. people talking, the sounds of games and whooshes of rides. the smell of popcorn, cotton candy and slick sweat filled her nose. the days leading up to this one day were so fun, everyone couldn't stop talking about how they'd actually be able to see boys and what not. it felt so surreal to be hanging out with her friends from welton at an actual school event and not in some dark cave. she was sure she had overdressed, everyone she saw from her grade was in either a tank top or t shirt and shorts. she wore a sundress that went to her shins. it was the last day of the year that was actually supposed to have warm weather, so it was perfect the fair fell on this day. they usually did a winter dance later in the year too, for a different cause she couldn't be bothered to remember. she didn't really pay attention to the events committee meetings, because every girl in her class was forced to join because of some stupid reason.

she stood quietly, avoiding the bustle. a lot of people were there. lots of kids, parents. both the girls and boys from other private schools had been invited, as well as family members. she was looking for marianne through the crowd, who was looking for charlie. she finally spotted her, chatting with charlie and his friends at a picnic table.

"marianne!" amélie waved, running towards her and pulling her into a tight hug. they hadn't seen each other since the morning, because marianne spent the 3 last periods setting up for the fair with ms. germaine and some of the other girls.

"amélie! i wasn't sure wether you had came or not." marianne gushed.

"of course i did! i wouldn't miss this for anything!" amé smiled. she almost forgot that all of the welton boys were looking at her, including neil.

"hi guys." she waved to them.

"nice dress." knox remarked.

"thank you, it was my moms."

"are you guys ready to go on all the rides?" marianne interrupted. she was sure excited.

"of course i am!" charlie boasted.

"yeah, same!" cameron said, copying charlie.

"oh cameron, remember last year when you started screaming when the ferris wheel stopped at the top?" knox laughed, making all the others laugh at cameron's expense.

"that was horrible." meeks agreed, nodding as he laughed.

"i don't remember that." cameron shrugged. amélie couldn't help but notice that todd was looking left out.

"todd, have you ever been to one of these things?" she asked, catching him off guard.

"oh, no." he shook his head.

"me neither. i've always gone to aurela, but just never had anyone to go with."

"you're kidding. we'll just have to show you the best rides." marianne said. amé couldn't help but notice that charlie had his hand around her waist.

"of course." neil smiled at her. she couldn't help but feel butterflies in her stomach as she saw him. it was the first time they'd seen eachother since they kissed, and damn did it feel great.

the group was getting ready to leave, and go walk around and get on some rides. neil gently grabbed amélie's hand, and interlocked their fingers. she was trying so hard not to blush. she held onto his hand tight, but not tight enough that it could hurt him.

they walked around the fair, joking around. cameron had dared all of them to go on what looked like the scariest ride there. amélie was honestly terrified of it. it was called the lightning rider. it was like a ferris wheel, but you were locked in a cage with another person, and it would just spin the cages. you weren't even strapped in, you just had to hold on to a metal bar to stay secure. it didn't seem safe at all.

"for how much?" pitts asked, his ears drowning in the sound of screams coming from the ride.

"alright, 10 bucks." cameron said, getting some nods and agreement from the group. "split it between all of you, that is if you go."

"you're just making us do it because you're too scared." charlie snarked, getting nods from the boys around him and making cameron go red with embarrassment.

"fine. 15." he changed his offer quickly.

"okay, now we're talking." knox smirked.

"there are two people in each cage, so you guys have to pair up."

amé glanced at neil, who smiled and nodded. marianne clutched onto charlie's arm.

"todd, me and you." knox said, walking towards todd and standing beside him.

"is chris here? knox could use some female company." charlie laughed, making knox cross his arms at the dumb jokes.

"no, not that i've heard of." he replied, a hint of sadness in his voice.

"let's start waiting in line before it gets super long." neil motioned for the group to stand in the two separate lines.

"are you scared?" he whispered to amélie, who was practically shaking with fear as she watched others on the ride.

"are you not?" she asked him in shock, a smile spreading across her face.

"nope. you'll have me, you don't need to be scared."

"i'm sure i can handle myself."

the guy running the ride motioned for each group to come forward, before locking then securely into one of the cages. neil let go of amé's hand when it was their turn.

"try to stay as still as possible. and, don't let go of the metal bars."

the ride wobbled as they descended up so meeks and pitts could get on.

"i regret this."

"don't, it'll be ok." neil soothed her, taking a hand off the bar to hold hers.

"neil, that's so dangerous."

"i think we'll be ok."

amélie smiled and took a hand off the bar, too and interlocked it again with neil's. they could hear the ride begin to start.

"good luck." amélie planted a kiss on neil's cheek, before the ride was in full effect. amé shrieked with a mix of excitement and terror, as the ride flipped them upside down. neil squeezed her hand, a smile on his face as he watched amé.

they could both hear their friends scream as well. amé caught a glimpse of cameron down below, laughing as he heard his friends suffer. everytime amélie screamed, neil would squeeze her hand. he didn't say a word, just squeezed her hand in reassurance. it inexplicably calmed her down.

once the ride finally stopped and they all got off, they stood in a group in front of the ride. cameron paid charlie his $15.

"you were screaming so loud amélie." meeks laughed.

"was not! i bet it was marianne." amé shook her head in denial. neil was still holding her hand.

"amé, that was you." charlie rolled his eyes jokingly, marianne nodding in agreement. i guess everyone was calling her amé now?

"yeah, that was you." neil chuckled.

"shut up." amélie grinned, letting go of his hand.

"don't be like that." he groaned, putting a hand on her head and running his fingers through her hair.

"let's go to the rollercoasters before the lines get long!" cameron said, everyone else nodding in agreement. they all began walking very quickly, leaving neil and amélie trailing behind.

"do you want to?" neil asked, grabbing amé's hand again.

"not really."

"then let's ditch."

neil and amé finally managed to sneak away from the group, to ride the ferris wheel by themselves. it was so much quieter without the other guys around, they just sat and enjoyed eachothers company.

"i'm so happy to be here with you." amélie smiled. she couldn't contain herself. she liked him. she liked him so much.

"me too. it's the last good night." neil didn't look at amé. he admired the sights they could see from the height of the ferris wheel. they could see their group of friends waiting in the long line of the rollercoasters, the kiosks, they could even see aurela and welton.

"yeah, i know." amélie rested her chin in her hand. she took her eyes off neil and turned to look at the sights, too. it was beautiful. "we never did get to swim at the dock."

"i forgot all about that, sorry." neil nodded. you could hear the defeat in his voice. "we do have one more night.." it suddenly lit up as the great idea came out of his mouth.

"are you serious?"

"i mean, what's the worse that could happen!" he shrugged it off, amélie hugging him as tight as possible.