Page 59 of Lovers Fate

“I quickly learned you can’t love what doesn’t want you.”

“Still sucks, though,” he says softly. “Any other family?”

“No. Now it’s your turn.”

He sighs, turning into a burger spot that looks like a college hangout. There are red tables outside with metal benches. A small house turned into a burger joint with two small windows in front sits at the center.

College kids and couples sit at the tables eating burgers, laughing with friends. There’s a vent on top blowing smoke that smells like a backyard barbecue. I watch couples hold hands and people taking pictures. The feeling of nostalgia hits me every time I think of my life and how it would have been different. Had I completed high school and attended college like a typical teenager, my life would have been very different.

“Why are we here?” I ask when he parks.

“You skipped breakfast at the diner, and I’m sure you’re hungry, especially now that it’s getting late.” To answer your question, the carnival is my family. My friends, the circus, my father, and uncle. That’s my family.”

It must be nice to have family. People who care about you. It makes me feel like shit that I’m alone and have no one. But I might as well get used to it when people find out who I am. I could go to another town, but Stockbridge is all I know.

I got one ride and decided to come back here to find answers as to why and how it happened. I have to look at the bright side; it’s not like I’m going hungry. I’m not sleeping on a park bench while pushing a shopping cart. For now, I have Rose and maybe Rachel until I don’t.

We find an open table. I take a seat, ignoring the stares from the people around me, while Kaden sits next to me, carrying two combo orders with Cokes.

“Why are they staring?” I whisper.

He smiles, tearing open two straws. “They recognize me from school.”

“Are you popular?”

He looks around, ignoring the girls staring. Kaden is hot; he has a similar build to Draco, except he’s two inches shorter with a more boyish face. He’s adorable in a brotherly sort of way.

Something like that,” he says in amusement. “They know I work at the haunted carnival. The girls find it intriguing.”

“You don’t think it’s because they find you cute?”

He snorts. “From what I hear, cute is the last word they use when they talk about me.”

“So then why the Church when you can have all these girls?”

“Trust me, it’s better this way. The one girl I like doesn’t want me.”

I look at him like he’s lost his mind. “Let me guess, she’s blind.”

He laughs. “No, far from it. Her parents are wealthy and don’t approve of guys like me dating their daughter.”

I place the burger down after taking a bite. “Is she here?”

He stares at his food like he’s full. “Maybe.”

So she is here, and that’s why he offered to bring me here specifically. If this girl and her parents are too stuck up to accept him, then fuck them.

“Where?” I ask, trying not to make it obvious as I scan the crowd.

“Behind you. Two o’clock. A brunette wearing a Phillip Plein T-shirt is sitting next to a guy wearing a Stockbridge Football hoodie.”

I pretend to stretch and sneak a glance. There’s a brunette with a bored expression staring this way. The jock seated next to her is in deep conversation with the guy seated at another table. She’s pretty. Pouty lips, light makeup, and a slim figure, but what makes her stand out are her eyes; they’re sky blue, and the eyeliner she is wearing makes them stand out even more.

I lean close to Kaden and lower my voice. “Have you asked her out?”

“No, she has a boyfriend.”

I quirk a brow. “And? She isn’t married to him with kids or anything. I’m sure she can talk to other people.”

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