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"Want some?" she asked with a little wave of the bun. "It's good. Better than the ones you get in the mall, surprisingly."
"Uh…sure." I shrugged and bit off the end of her bun. It was warm and sweet, and her fingers were mere centimeters from my mouth. I tried not to think about that part too much as I turned away from her while I chewed, pretending to be interested in the throng of people around us. We stood right near the food court, juggling our plates because no one wanted to give up their seats. The later it got, the more crowded the space became.
"Mm!" Noah hummed around her final bite. "There's a photo booth."
I followed her gaze to an old gray photo booth with a TV on top that showed what was happening on the inside.
"Carnival staple," Noah sighed dreamily. "Man, I feel like I'm in a movie."
"Want to go take a pic?"
She laughed. "No way. I'd look silly taking photos by myself."
"I didn't mean by yourself."
Noah's back straightened. "You…you're going to take them with me?"
I shrugged. "Yeah, why not?"
"Because we're not…" Noah chewed on her lip, trying to decide how she wanted to finish that sentence.
"I think we should have something to remind ourselves of how much we can't stand each other," I jumped in to smooth over the awkward silence. "You know, in case we forget."
I could feel the forgetfulness already washing over me like the shore. Yes, she was everything I avoided when creating art. Noah was too sweet, agreeable, pleasing, but when she showed those hard edges, God, I couldn't stop thinking about them. The more time I spent around her, the more I realized how I'd never seen her whole. I was closer than I'd ever been, and with every new reveal, I wanted more.
She smiled. "I'd never forget. My memory's excellent."
"You've forgotten to turn off your diffuser every day since you've been hired," I argued.
Noah's brows furrowed. "No, I don't. That was just the first day."
"Yes, you do." I laughed. "I've been turning it off, along with your fairy lights and that weird toaster lamp."
She looked baffled, untucking and re-tucking her hair behind her ear as she took my words in. "First, Toasty isn't weird. He's brilliant."
"His name is Toasty? Wow, original. Careful, someone might think you write for a respected comic company."
"That's a classic name, thank you very much."
"In what universe is Toasty classic?"
She wrinkled her nose and grabbed the near-empty food containers from my hands. "Fine."
"Fine?" I asked and watched as she walked to toss the trash. For the few seconds she was gone, I readjusted my jacket and huffed into my hand to smell my breath. I winced at the lingering ketchup scent and popped in a mint.
"We'll take the photos," Noah said once she was back in front of me. She'd flipped most of her twists to the side, and I was having a bit of trouble breathing at the sight of her profile. The woman looked perfect at every angle.
I nodded numbly and followed her. There was no one inside the booth, so I tugged the dingy curtain open and gestured for her to climb in. Noah hesitated for a moment, licking her bottom lip as she studied the booth.
I loosened my grip on the curtain. "I'm not holding a gun to your head."
"It's…" She wrinkled her nose as she moved forward. "Are they always this tiny?"
"Yup, but we're also pretty large people. I'm sure they didn't make these with six-foot people in mind."
"Are you six feet?" She raised a teasing brow.
I frowned, playing into an offended front. "Five-eleven and a half, if we're being technical, but that's basically six feet."
