Chapter Eight
Then
About a month after she’d overmedicated on Fireball shots at the spin-the-bottle party, senior year of high school began.
In the madness of back to school, Piper had pushed away all thoughts of Wyatt’s lips hovering over hers in the closet that
night. Well, almost all thoughts. Now that he was officially finishing high school at Cedar Falls, her breath would catch
every time she saw him in the halls as the sensation of their almost kiss came roaring back. But most of the time, she remembered
the strength of their friendship, the fact that he was Allie’s cousin, and how important it was to her not to do anything
to jeopardize the Lonely Onlys.
On this particular October Saturday, Ethan’s dad gave each of them a crisp one-hundred-dollar bill and, with strict instructions
to have as much fun as possible, dropped them off at the state fair. They spent the mild fall day gorging on fried Oreos,
turkey legs, and every flavor of cotton candy. Somehow no one puked after the Tilt-A-Whirl or the log flume. Though the sudden
descent made her want to die, Piper rode a few roller coasters. But only Wyatt was brave enough to try the Gravitron, where
the floor dropped out from under the passengers while they were spinning at high speed.
They waited until dark to ride the Ferris wheel. When they reached the front of the line, Wyatt slid into the four-person car beside Piper, his weight next to her as warm as the glowing fair lights. Allie and Ethan filled out the other side.
The wheel started off slow and peaceful. Jovial music blared through speakers, and the lights from other rides glittered like
Christmas lights all around them. This was a snapshot moment, the kind she wanted to remember forever—surrounded by her best
friends, under the safe blanket of night with the warm autumn breeze on her face.
Their car swung to a halt at the very top of the wheel with a sickening grind, shattering her perfect moment. Ethan peered
out over edge, rocking the car until it swung precariously.
“This is so cool. I think we’re stuck!” Allie whipped her phone out to record a video. “Now we get to ride even longer!”
Piper peeked over the edge and regretted it immediately. They were higher than she remembered from previous years, the people
below as small as ants. She gripped the metal sides tight. Why weren’t there seat belts or a safety harness on this thing?
Wyatt leaned down to whisper in her ear. “Hey, keep breathing. In through your nose and out through your mouth.”
She did as he instructed, fighting the panic rising in her. Was there less oxygen up here? Why couldn’t she get enough air
in her lungs?
Ethan shifted again, jostling the car from side to side. Piper gasped.
“Watch it,” Wyatt growled at Ethan.
“What if the wheel’s broken, and we’re stuck up here forever?” Piper asked, her voice small.
“Come on, P. They’d bring the fire ladders or something to get us down,” Ethan said.
“Great, so I can break my neck falling down a fifty-foot ladder?” Piper buried her head in her hands.
Ethan peered over the edge. “I’d say it’s more like two hundred feet.”
“Cool it, Ethan,” Wyatt warned, sliding closer to Piper and snaking his arm around the back of her seat. “Piper, I won’t let you fall.”
Allie turned back around. “Are you okay, Pip? You’re looking green.”
Piper shook her head, moving as few muscles as possible to keep the car’s balance.
The car lurched forward a foot, then stopped again, drawing whistles and cheers from the other passengers. Piper whimpered
and turned her face in to Wyatt’s chest, matching his breath to calm herself.
Wyatt tightened his arm around her. “Hey, remember when Ethan used to get nervous about riding his bike up the big hill when
we were in middle school?”
Piper lifted her head, squinting at him.
Wyatt grinned. “What was the song we used to sing so he’d forget to worry about not making it to the top?”
“Wyatt,” Piper warned. She could see where this was going, and she wasn’t in the mood to sing.
“Oh wait, I remember.” He winked at her, then launched into the opening verse of “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” the words
coming out low and confident. He wiggled his eyebrows at her as he drew out the “babe” at the end of the chorus.
Laughter bubbled out of Piper.
“Come on, help me out with the rest.” He nudged her.
Piper shook her head, nerves still freezing her in place.
Across from them, Allie didn’t skip a beat and picked up in her clear soprano where Wyatt had left off. After a few lines,
Ethan jumped in, belting off-key loud enough to attract cheers from their fellow passengers.
Wyatt mimed handing a microphone to her. “Come on, Piper!”
Her fear gave way to laughter, her lungs filling with enough air to speak. Gamely, she sang the well-known lyrics with her
friends as they all launched into a resounding reprise of the chorus.
Nearby Ferris wheel riders joined on the next verse, and before long, a cacophony of voices rang out in the glittering night. Somehow Piper’s nightmare scenario had morphed into a sing-along straight out of a movie, and she had Wyatt to thank for that.
Piper snuck a glance at him. His face glowed with the tango of flashing bulbs all around them. She loved this side of him—the
goofy, carefree parts he rarely showed others. His secret self. He caught her gaze and rewarded her with a dazzling dimpled
smile that sent the oxygen whooshing out of her lungs again.
Before the song ended and Piper could panic again, the ride shifted into motion, bringing them back to the ground unscathed.
After climbing out of the Ferris wheel car, Allie pointed to the giant roller coaster one ride over. “Look, there’s no line
for the coaster. Let’s go again!”
“Yes!” Ethan pumped a fist in the air.
Piper shuddered, her lungs constricting again. She’d had her fill of adrenaline-inducing rides for the night.
“I want to check out some games before the fair closes,” Wyatt said. “Piper, wanna come with me?”
She nodded, already backtracking away from the coaster after Wyatt, and called to Allie and Ethan, “We’ll meet you guys at
the exit in thirty minutes. Have fun!”
Once Piper and Wyatt reached the games area, the crowd had thinned. Most fairgoers were trickling out or setting up to watch
the fireworks that marked the night’s end. They played Whac-A-Mole and balloon darts with little success, then tried their
luck at the ring toss.
“Damn it.” Wyatt threw his arms up in defeat as his last ring ricocheted off a peg. “I swear they rig these games!”
“Probably.” Piper laughed at the scowl on his face. “Come on, Wyatt. Do you really need a stuffed banana with a mustache that
badly?”
His gaze flicked to the ground. “I wanted to win something for you.”
Piper’s cheeks grew hot, the straight-from-a-movie romantic gesture making her blush. Not that this was a romantic gesture.
She couldn’t think that way. “I’m all out of tickets. How many do you have left? Maybe fourth time’s the charm.”
He pulled the remaining tickets out of his pocket and scanned the games. “I’ve got enough for us to both do the basketball
toss.”
They were the only two players in the game, and to their surprise, Piper won by one point. Smiling, she selected a small bug-eyed
stuffed frog as her prize.
“We used your ticket.” With a flourish, she presented the plush amphibian to Wyatt. “You earned this.”
He shook his head but accepted the prize with a smile, tucking it reverently into his jacket pocket. “Come on, let’s go meet
Allie and Ethan.”
He placed his hand on her back, guiding her toward the exit. The gesture was subtle, but he might as well have stuck her with
a hot poker. Warmth radiated from his touch, making it hard to think about much else. When they joined the crowd gathered
to watch the fireworks, Allie and Ethan hadn’t arrived yet.
“Hey, thanks for earlier, on the Ferris wheel,” Piper told Wyatt. “And for getting me out of another horror show of a ride.
And for being so nice to me tonight.”
Wyatt chuckled. “What do you mean? I’m always nice to you!”
He was always nice to her, but something about this felt different. More meaningful. But how could she explain that? An explosion
of color and sound overhead interrupted her before she could try.
Wyatt kept his arm around her until the last firework exploded.