AKUSAIMONTH: BERSERK
Day 07: First

Summary: Some rides are as fun as they are terrifying.
Genre: Gen
Length: 625

The Catapult

The seats on the long, light-house like tower were elevated enough for their feet to dangle slightly in the air. Isa could still see the line of expectant people waiting to be hurled into the air like raggedy dolls. He had been in that line for twenty minutes before getting here. He had changed his mind at least a dozen times before they were let past the bar and onto, according to Lea, the best seats on the ride.

Isa's heart was beating fast. He was properly buckled up. He had seen to it himself, Lea had made sure, and then a handler came by to be extra sure, and yet it wasn't enough to settle him down. He reached for Lea's hand and exhaled slowly once they laced their fingers together.

"Welcome aboard The Catapult," said the woman in the booth with the controllers. "You're about to be thrown 55 meters up in the air. Spooky, huh? Are you ready?"

Isa shook his head and squeezed Lea's hand.

"Alright," said the woman. "Lean back in your seats and enjoy the ride."

The sound of the machinery behind them changed. It was all Isa noticed before their seats were launched into the air in a speed that couldn't be legal. He let go of Lea's hand at some point to cling onto the padded restraint bar that kept him in his seat. A loud, shrilling scream erupted from his stomach and tore through his throat as they descended as quickly as they had ascended. They had paid for this. They had been in line, looking at others do the same thing. It was just about the stupidest thing he had ever done, and he was gonna kick Lea into the ocean if he survived this.

"Isa! Isa, look! Look!" Lea said while chuckling. They had come to a halt, dangling up in the air. Lea shook Isa's arm until Isa dared to open his eyes.

"I hate you so much." Isa's voice trembled.

"Look at the view," Lea said instead.

The view was beautiful. The bay lay bare before them. The colors seemed to intensify with the adrenaline running through his system. The old buildings on the other side seemed like a distant place he had never seen before, and just as he thought he'd get to take in more of the details, the machinery changed sound again. They had to get down somehow. Isa took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He wanted to be prepared for the drop, but the longer it took, the more unprepared he felt.

That split second when he realized that they were about to fall down was as comical as it was petrifying. It was like being Wile E. Coyote. He got a second to realize what was going to happen before he plunged down the canyons. Isa would have laughed if it hadn't been for the screaming.

Once the ride stopped, and they were on firm ground again, Isa got out of his seat on trembling legs and tried to brush his hair back in place with his fingers.

"That was fun!" Lea said gleefully. "Wasn't it, Isa?"

"You're a goddamn masochist."

"C'mon, admit it. It was fun." Lea grinned.

"It was a little fun."

"Fun enough to do it again?"

"Let's go to the gentler merry-go-rounds for a bit. Let me forget the bad first."

"You know which ride we should get on?" There was a twinkle in Lea's eye that Isa recognized immediately.

"Lea, no."

"Hear me out!"

"No!"

They walked off to the merry-go-rounds, and twenty minutes later, Isa was on another ride, praying for his life while he flipped around in the air until he couldn't tell up from down and right from left.