Lights, games, laughter — one perfect evening before everything changes.
This is Part 2 of the novel Death on Fridays. Start with The Old Man in the Chair.
Once upon a time, there lived a family in the city of Gennerva, in the State of Phoenixia.
On a Friday evening, Johnathan took his wife Linda and their children to a local festival in the city. Johnathan carried his youngest son AJ on his shoulders, Linda held Ryan, and Martina held little Jenny’s hand as they walked into dazzling lights.
The vibe was intense. Stores and stalls lined every side. There were toy shops with cars, blocks, plushies, Barbie sets, LEGO sets, Star Wars toys, and more. A large Japanese sushi restaurant stood in the center, and nearby food counters served hot dogs, burgers, fries, pastry, Tim Tams, and samosa chaat.
At the center stood a giant wheel, surrounded by games: Balloon Dart, Ring Toss, Trampoline, Duck Pond, and Bouncy Castle.
“Dad, trampoline, trampoline!” the kids shouted. “Okay! Fine!”
“Hey, Mart, take both Jenny and Ryan,” John said, handing her some cash. “And one more thing: be careful. Stay together and keep an eye on both of them.” “Yes, Dad!”
Martina took Jenny and Ryan to the trampoline while John and Linda went to Balloon Dart.
Balloon Dart
John, full of pride, lifted the gun and aimed at the middle blue balloon.
“Here goes the greatest cowboy you’ve ever seen, lady!”
Linda’s eyes widened as she locked onto his aim.
Shoot. He missed.
“Nice shot, Mr. Cowboy,” she giggled.
“This time I am gonna make it, watch!” “Oh, we’ll see that too.”
Again, a miss. It almost hit the booth attendant. “A bit careful, sir.”
Linda burst into laughter. AJ giggled too, reaching for the gun.
“AJ, stop, you’ll fall down.”
John put the gun down and held him. AJ still reached forward.
The booth attendant said, “We have a smaller gun for kids, sir. You have one more shot left. Maybe he can use it.”
“Is that fine? He is just a toddler.”
“No problem, sir.”
He handed AJ the smaller gun and reduced the balloon range to half.
AJ began licking the gun. “Waste of time. Let’s leave, honey,” John said, trying to take it back.
AJ tightened his tiny grip and pointed at the balloon.
“Come on, son, make your father proud. Prove you are the son of The Master Cowboy!”
As if trained, AJ closed one eye, aimed, and fired.
“Perfect! You see, lady? Mr. Cowboy has trained his son really well. He just learned that one-eye thing from his father.” “Yeah, of course I raised him to be a quick learner!”
Then they walked back toward the trampoline booth.
The three kids were bouncing and rolling when Ryan shouted, “Hey mom, see this!”
“A backflip!” Linda said. “Be careful, buddy!” John added.
A few minutes later, they stepped out.
“Dad, it was really great. I felt like I was floating in air. Can we get one of these, the trampoline?” Jenny asked.
“Please, father, please!” all three pleaded.
“No, no, no… kids, listen, we can’t have it,” Linda said. “Pleeeease…”
“Stop it!” John said in a loud voice. “It’s not a toy!”
All three kids startled; fear-of-father kicked in.
Linda calmed them gently. “Okay kids, we can come here every year, and there’s another exhibition next week. You can play there.” “And you know what? It doesn’t fit in our car!”
Ryan and Jenny brightened. “Yeah, that’s a nice point! It doesn’t fit! We’ll buy something smaller.”
“Yeah, sure,” Linda smiled.
John giggled at their logic. “Stop it, they might see,” Linda whispered.
The family headed to a food booth a few meters away. Martina held Jenny’s hand, Linda carried Ryan, and little AJ returned to his place on John’s shoulders. As they walked, the crowd grew thicker and louder.
“Hold tight, kids!” John shouted.
They paused at a toy stall. Ryan saw a dancing ball made of rubber-like plastic, with a tiny LED, water, and floating toy fish inside.
“Mommy, can we get this? It’s really cheap, I asked the shopkeeper.” “How much is this, sir?” Linda asked. “One dollar and five cents, madam.”
“Okay.”
Linda paid. Ryan got the ball. Martina and Jenny bought a Barbie doll and a kitchen set. John bought AJ a small black toy gun.
When the crowd settled a little, the family resumed walking toward the food booths.
The story continues in Part 3 — The Algoledes.
