I leaned toward him, closed my eyes, and pressed my lips to the edge of my bubble. I felt his bubble shift against mine, and realized he was kissing me back. I imagined with all my might that I could feel Austin's lips moving against mine, and that my hands were intertwined with his.

And I felt it. I really did. I could even feel his soft laugh against the plastic, and I laughed, too. Then I went back to kissing him.

I heard a low cough, and opened my eyes to see the employee lady standing outside our bubbles, looking down at us. I was instantly embarassed, but Austin had a blissful smile on his face that said he didn't care. The lady yanked us out of our bubbles, gave us a few sharp words, then sent us on our way.

We made our way to a bench and sat down. A man wheeled a cotton-candy cart past us, and Austin immediately stood up and dug out his wallet.

"I'm going to get us some cotton-candy. Be right back."

He pushed his way through the crowd, and I watched him go, staring at his back and shoulders as if they might hold some sort of answer there.

As I waited for him to return, I started rehearsing things to say in my mind. I had never done that before – worried about what I was going to say around Austin. I was worried that whatever had happened between us was a fragile thing – still growing – and anything I said might shatter it and ruin our friendship. My heart beat faster in my chest, almost as fast as it had pounded during our kiss.

And another question – did that count as a kiss? It sure felt like one. My lips still tingled as if they had actually touched him. My mouth ached to do it again.

One thing I liked about Austin – I could always spot him from far away, because he stood at least a head taller than everyone else. I saw him appear at the edge of the crowd, holding a cone of cotton-candy in each hand. He had a relaxed smile on his face as if nothing in the world could bother him at that moment. I found myself smiling right back, and everything melted away.

He handed me the swirl of pink fluff, and sat down next to me. Austin held his cone, but didn't try any of it. "How's it taste?"

It tasted like fizzy pink peaches. I smiled at him and said, "Why don't you find out for yourself?"

Austin got a far away look in his eyes, and said, "I think I will."

He leaned in and kissed me, and I gasped in surprise. His kiss was soft and curious, not pushing or forcing at all, as if he was asking me a question and I held the answer. My answer was clear – I kissed him back, closing my eyes and savoring the sensation of his mouth pressed against mine. The taste of him was much sweeter than any candy. He was sugar and warmth, and everything familiar and comforting that I had come to love about him.

It was our second kiss, but in some ways, it was our first one.