Chapter 122: Dog Allergy

Chapter 122: Dog Allergy "I feel like I’m five again," Genevieve whispered, her eyes shining as she craned her neck to take in the bright colors, the cheerful music, and the rows of rides that spun and twisted in the distance. She was so excited that she didn’t even know what she wanted to first. "Good. That’s exactly how you’re supposed to feel here," Stefan said, turning to smile at her. Genevieve turned to look at him, the corners of her lips lifting into a real, honest smile that made her eyes crinkle and her cheeks lift. "Let’s go!" she said, grabbing his hand before she could even think twice about it. Stefan raised a brow, amused by her sudden burst of excitement. "You sure you’re not dragging me into a death trap?" He could see that she was bubbling with excitement and was barely able to contain herself. "Come on," she laughed, tugging him forward. "I want to do everything. All the rides. All the games." They passed through the gates, and the air was full of laughter, screams, and the scent of popcorn and cotton candy. Kids ran around with balloons, parents pushed strollers, and somewhere, a loud bell rang as someone won a prize. "Okaaay," he drawled, "but where first?" Stefan asked. Genevieve spun around in a circle, taking it all in, before pointing at the spinning teacups. "That one!" Stefan groaned playfully. "You want to make me dizzy, don’t you?" "Yes," she said with a wicked grin, and they made their way to the line. Inside the teacup ride, she clutched the wheel in the middle and spun it with the enthusiasm of a child on sugar. Stefan leaned back, laughing as the cup twirled so fast that her hair whipped around her face. "Viv!" he shouted, holding onto the edge. "You’re trying to kill me!" She only laughed harder. "This is so fun!" When the ride ended, they both stumbled out, giggling, Stefan holding his head dramatically. "I need a minute. My brain is in my shoes," he said. Genevieve doubled over in laughter. "That was awesome! Let’s do another one!" Stefan watched her, amused. There was a lightness about her he hadn’t seen before. Her eyes sparkled, her shoulders were relaxed, and she looked genuinely happy. "What next?" he asked. She scanned the park, her face lighting up when she spotted the bumper cars. "That!" "Oh no," Stefan said, faking a groan. "You’re going to try to run me over, aren’t you?" "Nah! I like you too much to do that to you," she said, already running toward it. They got into separate cars, and the moment the ride started, Stefan chased after her, bumping into her car again and again making her laugh so hard her stomach hurt. She tried to escape, but Stefan was relentless. "That’s not a very gentlemanly thing to do. Stop chasing me!" She yelled over the noise. "Never!" Stefan called back, making her laugh even more. Once they were done playing around in that, they both got out laughing, and Genevieve leaned into Stefan as she tried to catch her breath. Stefan laughed as he watched her, knowing that unlike yesterday there was nothing sensual about what she was doing. "I don’t think I’ve ever had this much fun," Genevieve said, looking up at him, her eyes gleaming with laughter and tears. "I’m glad I brought you here then," Stefan said, absently reaching to brush a strand of hair behind her ears. Just as his hand connected with her face, he realized what he was doing but didn’t let his surprise show on his face as he dropped his hand, his heart beating fast. Why did he just do that? "Yes. Thank you," Genevieve said, not noticing the change in his disposition as he turned away from her. "Let’s try that," Stefan said, not wanting to dwell on it. "What?" Genevieve asked, following his gaze, and then she saw it was a booth where you could win stuffed animals by tossing rings. She followed Stefan as he led her to the booth, and then Stefan asked her to go first. Genevieve tried first. Her aim was terrible. The rings flew in every direction except toward the bottles. "I suck at this," she said, pouting. "Let me try," Stefan said, taking a ring. He tossed it, and missed completely. Genevieve snorted. "You’re worse than me!" "Excuse you, that was a warm-up," Stefan said with a grin, and she laughed. "Well, go on then," she urged him. Ten rings later, and Stefan still hadn’t hit anything. Genevieve was bent over, laughing so hard tears rolled down her cheeks. "Okay, okay," Stefan said, holding his hands up. "I was just trying to make you laugh. Now let’s get it done," he said, and she rolled her eyes. "Sure you weren’t," she teased, wiping at her eyes as she stepped back to let him take over completely. Stefan narrowed his eyes in mock focus, rolled his shoulders like a prizefighter about to enter the ring, and then picked up a fresh ring. "Watch and learn, Viv." "Uh-huh. I’m watching," she said, crossing her arms, a grin tugging at her lips. With exaggerated precision, Stefan lined up the shot and missed again. Genevieve burst into laughter, leaning against the booth’s wooden counter for support. "Okay, okay, okay, for real this time. The last time now. If I don’t get it we leave," Stefan muttered, grabbing another ring, refusing to look at her while she laughed at him. He drew a breath, narrowed his eyes, and tossed. The ring landed perfectly on the neck of the bottle, spinning once before settling. Genevieve gasped, and her hands flew to her mouth. "No way!" She screamed, laughing happily as she jumped on him, hugging him. Even though Stefan wanted to jump and dance happily himself, he tried to act cool as she stepped back to look at him. "Told you I was just warming up," he bragged, hands on his hips. "Oh, so you meant to miss the first eleven?" she said, eyes sparkling with amusement. "Exactly," he deadpanned. "That was my way of keeping my audience engaged." She rolled her eyes, but she was clearly impressed. When the attendant handed Stefan a prize ticket, he turned to her. "Go on," he said, nodding to the plush toys displayed in rows above their heads. "Pick your prize." Genevieve looked up, scanning the wall of bears, giraffes, puppies, and dragons, then pointed to a small puppy. "That one. I always wanted a puppy." "Why didn’t you get one?" Stefan asked as he handed the ticket over and handed her one of the puppies. "My Dad is allergic to dogs," she said as she clutched the puppy to her chest with a childlike grin. "I will cherish this forever." "You better. That thing cost me lots of failed shots and my dignity." "You didn’t have much of that to begin with," she teased. "Wow. That’s how you thank me?" "How about a kiss?" she asked with a wink, and before Stefan could respond she leaned forward and planted a kiss on his cheeks. Stefan felt a rush of flutters in his chest and he stared at her, wondering why he was reacting that way to her. Genevieve laughed when she saw that her lipstick had left a stain on his cheeks. "Oops! Now I’ve marked you," she said playfully, not noticing the intensity of his gaze on her as she dug into her purse for her hankie to wipe off the stain. As she raised her hand to his face, Stefan grabbed her wrist, "I’ll wipe it off myself," he said, and her smile faltered when she saw he wasn’t smiling. Worried that he might have misunderstood and was thinking she did that to flirt or seduce him, her smile vanished. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you. I wasn’t hitting on you or trying to cross any boundarie..." "I know," he said, cutting her off. That was exactly what bothered him. Why he was feeling that way over such a casual action. "Let’s go," he said, leading her on. They walked on, weaving through the crowd as the sun began to slide lower in the sky, casting the whole park in warm glow. The silence between them was loud and awkward for Genevieve who kept thinking she had done something wrong. Stefan noticed how she kept chewing her lower lip and stealing glances at him and after a while he sighed, "You didn’t do anything wrong." "Are you sure?" She asked, and he nodded. "Yeah." "Then why did your mood change?" She asked with concern. Not wanting to answer the question, Stefan jerked his head towards a caramel apple stand nearby, "Do you want one?" "Sure," Genevieve said, and Stefan pulled out his wallet as they approached it. "Let’s get some then," he said, and Genevieve picked one and bit into it. "Hmm. This is nice. Here," she said, holding it out for him to take a bite. Stefan took a bite without thinking twice, and as he chewed on it, he thought about the biblical Adam eating the forbidden fruit, and he inwardly shook his head at himself. As Genevieve picked up two more apples, Stefan felt his phone buzz in his pocket and he took it out to check his message. It was from Jamal. [I’ve been communicating with Tom and Uncle Harry all day. They like the idea of Genevieve visiting Ludus. They want you to see if you can convince her to visit Ludus. So see what you can do. I’ll give you the details later.] After reading the text, Stefan pocketed his phone again. He didn’t need her visiting so soon until she made a good impression on Abigail and earned forgiveness. He knew that was the only way they would go easy on her, Stefan thought as he gazed at Genevieve who was laughing like a little girl as she walked to the apple seller. He wanted them to go easy on her.