I feel my face burn red in embarrassment. "I just don't like asking for money," I explain quietly. Especially after you've already taken me in, provided me with a home, and treated me like one of your own when my parents basically kicked me out. My aunt reaches into her purse and hands me two twenties. "Now, that should be enough," she announces. I smile at her and thank her quietly. "I won't be home for dinner tonight so you girls will have to make something for yourselves." She rises from the couch and heads to the front door, calling a greeting out to her daughter. I sigh and tuck the money into my pocket. I grab my phone and tell Cassidy that I'll be tagging along tomorrow. + + + I wake up on Saturday and stare at the ceiling. I'm not supposed to be leaving until six tonight so the reason I woke up at eight is unknown. The sun shines brightly through my curtains and I turn on my side. I think my dad would be proud of me. I mean, I've been staying out of trouble. I haven't gone to any parties; well, I haven't purposely gone to any parties. I haven't done anything remotely bad. I talked to my dad about a week ago, but it was a pretty plain phone call. I called him the night before in hopes that he'd answer but he didn't get back to me until the following morning. When I saw it was him, I answered immediately and told him how I was and how I was staying out of trouble. He talked to me about Charlie and told me how the rest of the family is doing. The phone call ended only moments after it began and I couldn't help but feel like he was still mad at me. I shrug and shake my head. Whatever, I don't care. After showering and dressing, I go downstairs to the kitchen to make myself some breakfast. Vivica is sitting there in her cheer-leading outfit eating a bowl of cereal. I guess she has another Saturday practice. In an attempt to be civil, I nod at her. "Good morning," I greet quietly. "Morning," she mutters, which surprises me. I walk towards the fridge and seize the milk before grabbing the cereal that's on the table. I pour myself a bowl and begin eating, ready to start my day. When six o'clock finally comes around, I'm sitting on the porch with my phone in my hands, patiently anticipating the arrival of a car. During my time waiting until an appropriate time to start getting ready, I did the dishes and washed the counters. I swept and mopped the kitchen floor, as well as wiped down the table. My aunt said something about having to clean it today so I figured I might as well do something around the house to lighten her load. A familiar car pulls up to my house and I stand up and pocket my cell phone. I approach the car and get into the backseat when I see that the passenger's is taken. I want to cringe when I see that it's Raven sitting there beside Maddox. I'm going to be a third wheel. "Now we just have to pick up Winona and we're good," Maddox announces and I want to cheer in relief when he says those words. The ride to Winona's house takes twenty minutes, but it was definitely worth it. I try my best to tune out their conversation and focus my attention on the greenery outside of the car. It's hard to do though when Raven keeps laughing at something funny that Maddox says. And I doubt anything Maddox says is that funny. Winona cheers when she gets into the car and I have to admit that it's the most beautiful sound I've ever heard. The tense aura is immediately split in half and dissolved as Winona begins talking excitedly to all of us. + + + We arrived at the carnival and I notice Parker getting out of a large truck. Out of the back doors comes Nicholas, Jackson, and Cassidy. They really couldn't have picked me and Winona up? I sigh and follow them to the entrance, where I pay the entrance fee. I tuck ten dollars away for food and used the rest to buy tickets. I almost shed a tear as the entire forty dollars is flushed down the toilet that is the carnival. "Let's go!" Cassidy squeals and runs in the direction of the rides. I follow nervously, biting my lip as I look at the rickety rides. I've never been on any of these and many of them rise higher in the air than I'm comfortable with for a traveling band of machines. And last time I was up that high, I vomited. "Which one?" she gives me the option to pick. One of them spins very fast and I can imagine myself puking and the other one is a bunch of swings that rise higher and higher as the ride goes on. Everyone begins choosing. Parker says he's going to sit these ride out because he just ate tacos and shouldn't be swinging or spinning. His absence makes a tie. Three people want to go on the puke ride and the other three want to go on the crazy swings. Everyone turns to me, waiting for me to decide which ride we'll go on first. I begin stuttering. Maddox, with a ticked off look on his face, begins snapping at me to decide. Because he wants to go on the spinning ride, I glare at him and tilt my head to the side. "The swings," I conclude. I fall back in the group with Parker when I realized that I'd just chosen the wrong ride. "You okay?" he asks as he assesses my face. "You look a little pale." I shrugged. "Oh yeah, I'm just excited." Parker shakes his head with a smirk on his lips. "I remember one time a girl's swing buckle came undone and she fell from fifty feet up. Good times." I stare at him before swallowing the lump in my throat. Before I can back out, Cassidy shoves me forward in the line so I'm basically pressed against the fence keeping us from entering. They accept my ticket as I get on the ride and sit in one of the many seats. I buckle myself in and wait for them to come and make sure the belt is done correctly. Cassidy waves at me from the other side of the ride and I wave back with a slightly panicked look on my face. They raise the ride upwards and I feel my stomach drop as they began swinging us. It starts off slow but the speed soon increases and before I know it, we're doing laps around the ride and my stomach feels like it's dropped to my feet, which are swinging as we move. Once the ride ends, I'm the first one off of it. I quickly run out of the ride's gate and stand near Parker, who rubs my back as I try to regulate my breathing. My heart is hammering in my chest as I stare at the swings, which are slowly emptying as people hop off of them. "Are you okay?" Cassidy asks me. I nod my head hastily. "Yeah, I just thought I was going to puke. I shouldn't have had that sandwich before I came," I mumble quietly. Maddox sends me a suspicious look as I stand there, letting out shaky breaths. He continues to stare at me and I start to grow nervous. What if he knows about my fear of heights? I stick my tongue out at him before catching up to Cassidy and Winona, who are busy talking excitedly about the next ride we're going to board. The outcome of that ride is very similar to the last except I actually felt as if I was going to vomit. Every time a ride involving heights ends, I would rush out of the gates and stand outside, dizzy and lightheaded. I'd hide my shaking hands by shoving them in my hoodie after wiping my damp eyes. My stomach would slowly unclench and I'd appreciate the fact that my feet are on the ground. It'd only last a few moments though because Winona would drag us to a ride where our feet were as far off the ground as possible. We'd usually flip upside down a few times, too. At eight o'clock, we stop to eat. I'm grateful because I need a break from all the rides and heights. My heart barely stopped hammering in my chest. After I order my fried dough, I return to to the picnic table where everyone is seated. I finish my food before everyone else and slowly sip my drink. They're all taking their time, talking excitedly about what rides they want to go on next. I'm left staring at the table, praying for this day to come to an end. I really shouldn't be torturing myself but my money is already spent and I read the 'no returns' sign quite clear upon entering. I'm left to either waste my tickets and look like a punk or get on the rides and fit in. Four considerably fun rides later, we're standing in line for the Ferris wheel. I hadn't realized how tall it is until I'm standing directly in front of it, staring it in the face. My nerves are in knots as I stare up at the ginormous wheel while it moves excruciatingly slow. It's lit up with several lights, most of which are blinking bright hues. The array of colors is probably the most exciting thing about the ride, because sitting in a cart as it goes higher and higher for five entire minutes doesn't seem fun at all. I slowly make my way to the back of the line, intending on skipping out on this ride once everyone is seated. I'd blame it on the food in my stomach, which has been making a home in the acid for thirty minutes. I stand behind Raven and Maddox, who are having a conversation. I look at Nicholas who easily backed out. He said he's scared of this ride and wouldn't get on it, telling the story of how he got stuck on one as a kid and was trapped for two hours. He's watching our stuff back at the picnic table. I sigh as I stare at the table longingly. I'd willingly switch places with him. The people who were just on the ride begin filing off and everyone else starts getting on. They're putting two people in each booth. I look ahead to see who'll be getting paired up. Winona and Cassidy.