It was like a low budget version of Coney Island.

But considering the fact that these booths were funded and manned by the town's own people, it was pretty impressive. They even had a ferris wheel and mini farm.

"I feel like I'm in Grease."

I looked at Meadow, scanning her body from head to toe. She was wearing one of those puffy sleeved tops and denim shorts, completing the look with a pair of white air force nike shoes. It was cute.

"You're not covered in grease," I said.

"Not grease grease," she replied, rolling her eyes. "Grease, the musical. That one with John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John in it?"

I shook my head, completely clueless.

"But you know Hamilton," she remarked.

"That's because my mom knew one of the producers," I explained. "She dragged me to see it on opening night."

I could feel Meadow watching me carefully, before saying, "For someone who got dragged, you sure know all the words."

Busted. "It's very catchy."

She looked skeptical, so I decided to change the subject.

"What should we try first?" I turned my head as I scanned the booths around us. We were surrounded with food stalls.

"I'm not sure—Ooh, there's ice cream!"

With the last word, Meadow hopped over to the ice cream booth. She ordered the same flavors we had for milkshakes that time in the diner. Before she could, I pulled out my wallet and paid for our ice cream cones.

"You're on a budget," she protested.

I shook my head, licked my sweet cold treat, and said, "I barely spent any of my allowance, and it piled up."

She stared at me in wonder. "So this is what privilege looks like."

I smirked. "You're very slow, aren't you?"

She stuck her tongue out at me, causing me to laugh.

We walked around, checking out various booths as we finished our dessert. Like I mentioned before, there were farm animals for the kids to play with. There was a stage with a band playing, while adults were drinking.

Did you know the one thing that stood out to me most, though?

Everybody had smiles on their faces.

This was the kind of summer they advertised in commercials and romanticized in films. In the city, it meant crowds of people bathing in the sun in central park. Everyone I knew, on the other hand, would either be in the Hamptons or Europe.

This was kind of... homey.

"Anders."

Meadow's eyes sparkled as she looked at me.

"What?" I asked warily.

"Let's ride the carousel!"

"Are you serious?"

"Yup!"

Before I could refuse, she grabbed my arm and dragged me. Ah, hell. We climbed on and chose horses that were side by side.

This was utterly ridiculous. I wasn't five anymore.

But then Meadow's laugh rang loud over the music blasting on the speakers. With her arms spread wide, she swung them up and down as we started moving. And I found myself staring at her with a small smile on my face.

When our eyes met, I averted mine.

Hold on, why the hell did I look away like I was guilty?

"It feels nice to be a kid again," she said, grinning.

"You're still a kid," I pointed out.

"You are, too."

"You're only sixteen."

She raised her chin. "I'll be seventeen in December."

I shrugged. "Still a kid."

"Why do you keep raining on my parade?"

"I'm not."

"Are, too," she argued.

She abruptly stopped when she got distracted by something at a distance.

I followed her gaze and saw a pink lemonade stand with two guys standing beside it. She waited for the ride to finish, biting her lip in anticipation, before jumping off the plastic horse and going over the stand the moment the ride halted.

I stood beside her as she ordered her drink.

That was when I noticed one of the guys holding a silver flask. When they saw me looking, the guy shoved the flask back in his jacket and they quickly left. I didn't mind it too much. They wanted Irish lemonades. I wasn't one to stop them.

Yet again, I paid for our drinks before Meadow could.

"Thanks," she said, handing me my drink. As we continued walking, she made a face and added, "Hmm, tastes funny."

I took a sip.

Shit, the drinks were spiked.

I glared at the booth where we just came from. I bet it was those guys. I was about to go over to the stand to warn the seller but then Meadow caught my attention. She wiggled her body like one of those funny air dancers.

What the?

"Are you alright?" I asked.

She nodded and gave me a wide close-lipped smile. "Mm-hmm!" She drank more as she danced, almost finishing the thing.

Oh, shit. I immediately stopped her and took the drink from her, realizing too late that she was not a very good drunk.

"That's enough."

"Hey!"

"These drinks are spiked," I told her.

Her eyes widened in shock. "Oh, no."

"I'll finish them. You drink some water."

She pursed her lips, and frowned. "No, I'm good."

I raised an eyebrow. "I guess you want a repeat of your hangover."

"Pft, I just took a sip." She waved a dismissive hand, before walking ahead. "I'll be fine." But she wasn't.

She was laughing a lot, talking a lot, and gawking at random things a lot. I had to make sure she didn't stray too far away as I finished off her drink quick, before she could decide to take it from me.

She eyed the straw and snatched it, then measured it using her thumb. I watched her as I finished off my drink next. When she gasped, I looked at her in alarm.

"What is it?"

"I read something from one of my sister's books." Meadow showed me the straw, looking in complete awe. "This is eight inches. This is how long a penis is?"

I snorted the drink.

"Fuck."

I blinked the tears in my eyes. This was how Meadow felt when she thought she was dying from the milkshake? No wonder she panicked like that.

She burst out laughing. "Dude, why are you crying?"

God, this girl.

I shook my head and threw the empty cups on the trash bin nearby. Then, I wiped my nose and collected myself. When I came back, she was still measuring the straw.

But now, it was against her body.

"Oh, my God." She had a horrified expression on her face as she looked at me. "It reaches this high inside of me?"

I never really used this phrase before but... God help me with this one.

"Yeah, let's not discuss that here," I whispered, taking the straw from her whilst discreetly looking around in case anybody heard.

Nobody did, fortunately. From what she'd told me, she came from a conservative family. And from what I'd noticed, almost everybody knew everyone here.

I had no doubt that if an elderly heard her talking about this, it would reach her grandparents one way or another. I didn't want her to get into trouble.

"Where should we discuss it?" She gasped. "Are you gonna show me yours? Let's measure it with the straw!" she added, jumping in excitement.

I shook my head in amusement. "That's not how it works."

She should watch porn if she was keen to know about how sex worked. I doubted she would, though. She'd probably just cover her eyes the entire time.

Suddenly, she turned her head away and craned her neck like a bird would have – a loud ringing bell catching her attention.

"What's that?"

Not a second later, she made a run for it. Fucking hell. I threw the straw into the trash bin before running after her.

"Buckley!"

She laughed. "Slowpoke!"

Again, God... this girl.

I finally caught up to her at the balloon darts where a couple of guys were arguing about the game. They weren't the same ones who spiked the lemonade, those looked like they were around our age.

These two looked college-aged. One was quite tall, halfway to seven foot I reckon. He had a light brown complexion and a buzzcut, making him look menacing. The other one was just about my height, with pale skin and boyish face.

I guessed from their builds and the way they were carrying themselves that they were athletes. But from the looks of it, they weren't good at the game they were currently playing. Not that I'd tell them that.

"Ha, weak!" Meadow exclaimed, pointing at them.

Both men turned to us. Ah, shit.

"She was talking about me," I said quickly, with a straight face.

"No, I was not," Meadow piped in, through her laughs. "I meant them. They suck at this game." She looked at them again, giving them a thumbs down. "Boo!"

The bigger guy faced us, wearing a puzzled look as if he couldn't believe anyone would dare insult him. He clearly hadn't met a drunk Meadow – until now.

"Did she just fucking 'boo' me?"

"Yes," she answered.

"I'm sorry," I told him, dragging Meadow away. "She's drunk."

"She better be," he muttered, turning his back to us.

"It's cool," the one with a boyish face said, smiling. "No harm done."

I nodded. "Thanks."

Not wanting to risk it, I pulled Meadow away before she could say something that might further insult either of the two guys.

Unfortunately, I was too busy trying to take her away that I wasn't able to prevent her when she cupped her hands around her mouth and called after them.

"Bye, loseeers!"

The very tall person laughed sarcastically, positioning his body towards us. It was a casual movement, yet I didn't doubt he could catch us with only a few steps.

I automatically strategized how to persuade him into leaving us alone, trying to determine if a bribe would work. I couldn't help it. I was used to giving people what they wanted in exchange for getting what I wanted. It was win-win.

His friend saved me the trouble, though.

"Kurt, no," he said. "Let them go."

"Frisco, that little bitch—"

"Is Halo's sister."

They knew Halo? I was more thankful than I could care to admit.

"No fucking way."

"Yup."

The one called Kurt groaned. "Them sisters are shitty drunks, man."

Frisco, quite a strange name to call someone, chuckled. I hadn't seen Halo drunk but I was pretty sure Meadow was worse. The image of the roller rink incident popped in my mind. Right, I needed to get some water in her.

I didn't want her to have another hangover.

"Ooh!" Meadow laughed, clapping her hands. "Let's go in there!"

I looked at where she was pointing at, skeptical at first. Was she serious? I had no idea she was into that.

"That's—"

"Come on!" she exclaimed, raising both of her fists above her head and running towards the entrance like she was going into wonderland.

Well, this will be fun.

"Okay, then," I murmured, following her into the haunted mansion.

There really wasn't much to say except that it was a typical horror house. It was dark with dimmed red lights, cobwebs hanging on the ceiling, and a screaming woman on every speaker. I'd say if you entered one before, you experienced all of them.

Meadow didn't think so, though. Not even five minutes in, she was already hiding by my side and suddenly sounding sober.

"This is a bad idea," she said quietly. "Let's go back."

"There's only one exit," I whispered back.

"How far is it?"

"No idea."

There was a jump scare, causing her to leap in fear.

"Aaaaahhhh!"

I chuckled. I knew this would be fun.

"How many jump scares are there?" she asked.

"Hopefully, a lot."

As though on cue, there was another one. I laughed as Meadow screamed again and slapped the automaton this time, before whining beside me.

"I hate this."

"You wanted to come in here," I reminded her.

"I didn't think it would be this scary!" she snapped.

"There was a warning outside." Quite a misleading sign, though. The only people these would scare were kids and Meadow.

"I didn't see it!" she shrieked.

I snorted. "At least, it sobered you up."

"Only a little. I still feel loopy."

"Loopy?"

"Floozy? I don't know. I just—Aaaaaaahhh!"

I smirked at the Freddy Krueger impersonator.

"Please," she begged. "Let's get out of here."

"We're near the exit."

"Really?"

I grinned. "No."

"I hate you."

"Sure, you do."

She whimpered, digging her face deeper on my shirt while I took my time walking in the dark. She clutched the back of my shirt as we went deeper into the dark maze.

This was just like a walk in central park.

There was another scare, making her jump again and her grip on me tightening. I had to admit, I was beginning to like this place.

"This sucks," she hissed.

I chuckled. "You're funny."

"Your face is funny," she muttered. "Can we hurry up?"

"Aw, but there are so many good sights to see."

She scoffed. "In the dark?"

Suddenly, there was a loud rattling sound against the walls – the kind that went on as though the noise was banging our brains and forcing us to flee.

I didn't.

Meadow, on the other hand...

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

She screamed bloody murder and pushed me down, running away without even so much as a backward glance. Did she really just push me on the floor and left me here? I stood up from lying flat on the floor, shook my head in shock, and started laughing.

When I collected myself, I followed Meadow through the exit. I found her outside, clutching her chest and breathing hard.

"Wow," I breathed out, coming up to her.

She shook her head at me, as if saying 'don't.'

Yeah, that wouldn't stop me.

"Thanks for leaving me behind. I appreciate it." I chuckled, leaning on a railing as I looked at her. "Good to know I can count on you when there's a zombie apocalypse."

"That—That was..."

"Self-preservation." I nodded. "I respect that."

"Oh, no. I think I'm gonna puke," she mumbled. I straightened in alarm. With her hands on her hips, she looked up at the night sky. "I need water."

"Stay here," I told her. "I'll buy you another one."

A repeat of the roller rink incident was the last thing I wanted.

And so, I went and bought her a water bottle at a nearby food stall. When I came back, she was sitting on a bench. I took the seat beside her, handing her the bottle.

"Thank you," she said, as she opened it and started drinking.

Hold on, did I just service a person on my own accord?

No, I didn't want to think about it or what it meant. Not at this moment. I shook my head and focused on Meadow, seeing if she was feeling any better.

She took deep breaths, staring at nothing for the longest time before murmuring, "Please tell me I didn't tell off my sister's friends just now."

I gave her a sympathetic look. "You did."

She covered her face with her hands. "Oh, my God."

"You called them losers."

"I called the town's football heroes... losers."

"You booed them, too," I added.

"I booed those big, scary, intimidating friends of Oz Lacy." She looked at me with a horrified expression on her face. "How am I still alive?"

"They're not that intimidating," I muttered.

"Trust me, if you grew up hearing stories about them, you would be."

"I doubt it."

It was hard to be scared of anything when I had broken so many laws of my own. I only panicked earlier because I was with Meadow and I didn't want her to get hurt. But if I was on my own, it would've been a different outcome.

For starters, I wouldn't be in that position.

Not that I minded – I liked her company.

Meadow sighed. "You doubt everything."

"Not everything," I corrected, looking up at the night sky. With a lowered voice, I added, "Not anymore."

"Oh, yeah? What don't you doubt?"

You.

I'd only known her for about a month and already it felt like she'd been a constant part of my life. I liked seeing her. I liked having her around. I liked her whole being.

I gazed at her, realizing I just didn't like her as a friend.

Meadow glanced at me and frowned. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like..." She paused, her head tilting to the side as she studied my face. "I don't know, like you figured out the meaning of life."

My face broke into a smile, and I looked away.

"Yeah, something like that." When I could still feel her eyes on me, I grinned and added, "I'm not elaborating."

"I didn't ask you to," she said innocently.

"But you're dying to know."

She shrugged. "Doesn't mean I'll pry."

"Do you want to know?"

She stared at me for ages. She looked like she was having an internal battle with herself. I guessed curiosity won, because then she said, "Yes."

I signalled her to come closer, and she leaned over to me.

I whispered in her ear, "It's a secret."

She instantly pulled away from me and glared. I burst out laughing, making her get to her feet and walk away.

"I'll tell you someday," I called after her as I stood up and followed.

"Don't bother."

"I promise."

And it was the truth.

I would tell her how I felt someday.

I wasn't quite sure when the 'fall' happened, but I didn't think it mattered that much. The important thing was, it did. And I didn't know what to do with it yet.

For now, I'd enjoy our friendship and explore these feelings to myself. Unlike the way I'd always rushed things in all areas of my life...

With Meadow, I'd take my time.

_____________

Mehehe. Slow burn what?