Freaks and Fortune

"Secrets, secrets are no fun..." I chanted mindlessly.
Anthony nodded. "Ravi is a baby."
Ravi reached out and shoved Anthony slightly.

After making just over fifty billion promises to the boys, they left satisfied that their secret would remain a secret. I sat down on my bed and tried to collect my thoughts, deciding to sleep instead of deal with the fact that I had a very large secret on the tip of my tongue.

My first day as "Ivy Fortune" went by unceremoniously.

I was dressed in a skankier version of a fortune-teller's costume. Purple and gold seemed to be my things. My wrap dress fell delicately off of one shoulder, and the gold trimmings hilighted my glittering make-up.

A large sign was poised at the top of the booth, advertising me as Ivy Fortune, The One And Only Lady Luck. I got boys as young as six and men as old as fifty, each waiting for a quick peck on the lips or cheek.

I quickly got over my squeamishness and fell into a sort of pattern. After about two hours, I took my first break. I walked slowly over towards the Elephant Cages, determined to stay in the shaded areas as much as possible.

I was surprised when I couldn't find Ravi in the pit. It was only after looking around the whole ring that I realized where he was. Wincing, I raced over towards the stalls.

"Ravi!" I laughed, upon seeing him doing my old job.

Sweat matted his bangs to his forehead. The colored half of his head caught the bright sun and reflected it sharply into my eyes. He stopped shoveling his own elephant's dung into that familiar rusty wheelbarrow and slowly turned towards me.

He scowled.

"Do you hate me?" I asked.
"No. I hate Cal," he replied darkly.
"Cal?" I asked in disbelief. "Why Cal?"
He tossed the shovel to the ground. "Because he stole my best worker from me!"
"Okay, I was totally not your best worker."

He laughed and wiped his face with a towel that he'd tucked into his waistband.

"Yeah, you were pretty lousy," he teased, half serious.
"Hey!"

He squatted at the edge of the bars, dropping down to my eye level.

"How's the new job?"
"Really good, actually. Pretty fun. How's your new job?"
"Shut up, it's temporary!"

"Hey Ravs, hey Ivy."

Anthony appeared, his bronze head bobbing up and down as he walked. Ravi smiled and nodded and I gave him a hug.

"I'm the new-"
"Kissing Booth Girl," he finished. "I know."
I scowled. "Why does everyone know?"
He laughed and shrugged. "I'm the one who had to fit your new time-slot into the already jam packed schedule of this damn Circus."

Ravi let out a bark of a laugh and reached up to wipe his face with the towel again. He was wearing a regular white shirt and it made his skin look almost mahogany.

"Hey... Get off work," Anthony ordered, pushing out his bottom lip like he was sad.
Ravi tossed the shovel down to the floor. "I'm officially on break," he replied, squeezing through the bars of the cage and hopping down off the cement barrier.

The two walked off, falling into step and joking as they went.

I sighed. It sort of hit me right then that I really had nothing to do. I wandered back to the Kissing Booth and sat down towards the back, hiding in the cool shade. I relaxed, taking comfort in the fact that, from where I was, nobody could see me. It was strange to look out onto the busy circus and observe people without them being the wiser. People acted different when they don't think others are watching.

"Hey."

Suddenly, a match flickered to life from a darkened corner to my right. Cal was leaning, back against the wall of the booth. His hair was tousled, giving the impression that he'd just woken up.

I let out a strangled cry of surprise and nearly fell out of my chair. Cal chuckled and the flame disappeared with a soft woosh. He stumbled out into the light and blinked.

"What are you doing here?" I hissed. "You scared me half to-"
"What time is it?" he asked me, scratching his head.
"Out of all the places to nap, why here?" I groaned. "Seriously, I took this job to get away from you!"
"So... You decided to take it?" His voice was eager.
"Yeah. I suppose."

He tripped and fell back into the shadows, laughing at himself.

"That is just super," he muttered. "Super-cauliflower-lipstic-expert-alli... Something."
"Are you drunk?"
He laughed heavily.
"Are you kidding me? You're dunk and it's like... noon!"

He leapt to his feet, swaying slightly.

"Noon? Man, I've got a show!" he commented, seeming only slightly concerned. "And don't worry, babe. I'm only tipsy!"

After this, he proceeded to trip over his own feet and slam into the rail attached to the front of the booth. He flipped over it, his bare feet flying up over his head in an almost comical manner. When he landed on the other side of the booth, Cal giggled and slowly got to his feet.

"Okay, maybe I'm a bit more than tipsy..." he mused.
I gave him a stern look.
"Maybe. Probably. Okay, yes. I'm totally drunk. Smashed, actually. Sorry."

I caught sight of a large clock, made to model the ones in Grand Central Station. "You've got a show in ten," I told him. "Go."

And he was off, teetering on his own feet and giving complete strangers surprise bear hugs as he went.