Chapter Text
The last time Rey had been to a theme park this big, she was twelve. As an annual school trip, Rey would pester her foster father, Plutt, for the money in exchange for work on his car. She had her way with the mechanisms of the vehicle, having secretly worked on it for many years prior, so he would agree, pitiful complaining aside.
It was something about the clunk of the chains, the thudding mechanisms and the rattle and grind of gears that fascinated Rey. At twelve, the roar of the coaster as it thundered across the track was deafening. The adrenaline would kick in, pushing her and her school friends around the park like they had rechargeable batteries. Ride after ride, they queued for hours to experience only a minute of two of airtime. Bustling crowds would threaten to drag her away from her best friends, Rose and Finn, who held onto each other tightly. There were always the games to play, the ones with the plastic balls to get in the buckets that seemed too easy to be real until you attempted them, despite how much Rey would always whine that she definitely needed the colourful plush donut or the yellow Pokémon. Everywhere, the scent of fries, hotdogs and whatever other deep-fried food the vendors were serving followed them, enticing at every move.
The day would eventually draw to a close (too quickly for Rey’s liking) and after demolishing bucket upon bucket of pick and mix sweets and pizza and milk-chocolate covered strawberries, Rey and her friends would retreat to the entrance of the park to aboard the school bus where the three of them would pass out instantly.
Now, twelve years later, Rey had returned to the exact same park, friends in tow. Finn however, had developed a distaste for crowed places and passed the opportunity to instead spend the day with his boyfriend. Rey hadn’t companied much, she argued he always screamed too loud on the rides that weren’t even worth holding onto the handle bars. Instead, Armitage, Rose’s soon to be husband, had tagged along. Armie also had connections within the park, which gave them all access to hugely discounted tickets, much to Rey’s excitement. ‘More money to spend on chocolate strawberries, Rose! Armie is a Godsend sometimes I swear!’ she had exclaimed, to which Rose had given a stern eyeroll. Rose was convinced her best friends love of food was the reason she was in debt.
Despite the practically free tickets to the park, the three had elected to take the bus from their city to the park. Although Armie and Rose shared a car, the forty-five-minute journey would’ve taken up a lot of fuel that they definitely didn’t have. A forty-minute car journey, it was almost an hour on the bus. Rose and Armie, obviously, elected to sit together, Rose on top of her fiancée rather than on the scratchy seat next to him. Rey was in front of the couple, her bad taking up more space than she was. Headphones securely on, Rey began to block out the rambling teens and shrieking children around her and melted into a world of her own.
Just under an hour later, the bus shuddered up to the entrance of the park. It was early still, the park not yet having fully opened, yet the queues trailed for what it seemed like miles.
Lucky for them, their tickets were digital, meaning they were allowed in half an hour before the park ‘officially’ opened. Speeding through the turnstiles, Rose and Hux trailing behind her, Rey whizzed towards the main street of the park. Crowds were still large, gatherings of families and friends alike shuffling in each direction. Once the three of them were securely together, a tall blonde worker in red uniform approached them, camera in hand. She snapped their photo, handed them a small ticket with a barcode on, and wished them a good day with a cheery smile.
“Not only five minutes into the day and we’ve already been roped into a scam.” Armie whined, tucking the ticket into his coat pocket and pulled it tighter around his shoulders.
“Doesn’t your friend work here?” Rose quizzed, nudging her fiancée. “What’s his name? Ben?”
Armitage nodded. “He works on the photo booths. You know where you purchase the on-ride photos for three times the price they’re worth?”
“Do I know Ben? Maybe we can try and spot him to give us a tour round the par- “
Before Rose had finished, Rey barged in, map in hand.
“No need. We have everything we need! We’re here, you see,” she said. Far too excited over a simple map, she shoved her finger towards one of the brightly coloured locations.
“Where do you wanna go first?”
Rose shrugged. “I don’t know about you but I’m pretty hungry already. It was a long bus ride.”
“And you say I’m always hungry…” Rey stuck her nose up, scoffing, “We only just ate!”
“No, you ate! We didn’t eat anything; it was too early when we left the apartment.”
Rey blinked at her slowly.
“I told you to eat before! It’s so expensive here and I’ve only brought money for the pictures and game money. I have a packed lunch with me. Tell me you brought a packed lunch…” Rey exclaimed, eyeing Rose’s suspiciously small fanny pack. The look on Rose’s face gave Rey the answer she dreaded to hear.
“Oh Rose… really? Am I the only one prepared for today?”
“Rey chill! It’s a theme park, not a Bear Grill exploration. We can just buy food.”
“Fine. Don’t blame me when you run your bank account dry.” Rey spat back, rolling her eyes.
Rey hitched her bag up further up her back, and huffed. The weight on her back would be a constant annoyance all day long, but at least she wouldn’t be spending her life savings on a mediocre burger.
Armie coughed meekly, and nodded towards the electronic board only a few metres from the trio. It was lit up, each ride name highlighted in LEDs, and a number beside each name. Most of the rides were marked as ‘closed’ as it was still prior to the officially opening time but luckily for them, the rides that were open showed a short queue time.
“Come on, lets get going. We can try and get some rides in before the park officially opens.”
Hitching up her bag once more, Rey nodded and the three of them started towards the left side of the park. The sky ride- a huge ski lift style ride that lifted the carriages and their passengers hundreds of feet over the park to reduce walking- was still closed, which meant, much to Rey’s disapproval, that they would have to trek over to the other side of the park. Rey checked her phone with a scowl.
The weather had given them a slight break today, and while it was humid, it wasn’t too hot and it wasn’t predicted to rain that day. According to the park’s official app, it would take them 30 minutes to walk to the other side of the park with no interruptions.
“Right!” Rey said with a chipper tone. “Let’s get going!”
***
Exactly thirty minutes and twenty-seven seconds later, the trio arrived at the first ride they wanted to get on. The queue board by the entrance of the ride read a ten-minute wait. The overhead screams that rung so familiar to Rey thundered past as the ride passed over. Weaving through the wooden bollards that separated the different parts of the queue, Rey held tight to Rose’s hand, who had Armie latched onto her other hand. The whizzed through most of the queue line and came to an abrupt stop just inside the building where the ride started. It was dark, almost pitch-black inside. The ride was themed around dark magic, and a curse placed upon the forest around them. The music that pumped out of the speakers was quiet, just loud enough to spike fear into those who were not familiar with the theming of the ride. They could hear the trickling of water, and the occasional jolt of electricity sparking through wires all coming from the well-hidden speakers in the ceiling. It smelt musty too, like a damp dishtowel or a wet dog. Once the line came to a halt again, Rose grasped onto Rey’s hand with a vice-like grip.
“You scared Rosie?” she teased, and despite the shroud of darkness, she could see Armitage’s eyes piercing through the darkness as he glared at her.
“Don’t tease her, she doesn’t like the dark, Rey.” He hissed.
“Alright alright, sorry. Don’t worry, we’re almost there.” She said, half assing her apology. Hux furrowed his brows lightly.
Luckily, the queue moved through the dark once more, and they were brought to the station area. The tracks were currently empty, but the light from outside was now evident, and Rose’s grip on Rey’s hand loosened.
They all eventually reached the front of the queue, where a red rope prevented anyone from passing it. There, a worker in a dark green themed uniform addressed them, and asked how many were with Rey. She told them three, and they were assigned seats. Rose elected to sit with Rey this time, on the second row from the front, with Hux behind. When the coaster carriage returned and everyone exited, the bars opened up and Rey ran across to dump her bag in the bag holds. She shuffled back, and sat herself next to Rose, who had already pulled her restraints down, gripping them tightly.
The workers did the regular restraint checks, and once the cart was full, they were off. Rose clutched her friends’ hand firmly as the carriage rounded the corner and started up the lift hill.
***
Ben was mind-numbingly bored. His shift wasn’t even half way done with his shift, and he was so very bored. He had dealt with an unusual number of bitchy customers today. Entitled mothers and their annoying crotch goblins, drunk guests who tried their best to convince him that they were definitely not drunk and the most annoying one of all, the teens who tried to snap a picture of their on-ride photo from in front of the counter. His height was definitely a blessing in this situation, where all 6’3” of him could easily stand in front of the screen and block it completely. Of course, not all the guests were rude to him, but unfortunately the adrenaline that the ride had just given them carried through, and made almost everyone he encountered act like the Duracell bunny on steroids.
The last of the most recent batch of guests had just left, and the new wave of ride photos came through onto his monitor. He flipped through them absentmindedly, making note of the funniest ones and the boring ones. His attention caught on a man on the front row with striking red hair and pale skin. He immediately recognised it as Hux, his college and somewhat from his college days. Ben laughed to himself lightly- Hux’s face was contorted in a grimace. Very on brand, Ben thought to himself. Flicking to the next image on the monitor, Ben stopped in his tracks. It was Rose, Armies’ fiancée, sat next to the most attractive woman Ben had ever seen. From her face, he could tell she was screaming, mouth open and teeth bared, but she was definitely smiling. Her eyes were squinted lightly, and even with the shoddy camera quality, he could see they were a light hazel colour. Ben smiled to himself.
Before he can stop himself, he hits print.
Setting the monitors up for the next round of guests to look at, Ben straightened his uniform. He hoped the mystery girl was with Rose and not just a random girl, as if she was with Rose and Rose was with Armie, he would have the possibility to meet this girl.
The first few guests were a group of teenagers, but didn’t try to sneakily take a photo, instead laughing and joking about who had the funniest face and who was purchasing what.
Across the small crowd, Ben spotted Hux. He was impossibly tall himself, and his mop of bright red hair turned him into a walking homing beacon. Rose is in tow, with the mysterious girl herself following closely behind. They roll up to the counter and before Ben can introduce himself, or even talk to Armie, the smaller girl starts talking.
“Hey there! You’re friends with Armie right?”
Ben does a double take, fumbling over his response. He goes to ask her how she knows his name, but he remembers about his name tag and the name tag on his lanyard, and stops himself.
“Uh yea I am.” He settles with this response, and cracks her a small smile. “Who are you?”
Ben wants to kick himself- the bluntness of his second statement makes him physically want to die. Rey doesn’t seem bothered however, and is still smiling that dazzling smile he found so endearing.
“I’m Rey. Rose’s friend.” She answers, rocking on her heels. “Nice to meet you.”
The girl’s- Rey's- confidence reassures him, and he breathes out, his shoulders slumping slightly. Rey is still smiling and Ben found himself doing the same.
Before Ben can say anything else, a gaggle of teenage girls’ barge past the two of them, pushing Rey aside as if she weighed nothing and screeching at their photos behind Ben. Rey stands to the side, mouth agape as she watches Ben try and handle the loud teens. He’s surprisingly calm, but his deep voice is firm, and they all calm down soon enough.
Rose and Armie seem distracted enough, looking into each other’s eyes as if they’re in a Disney movie.
Once the herd had moved on, Ben moved his attention back to Rey. There were other guests looking at their photos, but they were calm enough to not be watched intently. Rey was still stood patiently, and turned to him.
“How do you deal with that so calmly? I would’ve slapped one of them. You must have some patience.” She says with an exasperated expression. Ben smirks, laughing lightly.
“You learn patience working here. I don’t mind it too much I guess.”
“Good thing you’ve got a deep voice. It scared those kids pretty bad. Surely that helps?”
Ben nods.
“Yea I guess so. I’ve never had to shout at anyone. God help them the day that I do.”
It’s Rey’s turn to laugh, throwing her head back.
“You do look intimidating, no offense.”
Cocking his head in mock offense, Ben stares at her. She’s obviously joking, but Ben’s brain disagrees.
“I’ve been told that many times. I get used to it I guess.”
“Oh, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to offend.” Rey starts apologising profusely, placing her hands on the counter. Before Ben can respond, he sees the screens begin to change, and morph into another new set of photos. Another set of riders approach, and once again, Rey is pushed to the side.
Over the bustling crowd, Ben waves her off as Rey walks away, Rose and Armie in tow.
***
After dinner, Rey runs into Ben again.
Armie and Rose had gone off for food together, leaving Rey to wander the park on her own. Now it was open and past midday, the park was a lot busier than the morning. However, it was still quiet throughout the park, which Rey counted as the second blessing of the day.
Across the way, Rey spotted Ben talking long strides over the cobbled stone floor. A tote bag was hung from his arm, and his thick coat in the other. Before she can think about it, Rey finds herself running up to him.
“Hey Ben!”
Ben turned, looking confused before he settled his gaze on her face. A smile broke out almost immediately. “Oh hey. What are you doing?” He quizzed as she caught up with him, backpack bouncing up and down.
“On my way to the break room. My shift is over now, I’m gonna grab a snack then head home.” He replied. Rey’s expression drops.
“You’re leaving? The park doesn’t close for another four hours.” She states sadly.
“I only work half a shift on Saturdays. Gotta get home to my dog you know?”
This makes Rey crack a smile. They talk for a while, discussing Ben’s dog, who Rey found was called Chewie. Rey told him about her adopted Calico kitten she had adopted a month prior, and how she had already taken him to the vets twice for eating one of her socks and a pen lid.
“He never seems to get sick. I swear he could eat anything and it wouldn’t hurt him in the slightest. Invincible, I swear.”
As if on que, Ben’s watch goes off, signalling the end of his break. Rey didn’t even realise for how long they had been talking.
“Shit… I gotta go., sorry Rey.”
Rey nodded and smiled lightly. “That’s okay! Chewie needs you!”
Ben waves her off and strides away too quickly for Rey’s liking.
Turning on her heel, Rey trots away. Suddenly, he hears her name being called. “Wait!”
He practically sprints up to Rey, tote bag swinging like a wrecking ball. “I have something for you. I saw you didn’t get the chance to buy our photo earlier so…”
He pulls a A4 piece of glossy paper out of his bag, and shoves it towards her.
“Here, free of charge.”
It’s her and Rose on the ride, mouths wide and screaming with clear joy.
Rey lifts her head to grin at him, her face glowing with appreciation.
“Thank you, Ben, I really appreciate this!”
“Of course.”
They lock eyes for a moment, both grinning widely. Ben pulls himself back and checks his watch again. “God I gotta go. See you around?”
Her cheeks have never hurt from smiling so much before, but Rey can’t find the willpower to stop. “Sure. See you.”
Rey watches him half-sprint half-shuffle off behind a themed building, his gangly legs carrying him away.
Still smiling, Rey glosses over the photo once more and traces her smile absentmindedly, the same grin etched into her own face.