And the Ferris Wheel Holds My Heart (Openish)

[Callisto "Callie" Sanders]

Callie laughed as she watched Dierks making balloon animals for the kids. He was good with children, and that made her like him even more. Watching the way the kids' faces lit up when he talked to them and gave them the balloons was really an amazing sight.

"There you go," she said at last to the boy whose face she was painting. "A dragon. Here, have a look."

She handed the boy a hand mirror, showing him the green dragon blowing fire from his mouth. The boy was really excited and smiled shyly, thanking her before he ran off to show his mother.

Callie watched the boy go, and as the next customer came up and got in line, Callie's eyes connected with Dierks. "Thanks," she said to him. "For staying."

She was really thanking him for being himself, but that would have sounded strange. But she had kind of been so negative about boys and all the games they played, that it meant a lot to her to see a guy so sweet and unassuming.

[Dierks Brooks]

"Don't mention it," he said looking back to her. He gave her a wink just as a little girl pulled on his shirt. Dierks wasn't sure if he was out of flirtation or if it was just something that he just did. He didn't dwell on it because of the tugging on his shirt.

Bending back down, the little girl requested a little dog. Dierks agreed to make her one, even though he didn't really know how. He took a few minutes to twist and pull on the balloon to make it into an animal. His finished product didn't look exactly like a dog, but it was close to it. The little girl, who Dierks' came to know as Maria, whispered into his ear while he was bent down. He let out a laugh at her question and he only gave her a wink as an answer. The little girl looked to Callie then back to him and she smiled excitedly.

"Well, aren't you going to make her one," the little girl pointed in Callie's direction. "Yes ma'am," he replied. "What do you think we should make her? I can only do a giraffe or a dog." Maria laughed again and told him a giraffe. Dierks picked out his only purple balloon and started to work with it. Once it was finished he didn't exactly give it to Callie right away. He wanted until it was the little girl's turn and whispered something in her ear as he handed her the giraffe. Maria nodded and took her seat on the stool have her face painted.

While he was waiting for Callie, Dierks had a lot of fun keeping the children entertained. Naturally children in their own right were entertaining. Just watching them was fun, but he knew he had to keep them all occupied while they waited because he didn't want any of them to become impatient.

[Linette "Linny" Sanders]

Jun 4, 2010 10:23:30 GMT -5 Chester "Chip" Gardner said:

Chip was glad for the change of subject. He liked the Linette tried to take care of her sisters, but she couldn't babysit them, either. To a certain extent, they had to make their own mistakes. He couldn't deny being a little concerned about Bobby himself, but there was only so much that they could do for her without pushing her away completely.

"Well, we could ride some rides first.... unless you're hungry? I know I smell corndogs around here somewhere."

Linette smiled. For the moment, the drama was behind her and she could enjoy her afternoon with Chip.

When given the choise between rides or food, Linette had to go with the former. She had this wierd rule about eating around guys. Honestly, she was a messy eater, and it wasn't very attractive. Linette was big on image and she was going to put off eating until they both really had to.

"Let's ride something," she said, looping her arm with his. "You pick."

[Chester "Chip" Gardner]

Chip didn't particularly understand the tendency some girls had to be self-conscious about eating, and if he had known that was what she was thinking, he might have said something to her about it. Luckily, it wasn't really on his mind. He just assumed that she was eager to have some fun, and maybe going on a ride might help her to forget about the situation with her sisters.

"That's cool with me," he said, shrugging. He looked around the carnival, trying to find a good ride to take. Because it was just a small carnival with rented rides, there wasn't a roller coaster, which was his favorite kind of ride. But there were other good rides, too. The Ferris wheel was always good, but he wanted to save that for later, maybe when the sun was setting. There were swings that went in a circle, a giant curvy slide, a ride with giant teacups that swirled around in circles, and a giant pirate ship that rocked back and forth. Chip point at this last ride, which wasn't too far from where they were standing.

"Arrr, me thinks the pirate ship's a good place ter start," he said, squinting one eye and talking in his best pirate voice. "What say you?"

[Callisto "Callie" Sanders]

While Callie was busy painting the children's faces, she kept glancing up at Dierks, watching him with the children. If she hadn't already liked him a lot, seeing him with those kids made her like him even more. He didn't have to do that. He could have gone off and enjoyed the carnival without her and come back for her later, which was what she had expected him to do. Instead, he stayed and helped, just because he wanted to. It made her smile, and her heart beat just a little bit faster.

Was that how Bobby felt when Rabastan Lestrange smiled at her and spoke his pretty words? Was that why she was allowing herself to fall under the spell of a boy that pretty much everyone knew was no good?

For a moment, Callie wanted to cry. She wanted to run off and find Bobby and tell her what she was feeling and that she understood, but that she needed to be careful with Rabastan. He would make her fall for him, and then he would leave her for some other girl. That was what he did. How much it would hurt to feel this way for someone and then lose it so suddenly? Bobby was going to get her heart broken, and Callie was powerless to stop it. But she shouldn't feel that she couldn't come to her sisters when it did happen... and after the scene Callie had created, she couldn't blame Bobby if she wanted nothing to do with her.

Callie looked back at the girl whose face she was currently painting, and for a moment, all she saw was a smear of colors blurring through her unshed tears. She blinked, then took a few deep breaths, then the picture of a yellow butterfly with red and blue spots came into focus again. It only took a moment for her to calm herself down and get back to her painting; it was barely long enough for anyone to even notice. But she did.

[Dierks Brooks]

A few laughs came from the children that were standing in line. Dierks thought that entertainment was best for the children since they would more than likely become a little restless. He was entertained himself. The children made him laugh as he made them. His balloon animals, even though they all pretty much looked the same, made them happy, so that was good.

Every chance he got, he looked back at Callie. He liked watching her paint. She looked like she was concentrating on what she was doing and if she ever looked up, Dierks would look away, just in case she would feel uncomfortable with his glances. However, the next time he looked up at her, her expression had changed a little. He looked at her a little questioningly, just to make sure she was okay.

[Callisto "Callie" Sanders]

(I have Bobby and Linny's permission to skip ahead)

Callie had a great time with the kids and Dierks. He was great with kids, and all the little girls, in particular, seemed to adore him. It made Callie like him even more, just seeing how kind and funny he could be. If this kept up, she was going to have to revise her position that all men were scum.

A few hours later, Callie's replacement came to the booth and took over. Callie was a little sad to leave the kids, but she was excited, too. Now she would get to be alone with Dierks. The idea gave her goosebumps.

As the new girl sat down and started to set up, Callie turned to Dierks. "Well, the rest of the afternoon is all ours," she said, smiling. "And I know exactly what I want to do first."

[Linette "Linny" Sanders]

Linette would be lying if she said she wasn't having a good time with Chip. He was funny and kindhearted, he didn't take over the whole date, occasionally asking her opinion about this or that. They held a good convorsation too, it never really went into a lull.

All in all, it was a pretty above average date.

They had gotten a bag of popcorn and were walking around the grounds now. Linette picked at it occasionally as Chip held the bag. They then passed the large metal rollercoaster.

"Ready for the rollercoaster?" Linette asked with a smile.

[Dierks Brooks]

Dierks had been bent down talking to one little boy that was talking animatedly. He was excited about having his face painted and the little boy decided that he was going to have a dragon painted on his cheek. Dierks laughed and ruffled the little boy's hair as Callie came up to him. The little boy waved to him and walked up to the new girl that sat up while Dierks turned back to Callie.

He let a wide smile spread across his face as she spoke to him. Dierks was fairly excited about spending the rest of the afternoon with Callie. "You do, do ya," he asked with a hint of teasing. "And what would ya like ter do first?"

[Callisto "Callie" Sanders]

Callie gave him a mysterious grin, deliberately teasing him back. She was surprised at how easy this was, just flirting a little bit and having fun with a boy. She suddenly felt like she could understand Linette a little better; why she liked dating so much.

"Well," she said slowly. "I was thinking.... I'm totally starving. Maybe we could go check out the pizza stand? It's usually run by the guys from Angelo's Pizza, which is the best pizza place in London, I swear."

[Dierks Brooks]

"I could go fer food," Dierks said smiling. He could always go for food. Sometimes it seemed like he was always hungry. "Ain't never had pizza from there, but there's always a first time fer somethin'." Being polite, Dierks stepped a little closer, still giving her a little space, and offered his arm.

He was glad that things were going so smoothly. At first, he wasn't sure how well things were going to go with Callie, but he was extremely glad that things were going well. Dierks was enjoying himself and was glad that Callie was starting to open up. He wanted to still watch what he did, just in case she decided to close up on him.

[Callisto "Callie" Sanders]

Callie thought she would feel a little hesitation when he offered her his arm, but surprisingly, she didn't. It wasn't like he wanted to put his arm around her waist or anything like that. This was fairly innocent, and he didn't seem like he intended to elevate things beyond her comfort zone. So far, things were going well.

She smiled as she slipped her arm in his. "Well, trust me, it's the best. They have this great vegetarian pizza with no sauce... I always order that at home. But don't tell my sisters... sometimes I like to get a regular slice of plain pizza. I mean, you can't beat the classic, right? What do you like on your pizza?"

[Dierks Brooks]

"Regular pizza is good," he answered. "I like pepperoni on my pizza sometimes, although I gotta have a taste fer it. If I get anythin' other than cheese on it, I like mushrooms and the peppers that they'll put on it." Dierks loved pizza, or well, food in general. He wasn't a huge meat lover when it came to it being put on the pizza.

"Speakin' of vegetarian foods, there's a nice vegetarian food place outside of London. My mama likes vegetarian foods so she cooked a lot of it over the summer. That's where she usually went to get the food. They even got an area you can eat in there. If you ain't already been there, you might like it."

[Callisto "Callie" Sanders]

"Bobby likes pepperoni," Callie said, wrinkling her nose. "So does our dad. I never did like it, even before I became a vegetarian. But I do like mushrooms. Oh, and did you ever get it with onions on it? It's actually really good."

She was feeling much more relaxed now, and she was almost even able to forget that Bobby had come to the carnival with Rabastan Lestrange. Maybe later the sisters could all talk about it rationally, now that they'd had time to cool off. Surely Bobby would have to understand that they only had her best interests at heart. There were lots of other guys out there, and maybe one or two of them would even be good enough for Bobby. One thing was certain, however, Rabastan was not.

Pulling her mind away from Bobby, Callie looked back at Dierks. She wasn't ready to think about what she felt for him. She liked him a lot, and she was interested in seeing where it could go. Maybe they would just be friends, or maybe they would be more. She was willing to take a chance and see what happened. Something about Dierks drew her in, made her feel at ease. She felt like she could trust him. And his smile made her feel warm all over.

"I don't think I've ever tried that place," Callie said. "I've had a hard time finding good vegetarian food since I decided to give up meat last year. And Bobby and Linny haven't really been supportive. Bobby keeps saying it's just a phase, and Linny keeps telling me I need more protein." She rolled her eyes at this last part.

[Dierks Brooks]

Dierks laughed. "Well, there ain't nothin' wrong with being a vegetarian. Like I said, my mama is one. Personally, I think it would be really hard ter give up meat completely, but its good that you got the ability ter do it. Some vegetarian food ain't all that bad. Tofu, I think it is, ain't too terribly bad. You can cook it a lotta ways." He shrugged. He didn't care what she really ate. Everyone had their own tastes.

"That place, I think is called Markley's. A nice older couple run it. Their veggie burgers are really good." If he was with with mother, Dierks always tried to eat vegetarian foods because his mother would give him looks that he would always interpret to say 'don't even think about it'.

"They'll come around sometime." Arriving at the pizza place, Dierks read over the menu quickly and decided on what he wanted. "Know what you would like?"

[Callisto "Callie" Sanders]

Most people thought of Callie as the outspoken, opinionated, angry sister. That was the reputation she'd built for herself, the way she stood out among her sisters. But in many ways it was a lie. She was always quick to speak out about injustices done to other people, or to speak in general terms about groups of people. But when it came to talking about herself, that was usually where she got shy. The loud opinions were a defense mechanism, to keep people away, so that only the brave ones would have the courage to look closer at her. Dierks was one of the few to break through, and it made her feel even more bold than people usually thought she was.

"It sounds great," she said, smiling. "I love veggie burgers, when they're done right. Maybe some time you could take me there."

Was she asking him out on a date? Not exactly... but she was implying that if he should ask her on a proper date, she would most likely say yes.

Before he could respond to that, she peered up at the menu. "You know... I think I'm in the mood for plain cheese today. What about you?"

[Dierks Brooks]

"Great minds think alike," he said with a smile. "How many slices do you think you wanna get? I'm thinkin' 2 or 3 slices fer me."

Dierks wanted to ask Callie about going to Markley's the next time they had a weekend free. Of course he knew that she said that maybe he could take her there. That was an implication that she would have said yes, right? Then it dawned on him that it could be considered a date. His face tinted slightly pink and he didn't know if Callie would have noticed or not. He did hope that she wouldn't notice.

Clearing his thoughts for the moment, he focused on the fact that they were standing at the pizza stand. Dierks reached in his back pocket and pulled out his wallet out of habit.

[Callisto "Callie" Sanders]

Callie thought about it for a minute, giving him a sort of sideways glance. As she did, she spotted the blush on his cheeks, and she wondered what he was thinking about. He looked cute when he blushed, and it made her feel warm inside.

"Two, I think. I'm pretty hungry. I think all that popcorn managed to do was make me hungrier." She laughed at this and shook her head.

"Oh, wait," she said, holding out her hand to stop him as he pulled out his wallet. "Remember our deal? Lunch is on me."

[Dierks Brooks]

Dierks was glad that Callie was getting more than one piece. He wouldn't have too comfortable if she was only getting one piece. He grinned and told the man that they wanted four slices of Cheese pizza.

Once Callie's hand went out, Dierks looked at it then at her. The pink tint rose on his face again. There was no reason for it to, but it did anyway. Dierks folded his wallet back and put it in his pocket, knowing that there was no arguing with Callie. "Sorry, it's a habit," he said quietly. However, when he looked up and he smiled.

[Callisto "Callie" Sanders]

She could tell he wasn't entirely comfortable letting her pay. He was the old-fashioned type, and she imagined that had something to do with growing up in the American south. Based on what she knew about the south, they were very big on old-fashioned values. It probably was considered the gentlemanly thing to pay for a woman's meal. But Callie, on the other hand, considered herself to be a very modern girl, and it was very important for her to assert her independence. She liked Dierks, but she wanted to make sure he understood that she didn't need him, and that she could get by on her own perfectly well.

"It's OK," she said, softening slightly. "Tell you what, though.... you can carry the pizza. I see a bench over there, where we can sit and eat." She quickly paid the man behind the counter and let Dierks carry the tray with their food as they made their way over to the bench.

When they sat down, she looked at him and smiled. "Now, seriously, you have to try this pizza and tell me it's not the best pizza you've ever tasted."