Read Online Lies Like Love by Louisa Reid - Free Book Online

– or Jen either, but I held Peter’s hand tight as we wound our way through the crowds of candy-floss, cherry-red sugar dummies, cheap teddies, yellow floating ducks. It would be easy to lose him here. The thought made my stomach drop and I squeezed harder.
    ‘Ow,’ Peter said, wriggling away. For a second I let go, too busy scanning the rides for Leo. He wouldn’t come. He’d been taking the piss.
    ‘C’mon, Aud,’ called Peter, dragging at my arm. ‘C’mon, I want to go on the waltzers. With you.’
    Peter towed me into the crowd and we weaved through the swarm of kids and grown-ups, then clambered on to the ride, the metal steps ringing.
    ‘Hey!’ A shout. I startled, nearly jumped off again when Leo climbed in beside me.
    ‘Found you.’ He paid for the ride and I stuffed my money back in my purse as the seat juddered, then began to move. I held tight and a boy, face silly with freckles, hair frothing on his upper lip, grabbed our carriage, swung it round and we were spinning faster, out of control, into the swirling darkness, the techno beat pounding, pushing, pulsing in time with screams. Mine too. I screamed for the future, for the hopes that I didn’t dare let out. I screamed because there was no one to stop me, no one watching, no one who cared.
    Leo slid along the seat, crushing against me. ‘Sorry,’ he gasped, and I laughed, sandwiched between him and Peter, who was almost crazy with excitement, shouting at someone he recognized from school, waving, hands free.
    ‘Hold on!’ I yelled, screwing my eyes shut. We spun again: wild, jerking. When I opened my eyes the world was upside down.
    Stop
, I wanted to shout, although what I meant was,
Don’t stop ever
, as we turned in faster circles, drilling into the sky, up and away, in a spin that was scary and loose, slipping because there was nothing to hold on to any more, flying stars in another Milky Way.
    The ride groaned to an end and we tumbled back to solid ground. Leo held me up, dizzy, still spinning. My legs jelly. All this touching. In one night.
    The things I said to Leo, like, ‘I think I’m going to puke.’ Which was not the thing to say to a boy like him.
    And him not minding, holding my hair away from my face.
    ‘Take deep breaths. It’ll be all right.’
    I took in lungfuls of air that smelled of grease and sugar but mostly excitement, and we stood not saying anything much when Peter disappeared into the crowds, and then we were weaving behind, holding hands somehow; how did that happen? I didn’t know.
    ‘Look,’ Leo said, pulling me to the left, towards a stall. ‘I love this. Bows and arrows. Let’s win something.’
    ‘All right.’
    Half an eye on Peter queuing for the helter-skelter, I took the plastic bow and handed over my money. Lining up the arrow, I took aim. Leo was ready.
    ‘After three,’ he said, and counted us down. We released our shots. Mine hit home.
    ‘Yes! I won,’ I cried, stupidly excited, not caring. ‘Look, see – it hit the bullseye. Yes!’
    ‘I expected nothing less.’ Leo was laughing too. ‘Choose your prize. I’m having another go.’
    I picked out a teddy bear, saggy, without enough stuffing, nothing like the plump and fluffy things that lined the shelves in my room. I used to love those bears. Then I started hating them and I didn’t know why. This one looked sad, but sort of winsome with its forlorn, grey expression.
    ‘Here.’ I handed it to Leo, not thinking, just wanting to give him something, even if it was only this. ‘You can have it.’
    ‘What? No, you won it – it’s yours. You shoot a mean arrow.’
    ‘Don’t you want it? Look, it’s cute. And sad now youdon’t want him.’ The bear waved at him and wiped away an imaginary tear.
    ‘Well, yeah, all right. Thanks.’ He took it, smiling, inspecting the silly toy. ‘I guess I’ll have to think of something to call him.’
    ‘Sad Sack,’ I said, pulling a face. Leo chucked it in the air, caught it.
    ‘He’s