A/N: I don't own this. We all know who does. What I do own is a bag of chicken that I'm pretty sure I got for free at the grocery store last night. Weird, 'cause I saw the lady scan it, and I heard the machine beep, but then my coupon wouldn't work, so she manually entered it instead. Then when I got home and looked at my receipt I didn't see my chicken on there. Looks like maybe they paid me $1.25 to take home a free bag of chicken. Huh... stuff like that hardly ever happens to me. :D

Again, for Artemis Leaena. Guess who's back... Back again. Tony's back. Tell a friend. Oh sorry, sometimes I slip into random Eminem quoting moments. :D I'm weird. :)

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I brushed my teeth for the third time, trying to make sure they were clean and no trace of poppy seeds remained. At some point in her day, between sorting her Mary Kay shipment, bagging up customer orders, and convincing Rose that she needed half the new Autumn colored lipsticks, my mother had managed to buy groceries and completely fill the cupboard. Damn her and the lemon poppyseed muffins she bought. I couldn't stay away from those things, but I didn't need the little black seeds stuck in my teeth. Not with what I was planning to do.

I knew the carnival opened at noon. Opening day it was always noon, come rain or shine. The local schools let out early, too, so I was well aware that if I planned to be at the front of the line I'd either have to be early, or be prepared to battle back the ankle biters who were dying to get at the cotton candy and sno cone stands.

"Rose, let's go!" I yelled down the stairs. She and my father were watching some kind of wrestling-fighting-boxing show. All I knew was there was a lot of screaming and yelling coming from my living room, and only part of it was from the men on the screen who were bleeding and beating each other to death. Other than the slick looking muscled up men, I wasn't sure what Rose saw in the sport. My father called it job training. He needed to know how the crazies fought now days. But Rose... I think she just got off on seeing men get beaten-down, on men crying and whimpering against the fence of the ring, on blood and spit and sweat flying through the air and splattering all over the crazy audience.

"What's the rush?" she complained once we were finally in her car and headed back to the rodeo grounds.

I huffed, pushing my foot against the floor board. Apparently I thought I could make her drive faster if I made the same movements she did. "Tony. I know it was him last night. I need to get there, to find him. I know it was him."

"Ah, Bell," she said with a sigh. "I think you're getting your hopes up, sweetie. It's been four years, honey. I don't think he's coming back. I mean, I know you two had some freaky connection and that he promised he'd be back for you, but I really think you could get hurt here."

I knew Rose was just worried about me, but I needed to know. I had to see him, to see if it was really him. How else could he have known the name he called me? Was it just a coincidence? The man I'd talked to last night was different than the boy I'd fallen in love with. Could it really be him?

We parked in the lot and hurried toward the front gates. There was a line, but it wasn't bad, and we only had to threaten to beat up about a dozen junior high sleazes. I hadn't realized that childrens clothing stores sold skank-wear to the under twelve crowd, but apparently they did. A lot less fabric for them to stock, I guess.

A cute blonde girl took our money and stamped our hands as we entered the park.

"Um, do you know if there's a Tony that works here? Maybe one of the rides or something?" I asked her.

"Tony, Tony, Tony... Um, I don't think so, but there's an Anthony in the burger shack. Maybe that's him."

"Thanks," I said, then grabbed Rose's hand and pulled her behind me as I ran for Food Row. There were two burger places. The first one had a pimple faced, greasy haired boy inside the booth. Not Tony. The other had a brunette guy in it, and even though he didn't look like my Tony, I had to ask. "You Anthony?" I yelled into the small window.

"Yeah. Why?" Once he leaned down so I could see him close up, I knew it wasn't him. Not my Tony.

"Nevermind. You're not who I'm looking for."

"I could be."

"Yeah, I don't think so. Are there any other Tony's working here? Anyone at all that you know of?" I asked.

"Nope, I think I'm it. You want a burger, or what?"

Rose winked at him and blew him a kiss in the air, then pulled me away from my disappointment. "Come on, we're gonna go find The Zipper and see if Emmett's working it this morning. We can ask him about your Tony, okay?"

I nodded, hoping that Emmett would be my ticket to Tony. Just my luck he was working the ride, and we hurried toward him

"Hey, ladies!" he called as he walked from cage to cage making sure the doors were locked up tight. "You sure didn't waste any time getting' here today. Lookin' for anything special?" he asked as he smiled at Rose and wiggled his eyebrows. There was something about him... He just seemed way too familiar to me. He started the ride spinning and then stepped toward us as the cages began to turn and the kids started to scream.

"Bella was wondering about something and we thought you might be able to help," Rose told him. Then she started rubbing her hand up and down his arm. Seriously. Her shirt was low cut enough that she didn't even have to try to get him worked up. I could tell from seven feet away that he was WAY into her. That didn't stop her, though. It was almost like she was in heat or something, and she definitely couldn't get enough of Emmett.

"What's up, Bella?" Emmett asked, after clearing his throat a couple of times and trying to maintain some small bit of composure.

"I thought I saw a guy here last night. I'm not sure, but I think it was a guy I knew a long time ago. Do you know if there's a Tony working here?" I asked.

Emmett's eyes flashed to me and he almost looked a little panicked. Rose's fingers were trailing across his chest and I watched his Adam's Apple bob up and down as he swallowed nervously before answering me.

"No. No Tony. I mean, not that I know of. Why are you looking for him? What's the deal?" he asked.

I let out a long breath and sigh. "I don't know. I just... I met this guy like four years ago, and he was perfect. I totally fell for him and then he just up and left. I thought he was working the carnival, but I never asked. He was supposed to meet me the next day, but he never showed." I closed my eyes, shaking my head back and forth. "It's probably crazy, I know, but I thought maybe... I thought maybe he'd come back for me someday. I thought last night that maybe it was him."

"Hang on," Emmett said before running back over to the ride control panel and stopping the giant rotating arm and all the cages. It took a few minutes for all the cages to empty of kids and then refill, but once they started spinning again Emmett came back to us.

"You look so hot opening and closing those cages," Rose cooed to him, batting her eyelashes and making her intentions toward him blatantly obvious. Not that she needed to or anything. Emmett was already hooked. I could tell.

Emmett shifted back and forth from one foot to the other, his eyes resting on anything but me. He was starting to freak me out, though I didn't know why. "Bella, I don't know what to tell you. I mean, there's not a Tony working here. You're sure his name was Tony, right?"

I nodded. "Yeah, that's what he told me." Then a horrible thought crossed my mind for the very first time. "What if he just told me that was his name, but it wasn't? What if he lied to me? If he tricked me? Rose," I said, turning to her with pleading eyes. "What if it was all just some joke?"

"Bella, no. I know you didn't spend much time with him, but what you felt was real. I've heard you tell me about him a million times. You can't lie about something as true as that."

She and Emmett looked perfect standing next to each other. His dark curly hair complimented her blonde straight locks. Where he was hard and chiseled, she was soft and shapely. The deep dimples in his cheeks grew even more pronounced when he smiled, just like the sparkle in her eyes did when she laughed. Their perfection made me happy for them, and so sad for myself.

"I'm gonna go get some air," I said. What I really meant to say was distance.

"Bell, we're outside," Rose said.

"I know. But I'm gonna leave you two alone for a little while. I'll be back."

I wandered up and down Game Row, then Food Row, then crossed back and forth between the different rides. The crowd was steadily growing, even though the clouds on the horizon were a sure sign we'd be getting rain soon. In the back corner of the set up was the merry-go-round. It was huge and ornate and loud. The music that was playing from it as it spun around made the animals sliding up and down seem almost magical. I watched it for a few minutes before I noticed a man working in the middle section of the ride. The closed sign was hanging from a chain that blocked off the area where patrons could line up. As the ride circled around and around, the man in the middle stayed still, letting the glitz and gaudiness spin around him.

Watching him was hard, being that horses kept blocking my view of him. Plus it was kinda dark where he was, with the roof on the ride and all. He was wearing a dark colored beanie on his head, so I couldn't see his hair very well. What I could see was the white wife-beater he was wearing. And I could see his shoulders and arms, and the huge tattoo that covered his right shoulder. It extended down his arm to his elbow before it stopped. I couldn't tell what it was, but as his muscles flexed and contracted before my eyes, I found myself wanting to trace whatever pattern was on it. With my tongue. Or my finger. Or even my toe. I didn't care, I just wanted to touch him.

Finally the ride began to slow down and I watched as he closed the panel on the middle column part in the center of the ride. He picked up a tool box and made his way out of the carousel. Once he'd stowed away the tools he moved to the control panel and sat down, letting his fingers work over the buttons and switches before him. I watched as he checked all the lights, then adjusted the music level and speed, and finally started the ride spinning at a decent pace. The sunlight sparkled off something on his face, and I squinted my eyes to try and get a better look. From what I could tell – a good 30 feet away – it looked like his eyebrow was pierced. And then I saw the same glimmer on his ear, in two places.

He was pierced. And tattooed. I licked my lips, wondering where else he might be pierced or tatted. I wanted to find out.

It wasn't long before he returned to his control panel and stopped the ride. He pulled a t-shirt on over his tank top and then pulled the beanie off. Rubbing his hand over his head, his short hair stuck up all over. It didn't look long enough to style, but the crazy erratic short cut looked good on him. It was that moment when the sun decided to shine right on him and highlight the one thing I would know anywhere.

His copper colored hair. It was like a burnt penny. Perfection.

He removed the closed sign from the line-up area, then went back to wait for the wild, messy children and their frazzled parents. I kept watching him, hoping for a sign that he was my Tony. After several minutes I decided to be brave. I got up from the bench I was sitting on and made my way to the merry-go-round.

"One, please," I said, watching him. He kept his eyes trained on the cash box in front of him as he took my money.

"Thanks. Enjoy your ride."

He never looked up at me, but I couldn't stop staring at him. I tried to choose a horse where I knew I would be able to spot him quickly, and often. Once the ride was about half way full and the line was empty, he started us spinning. Round and round, it reminded me of my life. I just went around and around because that was all I knew. I just needed one chance, one adventure, one person who believed in me enough that they'd want me with them. One person to stop my merry-go-round life and give me something new, something true, something real and honest and good.

When the spinning began to slow, some of the children whined. Some were grateful it was over. Most seemed indifferent and ready for the next thing. I took several deep breaths and then remained sitting on my horse. It was now or never. I had to take a chance.

All the kids were gone, running toward the next attraction, leaving me alone on the ride. As he walked around checking to see if all was clear, I couldn't help but think there was something else I'd like to ride, and that something was moving closer and closer to me. When he finally spotted me, he seemed to freeze.

"You're ride's over, Miss," he softly said. I remained where I was, hoping he'd come closer.

"I know, but I was hoping maybe you could help me with something."

"And what might that be, ma'am?" he said as he approached me.

"See, there was this guy I met once, and..."

He looked up at me, his green eyes meeting mind, and my breath hitched in my throat.

"Tony?" I whispered.

He smiled, then moved close enough that he could run his fingers down my cheek.

"Hi, Bella."

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