Chapter 28
28
Esther
A loud thud smacked Esther out of her sleep.
“What, huh?” She shifted, and a wet spot smeared under her cheek. Oh god, she was drooling.
“We’re going out.” August stood in front of them, tapping a flyer in the middle of the table and blocking the movie she was watching with Ashley.
Crap, she was using Ashley’s thigh as a pillow. What were the chances Ashley hadn’t noticed this wet spot?
“What’s all this noise about?” Uther shuffled down the hall in his fluffy purple robe, rubbing at his eyes, his blond hair sleep-mussed.
“This is about you two.” August sent accusatory fingers at both her and Uther.
“Me?” Uther squeaked. “I just got here.”
Esther pushed into a seated position, stretching a kink out of her shoulder. “I think I missed something.”
Ashley still hadn’t said anything but reached past Esther for the flyer lying on the table.
“It’s ten pm on a Thursday night, and you both are asleep.” August’s scolding was just warming up. It was too late in the day for this kind of energy. Although, she did feel bad about sleeping through the movie again.
Uther pulled his robe up tight, muffling his words. “You know the sun makes me sleepy.”
Esther nodded along. It was an energy drain.
“We are still in our twenties.” August wasn’t having any of Uther’s valid points. Now he had hand gestures to go with his rallying cry. “Our week of fun and forgetfulness is almost up, and what have we done? Gone to bed early so we can be up at a reasonable hour? Sleeping by the beach?”
“Well, this is a vacation…” Uther mumbled.
Esther nodded again, pointing at Uther to show her support.
“Love.” August bundled up Uther in his arms, kissing him gently on the forehead. “You are so smart and so cute, but that’s not the answer I’m looking for. Ashley?” He pointed to the couch, and Ashley looked around, as though unsure she was the Ashley he was talking to. “What is this?”
She looked down at the paper in her hand, and Esther watched in real-time as a spark lit and caught flame in her eyes. “This is spring break.”
Oh no. What was on that piece of paper?
Ashley hopped up from the couch, full of energy. “We’re on spring break!”
She tossed the paper in the air, letting it flutter back to the couch. Esther snatched it before it landed, reading quickly.
Carnival in the Moonlight, one night only, beachside.
“Help me rally the troops?” August was alight with excitement, and for a moment, Esther thought the two of them might hug.
“We should do shots,” Ashley cheered.
Esther rose and shuffled toward Uther while Ashley and August strode to the kitchen discussing rum shots.
“It only took a few months and locking them in a shack together,” Esther said, “but I think they’re finally getting along.”
“Don’t let them fool you,” Uther whispered. “They text each other constantly. They’re both just too stubborn to admit they’ve been friends for ages now.”
“Esther,” Ashley said. Esther turned to see Ashley with a shot in each hand. “Prepare yourself, sweetheart. We’re going out.”
Esther sighed and accepted the small cup Ashley handed her. For her and only her, she would take off her comfy pajamas and don her outdoor clothes again. “All right.”
She clinked Ashley’s glass and took the shot.
Esther
Pop, pop, pop. “Die, ducks!”
“Esther, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this bloodthirsty. It’s a bit of a turn-on.” Ashley’s cool hand rested lightly on her lower back, but Esther’s attention was on the row of carnival ducks merrily quacking across the stand in front of her. To her right, Uther lined up his shot.
“We’ve got a close race here, folks.” The carnival worker was eating up the attention they attracted. “One more round to find our winner.”
“You’ve got this, sweetheart.” Ashley kissed her cheek as the guy behind the booth stood to the side and counted down. “And I hear you mumbling over there, August! No cheating.”
August pressed a hand to his chest. “I would never.”
But Esther was no longer paying attention. The obnoxious carnival music, the tick-tick-swish of nearby roller coasters accompanied by a chorus of screams, and the salty sea breeze mixed with stale popcorn all faded as she lifted the small, plastic rifle to her shoulder and ground the ball of her foot into the hard-packed sand. A horn sounded, and the back of the stand clanked into motion as three rows of two-dimensional, wooden ducks crisscrossed in and out of view.
Pop ! The first duck she lined up disappeared in a spatter of pink powder before she pulled her trigger.
“Keep up, Esther.” Uther lined up another duck and fired.
The game only lasted a minute. Pop, pop, pop! Three ducks disappeared in a cloud of green. Esther had never held a gun in her life, and she wasn’t even sure this counted. But the adrenaline coursing through her said not to stop shooting.
Another blast from the horn and the ducks stopped their journey.
“A close game folks, but we have a new record tonight. Congratulations to Player Pink!”
“Yes!” Uther jumped into August’s arms.
“Damn it!” Esther threw her gun onto the counter. The clang of plastic hitting wood startled her out of her red haze of frustration. “Oh my god.” She turned to Ashley, a terrible realization coming to her. “I’m a terrible sport.”
“You’re a bad loser.” Ashley wrapped her arms around Esther’s waist, a smile spreading across her face and warming the night. “I did not see this coming, but I love this about you.”
Esther pressed her face into Ashley’s shoulder, hiding her smile and the way her cheeks warmed when Ashley looked at her like that.
Tonight was what this week was supposed to be when Esther pictured a week away. The two of them out of the house, having fun. It was Ashley’s limitless energy that had first drawn Esther, and tonight under the flashing lights and sounds of the carnival, Ashley was alive and glowing.
“All right, lucky winner.” The booth keeper gestured to the wall of hanging stuffed animals. “What will it be?”
“The goat.” Uther pointed to a floppy goat hanging from the ceiling, a flower fastened to its collar. The man pulled it down for him, and Uther hugged it close. “All right, what next?”
“I vote Gravitron.” Ashley pointed to the nearby spinning-and-flashing spaceship. Screams filled the night from the hidden interior.
“Sure.” Esther shrugged. “I haven’t been on one in forever.” She took Ashley’s hand and started to the metal corral to join the line for the next group.
“Actually.” August’s voice stopped her, heels shifting in the sand as she turned back. “Uther was saying he wanted a churro.” August’s eyes flicked between the flashing ride and Esther, his throat working. “So, we’ll…umm, we’ll just meet you two afterward.”
Uther tilted his head and squinted before August elbowed him. “Oh! Yeah, I definitely need a churro. Right now.”
He nodded firmly, threading his fingers through August’s.
Esther recognized the way Uther’s lips pinched at the corners to hide a smile. She shrugged. “More time with Ashley.”
She grabbed Ashley’s hand and dragged her to the corral, anxious to not miss the next ride.
“Did that feel fishy to you?” Ashley looked back to where August and Uther disappeared into the crowd. Yellow and red streaks flashed through Ashley’s hair as the ride slowed, and Esther realized she couldn’t care less if August was scared of roller coasters.
“Hey.” She took Ashley’s hand and wrapped it behind her, pulling Ashley close. “I don’t think I’ve seen you in a crowd before. I’m kind of enjoying the novelty.”
“Is that so?” Ashley’s free hand slid behind Esther’s neck, her thumb tracing Esther’s jawline. “Are you a fan of PDA, Esther Green?”
Esther bit her lip. She couldn’t recall being into public kissing, but at this moment, she wouldn’t say no to whatever put that spark in Ashley’s eye.
“All aboard! Step right up folks, tickets here. Come defy gravity in our Gravitron.”
Esther fumbled in her pockets for her stash of tickets. Why did her shorts have to be so tight? Her fingers touched crumpled paper as Ashley stepped up to the doorway. Esther passed the ticket taker two wilty tickets and slipped inside after her.
Ashley had laid claim to two adjacent panels on the far side and was flagging her over.
“Ready?” Ashley took her hand.
Before she responded, techno music blasted from the speakers, and the ticket taker hopped into the center console, instructing them to take their positions because they were blasting off. Esther leaned against the hard pleather, meeting Ashley’s eyes as the room started spinning. This evening, with the lights and the crowds and this ridiculous music, with the sticky sweet carnival smells and just being young with her friends, and now here in this tiny moment with Ashley. It all felt so horribly, beautifully normal in every way Esther could have possibly hoped for.
Esther gripped Ashley’s hand as they picked up speed. Gravity pressed her body against the hard plastic cushion until her panel flew up to the ceiling, shaking loose a startled scream.