Pirates

We’d tried carousel earlier, standing in line while the sky alternated sun and showers. The ride operator clapping his hands as loud as possible through every song, his face a comical smile.

When we made it to the horses, the ride had broken.

It had been down ever since.

Now, lunch had passed, and we had a few more rides under our belts.

Dani pointed the skull-and-bones sign as it passed over our heads.

“Look. Pirates. Spooky.”

Corbin froze, then turned around, and tried to leave.

“I want to ride the merry-go-round.”

I bent down.

“I know you wanted that one, but it’s still broken.”

Then Dani appeared with a box of caramel corn.

I thought we’d moved on.

~

That same operator was now at Pirates, still clapping his hands as loud as ever. We were standing in line for it, the walls transitioning from daylight to the perpetual underground of the ride. The air smelled wet and sounds began to echo—clapping mixed with crowds and voices:

Dead men tell no tales…

Corbin wanted none of it.

“It’s too dark.”

“It’s too fast.”

“It has a waterfall.”

“I don’t like … Pirates of the Caribbean!”

Dani handed him some popcorn.

“But you like pirates. You like spooky. You’ve ridden it before. Remember?”

She showed him a video of the ride to on her phone.

“The waterfall is small. See? You can sit between Daddy and me. We’ll hold you tight and protect you from the spray.”

“Please.”

When he accepted, his voice sounded more dutiful than willing.

Just a single word.

“Okay.”

Then he climbed on board.

During the ride, his body stayed tight.

At the waterfall, he buried his face against me.

When the cannons fired, he ducked and shouted.

“They’re trying to hurt us!”

I kept one arm around him until we reached daylight again.

~

This all passed the moment we stepped into the gift shop and Corbin spotted a pirate-skeleton Christmas ornament.

Instantly, he slipped back into his spooky self—grinning, plotting, and imagining stories none could see but him.