Page 157 of P.S. I'm Still Yours

He, Kane, Drea, and Scar are waiting by Vince’s car—which is the only car in the parking lot aside from Jamie’s—and I’m quick to understand that they all caught a ride together.

I notice Cal isn’t here and remember he told us he couldn’t get out of work so last minute.

I fake a gasp, shutting the passenger door. “Seven whole minutes. Outrageous.”

“We’ve got the biggest fair in the state waiting on the other side of that gate. Every minute counts,” Vince argues.

I can feel Kane’s eyes boring into my skull as we approach the group. I’m careful not to meet his stare, keeping my head down and wishing the sky would swallow me in a scene worthy of an alien abduction movie.

“What are we waiting for? Let’s fucking go.” Vince can’t contain his excitement a minute longer.

His comment springs us into action. Faint music increases in volume the closer we get to the entrance gates. The structures of the rides tower in the distance like steel giants.

“Goddamn,” Scar breathes once we enter the site.

Goddamn indeed.

A sea of twinkling lights illuminates the fair, creating a spectacle of vivid colors and an atmosphere I can only describe as magical. Blue, red, and yellow lights dance and shimmer all around us, casting a glow upon the rides, the game booths, and the food vendors.

Marveland Fair is by far the most popular amusement site in North Carolina. I remember coming here with Gray and my mom a few times as a kid, but it was always during the day and nowhere near as mesmerizing as it is now.

The place was packed every time, and being a tiny little thing, I couldn’t see past the crowd, even standing on the tip of my toes. Not to mention I couldn’t go on most of the rides due to being an inch shorter than the permitted height.

Gray, however, was just tall enough to ride the roller coasters. Let me tell you, I was green with jealousy.

An employee I assume to be the manager comes up to Kane right away. “Mr. Wilder, it is such a pleasure to meet you. An honor, really.”

Kane responds with a polite smile, and the lady proceeds to tell him she has all the fair employees on standby to operate any ride we might want to go on.

“We only have three hours. What’s a ride you guys really want to do?” Jamie suggests when the manager walks away.

“All of them,” Vince deadpans.

We laugh.

He doesn’t.

“I’m serious. I’m not leaving until I’ve done every single ride and thrown up at least once.”

Jamie and I exchange glances.

I don’t think three hours are going to be enough.

* * *

“A hundred grand?” Jamie screeches so loudly the rest of us suffer mini heart attacks. “No way you just spent a hundred fucking grand on three hours.”

Kane shrugs, rearing his arm back and letting the dart fly straight into the red balloon on the board. “What’s the point of having a fuck ton of money if I can’t spend it on my friends?”

Jamie smacks her mouth shut, but it’s obvious she’s appalled by how much this cost him. To be fair, she asked. This is Kane we’re talking about. She should’ve known the answer would be nothing short of ridiculous.

I get that by closing down the fair they’re losing ticket sales, and they need to compensate food vendors and all that, but a hundred grand? Were they really going to make a hundred grand in three hours?

No wonder the manager was sucking up to him. For a hundred grand, she should’ve bowed down and fed him grapes or something.

Scar scoffs, looping his arm around Kane’s neck and shaking his shoulders. “We get it, asshole. You’re loaded.”

Vince angles the paper bag he’s holding backward so that the popcorn inside it falls directly into his mouth. “You fuckers want to do the Detonator? It’s the only ride we haven’t done yet.”

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