exciting, don’t you think?”

  “You know you’re the he in this scenario, right?”

  “Come on,” His eyes widened. “Look, I practically live here, this is my natural habitat. I know everything pretty much. I can help you make up a route.”

  She took a good look at Aiden, weighing him in. “Omnipotence. Good argument.”

  He lit up, “So you’ll do it?”

  Gemma took a moment and watched his face hold off excitement. She scrunched up her nose and to hell with it. This was her second chance. That Exit gate with that stupid “we hope you had a fantastic day!” note wouldn’t mock her the next time she walks towards it.

  “Okay, fine.”

  He balled his hands into a fist and raised it both, jumping up and down. She laughed.

  “Awesome,” He finally stopped. “We should go to The Flying Herons first. I swear it’s the best.”

  The Flying Herons was a swing ride that seated 48 people. It lifted riders off the ground and gradually rotated, giving the impression that they were flying. Basically, it’s like being in a regular swing but it’s in mid-air all the time, spinning around in circles for a time.

  It never crossed Gemma’s mind to make this her first ride, but she’s frankly relieved that someone’s taken over the decision. Otherwise, she would just end up at the kiddie-friendly rides and what kind of risk would that entail?

  TWO

  He had been on dates before. Not a lot, but back in school, he’d been trying to get close to Abby, this girl he met in his History class. She’s pretty. That’s all he could say about her. He didn’t know a lot about her but they’ve exchanged numbers so they occasionally talked through texts and smileys.

  He’d like to know more about Abby in a way that he’s gotten to know this stranger he just met. She talked about her parents while they’re lined up at The Flying Herons when he asked her if, by any chance, she’s one of those runaways.

  “Are your parents cool?” She asked him instead.

  Aiden never really thought about that. Were his parents cool? His parents were his parents, if that made any sense. They were there to ask him if he needed something, and really didn’t bother him that much. Aiden was born eleven years after Alec, so he sometimes feels like an afterthought.

  Alec used to tell him stories about trips with their parents, but that all happened before Aiden was around. When Aiden grew up, it was all about the park. It was like their other brother.

  “I guess.”

  “I’ve heard about these cool parents,” She mused.

  He laughed at her as she said that, “What, like they’re a rare breed?”

  Gemma leaned on the railing, “No, I just wonder what that would be like.”

  “They’re cool together, my parents. They’re still together-together. They kiss in front of us, which is kind of gross, but I’m okay with it.”

  “My parents don’t kiss.” She claimed. “Or they do, but it’s like a –” She lifted her hand and patted her lip softly and quickly.

  “No tongue?”

  “That’s gross,” She pointed at him.

  “Would you rather see your parents kiss with tongue or…” He squinted his eyes, “Watch cats mate?”

  “None of the above.”

  He shook his head to get rid of the thought of cats mating. He once had a sleepover with his friends and they hung out his in friend’s house for a while and got a good laugh out of stray cats mating. It didn’t look consensual at all. He cringed just thinking about it. He felt responsible to change the subject, “Anyway, do you know how your parents met?”

 

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