Then there was Summer Vaughn, standing even farther back in line. She, he liked, somewhat. She was quiet, studious, and kept mainly to herself. She had a few friends, and thankfully didn’t run with the wild bunch at school. He liked the look of her, too. Simple, pretty in an uncomplicated way. No heavy makeup or loads of hair products on her. It was just too bad she ignored him just like everyone else at Crooks High.
Sometimes he had to wonder if he even existed at all.
Maddie slid in next to her brother Justin on the ride. He managed to untangle the seatbelt and pull it across their laps to secure it to the clip on the ride’s car.
“I hate this ride,” she announced as Justin readjusted the belt to make sure it was tight and secure.
“Why? It doesn’t go too fast.”
“It goes backwards. I don’t like not seeing where I’m going.”
“Mad, we’re going in a circle. What could you possibly want to see?”
Justin was right, of course. Justin was always right. Such was the plight of having a perfect brother. Everyone thought he was perfect. Mom. Dad. Now Gran, who they were staying with over the summer. Didn’t she just say to Maddie before they came to the carnival how she thought Justin was so damn perfect and asked why Maddie couldn’t be more like him? Well, she might not have said those words exactly, but Maddie knew she was thinking them. Such was the life of having a perfect twin brother. The comparisons were endless.
“What did Mom say when she called?” she asked as they waited for the rest of the cars to be loaded.
“Nothing much.”
“Did she say when she was coming back?”
“No.”
“Did she say how Dad was doing?”
“No.”
“Well what did she say?”
“I told you, nothing much.”
Sighing, Maddie watched the other riders get on. It had been over three years since she and Justin had spent any significant time in Crooks, yet she wondered if any of the kids would remember her. She did experience her first real kiss with a boy from Crooks. A dark-haired boy with serious eyes. She couldn’t remember his name but she was sure she’d recognize him if she saw him again. A boy with longish black hair walked past to get into the car behind them. She followed his progress. Could that be him? She couldn’t tell because of the dark sunglasses he wore. Maybe she’d find out after the ride was over.
“Is she going to call back tonight?” she asked her brother, who was busy fingering the green canvas scrunched up next to the car.
“I don’t know. She didn’t say.”
“Well if she does, I want to talk to her.”
“Yeah, sure, whatever.”
“I’m going to find out what the hell is going on.”
“Maddie, don’t. You know she’d tell us if it was going to happen.” He sighed. “If they’re getting a divorce, we’ll know.”
“Like hell we will. The kids are always the last to know. You know my friend Tanya? When her parents got divorced she didn’t know until her dad packed his car with his stuff and drove away. Now she only sees him like once a month.”
“Can we just chill and enjoy this ride, please?”
“Fine.” She crossed her arms over her chest.
Carnival World, Episode 1 - Chapter One
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