FIFTH HOUR
9:30PM
"did you enjoy?" luke asks as they unbuckle their seatbelts.
clio was frozen.
not because she was shocked, not because she was scared, and not because she wanted to throw up.
but because she felt electrified.
they got off the rollercoaster, and clio still hasn't said a single word. luke was starting to get nervous.
"peach?" he chuckles nervously, "you alright?"
they start walking back towards the center of the carnival, and clio was still very much feeling the hard thumping of her heart.
"that was...." she gulps, looking at luke who still has the same worried facial expression.
"what?" luke asks softly, starting to grow more and more nervous.
"amazing!" clio squeals, jumping up and down, "can we go again? what should we ride next? that was easily the most excitement i got in three months!"
she continues jumping up and down as her eyes look around the carnival frantically, trying to look for the next possible ride.
luke breathes out a sigh of relief, immediately cracking a smile at the sight of clio smiling like an excited kid.
"i loved every second of it, luke," she pants once she stopped jumping, "you were right. all i had to do was scream!"
"i'm happy to hear that, clio," he smiles back at her, feeling his heart melt more and more at the sight of clio beaming at him, "but i'm afraid that we'll only get to ride one more ride. carnival hour's almost over."
"oh," she pouts, "can we go back here someday? maybe next week?"
luke immediately felt a tug at his heart. his smile faltered slightly, but he tried his best to hide it.
clio knows that her and luke live in the same apartment. and that luke has been living there for a year.
"of course, peach," he nods, "let's come back here and ride every ride there is."
he knew full well that that was something impossible, though. because he only had until sunrise to stay in this beautiful city.
when tomorrow comes, he'll be back to his normal, hectic, noisy, exposed life in the spotlight.
clio smiles up at him, her eyes twinkling along with the lights around them, causing luke to feel sad.
"can we ride the ferris wheel?" clio asks, "the view would be amazing."
"perfect." luke smiles.
they start walking towards the ferris wheel, and luke still feels his heart aching at the thought that he'd have to leave this beautiful woman as soon as the sun rises.
but, he needs to. because that's how his life is really supposed to be.
thankfully, there's a vacant cabin the second they arrive, so they didn't have to wait in line to get on the ferris wheel.
they take seats across from each other, giving them a clear view of each other's faces.
clio proceeds to look down on their view as the ferris wheel goes higher and higher, taking in the looks of different infrastructures spread out across the city.
shades of beige, white, and brown can be evident, and it's all indeed a calming sight to see.
luke, on the other hand, takes this as an opportunity to keep his gaze on clio.
he can't help but appreciate the way her eyes are glistening, and the way her mouth is slightly parted in amazement as she stares at the city below them.
"i feel so contented now," clio says softly, her eyes still gazing over the view, "i'm feeling all the right emotions, and i honestly haven't felt this contented in a long time."
"what do you mean?" luke asks, his eyes still on clio.
"i'm feeling contented at this moment," she explains, "i feel like i'm exactly where i need to be. and i feel like there's nothing else i can do to make this moment better than it already is,"
"i haven't felt this way in a long time," she continues sheepishly, "and it's nice to feel this way again."
"contentment is something that every person deserves to feel," luke says softly, "but it's also a very difficult feeling to have."
"mhm," clio nods, "so it's important to savor it once you feel it. because you'll never know how long it's going to last."
the cabin stays silent. clio hasn't turned her head to look at luke yet, and luke still hasn't removed his gaze from the woman in front of him.
"can i share something my therapist asked me a while back?" luke asks softly, "i think it fits well in our topic."
"yeah, of course," clio nods, finally looking at luke, "go ahead."
"it was a question, to be more specific," he says, "want me to ask you the same question?"
"shoot." clio says, nodding once.
"if you were to wake up one day, and find out that you've been dreaming your whole life the whole time you've been asleep," he starts, speaking slowly, "will you feel happy or sad?"
clio furrows her eyebrows, luke's question not sinking in just yet.
"like, imagine that you wake up tomorrow, and you realize that you've been dreaming your whole life," he continues.
"you just dreamt that you're a writer, you just dreamt that you're in paris, and you just dreamt everything that we did today," he says, "will you feel relieved that it was all just a dream? or will you feel disappointed?"
"well, it depends," clio says, shrugging, "it depends if whether or not my real life is better than my dream life."
"no, no," luke says, shaking his head sideways, "don't put your real life into consideration. just think about your life right now. are you contented with everything you have? with everything that's happening?"
"the answer you'll give to the question will say a lot about your contentment in life, really." he finishes.
"how come?" clio asks.
"because, if your answer is that you'll feel relieved if you realize that your whole life was just a dream, then i think that says a lot," luke says, his hands going everywhere as he explains, "it means that you're not living the life you want,"
"but, if you answer saying that you'll feel disappointed when you realize that your whole life was just a dream," he continues, "then, congratulations. you can claim that you were living the life you wanted."
clio purses her lips as she nods.
"really makes you think, right?" luke says, licking his lips, "am i living the life i want for myself? or am i not?"
clio looks back down on the city below them. they're at the highest point of the ferris wheel now, and the view is at it's best.
"how would you feel?" clio asks slowly, looking down, "what if you woke up tomorrow and realized that your whole life was a dream?"
luke continued gazing at clio. and, no, it wasn't creepy staring, nor was it looking at her with lustfulness in his eyes.
he was looking at her with contentment.
it's not his name in lights that made him know his answer. it's not the money he earns, nor the millions of fans he has. it's not all the parties and famous friends that made him realize what his answer was.
somehow, it was clio. it was that moment as they sat there on the ferris wheel, with luke not being able to take his eyes off her.
the longer he stared at her, the longer he noticed the sparkle in her eyes, the more he noticed clio's small habits like her constant fidgeting with the hem of her sweater and biting down on her bottom lip, as well as the excitement in her small smile, he knew exactly the answer to the question.
"i'll feel disappointed for sure," he answers softly, his eyes still on clio, "if this is all just a dream."