Kendra...

"This is going to be so much fun," Iris squeals in the passenger seat of my car

"I know right," I grinned still keeping an eye on the road

"It's been a while since I've been to one of these," she said

"I don't think I've ever been to one."

Iris gasped dramatically "You've never been to one? Ever?"

"Nope," I answered, "Which is why I'm so excited."

Kyle poked his head between Iris and me.

"Aren't you guys too old to be this hype about a carnival?"

Iris gave another of her dramatic gasps, "Did he just call us old?"

"He did," I said, "Sit back Kyle"

"Aren't you going to do something about it? Ground him? Whoop him?"

"I can't whoop him for saying that Iris."

"Yeah, she can't cause I'm stating facts," my son added then giggled at Iris' grunt

"Kyle, leave Iris alone!" I say knowing he said it just to get a rise out of her

He kept quiet and continued to play his game on the PSP.

The three of us were on our way to a carnival in Virginia. Iris had found out about it from a friend and thought I should take Kyle as a way for us to spend some time together. He wasn't feeling it but decided to go anyway. Not like I was giving him a choice. And because of that, attitude and slick remarks were sure to show itself throughout the day.

The car got quiet as the passengers got onto the devices. I was left to take in the scene and let my mind wander. I was traveling to someplace that I've never been before and I wanted to take everything in. Our quick easy cruising turned to a slow trot when we encountered some traffic. It gave me some time to pay attention to the billboards we passed. There was one that caught my attention.

The words "Grant Publishing" where written in big bold blue letters, sure to catch a passer by's attention. Grant Publishing was a well-renowned company in Washington. It wasn't just the go-to publisher for politicians who wanted to write a memoir, but it was also the company that ran Cooper's Chronicle. I've seen that 'G' logo many times around the building.

For a moment, I imagined the sign saying "Wright Publishing" and I smiled to myself. This was one of my life goals, to own my own publishing company and magazine. I want my company to be as popular as Grant's, whoever he is. I know it will take a lot to get there, but a girl can dream, right?

Eventually, the traffic cleared up and it didn't take long for us to get to our destination.

The area was gigantic, and every inch of it was occupied by something. There were colorful tents, moving rides and a weird mix of sweet and salty in the air.

As we walked through the carnival, trying to figure out which ride to get on first, I can see my son trying to hold back his excitement. This was as new to him as it was to me, and I knew exactly what he was feeling.

"What about the Ferris wheel?" Iris asked pointing to the rotating contraption in front of us, "Don't need to go on anything drastic for the first ride."

"I think it's a good idea," I said before turning to Kyle, "What do you think?"

"It's OK I guess," he said, but I can see the pent up excitement in his body

"Great!" Iris cheered grabbing both Kyle's and I's hand to lead us to the growing line

As we visited the different booths and rides, I could see my son's guard going down. He was enjoying himself and I relished in the feeling of him being so stress-free and relaxed. It had been a while since I've seen him this upbeat and I wanted to make it last as long as I could.

"Where should we go next?" I asked him

He looked around as he munched on green cotton candy.

His face lit up and he pointed, "Over there!"

The sign on the tent said "Lady May, The Seer of All Things"

"You want to go see a professed psychic?" I asked and he nodded "I don't think it's appropriate for an eleven-year-old to see a psychic"

I did not need my son believing the words of a woman who claims she can see the future.

"Then you and Iris go," he said, not seeming to be bothered by not being able to

"I don't really want to go see her," I said

"Oh come on Kendra, it will be fun," Iris tried to persuade. She seemed excited about it.

"I don't want to pay money to sit down in front of someone and listen to them lie to me, Iris."

"I see I have a skeptic on my hands," she said

"Don't tell me you believe in this stuff too?"

"I most certainly do," she said, "Every reading I've ever gotten were true."

"I'm pretty sure the psychic just said some vague things that would apply to every situation," I argued

"Well let's test your theory out," she challenged

"Fine!" I said, not ready to back down from a challenge

We made our way over to the tent and stood in front of it.

"You first mom," Kyle said

"Let's get this pony show over with," I said as I stepped forward into the tent

There was a dark curtain at the entrance that I had to move aside to get in. Once I did, I was standing in an eerie space. The darkness was illuminated by the candles, the walls were decorated with dark-colored hanging cloth, spooky-looking pictures and every kind of strange weird trinket and item that would make it all look like the home of a wicked witch. But she wasn't fooling me. I'm pretty sure those "human bones" hanging in the corner were bones from the fried chicken she ate last week. And that eyeball floating in a clear jar was definitely fake.

In the middle of it all was a round table with a crystal ball in the middle.

Classic.

The woman sitting at it was covered from head to toe, only her face and hands visible. She wore colorful clothing, with her head wrapped and jewelry on her arms and neck. Couldn't she at least tried to be original?

"Welcome child," she said, "I'm Lady May."

"Who else would it be," I replied cheekily "your name is on the sign out front"

"Ah," the woman smiled to herself "a skeptic."

"Can we just get this over with so I can leave?" I asked taking a seat

"Very well," she calmly said, "Give me your hands."

She stretched out her hands on the table, palms up, waiting for me to take them. I removed my hands from my lap and placed it on hers. She closed her eyes, but I kept mine open. She kept silent as my eyes roamed the tent. Did she really have thumbs in a jar? What does a severed thumb have to do with being a psychic? My attention was pulled from the décor when she finally decided to speak.

"You've been hurt by a past lover," she said

That was ture but not impressive. Who hasn't been hurt by a past love before?

"You've been letting that hurt affect your love life," she continued

Again true, but not uncommon. Aren't you supposed to learn and change from past relationships? How else are you supposed to stop making the same mistakes?

"Love is about to enter your life again. But this man will be the right one. He would be perfect for you...and your son."

I froze at that. How did she know about Kyle? She must have heard him talking outside, right?

"But your insecurities from the past hurt will show itself again when he betrays your trust. You will have to learn to forgive and let him in completely, because that deal-breaker that you see, is the key to your dreams."

She opened her eyes and stared at me. There was a look of satisfaction on her wrinkly face. I'm sure that was because there was a look of bewilderment on my own. Her words didn't seem so vague anymore. Keys to my dreams? What does that even mean? How could this man be the keys to my dreams? Did she think that my dream was to find love? Then she was mistaken. These days my dreams revolved around my son and my career. How was a man supposed to help me fulfill those? The answer is, he wouldn't. I'm not some helpless woman who needs a big strong man to fulfill her dreams.

I pulled my hand from hers and dug into my pockets to pull out a ten-dollar bill. I was an honest woman after all. It was way above her price, but seeing as she was doing this crap, she needed the money.

"Keep the change," I said throwing the bill on the table and getting up from the chair

I quickly walked out of the tent and was greeted by the expectant faces of my son and Iris.

"What did she say?" Iris asked

"I don't want to talk about it," I said

"Oh we're going to talk about it," she said before turning to the entrance, "but first, I have to get my reading."

With that she went into the tent, leaving Kyle and I outside. He quickly turned to me.

"So, what did she say?"

"I don't think it's appropriate for me to discuss that with you."

His eyes widened. "Is it about sex?"

I turned to look down at him. "No, it's not about that!"

I've had somewhat of "the talk" with Kyle. All he knew was that sex was something adults did and that children had no place in it. But he was going to be a full-blown teenager soon, and I would have to give him the unfiltered version of the talk. As a woman, I wasn't sure I'd be able to tell him much. I was told that sex for men was different than it was for women. How was I supposed to explain that to him when I have yet to understand the differences myself?

It was then that the words of the psychic came back to mind. I didn't believe what she was saying. She was a sham and I knew it. But I currently found myself wishing she was real, wishing that her predictions were right. It would be awesome to have someone to teach Kyle the things I couldn't.

"Was it about me?" he asked

"Well...kind of," I answered, not wanting to lie to him

"Did she see you giving me a puppy in the future?" he grinned up at me

"You're not getting a puppy, Kyle."

"Why not? I'm responsible."

"You got into a fight and suspended from school," I pointed out

"Why do you have to bring up the past mom?" he said dramatically

"So you won't forget and try it again," I said, "Once you've learned your lesson, we'll discuss this puppy business."

His face lit up, "I hope you remember saying that when it's time to get the puppy."

"I'm pretty sure you'll remind me if I don't."

We turned to the tent when we heard the ruffling of the curtains. A few seconds later, Iris stepped out. Her brows were deep and her face was screwed up as she mumbled some choice words under her breath. Somebody was not happy with their reading.

"How did it go?" I asked

"What did she say?" Kyle added

"Crap!" Iris answered "That's what she said, pure filthy crap! How dare she say that? She doesn't even know me."

Kyle and I exchanged looks as she continued with her outburst.

"You know what Kendra, you were right! This whole psychic thing is a lie, a sham. A big joke!"

"Yeah, it's a big joke," I said calmly, stepping in front of her and rubbing her arms "How about we go check out the rest of the carnival huh?"

"Good, cause I could do with some fun right now."

And with that we stepped away from the tent and continued our walk through the carnival, looking for the next fun thing to do. 

And there we have it, chapter 10. Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. Don't forget to comment and vote! Next chapter should be up next week.