TheSalvationist - Chapter Fourteen

After their hands are stamped in translucent florescent colors, Knightly walks over to the information desk and picks up colorful park maps for everyone. They have their group picture taken out by the fountain by one of the park’s photographers. Harriet suggests that everyone make goofy “faces” as the picture is snapped. The final result is a true masterpiece of artwork.

“Let’s go to the “Dark Shadow” coaster!” recommends Robert “It’s the best! It’s in the Atlantic section of the park”. The coaster has been greatly promoted through commercials throughout the summer which everyone is looking forward to riding.

The line isn’t too long since they are some of the first guests to arrive at the park. After about twenty minutes of chatting in line, they reach the cue for the various seats of the train. April grabs Elton and pulls him to the line for the front seat. Knightly politely allows Emma into the turnstile before him and they end up in the same line for a seat.

Robert asks Harriet “Do you want to ride in the back? It’s great because it feels like the seat is lifting off the tracks!” Harriet follows him to the end of the cue. It leaves Grant and Jane standing together but not really speaking. Jane feels a bit uncomfortable. Grant can’t decide if he wants to be friendly or not. He is a little confused by April’s reaction to Jane and doesn’t know if there is some history already between Jane and Elton. He recalls Elton gushing over Jane yesterday in the reception line.

The train pulls up and everyone shimmies into their chosen seating section. As the train starts to climb the hill, Robert gathers his courage to speak to Harriet. He has been waiting for the right moment. The exhilaration from the apprehension of the ride gives him the emotional boost he needs to speak. “Harriet there is something I want to say to you.”

Harriet looks at him wide eyed scared out of her wits. She hasn’t ever been on a coaster before and the screaming from previous riders that she heard while waiting in line isn’t providing much comfort. She is staring at Robert but not truly comprehending what he is saying.

“Harriet I really like you. I think you are very special. There is no one I’ve met that is like you” intently continues Robert.

As the clicks slowly begin – click, click, click – her heart begins to race. Her white knuckles tightly grip the bar in front of her.

“I need to tell you. I care about you. I deeply care about you” looking down for a moment trying to find the right words to express what he wants to say.

Harriet glances to the side at the highest elevation she has been without overhead protection. All color drains from her face as she realizes there is no turning back now. The clicks start to increase – click, click, click. She feels her breathing move from intense speed to panic.

“I wanted to tell you sooner but I just didn’t know how. I think I love you” sincerely shares Robert.

Harriet’s eyes are humungous as she feels she is approaching one of her last days. She begins to hold her breath in hopes that it will all soon be over. She is completely unaware of Robert’s rambling beside her.

“Do you think that you could love me too?” gently asks Robert as the coaster reaches its pinnacle.

As the coaster leans and plummets to the depths below all Harriet can do is scream with every fiber of her being “AAAAWWWWAAAWWAAWW!!”

Robert takes this to be a yes. He yells “Yahoo!” raising his arms in excitement to the emotion of the moment as the coaster continues to whip and beat against its rails.

When the ride finishes, Knightly helps Emma out of the train. April gets out first and pulls up Elton next to her. Grant climbs out and Jane follows behind him. Harriet wobbles out feeling as if life has just passed in front of her eyes. Robert yells “Let’s do that again!”

“I’m ready for the tea cups” states April dragging Elton by his shirt sleeve behind her in a curiously animated walk. Emma gives Grant a glance and starts pulling him as well and mocks April’s confident walk. Grant starts laughing as Emma lets go to the enjoyment of the other friends of the group.

They reach the tea cups which are mostly surrounded by younger children. Grant looks at the ride and already feels like he is turning green. “I think that I’m going to sit out on this one and wait for you guys.”

Emma walks in first as Elton maneuvers away from April and climbs into the first one with Harriet closely behind them. There is only room for three people per car. Robert follows in the next one with April and Jane. Unfortunately Knightly ends up riding with two other children in a third car. He makes the best of it though and begins to ask them where they are from and what are their favorite rides. The kids tell stores of their adventures to him the entire time of the ride.

As the tea cups twirl, the motion of the car moves Harriet towards Elton who moves toward Emma. All three sides are crushed against each other from the velocity of the cups. Emma tries to pull away from Elton but cannot. Harriet relaxes and easily moves next to Elton. Elton tries to cling on to the cylinder spiral in the middle of the contraption in an attempt to seize more control. He reaches out and accidently places his hand on top of Harriet’s hand. Emma notices and gives Harriet a big sign of approval with her eyes. Harriet squeals at this newest action of affection.

Elton raises his head and sees Emma’s sign to Harriet. He believes this moment of Emma’s revelation is for him because he is sitting so close to her for the first time. He is thrilled that Emma is acknowledging to her friend that she might be interested in him too.

As the ride comes to an end, everyone walks in a zig zag shape to the exit gate. “How was it?” asks Grant holding a large stuffed puppy dog.

“Great! Wow! What did you win?” asks Harriet.

Seeing Jane a little worse for wear being gently guided by Knightly, he looks at Emma “I won this for you, Emma” handing her the puppy.

Emma is shocked by Grant’s gift but politely replies “Thanks! I’ve never been given a puppy before!”

As they continue to try out different rides, Elton suggests “I think that it is definitely time for a snack. Is anyone else interested?”

The group heads over to one of the kiosks that sell cotton candy, waffle cones, popcorn, and snow cones. Both Knightly and Emma choose Blue Hawaiian snow cones. As they converse together neither of them nor anyone else mentions what is happening. They finish their cones and throw away the paper. Harriet and Grant share a slight giggle that neither Knightly nor Emma notice.

After a couple more rides the group reaches the entrance for the Tunnel of Dreams, Emma and Knightly head into together. The attendant eagerly smiles and looks at both of them “You guys are so cute with your blue mustaches and matching outfits! Did you plan that?” Robert and Harriet laugh loudly. They have been walking for nearly an hour and none of their friends have said a thing about it. Emma looks at Knightly and the both laugh. She saw his dyed blue mustache but decided to let him be the fool and not tell him about it. She realizes he did the same thing to her and is tickled too.

Jane is in front but in a quick move, Grant says he dropped something and leaves the line for a moment. Unexpectedly, Knightly ends up sitting next to Jane in the private individual car. Emma’s unintentional partner is Elton standing behind her in line. Grant comes back and ends up with April because Robert politely lets him go in front of him so he can stay behind with Harriet.

Each car enters the dark tunnel one by one to floating ethereal music. As the cars move between images of kaleidoscope patterns and colorful strobes, Robert considers it is time to make his move.

The cars move to the next stage of the voyage into the pitch black passageway. He positions himself for a kiss. At the same moment Harriet realizes that her lipstick has fallen out of her purse. She bends down in the darkness and gropes around to find it. Robert doesn’t wait for his eyes to focus from the brightness of the previous tunnel to the darkness before closing in. He aims for the thin vacant air. Harriet captures her lipstick and in excitement moves quickly back up to share with Robert what she has found. In one painful collision his nose and the back of her head catastrophically collide. Robert grabs his nose with the palm of his hands. It hurts so badly! Harriet cradles the back of her head as tears form in her eyes. “Oww . . .” she whines in the middle of stifling her giggles.

In the cart behind them, Elton slouches over slightly trying to move closer next to Emma. She feels him touch her leg and scoots a little further away. He does the same thing again and she finds herself next to the edge of the car.

In the car behind them, April tries to peer out the side of the car at every opportunity when the cars twist and turn on their trail hoping to catch a glance at what is happening in the car in front of them not trusting Emma to be alone with ‘her’ Elton. Grant ignores April as he thinks about Jane and hoping that she is miserable without him but not too pleased that she ended up with Knightly. He was hoping that her partner would have been April instead of him.

Jane and Knightly enjoy the ride and make comments about the various shapes of the lights. They have a friendly discussion about the day at the park.

As the ride comes to the end, Robert still is holding his nose hoping that it isn’t broke. Harriet wonders if someone will have some aspirin to soothe her headache.

“I think that I’m ready for a water ride!” exclaims Emma hot from the day of walking and the unusually warm Indian summer day in autumn. They hike to the “Rising Rapids” water tube ride.

April has let everyone know “I don’t want to get wet. I don’t like it when my clothes are wet.”

Grant practically suggests “Why don’t you not go and wait for us at the snack shop. We’ll meet you when it is over.”

April replies “I don’t want to be a party-pooper and disappoint anyone” sighing loudly “If you all insist, then all go.” No one says anything not particularly caring one way or another if she rides with them but tired of the whining all day. “I can see how much I’m appreciated!” giving a pouty look.

Elton looks at her not wanting her to feel excluded “We want you to go, but not if you don’t want to.”

“Thanks Elton!” As April gives Elton a visually impulsive but pre-planned hug “You are such a wonderful sweetheart of a guy. You always seem to understand. You always care about me and know exactly what I want. There are not many men whom I consider to be as entirely thoughtful and brilliant as you are” April beams at him hoping that her flattery will move him to responding romantically towards her. Her flattery all day of Elton has made the others feel like gagging at various moments within their conversations with her.

It is a very long line but they eventually make it to the top and find eight seats within one inner tube.

Locked in seat belts, they cascade down the first slide in their group inner tube underneath a water fall with shocking springs of cool water. April gets entirely soaked. The others try to hold back their grins and pleasure at this unexpected ritual. The tube quickly turns and moves under a triple fall soaking Harriet and Robert to the bone. It then in counter-clockwise motion trips a spring and Knightly and Emma pounded by bursts of water. Falling down the rapids the back end of the tube crash lands completely saturating Elton. As they flow down the channel, Grant sees that they are soon approaching another water fall, he instinctively moves across Jane so that he endures most of the tempest. Jane recovers fairly free from damage and surprised by Grant’s actions which he coolly pretends didn’t happen as she thanks him.

After existing the water ride and drying off somewhat, Grant suggests that they try the Ferris wheel at the center of the park. Emma is not too sure about this since she is a little afraid of heights and the Ferris wheel moves SO slowly and stops at intermittent points.

The line is slow and long. April is standing very close to Elton obsessively guarding her spot. Jane is tired from the heat and the emotions of the day. Elton offers her a sip from his water bottle. April gives her daggers and Jane declines. Knightly notices what is happening and tells them he will be right back. He returns with four waters. He has one for Jane, Harriet, Emma, and himself.

“Oh, I see you got all the women a bottle of water. What about me?” whimpers April “I’m thirsty too”.

“I thought you were already sharing with Elton. I’m sorry. I’ll get you one later after the ride” frankly states Knightly not pleased with April’s behavior towards Jane.

“Yes, Elton always makes sure that I am taken care of” smugly states April patting Elton on the blade of his shoulder.

Elton is ignorant of what is happening. He is lost in his own thoughts. He momentarily feels April patting him but then ignores her. He is contemplating ways in which he will be able to have Emma ride with him.

As sunset descends the patriotic cages of red, white and blue outlined in white lights hold four people at a time. Jane, Knightly, Emma, and Grant enter the first cage. Jane moves to the corner and Grant moves into the seat opposite facing her. The attendant tells them that the weight must be distributed evenly, so Knightly takes a seat next to Jane with Emma opposite from him next to Grant.

The second cage is Harriet, Robert, Elton, and April. Tired of April’s nonsense that day and disappointed that he was not able to connive a way to sit with Emma he hustles into the seat next to Harriet. Robert and April both a little ticked end up next to each other.

The ride continues for a few rounds until it stops at the top with the first cage. Emma can feel every ounce of comfort slowly leave her body. She feels pale and begins to sweat as she refuses too look outside the cage at the beautiful panoramic view of the city. Intuitively seeing Emma’s panic, Grant lays his hand on top of hers to provide some reassurance that it is going to be all right. Emma feeling way beyond her comfort zone subconsciously tightly clings to his hand and wonders to herself why she allowed anyone to talk her into going on the Ferris wheel when she is petrified of heights.

As the cage begins to move Grant make some jokes to keep Emma from thinking about the height of the attraction. Emma finds his tales extremely funny. She can’t control her laughter and is captivated by his wit and charm.

Knightly senses the humor of the comical pundit but is annoyed that Emma is persuaded by his charisma. He turns to Jane and begins to tell her the history of some of the architecture in the landscape of the horizon. As Jane listens, she is sincerely impressed with his knowledge and genuine kindness towards her.

In the next car a few cages down the oval edifice, Robert scowls looking over at Elton and holding his bruised nose. Harriet suggests they play “eye-spy” with the buildings that they can identify in the city. Elton enthusiastically joins in. April attempts to identify some but is rather clueless since she has never visited the city before and is not that interested in the game. Her focus is getting Elton’s attention away from Harriet.

“Elton, if you could go anywhere where would you go?” invites April.

“That’s a good question. I think that I would like to go to Paris to see the Mona Lisa at the Louvre” thoughtfully provides Elton in response to the question.

“I just love Paris! I want to go there for my honeymoon. Perhaps one day we can go there together since we both love Paris so much!” enthusiastically suggests April.

Jumping into the conversation, “If I could go anywhere, I think that I would like to go to Australia and see a camel in the Outback” offers Harriet.

Robert looks intrigued but puzzled. “Harriet I think you either intended to say a kangaroo in the outback or a camel in the Amazon, but I am not quite sure.”

Elton looks at both of them like they are a bunch of morons, “I think Robert you mean a macaw in the Amazon or a camel in the Arabian Desert.”

April smirks and laughs at their unintentional mistakes. “Perhaps you got it all wrong what Harriet really meant to say is that she wants to see a Koala in the Outback!”

Blushing Harriet laughs at her twist of words and really can’t remember exactly what she meant to say anymore either.

After several more rides, it is nearly time for the park to close. The day has been exhausting but fun for most. The group patiently walks towards Main Street for the final parade of the day. Knightly purchases the group photo from one of the booths and plans to make copies with one for his desk at the office.

April tells everyone good-bye and promises to see them soon on her next day off when she intends to visit Crestwood again. But as Elton gets ready to hop on the train she grabs his hand and leaves a card that she has been waiting all day to give him. April intensely hugs Elton goodbye as if he is being deployed and she will not see him for a very long time. He pats her tepidly on the back in polite response.

The group crushes into the mini-van for the ride home smelling of popcorn, funnel cakes and cotton candy. All but Knightly who offered to drive home have falling asleep and are rhythmically snoring, purring or cooing each in turn.