I can’t believe I just did that, I thought to myself. I have never really been that bold our outgoing in my life. Well, other than when I am onstage, in the studio, in an interview, or with my family. Well, ok, so I had never been outgoing with girls, especially ones that I had only know for a few hours.
Joana looked up at me with her beautiful baby blue eyes. “I’m speechless. I have no idea what to say except, ‘Wow'."
“Yeah, I kinda feel the same way,” I paused. “I’m sorry if I scared you.”
“No! You didn’t scare me at all! You kinda surprised me, though. But I did enjoy it.” She smiled.
I couldn’t help but smile back at her. “Yeah, I did, too.” I kissed her forehead.
“Well, I guess we’d better get going if we want to get some cotton candy. You never know, they could be out by the time we get there,” she rambled nervously, and started to walk away.
I grabbed her are and pulled her back over to me. “Joana, what’s wrong? Why are you so nervous?
“I don’t know. It’s just that.... Oh, I don’t know how to word it!”
“Don’t rush. Just think. We have all the time in the world. What’s going on in that head of yours?”
She sighed. “I guess I’m just afraid.”
“Afraid of what?”
“Of being hurt, of hurting you, of getting to attached... Oh, I don’t know. I’ve been hurt so many times. I just don’t want to be hurt again.”
I looked at her. I could see the pain in her eyes again. But this time it was showing in her face, too. “Have you ever talked to someone about your pain? One of the first things I noticed about you was your eyes. They are so beautiful. You seemed so happy, but your eyes were full of pain. Do you want to talk?”
She looked at me for a minute. Then tears started to form in the corner of her eyes. “I’ve never really talked about it. Sure, I’ve been to tons of therapists and counselors, and I have talked a little, but I haven’t told everything. There are still some things that I haven’t spoken a word about since they happened.”
I hugged her. “I’m sorry, Joana. I really am. Do you want to talk about anything?”
“No. Not yet, anyway. I just want to have fun. I’ll talk later, I promise!” She smiled.
“Ok. I’ll make sure that you stick to that promise!” I smiled back at her.
She laughed. “Ok! Let’s go!!”
***********************************************************************************
I looked up at Tay. I never thought that he could care so much, especially after only a few hours. He took my hand, and we started walking.
“So, where should we go now?” he asked, as he looked into my eyes, almost like he was trying to read my mind.
“Well, we could go to Germany and ride the Wolf and Drachen Fire, go to Italy and ride the many rides there, or we could stay in France and ride the cars. Which one?”
“Well, hmmm...... I don’t know... You know this place better than I do. You decide!” he challenged.
“Well, Roman Rapids is in Italy, so let’s walk through France, go to Germany and ride the Wolf, and walk to the Roman Rapids. By the time we do that, it’ll be about time to go and meet Ike and Nicki. Sound ok?”
“Sounds great! Let’s go!”
We kept walking through France. But then the worst thing that could possibly happen happened.
“Hi, Joana!” I looked in the direction my name was coming from. And there, in the distance, stood my much hated ex, Dave.
“Oh, Shit! I don’t have time to explain now, but RUN!” I pulled him along with me as we ran through France, and then through Germany until we reached the Wolf. We ran into line, and stopped, breathless.
“What was that about?” he asked, still gasping for air.
“That was my ex from 3 years ago. He still isn’t over me, and thinks he has the power to control my life. He won’t take no for an answer, and he has been following me around. I just don’t want to deal with him”
Right after I said that, David came running into the line. “Hi, Joana,” he said. “Nice to see you again.”
“Yeah,” I mumbled, almost through clenched teeth.
“So, I’ve decided that I’m ready to take you back. You want to go out sometime?” He put his hand on my shoulder.
“I...”
“Hey man, she’s taken. Leave her alone.” Tay interrupted.
“Oh, yeah? By who?” Dave challenged.
“By me. So leave us alone!” Tay replied, getting frustrated.
“Yeah, sure. Prove it! What’s her middle name?”
Oh, shit! Tay doesn’t know that! I looked into his eyes and thought, Rachael, it’s Rachael!!
“It’s Rachael, of course. What else would it be?” I’d been holding my breath. I let it out.
“Well, anyone could have guessed that! Let me think...”
While Dave was thinking, Tay put his arm around me. Then he slipped his ring onto my finger. I smiled.
“See, Dave. This is the ring he gave me when we first met.”
“So? For all I know, it could be a friendship ring,” He paused. Then his eyes lit up. “I know. Kiss her!”
I looked at Tay. He looked back at me. I knew exactly what he was thinking; What if a fan is around? Don’t worry, I thought, it will be okay. I squeezed his hand.
He smiled, and then he kissed me. This time it wasn’t just a gentle kiss. This one had passion in it. We both got lost in the moment, totally forgetting about anything but us, and the magic that we were sharing.
Dave cleared his throat, bringing us back to reality. He looked hurt, but I didn’t care one bit.
“I see that you have someone else. But i don’t approve. Just see if you get to kiss these lips again!” He stormed off, fuming.
***************************************************************************************
Joana and I laughed as he went off. He deserved it, the bastard!! What a jerk!
“You’re a hero, Tay! If you hadn’t been here, or thought of that, he would be following me around all day!” She smiled again. making me melt.
That’s when I realized that I was falling for her. I began to wonder if she had felt the magic that I had in our second kiss.
“oh, Tay..Thanx.... Here... It was a great idea!!” she said, handing me the ring that I had given to her.
“No, keep it! That way you can always remember today.” I don’t know why, but I really wanted her to have it.
She looked at me, confused. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, I am.” I took it from her and took her hand into mine. “This day hasbeen really special. I know I’ll never forget it.”
“I won’t ever forget it either.”
I slipped the ring onto her finger, but we were brought back to reality yet again.
“Would you two lovebirds move it?!?!?!?! You’re holding up the line!” someone shouted. Joana blushed, as I’m sure I did. We quickly moved ahead, realizing that it was almost time to board.
“Sorry about that, Tay,” she said.
I looked at her. “What do you have to be sorry about? Nothing! Don’t worry.” I took her hand again. I looked at them together. They looked like they were made to be that way. Boy, was I in trouble. I hadn’t expected to fall in love while I was on vacation.
She looked at me, and again tears were forming in her eyes. On trickled down her face, and I wiped it away.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, concerned.
As we stepped into the car, the tears started to fall. As soon as we sat down, she looked at me like she was going to say something, then looked away.
I grabbed her hand and wiped the tears from her eyes. “What is it? You don’t have to hide anything from me. I won’t go anywhere. I promise.”
Just then the ride started to move. She started to talk. “I don’t know where to begin. There is so much to be said. I’ve only known you personally for a few hours, but I feel as if I’ve known you forever. I’d always dreamed of meeting you, but I never thought that it would be like this.”
She stopped talking. We reached the top of the first drop, so I guess she wanted to enjoy the ride. But she took my hand and held it very tight.
The ride came to a stop, and we got off. As soon as we were walking again, she spoke. “I’ve only been in love once. He was one of the best things that happened to me. His love for me was unconditional, as mine was for him. It had to be. He was much younger; about three and a half years younger. I never thought that there would ever be anyone else for me. Then my parents told me that we were moving...” her voice cracked a bit, and I looked at her, but her eyes were still focused ahead of her. “We both wanted to die. We never wanted to be separated, but we were, in more ways than one... But that’s another story... We still love eachother, but he has someone else, and I...” She stopped. I wanted to urge her on, but not in a way that she would feel pressured.
I stopped and stood in front of her, wiping away her tears. “What? What is it? You can tell me. I care about you.”
She looked at me and spoke verysoftly. “I... I finally found someone else. I’m ready to move on from him, though I’ll always love him.”
I looked deep into her eyes, and all of me wanted to tell her how I felt. But no, I wanted her to tell me, to say it and mean it, not just say it because I did. “ Who is it, Joana? Who is the someone else?” I coaxed.
She looked at me, and tried not to be afraid of what she was about to do. “You, Tay. I’m falling in love with you.”
Back one
Ahead one
Strange Things Happen Home
Home
