A/N: So I'm back in the Mentalist realm! Go me! I know it's been a while and you can thank Tracie for dragging me out of the darkness. My first order of business is to get Red Eye done after I return home from my little vacation to Europe. For now here's my entry to the Paint-It-Red monthly challenge. Enjoy!
Prompt: "I'd rather be causing the chaos, Than living at the sharp end of this knife" (Gabrielle Aplin - Home)
Warning: Scary fair rides. The exits are here, here, and here.
Disclaimer: Four seasons in and nothing. I'm disappointed.
Tilt-A-Whirl
"Oooh, oooh, can we go on this one?"
Cho glanced up at the steel contraption that Summer had been wildly pointing to. A long winding orange track, a more than two hundred foot drop in the middle.
"We just ate," he said simply.
"So?"
"Fat and meat trimmings."
"Normal people would call them hot dogs."
"To-may-to, to-mah-to."
"You know what I think?" She didn't even bother waiting for a response before continuing. "I think Mr. Agent Man is afraid of a wittle woller coaster."
Summer was using her baby voice. The voice that Cho secretly hated to love. He casually folded his arms across his chest.
"I just had this suit dry-cleaned."
Dropping the subject altogether, Summer continued along the small path. Luckily for Cho, in the opposite direction of what he considered a gigantic death trap. They had only made a few steps when she let out a squeal upon seeing a pimply teenager selling various carnival confections. After bouncing back towards him, she shoved unnaturally pink fluff into his face.
"Here," she chirped cheerfully.
"I'd like to keep my own teeth."
Summer pouted.
"If I knew that you were going to be such a spoil sport, I would have asked Patrick to come with me instead."
"Why didn't you?"
"I hope to God that was a rhetorical question."
He grunted non-committally.
"You know what? Fine. I give up," she conceded miserably. "You win. You clearly don't want to be here with me, so let's just go."
She was ready to storm off when he firmly grabbed a hold of her arm.
"What?" she snapped.
He silently stared at her for a long while. He honestly wasn't trying to be difficult.
"You're impossible," he said finally.
Her face immediately brightened. It was the closest thing to an outright admission of love that she was going to get and she happily took it.
"I wub you too."
She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him fiercely. He almost didn't even mind that the remaining cotton candy was now stuck to the side of his head. When she decided to let him go, Cho noticed she had a rather dangerous twinkle in her eye. It was a look he knew all too well, even though they haven't known each other for that long. He could easily take on gang bangers and serial killers, but for some reason that look made him nervous. Before he had the chance to dwell on his apprehension, Summer was already dragging him across the amusement park with purpose. She had made a beeline for another ride. Half shell buggies attached to a metal track, whirling around in an almost random pattern. As the previous batch of dizzy passengers clamored off, Summer pulled him into an empty cart. She screamed excitedly as their buggy swayed slowly from side to side. Faster and faster it went as it prattled around. It was surprisingly an exhilarating feeling. For a moment, Cho forgot about cases or criminals. The entire world around him was a blur of colors. Spinning round and round and round. Chaotic, yet vibrant and beautiful. Just like the woman seated beside him.
Fin for now, Cho/Summer forever