When nineteen year old Chelsea moves into the house on Linden Avenue, it's a chance for her to reinvent herself. A clean slate to be the teenager she never got the chance to be. Having had the responsibility dumped on her pretty much all her life, s...
AFTER A WEEK, it's apparent that Taylor plans on staying longer than a few days. In that time she recovers some of her old self. Chelsea comes home from the library one day and as soon as she passes the threshold of her door, a paper plane is thrown her way.
"Don't change. We're going out."
Chelsea shoots her a look of scepticism and unfolds the paper plane to find it advertising an ice cream stall, the fancy type that's rolled up and put into little cups, near the pier.
"I can't. I have homework."
"You always have homework." Taylor rolls her eyes.
"Yeah, and school. You know, the thing you dropped out of."
"Don't do this now." She sighs. "Can I not treat you for once?"
Chelsea bites back her words once again. A part of her wonders how long this is going to last. How many more days until she comes to an empty house. It wouldn't be the first time.
At last, she sighs in resignation. "Fine."
They take the bus. The journey isn't long, taking around thirteen minutes and when they arrive, the pier is semi-busy. It's golden hour, the perfect time to come outside. Or take pictures. Which is exactly what Taylor does, quickly snapping a photo of the pair on Chelsea's phone before handing it back.
She didn't even know it was gone. She decides not to question it. Yet. Instead, she faintly hears the screams of the passengers from the rollercoaster ride.
"Nefarious."
"What?"
"The name of the ride." Taylor tilts her head to the side, the light catches strands of her hair, turning them a honey colour. "You haven't been?"
They join the line queuing for ice cream. "I haven't been in town that long."
"It took me a while to find you."
"How did you find me?"
"I have my ways." She says mysteriously, pulling out a few dollar bills when they come to the front of the line. Chelsea watches as she hands the notes to the guy behind the counter with an uneasy feeling. "I was only just in Stonecrest."
Chelsea remembers looking at it on a map, it's a town before Belmont. Or after, depending on the way you looked at it.
"What were you doing there?"
"You know I can't tell you."
"Can't or won't?"
"Won't. So drop it." And just like that, the conversation ends. Chelsea opens her mouth to reply but thinks better of it. If Taylor wasn't willing to give any answers, anything she says now won't change her mind.
Taylor watches their rolled ice-cream being made with big eyes. She contains a child-like delight up until her ice-cream is finished and suggests they go on the rides, mini argument forgotten. Dragging Chelsea by the arm, Taylor thrusts the pair into the throng of the crowds. There are a lot more people on the fairground. It's hard to keep a track on which way Taylor goes and soon enough Chelsea loses sight of her.
She cranes her neck to see any glimpse of her but there are too many people. Pulling her cell out a minute later, she realises Taylor doesn't have one yet. Shoving it back into her pocket, Chelsea resorts to the old fashioned method, wandering around until she sees her again. The first place she thinks to look is the queue for Nefarious. Taylor had always liked the thrills in life.
She stands in the line for the roller coaster, ice-cream half eaten, in vain hope that Taylor will be there but when she comes to the front of the queue there's still no sign of her. Instead, to her surprise, she sees Will manning the ticket booth. She remembers him telling her he worked here.
As always, he has his headphones around his neck. The sleeves of his hoodie are rolled up and there's a black Armani watch on his left wrist.
"How many will it be?" He says, not looking up.
"Hi, Will."
He looks up, surprised. "Chelsea, hey."
"Did you see my sister come this way by any chance?"
He sobers immediately. "What does she look like?"
"Blonde," She says the first thing that came to her mind. Then adds, ". . . and probably hyper from a sugar rush."
"That's not narrowing the field." He chuckles.
Her reply is cut off suddenly.
"What's holding you!"
"Move up the line!"
There are yells from behind as people become impatient.
Embarrassed, Chelsea slaps down a chip for a single person. Her pockets are lined with more of the chips that they'd purchased upon entry and Taylor can't get on any of the rides without them. So she'll have to find Chelsea eventually who, for the moment, shuffles to where the gate is to be let onto the ride.
The rest of the seats fill up quickly. Nefarious is a popular ride. It's not until the car begins to creak forward that Chelsea realises she's still holding her ice cream. She won't be in a couple of minutes.
Luckily for Chelsea, she has a good head for heights. When the ride goes verticle, she takes a moment to admire the view. On one side is the ocean, glittering with the afternoon sun. On the other side, she sees the rows of houses like lego bricks. If she looks carefully enough she can make out her own house and a small figure in the lawn beside her own.
Zach.
Beside him is someone else. From this distance, they look just a little bit bigger than ants. But Chelsea knows the guy is the same as the one she's seen before, the one always engaged in an argument with Zach before driving away.
She doesn't see the rest because at that moment the ride reaches its peak, the shrieks of others and her own fill her ears as the car suddenly zips down. A laugh bursts through her lips as the car goes through the twists and turn, feet suspended in the air. He laugh sounds foreign even to her.
By the time her feet are planted back on solid ground, she spots Taylor by Will's booth. She waits to be released from the car before making her way over. Taylor has two sticks of candyfloss in her hands and thrusts one her way once Chelsea's in touching distance.
Before Chelsea can say anything, Taylor loops their arms together and begins pulling her away from the booth, looking over her shoulder once to flash Will a million dollar smile.
"Nice meeting you."
"You too." He smiles back but with a blush creeping up his ears.
Chelsea waits until they're out of hearing range before asking, "What did you do to him?"
"Nothing." She says innocently. But Chelsea knows Taylor. And Taylor is the opposite of innocent.
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