"Hurry up, Olivia! I want to ride the Ferris wheel, you know that's my favorite thing," Emma called out to her best friend. It was the last night the county fair was open before she packed up and moved to another city. It was close to closing time, and Emma knew the line for the Ferris wheel would be very long.
"Do not get your panties in a bunch. We are going to ride the Ferris wheel," Olivia said casually as she rummaged in her purse for her cell phone. "I know it's here somewhere," she muttered to herself. Her hands searched all the pockets and secret compartments, but she found nothing. "Damn it. Where is it?" her tone was one of frustration.
Tired of waiting, Emma stood beside her and peered over Olivia's shoulder. "I already know you have bad breath after eating those chili cheese fries. You do not need to freshen up for me," she joked, thinking Olivia was looking for gum.
Olivia was too engrossed in her task to understand her best friend's teasing. "Uh-huh. French fries. Right," she repeated blankly. Her heart raced as she checked her purse again. She could feel the panic rising inside her.
Emma noticed Olivia's frantic behavior and became concerned. "What's the problem?"
"I can not find my phone," Olivia said in a worried voice.
Emma frowned. "You had it when we ate the fries and fried Oreos. I remember because Liam kept texting you."
Olivia grimaced, remembering the argument she'd had with her twin brother.
He had insisted that she find another way home from the fair because he had not given her a ride. He had taken Amelia Oliver. Olivia mentally snorted at the thought. She knew exactly what kind of "ride" Liam would take her on. That was exactly why she refused to sit in the back seat of his car.
"Maybe you left it on the table," Emma suggested. She glanced at her watch, then stretched her neck to get a good view of the Ferris wheel.
Olivia tried to remember if she had taken her cell phone after they finished eating. Her face paled. "Shit, I think I left it there." No sooner had she uttered the words, Emma's face sank with disappointment.
Her best friend knew the fair would close in ten minutes, and there was no way she could cross the fair to get the phone and be back in time.
Olivia immediately picked up on her friend's discontent and made a quick decision. "Get in line. I'll meet you there," she called over her shoulder and ran off in the opposite direction.
She weaved through the crowd as quickly as she could. Her heart pounded as she approached the dining area, and she prayed her cell phone was still there. Olivia hurried to the table where they had been sitting earlier, and saw with great disappointment that the table was empty. She knew it was a long shot, but it still hurt that it was gone.
Angry and frustrated at her carelessness, she kicked the chair. The chair tipped over, causing people around her to stop and stare at her.
Ashamed of her immature behavior, she mumbled a brief apology and bent down to pick up the chair. As she straightened the chair, she noticed a phone lying amidst the grass and dirt. Hope spread through her chest as she picked it up. Sure enough, it was her cell phone!
Relieved to have it back in her possession, she let out a big sigh. Olivia quickly put it in her purse and ran to the Ferris wheel, hoping Emma was still in line.
"Did you find it?" asked Emma as she saw Olivia approaching.
Olivia could not suppress the grin that spread across her face. "I got it!" she announced happily. She leaned over the couple in front of them to get an idea of how long they had to wait. Olivia counted six people and knew Emma would get her wish.
"So, have you talked to Noah lately?" Emma inquired, wanting to know if things had moved on between Olivia and the college boy she had a crush on.
Noah had tutored Olivia during her freshman year of high school. She was having trouble with trigonometry, and her teacher had recommended Noah, an older student, to help her. Every Tuesday and Thursday they met at a local coffee store and went over the material.
Noah was friendly, thoughtful and funny. He never yelled or got frustrated when Olivia didn't understand a particular theory or problem. Over the course of the semester, they'd become closer and would meet for a few hours after tutoring. Olivia had developed a big crush on him and was discouraged when he left for college. They still communicated via text message and email, but mostly sporadically and briefly.
Olivia shook her head in disappointment.
"No," she replied glumly. "He's been busy with his internship." She knew it was silly and cliché to be in love with her tutor, but she couldn't help it. Every time she saw a message from him, her heart raced with anticipation.
"I'm sure he'll write soon," Emma assured her gently. She knew how much her best friend liked him and hated to see her so down. "Maybe you should text him and let him know you're thinking about him. I'm sure he'd appreciate it."
Olivia shrugged. "The thought has crossed my mind, too, but I don't want to seem clingy or overzealous. Besides, it's not like anything would ever come of it. He's a junior in college and I'm a senior in high school."
"Don't be so pessimistic. You never know what can happen. You should text him and wish him a nice day or something. That wouldn't seem clingy," Emma suggested. The line moved forward and Emma began to jump with anticipation.
Olivia laughed at her friend's excitement. Emma really loved the Ferris wheel. "I really don't understand why you're so obsessed with this ride."
Emma looked horrified. "How can you not love it? You can see the whole city from there! Plus, it's so romantic to sit under the stars." Emma's eyes gazed into the distance and glazed over as she imagined herself cuddling with a handsome boy.
In her mind, Olivia rolled her eyes at her friend's words. Emma was a die-hard romantic who believed in fairy tales and a happily ever after. Olivia was more realistic and knew that love brought as much suffering as happiness.
"You know you're going on this ride with me, right?" she asked dryly.
Emma narrowed her eyes and rammed Olivia in the ribs. "Stop ruining my fantasy!" she commanded.
A boy behind them in line overheard their dialogue and stepped forward. "You can ride with me anytime, pretty thing," he grinned at Emma. The smell of cigarettes fogged the air as he spoke. He leaned forward and put his arm over her shoulder presumptuously.
Emma looked at him in disgust, noting that he was about her age. She took his hand between her thumb and forefinger, with her pinky in the air, and threw his arm away from her. "Dream on, buddy."
The boy seemed unfazed by the insult.
"Oh, you'll definitely be in my dreams tonight. Naked." He grinned and his friends behind him laughed.
Emma scoffed and turned around, ignoring the whistles and taunts. "High school boys are disgusting," she said to Keeley, her voice dripping with contempt.
Olivia laughed. "I know. I live with Liam, remember? Why do you think I have a crush on a university guy?" Liam and his friends talked all the time about which girls were the hottest or which were the easiest to lay. They even had a rating system that allowed you to Rate-This-Face.com would put to shame.
The giant wheel attendant opened the gate and waved them forward impatiently. He scowled as they took their seats. "Enjoy your ride," The grumpy man grunted with a forced smile.
The juxtaposition of the two was comical, and the girls couldn't help but giggle.
"Someone's not happy with their job, I guess," Olivia commented.
"He should have been an actor. He could've played Grumpy in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," Emma teased.
A loud voice sounded from the speakers.
"Please keep your hands and feet inside the ride at all times. Wait until the ride has come to a stop before exiting the car." There was a small pause before the voice continued. "And keep ALL unnecessary comments to yourself," growled the voice, clearly annoyed.
The girls looked at each other with wide eyes and burst out laughing when they realized the man had heard them. The train jolted forward and began to turn slowly. The wind rushed past them as they took to the sky.
Emma heaved a small sigh as she stared at the glowing city below them. "We only have a week until school starts. How depressing."
Olivia crossed her legs, causing the seat to sway back and forth. "I do not know. I am looking forward to our senior year. We are finally on top of the totem pole."
"So what? It's not like we have anyone to boss around. At least your brother has all the freshmen football players at his disposal," Emma argued.
At their school, it was a tradition for freshman football players to be assigned to an older teammate. The coaches used this as a mentoring programme, but the football players turned it into something else entirely. They used the rookies as their personal slaves. The rookies had to clean their jerseys, pick up their lunches, and anything else the players wanted. Since Liam would be the varsity quarterback, he had priority over everyone else.
"And God help us when it starts," Olivia said. "Liam's ego already barely fits in his head. I'd hate to see what happens when he has to boss freshmen around." Olivia groaned inwardly at the thought.
"Maybe he's not so bad," Emma's voice sounded hopeful.
Olivia shook her head at her best friend and patted her on the shoulder. "Always the optimist, Emma. When are you going to learn?"
"Oh, come on. You have got to give your brother some credit," Emma placated.
Olivia raised her hands in surrender. "I love my twin, I really do. But Liam is spoiled rotten. He's had everything handed to him with a golden spoon. He barely puts any effort into school or sports, even though he excels at both! He is praised for accomplishments that he takes for granted.
How fair is that?" scolded Olivia.
Emma raised an eyebrow in response.
"Sounds like sibling envy to me," she remarked.
"It's not so much jealousy as frustration.
He thrives on his good looks and charming personality. He could be so much more if he put his mind to it." Olivia shook her head. "But he does not. I see all the untapped potential in him, but he refuses to use it."
Emma shrugged as they began the descent to the ground. "It's his life. Let him live as he pleases," she advised.
Olivia fretted. "The way he's acting, he'll get a girl pregnant before he gets out of high school," she grumbled. She hated the way her brother exploited girls for sex. She'd seen too many girls leave the house crying after he was done with them.
The Ferris wheel came to a stop and the rowdy man stepped forward to let her off. Olivia kept her face to the ground, afraid she would laugh if she looked at Emma or the worker.
The girls hurried away, but not before Emma turned and called over her shoulder, "Have a good night, Grumpy!"
The girls trotted off to the parking lot, glad that their day at the fair had ended well.
"I take it Liam let you down again?" Emma remarked as she noticed Liam's car missing from the parking lot. Olivia's parents had given the twins a silver BMW to share for their birthday, but because of Olivia's football practise, he drove it most of the time. Most of the time Olivia did not mind because she rarely drove except to school and home, but at times like this it really bothered her.
"Big surprise," Olivia said sarcastically. "I know it's inappropriate for you, but do you mind?" She pushed her lower lip forward and looked at her best friend with big puppy eyes.
"Of course I do, you dork. Do you even have to ask? Get in," she pointed to her black Civic.
The girls rolled down the windows and turned on the radio before driving home.
As the car pulled up next to Olivia's house, Emma asked, "So, are we going to the beach tomorrow?"
Olivia nodded. "Yes. I'll text you when I wake up, and then we can get going." She got out of the car and packed up her things.
"Sounds good. See you later," Emma waved and drove off.
Olivia walked up the long driveway to her house and noticed that Liam still had not returned. Knowing him, he was probably at a party with Amelia before he did the horizontal dance.
She guessed he would drunk-dial her around one or two in the morning to ask her to give him a ride home sober.
She entered through the front door and was immediately greeted by her dog, Charlie. He was a five-year-old, brown Labrador Retriever. Although he was supposed to be the family dog, Olivia considered him her dog. She walked and fed him every day, and he slept in her bed every night.
After playing with Charlie for a bit, she went up to her room and got ready for bed. Charlie was already lying on her comforter when she came in. She snuggled under the covers, pulled a book out from under her pillow and began to read.
Reading had always been one of Olivia's favorite pastimes. She loved to lose herself in a book for a few hours and let her imagination run wild. She imagined the characters and setting of each book and it played out like a movie in her head. She loved to read everything from science fiction to autobiographies to romance novels. She read for the next few hours before turning off the light and falling asleep.
