Third person pov:
Ryder paid for the game, and as he waited for the man to get the bow and arrow, he couldn't help himself from looking at Bella. Her beauty captivated him.
She was beautiful in uniform, and even more stunning in casual attire. The fact her crop top revealed much of her belly made him feel a pang of jealousy because he didn't want anyone looking at it but him. Her luscious hair, which sat above her breasts, made it more obvious. He imagined her well-rounded bosoms in his hands and how soft they would be.
"Here is your purchase, sir," the man behind the counter said, but Ryder was lost in thoughts, staring at Bella who wasn't aware because she, too, tried to hold down her emotions.
She turned around the moment she heard the man call out to Ryder again, and she felt a weird emotion in her chest, seeing the way he was staring at her.
"Ryder," she called out, reaching for his hand.
The warmth he felt called back his attention, and he tried to mask the rising feeling in his cheeks with a curved brow, but his feelings made him weak in the knees.
He turned away at once, silently cursing himself for what had happened, then he grabbed the bow and arrow. He tried to maintain a straight face, but the thoughts of what had happened clouded his mind, causing him to let go of the arrow without looking at the target.
"Fuck!" he groaned when he realized what he had done, but to his greatest surprise, the target was struck.
He glanced at Bella to see the corners of her lips raised, which made him feel warm in his heart. Something he hadn't felt in a while. He played and won the remaining rounds, and she chose a stuffed animal of "Stitch" from Lilo and Stitch.
Bella felt happy, not because she couldn't have easily won by herself, but because he did something thoughtful for her.
"Hey, do you want to get some cotton candy or something?" she asked, and his mouth fell open as he struggled to find the right words.
She was asking him out to spend time with her for the night, and he wanted to go, but his phone beeped at once, showing a call from Kai. This served as a reminder that his time with her was up.
"Sure," he replied, forcing a smile on his face, then they walked away from the game stalls, following the delicious aroma of cotton candy.
On their way, Ryder grabbed his phone and quickly punched in a message for Kai.
Shortly they got to the stall, then they got in line like every other person. As they waited their turn, Kai approached them, and Bella turned around as soon as she smelled him. She swallowed hard, knowing it was double trouble for her because of her situation.
"Hey guys, what are you doing here? Finn asked that I get some candies for us," Kai said.
This was obviously a lie, but Bella had no clue.
Kai got in line, trying to wave off the odd feeling in his chest. From the way Bella acted, she had always preferred him, so he was scared to make the wrong move.
The line shortened in no time, and soon it was their turn.
"I have to pee," Ryder said, walking away without looking at Bella, who stared at his figure with her brows raised, wondering what was wrong with him.
His heart sank as he walked away, and he wondered if his life would have been better if he had only one mate. The triplets used to dream of this when they were little, and they talked of how they would share her, but that wasn't working out well for them.
"When he needs to pee, he really has to go," Kai said, and she shrugged, placing her hand on the wooden counter in front of her.
They both made their order, which included the one for Finn.
"Here you go," the lady behind the counter said, handing three sticks of cotton candy to them, and Bella reached for her pockets to pay, but Kai beat her to it, placing his cash on the counter before she could take hers out.
"Thank you," she replied, turning around quickly to hide her cheeks, which were flaring up.
"No sweat," Kai replied, then they walked away from the stall, strolling around the carnival grounds while Bella enjoyed the large ball of candy, which tasted like a mixture of air and caramel.
"This sucks," Kai said, breaking the daunting silence.
"Yeah, but I need something sugary in my system for the night. I hate the meals in school because they might smell and look nice, but they are just..." she paused, searching for the words to use that wouldn't sound demeaning to a pack she wasn't from.
When she couldn't, she sighed.
"Bland?" Kai asked, giving off a light chuckle. "It's okay to express yourself. We barely like the food too, and they make it that way because of people with needs," he said, and she glanced at him, raising a corner of her cheek.
She liked Kai more than the rest, and walking with him with so many people around made her forget her predicament. This made her wish the night could last longer.
Kai, on the other hand, knew his time was almost up, so he thought of a way to get himself out of the way so that Finn could have his time with her.
He texted Finn.
"Bella," he called out, grabbing her hands.
Her hands in his felt tiny, soft, and tender, getting him carried away, that he caressed it for a split second before realizing what he had done.
"I.. I have to go. I had something.. I.."
"It's fine," she said, trying to break out from the awkward situation too, even though she didn't want him to let go of her hand. "How about Finn and his cotton candy?" she asked as she watched the candy in his hand decreasing with every second.
"I texted him a while ago and told him we were close to the Ferris wheel, so hopefully he.."
"Kai," Finn called out before Kai could finish his statement.
Finn was the neutral one to Bella, who didn't seem interested in anything, and it was good to be around him for a while because she rarely felt anything for him.
Kai handed the cotton candy to Finn, and then he disappeared before Bella could say a thing. Poor Bella, who had been trying to hold down her mind all evening, didn't sense a pattern.
"So.." she began, twirling her hair with a finger.
Finn tried to act unbothered as always, but this one act of hers was sexy, coupled with the way she dressed. He quickly scanned through her body, then tried to delete the image from his head.
He walked towards the Ferris wheel, and Bella followed him, wondering what to say to kill the awkwardness, but she found herself at a loss for words.
"This sucks," Finn said, tossing the candy away, and Bella chuckled.
This struck a few nerves in his body, which made him realize she had a hold on him, and he couldn't get away from the mate bond.
"I know, right?" she chirped in, and he sighed, shaking his head.
"The carnival hasn't been that great since we stopped being kids, and I cannot tell if we just grew up, or everything has always been this terrible."
He put his hands in his pockets, lightly kicking a tiny stone in front of him as they walked.
"The spirits carnival at Rune Pack is so much better, and I wish you could see it," she said, causing a warm smile to spread across his face, which he tried to hide.
"Hopefully."
After this, there was a moment of silence.
"We should get on the Ferris wheel. It's probably the only fun thing left to do," he said, and she nodded.
They walked towards the wheel and then to the stall where the tickets were sold. Luckily for them, they got there in time as the wheel came to a halt.
"Two tickets, please," Finn said to the man, and the tall man with a finely curved mustache reached underneath the counter for tickets while Finn placed some cash on the wooden counter.
"Here you go," he said to them, and Finn grabbed the tickets.
Then he grabbed Bella's hand and walked her towards the entrance. They got into one seat, and as Bella sat down, Finn pulled the belt across her chest. Once she was strapped in, he got in and strapped himself too, then he leaned back, waiting for the machine to move.
The ride began to move at once, and Bella shut her eyes as the night breeze slammed their faces. The wheel rolled slowly before it picked up a bit, and suddenly there were screams and laughter echoing far into the beautiful night
sky.
"This is great!" Bella yelled with her voice roaring through the back of her throat.
"Yeah! I haven't had this much fun in a while."
She chuckled when he said this, then she put her hands in the air, letting the excitement in her lungs rush out. Suddenly the wheel slowed down, and she opened her eyes, heaving a sigh as she didn't want the fun to end. But then she realized they were still at the top of Ferris, and it had come to an abrupt stop.