The Darkness of The Light

Old friends and ferris wheels

As we pull out of the hotel parking lot, he explains to me that we're going to a fair, and is completely shocked when I reply that I've never been, an emotion that changes to amusement as he hears my stomach growl. He stops at a place called Subway, a name that I can only vaguely remember as he opens the door for me, the smell of meat and vegetables overwhelming me.

I stare in wonder at the lights of the restaurant as we order subs, and he seems amused at the fact that I don't know what flat bread is. We get our food, and find a seat a small corner booth, leather seats crackling beneath us. I nervously take a bite of my sub, closing my eyes and savoring the sweet taste of tuna. It is leagues ahead of bologna, the meat that in this moment seems about as appetizing as dirt itself. A girl trips over the frame of the door and falls, snapping me out of my flavorful euphoria, and I rush to help her. She locks eyes with me, and a visible gleam appears, like a star shooting across her cornea, "Sarah? No fucking way."

I rack my brain for any semblance of a memory of this girl, "Y-yeah! It's me! I haven't seen you since we were what, seven?" I stammer, gawking at her. I still can't recall who she is, but I don't have the heart to tell her. She seems so happy to see me, and I wouldn't dare ruin her mood. She rambles about her school, and life, and her boyfriend, Jacob. I smile as I listen to the details, trying desperately to pretend that I know half of what she's talking about.

She sighs happily, "Well, I have to go, but it was really nice seeing you again after all this time!" A man that I can only assume is Jacob walks up and puts an arm around her. He seems to remember me as well, a smile lighting up his face. Unfortunately, he is yet another face I can't remember. We say our goodbyes, and they're gone. I reclaim my seat with Thomas, cracked leather deflating beneath me.

"Who were they?" He inquires, genuine curiosity lighting up his eyes. I furrow my brows, trying once more to bring from the darkest parts of my brain a memory of them, but fail.

"I honestly don't know. I think they were my friends, once." I utter, smiling defeatedly.

Before I know it, we find ourselves at the fairgrounds, the smells of sugary, greasy food drawing us closer. "So you've really never been on a Ferris wheel before?" He shouts over the overpowering ambiance of the evening crowd.

"Never!" I yell back. He smiles, and we get in line to wait. The time passes painfully slow the moment we find ourselves in the queue. It seems like every other line is moving a mile a minute, but ours refuses to budge. By the time we get to the front, the sun has long since set. We get on, and go up,up, up... And the Ferris wheel squeals to a halt at the top. We dangle there, above the city, watching the people hundreds of feet below below watch us.

I suddenly realize my newfound fear of height.

Thomas wraps his arm around me in an attempt to calm me down, "You're shaking like a leaf! You'll be okay. I promise." I take the opportunity to really look at him, partially as a distraction from my anxiety, and partially out of sheer curiosity. He's quite attractive, and you can see years' worth of sleepless nights in the sockets below his deep brown eyes. I can't help but wonder what he thinks about when he can't sleep. Is he afraid of the dark, too?

Suddenly, the Ferris wheel jolts back into movement again, and we get off at the bottom.

"That's definitely not what I was expecting in my first ride." I laugh nervously, grateful to see the ground beneath my feet again. I smile up at him, and the world around us seems to pause for a moment. I can't quite place what I'm feeling, but it's nice. We begin walking through the fairgrounds, taking in the excitement around us. At some point, our knuckles brush ever so slightly against each other, and his hand finds mine, fitting naturally. My heart skips a beat and that feeling from before reclaims its place in my brain. We walk back to the truck, hand in hand.