"Just one bite."

"No."

"Cress, come on, just one bite. Believe me, it's great."

She moved her head from side to side, pressing her mouth into a thin line in hopes to evade the food Thorne was trying to offer her. "It's disgusting that's what it is." The scent of the fried cookie almost made her gag.

Cress thought she was already used to the overload of sugar and fat that was American food but there was no way she could have imagined the extent of it until they arrived at the fair. The hot dogs and the cotton candy were no surprise to her, they had those back home too. But going from food stall to food stall, she quickly learned that the most popular food apparently came in only two forms: Either deep-fried or on a stick - at worst, both.

That's how Cress had come across deep-fried mashed potatoes, candy bars of every sort, s'mores, pickles, breakfast sandwiches, and sausages. Basically everything that was half-way edible had been deep-fried and put on a stick.

Cress was not impressed.

Thorne apparently had no qualms. "Don't be a spoil-sport. It's really not bad." He waved the deep-fried Oreo in front of her and with an annoyed grunt, Cress took a small bite to shut him up. It wasn't as gross as she had imagined but really, Oreos were fine on their own, what was the point of overpowering the taste with all that grease?

Still, it was better than those candy corns she had tried during her first week after moving to New York. Those had been just nasty.

Pleased, Thorne eyed her dessert. "Since I let you take a bite from mine, I think it would be only fair if you returned the favour, don't you think?"

Ah, so that had been his intention. "Hm, a lousy bite of a greasy Oreo for the taste of my delicious Belgian waffle?" She pretended to think. "Nah, thanks." She took another bite of her waffle, chuckling when she saw his pout.

"But we're married! That means that half of your stuff belongs to me. Including this waffle." He made a show to take a bite of her waffle before she quickly pulled it out of reach.

"Good point. I would have to share - if you wanted to get a divorce that is."

Thorne made a funny noise. "No waffle would be worth that." He pulled her closer to him, kissing her temple. "Don't even joke about it."

The sudden shift in Thorne's voice, now low and sincere, rather than light and boisterous, made her heart thump with joy. Snuggling against him so her shoulder was pressed against his chest, Cress held up her waffle for Thorne to take a bite out of it. The kiss that followed was just as sweet with a hint of powdery sugar still on his lips.

After they ate, they continued to tour the fair. It suddenly struck Cress that this was one of the few places where her powers would be useless. She couldn't cheat on any of the games or lottery. It made her feel more normal than usual. Except that now she had no way of winning any of the cute stuffed animals.

While Cress eyed one of the ring tossing booths, Thorne pulled her to one of the shooting booths. "Ah, I haven't tried my hands at one of these in a long time," he said, pulling a few dollars from his pocket.

Cress glanced around the booth while Thorne tested the weight of the rifles. It didn't seem like there were many prizes to be won but Thorne seemed to have his eyes on the game where one could shoot flowers. She would love to have one of those. Still, she leaned over to whisper into his ear, "Don't you think the game might be rigged? There are often news segments about how impossible it is to win."

"Only one way to find out." Thorne leaned forward to steady the rifle, one eye closed as he concentrated. He didn't move for a few seconds and then shot five times in quick succession.

Three plastic flowers fell down.

Cress clapped in excitement. Eyebrows furrowed, Thorne paid for another round and won another three flowers.

The game worker's wrinkled face lit up with smile as picked them up and, with a small bow, handed them to Cress. "Beautiful flowers for a beautiful lady."

Cress blushed at the earnest compliment. "Thank you."

"Complimenting my wife? Shouldn't that be my job?" But Thorne grinned as he handed the rifle back.

The man clapped Thorne's shoulder. "It is, boy, and don't you forget it. Pretty lady like that, you're lucky."

His hand found the side of her hip, squeezing it lightly. "Always am."

Cress melted against him. There was something special about the way Thorne was always so open with his feelings for her. He never tried to be cool or play them off like other guys sometimes did. It had been one of the things that had drawn her to him almost right away. There was an honesty to Thorne that was hard to resist.

"You were really good with the rifle," Cress said. "The game wasn't rigged then?"

"No, I don't think so. It's just that is has been awhile since the last time I shot. I don't think the rifles were tampered with but a few years ago I should have been able to hit five out of five."

"Wow. Where did you learn how to shoot?"

Thorne looked over a ring tossing booth where a few boys tried their luck but Cress had the feeling he wasn't interested in the game. "My father sometimes took me hunting in the summer. He taught me how to shoot."

"Ah." Americans and their guns. But it was rare that Thorne spoke about his parents. They had some kind of fall-out years ago and had no contact since then. Why, Cress didn't know. She didn't feel comfortable pushing for answers when she herself kept some secrets from Thorne. He knew her father lived in Beijing because of his work but since she never gave Thorne her real name and she and her father had decided to keep contact at a minimum until his research was done, the two of them had never met either.

Unsure of what to say, Cress let a few seconds pass. "He was in the military, right?"

"I told you that?" He looked genuinely surprised. "You're right. Yeah, he was a big deal too. Always wanted me to join the army like him. So during summer we often went out camping and hunting with a few of his friends and their sons. And you know how boys are."

Cress didn't and Thorne laughed at her expression. "A bunch of teenage guys with rifles and some cute girls from a nearby town to impress? Yeah, we all tried to be the best. That's how I learned to shoot but apparently, I'm not that good anymore. Still fantastic but not quite," he said with a wink. Then his face changed as something occurred to him. "Hey, what about you? Would you like to try?"

"Um, I don't know. Yes?"

But Thorne had already pulled her back to the shooting booth and paid for another round. "It's the lady's turn," he told the old man who looked only too happy to have them back. He handed Cress a rifle and she was surprised by the weight.

Thorne stepped behind her, positioning the rifle in her hands and together, they leaned forward, her back to his chest. Thorne steadied her arm with one hand, the other had slipped under the hem of her jacket and gripped her waist. Cress's heart thumped so loudly in her throat that she could hardly hear his instructions.

"... and then focus on your target. Don't get distracted by anything else just focus on the piece of plastic you need to shoot to get the flower you want."

Easier said than done with his hand burning at her hip but Cress closed one eye and picked a little purple carnation.

"Take your time. Relax, you've got all the time in the world."

Cress took a breath and shot, squealing as she did so. The little piece of plastic chipped at the top but otherwise, stayed intact. The first miss.

"Oh, I don't know, Thorne. Maybe you should do it."

"Nope, you got it. Believe me."

Unconvinced, Cress nevertheless lifted the rifle again. She concentrated on the same flower but this time she anticipated the recoil and bang when she pressed the trigger. A yellow daffodil fell down.

"See, you got it! Amazing, and at your second try." Thorne beamed down at her and Cress didn't have the heart to tell him that she had her eyes on a different flower. But still, she won one flower so she didn't feel like a total loser.

The next two shots missed her target but on the fifth try, she finally won her purple carnation. The old man congratulated her and Thorne planted a quick peck to her temple. The eight plastic flowers they won made a nice little bouquet but she was glad to hand the rifle back.

They continued to play at a few other booths with Thorne excelling at basketball toss and teaching her skee ball. Cress was surprisingly good at balloon dart throw so together they won a few trinkets. A peacock feather, two pens, a pineapple keychain, a small strawberry stuffed toy, a heart-eyes emoji bag clip and a blinking bracelet but otherwise, nothing big.

That's when Cress saw the cutest stuffed toys in one of the crane machines. Big-eyed, fluffy and ridiculously adorable. They were a far-cry from being realistic, rather pillow-shaped and ...

... Cress wanted one.

She inserted a coin but a few tries in, she had to concede that it was harder than it looked. Or it was rigged. Cress wished she could use her powers a bit to confound the machine's timer, giving her more time to position the joystick but it was no use.

"You know I could just buy you a stuffed toy, right?" Thorne had leaned against the glass, studying the crane as it came up empty-handed again. "These have probably been in there for ages and smell bad."

She ignored him, pulling the last coin in the slot. "I don't want just any stuffed toy but look at this one"—she pointed at one stuffed animal that resembled a cat—"it's so cute. I had a similar one back home my father gave me." There was no way she could have brought every piece of her belongings to the US with her but that stuffed toy would remind her of home.

If she could win it, that is.

The crane finally managed to hold onto the stuffed toy Cress wanted to win but on the way up, the cat escaped its grasp and fell down to where it had lain before. "Oh, boo."

Cress looked through her purse for more coins but even the few coins at the bottom weren't enough for another round. She did find a five-dollar note though. She just needed to change it and then she would allow herself only five more tries to win her stuffed animal.

She looked at Thorne. "I'll quickly change my money. Can you maybe look up some tricks on how to crack the machine? There must be a way to get a prize right? Other people win it too."

He raised an eyebrow, taking another look at the plush cat. "You really want it that much?"

"Yes." She made her way to the next booth. "And make sure no one else wins it."

Cress changed her money, trying to think of a strategy that would work. When she came back, Thorne still leaned casually against the booth.

With the stuffed animal she had wanted to win in his hand.

"What?" Looking between him, the fluffy cat and the crane machine, Cress was at a loss for words. "When? How ... huh?"

He chuckled. "Yes?"

"How did you manage to win the toy?!"

"Want to steal my tricks?" When she nodded, he tapped her nose playfully. "Ah-ah, one should never reveal their tricks. That goes for magicians, criminal masterminds and awesome husbands who win stuffed toys from a crane machine."

"Criminal what?" She shook her head. "I can't believe you won. Just like that." She couldn't have been gone for more than two minutes.

He tapped against the glass and there was a knowing smile on his lips. "That's because I'm amazing." He didn't say anything more than that. He probably knew perfectly well that Cress was bursting with curiosity but he seemed only too happy to keep his method secret.

She let him. "You are. Thank you."

He handed her the plush cat, leaning closer as she hugged it to her chest. "Sooo ... you think I deserve a reward for freeing that poor cat from the confines of this horrible box?"

Cress giggled. "Little Cress and I are eternally grateful for your services."

Eyebrows furrowed, Thorne was silent for a few seconds before he broke out into laughter. "Oh, you mean the cat! I thought you meant your—"

"Thorne!" She exclaimed, aghast and looked around if anyone overheard them. "Of course I meant the cat!"

There was an amused smile on his lips. "Too bad." He looked at the toy in her arms. "Little Cress ... you sure about that?"

Cress shrugged. "That's what I named my plush cat back home."

"Yes but I think you're more creative than you were at what? Three? Four?"

Cress had been nine when her dad had brought her the toy as a present but he didn't need to know that. She could have her secrets too after all. "Something like that." She considered the stuffed toy. "How would you name it then?"

"Easy. Boots."

"Aww. Like Puss in Boots? That's so cute." She held up the cat, considering the name. "Okay then, Boots it is."

But when she looked up at Thorne, his eyes weren't on the toy anymore but intently fixed on her. Goosebumps erupted on her skin. She would never get over the way he looked at her with those deep, blue eyes.

His face was only inches away from hers, so close that it would only need her to get on her toes just a little to capture his lips with her own.

Eyes fluttering shut, Cress pulled herself up, anticipating a kiss—

BOOM!

An almost deafening blast shook the earth beneath her.