My Horse

At first, Katie led Saint around, taking him where she wanted to go. Three’s company, but rides didn’t change much with another guest. Other than occasionally forcing Frankie into a cart with a stranger while the other two talked, that is, which, to be clear, wasn’t very appreciated by the introvert. But she had something else on her mind.

“Here ya go.”

The spinning ride they’d chosen last stopped, and when it did, Saint was skipping off the ride as soon as the employee could let him and his newfound friend out of safety restraints.

“You look like you’re having fun.” Katie admired the child’s innocent enthusiasm, the motions of his body weightless and free.

“Uh-“ He froze, of course, embarrassed- trying to put back on the blank expression he’d worn before- but in moments, he’d already forgotten it. “I-I guess I am. …Thank you, miss.”

“Don’t thank me.” Katie laughed. “Keep having it. Where next? How about you pick something.”

Emotionally, he couldn’t have been further from his previous lonely boredom. The boy led them to a carousel, ignoring his analysis paralysis by assuming they’d get to go on everything with them eventually. He’d seen everything here before, but was eager to try it in a new light. While he was distracted by the sensation, Frankie closed in on her sister.

“Hey. Look, I… feel bad for this kid. But… Katie, we’ve only got five days here.”

She nodded, her smile unfaltering.

“Katie. Talk to me.”

“But just look at him.”

Against her better judgment, she watched Saint enter the line, peering over the bars and past the legs of guests to try and pick out which of the sculpted horses he wanted to ride. He was like a different person.

“He went from being like me to just like you…” Frankie sighed. “I’m happy. I really am. He doesn’t deserve the way he’s got it. But- but if we don’t keep up the pace, we’ll never have enough tokens to win this game!”

“Relax, Frankie. Maybe we can get our losses back from his sister.”

Frankie bit her lip. Yeah, right. That girl was ice-cold.

“The line’s gonna move! Come on, let’s go.”

When it came to their turn, the trio hustled on behind most of the other guests in the batch, all of which scrambled for their choice of mount. 

Saint fidgeted, continuously freezing in place as the available rides were taken up, his choices waning and waning.

“Saint? Which one do you want?”

“I don’t know…” The child felt very, very sad all of a sudden. It was weird. He’d never cared about this ride before, much less what horse he rode on. No- it wasn’t just that. It was the fact that he had a chance to choose at all.

If there’d have been no rush for the popular ones, he would’ve been happy to take whatever he could get. That’s how his sister raised him. After all- if you don’t care how you do it, you can get past most anything just fine. You get what you get, and you don’t pitch a fit. That’s how you make it. 

That’s the only way to make it.

“I like these two.”

Katie sat her hand on a blindingly white steed- paired with another just like it, it hadn’t especially called out to him before. But seeing her stand by it changed that, somehow.

She helped him step up to the saddle, and took her place beside him. This feels right, he thought. This is my horse.

Just about everyone else hadn't taken so long. The ride was practically filled. But Saint wasn’t the last one to take their seat.

Frankie was the very first to pick a spot. What did it matter what her seat looked like? She hardly even thought about where it was.

Her horse was brown, and generic- right next to it, another, similarly boring animal- the one, single empty seat. The only one left.

“Sorry! My apologies- no, really, I know how hard this job is. Thank ya kindly.”

Rushing late up to the platform, old suit bunching up as he climbed to the final spot, an excited Vincent Stamos sat right next to Frankie, giggling as he went.

“Been on this one before?”