Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Twilight.
This story is really short, but I was inspired to write it when I discovered a Merry-go-Round in a small town that still costs 5 cents a ride. That might not seem like a big deal to our generation, since we have grown up around much faster carnival rides and roller coasters, but when I saw something restored from a time when it was a big deal, I felt a real appreciation for it. There was such a timeless quality to the ride and I just felt inspired to write this.
Carnival
Nothing made me happier than Alice being happy, which is why when her bubbling excitement had washed through me it had filled me with a sense of euphoria. She bounced ahead of me, smiling the whole way. I tried to remember a time when I had seen her this happy. It wasn't hard to think of one, but my favourite memory stuck out in my mind. Our wedding.
I had proposed to her one night beneath our willow tree. It was about four weeks after finding our family in a south part of Florida. One day, on a walk, we had discovered the tree deep in the forest and fell in love with the fact that we could hide behind the curtain of leaves.
She had to have known it was coming. There were no surprises I could keep from Alice. That would explain the unbelievable good mood she had been in as we walked through the forest hand in hand, her excitement crashing against me.
When I got down on one knee, she looked as if she wanted to cry. She had said yes before I had even gotten the question out. The next twelve weeks leading up to our wedding Alice had been even more excited as she planned the day. The day we wed she had bounced up the aisle toward me.
"Jasper," she whispered, completely inaudible to humans and yet it pulled me from my reverie.
"Yes Alice," I replied gently. I looked up at her impatient expression and smiled, trying with great difficulty not to laugh.
"Are you coming?" she demanded.
"Of course I'm coming," I said, as I caught up with her and took her hand. I felt her excitement again as we went up to the ticket counter to retrieve our tickets. With all the excitement that was rolling off of her like waves, I was surprised she wasn't bouncing up and down again.
I paid for the tickets and she half dragged me inside the carnival. "Which ride do you want to go on first?" she asked. Never in my thirty years with Alice had I told her that most of the rides at the carnival made me feel sick. I could never do anything that would take that happiness away. Every year we hit the carnival that was put on in whichever town we were calling home. She loved it, reliving a moment in her childhood she had no recollection of. I knew her favourite ride was the carousel and that was the ride I chose first, earning a smile from her that made it almost impossible to keep her clothes intact as we went and stood in line.