The Carnival Gifts

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"FASTER! GO FASTER! You're going to— ah."

The words "GAME OVER" were written in bold, plastered against the digital screen I slammed my hands against the console in defeat. The gamemaster in charge of the booth cackled a little too jovially, flicking the shining coin in his hand with a shrug of nonchalance. There wasn't even an ounce of pity in his eyes.

"Tough luck, folks," he said, leaning against the console, arm propped up casually. Gesturing behind him at the row of arcade games set up, he continued, "Why don't you try your luck with another? You've been at this game for half an hour and you've not won even once."

Harr huffed indignantly, blowing at a stray strand of hair that had fallen over his eye. Peeved, he reluctantly stood up, shuffling away from the console. The next challenger quickly stepped up, taking his place and soon the familiar music rang through the air once more.

"I almost had it this time," Harr sighed. His eyes glittered with unshed tears, almost as though he was ready to shed a tear at any given time like a well-practiced actor.

Laughing, I gently pat his back a few times, running my hands up and down in an attempt to soothe him. However, my actions were more mocking than sympathetic. "Sure you did, pal. Sure you did."

It was a walk of shame out of the mini arcade. Another large sum of money was blown in an attempt to win some prizes. The rows of stuffed toys and beautiful eccentric trinkets had been too tempting for our mortal selves. Unable to resist, we had tried out luck at bringing one home. However, just like the many other booths we had tried beforehand, none of the games we played had reaped successful results. Time after time, it had been money flushed down the drain as defeat laughed in our faces.

"How do you think the others are faring?" I asked, pulling the strings of my bag a little tighter against my body, not wanting to lose it in the crowd.

"Probably well. After all, Xavier is extremely competitive. If Eugene makes an attempt at winning Jules a booth prize, Xavier will no doubt try his hardest too," Harr deduced. "For all we know, we might end up meeting them with a bunch of assorted stuffed animals in Jules's arms."

Just as those words left Harr's lips, we came to a stop right by a booth where three familiar figures stood. Two of them had their arms up in the air, gloriously cheering and whooping in delight, basking in the sweet aura of success while the other sulked at the corner like a child that was denied candy. The toy rifle in Eugene's hands was raised above his head as he jumped a little, Jules following suit in excitement as the gamemaster brought forward a stuffed teddy bear that was almost her height.

"Congratulations!" The woman beamed, passing the spoils of war over to Eugene, who took it graciously.

"You did it! That was incredible," Jules awed, her cheeks tinted red from both the booth lights as well as the rush of blood into the apples of her cheeks.

"It's only because you were there to cheer me on," Eugene confessed shyly, a sheepish grin hanging on his lips. He then held the bear towards Jules, nearly thrusting the stuffed animal right into her face. "Here, this is for you."

The second Jules took hold of the teddy bear in her arms, she was engulfed by the chocolate-brown fur. Holding it up by under its arms, the toy easily spanned from her head to her knees. The bear's feet could touch the ground at any second if Jules hugged it any lower. Its beady eyes caught the light of the booths, almost glittering in a taunting way.

"Oh!" Jules exclaimed in surprise. "T-Thank you."

Xavier, who had been sulking silently by himself in a corner, could no longer hold it in any longer. He narrowed his eyes scrutinizingly, sneering with a murderous glint in his eyes. Then, he turned, his eyes landing on me before they lit up sinisterly for a second. The right corner of his lips tilted up slightly, his grin looking anything but friendly as he kicked off the wall he had been resting against. He walked quickly out of the shadowed corner he had been watching the two's interactions from, crossing his way towards the next booth over, making sure to bump into Eugene's shoulder a little too hard to be accidental on the way.

Pulling a five-dollar bill from his pockets, he slapped it into the gamemaster's open palm before taking hold of the three beanbags that were available on the table. The game that Xavier had chosen was to knock over a pyramid of tin cans. It didn't look to be a difficult game, however, looks can be deceiving. Harr and I had both taken a few tries at it a while back but there wasn't even a single success in our attempts.

"What is he trying to do?" Harr voiced his thoughts out loud, leaning in closer to me to whisper in my ear.

I shrugged, shaking my head side to side. "I don't know, but I don't like the look on his face. He's scheming something."

Testing the weight of the bean bags in his hands a couple of times, Xavier let out a soft grunt before flinging the bag. From where I stood, I couldn't see the results of that first throw but with how Xavier reacted, it was surely a good throw. The gamemaster hadn't stated his congratulations so Xavier hadn't won yet, but there was a confident and cocky smile on Xavier's face.

"I can't bear to watch," Harr commented with a sigh before walking away. I couldn't seem to tear my eyes off of Xavier but I could still feel Harr's body heat dissipating as he walked off further and further away.

Left with two more tries, Xavier acted as though he had already won. He flung the next beanbag with superhuman strength, a loud clang echoing through the air despite the fact that we were surrounded by infinite other conversations around us. This time, Xavier raised a single fisted hand up into the air, his lips lifted into a grin as he mouthed a silent "yes". From behind the counter, the gamemaster handed over another teddy bear— this time a snow-white in color.

Both Jules and Eugene had their eyes fixated on Xavier, especially when he confidently sauntered over from his booth, past the both of them, before heading straight towards me. Just like Eugene had done so to Jules, Xavier practically threw the giant stuffed toy into my arms without so much as a warning.

"Take it," he commanded, shaking the toy a little when he saw how I just stared wide-eyed and jaw-dropped at him.

I leaned a little over to my right, looking past Xavier's figure to look at Jules's and Eugene's reactions. They didn't have much emotion over their faces other than just surprise, both eager to see what Xavier was up to.

"Are you sure?" I hissed, jutting my chin in the direction of Jules to make my point.

Xavier raised an eyebrow at my action before swiveling around, eyeing Jules for a second too long before turning back with a thousand-watt smirk. The action was the tipping point, sending Jules's face into an ugly shade of green as her grip on the stuffed toy tightened.

"Yeah, I'm very sure. Consider it as thanks for lending me your shoulder the other day," he replied, his words hinting at something more in the ears of those who didn't know better. Xavier took a step forward, pressing the toy between both of our chests before bending down slightly so that his breath was hot against my ear. Despite how close we stood to each other, his words were loud enough for Jules and Eugene to catch easily. "I appreciate how you're always lending me your time to make me feel better."

Hissing through my teeth, I sucked in a deep breath in shock, the hair on my skin standing on their ends at his words. They were spoken in a way that couldn't be taken innocently, a private reminder hidden between the fine lines that should never be said out loud to anyone else but a lover. It certainly didn't help that I could still feel Xavier's body heat even though our environment was that of the blazing summer. I was still hyper-aware of his every movement, every breath he exhaled, every second his fingers gripped at the back of my hand, and every scandalous look he sent my way.

I didn't need a mirror to know that my cheeks were a burning scarlet, probably even brighter than the lights that lit up our city. They certainly felt like they were burning, hot as though a fire had razed through the forest that surrounded Riverside Creek.

Slowly, and a little too sensually, Xavier maneuvered my frozen hands to hold onto the bear. Wrapping my arms around the torso of the stuffed toy, he lifted the fine hairs of my fringe before landing a fluttering, fleeting kiss on my forehead. It lasted no more than a split second but the area scorched, sending my heart into a frenzy.

The kiss meant nothing to him and I knew it. It was just a mere show to Jules, flaunting an action that he would no doubt regret in just a few short moments. Yet, selfishly, a part of me reveled in the sweet delight of his lips. A shower of sparks danced across the area his lips made contact, lingering even though he had already taken a step back from me before ultimately walking away, hands tucked in his pockets once more.

In the end, I was just a tool in this battle, a misused sword in a warrior's hands. However, despite how I was used in a manner I shouldn't be, the shameless side of me didn't mind it. It was a horrifying thought but I could've perhaps even enjoyed being treated that way, if it meant that I could steal the hero's attention for just a fraction of a second.

"The sword is a mere tool," I had to remind myself. "There are no happy endings for a weapon of war."