Blood & Winter

Chapter 6: Advice from Lucy, Always a Good Thing

     I opened it, to find August waiting for me, he stood leaning against the opposite wall, with a look of utter agony on his face. I was so startled by the look I thought something had happened.         
     "August, what's wrong? What happened? Is someone hurt?" To my surprise he exploded out into a rich hearty laugh.
   "What? No! Ha! Why do you think something happened?" He smiled at me broadly, totally not understanding my reaction to seeing him waiting for me.

      "Well, the look on your face, you looked like you were suffering. I thought something had happened. What were you thinking about though?" I pulled the door closed behind me, and we headed towards the stairs. Our hands pulled towards each other like magnets, fingers once again curling around each other. I was still waiting for an answer to why he looked that way. "Well?"

      "I don't know it just felt like you were gone for so long. I kept looking at my watch, and I swear, it was moving slower than normal. You were actually only in there for less than ten minutes."      
      He reached up and caressed my cheek. We reached the bottom of the stairs and we both pulled out our cars keys.
    "May I? It's already really dark out, and there's no lamp posts. You said you don't like driving in the dark right?"
      "Yea, if you don't mind I would like to drive as little as possible before heading back out onto the actual road."      
      Whenever that would turn out being. I could stay here with him for weeks. Year's maybe. I could also kick myself for letting my mind go off like that. Stop it Cass. Don't get carried away..
      We walked out the door, and he locked it behind us. We got silently in  the car, and he drove in the direction of what I assumed the fair was in. Neither of us spoke for several minutes.

     "Cassandra..." He started to speak, but I cut him off. Hearing him say my full name like that was driving me crazy. I had always hated it when people used the full name, but it slid from his lips like a song and it made my insides melt.

      "August, please, call me Cassie." I felt my cheeks burn.

      "Why? What's wrong with Cassandra? It's a beautiful name. It suits you so well. Do you know what it means?" He gave me a sideward's glance. Ahead of us I could see the lights of the fair getting brighter as we got closer.

      "Um, no, I have no idea. It was my great aunts name. And she was already so old when I met her that I've always felt like it was such an old person's name. Why, do you know what it means?" I was curious now to know why he thought it suited me so very well.

      "Actually, I don't. But it suits you. I bet Emily or Ian will know what it means. They have a thing for that kind of stuff. Names, signs, tarot cards. They are always trying to get me to let them open the cards for me. But I always refuse them." He shook his head and smiled. "They are quirky, those two, but I couldn't imagine my life without them. We have been traveling together for so long now."

      "Why won't you let them open your cards? It's kind of fun you know? You don't have to believe it. But a lot of times you connect to certain cards more than you would imagine possible." I slid my hand over his, which was gripping the gear. We pulled into the fairground parking, got out of the car, locked it and walked towards the entrance to the fair, it was packed, and didn't look like it was anywhere near closing.
      "I just like to be surprised I guess. I would hate to know if something bad was going to happen. I would look for it all the time. And if I knew something really good was going to happen, it would only be the same. So I prefer being kept in the dark." He just shrugged it off; I could tell it wasn't something he liked talking about so I dropped it.
      "How are we going to find them in between all these people?" I couldn't imagine ever being able to find them. I wasn't really big on such large crowds either. I moved closer to August and thread my arm through his.
     "Don't worry, I have a feeling I know where Lucy will keep them all night. She loves the rides. Especially the rollercoasters, so I'm pretty sure that's where they will be. Or somewhere around there. Come on. If we don't find them we can go back to the house if you want." The thought of being alone with him scared me, and thrilled me at the same time. But I decided that it would be better if we found them. I would try really hard anyways.
       "Well I love rollercoaster's too. So even if we don't find them, can we go on a few? You're not afraid are you?" I poked August playfully. As nervous as I was about the sudden intimacy between us, I still felt like I was with a good friend. Someone I just enjoyed being with, and I really did.
      "Of course, I am not afraid. But are you hungry? You haven't eaten anything since breakfast. Let's find you something first." He pulled me in the direction of the concession stands.
       "Well what about you? You didn't even eat breakfast. Aren't you hungry?" I saw a taco stand and redirected us towards it. My stomach suddenly growled at me in anger. I looked at my watch and saw it was about half past nine.
     "Uh, no I think I will wait for the others. But you eat. I saw how your eyes lit up when you saw that taco stand." He grinned that grin at me, and I felt the elephants return to do their jig in my stomach.
     "Well, actually, even if I wasn't hungry, and there were tacos, I would still probably eat at least two." I stuck my tongue out at him teasingly. But it was true actually. I'm a total taco freak.
      I ordered two hard tacos and two soft and suppressed a laugh when I saw August raise his eyebrows.
      "Wow Cassandra, you are hungry." He couldn't help himself but to chuckle lightly. He lead us over to a bench and we sat down, so I could eat.
       "I told you, call me Cassie. Or Cass, hell, call me Andra, just not Cassandra." I said before taking a huge bite of one of the hard tacos.
       "I'm sorry. I have no control over it. It's almost an impulse" He shrugged his shoulders, but not in giving in, in more of a deal with it woman, type of way. I just shook my head and picked up another taco.
       We didn't speak. As I ate we just looked at each other. My legs were thrown over his, and he had one arm thrown around my shoulder. I was about to bite into the last soft taco, when I heard a voice in my ear.
     "What's so bad about your name? Do you know that it means "Shining upon man"? It's Greek." I was startled by the soft female voice in my ear. I nearly dropped the carton holding my last taco, and I heard laughter breaking out around me.
      "Sorry Cassie, I didn't mean to startle you!" I turned to see Emily, Ian, Alex and Lucy standing behind me.           
      "What? Really? See, I told you it doesn't suit me. Me? Shine upon man? Ha! Right, what a joke!" I found myself laughing at the very thought.
       "Cassandra." He refused to get the point. "I don't think you realize how you light up a room just by being present in it." Lucy caught the softness in his voice, and immediately understood that something had happened between us.
       "I always knew that garden would be the end of you one way or another August." Alex started to whistle the wedding tune, and Emily and Ian looked at August and seemed to agree with what Lucy implied.
      Only I didn't understand what exactly she meant.
      "Lucy, what do you mean?" She just smiled down at me and told me to finish my taco.
       "And I hope you won't get sick on the rollercoaster, because as soon as you finish that, I'm stealing you away for a few spins. Just you and me. You don't mind do you August?" She said it teasingly like a younger sister would do to her older brother.
      "Only if you promise to bring her back in one piece, and with a stomach still full of food." He honestly didn't look like he liked the idea very much.
      And oddly enough, I didn't think I wanted to be away from him either. What the hell was wrong with me? I only met this guy yesterday. Maybe I really should have gotten in the car after breakfast and driven away. What am I thinking?
      Lucy must have also noticed the look on my face because she whispered very quietly to me, "I promise just a few rides, I want to tell you something about August."
      This of course immediately got my attention, and I scarfed down the last soft taco in a hurry. "We won't be long." I said as I got up and wiped my mouth on a napkin. I threw the empty carton into the trashcan, almost missing, and took a long drink from the ice cold soda. It refreshed me and I felt much more awake now that I had some food in me. I didn't even realize how hungry I had been.
       Lucy pulled me away from the group and I glimpsed back to see the same look on Augusts face that he had been wearing when I had opened my bedroom door not so long before. I felt a small tug at my heart, but Lucy's tug at my arm brought me back to reality. We headed towards the rides, and she went to the Ferris wheel first.
      "Let's start off with this and give a chance for your tacos to settle ok?" I nodded at her, and we went through the line and stepped into one of the passenger cars on the wheel.
     As it stopped, and filled, and stopped and filled, Lucy rambled on about random things. She didn't mention August the Ferris wheel was finally full, and we were now moving without any more stops. I felt the cool night breeze blow across my face. Smells of popcorn and cotton candy rose up from the grounds below, and the stars in the sky twinkled magically as the moon glowed brightly. It felt like I was in some sort of dream.
       "I have never seen August look at a girl like he looks at you. I mean don't get me wrong, he's had other girl friends before, I can even say he has been in love before, but I have never seen him so totally captivated by someone. What did you do? Let me in on the secret!" She smiled at me sweetly.
      "What?" I stuttered, I had no clue what she was talking about. "What are you talking about Lucy? Nothing happened. I didn't do anything. Honest!" I felt my cheeks turn scarlet as the lie slipped through my lips.
      "Oh come on! That's not fair! We all saw the way you were both looking at each other! Hell, we were standing behind you for five minutes before either of you even noticed we were there! I'm not mad! I'm curious that's all. Didn't you only meet yesterday afternoon?" She looked at me so curiously,
      "Yes, in the diner. Remember how I told you I found and then lost the man of my dreams?" I kept my eyes up to the sky. A little embarrassed by what I was about to admit. She was going to think I was a burger short of a happy meal.
      "Oh My God! You were talking about August? Shut the hell up! You're not serious! I don't believe you!" There she goes with her not breathing bit. "That's just too weird. Well actually no it's not. Weird stuff always seems to follow August." Lucy sighed and looked at me.
       "What do you mean? Is that why he won't let the twins open cards for him?" It seemed odd to me that Lucy was so interested in what had happened between us. "Lucy, don't take this offensively okay? But what's it to you what happened between us today?"
      "I knew it! I knew something happened between you!" Lucy bounced in the car causing it to rock. I gripped the safety bar and shot her a look of loathing. She calmed down and clasped my arm.
      "Please, oh please. Tell me what happened. I'm not being nosey; it's just that August is like a big brother to me!"
    "Okay, okay, just please don't tip us. All we did was kiss. Nothing else I swear!" I couldn't believe I was gossiping with Lucy about August. I really must have some school girl crush. But saying it out loud also brought back the vivid memory of the kiss that had happened only a short time before. The ride had came to an end and we climbed out of the car.
      "Do you mind if we skip the rollercoaster? I'm not chickening out, it's just that..." I looked back in the direction where August and the others were waiting for us.
      Lucy giggled behind me and the groaned theatrically. "Okay okay, let's go. He will kill me if I keep you awaySS any longer anyways. I swear, I can almost feel his anxiousness. But can I give you some advice? August isn't like other guys. He is very..."
       She seemed to be searching for the right word. "Hea's very sensitive. Just be aware okay?" She didn't leave me a chance to respond and ask what she meant.
       Grabbing me by the hand she pulled me in the direction I longed to run in. I had to literally force myself to walk instead of running back to him.