Page 104 of Scars Like Wings

“Yeah, but there’s something weird about her,” Cooper noticed. “She’s strangelytooperky.”

“Oh my gods, I thought it was just me!” I agreed, finding it concerning that I could agree with someone who also gave me such strange vibes for being too cold.

“Let’s keep an eye on her, for sure, but I think she just likes her coffee with ten shots. I wouldn’t let her get in the way of us having a good time,” Cody suggested.

“Cody being the voice of reason? Oh, hell must have frozen over,” Nat raised an eyebrow.

We were quiet as the nine of us leisurely made our way through the park. It was wild seeing the park so empty of customers, but it was far from quiet. Music played from hidden speakers throughout the park, and there were still plenty ofemployees to wave at us or beckon us into their stores. Performers danced in the streets and costumed characters came out to wave at us as we approached, adding to the immersion. It was already magical, and I was eager to see what the rest of the park was going to be like.

Gods, how long had it been since I was here?It had to be at least a decade.

When I was a kid and both Mom and I were off for the summer, my parents would take me to the big three back then: Disney World, Universal Studios, and SeaWorld. We spent most of our time at Disney because it had the most rides, but we would spend the day at the other places to see their attractions. From the road trip down where we would stop by the Welcome Center for orange juice to staying in the hotel and having waffles made by Pops to the moment we would set foot in Disney, I had loved everything about it. Everything was different back then, simpler and easier. Disney wasn’t as technical and cultish as it is now. Sea World wasn’t as controversial. Universal was tiny, with a few rides and shows from old movies and properties.

The last time I had been to Universal was with Pops, Aunt Max, and Uncle Everett. It was right before they addedHarry Potter World. They still had theTwisterride that I never got on because the movieterrifiedme. TheShrek 4-Dattraction that Mom loved was still there, and we got grossed out when Donkey sneezed on us. I rodeJimmy Neutron’s Nicktoon Blastat least three times that day. Now, those rides were gone and replaced. This park was as different as I was. It was strange, feeling the weight of no longer being the little girl or teenager who had set foot on this same ground before.

Quinn kissed the inside of my wrist, pulling my attention to her. “What are you thinking so deeply about, baby girl?”

I told her about my memories of Universal and my family. At the end, I added, “I bet you think that’s weird that I’m like a Disney adult or something.”

“No, I don’t think that at all. You have some beautiful memories here with your family. That’s invaluable. I don’t think that makes you a Disney adult. You would have to have some hidden Mickeys tattooed on you or want to visit the park every year. Now, those people are weird.”

I chuckled. “You’re right. I just love the magic of it all. Or the idea of magic there. I just love that humans can create such magical worlds without having any powers. They can replicate it with engineering alone to immerse you in that world and help you forget reality. I just think that is cool. I love the fantasy of it.”

“I never thought about it like that. That’s… beautifully worded.”

My cheeks heated. “Thank you. What, uh, made you pick Universal Studios to surprise me for my birthday?”

“A little Maisie mentioned to me how much you loved pop culture and things like superhero movies and magical worlds?—”

“She said I was a nerd and thought I would love it here, didn’t she?”

Quinn chuckled. “Yes, she did.”

“I will kick her butt for that later.” I rolled my eyes. “Still, this had to be ridiculously expensive. I mean, Universal Studios ishugenow. This couldn’t have been cheap. How rich are y’all?”

Quinn ruffled her curls, fluffing them to make them even fluffier. She shrugged halfheartedly. “I mean, we have eaten dinner with celebrities like the Kardashians before. When I asked Mama once how much money our family had, she said the number was quote, richer than god, end quote. Basically, the money spent on this weekend is pocket change, which I know is insane. If it matters, we don’t get access to our funds until weare twenty-one, and my parents are sticklers for us knowing the value of a dollar?—”

“Pumpkin,” I squeezed her hand to interrupt her. “You don’t have to justify anything with me. It means so much to me that you did all this for me. You have no idea how grateful I am.”

Quinn smiled down at me.

“Aww! Young love is so precious! You lovebirds are so cute I could just eat you both up! Gobble gobble!” Ophelia said, turning to glance at us with that too-sweet smile of hers. For as pretty as she was, there was something in her appearance that was alsotoomuch.

“Did she just say ‘gobble gobble’?” Quinn asked low so Ophelia didn’t hear.

I shook my head. “Okay, thank you, I hate her.”

Despite my growing annoyance with Ophelia, I couldn’t deny that she was an informative Tour Guide. She gave us a comprehensive history of the rides along with what the ride replaced and how the ride was designed. She even told us secrets to enjoy the ride even more like when to hold our arms in the air or how to get the high score on the game attractions. We took the back entrance to everything we wanted to do, which were mostly the dark rides. Ophelia admitted that since we had bought the park there wasn’t much reason to use these special entrances to skip the nonexistent lines, but she was “devoted to going above and beyond to give me the best birthday ever” so we still got the behind-the-scene looks at how some of the rides like theRevenge of the MummyandMen In Black Alien Attack. It was incredible seeing details like the track underneath the rollercoaster or exclusive secret areas.

We tackled most of the Universal Studios park that we wanted to before making our way toDiagon Alleyin theWizarding World of Harry Potter. The train to take us to the next park over was there, but also the cousins raved about howthe Harry Potter rides were some of the best in the park. So, at their insistence, we saved the best for last, ridingHarry Potter and the Escape from Gringottsat least twice before finally deciding it was time to go toIslands of Adventureto ride the other crazy rollercoasters. We all boarded theHogwarts Expresswith a series of scenes playing out around us from the movies, including the train traveling from London through grassy plains before the cart gets attacked by Dementors. I wasn’t a Potterhead growing up, only knowing enough to understand references and why it was problematic as hell. But it was a cute show and an inventive way to pass the time on the short train ride.

Getting off the train, we decided to saveHogsmeadefor last and ride everything else first again. This time, though, we decided to rideeverythingand do everything. We drank our weight in Butterbeer and had snacks on snacks so we wouldn’t ruin our flow sitting down for lunch. We rode the kiddie rides in Seuss Landing, which was kind of cute and not nearly as boring as I thought. We flew through Jurassic Park, screaming our brains out on theVelociCoasterand only getting a drizzle from the splash of theRiver Adventure. Quinn won me a giant stuffed baby raptor playing a game that we got sent to our room that I was going to love and cherish forever. The King Kong animatronic freaked me out almost to the point of tears on theSkull Islandride, and I refused to ride it ever again. We gotsoakedatToon Lagoon, making me grateful that I wore my bathing suit under my outfit and showing that I wasn’t the only one who did.

We dried off walking toMarvel Super Hero Island. I hadn’t recognized the place before, but the memories flooded me as soon as I saw the Spider-Man ride.

“Oh, I had completely forgotten about this part of the park!” I explained to Quinn as the others walked ahead of us withOphelia leading. “I can’t believe this part of the park is still here. It hasn’t changed a bit! You know, this section used to be my family’s favorite part. Mom liked the rides because they were so chaotic. While Mom was a thrillseeker, Pops loved the lore of everything, the story behind these rides. You think I’m a nerd? You should have met my pops. He collected comic books as a kid. So, he used to tell me all about these characters while we waited in line—their different storylines in different multiverses and how they interacted with other characters. I thought it was so cool that he remembered them. There were so many incredible ones I was surprised that there weren’t rides after them.”

“Really? Do you remember any of them?” Quinn asked.

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