The New Normal

Chapter Thirty Two

"You have to be kidding me," Tyler gritted his teeth as he lost another carnival game.

I bit back a laugh. "I thought you were the master at these games."

We started walking away from the booth where Tyler wasted five dollars trying to win at ring toss but failed completely. He didn't even get one ring on any of the bottles. I kept trying to convince him to stop wasting his money on these games, but I knew it was useless because he would keep going until he won and once he wins, he'll get confident and dish out more money on more games.

Walking along the strip of games and food vendors, I decided to stop at the churro stand and indulge a little. The vendor poked his head out of the window and gave me a once over, smirking, he said, "What can I get you, pretty lady?"

I cringed to myself internally. He looked like he was close to his thirties and he was hitting on a high school student. I turned to Tyler, who was scowling at the churro man. "Do you want anything?"

He eyed the menu and said, "I'll have a hot chocolate with the churro bites."

"Make that two," I smiled, handing the vendor a ten dollar bill.

The man briskly took the money from my hand and got to work, meanwhile Tyler was still scowling at him even though he was in the back. "I don't like that guy."

"Why?" I mused. "Because he called me a pretty lady?"

"That's creepy, he's like, old," he cringed inwardly.

I laughed at his reply and then the vendor poked his head out the food truck's window. "Two hot chocolates and churro bites!"

Tyler reached over and grabbed the food and handed me my hot chocolate. "Are you having fun?"

I took a bite of my mini churros and nodded my head enthusiastically. "I'm so glad we came here. Watching you lose, eating churros, what more could a girl want?"

Tyler chuckled as we walked along the carnival. We were silent, just enjoying our hot chocolates and churros. To our right, we passed Ryan and Stella trying the maple syrup on a stick, then we passed Seth and Kimberly were trying to make gingerbread houses but they were failing profusely due to being outside in the cold and having to wear mitts as a consequence. Finally, Tyler's eyes landed on a game where you had to throw a snowball in attempts to knock down all of the bottles that were stacked in a pyramid. He eyes glinted with mischief. "Hey, are you still afraid of heights?"

I swallowed the last of my churro bites and shot him a worried glance. "Very. Why?"

"I have a proposition for you, Sweetness," he took a long sip of his hot chocolate and then grinned. "If I knock over all of the bottles in the game, you have to go on the Ferris wheel with me."

My eyebrows shot up so high, I could've sworn I felt my knitted toque on my forehead with them. Staring at the game and to the Ferris wheel in the distance, I thought there was no way I'd ever go on that death trap. Especially with someone who hated me not even two months ago and could decide to murder me while at the top and make it look like an accident. But then again, he lost at every game so far, not even winning the smallest of plushies as a prize. I turned back to Tyler and smirked. "Seeing as you lost at all the other games, be my guest, Hale."

"Challenge accepted, Wood," he simply replied, tossing his drink in the garbage can beside us. When I took it, he started stalking over to the bottle game.

I stood and watched him hand the volunteer a five dollar bill and then I looked at the plushies that hung from the display and saw a giant teddy bear wearing a polka dot bow tie. "If you win, I get that bear."

Tyler grasped the large snowball in his hand as he looked up at the bear I was pointing to. He shook his head as he chuckled. "Whatever you want, Sweetness."

Without giving anyone an indicator he was going to throw the ball, he whipped it at the pyramid's base and all the bottles went tumbling over.

My jaw dropped at the same time my stomach did when I realized I would now have to go on the Ferris wheel. "What the hell, Ty?"

The man handed Tyler the giant teddy bear with the polka dot bow tie and Tyler turned to me with a grin as he handed it to me. "What? I told you I was the master."

I held the teddy bear that was nearly bigger than me tightly. "If I die on this Ferris wheel, I'm so going to haunt you for the rest of your life and beyond."

"You're not going to die," he threw an arm over my shoulders. "You'll like it, I promise."

Luckily, the wait to go on the Ferris wheel was longer than expected because nearly everyone at the carnival was in line for the ride. Unfortunately, however, Tyler and I waited for an hour and now we were at the front and was expected to go on next.

"Do we have to do this Tyler?" I clutched the bear tightly. "I will do literally anything to get out of this."

He looked me up and down with his vibrant green eyes and smirked. "Anything?"

"Tyler," I whined and smacked my head on his chest and kept it there.

He rubbed my back in reassuring circles. "You got this, Sweetness. I'll be with you the whole time."

The man running the ride gestured for us to get in and make ourselves comfortable on the metal bench that soon would be lifting us in the air. I sat in the middle, with Tyler on my right and the bear on my left. Being wedged in the middle of the two comforted me to an extent but I still couldn't help the inevitable queasiness I felt as the Ferris wheel start to move upwards. I took a deep breath and leaned closer to Tyler who draped an arm over my shoulders. "Breathe, Sweetness. We're fine, see?"

I looked around and eventually down at the ground where I could see the whole carnival as if it were apart of some microscopic display. It was as equally cool as it was terrifying. My anxiety slowed as I noticed Tyler's calm expression, he actually looked quite adorable staring at the carnival below us, to the dark sky. Finally, his eyes landed on me and a smiled played on his lips.

Snow started to fall as he stared at me and I suddenly felt self conscious at his staring. "W-What?"

"Juliet," he breathed out, tucking a piece of my hair behind my ear, causing butterflies to start a frenzy in my stomach. "Did you know you are absolutely beautiful?"

Before I could respond, his lips were on mine and I felt even higher than any Ferris wheel could take me.