Playing With Fire

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

After the world's quickest shower, I change into my favorite patchwork blue jeans and a white tank top with an I, a heart, and a picture of Darth Vader on the front. What can I say? I'm a sucker for the redeemably evil.

Dad still hasn't made it home by the time I leave to pick everyone up. "Sweet Jane" is playing on the radio when I pulled up to Derek's house, an oldie but a goodie. I crank the volume.

Waiting for me, Derek is wearing black pants and a blood-red shirt with frilly sleeves and red lace down the front. It strikes me as strange that he's was sitting outside in the dim glow of the porch light alone, but when he opens the car door to get in, I understand. Even over the stereo I can hear the shouting coming from inside his house. A man's voice, then a woman's, then a man's again. At that volume, it will only be a matter of time before the Military Police show up. Derek's face is hard and stiff, shut down. He stares straight ahead, not speaking. He doesn't even take a breath until we're out of sight of his house.

"You okay?" I ask gently.

He nods. I hold out his tiny silver stud and he takes it with long, slender fingers.

"It's my dad. He's kind of an asshole when he drinks." He smiles humorlessly, "And when he doesn't drink."

I say nothing, but crank the radio a little louder, as if I can somehow drown the voices I know he's hearing inside his own head.

It's a short drive from there to Kayla's. She' s chattering away as soon as she gets into the car. Listening to her ramble about a new movie that had just come out, I see why Derek likes her so much. She's human white noise, a constant voice to cut through the uncomfortable silence. I wonder if she realizes that she is exactly what he needs, the missing piece to his life puzzle. I also wonder if I'll ever find someone who could be that for me. Someone who knows what I need without being told.

Even with her loud, pink hot-pants and oversized zebra-print top, she is pretty. Her now-wavy hair is pulled back into a ponytail, showing off her long silver earrings. Upon closer inspection, they turn out to be miniature razor blades dangling from her lobes.

"Bianca can't come. Her family is making her go to some party for her grandmother or something. So it's just us," Kayla says cheerfully, zooming right back into describing the movie in detail for Derek.

Reid is also waiting outside for us when we pull up. He has on a pair of chinos and a white collared shirt with the top buttons open. A pair of black Chuck Taylor sneakers completes the look. He looks hot, standing there with his hands in his pockets. Clark Kent hot, I think with a smirk. When I pull up he runs a hand through his dark brown hair and waves, making my heart stutter just a little.

Derek and Kayla happily squeeze into the backseat leaving Reid and I inches apart, our arms barely touching across the middle console. Where his flesh grazes mine, goose bumps broke out across my skin.

"Hey, you clean up nice," I say.

"You're not too shabby yourself," Reid jokes before leaning his head back to talk to the others. "You guys eat yet?"

"Nope." Derek answers.

"Me neither," Kayla chimes in.

"I had a snack, but I could eat," I say when he turns to me.

"Let's hit Bayside before we head for the beach," he suggests.

Kayla groans, rolling her eyes.

"What's Bayside?" I ask curiously.

"It's an institution," Reid answers, his expression serious.

"Yeah, if you're talking about the quality of the food," Kayla snorts.

Reid waves her off. "Pay no attention to her. The food's good, the atmosphere's great, and they have the best coffee in town."

Kayla groans again as we pull through the main gate, Reid directing me as we go.

***

Reid was right about the coffee, but Kayla was right about the food, so it's a toss-up. There is definitely something to be said for the greasy-spoon restaurant with its bright yellow booths and greenish walls. The waitress, whose name tag actually read "Flo," was sweet and kept the coffee coming. I don't drink coffee often, but it was warm and good, and by the time we leave, I'm feeling a touch jittery.

The Circle was about a twenty-minute drive away, so it's dark by the time we arrive. I'm almost afraid we're lost when, over the horizon, a sparkling, twinkling, well-lit wonderland emerges. We park a few blocks down the boardwalk and hike back to the large roundabout that is known simply as the Circle. There's a Ferris wheel, some bumper boats and even go-karts. It's like a circus that never leaves town. People laugh and music crackles through overhead speakers, not quite drowning out the sound of the waves crashing in the distance.

It's amazing.

"So what do you want to do first?" Reid asks, turning to me.

I stare in wonder at the rides and games, trying to decide. It's so crowded and so bright that I can't quite take it all in.

"Let's ride the big wheel. I want to see this from up high," I suggest.

He breaks into a pleased grin and leads me to the line.

"Heights aren't really my thing," Kayla says apologetically before tugging Derek by the hand and vanishing into the crowd.

I wonder if she's truly afraid of heights, or whether it's just her not-so-subtle way of giving Reid and me some privacy. I cringe internally. Reid is handsome, and sweet, and genuinely fun. So what is my problem? Just go for it, the before voice whispers in my head. I smile, forcing myself to relax.

"So, I have to ask, your name, Farris, is there a story behind that?" he asks.

I shake my head, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "No, it's not Ferris like Ferris wheel. It's from Ferris Bueller's Day Off. My mom had a thing for the movie."

Reid hands our tickets to the burly ride operator and helps me into a seat with his hand at the small of my back. As he closes the metal rail over our laps, I see a familiar face in the crowd. It was the small blonde girl, Oliver's sister, sitting on a bench eating an ice cream cone. If I didn't know better, I'd have sworn she was looking right at me. I don't have time to stare at her for long because soon we were being lifted into the sky. I turn my eyes away for just a second, watching the reflection of the lights dancing on the crisp water rolling in and out on the sand beyond, and when I look back she's disappeared into the sea of people beneath me. If she was here, did that mean Oliver was here somewhere, too? Was it possible the game was over already?

"Are you okay? You look distracted," Reid observes.

"I thought I saw Oliver's sister down there. I can't remember her name."

"It's Georgia. Like the state," he says with a slight frown.

"That's right. Sorry, it was bugging me. I'm kinda bad with names."

He's still frowning. This is gonna kill me, I decide, taking a deep breath.