Seasons

The Thing in the Dark

                                                                                        FALL

It was early autumn but the heat from summer was still lingering in the air, a humid stickiness clinging to the city's skin. The sun dipped below the horizon casting the carnival in a yellow orange sunset and the last shadows of the day danced in the light making the ground seem like it had been set ablaze.

The carnival was laid out in a dusty field on the edge of town, filled with food booths, games, and a few attractions. The carnival was part of the town's sixty-fifth anniversary celebration, a chance for people to forget they lived in a small, nowhere town.

I sat in the back of Todd's car, a shit brown Buick the size of a boat Todd had received from his late grandmother. His girlfriend Aimee sat up front next to him, singing along to a song on the radio. We rolled down each unpaved aisle, dirt trailing behind us hunting for an open parking spot.

"Fuck" Todd said, as a car swooped into a spot he had spotted from the other side of the aisle. Turning back down the graveled path in the center of the field, he headed toward the other end of the lot. Finally finding a spot, further away than he wanted but a spot, nonetheless.

We all got out of the car and walked to the main gate, the sound of the festivities grew louder as we approached, laughing as we kicked a rock back and forth between us.

The line to get tickets was short as most people got here in the afternoon and tended to spend the whole day wandering around the grounds. As we made our way up to the ticket booth, we were greeted by an old carnie, his skin was weathered from the dust and sun, his clown make-up faded streak of red ran down his face from the heat. He smiled at us as his tongue flicked between the gaps in his teeth.

"Three tickets please." I said, handing him thirty dollars, as he wordlessly took the money, he spat a wad of chew into a dingy styrofoam cup.

"Haven't I seen ya 'round here a couple days ago," he said, as he fumbled the money into a metal lock box. An acrid stench of tobacco and rot burrowed deep into my nostrils as he spoke.

Holding back a retch, I choked out a sentence. "No, this is my first visit this year."

"Meh, could have sworn, oh well. Here ya go have a good time," he passed us three generic purple admission tickets.

 As we walked away, I looked back to see the carnie, as he watched me intensely a sly grin crossed his face as he turned back to the other patrons in line. I entered the main gate and walked briskly to catch back up with Todd and Aimee. The midway hummed with the sound of fair goers looking at all the attractions and vendors. A silted skull-faced clown, in a black and white striped suit and bright red wig stood in front of the haunted house ride. He stood there while he made grotesque looking balloon animals. His eyes locked on to me as he worked meticulously on a yellow balloon dog with three legs for some kid in overalls complaining that he wanted a green one. I could feel his eyes burning into me as he used his hands to stretch and bend the dog, all without breaking eye contact. When he finished, he handed the dog to the boy as he sneered at me.

 "What was that about?" Aimee said from behind me also watching the tall man, making me jump.

"No idea, maybe he knows me from high school?" I shrugged as we moved on to the attraction ticket booth.

A teenage girl with yellow zig zags running through her black hair sat inside the small kiosk. Her gaze focused on us as she dispensed tickets to the other customers. Smacking her gum as we approached and bought our tickets. As she handed me mine her lip curled, and she cocked her head giving me a small sideways smile. Something about her look shook me to my core and sent chills running down my spine.