Page 103 of Starrily
Raleigh got them the cotton candy and held the stick with the sweet, fluffy pink cloud between them, so they could tear off pieces as they walked toward the high striker. The machinemight have been the same from Callie’s childhood; at least, it looked old and worn down enough. A man Callie’s age was tending to the game, shouting out the classic “Step right up!” and “Test your muscles!” to the festivalgoers. He shouted the same at them as they approached, then did a double take and stared at her. “Callie?”
Callie took a better look at him. His hair wasn’t dyed a shocking shade of green anymore, but still—“Levi?”
“The one and the same.” He smiled and dragged her into a hug, finishing with a clap on her back. “Look at you! I’d say you’ve grown, but—” He lifted his hand up and down, hovering around her height.
“Idiot,” Callie said, barely containing her laugh. “You still live here?”
“Nah, moved to New Orleans. But I’m back for the summer, and of course, my folks roped me into helping with the festival. And you? Where’d you go off to?”
A lump of panic lifted into Callie’s throat, but she breathed and let it dissolve. Levi was asking the standard reunion questions. There were no accusations in his tone, no pity, and none of that annoying, snooping curiosity she’d expected. “San Francisco. I work as an astrophysicist.”
Levi whistled approvingly. “Look at you! Well, you always were a smart-ass.”
“She still is,” Raleigh said and offered Levi a hand. “Raleigh. I’m Callie’s friend.”
Callie felt a smidge of annoyance at that word—friend. Not that Raleigh wasn’t … but she hoped he’d be more. He’d already been more. And then she saw that stupid article and completely overreacted and pushed him away without giving him a chance to explain.
When this was all over, and Raleigh’s situation was fixed,shewould have to fix their relationship, too. Tell him she believedhim; that she didn’t care what his intentions used to be, because clearly, they’d changed. She knew, beyond any scientifically proven certainty, that his actions in the past few days, weeks even, had only been to make her feel better. He tried to make her happy.
But he didn’t know hewasher happiness. And one day soon, she’d tell him.
“Really?” Raleigh tapped her shoulder. “I wouldn’t have thought that of you, Phoenix.” He shook his head in pretend disappointment while Levi laughed. “Come on, you have to strike back. Tell me an embarrassing childhood story about Levi.”
Wait—what did that rascal say about her?Never mind.She had plenty of ammunition. “Hmm, what about that time at Tony’s?”
“Oh, no. Don’t you dare,” Levi said.
Callie spread her lips in a wide smile and turned to Raleigh. “He might not look like it now, but when we were kids, Levi had quite the sweet tooth. One day, he tried stealing a lollipop from Tony’s General Store.”
“A delinquent, huh?” Raleigh said.
Levi raised a hand. “I was never proven guilty.”
“Yes, but Tony told us he’d installed ‘anti-child cameras,’ which would instantly detect a thief and teleport them to prison. And strangely, Levi was deathly afraid of going to the general store from that day onward.”
Raleigh tilted his head to Levi. “Teleport to prison? Really?”
“Hey, we were all gullible kids once.”
“I’d call that a draw on embarrassing childhood stories.” Raleigh glanced to the high striker and back at Callie. “Now, Phoenix, are you ready to go?”
Later on, after games had been tested and cotton candy devoured, they walked around the festival, enjoying the music, the mingling of sweet and spicy food smells, and the soft illumination of string lights woven across stalls and tents. Afternoon slipped into evening and the place filled up. But even with the crowd, it wasn’t hard to spot Shanna—hanging around the entrance, she stood out like a sore thumb, not as much because of her outfit, but because of her indecisive shuffling from foot to foot.
Callie hesitated, but Raleigh didn’t; he called Shanna’s name and waved at her. She twitched as if waking up from daydreaming and approached.
“Hi,” she said. “I didn’t know what to do with the rest of my day. Or, in general.”
“Entertainment is usually the right answer,” Raleigh said. “Want us to show you around?”
Shanna looked at Callie as if seeking permission, then at Raleigh, and quickly lowered her eyes. “I suppose I wouldn’t mind the company.”
So around the festival they went again, until they came to an area dominated by a long table, with people gathering in front.
Raleigh raised his chin, sniffed visibly, then raised his eyes above the table. “I knew I smelled chicken wings.”
A bright banner above the table announced, in a bold red-and-orange font,The Hot Wings Competition.
“No,” Callie said.
