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"You look really nice today, Faith."
I held back my distaste. "Thanks, Mason..." I quickly wiped down the counter, feeling a stranger's gaze on me. "Is it just me, or has that clown over there been staring at me a lot?"
"What clown?" Mason went a little bit pale. "Oh, that one? Yeah...I don't really know. Listen, we're getting bees from either a lemonade spill or a bee's nest and I'm allergic. Maybe I should go get some spray--"
I swatted away the bees. "There's only a few. I'm handling it, Mason. Are you afraid of clowns or something? You're acting kind of weird."
Because I am definitely not a fan of clowns.
"I guess. Um, Faith, you're making the bees angry--"
I tore my gaze away from the clown who was now waving at a little kid skipping past him with a balloon. "I'm handling it, Mason!"
"You know you're not allowed to wear any jewelry when you're on shift, right? You don't want to contaminate the funnel cake. Wait...is that a Rolex? Sweet..."
"I--I--I, um, I found it yesterday...actually, I won it in one of those gumball machines! Yeah! A gumball machine! That's where I got it"
Yeah, when you stole it from David Star's wrist. Really believable lie...
"Cool. Looks good on you." Then, as he had been doing the entire day, Mason ordered me around with, "Still have to take it off..."
"How about you stop bossing me around and go bother someone else? You're not the king around here," I snapped at the slightly greasy and extremely asthmatic eighteen year old playing video games on his phone. "I've been busting my butt all day in the sun, whereas you've been sitting in the shade eating chips and looking at topless girls. Go wait for your shift somewhere else if you're going to boss me around!"
"You need structure in your life, Faith. You need to stop drinking."
"I don't drink. I had one sip. David Star made that all up," I muttered for the fiftieth time.
She ignored that. "I've already signed you up to volunteer at that carnival with Mason tomorrow. You remember, Mason, right? Mason Hanes?"
"Mason? Mom, Mason is so obsessed with me."
"Oh, not this again. You have known Mason Hanes all of your life. He's a nice, intelligent, and Catholic, young man. His family goes to church with us, his mother comes over once a week for my book club. You're volunteering tomorrow, end of story."
"His phone background was a picture of me. I saw it when we went to dinner with the Hanes family two years ago, and he's tried to kiss me like five times--!"
"That was a long time ago, Faith. People change."
Mom was right with the fact that Mason had somewhat changed. He hadn't tried to kiss me yet. Besides having a fear of basically everything carnival-like, especially Ferris wheels, clowns, and fun houses, I was also extremely uncomfortable working with Mason. Don't get me wrong, I had tried to explain to my mom in many different ways and languages, (with the help of Google Translate) as to why I didn't want to volenteer at the carnival. But she hadn't budged. I needed structure. What was worse than pretending to be nice to someone when you were genuinely concerned that they were going to try and kiss you at any moment, and that was the last thing you wanted to do with them?
"Sheesh," Mason said, bringing me out of my thoughts. His eyes flashed with hurt as he brought his inhaler to his mouth, inhaling from it sharply, "Someone's currently riding the crimson wave..."
I turned my back to Mason to tend to a customer, then squeezed the sides of my throbbing temples, staring down at the counter in front of me when I felt the heat of another body standing directly behind me. "Listen, Mason. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. I'm having a tough week, I should have never taken it out of you. You know I'm not normally like this--"
When I turned back around, Mason was gone. I was left feeling like a total bee-otch.
A sharp, powerful wind kicked up my pony tail.
"One large lemonade. Seven sugars." I whipped my head sharply around at the deep voice, meeting the black aviators of the devil himself.
We spoke at the same time. "God, help me." "Virgin Girl."
David chuckled.
I gave him a long, dry look. "Virgin Girl? Really?" I hissed, making a show of aggressively grabbing a cup from the back of the stand and slamming it down in front of him. "What the hell are you doing here, David? Are you stalking me?"
He brought his hands up as defense, then motioned to the empty cup on the counter. "No, I'm just thirsty." When he realized I wasn't making any move to start making the lemonade, David crossed his thick arms over his chest, inspecting me with an amused expression. "Have I come to the wrong place...?"
"You drove thirty miles out here because you were thirsty?" Sarcastically, I added, "Couldn't you have just gotten a complimentary D & S Towers Detox Water?"
"I'm here on a date..."
"A date." I scoffed, suddenly trying to suppress a strong feeling of jealousy. "Well, where is she? How much did you pay her to go on a date with you? She probably left..."
David followed me as I moved along the counter to start squeezing some lemons for his drink.
When I caught David's aviators aimed right at the silver cross along my neck my mother had gotten me, David immediately lifted his gaze back up to mine and asked, "Are you volunteering or something?"
"Yes... For my church." I gave him a long look. "Do you honestly care or are you trying to make small talk so this can get less awkward?"
"I was just making small talk so this can get less awkward." He shrugged. "You know, your mouth is far too relaxed around me for someone who stole my 350,000 dollar watch."
"Oh, you mean this watch?" I unclipped the Rolex, licked the glass surface of it, then tossed it back casually over my shoulder into the dirt. "Oops."
If looks could kill. "Was the lick really necessary?"
"I'm not sure what you're talking about. That'll be ten dollars, Mr. Star, and please quit stalking me." I finished making David's lemonade, setting in down messily front of him. "If you'll excuse me, David, I've been working all day, I'd rather go to sit that stool and do nothing for a few minutes than listen to you."
"Ouch. Trust me, I had no idea you were going to be here, or believe me, I would have never come. Also, that sign clearly says three dollars--"
"Oh, you mean on that chalk board over there?" Taking out a piece of chalk from my apron, I erased the current price and wrote in fifteen dollars. "It says fifteen, actually."
"Are you always this sassy? Or is this just how you act around me?" David took out his wallet and handed me the money. Whether he purposely brushed his fingers against mine and made contact with my skin a little longer than necessary, I couldn't quite tell... mostly because I couldn't see his eyes behind his aviators.
Ignoring him, I put his money into the register and pretended to count some change.
David stood in the same place for the longest time before speaking again. "Listen, I'm being completely serious when I say this," David began, leaning over the counter again. "I was a huge jerk to you yesterday...more so than anyone else that day. You have really tough skin, and it's rare to find a girl--a woman, like that. You came off as a challenge when I met you, and as confident and unique. I like challenges, so I got a bit excited when I realized our interview would be unlike the other ones. Excitement is never a good thing when it comes to me. I start to act on impulse."
He reached over and gently closed the cashier drawer I was distracting myself with, forcing my eyes to meet his dark aviator.
"Clearly my excitement isn't a good thing, because I know I made you really upset. If you want to beat me up or something, I completely understand." He held his arms outwards, exposing himself to me. "You might hurt your hands on my muscles but..."
Arrogant bastard.
He grinned widely.
Or perhaps just flirting?
"Hit me!" David kept his arms outwards, earning stares from many people walking by.
As I laughed, I felt David's stare intensify behind his sunglasses. He dropped his arms, stuffing his hands into his pockets.
My face lit to flames. "I know, I have an annoying laugh. Sorry."
"No need to apologize." That grin grew wider, and he leaned a hip against the lemonade booth. "I actually think you have a cute laugh..."
Had someone thrown my face into a pit of flames or was I blushing again like a stupid school girl? "Thank you, David," I replied slowly and unsurely. Complimenting you? David? Too good to be true.
"I have another confession." David ran a hand through his ombré blonde and brown hair. "I lied about having a date today. I knew you had a shift today because my father and I ran the ad campaigns for every October Fest Carnival in Chicago this year. I'm always emailed the updated list of volunteers and employees, and today I just happened to skim through this one, and I happened to see your name at the bottom. I guess what I'm trying to say is that the reason why I came here..."
He shifted on his feet.
Is he...nervous?
"What I'm trying to explain to you is..."
It looked like it visibly pained him to say his next words.
"You're...?" I egged him on with my hands, fighting back another laugh. "Sorry? Is that what you're trying to say?"
"Yes! That's exactly what I was trying to say. Geez, thank you for saving me from any further awkwardness." He ran a hand slowly through his hair, which was messier than usual. "I'm that one-man band up here who everyone watches play just because they feel bad for them."
"That's not true at all." I realized I was twirling my ponytail like an idiot and threw it back over my shoulder. "You're more like...a puppy who's lost his way..."
"Oh great, thanks. I'm a dog. Woof."
Now I was laughing really hard.
David grinned crookedly down at me. "Let me buy you food after your shift. I'll take you to a restaurant, or we can just stay here... Maybe we can hit up some rides or something? I'm not really a big fan of the spinning one I saw on my way in or the Ferris wheel, but if you really want to give it a go, I'll try and hold down my stomach."
I felt my eyebrows rise up above my hairline. I tried to say something in response, I really did, but for a moment, I forgot what language I spoke and just kind of let my mouth fall open. Did he really just ask you out? David Star? David freaking Star? David Star, the Greek God? This seems too good to be true...
It was too good to be true.
"I am trying to ask you on a date," David clarified, slowly scratching his cheek, "No strings attached, I swear. One-man band..."
"Oh." I felt my cheeks heat up. "I said all of that out loud, then? My thoughts?"
David sipped his drink, dimples popping out in his cheeks. "I wouldn't say I look like Greek God." He stroked the side of his face with a cocky expression. "Although, I do have an amazing jaw line..."
I shook my head at him, fighting back a laugh. "Are you're really asking me out?" I decided I was smiling too widely and was making a fool of myself, so I carefully let my lips fall slightly. "Do you even remember my first name, and yet you're asking me out?"
"Faith. It says so on your nametag." He smiled again. "I'm just kidding, I remembered your first before looking at that."
"Good, because you've been calling me Miss Williams a lot, and I just want to make it clear that I'm not your employee because we technically didn't even finish the interview..."
David winced. "Let's pretend that interview never happened?"
"We'll see..."
"I'm really trying to be nicer, and I want to start with you. When's your shift over? Wait, hold on." Without any sort of announcement, David easily swung his long legs over the counter and hopped over to retrieve his Rolex watch in the dirt, dusting it off on his ripped jeans.
It was really odd to see David Star in ripped jeans and a plain white t-shirt. He looked so...normal.
It was then I fully realized I was in a very tight booth with David freaking Star.
Shit. He still needs an answer.
Why couldn't I just tell him 'yes' like a normal person?
Probably because I had never had a boyfriend.
Ever...
Suddenly losing my confidence, I turned away from David and started to wipe down the counter again, ignoring my claustrophobic tendencies and the fact that I was no longer alone in the booth, when I felt someone staring at me and lifted my gaze up at the hoard of people walking by.
I froze. I found the same clown who had been staring at me when Mason was around still staring at me.
It was then I felt the heat of a body directly behind me as if someone was about to lean into my back, and shook off the stranger's gaze. "David, as much as I just love your company and appreciate you asking me out on a date, I'm a little bit claustrophobic--"
When I turned around, nobody was there. Just like with Mason. Except this time, I felt someone staring at the back of my neck and a familiar, painful feeling danced skin over my stomach that I prayed to God was only in my head.
"What do you say?"
With a small yelp, I turned back around to find David on the other side of the counter holding out his lemonade. "How the heck did you get over the counter. You were just...?"
"You're kidding, right? You literally watched me jump back over the counter..." David raised a brow as my mind went elsewhere. I had watched him jump over the counter? How would I not remember that?
"I will come for her," a distant voice stated. "I will come for her when the time is right."
My eyes fell on someone across from my booth about forty feet away.
"You just got really pale." David looked genuinely concerned, gripping me lightly on the arm, offering me his lemonade. "You're probably dehydrated. Maybe you should have a seat..."
"That clown over there," I got out hoarsely, hiding myself behind David's big body, "he's been staring at me for a while now, it's seriously starting to make me really uncomfortable because I don't think he's looked away yet."
"I'll knock him out," David stated, and I completely believed him. His fists clenched, and he went into complete Overprotective Boyfriend Mode. "What does the bastard look like?"
"Scary..." I motioned for David to turn around, heart pounding in my ears. "Right over there next to the face painting booth across the way. He's sitting in a chair wearing a black and white costume and he's playing with a lighter. Has a pretty tall black Mohawk..."
The punk-looking clown, who had been staring at me earlier when Mason had been around, was still lounging in the same chair in the same position it had been lounging in before. The clown flicked a lighter on and off with his thumb, sitting up a little straighter, and then leaning forward on his forearms as I continued to look at him.
I shivered. "I hate clowns," I muttered under my breath. "Do you think I should I report him or something?"
What made me suddenly feel like I was going to puke, was one: the fact that the clown was now waving at me, and two: even though David Star had thoroughly looked behind him, he had turned back around and looked very confused.
"There aren't any clowns, Faith."
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