“You can open your eyes now,” said Mitta, and I could already hear her smile. “Wasn’t that awesome?” It took me a minute to catch my breath.

“No,” I answered. “I am not a fan of roller coasters.”

“Aww, well you have to ride more than one before you decide. Some people just don’t like wooden ones. You’ll love them before we leave – you’ll see.” I never wanted to do that again. There was no part of my body that didn’t feel jostled or bruised, and I had no desire to risk further injury in this deathtrap of a park. Couldn’t we just play some of the little games and call it a day? Wouldn’t that be just as fun?

We stepped out of the gates and back into the main park. “So, are you regretting that shirt yet?” she asked. “Because there’s a bathroom right over there if you want to change.” My face burned – I’d hoped she hadn’t noticed my not-so-weather-appropriate sweater.

“Umm, everything else is in the car,” I said, looking at the ground. 

“No it’s not,” she told me as she pulled something out of her purse. “Here.” She handed me a red tank top – one with fat straps that looked like it would be loose and had some hope of actually being decent. I’d never seen it before.

“Where’d you get this?” I asked as I took it from her.

“I got it when we bought the hair dye – I figured you didn’t like what I picked out the first time, and thought you might like this better.” That was really nice of her.

I’d never really worn tank tops, but compared to any other options that I had, it was perfect. “Thank you,” I said, genuinely grateful that I had something decent to wear that wouldn’t roast me alive in the late-May heat. I went into the bathrooms to change, and when I came out of the stall I saw another girl in the mirror, wearing the same shirt. She was kind of pretty, actually, with her- oh.

It was me.

At least the tank top fit. Maybe it was bright enough that no one would notice my hair. Or stomach rolls. Or bushy eyebrows.

I turned away from the mirror and went back outside, trying to cling to the image of the girl I’d seen when I first came out of the stall.

“Hey, that’s cute on you!” Mitta said as I walked out. I looked down at my feet, not sure how to respond.

“Uh, thanks,” I mumbled, holding my arms across my chest.

“Come on – I found the next ride we’re going on,” she said as she started walking off in a new direction.

“Not a roller coaster?” I asked hopelessly.

“A roller coaster,” she said with a smile. “I promise you’ll love them. Eventually.”

“What I love is cotton candy,” I said, gesturing to a cart up ahead. “Not death traps.”

“Let’s get some cotton candy then.” I smiled as we walked up to the little cart and she handed me a paper cone covered in a lovely heap of pink sugary goodness.

“This is why you should go to an amusement park,” I told her as I took a bite of it.

“You sure that isn’t a good enough reason?” she asked, nodding her head to something in front of us.

“What?”

“Green shirt, khaki shorts,” she said quietly. I scanned the crowd ahead and found a man who fit the description – he had wavy brown hair down to his shoulders and a bit of a 5 o’clock shadow. He wasn’t unattractive, I guess, but I certainly wouldn’t have noticed him. “I’d give him about an 8.”

“Huh?”

“Like, rating. You know, 1-10?” I just looked at her. Was that actually a thing that people did? “No? Okay. So what’s your type, then?”

“Umm…” My type? Could I even say I had a type? She was still looking at me, waiting for an answer. “Brown hair, I guess. Muscular?” It felt so awkward to talk about this – it wasn’t a thing I ever talked to people about. “Smart, outdoorsy.” Oh good Lord I was describing Isaac. The topic needed to change. “Where are we headed now?” I asked.

She looked sideways at me, half smiling. I think she knew I was trying to change the subject. “We’re headed there,” she said as she pointed at a metal roller coaster in front of us. Great.

We tossed our empty paper cones in the trash before getting in line for the coaster. “So you don’t want to talk about guys. Let’s see…” A worker walked by our part of the line, and he stopped when he saw Mitta. He walked over to us, interrupting her thoughts.

“I’m sorry, you look really familiar. Do I know you?” he asked, touching her shoulder.