Gift

After having the meal of their lives at the Stampede Buffet, all Cheryl and Saint could do was count their blessings and stare back at the two more fortunate siblings across the table, who were amazed at how fast they both ate.

“You two were pretty hungry, huh…” Frankie said all she could.

“Yeah. You stop noticing after a while.” Cheryl downplayed.

“We were.” Saint admitted.

“It’s too bad y'all are leaving.” The sharpshooter rested her elbows on the table. “I can’t believe I took a liking to a couple dumb tourists.” She snarked.

“I’m not used to making friends either.” Frankie declared, sinking into her seat.

“Sure you are!” Her sister rebutted, rising from hers. “You make friends everywhere we go!”

“Only ‘cause you’re there. If I was alone in these places, I would hide in the bathroom until everyone there was asleep.”

Katie laughed while Frankie just examined her empty plate, picking at the thoughts that’d been bothering her since before they walked in this place.

Looking back at the two locals on the other side of the table, she made her choice.

“Hey.” She firmly stated to the girl in front of her, one antisocial to another. Instead of saying anything to follow up on that, however, she just dug into their bag.

“…Frankie? What is it-“

“Here.”

Without consulting Katie first, she held out their Food Card. She hoped her sister would agree that this was the right thing to do. As Kiddie Parker once did for them, she hoped to do for the woman in front of her.

“It’s not much, but… this’ll let you eat for however long it lasts. Stock up, okay?”

“I…” Looking at the small laminated card, Cheryl found herself strangely frozen. Less than an hour ago she’d only half-joked about taking this girl’s wallet, and now…

“I can’t. I’m sorry.” She felt her eyes instinctively fall to the ground, terrified at this link she’d formed today. For some reason, the parkgoer across from her seat was giving up something of hers just so she could have it. Even after all the cutthroat gambling, taking everything she could get- she couldn’t bring herself to take this one tiny card.

“Okay… I guess I’ll just have to leave it here on this table then. It’d be pretty bad if somebody found it… but that’s life.”

Frankie numbly dropped the voucher to the surface of the table.

Cheryl glared- and then she blushed-

And then she smiled.

“Thanks, Frankie. I’ll never forget this.”

The tables turned instantly as Frankie felt like she’d bit off more than she could chew- flaring up herself at the emotional interaction just a day into meeting this girl, she got up to leave with her own sister, imaging herself as a cool-headed drifter leaving town.

“S-so long, uh… Cheryl.”

“See ya around, Frankie.”

“Goodbye, Saint!” Katie waved both hands at the boy.

“Bye! Tell your sister Cheryl likes her!”

Cool demeanor faltering, the gunslinger pressed her hand against her brother’s mouth, awkwardly smirking as if to silently murmur an apology she couldn’t come up with and wasn’t needed anyway.

Katie broke out into laughter as Frankie turned for the exit immediately, making sure nobody could see her red face as she walked through the door.

“That was great.” Katie chuckled once they were back outside. Frankie was still quiet.  She couldn't help but start giggling at her again.

“Still embarrassed?”

Her little sister was really quiet. Katie couldn’t stop at this point. Landing her hand on the girl’s shoulder, she was almost dying of laughter.

“You’re killing me, Frankie…”

“Hey… uh, does… that guy look familiar?”

The older sibling looked up. Frankie wasn’t quiet out of embarrassment- no, she was looking at someone- someone they both thought looked pretty familiar indeed.

A member of Bozo’s marketing team- Denny Adams, though they didn’t know him by name- stood haggling with a random family, his blonde hair and nasty expression in plain view.

“That’s the guy who almost shot my eye out…” Frankie whispered behind a standee of Ron Racoon, the two of them crouching for cover.

“You made him do that.”

“Yeah, well, whatever. Why’s he here?”

“Bozo’s here in the park someplace, maybe he’s with him.”

“But… why?”

Adams grinned, the family leaving as he poured an extra ten tokens into his large Tough Boys Comics backpack.

“Shit.”