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Never in my life have I loved something that I hate. Many would expect it to be something dangerous like bungee jumping, or a person who bullied me as a child. Mine, however, is neither. Candy corn, such a simple thing, with its white, yellow, and orange stripes, but this insignificant thing gave me a hope, a feeling that things were taking a turn for the better. A better explanation would be why candy corn is so special to me. You could say it started with an invitation, or perhaps the lady behind the counter; nevertheless, the events that follow make me smile.
Let's start from the beginning. People buzzed around us; pushing, screaming, laughing, all the things that you would expect at a fair. My palms were moist from the sun beating down on us. Stupidly, both Macey and I, had forgotten sunscreen, and I could feel my face heating up. As cliché as it sounded, Macey and I had bought t-shirts with our names on it, and we had just finished showing her parents, who had been kind enough to take us to the fair.
"Cammie," Macey said, pulling me back into the air-conditioned building, "We've been here for over four hours and have not had a lick of junk food. There's a candy store right here, and we are buying some." When Macey sets her mind on something, there is no point in arguing. Pulling me by the arm, I was led over to the candy booth, where a charming old lady described to us our poisons. I ended up buying a few pieces of caramel and one chocolate-peanut-butter-cup. Macey's bag, on the other hand, was filled with gummies, chewables, and the ever-unappealing candy corn.
"How can you eat that stuff?" I ask, my lips turning up into a sneer.
"What are you talking about? This stuff is amazing!" I still don't understand how she does it, that stuff is gross.
"No way, that stuff is nasty!" I fiddle with the bottom of my shirt as we wander through the grounds.
"Come on! Fine, I'll prove it." I rolled my eyes at her comment. No one likes candy corn.
"Hey mister!" Macey yells. My mouth drops open at her. She's going to get us thrown out! "Hey, do you like candy corn?" The man laughs then shakes his head yes. Wrong answer.
"Ha!" Macey brags, "I told you. Everyone loves candy corn."
"No, they don't," I contradict, "I bet you I can find ten people before you can that don't like candy corn. That stuff is plain gross." I put my hand out for her to shake. Eying me up and down, she begrudgingly shakes my hand.
As the day progresses, our competition continues with me trailing behind with Macey at eight and me and at a measly four people. As we get in line for the swing ride, Macey prepares her victory speech as I glare at her.
"Macey, candy corn is gross, I can't even begin to believe that you enjoy that crap. It's disgusting." I deadpan. Macey just sticks her tongue out at me and makes an obnoxious face. I roll my eyes as she snorts.
"Whatever. I'm only two people away from winning; you know it's amazing. That stuff is delicious." I rolled my eyes once again. As Macey finished her maniacal rant about how "amazing" candy corn is, two boys joined the line behind us. Both of the boys seemed our age, both extremely adorable. One of the boys was tall with brown hair and deep green eyes. He was wearing a stripped t-shirt and a pair of tan jeans. The other was around the same height, however much more scrawny. Mystery boy #2 had dark black hair and an oversized t-shirt. I was almost positive that Macey was checking them out in the corner of her eye.
Macey had always pestered me to try to flirt with guys. It had never exactly worked out. When I refused to talk to guys I didn't know at sporting events that she dragged me along to, she found it suitable to call one of her guy friends and have me talk to them. It never ended well. The conversation mainly consisted of me yelling "What?" into the phone because of the loud noise in the background. Now, we're in line behind two very attractive guys, why not take her up on her proposition?
"Hey!" I shouted to the guys behind us. They both looked up while giving me a confused look. "Ya, you two, do either of you like candy corn?"
With one glance in between the two guys, and the Mystery Guy #1 answered, "Ya, I guess."
"Ha!" Macey screamed at me while jumping up and down. "I told you, I win."
"Hey," Guy #1 asked, "do either of you two have blue eyes?"
Macey pulled her sunglasses so they rested on her hairline. "I do," she replied cautiously.
Guy #2's eyes widened and he nearly screamed, "Dude! They're the girls we've been looking for." Well, I thought to myself, this is starting to sound like a pick up line gone wrong.
"Will you guys go on the Farris wheel with us?" Guy #1 asked.
Macey and I shared a quick glance. She shrugged her shoulders as if to say "up to you."
"Why not?" I replied, "let's go." The boys both grabbed us by our arms and rushed us over to the Farris wheel. I felt my face redden as we stepped inside. Sitting next to Macey, I gave her a questioning look. These guys could be rapists for all we know. The Farris wheel began its circular trek, both Macey, the two boys, and I encased in it's carts.
"Um, well, I'm Cammie," I sputter out, unsure of what to say. "and this is Macey."
"Ya, we couldn't tell from the names on your shirts. I'm Goode, Zachary Goode," Boy #1 says. He mouth curled into a satisfied smirk and his green eyes sparkled. "This is Preston."
"Oh, well," I stutter, "It's nice to meet you." The Farris wheel had reached its full height at the end of introductions. "So, why did you guys want us to come on the Farris wheel with you?" I question.
"Well, you see, Preston and I here are in a band. It's more of alternative, punk rock type of stuff. I'm going to tell you now that we judge people entirely on their taste in music. Please tell me you listen to good music." Zach begged.
"Um, well, my favorite band is Yellowcard." The end of my sentence comes out as more of a question than a confident answer.
"Oh thank God!" Preston yells. Zach lets out a breath of air that I don't think he even realized he was holding. "What about you Macey, what do you like?" Macey gave me a concerned look. She definitely wasn't the kind of person that swooned over Justin Bieber and had posters of One Direction up on her walls. Her eyes glistened with worry. This may have been her only opportunity to actually have me "flirt" with a guy, and if her taste in music ruined that, she would never forgive herself.
"Um, well, I guess I li-" The Farris wheel ended with an abrupt stop, inevitably throwing both Macey and I across into the boy's arms. Blushing, I untangled myself from Preston (who was sitting across from me) and sat upright in my seat. Seeing my embarrassment, the boys let out a hardy laugh while I, maturely, stuck my tongue out.
"So you never told us why you asked us come on the Farris wheel with you." Macey reminded them, drawing the attention away from her.
"Well," Preston began, "We're here are huge fans of the band Blink 182. You've heard of them right?" Macey and I just nodded, although I'm sure Macey had never heard one of their songs in her life. "Well, there's this one song where it says like a Ferris wheel, full of blue-green eyes and we decided that by the end of the summer, we were going to do everything they mention in their songs." The boys looked over at each other and then, simultaneously, began belting out the lyrics to If She Falls In Love by Blink 182. I couldn't help but smile at their openness. I was so used to boys begin to self-conscious, insensitive boneheads to remember that there are people who just live to have a good time.
"That's cool," I reply while smiling. Sadly, we reach the end of the circular journey, and must exit the ride.
"Dude!" Preston exclaimed as Macey and I prepared to say goodbye. "We didn't take a picture or anything! We need something to remember this by! Would you guys be game to go again?" I look at Macey and she nods her head furiously.
"Sure," I reply. That's when I realize that somewhere along the way from exiting the Farris wheel to getting back on, I've completely forgotten Preston's friend's name. I send Macey a quick text saying: bad news forgot Preston's friend's name. little help please? Macey shoots me a look then shakes her head. I feel my phone vibrate in my pocket only moments later. Thought you knew, forgot too. Well crap.
As the Farris wheel goes around once more, I find myself becoming more and more comfortable talking to the boys. I managed to find out that neither play sports, yet are both deeply connected to their music. Preston is more a goofball than his friend (who's name I'm still not sure about). I also come to realize that I might have been right about these boys, in that I'm not completely sure that Preston is not a rapist.
"So what do you guys play in your band?" Macey asks. I've zoned out the conversation staring out at the ocean. The fair is located so close and the sun is slowly descending down onto the horizon. The sky slowly lights as reds and oranges light up the sky.
"Well," Preston says, "I play drums."
"I play guitar and sing some." Preston's friend adds.
"Really?" Macey looks over at me and gives me a wink. Oh please no. "Cammie here is an amazing singer!" And she did.
"No, I'm really not," I defend. I've never taken singing lessons but I sing in the car all the time. When we were on the way back from a hockey game she took me to one time, I was singing and she kept on trying to record me with her phone. Eventually I got frustrated with her and just let her record me for the heck of it. I didn't think she'd actually show it to people.
"Here," she said pulling out her phone, "I have a recording of her." I tried to grab her phone so I could chuck it over the edge of the carriage, but Preston grabbed it out of her hand before I could. Glaring I mouthed you are dead to her. She shrugged her shoulders and just laughed. Preston and his friend listened intensely to the sound coming from the speaker. Sadly, the only song I could think of at the time to sing was Dynamite by Tiao Cruz, worst mistake of my life.
"Although I desperately hate that song, you sound good," Preston's friend complemented me. I knew I turned a deep shade of red because it suddenly got extremely hot inside the open carriage. The conversation then revolved around their band, Occuapncy64. I promised them I would check them out when I returned home. I found out that they were from the local county while Macey and I lived further away in Roseville.
"Dude, you should sing something for the girls," Preston coaxed while winking. He began tapping a beat on the sides of the cart while his friend counted the beats. After a second or two I recognized the song as Ocean Avenue by Yellowcard, my favorite song ever.
"There's a place off Ocean Avenue, where I used to sit and talk with you," Preston's friend began. I found myself humming along, and then slowly singing along. I closed my eyes and got lost in the song.
"If I could find you now, things would get better, we could leave this town and run forever," I continued the chorus, then completed it. Not until then did I realize that I was the only one singing. Preston and his friend both gave me a huge round of applause and I hid myself in the blue bear that I had won earlier in the day.
"Nice job Cammie, you're great." Preston complimented. I turned an even darker shade of red. This was the first time I had sung seriously in front of people that I didn't know well. Like I said, I always sung in the car and as a joke with friends but not something like this. Preston's friend was staring at me with a wide smile and a twinkle in his eyes (cheesy but true).
"Guys!" Preston quickly exclaimed, "We need that picture still." We all tried crowding in, however it seemed like we were too spread out. "Here," Preston suggested, "I'll just take pictures of all of us and Photoshop them into one." He quickly snapped a picture of each one of us, and then put his phone away. The Farris wheel reached the ground and we exited the ride.
"Hey, I bet we could beat you guys in bumper cars!" Macey suggested. Turning to me once again Macey gave me a subtle wink.
"You're on," Preston challenged. Racing off to the bumper cars, we strengthened the friendship we had just created.
For the remainder of the day, Macey and I went from ride to ride with Preston and his friend, whose name is yet to come back to me. I noticed that slowly, Macey pushed me more towards Preston's friend. She made me go next to him on the scary ride the boys forced us on, during Speed she sat with Preston and I sat with his friend. Although he didn't talk nearly as much as Preston, he was deeply committed to his music. He told me about upcoming shows and more about his band and I was generally interested.
However, we found that all good things must come to an end. The time for our wristbands allowing us unlimited rides was running out. We had but fifteen minutes left before we had to go meet Macey's parents.
"What do you say we go on the Farris wheel one last time for good measure?" Preston suggested. I shrugged and the boys lead us back to the spinning wheel. This time, however, Macey sat next to Preston and I sat next to his friend. Checking my watch, I realized it had been almost four hours since we were on this ride last.
Have you ever had those moments where time seems to slow down? Where everything seems like it's going in slow motion and there's nothing you can do to change it. That happened to me when we reached the top of the Farris wheel.
The sun was setting in the horizon lighting up the skyline. It was you're typical romantic setting. However, I didn't think that the boys thought of it that way until Preston's friend laid his arm around my shoulders. Immediately I felt myself sit up a little bit straighter. My hands clutched my teddy bear a little bit tighter and I shot a worried glance at Macey. She, however, was preoccupied with Preston. The conversation ceased as we watched the sun sink in the horizon. I couldn't concentrate though. Preston's friend's arm was still strewn around my shoulders and I could help but start my nervous habit of putting my hair behind my ear and fiddling with my hands.
Finally, the ride came to an end. I bolted out of the carriage like it was on fire. Macey followed me, and the boys ran ahead of us. I still felt my heart racing and the heat from Preston's friend's arm on my back.
"Cam, calm down, he was just putting his arm around you." Macey laughed.
"This may be funny to you Ms. I-Get-All-The-Guys, but I've never had a boyfriend, I've never been kissed, heck I've never even had a guy come over to my house. So excuse me if I'm a bit nervous and jittery now." I shook out my hands (another thing I do when I'm nervous) and began to catch up with the boys.
"We have time for one more ride, you guys want to go on Tango?" Preston's friend suggested.
"No," Macey pleaded, "please?"
"Oh come on Mace, its not big deal what happened to trying new things?" I gave her a smug look as both the boys cracked up. She glared at me then begrudgingly got in line for the ride. I laughed at her stubbornness as I followed in suit.
Once we were on the ride, we were seated: Preston, Macey, Me, then Preston's friend. I really need to learn his name. Once the ride began I let out a scream of adrenaline. I love rides like these where you're twisted and turned, then thrown upside-down. Half way through the ride, I felt a tap on my left hand. I looked over and saw Macey glancing at her left hand, which was firmly secured in Preston's. I let out a little audible gasp. I smiled at her, and then gave a little wink. She just roller her eyes and continued to look down.
Once the ride was finished, so were our wristbands. It was eight o'clock and Macey and I had to meet her parents.
Instead of disturbing the lovebirds that were exchanging numbers, I began to talk to Preston's friend. "I had a great time with you today," I said earnestly.
"Same to you," he replied, "here let me put my number in your phone." I set it up for a new contact and handed the phone to him. Quickly he typed in his name and handed it back to me. Zach Goode. Thank god I know his name now, although it's a little late now.
"Thanks Zach." I smiled at him the typed my number into his phone. "I can just have Macey send me Preston's number and I'll send you hers."
"Alright Cam we got to go." Macey said as she detached herself from Preston.
"Okay," I replied, "Bye Preston, bye Zach. I had a great time meeting you today." I turned to leave when Zach stopped me.
"What, no hug for me? Come one Cam, don't leave me hanging like that." Blushing, I wrapped my arms around his torso. We pulled apart slightly, looking directly into each other's eyes. I saw something in his eyes, almost like he was trying to decide to do something. Suddenly, I felt a yank on my arm. Macey pulled me away and like that we were lost in the crowd, Preston and Zach gone.
"He was totally going to kiss you!" Macey squealed as we walked back to the car, her parents a reasonable distance away from us.
"Macey, no he wasn't." I rolled my eyes at her absurdity.
"He totally was, and you know it too!"
"Oh like you should be talking, Ms. Hold-Hands-With-Preston-On-Tango." Macey blushed then slugged me in the arm. I just laughed at her denial.
"I can prove that he was so totally going to kiss you just now." Macey taunted smugly.
"Fine," I complied, "prove it." Digging out her phone, Macey showed me a text. Hey Macey, it read, it's Zach. It was awesome meeting you today. You're friend Cammie is amazing! She's really pretty and I wish I had gotten to spend more time with her.
"So," I said shakily, the butterflies in my stomach fluttering around, "That doesn't mean that he was going to kiss me."
"Here, read this one." The text from her said: Ya, Cam's pretty cool. His reply to that was: You have no idea, I was going to kiss her before you pulled her away from me. I nearly dropped the phone after reading that. I stopped in my tacks.
"Told you so." Macey smirked and I just read the message over and over again. He wanted to kiss me, what was going on? I managed to remember how to move my feet as we continued walking.
After Macey's parents caught up to us, because we were so far in front of them, I turned to my left and saw Preston and Zach sitting on the benches by a food stand.
"Bye guys," I waved. Both the boys just stared at me and waved awkwardly. Turning away to hide my blush from Zach, I began to walk a bit faster.
Once we reached the car, I felt the subtle vibration of my phone in my pocket. Assuming it was my mom calling to see where I was, I pulled it out. Surprisingly, however, it wasn't my mom, it was Zach.
See you at the concert in a couple weeks ;)
You most definitely will. Maybe candy corn isn't all that horrible after all.
Hey Guys so this is my first One shot, it may become a two shot if you guys want. But this a completely true story. This actually happened to me and Zach is based on a guy I met. They do play in a band called Occupancy64. You guys should really look them up cause they're crazy good and awesome and will be famous one day :D They're website is occupancy64. bandcamp . com no spaces though or you can like them on Facebook. Please do it for me cause you love me and ya (: But all of this really did happened. No shiz, well I did leave out a couple of things but whatever ;) you'll just have to review to find out what you missed. Hope you guys liked it.