Page 36 of Full Court Crush

Oh, god.

Warmth filled her chest, while she simultaneously bristled at being cared for like that. It made her feel like a child.

“What time are we planning on going on the Ferris wheel?” Keira asked to quickly change the subject and try to recover some balance. It returned Amelia to the back foot, and Keira immediately felt guilty.

Amelia took out her phone. Keira couldn’t help but notice the cute way Amelia’s lips scrunched when she was reading. She really couldn’t blame her wobbly legs on the ice skating anymore.

“In half an hour,” Amelia croaked out.

Kiera nodded and slowly began walking again. Amelia quickly fell into step beside her. Their easy, laid-back conversation had disappeared. It was as if they were both scared of making any sudden moves.

“I’m so excited to ride the Ferris wheel, aren’t you?” Sienna asked.

“Amelia likes to keep her feet firmly on the ground,” Sofia said with a laugh.

Keira was relieved when they’d regrouped with the other members of the team to queue for the Ferris wheel. She and Amelia had been seemingly tiptoeing around each other since Amelia had so delicately wiped sugar from her face. It was getting harder and harder not to act on her impulses, but every stolen glance and shared smile forced her reservations to further crumble away. Outside of basketball and under the stars, it seemed like anything was possible.

She doesn’t date teammates. She doesn’t date teammates.

The mantra did little to assuage Keira’s growing affection.

The group moved further up the queue, and Keira watched Amelia crane her neck, looking upwards dubiously at the giant metal structure that towered above them. The closer they got, the more her friends ribbed her for refusing to go up.

“C’mon, no one’s died…yet!” Lucy said jovially.

“The view from the top is amazing!” Sienna added hopefully.

“You never know,” Keira said, leaning in close to whisper in her ear, unable to help herself. She enjoyed the way Amelia’s body shivered in reaction. “It might be fun.”

The queue lurched forward again as another rotation of Ferris wheel riders disembarked and boarded. They were now so close to the front Keira had to lean her head back to see the topmost carriages. She couldn’t wait to see what the city looked like from up there. Amelia looked nauseous.

“Where’d you two disappear off to?” Evie asked quietly, her head popping up behind them, between Amelia and Keira. She put a hand on each of their outer shoulders.

“Nowhere,” Amelia responded quickly. Too quickly for Keira’s liking.

“We got doughnuts and had a look around.” Keira shrugged before turning her attention back to the Ferris wheel. A few minutes later, it was finally their turn to board. The queue slowly moved forward, and the group shuffled around to organise themselves into fours. Evie, who had been behind Amelia and Keira, slipped past them to talk to the ride operator, something clutched in her hand. The ride operator glanced towards Keira and Amelia, then turned back to Evie and nodded, grinning. Amelia was still too petrified at the sight of the Ferris wheel to notice, but Keira looked at Evie quizzically. The Ferris wheel cranked around, and people boarded.

At last, just four people stood in front of Keira and Amelia. When Amelia started to step out of the line, Evie leaned forward and grabbed her arm.

“Don’t you dare,” Evie whispered, her tone authoritative.

Amelia seemed paralysed to the spot.

“What if I hold your hand?” Keira offered. She held out her gloved hand in Amelia’s direction. Amelia looked at her hand with abject fear, then her gaze rose upwards. “You helped me with the ice skating. Let me help you with this.” Keira looked at her imploringly, daring her to step outside of her comfort zone. Inexplicablyneedingher to step outside her comfort zone.

Amelia took a deep breath and relaxed her shoulders, just as Keira had done before going on the ice, then stepped back into line. Surreptitiously, she took Keira’s hand, letting their joined hands hang between them. Keira gave her hand a little squeeze. She could feel Amelia’s whole body vibrating with nerves.

The next empty carriage rolled around, stopping in front of a small access ramp, and Keira moved to step on. Amelia, who seemed rooted in place, limited her movement and acted as an anchor. Their joined hands stretched between them like a lifeline. Amelia’s eyes were wide with fear.

“You don’t have to, if you don’t want to,” Keira said gently, giving her hand another squeeze. Amelia was still frozen in place. People in the queue behind them jostled, and started murmuring about the cause of the hold-up. Amelia seemed to be acutely aware of every single pair of eyes on her as her breathing accelerated. Keira squeezed her hand to draw her attention back to her.

Eventually, Amelia took a deep breath and lurched her right foot forward, slowly followed by the left. Keira stepped aside to let Amelia in first. She wordlessly climbed in, choosing the seat furthest away from the carriage’s small door.

Keira climbed in after her. The attendant shut the gate, despite there still being two empty seats in the carriage, and Amelia jumped. Keira’s brow furrowed. Then she caught sight of Evie, who grinned mischievously. She rolled her eyes and turned away before Evie could see the small smile on her face. Amelia kept her eyes fixated on the nearby city hall, unable to look anywhere that might resemble down.

“Something wrong with the other seats, I think,” Keira heard Evie explain to an inquisitive Sienna.

“It’s okay,” she said gently to Amelia again. The wheel turned slowly, and the last empty seats were filled, each quartet of additional passengers dragging them higher up into the sky. Amelia gripped the cold metal handlebar next to her so tightly her knuckles were white.