Chapter Six

 

Colton

 

 

 

I left Elle with Frank half an hour ago, and I’m crossing my fingers that she gets the Tier One Costume Crew job. After what Maggie told me about her failed relationship and her money-hungry ex-boyfriend, she deserves for things to go right. It would also be nice to ride into work with her every day, but I’m keeping that small fact a secret. It’s not as if I’m going to act on the warm feelings that flood my body whenever Elle’s eyes light up when she smiles. I’m leaving. Not now. But someday. Soon.

“You seem deep in thought,” I hear someone say while walking into the employees’ lounge. “Thinking about your motorcycle? Or a girl?”

I look at Sarah, my colleague and Head Princess, and raise an eyebrow. “When have I ever thought about girls at work?”

“Just because you never talk about girls doesn’t mean you never think about them,” she says with a laugh. “Anyway, had a good morning so far?”

“Sure. You?”

She shrugs. “It ought to be a great morning, right? The sun is out, we’re expecting lots of visitors today…”

“But?”

A sigh escapes from her lips. “I’m so tired. I don’t know if I’ll make it to lunch without falling asleep.”

“Rough night with your husband?”

She slaps my arm. “It’s nothing like that. If you must know, I went to bed at nine. Nine, Colton! Like some old lady whose energy levels are depleting more and more with every passing day. I’m getting old.”

I can’t help but laugh at her dramatic-sounding words. “You’re twenty-six, Sarah. That’s not old.”

“Fine, maybe I’m not old. But it’s not normal to be this exhausted at my age.”

I frown. “Why don’t you go and see a doctor? It’ll put your mind at ease.”

“I will. Soon.” She takes a deep breath. “Do you think something’s wrong with me? Is exhaustion a symptom of something bad?”

I pretend to think. “I remember reading an article in Your Science last week. Something about a woman falling asleep at nine and how odd it was.”

Her eyes grow wide. “What was wrong with her?”

“She woke up one day as a zombie, craving brains. No one could save her.”

“Colton!” she cries out and punches me. “You can’t say stuff like that. You had me really worried for a moment.”

I laugh. “It’s just so much fun to mess with you. Seriously, I think there’s a good explanation for your tiredness, and it’s not that you’re turning into a zombie, okay?”

“Okay, I believe you. For now. Anyway, enough about me. Kiera said you rode into work with a girl today,” she says while suggestively wiggling her eyebrows.

“I did, but before you make any assumptions, she’s my sister’s best friend.”

“So?”

I shrug while fastening the cufflinks on my costume. “So nothing. It doesn’t mean anything.” I turn around. “What I don’t get is how fast news travels around here.”

“You know how it goes. Someone sees something, texts it to their colleagues, and then it spreads from person to person faster than a deadly virus.”

I shudder. “That’s a scary analogy. Anyway, there’s nothing going on between me and Elle, so you better let all of our coworkers know that me riding into work with her is anything but newsworthy.”

“Sure, but first we’ve got families to entertain.” She yawns while pointing at the wall clock. “We better get a move on, Prince Charming.”

I extend my arm and she hooks hers through it. It’s a small ritual we do every morning, and guests love it when we stride out of the staff village like that.

We take a left, then cross the plaza with the big fountain surrounded by paths leading to the park’s different themed worlds. A little girl runs up to us, and touches Sarah’s skirt with an expression of pure awe on her face. She must be three, maybe four at the most. I kneel and gently talk to her while Sarah steps aside and twirls, adding some distance between us and the kid. The little girl doesn’t even notice it, that’s how trained we are. Per park rules, guests aren’t allowed to touch us, except when they pose for a photo made at the Picture This spots we have scattered around the park and where a professional photographer snaps the pics. Frank says it’s for our own safety. I don’t know how an adorable three-year-old girl in a yellow dress could possibly threaten our safety, but I guess Frank knows more than we do since he’s the one who runs this place.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spot a scared-looking woman pushing a stroller. Relief crosses her face when her eyes land on the little girl admiring Sarah’s costume.

She pulls the girl in for a hug, then releases her and throws her a stern look. “Pixie, what did I tell you about running off like that?”

Pixie stares at the ground. “That I couldn’t do it.”

“Then why did you? Mommy got really scared.”

“But, Mommy, it’s Princess Charlotte. I wanted to say hi to her.”

The mother gets up and smiles at the both of us. “I’m sorry about this.”

I wave her remark away. “No worries. We had fun together. And Pixie knows she can’t ever run away again, right, Pixie?”

She nods.

I reach into the pocket of my coat and grab a sticker for her. I always keep a small stack on me for situations like these. Pixie takes the sticker and presses it to her chest. “The Magic Wonderland is so fun.”

“How about a quick picture together?” Sarah asks. Even though she knows all too well what the rules are, she always casts them aside whenever an adorable child is involved. I don’t even try to stop her anymore these days.

The three of us pose for a picture, and both Pixie and her mother leave beaming with delight.

“That smile right there is why we do what we do, right?” Sarah asks with a content sigh while we continue our walk toward the castle’s garden.

“That’s right. That and the money.”

She shakes her head. “Yeah, the money.”

“What?” I ask. “It pays the bills.”

“I know it does, but I also know you’re saving most of what you make just so you can get out of here. To you, this isn’t about paying the bills. It’s about something more.”

“Can you blame me?”

She stops walking and puts her hand on my arm. “You’re not your father, Colton. Everyone here knows that.”

“I don’t want pitiful looks for the rest of my life. I want to build a life of my own and be myself, Colton Wilson, not poorLee Wilson’s son,” I say through clenched teeth.

Sarah nods and squeezes my arm before picking up her dress again with both hands. We walk the rest of the way in silence. I know she means well. I’m not mad at her or anything, but I’m afraid of turning into my father if I stick around.

We take our places at the castle’s garden with ten minutes to spare before the doors open for a meet and greet with us—or at least, the fairytale versions of us. Sarah whips out her phone, and I let my gaze wander. The park opened about half an hour ago, but people are already spilling onto the pathways from all directions.

I focus on the hot dog cart on the other side of the pathway. I use my hand to shield my eyes from the sun and narrow them. Layla has worked that cart for quite some time now, but I don’t recognize the girl next to her. She moves in a nervous way, and I snort when she accidentally squirts ketchup on her hands. She’s definitely new. Right before I look away from her, I catch something I didn’t see before. Red locks of hair spilling out from under her ketchup hat.

They gave Elle a job at the hot dog stand? Oh, man. I knew she was hoping for something else. Now I feel like an idiot for not preparing her more. I can only hope she’s not too bummed out.

Right then, Elle looks straight in our direction. For a second, she stands frozen. I wave at her, and it’s almost as if that gesture wakes her with an electric jolt. She drops her ketchup bottle and disappears behind the cart.

Sarah nudges me with her elbow. “The clock strikes ten, time to meet our guests.”

“Uh-huh,” I answer and turn around to do my job.

I smile and crack jokes and pose for dozens of pictures with guests of all ages, but every now and then, I steal a glance at Elle, whose body is squeezed between the two brown buns of her costume. Too bad she doesn’t catch my eye even once.