Chapter 9

Chapter 9

         Following her little outburst, Kristen had at first felt exhilarated and exonerated, but then she began to feel embarrassed and decided maybe she'd be better off in a different area of the park where maybe there were a few people left that had not witnessed, or heard about, her little show. She sincerely hoped that John and his cronies had left for the evening. She didn't know if she had it in her to go through that again.

         She and Lisa had wandered off and decided to get some french fries. She loved to eat them with malt vinegar. It was beginning to get dark and the carnival always took on a more exciting air when the sun went down. The age group began to change from families with little kids, to teenagers and young adults, and there were always guys around to flirt with.

         They had run into a few friends here and there but none of their usual gang, and she was beginning to believe that it was going to be a rather boring evening; aside from her little side show earlier. She was chattering on about the confrontation when Lisa jabbed her in the side with her elbow.

         "Ow! What'd you do that for?" she said.

         "Over there...to my left...walking toward us. I think it's a live one. My God! He's gorgeous, and he's staring right at me," Lisa went on, staring right back at the guy. Kristen had been looking the other way, but she was keenly interested anytime a cute guy was spotted. She turned to look to her left, and her eyes met the crystal blue gaze of a stranger from her past; eyes she had never quite forgotten. She felt as though her heart had stopped completely, and her mouth went dry. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. Was she seeing this right or was this just some guy that happened to look like a ghost from her past?

         The guy looked right at her, held her gaze for just a moment and then continued on by. Maybe she had been wrong. Maybe her eyes were playing tricks on her. Maybe her heart was playing tricks on her. It sure was doing flips at the moment. If it was him, he acted like he had not recognized her. It had been three years after all. He still looked the same, to the best of her recollection, but she guessed that in three years, maybe she herself had changed some; gotten older.

         She was lost in thought when Lisa jabbed her again. She jumped and looked at Lisa.

         "Did you see him?? Did you see his eyes? Man, what a hottie," Lisa said, turning to look at him as he passed.

         "Nice butt too," she added. "Hey, earth to Kristen...you there?"

         "It was him," Kristen said in a hushed voice.

         "Who?"

         "Troy," Kristen replied, her whole body tingling now.

         "Troy? Who's Troy?" Lisa asked. She'd had no reason to remember him.

         "TROY! THE Troy! The I-480 guy from a few years ago. Remember me telling you about the guy I met that night I thought about running away?" Kristen said impatiently.

         Lisa's eyes widened with surprise.

         "That was The Troy? You're kidding me!" Lisa said, turning to see where he'd gone.

         "YES! Oh my God! What the hell am I gonna do now?" Kristen said, also turning to see if she could catch another glimpse of him.

         "Well don't just stand there...come on. We've got to go find him," Lisa said, tugging on Kristen's arm. She let herself be led along in the direction they had last seen him go, then suddenly stopped, pulling her arm from Lisa's grasp.

         "Wait! He looked right at me and kept walking. He must not remember me. I can't just walk up to him. What would I say?"

         "I don't know, we'll figure it out as we go," she said, pulling her along again.

         They had walked only another few feet or so when they saw him up ahead, standing with a short guy with blonde hair. Quickly, Kristen ducked behind a group of people so she wouldn't be seen.

         "I can't just walk up to him, he might not remember me. Besides, I'd have no idea what to say. He probably thought I was just some stupid kid back then anyway."

         "Well you'll never know unless you go talk to him."

         "Just hold on. Let's watch for a few minutes and see what he does," she said.

         She knew she needed to do something but she had no idea what. She would have to figure something out. She couldn't just walk up to him, she was far too shy for that. But she knew she couldn't let him slip away again. Her mind was going 100mph. It had been three years. What if he no longer found her attractive. She had to know, but she would watch for a while first.

         Kristen and Lisa maneuvered through the crowd to gain a better vantage point, unaware that Troy was keenly aware of exactly where they were. Kristen thought that maybe she could position herself in such a way that he would see her and approach her first. She mentioned this to Lisa.

         "That might work, but I don't know why you don't just walk over there and say hello."

         "I just can't. Not until I figure out if he remembers me."

         But he looked right at you back there in line," Lisa argued, motioning back toward the french fry stand.

         "Yeah, he did...and kept right on walking like he didn't recognize me."

         "Maybe he didn't really see you good," Lisa said.

         The girls maneuvered themselves to a position where they would be immediately seen as soon as the group of people between themselves and Troy moved, then acted as though they were not paying attention. Within seconds, the group of people moved on, and the two girls were in full sight of Troy and his friend. Kristen kept an eye out, trying not to look like she was looking. She noticed that Troy had glanced her way a few times but wasn't moving, and she was beginning to get impatient. Surely he had seen her. Maybe he really didn't remember her. She decided to turn and stare openly at him, letting him know that she knew exactly who he was, but just as she did, a petite brunette came bouncing up to him, practically jumping into his arms. She hadn't even considered the possibility that he would have girlfriend, and immediately felt like a fool. Of course he would, she thought, he was gorgeous. A very small part of her had held out foolish hope all these years that he'd not had the heart to date anyone else...that she had affected him that greatly.

         'Sheesh...what an idiotic thing THAT was to think,' she thought to herself. The brunette was beautiful...and tiny; the cheerleader type. Kristen felt that she didn't stand a chance. She started to turn away and Troy caught her eye above the brunette's bobbing head. Obviously, she was excited about something, and still bouncing up and down in front of him. Troy however, was paying no attention to the brunette, who was talking a million miles an hour. He was looking right at her. There was recognition in his eyes. Their eyes locked and Kristen went completely numb. She saw nothing but his eyes, heard nothing but the sound of his voice, a ghostly whisper from three years past. The sights and sounds of the carnival had faded away to nothing.

         The brunette had him by the hand and was leading him away, but his eyes were still locked on Kristen. He then leaned over to the blonde guy he was with and whispered something in his ear. They appeared to argue for a moment, the blonde turning to look at her, and then looking back at Troy with an irritated expression. Catching her by surprise, the blonde then walked over to where she and Lisa were standing.

         "Is your name Kristen by any chance?"

         "Maybe," she replied.

         "Well maybe, if you are Kristen, Troy might want to meet up with you in a little while. He said to tell you to meet him by the covered monkey bars at 10:30. He said he would wait as long as you need him to," the blonde said, rolling his eyes.

         "Well IF my name is Kristen, and I happen to WANT to...then I MIGHT be there. And if not, he'll be waiting all night. He looks kinda busy anyway," she said sarcastically, referring to the brunette.

         She turned to walk away and from behind her the blonde guy said,

         "Look, I've had to hear about you for three years. Either meet him there, or shoot me and put me out of my misery."

         She kept walking and without turning said,

         "We'll see."

         Inside though, she was a jumbled mess of nerves. So he had remembered her; apparently very well.

         "So are you going to meet him?" Lisa asked.

         "Oh yeah. But I'm gonna make him sweat a little first."

         "Why would you want to do that?" Lisa asked innocently.

         "I don't want to seem overanxious. Besides, didn't you see that girl with him? He obviously has a girlfriend. A cute, perky, tiny girlfriend. What could he possibly want with me?"

         "There is absolutely nothing wrong with you. You're beautiful, and in great shape, and I've known girls that would kill to have eyes as pretty as your...including myself. So get over it," Lisa lectured her.

         She looked doubtfully at Lisa and then back at Troy. He was being dragged off in the opposite direction by the brunette. Kristen glanced at her watch. It was just past 9pm. She started mentally ticking off the minutes until 10:30. What would he say? What would she say? Her mind was scrambling with questions and what ifs. It was going to be a long hour and a half.