Paige and Abby strap in as the rest of our group joins me to watch.
“I wonder how many people puke at the top? Are we in the strike zone?” Jinxy muses.
Dax shoves him closer. “I don’t know, but maybe you can test that theory.”
They horse around while Hazel and I watch as the ride starts to swing, one way, then the other. The riders squeal and yell in anticipation.
I try to smile. Abby’s enjoying herself. That’s good. Calm the fuck down.
But when they reach the top and pause upside down, my heart stops. The ride launches into motion again, and this time keeps spinning.
I let out a laugh. Here I am, being a stick in the mud. I roll my eyes at myself.
I’m about to ask Hazel what she wants for dinner when there’s a loud metal groan. Then a sudden snap. I look back at the ride that’s spinning, but it’s no longer spinning upright.
The whole goddamn ride is leaning back.
Everyone on the ride screams, but this time it’s in terror.
I don’t pause to think. I hand Hazel to Baylee and run to the ride as I yell to the guys, “Help me!”
I don’t know if this will work or if it’s insane, but I can’t just stand there and do nothing while the ride tips over. I’ll never fucking forgive myself if Abby gets hurt on this thing.
The base of this contraption is lifting off the ground. There’s a small staircase and a metal enclosure to keep people from falling off the platform. The guys and I grab the rails on the enclosure to stabilize the damn thing as I yell to the operator. “Turn the ride off!”
“I already did! It has a shutdown sequence. Hang on!”
My heart beats in my throat as the guys and I are lifted off the ground with the motion of the ride, but our weight is enough to keep it from tipping over. Fortunately, it only does one more full rotation before it slows.
The girls are crying when they wobble off. I sweep Abby into my arms and pick her off the ground. “Buttercup, are you okay?”
She sniffles into my neck. “I don’t know what happened. One minute we were having a blast, and the next I thought we were going to crash. I swear, my whole life flashed before my eyes.”
In a blink, I’m standing on that desolate road next to Gemma’s car as it sits upside down in that ditch.
It makes me wonder what would’ve happened if I hadn’t been here tonight, or if I’d taken Hazel to ride the Teacups while Abby and our friends rode this fucking death trap. What if nobody had helped them?
I set Abby down, and our friends surround her while I wander behind a booth to puke.
Jinxy and Dax find me a few minutes later.
Dax hands me a napkin. “You okay, man? That shit was intense.”
Jinxy shakes his head. “Y’all are like that movie.”
“What movie?” I ask as I spit on the ground.
“You know, that one where everyone dies.” Dax elbows him, and Jinxy frowns. “What? It’s true. First, Abby hits him with her car. Then a tree almost smashes her in her bedroom. And now she nearly gets demolished on a carnival ride. But bad shit always happens in threes, so you’re probably fine.”
The rest of the night, I try to play it off, pretend I’m okay, but inside, I’m the same guy who watched his girlfriend’s cold, limp body get carried off on a stretcher.
And there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it.
30
ABIGAIL
On a gasp, I wake and reach for Nick, but the other side of the bed is empty.
