Just Hold My Hand and We'll Jump

"C'mon, we're gonna be stuck in line for hours if you don't hurry up!" Austin says, tugging at the hem of your tank top like a five-year-old.

"I'm hurryin', I'm hurryin', don't get your panties in a bunch," you say calmly as you can, trying not to mess up the cat-eye you're working on. You perfected your right eye, now just to match the left. Of course, Austin bumps your elbow, making you strike a line from the corner of your eye to your hairline and mess up what you already have done. There's a sharp intake of breath and his mouth pops into an 'O'. "Damn," you breathe.

"I'm so, so sorry, Y/N! I swear, I didn't mean to, I was just-"

"Austin," you say quietly.

He doesn't hear you. "-trying to get around you to make sure I didn't leave anything be-"

"Austin!"

He finally stops talking and looks at you, his eyebrows scrunched together in worry. "I'm really, really sorry, Y/N."

"Austin, seriously, it's fine," you say as you wipe off all your eyeliner, along with your right cat-eye. "I'll just go natural today."

A smile tugs at the sides of his mouth. "You're beautiful if you have make-up on or not," he says as he presses a kiss to your forehead.

You pull him in for a hug and nuzzle your face into his chest. "Mmm...I love you, babe," you smile.

"I love you, too, beautiful."

A few seconds pass by as you just hold each other close. "So...are you um...ready to go?" He asks cautiously.

You scoff jokingly. "Yes, Austin, I'm ready to go," you sigh as you let go and head out of the bathroom to grab your purse and tickets to the amusement and water parks, while Austin grabs the bag with your towels and under garments.

***

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh! OHMYGOD AUSTIN WE'RE GONNA DIIIIIIIEEEEEEEE!" You scream as the roller coaster zips up and around the track.

"Ah heheheh," he laughs maniacally, and then just to add to the adorableness, he snorts at the end.

Almost as soon as it began, the ride comes to a sudden halt, and it's over. You click off the safety belt and hop off, Austin coming up behind you and giving you jumper cables.

"Ahh!" You squeal as you jump about a foot in the air. He picks you up and flips you over his shoulder, laughing all the while. "Put me down!" You scream, but smiling all the same.

"Never!" He yells as he carries you over towards the Zip Cord. Oh shit.

"Austin!" You shout as you pound on his back. "Austin, no!" You bark.

He sets you back down once you're in line for the Zip Cord, and your stomach is already in knots.

"What's wrong?" He asks curiously.

"I can't do this one, babe," you tell him quietly.

"What?! Why not?" He asks incredulously.

"I don't do heights, not like this," you explain.

He crosses his arms and pouts, making his big brown eyes especially irresistible. "Pleeeeease?" He begs.

"Austin..."

"Tell you what," he says, taking your hands in his and looking you in the eyes, making it obvious he's about to negotiate, "I'll take you out for ice-cream afterwards."

Your eyes narrow. "Ice-cream isn't nearly enough to get me to go on this," you say.

"Moomers?" He insists.

Your eyes widen. "Chocolate waffle cone?"

"Deal," he grins.

"Alright," you say, already feeling the jitters.

Over the next half hour, the jitters rage on to become pterodactyls in your stomach. "Shit, Austin," you groan.

"What is it, babe?"

"I feel like I'm gonna be sick," you say, gripping your abdomen.

"Y/N," he whines. "We've gotten so far in line, and I'm sure as hell not doing this alone. Please, please, please, please, please-"

"Fine, but if I'm not sick beforehand, I'm sure I will be afterwards," you groan.

He rubs your back in slow, soothing circles. "You'll be fine, hun."

You nod, but you're not sure you entirely agree.

Sooner than later, it's your turn next, and all of a sudden, the sick feeling is gone and your adrenaline is kicking in.

The two of you walk up to the belts and hooks and bungees to get all set up, and the man working the ride pulls on belts and tugs on buckles, making sure you're safe and secure, but you still don't feel like you'll survive this.

"Ready?" The man asks.

"Hell yes," Austin grins.

"Umm," you gulp.

"Okay, so what you-" he gestures to Austin who is hooked up to be on top of you,"are going to do is simply pull this cord," he says as he grabs hold of the correct cord and lets go. "The other guy at the top will help you out with anything else. Have fun!"

At that, he presses the button for you to be lifted up. Your feet immediately leave the ground, and you're going up, up, up, into the sky.

"Babe, you alright?" Austin asks from behind you.

You had frozen after the first five seconds. "Umm." Then it hits you. You're already hundreds of feet up in the air, and you have a lot more to go. And so the trembling and shaking begin.

"Shit. Austin, I can't do this," you tell him urgently.

"Babe," he chuckles. "We can't exactly go back. The only way down is to pull the cord once we're at the top."

"Austin," you cry as you feel tears sting your eyes. "I don't wanna do this." A tear slides down and off your face, falling down, down, plunging to a splash so many feet below you.

"Y/N, I'm right here, hun, just hold my hand, okay?"

You start hyperventilating, and you can already feel the snot running down. Everything feels like its closing in on you, and you can't breathe. "Austin," you say weakly, so differently from how you'd been a few seconds ago.

"Babe? Babe. Just breathe. Can you do that for me? Take a deep breath. I'm right here, and I promise, I would never put you in a jeopardizing situation. It'll be alright, okay? Just breathe, love," he says as he reaches his arm around to hold you close and rubs your back.

You take in a shaky breath, closing your eyes so as not to make yourself more dizzy than you already are.

Finally, you come to a halt as you stop right in front of a platform. The man on it beckons you to walk onto it, and you do so.

"She alright?" He asks Austin.

"Panic attack," he says meekly.

The man chuckles. "Yeah, we get those a lot. There's a trash can at the bottom if she's sick."

Austin shoots him a glare.

"Alright, step off the platform when you're ready. You'll just dangle there for a second until you pull the cord. Don't touch any of the cords above you or at your waist. Good luck and have fun!" He says sarcastically.

"Why did he say good luck?" You grumble.

"He's joking, babe," Austin assures you. "Ready?"

You nod quickly, just wanting to get to the bottom. The two of you step off at the same time, and just dangle there like the man said you would.

You practically unhook yourself in attempt to turn around and wrap yourself around Austin for dear life.

"Austin, shit, why the fuck did you make me do this?! I can't do this, I wanna go back!" You plead. You're hyperventilating again already, and Austin just looks down at you, locking your eyes with his.

"Breathe. I'm just gonna pull the cord so that we can get this done and over with, does that sound good?" He asks.

You figure it'll be a lot better than just hanging here, so you nod your head frantically.

"Okay, on the count of three. One, two, three."

And with that, you're falling. Your eyes are clenched shut and a blood curdling scream escapes you, and then you're silenced by the rush of the wind. You can barely breathe as your stomach jumps and does that funny fluttery thing.

"YEEEEEEEEEAAAAHHH!" Austin yells, letting out the growl he uses in the studio. "Babe," He yells over the wind, "babe, open your eyes! This is amazing!"

You do as he asks, and your breath is taken away merely by the sight of it all. You can see way past the end of the park, and the view is gorgeous as the sun is setting. A rush of fear and adrenaline courses through your body, and it's intense.

You slow down and then you're carelessly swinging back and forth until the man at the bottom lowers you down.

Once you're at the bottom and unhooked, your practically fall over.

"Whoa there," Austin laughs as he catches you. "Swooning into my arms now, huh?"

You giggle as you come down from your rush.

He takes your hand in his and pulls you along to a bench.

"So...did you have fun?" He asks.

"At the end yeah," you admit.

He smiles. "Good. See, all it takes is a little faith and trust."

"And pixie dust," you add.

He mock punches you before pulling you in for a blissful kiss.