Orange Soda and Electric Skies

Marcus wiped his palms on his jeans for the third time. Dark streaks appeared on the denim, evidence that this was actually happening.

"You're not gonna ride the bull, are you?" Jordan asked, mouth full of cotton candy. "Because that would be hilarious."

The mechanical bull sat in the middle of the spring carnival like it was waiting specifically for Marcus. Or waiting for his dignity, whichever came first. Beside it, someone had set up one of those fake tiki bars with a plastic palm tree that kept tilting to the left.

Chloe was over by the ring toss, laughing with her friends. She was wearing this orange hoodie that Marcus had been thinking about for three straight days. He grabbed an orange soda from the cooler nearby, mostly to give his hands something to do.

"I'm gonna do it," he said, before his brain could stop him.

"What."

"The bull. I'm gonna ride it."

Jordan started choking on laughter. "Bro, you can't even-"

Marcus stepped up to the platform. The operator just sighed and pointed to the waiver. Marcus signed it with shaking hands.

He climbed onto the mechanical bull, which smelled like other people's regret and questionable sanitizing practices. He gripped the handle with both hands.

"Ready?" the operator called, already reaching for the controls.

"Wait-"

The bull bucked forward.

Marcus lasted exactly 2.3 seconds.

He flew off sideways, crashing directly into the plastic palm tree, which snapped in half and fell on top of him. The entire carnival went silent for a moment before erupting into laughter.

But then he looked up.

Chloe was standing there, holding his orange soda, trying not to laugh but failing. Her eyes met his and something clicked—like lightning, except not the embarrassing kind. The real kind, the kind that illuminates everything.

"You okay?" she asked, offering him a hand.

He took it, palm against palm, and let her pull him up. The broken palm tree lay beside them like a casualty of war.

"That was the bravest thing I've ever seen," she said, and she wasn't being sarcastic.

He opened his mouth, unsure what would come out. What came out was: "I was distracted by your hoodie."

She looked down at her orange hoodie. Then she looked back at him, smiling for real this time.

"Well," she said, handing him his soda. "Since you already embarrassed yourself for me, the least I can do is watch you try again."

Marcus's heart was racing, but not from the fall anymore. Sometimes the worst moments become the best ones. Sometimes you have to get thrown off a bull in front of everyone to find out something amazing can happen next.

"Deal," he said.

And when lightning cracked across the sky later, as they sat on the carnival edge sharing the soda and making each other laugh, Marcus realized some disasters are actually beginnings in disguise.