HIM
"'You clean up well enough'? Really?"
I cringe as the moment replays in my head. Adah smacks me on the arm, her, Mamka and I trailing behind the group.
"I panicked!" I object, rubbing where she hit me, though it doesn't really hurt. She rolls her eyes, clearly at her wits end with me.
It's true, though—I did panic. Hearing her laugh, having her tease me—I wasn't ready for it. And she looked—well—she looked beautiful.
But friends don't tell each other that. I groan for what feels like the millionth time since we left the house. Friends.
I've had plenty. Men and women. And yet somehow, this tiny Anglorian woman confounds me. I constantly feel like I'm doing too much or too little, teetering on some invisible line.
Her and I had been dancing around each other since that night I brought her food. Every interaction feels stunted, slightly off-kilter. God knows why. The harder I try to make things feel normal, the worse it gets.
"At this rate, you'll never get her to love you."
Mamka's characteristically flat observation makes me choke on air.
"Mamka!" I know my face is beet red from the way both Adah and she laugh. "It's not like that. We're—well, alright, I think we're friends. She only just stopped despising me!"
I feel the need to defend myself, though my explanation does little to dissuade them.
"Don't listen to her—not entirely at least. Just be complimentary with her; that can't hurt to get on her good side." Adah wraps her arm around me, pressing in from my left.
"That's cheating!" Mamka growls, shoving her arm away and squeezing in on my right. "Take it slow, boy, you don't want to scare her."
Adah and Mamka start arguing viciously about how I should "win Laura over." But something sticks in my mind.
"Cheating?"
They freeze, looking caught. Suspicion rising in me, I narrow my eyes.
"It's only a little bet," Mamka says, making Adah screech at her and lunge to cover her mouth. That isn't Mamka's way, though. She's honest—even when you don't want her to be. "What? The boy's a grown up."
Indignance rises in me.
"You bet on if Laura and I would get together?" Anger seeps into my voice, followed closely by embarrassment.
"Not if—when." Mamka shrugs, taking a drag of her cigarette. I sputter, Adah smacking her palm to her forehead. Even my thoughts seem to trip over each other. My heart stutters, stomach flipping. Words elude me.
The only thing I can think to do is shrug out of their grasp and start jogging to join the rest of the group, leaving them in the dust.
"Just make sure it doesn't happen until Summer!" Mamka calls after me, and I send up a prayer to the heavens for my sanity.
HER
The Fair grounds are packed with people; the smell of food saturates the air, coming from various food stalls. Music drifts from different corners of the park, mingling with the sound of chatter and laughter.
As soon as we get there, Amber and Grace rope all of us into dancing with a group forming around a small band.
I'm pushed and pulled every which way by the maids, spinning me until I'm too dizzy to stand. I try to escape the slowly growing crowd, but everyone seems reluctant to let go of me.
I pant, heat pressing in from all sides. The smell of food sours in my nose, mixing with the odor of tightly packed bodies. My stomach flips, and I feel nausea start to build.
I try to breathe deeply, but my chest tightens. I'm really starting to panic, when—I shouldn't even be surprised at this point—Aleksi swoops in and whisks me away.
The maids are too busy swooning to protest, and I'm too busy trying not to be sick to thank him. He parts the sea of people easily, guiding me to a small bench.
When we break through the crowd I sigh, relieved. I suck the fresh air into my lungs, my muscles relaxing.
"Thanks," I say weekly.
He laughs and I can't help but join.
"Anytime." He's sitting next to me, his large frame making the bench seem even smaller. To fit on it, we have to be pressed side by side.
When he shifts our arms brush. I swallow as I realise how close we are. He seems to notice right when I do, and the air becomes tight between us.
I clear my throat awkwardly after a pause that's slightly too long.
"Shall we?" I gesture to the various stalls and games that decorate the square, and he nods, scratching the back of his neck.
We fall into an awkward but steady rhythm. We walk in silence, both of us too aware of it to be comfortable. I can't even focus on what's around us; I'm too busy thinking of something—anything—to say.
"So—"
"How—"
We both stall, trying to let the other go first. He gives me a go-on gesture, but honestly, I was hoping to think of something after I started talking.
Every conversation topic suddenly escapes me. My mouth dries out as the silence stretches on.
Thankfully, I'm saved by Elliot.
"Aleksi! Laura! Want to play?"
I release a relieved sigh. Him and a few other staff members are standing around a ring toss game. I shake my head and look at Aleksi, who's nodding.
We both chuckle, a little forced.
"Go ahead."
Nodding, he steps up to the counter where the other staff members throw endlessly to no avail. Their brows are set with determination, but not a single one of them has landed anything yet.
Aleksi, however, lands one immediately. Of course.
The person running the booth looks almost miffed as he hands him the prize—a small teddy bear. The other men guffaw and protest, but to his right, a little girl stares at the bear with watery eyes.
"You could still get the doll…" Her mother trails off, and it becomes clear that he just got the prize she really wanted.
The other men are too busy complaining to notice, but Aleksi doesn't miss it.
"Here," he says softly, handing the bear to the girl, "I think you should have this."
She looks at him like a fairy-tale prince come to life. The mother smiles gratefully at him, and I catch his eye.
I raise a silent eyebrow, teasing him.
The tips of his ears turn pink, but after a moment of hesitation, he winks back at me.
It's such a strange sight my heart stutters. It amuses me—him acting silly. That's all.
I snort so loudly I draw the attention of people around me. Many disapproving looks are directed my way, but Aleksi is grinning, and I forget to care.