The Summer of Cotton Candy

  Without warning, Pete plunged through the turnstile, causing the rest of them to stagger and nearly fall before passing through as well. The carousel was in motion, spinning around as it played a tinny rendition of “Yankee Doodle Dandy.”

  “Does anyone know how to turn it off?” she heard Roger ask.

  Candace was too busy staring at Pete to answer. “What are you doing?” she asked.

  Pete was standing right next to the carousel, leaning slightly forward with hands loose at his side. Then, without warning, he sprang up onto the revolving platform. The rope pulled tight through the ring on Candace’s belt, and Roger staggered into her. Pete’s hand snatched at something on one of the horse’s flanks, and then he jumped back off. He held out his hand and in it was a carefully folded bit of paper.

  “Wow! Nice going,” Roger said admiringly.

  Pete only shrugged as he opened the paper.

  “Bask in the applause as you make it to the end zone,” he read.

  “The End Zone is the exit. That’s not very specific,” Sue noted.

  “The applause must be the clue,” Roger said.

  Candace felt like the answer was right in front of her, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.

  Pete just shook his head. “I can’t think of anything having to do with applause close to the exit.”

  “Applause, clapping, cheering. They do some of that at the games in the Game Zone,” Sue said.

  “Yes, but that’s not close enough to the exit,” Pete said.

  “Can I see it?” Candace asked. Pete handed her the paper.

  “Bask in the applause as you make it to the end zone,” Candace re-read.

  “End zone is a football reference. Maybe it doesn’t mean the exit, but something to do with football,” Roger suggested.

  And suddenly she knew exactly what it meant. “It’s the Spiral!” Candace shrieked, louder than she had meant to. “Come on!” She turned and everyone ran after her.

  “They yell ‘touchdown’ and the crowd cheers at the end of the ride,” she panted.

  “All right, way to go, Candy!” Pete said.

  When they reached the ride, Pete and Roger pulled ahead and made for the entrance. The rope tightened and Candace reached out and grabbed it, yanking to get their attention. “It happens at the end of the ride!” she shouted. “We need to go through the exit.”

  The guys turned, and racing slightly ahead of her and Sue, they ran up the sloping ramp. At the top they came out on the platform and stopped so abruptly that Sue and Candace ran into them.

  “Where?” Roger gasped.

  Candace looked around wildly. The ride was shut down for the evening, and the cars were neatly lined up in the station.

  “The cars are the footballs, so let’s check them,” Pete suggested. They started with the rear car and worked their way forward, looking for something. Suddenly Roger gave a shout.

  “What is it?” Candace asked.

  “Never mind,” he said after a minute, pointing to an envelope taped to the nose of one of the cars. “It says team 3E on it. We’re team 5B.”

  “This has got to be the right place, though, let’s keep going,” Sue urged.

  Taped to the nose of the first car they finally found an envelope with 5B emblazoned on it. Sue grabbed it and ripped it open.

  “It says, ‘Love is in the air and this cupid has felt it too.”

  “That’s got to be at Aphrodite’s,” Roger said.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me!” Sue said with a groan. “That’s all the way on the other side of the park, and we were just over there.”

  “It’s a test of endurance just as much as anything else,” Pete said, already on the move and causing the rope that connected them to pull tight. Candace took a deep breath. In a moment they were all running again, this time down the exit ramp and back toward the History Zone.

  It was harder getting back to the History Zone. More teams seemed to be leaving or entering it than before. Candace watched as three teams tried to thread the needle only to nearly throttle two people and land everyone in a heap on the ground that Candace and her team had to run around.

  When they made it inside Aphrodite’s, they discovered at least ten other teams there as well. “You’ve got to be kidding!” Sue gasped.

  Every cherub in the room had an envelope taped to it.

  “There must be one for every team,” Roger said.

  “Start at that end,” Pete said, pointing to the one where the fewest people were clustered. It was a lucky choice; a quarter of the way down the wall they found their envelope.

  “To play the impossible game and to win a dog of incredible size,” Pete read. “It sounds like a parody of ‘The Impossible Dream’ from Man of La Mancha.”

  “But it’s referencing my first Zone miracle,” Candace said. “Let’s go!”

  They followed her, not bothering to ask where they were headed. She led them straight to the Game Zone and to the game where she had won Happy. “It’s got to be somewhere around here,” she said.

  They searched for a full minute before Roger gave a shout. Candace saw that he was pointing at the glass bottles. Barely visible, several envelopes were peeking out of the tops of bottles. To get close enough, they all had to vault the wall. Candace cringed as Roger went over, having a vision of him crashing into the entire display of glass bottles, but he landed just fine.

  “It’s this one here,” Sue said, yanking an envelope free. “Take your trophy and head to the finish line. You’ll find it locked up in 223. Just don’t forget the Swingers’ leader.”

  “Locked up sounds like a locker to me,” Roger said.

  “With the number, definitely,” Pete said.

  “Where are the player lockers, at the front of the park?” Candace asked.

  “Actually, there are several scattered all over, usually close to the restrooms,” Sue said.

  “So, where is Locker 223?” Candace asked.

  “Problems, Cotton Candy?”

  She turned around to see Josh. “Nope. We’ve got everything under control,” she assured him. She and her team hopped back over the wall.

  “Glad to hear it,” he said. “See you in the Splash Zone later.” He winked at her, and then his team climbed in to search for their own envelope among the bottles.

  Something about that wink gave her a hunch. “I think I know where to find our locker,” she said and began to run.

  “Where are we going?” Pete asked.

  “The Splash Zone.”

  It made sense. There were loads of lockers in the Splash Zone so people could lock up their cameras and other valuables before going on the water rides. She was sure Josh had been giving her a hint.

  They found the lockers in the Splash Zone and, moments later, number 223.

  “How do we get it open?” Roger asked.

  “The guest lockers are opened using one of these central computers,” Sue said, pulling them over to the one nearby. “You put in your password, and it opens your locker.”

  “How do we know what the password is?” Roger asked.

  “It’s got to be in the rest of the clue,” Pete said.

  “Just don’t forget the Swingers’ leader,” Sue re-read.

  “Well, the Swamp Swingers sing with Freddie McFly,” Candace said.

  “The codes are five letters. It’s got to be McFly,” Sue said. She punched it in, and there was a buzz as their locker opened.

  Inside was a miniature trophy. Candace grabbed it out. “To the finish line!” she shouted.

  Back outside they had to weave around several teams that were growing increasingly agitated. At last, the finish line was in sight! A large, white chalk line had been drawn at the entrance to the Home Stretch. Another team came running from the direction of the Game Zone, steps ahead of them.

  Roger gave a shout and leaped ahead, yanking the rope taut and literally propelling the rest of them forward faster. The other team began to run faster, but one o
f their members was limping, holding them back.

  Candace and the others passed them and then raced over the finish line, shouting in victory. She held their trophy aloft and ran straight to the small cluster of Game Masters with clipboards. She presented them their trophy.

  “Team 143 following Treasure Track 5B. We were in the last row, so I think we just won!”

  The Game Masters were all grinning broadly. They took down the time and their team information. “We won’t know who won until all the teams have come in and the questionnaires have all been scored. But congratulations on being the first team back!” Martha said. “Go have some ice cream and relax.”

  They turned in their rope and belts, and then Candace and her team staggered over to the table they had all been sitting at earlier. Roger went inside and returned holding four large glasses with ice-cream sundaes. He set them down gracefully on the table.

  Pete clapped his hand on Roger’s shoulder. “Good work tonight. To all of you,” he said, including Sue and Candace in his gaze. “You really pulled together, and I’m proud to be a member of this team. I just wanted you to know that.”

  “Does that mean you won’t try and run us down?” Roger asked hopefully.

  “I never said that. I’m still going to try and run you down. But with the speed and grace you showed tonight, boy, I have no doubt that you’ll be able to evade me for many years to come.”

  Roger turned slightly red but looked pleased.

  “It turned out we didn’t need my flashlight,” Sue said, pulling it out of her pocket with a laugh.

  “But we might have. Good thought bringing it,” Pete said. “You’re a smart girl.”

  “And you,” he said, turning to Candace. “I think you’ll find a home here.”

  Candace was surprised. “But I’m not looking for a home,” she said.

  He winked. “I think you are, and you just don’t know it yet.”

  “To us,” he said, raising his sundae in salute.

  They all clinked glasses and then began to eat. Candace turned to watch as Josh’s team staggered across the finish line. They turned in their trophy, rope, and belts and then limped toward Candace and her team.

  “You have got to be kidding me,” Josh said, eyes wide.

  Ten minutes later Becca’s team crossed the finish line through what appeared to be the sheer effort of her will. It was like watching a tug of war — all of them were trying to hold her back and yet she moved forward at an alarming rate, pulling the rest of them behind her. Gib had a look of terror on his face. A closer look at Becca’s face revealed the reason. There was pink sugar all over her lips and cheeks. Strands of cotton candy seemed to be stuck in her hair, and bits of wet cotton candy were crusted on her fingertips. Becca was a cotton candy monster come to life.

  It took almost two hours for the rest of the teams to trickle in. Ten minutes after that Martha was back on the bullhorn. “We’ve tallied up your times and added five minutes to it for every wrong answer on the questionnaire. A full list of results will be posted tomorrow morning in the Locker Room. However, we are ready to announce the three winning teams now.”

  A loud cheer went up.

  “In third place with a time of one hour ten minutes is team 7, aka We Want Pizza!”

  Josh’s team jumped up and down and Josh accepted a large trophy from the Game Master next to Martha.

  “In second place with a time of one hour 6 minutes is team 113, or the Please Don’t Feed Becca team!”

  Becca’s team, ragged as they looked, still gave a mighty cheer. Becca ran up to accept the award and did a little curtsey. Someone had obviously managed to get her to a bathroom and had gotten most of the cotton candy off of her.

  “And in first place, with an astounding record time of only 52 minutes, is a team with one seasoned pro, two rookies, and the klutziest guy in the whole park — team 143, We Love Cotton Candy!”

  Pete gave her a shove, and Candace ran up to receive a massive trophy. Everyone cheered and applauded and she bowed and then waved the rest of her team up. They stood together and bowed. Josh’s jaw was hanging open, and all his team-mates looked dismayed. Candace held the trophy high above her head, stuck her tongue out at Josh, and did a victory dance.

  22

  Candace woke up slowly, one thought on her mind. It was her last day of work. Somehow that thought seemed so strange. How could it be over already? In many ways it seemed like the shortest summer vacation ever. She glanced toward her dresser at the little trophy that glistened there, engraved with her name. The large one her team had won was engraved with all their names and already stood in The Hall of Fame in the Home Stretch. Next to her dresser sat Happy. The huge dog was actually taller than her dresser.

  She got dressed still feeling the strangeness of it all — the last time wearing the pink and white striped blouse, the last time wearing the white skirt. And as she put her fingernails through a pair of pantyhose and had to throw them away, she hoped it was her last time having to buy them in bulk.

  As she headed for the front door, her dad put down his morning paper. “Candace, come here a minute,” he said.

  “What is it, Dad?”

  “I just wanted to say congratulations. I think you came through your first job with flying colors. It’s a big step, and it’s a hard one. You had a lot of stuff thrown at you, but I’m proud of how you handled it all.”

  He stood up and gave her a big hug.

  “Thanks, Dad,” she said, grinning from ear to ear.

  “No problem, honey. Oh, and your mom said that tomorrow the two of you are going shopping for school clothes.”

  “Awesome!”

  “Have fun.”

  She left the house, and as she got into her car she thought about what a strange day it was so far. She drove to the park and found herself humming “I Want Candy” nearly the whole way. All summer she had looked forward to this day with excitement. But as she parked in the employee parking lot and showed her identification to gain entrance to the park, she felt a little sad instead. “I’ve got my emotions on backward,” she said. It was something her father sometimes said, and it made sense to her for the first time.

  She checked in and found that her cart was over in the Splash Zone. She hoped Josh was working; she had forgot to ask him if he would be. It would be nice to say good-bye to some of her friends. Of course, it was silly to think that way. Some of them, like Becca and Martha, worked at the park year round and she could see them anytime. Josh didn’t, though, and she didn’t want to miss saying good-bye to him.

  Walking toward the Splash Zone, she came to the railroad tracks. She looked and saw the train coming. She dashed across. It might have been her imagination, but she could have sworn that Pete slowed down slightly.

  “Strange day,” she said to herself.

  “Cotton Candy, wait up!”

  She turned and saw Roger running toward her. She cringed, waiting for him to trip over something. He didn’t, though, and he came to a standstill next to her, grinning from ear to ear.

  “What’s up?” she asked him.

  “I tried out for my school’s soccer team and I made it!”

  “Roger, that’s wonderful!” she said, giving him a quick hug. “Congratulations! I told you you could do anything you put your mind to.”

  “I know, thanks. It’s weird. Ever since the Scavenger Hunt, everything just seems, I don’t know, different somehow.”

  “That’s really great.”

  “Is today your last day?” he asked.

  She nodded.

  “Mine too. But I’m coming back to work at the Scare Zone. You should totally do it too. You’d have so much fun as a maze monster.”

  “Yeah, I could just see that,” she said, pretending to bare her teeth and claws.

  “Perfect! You have to do it.”

  “I’ll think about it,” she said with a laugh. “At the very least I’ll come see you.”

  “It’s a deal. Gotta run.”
/>
  He hurried off, and Candace watched him go, amazed at the transformation. Maybe it was true that sometimes all people needed was a little self-confidence or a little encouragement. She just prayed he didn’t get hit in the head with a ball and end up permanently damaged. “Strange day indeed.”

  When Candace got to her cart, Martha was there waiting for her.

  “Something came for you today,” Martha said.

  “What is it?” Candace asked.

  Martha opened her hand, and there was a brand-new name tag that said Candace. Candace stared at it for a second and then began to laugh. “You have got to be kidding me! On my last day? That is just so wrong!”

  Martha was laughing too and wiping at her eyes. “I thought you’d appreciate that. I mean, better late than never!”

  “Oh my,” Candace said trying to catch her breath. “That’s a good one.”

  “You want to wear it?” Martha suggested.

  “No, I don’t think so. I’ve been Cotton Candy all summer, and it just seems wrong somehow to try and change now. I will keep them both, though, to remind me.”

  “Of your time here?”

  “No, that sometimes it takes time to get what you want.”

  “Sometimes you don’t even know what you really want until you get what you thought you wanted,” Martha added.

  It was a solemn moment. Too solemn. They both started laughing again. Candace took the pin and slipped it into the pocket of her skirt. “Believe me, I’m going to treasure this.”

  “I’m going to miss you,” Martha said.

  “For a while there I wasn’t sure I was going to make it,” Candace confessed. “In fact, I’m sure I wouldn’t have without all your encouragement and good advice.”

  “For a while I wasn’t sure you were going to make it,” Martha said with a smile. “But I knew you could, and you stuck with it and really made a great go of it here. We could use more like you.”

  “Who knows, maybe I’ll be back next summer,” Candace said. It was strange to admit that out loud, but she had been thinking about it all week.

  “That would be just fine. We would certainly be glad to have you back, and I’ll make sure and say so on your end-of-play evaluation.”