Gypsy Girl and Horse Lovin' Boys

© 2015 K.D. Kinney All Rights Reserved

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever
without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

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Thursday

The view from the castle and pirate ship themed roof was
the
best part of our traveling home. Once we parked and settled in, I could sit up top to enjoy some quiet time away from my chatty sister, the never-ending demands from my mom, and the zoo stink inside from our pets. I loved watching the carnival rides in motion on the other side of the fairgrounds as they finished their final light check.

The only people on the grounds were vendors, the kids with animals, and carnies. No pungent scents floating in the air of fried foods mixing with beer and the sour smells of overflowing garbage. No screaming from the rides or bumbling drunks. Just the peaceful light show.

Before the fair opened was when I enjoyed it most. However, if I could find a hot boy,
and
have the courage to make friends with him while we were there, the fair would be so much more fun. Being so shy when I wasn’t performing kinda sucked because there were always hot boys around.

I slightly closed my eyes. The Ferris wheel lights blurred and blended together.

“Seraphina?” Mom’s muffled call came from inside.

I squinted more. The blended lights turned into swirling rainbows. Oh, how I loved rainbows.

“Seraphina, did you feed Millie?” Mom yelled from the grass below.

“Yes, and she almost bit my finger off.” I rubbed where it still hurt from the macaw. It was one of those days I wished we had normal pets and a normal life.

“She’s always testy after a long day spent on the road. Why don’t you let her out?”

Mom was also testy after a long day on the road. I wouldn’t tell her that. Dealing with the wrath of Mom wasn’t worth it.

“Because I want to keep my fingers. She hates me. You know she likes you best.” Appealing to Millie’s loyalty to my mom was always the best approach.

“I’m just asking for a little help.”

“I’ll do anything else but that.” I rolled onto my knees to peer over the edge. My mom was definitely different than typical mothers with dreads trailing down her back and colored twine wrapped around parts of her chunky hair. She always dressed gypsy with flowing colorful tiered skirts, peasant tops, and bangles she wore all up her arms, even when we traveled. They clanged every time she moved making a spectacle of her gypsyness everywhere we went. I preferred to blend in when we weren’t performing, with the exception of how much I loved wearing quirky shoes.

“How about you take Francesca to the bathroom? I think they said there’s a shower facility nearby. Why don’t you look into that for me too?” Mom disappeared back into the Caravan. At least that’s what she named the fancy, gypsy-decorated camper.

I was sure that caravans were supposed to be a mass of people traveling together. However, gypsies didn’t travel in large groups around the United States anymore. We were the only gypsies I knew.

Our Caravan was quite the vehicle with whimsical castle turrets on each end with a pirate ship center and colorful gypsy flair inside. I had already extended the mast, complete with pirate flags, and set up the Captain’s wheel in the center. The fancy camper was home to me, my mom, my little sister, a macaw, and a monkey, as we traveled the country to perform our storytelling show, costumed as gypsies.

I sent the rope ladder over the edge, hoping that Cessie really had to go to the bathroom. Mom wouldn’t allow us to use the port-a-potty once we parked and always sent us before it was too late. Most of the time Cessie refused to even try because she claimed now that she was nine, she should know if she had to go. I would make her try anyway because I was the one Cessie woke up to take her to the bathroom in the middle of night.

Occasionally we would run into the creepiest carnies. Sometimes the carnies were the same from past fairs and sometimes they were from a different company we didn’t run into often. Most times, no matter what group they were, they flirted excessively with my single mom, and occasionally me since I suddenly looked a bit more womanly, which made it impossible for me to explore the fairgrounds alone. Cessie was never afraid of them though. It didn’t matter how many times I would tell Cessie to shut-up around them, she would just continue to babble on.

“Come on.” Cessie bounced on her toes, waiting at the front of the Caravan ready to explore. She wore a headlamp on her head even though the sun was barely setting and the fairgrounds were always well lit when it was dark.

I had been to this fair before. However, we went to so many every summer, it might as well be the first time. We didn’t find the restrooms on the path to the left, but we did find a couple of grubby looking carnies. It was too soon for that.

“Hey, little girlies, who are you with?” the stumpy, stringy-haired one said. He walked towards us with the tall stick man following on his heels.

“Shut it. Don’t talk.” I warned Cessie through clenched teeth. She was already turning to talk to them. I grabbed her elbow and pulled her closer to my side. “How many times do I have to tell you?”

Picking up the pace, I spotted the restrooms. However, I didn’t want the carnies to follow us there so I turned Cessie down a path between the two small animal buildings. There were other people milling around up ahead, mostly teens. I kept an eye on the ground behind us. The distance between us and the carnies grew once we were out in the open again.

“Sera,” Cessie protested and pulled her arm from my grasp.

“Don’t fight me.”

“Stop.” Cessie did just that and her face brightened into a broad smile when she looked up in front of us.

I saw the feet first and halted in time, but the person bumped into me instead.

“Excuse me.” The boy’s deep voice resonated in my ears before I could take in his face. I glanced at him, gripping my arm as I stepped back, bashfully shifting my gaze to Cessie. I quickly yanked the headlamp off her head.

“I’m sorry,” I said. When I saw the horse beside the boy, I took two steps back and bit down on the inside of my cheek when terror washed over me.

“It’s my fault. I wasn’t watching. I was trying to get away from some girls,” the boy said. Thank goodness he was oblivious to my terror.

For some reason my mouth answered before I could stop myself, “Well, it didn’t work. You ran into some instead.”

He laughed.

I half-smiled up at him.

“I guess you’re right. But you don’t look like girls I would need to run away from.”

“My sister wasn’t watching either because she was trying to get away from some guys,” Cessie chimed in. “Can I pet your horse?” She bounced on her toes.

I flushed, wanting to pinch my sister for her big mouth. The boy watched me when he answered Cessie. “If your sister says it is okay, you can.”

I hesitated, mainly because I was more afraid of the horse than the hot boy. He had to be sixteen like me, maybe a little older since he was almost as tall as his horse. Thick dark hair curled over the edges of his 49ers baseball cap. His icy blue eyes captured me. I stared without meaning too.

“Can I, Sera?” Cessie pulled on my hand, jarring me out of my trance.

“Oh, yes.” I folded my arms to contain my fear as the boy showed Cessie the best way to pet his horse. I didn’t move a muscle while I hid how terror-stricken I was. If the horse stayed right where it was, I might survive. Could I be more ridiculous? We had a troublesome monkey and a temperamental macaw. They were probably meaner than the horse, but I was still scared. Feeling light-headed, I discreetly gasped for air.

“Would you like to pet her?” he asked me politely. “Is your name Sarah?”

“No, it’s See-ra. S, e, r, a. My sister is Cessie. When she’s being a butt, you can call her Cesspool. I’m good.” I shook my head, irritated that more nonsense spewed from my mouth as I glanced behind me where the carnies had been. Thankfully, they were gone. I backed up another step needing more distance from the horse.

“Oh, I’m Noah.” He stuck out his hand to shake mine.

I kept an eye on the horse, making sure it stayed put as I cautiously placed my hand in his. My heart skipped a beat when our palms touched and it flipped again when he smiled at me. I wasn’t sure how hard or soft to shake it. I was very aware of how his hand almost engulfed mine.

“Are you here with 4-H? Do you have any animals?” Noah asked.

I shook my head.

“We have animals, Sera. We have a monkey and a parrot.” Cessie pushed my hip.

“That’s not what he means.” I grabbed Cessie’s hand and squeezed it, giving her my
you’re gonna get it
stare.

“You have a monkey?”

“We do. Our mom tells stories, and she uses our monkey, Peppy, and our bird, Millie, in the shows. We help her out.” Cessie was always eager to share and was proud of what we did. Me, not so much. At least not when a hot boy was around and my sister was telling him we were part of a gypsy show, nothing normal like showing horses or guinea pigs like the rest of the kids already at the fairgrounds.

However, he was probably showing horses which meant he would probably be there all week. I was very aware that he couldn’t take his eyes off me.
And
did I fail to mention he was hot? I was absolutely melting. The horse was the only thing keeping me from turning into a puddle on the ground.

At least I looked normal at the moment wearing jean shorts and a t-shirt. If I could get over my fear of the horse, I might make a friend, a hot guy kind of friend. My heart tightened with anticipation of when we could meet again. Hopefully my gypsy costumes wouldn’t scare him off. Sadly, it wouldn’t be the first time if they did.