Am I writing and posting these chapters too quickly?

Chapter Four

"Man, I wish I had a hat," Lukas complained as the sun shone directly in his eyes. "This sun is killing me!"

"What happened to your last one?" Petra asked as they walked down the streets towards the Spring Festival. "I thought you had one?"

"My cowboy hat? It got blown off the island into the Void." Lukas ran his hands through his hair. "I haven't had the chance to craft one. I can't get the right materials."

"The Founder's still not approving your Dad's petitions?" she inquired, although she already knew the answer before she saw Lukas' nod. Milo hadn't had a single petition approved since he was released from jail. "That's ridiculous. You can't even get a hat?"

"You looked like a loser in it anyway."

Lukas rolled his eyes at this statement, making sure the brown-haired young man walking on his other side didn't see. He seemed to be lengthening his stride, forcing Lukas and Petra to make quicker steps in order to keep up. He kept his arms akimbo, further showing his impatience with the other two. He was facing away from them, so it wasn't hard for Lukas to hide his exasperated expression.

Would it kill you to say something nice once in a while, Aiden? Lukas thought.

Petra must have had the same thought, and she whispered as much to Lukas. "Why is he coming with us again?"

"Come on, he's my friend," Lukas protested, though a bit weakly. "He's not that bad. He just wants to get to the festival."

"He didn't have to wait for us. We could've met him there."

Lukas didn't answer. He had no response to that. She was right.

"The first thing I'm going to do is get something to eat," Aiden declared, either not hearing their conversation or ignoring it. "They better have melon there. They didn't last year."

"Melon sure sounds good right now," Lukas agreed as they arrived at the outskirts of the festival. "The food booths are at the other side."

"You guys go ahead," Petra said. She slowed her pace to a stop, and the boys did so as well, although Aiden didn't turn around to look at her like Lukas did. "I've got some business to take care of first."

"The thing?" Lukas asked.

"Yeah, the thing," she answered. "I'll meet you guys at the cake booth, okay?"

"See ya, Petra."

"Yeah, later."

With that, the bandana-wearing redhead went her own way, leaving the area of the festival and heading towards some of the darker alleys, where neither the sun nor the torches from the festival would shine any light on the goings-on there.

Hopefully the guards will be too busy with the festival to care about some illegal trading, Lukas thought.

"Yo, Luke!" Aidan called, and Lukas snapped his vision back to his friend. "You coming or not?"

"I'm coming!"

The two men made their way to the main part of the festival, with Aiden pointing out things he wanted to do while they were there. Lukas was less picky about what activities they would partake in, so he just left that decision making to Aiden. It was just really nice to be around the town without having to worry so much about anything. The guards, trading crafting materials, hiding, the suspicious glances because of who his father was…all these things Lukas could just forget about, even if just for a short while.

Instead, he could just focus on the here and now and enjoy himself. He wanted to see the cookie booth and eat some cookies (something he almost never got under any other circumstances), play some games like darts and ring toss, and maybe see if he can convince anyone to give him some leftover supplies. Plenty of people knew about his cause and were happy to help, so long as it couldn't be traced back to them.

"I'm definitely checking out that slime booth later on," he announced.

"Oh yeah! Maybe we can convince Ivy to give us some."

"Don't get your hopes up, Aiden. The guards keep count of all the materials that enter and leave the festival, remember?"

As the pair arrived at the more central part of the festival, Lukas couldn't help but smile at the group of people who had begun dancing to the tune of the jazz band playing there. They were bouncing up and down, spinning, and singing along with the music. Lukas was quite fond of the guitar himself, although he never had the opportunity to learn how to play.

In the middle of the dancing group was a young woman with pitch-dark hair, wearing a pair of blue overalls and a red t-shirt. She was perhaps the most active of all the dancers, going back and forth between partners with a smile so wide Lukas had to wonder if her face was going to break in half. Her energy also must have been contagious, because she was able to bring people who weren't dancing into the group to join in on the fun. Even the darkest sneers were turning into smiles at her behavior.

You'd think she'd never danced before, Lukas thought, as he couldn't take his eyes off her.

"Hello?! Lukas!" Aiden yelled and waved his hand in front of Lukas' face. "Anyone home?"

Lukas shook his head briefly. "What?"

"I've been calling your name for the past five minutes. What's got you so distracted?" Aiden followed Lukas' gaze, landing on the dark-haired woman, and he smirked. "Well, look what we got here."

"I don't think I've seen her before," Lukas said. "She must be new."

"It's not like we know everyone in town," Aiden reminded him. He ran a hand through his hair. "Well, time to go say hello."

Lukas wasn't sure he liked the tone Aiden's voice had taken, and he didn't really want to find out what he was thinking.

The blond made his way through the crowd to the many dancers. The close proximity of all the people and the sun beating down on them all made the area hot and stifling, making Lukas wish even more he hadn't lost his hat. Once he reached the middle of the crowd, he found himself staring at the young woman again. Her green eyes sparkled brighter than any emerald (not that Lukas had seen many).

Those very eyes landed on him, and no more than a minute later she rushed over to take his hands.

"Come on! No standing allowed!" She declared, pulling him in front of the band. "Everyone's got to dance!"

Lukas didn't get the chance to protest as he was brought into a spin with her, their arms crossed as they bounced together. The girl laughed, and her smile was infectious, because Lukas grinned widely as well. They danced around, keeping their entwined for several minutes, completely ignoring everyone else around them.

As the music came to an abrupt stop, the woman snapped her head to look at them in shock. Doing this, however, caused her to yank on Lukas' hands again, and the two ended up falling to the ground, with the two of them side by side. Others had to jump out of the way to make sure they didn't all become a line of dominoes.

Lukas glanced over at the girl.

"You okay?"

She blinked and pulled her dark hair out of her face. "Ah, man. I did it again!"

"Did what again?" He cocked his head in confusion. What's she talking about?

"I knocked someone over again," she explained as she stood and helped Lukas to his feet. "I swear I'm not usually this clumsy!"

"No worries," he replied. "It happens. I'm Lukas, by the way."

She seemed a bit taken aback by the introduction, but moments later stuck out her hand. "I'm Jesse."

"Nice to meet you." The band started playing again, but there was less dancing this time, with the festival attendees moving on to other activities. Lukas led them away from the crowd. "I haven't seen you here before."

"Yeah, um, well, it's my first time at the Spring Festival." Jesse fidgeted with one of the buckles of her overalls. "So yeah, you wouldn't have seen me before."

"You haven't been to the festival before? Why not?" Jesse's eyes started darting around, and her teeth nibbled on her bottom lip. "It's okay if you don't want to tell me. It just kind of sucks that you haven't before. It's lots of fun!"

"I know, right?" Her tone instantly uplifted and she made eye contact again. "I've only been here a few minutes and I'm already having a blast!"

"Yeah, I could tell by the dancing," Lukas said. A torch suddenly lit up in his head. "Hey, if you want, I can show you around?"

Jesse did a little jump. "That would be great!"

"Hey Lukas!" It was Aiden, pushing his way through the crowd to join them. "Sheesh, you just disappeared on me."

"Sorry about that," Lukas said with a small huffing laugh. He waved a hand to Jesse. "Aiden, this is Jesse. Jesse, meet Aiden, a friend of mine."

"Hey there," Aiden answered, giving her an amused smirk and puffing up his chest. "Haven't seen you here before, and I know all the girls in town."

The fact that this statement was the opposite of what he said earlier about not knowing everyone in town seemed to be completely lost on Aiden. Lukas rolled his eyes and barely stopped himself from slapping his palm to his forehead.

Really, Aiden? You're trying a line like that now?

"Yeah, this is my first time at the Spring Festival," Jesse repeated for the newcomer.

"Well, you don't know what you've been missing," Aiden declared. He threw an arm around her shoulders and began to lead her to the booths. "Why don't you let us give you a tour?"

Jesse's face built up a small flush. "Uh, sure."

Lukas couldn't help but notice she was a bit less enthusiastic than when he offered the same thing moments ago.

"Hey Lukas! Didn't you want to see the slime booth?"

"Slime booth?" Now Jesse just looked confused.

Lukas shook his head as he followed the two, with Aiden leading the way. They quickly ended up at a booth with a pile of slime balls in the middle of the counter. At the back of the booth were multiple buckets, each labeled with different numbers, which Lukas knew to represent points. The person running the booth was a middle-aged woman with long, dark brown hair and wearing a long dark green robe.

"Hi Ivy."

"Hello, Lukas," she greeted him warmly. "I thought you'd be by sometime today. You always do. Care to play?"

"What is this exactly?" Jesse asked, her eyes darting back and forth between the buckets and the slime balls.

"This is Slime Basketball," Ivy described. "Basically, you take a slime ball and throw or bounce it into one of the buckets. Each bucket is worth different points, and you get three throws. The prize you get depends on how many point you earn."

"Sounds fun!" The younger woman cried out. "May I give it a try?"

"Hmm, a polite young lady." Ivy gave her an appreciative look and passed her three slime balls. "Here you go. Good luck!"

Jesse picked up a ball and passed it back and forth between her hands. She bit her lip as she took in all the buckets. The ones in the back were worth more points, and of course a higher score would mean a better prize. Lukas watched as she seemed to calculate the scores in her head, and she hadn't even made her first throw yet.

Finally, she drew her hand back and gave the slime ball a strong toss. It ended up hitting the wall behind the buckets, bouncing back to the others and hitting the counter. From there, it bounced towards the buckets again, but instead of landing in one it bounced off, hitting the ceiling, then the floor, then the ceiling again. Up and down it went until it ran out of energy and finally landed on the floor near Ivy's foot. She bent down to pick it up and placed it back on the counter.

Jesse let out a nervous laugh, which Lukas noticed was the quietest he had heard her be so far. "Um, sorry. Guess I shouldn't throw so hard."

"That would be a good idea," Ivy said nervously. "I've never seen a slime ball hurt someone, and I don't think I'd like to find out if it can."

"Sorry."

"Do you want me to show you how to do it?" Lukas offered.

Jesse chuckled. "Yeah, that might be a good idea."

"Nah, step aside." Aiden pushed himself forward. "I'll show you how it's done."

He snatched a slime ball from the counter and, with a smirk, threw the ball effortlessly. Sure enough, it landed in one of the middle buckets, earning him three out of five points. Aiden stood with his chin held high.

"Nice one!" Jesse said. She turned to Lukas. "How about you? You want my third throw?"

Lukas gave a small shrug. "Sure, I'll give it a try."

The blond took the last slime ball, eyeballed the distance to the bucket farthest in the back, and then carefully aimed his throw. This one he intentionally bounced off the ground so that it curved as it flew, landing in one of the five-point buckets. He threw his hands up in the air above his head and let out a cry of triumph.

"Got it!"

"Nice!" Jesse cried out. "Good job!"

Aiden's lips thinned as his brow furrowed, but Lukas didn't really notice. His focus was on Jesse and her toothy grin.

"Thanks." He held his hand up for a high-five, but Jesse just stared at his hand. "High-five?"

"A what now?"

"You don't know what a high-five is?" Aiden asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Like this. Hold up your hand." Jesse followed Lukas' instruction, and he slapped their palms together. Jesse let out a confused yet excited smile. "It's how you celebrate something."

"Awesome!" Jesse turned back to Ivy. "I guess that's not enough points to get a prize?"

"Sorry, but no," Ivy replied. She glanced at the younger woman for a moment. "Well, I guess I can give you something, since this is your first time."

Ivy rolled one of the slime balls to Jesse, who easily caught it. "Hey, thanks!"

"Won't you get in trouble with the guards for giving that away?" Lukas asked, his tone concerned.

Jesse's eye widened. "I didn't think of that. I don't want to get you in trouble, Miss Ivy."

"I'll just tell the guards someone accidentally threw a ball into the Void," Ivy explained. "I think you already proved one of these slime balls can go crazy pretty much anytime."

Jesse's worried expression faded to appreciation. "If you're sure?"

"I'm sure. You don't need to worry."

"Thank you, Miss."

"I bet Petra's waiting for us by now," Lukas realized. He waved to Ivy. "Thanks again, Ivy! See you later!"

"Don't be a stranger now!" She called back before turning her attention to another attendee.

"I still can't believe you didn't know what a high-five is," Aiden said as they made their way to the cake booth. "Who doesn't know that?"

"Sorry." Jesse rubbed the back of her neck. "My, uh, mother doesn't let me out much. I don't exactly have many friends to celebrate anything with."

Lukas watched her wring her hands for only a moment, and then put a hand on her shoulder. "Well, you've got some now."

She glanced up at him. "Even though we just met?"

"Even though we just met."

Jesse almost looked like she was going to cry, and Lukas was suddenly worried he had said the wrong thing.

She's still smiling, so I guess she's okay?

The trio arrived at the cake booth, and both Lukas and Aiden brought out some money to pay for some food. Jesse watched them with wide eyes and then patted her pockets.

"Oh man, I forgot to bring money," she said, and then released a sigh. "I'll have to pass."

"It's okay. I'll buy a slice for you," Lukas stated. He placed enough money on the counter for two slices, and then passed one of them to Jesse.

She took it hesitantly. "Are you sure?"

"I already bought it, so I'm sure."

Jesse's smile made his heart flutter. "Thanks, Lukas. I'll pay you back tomorrow."

"Really, don't worry about it."

Jesse tucked her hair behind her ear as she took a bite of the cake. The sun made her black hair shine in a way that almost made it look a lovely blue color. This stood in stark contrast to her pale skin, which looked like it rarely if ever was exposed to sunlight. She didn't seem pallid, but rather this combined with Jesse's enthusiasm about the festival made her practically glow brighter than any redstone Lukas had ever seen.

Lukas shook his head and took a bite of his own cake, forcing himself to look anywhere but at her.

What am I thinking? I just met her! In spite of himself, Lukas kept sneaking glances at her out of the corner of his eye as they ate. There's just something about her…that draws me to her…