Page 14 of So Long, Honey
“You ready, Starlight?” He asked.
The nickname made my breath hitch, “what happened to ‘mouse’?”
“It didn’t suit you, you're not a mouse, you're a star. I didn't know you.Now I do. Chalk it up to human error.” He shrugged.Starlight, I chewed on my bottom lip and begged the nervous sparks to fizzle out.
“So, are you ready?” He asked again.
I wasn’t, I don’t think I ever would be, but saying no would only have him bothering me even more for answers I didn’t have and couldn’t come up with when I was so damn distracted.
“Yeah,” I said instead, “I’m not riding the Ferris wheel.”
“We’ll see,” he said and stepped down the step backward, watching every step I took.
I wanted to tell him how uncomfortable he made me, but I knew it would only make him happy. He wanted me riled up, confused, and blushing, and I hated every second of it. We walked along the pristine pavement toward the large security office and gate of my community. I waved to Roger, who sat reading a comic book with his upper lip covered in pasta sauce. He pressed the button to let us out with that same familiar smile he always had on.
Ryan led me a little ways down before side-stepping with his arms out. " You chariot, my Starlight, " he hummed.
And for the first time, I didn’t want to scold him for the nickname. I enjoyed how it rolled off his tongue and the toothy grin that always seemed to follow it up. My heart swelled at seeing his pickup truck, blue and white paint peeling around the burnt orange rusty tire wells and the crooked rear view mirror in the windshield.
“That’s a death trap,” I offered him a genuine smile.
“Don’t talk aboutBabylike that,” he huffed, “you’ll hurt her feelings.”
“You named that rust bucket,” I giggled, and Ryan’s head snapped toward me. At first I thought he was mad or offended, but his eyes twinkled, and his brows flinched slightly as his head cocked to the side. “What?” I asked.
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you laugh,” he said in a hushed tone.
“I laugh all the time,” I argued as he opened the passenger door for me.
“No, you don’t,” he paused before closing the door behind me, his fingers wrapped around the frame as he stared at me with a serious look on his handsome face and his his tone dropped an octave. “I would remember that sound.”
Ryan shut the door before I had time to respond, but I could feel my cheeks turning red again, and I was starting to think about my decision to go to the fair with him. If anyone saw us there, it would be hard to find an excuse for it. Worse, if my parents saw us, I would be in so much trouble I would never hear the end of it.
I slumped into the bucket seat as Ryan started the engine and drove us down the windy hill toward the school. The committee had used the football field to set up despite the football coaches' protests about it ruining the field.
Lights flickered and twinkled in the night air, lighting the center of town up like a firework under the pitch sky. I had never been to the fair, never seen its appeal. The smell of fried foods and sweet, sticky cotton candy in the air combined with the shrill laughter of an overwhelming crowd.
“Take me home,” I panicked a little as he parked.
“Okay,” he said without hesitation, which caused me to turn to him suspiciously. “If you don’t want to be here, Rae, I’m not going to force you,” Ryan said.
“I—” I started and stopped, rubbing my hands over my jeans only for him to catch one of them with his own. I tensed at hissudden touch and looked down as his fingers wrapped around mine.
“I can take you home, and you can show me more stars,” he shrugged like it wasn’t a bother like he hadn’t just dragged me all the way down in excitement. And now, without even a fuss, he was willing to take me all the way home.
“Why would you do that?” My brows furrowed.
“Because you asked,” he said so simply that it felt as though the world had come crashing down around the truck, and there were just the two of us left.
“That’s silly,” I said.
“No, it’s not. It’s polite and…kind, and I'd do just about anything to make sure you're happy,” he argued, untangling our hands and flicking his finger beneath my chin. Tingling livewires surged under my skin from his touch, and I trained my gaze on his. “If you want to go home, I’ll take you home. But,” he licked his bottom lip and leaned over the center of the bench into my space. “I think you’re just scared, and if that’s the case, then please give me a chance to show you how much fun we can have?”
My eyes flickered from him to the blurry lights in the background just beyond. Sickening nerves bubbled up to the surface and threatened to ruin his sweater, but I nodded.
“Yeah?” he said softly, and I nodded again. "That’s my brave little star,” he praised, and for whatever reason, a tiny whimper left me. Whether it was fear or shock, it made him laugh. "Come on, first, you have to eat.”
“Isn’t that a horrible idea before rides?” I asked, finding my voice as he unbuckled my seatbelt and reached over me to pop the door open.