When we reach the top, I can see the whole carnival and more. All the lights make the view look spectacular, and it almost feels as if I am in a dream. It’s darker around the outside of the carnival, but I am still able to make out the outline of trees in the distance and the town border.

The town border is just a fortified chain fence for the most part, it holds all twelve thousand of us Treegrass people in place to protect us from any potential threats. After the war, the government made sure to enclose each town so that if anyone like our old enemy, the Fritts, came they couldn’t take our homes. The Fritts were defeated in the war, but that does not mean there aren’t more people out there who want what we have.

The parts of our town that are located by the tree line, like we are now, are protected by a chain fence since not many people like going into the woods to try and break in. Other parts of our town are protected with high walls that are covered in colorful murals on the inside. The murals make the walls look less scary, and the school art teachers always like taking trips to the wall to show us the beautiful work the artists have done in the past.

“Look, that must be the big tent that guy was talking about.”

Devin and I look over to where my Dad is pointing, and sure enough, there is a big tent. The tent has lights going vertically up the tent from the ground. They change color in unison, making the tent stand out, and it definitely makes me want to know what is inside.

“Any guesses as to what the surprise will be?” My Dad asks, knowing how much we like this game.

I think about it for a moment before guessing, “I think it’s going to be some kind of special show. The 155th anniversary of the end of the New World-Fritt War is coming up in two months, maybe it could be a show dedicated to that history.”

The New World has been around for 172 years, and we will be celebrating 173 years in the winter. The war between the New World and the Fritts started only two years after we officially became a country, and it lasted for almost sixteen years. Many people at the time thought it would last even longer than that since neither side was making much progress.

Devin thinks about it some more and then makes his guess, “Well, I think it has something to do with the cards. I don’t know if you noticed, but they only matter in the games, not the food or this ride. I think they’re going to have a small show, and then they’re going to announce the top three players and maybe give them their own special rewards.”

We all look at each other. Both guesses would be pretty cool, but the only way we will know who is right or closer to the right answer is if we go.

“So we can go at nine?” I ask my Dad.

He looks at me, “I promised not to get you two home too late.”

Devin and I look at each other and then back at our Dad with our best puppy dog eyes. I may not be a little kid anymore, but the puppy dog eyes never stop working.

“Fine. If it starts at nine and is only about an hour, then that shouldn’t be too late to get home. And besides, it’s Friday. It’s not like you have school tomorrow, so your Mom can’t get mad at me,” Dad says while looking at Devin.

I have work tomorrow morning, but I don’t point that out. I am an adult now, I can make decisions for myself, and I decide that I want to stay here until we get kicked out at the end of the night.

Devin and I look at each other triumphantly and try to give our Dad a big hug. The bucket we are in tilts, and we sit back down in our seats, not wanting to break the ride and fall to our deaths. I know he would have let us go find out what is in the tent even if we did not use our charms on him, he’s good like that.

The ride makes another complete rotation before coming to a stop at the bottom, where we get off. I can’t believe how amazing this night has gone so far, and it’s not even over.

We continue our method of going in order of the games, and the next one up isn’t really a game but a question.

There is a drawing of a triangle made up of other triangles in front of us. The lady says to insert our cards and type our guesses on the tablet on the table when we are ready. She said that we are guessing how many triangles we think are in the image.

I begin trying to count how many there are, but it’s tricky since you can’t write on it to outline the ones you can see, and some of the triangles make other triangles.

I step up to the table, insert my card into the tablet, and place my guess. Devin looks at me and then back at the problem with concentration. After another minute, he goes to the table and places his guess, and so does my Dad.

“What number did you guess Sam?” Devin asks.

“Twenty-four, you?”

Devin looks at me, contemplating, then answers, “Twenty-two. How did you get twenty-four?”

I point to the triangle, trying my best to explain my thought process. “There are the obvious big triangles and smaller ones, but then the smaller ones make up medium sized ones, and I just kept looking at them in a bunch of different ways.”

Devin looks at me in understanding, and then we both turn to our Dad

“What did you guess, old man?” Devin says.

“Twenty-five, one more than Sam here.”

The woman is not allowed to tell us the answer, so we move on. As we are walking, I catch the sight of a short gray haired lady walking by. I figure it is not polite to ignore her, so I decide to give her a smile and say, “Hi Ms. Betty, how are you?”

She turns around and smiles. “Samantha! I’m doing fine. I decided to come see my grandkids and have fun for a bit, but it’s getting late now so I think I am going to head home now. It’s good to see you. Is this your brother Devin? He’s gotten so tall.” We talk for a few minutes, but I know if I don’t make up an excuse to leave, then we will be here all night.

I tell her that my father and brother are waiting on me which is not a complete lie. They are standing a few feet away from us, discussing the triangle debate again.

“Well, that's all right. Have a good night, and I'll see you next week, Ms. Betty.”

“Goodnight Samantha,” she says back with a wave.

A security guard seems to hear this and comes up to us.

“Are you sure you are leaving so soon? The surprise is going to start shortly,” the guard asks, sounding disappointed but holding a friendly smile.

“I wish I could stay, but I would probably fall asleep and miss the whole thing, but thank you anyway,” Ms. Betty says, and both the security guard and I understand.

“Well, then, in that case, how about I walk you out?” the guard offers, and Ms. Betty accepts. We say goodbye again, and I watch as the two walk towards the exit.

“Come on Sam, we have time for one more game before the show,” Devin says in a rush.

We move to the last game, where the woman instructs that you and an opponent hold on to a bar for as long as you can without touching the ground or letting go. The first one to let go loses, and the winner gets to pick a stuffed animal. My Dad sits this one out while Devin and I go up against each other.

We insert our cards and grab the bar. Since I’m barely five feet three inches, I have to use a little stepping stool to grab the bar. I know Devin is going to win since he is a lot stronger than me, but I have to try anyway.

I hold onto the bar, and someone takes the stool away as the woman starts the clock. I am facing Devin and he looks comfortable hanging onto the bar with his feet slightly lifted up so he doesn’t touch the ground on accident. At first, it’s not so bad until the woman states that we have been holding on for about thirty-five seconds. That’s when I start to feel it.

My arms begin to feel uncomfortable, and they get a burning sensation. I try to hold on for a few more seconds, but my hands get sweaty, and I lose my grip and drop.

“Great job guys! The winner goes to this young gentleman over here.”

I look at the clock, and it is stopped at forty-seven seconds. I think the clock is wrong because it felt a lot longer than that.

Devin gets to pick a stuffed animal, and he chooses the green bunny. “I’ll give it to Mud,” he says, and I kind of guessed he would do that since neither of us has played with stuffed animals since we were kids.

We have just been giving away all of the other toys we won tonight to other little kids we see walking around, but there are none in the area right now. Everyone must be at the big show tent for the surprise.

My Dad claps his hands together and looks at us, “So, is it time to go to the surprise?”

We both nod in agreement and walk towards the big, illuminated tent.

“I wonder whose guess is going to win,” I say.

Chapter 5

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