The noonday sun streamed through the stacked rows of square windows, baking the interior of the school bus and the two dozen high schoolers within. What was supposed to be an exciting class trip had been abruptly derailed by a breakdown and had been slow roasted into a truly torturous experience.
While Mr. Simonson, their chaperone, negotiated with the school, a towing company, and their previous destination via juggling two phones and answers from the bus driver, the students made busy as youths on the precipice of adulthood tend to; shit talking, bravado pushing, and internet trolling via mobile device.
James, a young man with a lithe build gained from years of varsity swimming, leaned against the metal wall of the bus, holding his phone out of view as he scrolled sites he’d rather not have shared with the rest of the class. He occupied the entire two person seat, knees up and moving back and forth to cool him as best he could in the cramped and muggy vehicle.
A hand swatted his knee and he looked up to see Matthew, his best friend since freshman year, back from whatever antics he’d gotten up to at the rear of the bus. Though the intent of the slap was clear, James made no effort to clear the seat.
After a few seconds of waiting, Matthew simply took it upon himself to remove his friend’s feet from the seat; putting his athletic skills to use, he planted his feet and pushed open-handedly against James’s knee and thigh, rotating him quickly and nearly overturning him completely out of the aged green leather seat.
James scrambled to catch his phone before pushing himself back up, looking at Matthew as the larger man plopped down next to him.
“Fuck, dude? You could have just asked me to move.”
Matthew laughed, “Why would I ask when I can just push you around?” He held up his hands in a lineman’s blocking stance, pushing at an imaginary person.
James turned off the screen on his phone and slipped it back in his pocket, “Yeah, you’re pushin’ it, alright.”
“Oh, big polo man gonna beat me up?”
James scoffed, “You’d probably enjoy it.”
Matthew punched James’s shoulder, “I’d have to feel it first.”
Before James could continue their fraternal fight, a beam of light shot into the afternoon sky down the road, followed by another, and then a third and fourth. The lights were bright and animated, highly visible against the bright afternoon sun, though their origin was hidden from view.
Matthew leaned over James’s shoulder to get a better look, “The fuck is that?”
James shook his head, noticing out of the corner of his eye that Mr. Simonson had become more animated in his phone conversation, switching between talking and texting quickly, as well as whispering the occasional expletive.
The rest of the bus bound senior student body crowded to the side of the bus facing the lights, conversations sparking about what they were seeing from the other side of the row of trees and small hills, with all manner of theories being put forth in rapid succession. Those familiar with the stretch of highway assured everyone there wasn’t anything of interest so far out, it was just empty weeds and scattered trees along undeveloped land.
Despite their insistence that there couldn’t be anything, they were clearly seeing something in the distance; a collection of dancing lights that held their fascination, even if it was only a set of spotlights that swirled and danced across the lightly clouded sky.
“Class,” Mr. Simonson spoke up from the front of the bus, glancing at his phone every few seconds, “I’ve received word from the repair company and the school district. They won’t be able to retrieve the bus until late tonight.”
A chorus of groans and curses erupted from the students.
Ignoring them, the teacher continued, “However, a private company heard about us getting stranded out here and has offered to put us up for the evening. They should be along shortly to give us a ride to their facilities. Please sit tight and wait for them to arrive.”
Rachel, a well-dressed student with braided blonde hair, raised a hand as she spoke up, “Mr. Simonson, what’s the name of this private company and what are their facilities?”
Mr. Simonson shook his head and adjusted his glasses, “Um...lets see, "Pleasure Island International" Rachel,” he scrolled through his phone for a few seconds, “I got word they worked it out with the district and they promise we’ll enjoy ourselves at their annual all night charity event. Looks to be some sort of amusement park I guess. Apparently its some Italian resort company...I guess they run a resort on some island in Italy. Anyway, I guess they are pushing into a new market, international amusement parks, and are delighted to pair their event with their target demographic - young people like yourselves!”
Matthew sighed, “Charity? Is this a fucking pussy-ass liberal snowflake park?”
Never politically correct, Matthew *hated* liberals and never shyed from making his boorish opinions known.
Mr. Simonson shot Matthew a frustrated look, “Language, Matthew.”
“Is this a freakin’ stupid liberal organization?”
The teacher rolled his eyes and adjusted his bright blue tie, “I don’t know, I just know the summary information I just gave and that the plan is to go to the park and enjoy ourselves for the evening. They'll have free food, lodging, rides, games, events and more! Should be fun. ” Mr. Simonson ducked down a bit to look at a vehicle approaching from the rear of the bus, “Ah, here’s our ride. Please step off the bus in an orderly fashion so we can get a headcount and get on with the evening.”
Matthew and James shared a look before turning to look at the vehicle pulling up alongside them. It resembled a truck and trailer, though the attached trailer looked like it was less for farm work and more for blatant advertising. The entire vehicle was bright red with silver stripes, emblazoned on the side was a stained wooden emblem that looked like a generic shield with two characters on it, PI.
James turned to Matthew, “The fuck is this?”
Matthew shrugged as he pushed up from the seat. Though the two, along with most of the student body, had strong reservations about this change of plans, almost anything beat roasting in a metal banana colored oven into the night.
Stepping off the bus into the afternoon breeze was instant relief. James fanned the lapels of his letterman jacket to push the trapped body heat away from him and off with the afternoon wind.
A female voice spoke up from behind him, “Not sure why you bothered to wear that on one of the hottest days of the year.”
Turning, James spotted Danielle, former girlfriend and current pain in his ass. Next to her was her current boyfriend, Connor, a well muscled hockey star and a perfect match for Danielle's penchant for big muscles.
She continued, “Could it be that you’re just too much of a show off to leave it at home?”
“I didn’t know we’d be stuck on the bus with no AC for several hours.”
Danielle shrugged, “You might have thought of that contingency on a hot day in June.”
James glanced over her outfit in search of a comeback; a tank top and black cargo pants, with a flannel shirt tied around her waist. His efforts left him speechless, his only response being a subtle smile tugging at his lips as he checked her out.
Rather than comment on it, she simply turned away, the flannel hanging from her waist disappointingly covering James’s favorite thing about her.
A hand shoved his shoulder, “Yo, James, wanna come back to the here and now?”
James blinked and turned to Matthew, “What?”
His friend rolled his eyes, “You two broke up two years ago and you’re still pining for her.”
James sneered, checks red, “I’m not pining, it’s just too hot to think straight.”
“Yeah, something’s too hot to think straight,” Matthew quickly flicked his friend in the crotch before dashing towards the waiting transportation.
The seniors quickly boarded the vehicle, sitting on parallel metal benches in the trailer. There were just enough seats for everyone but Mr. Simonson and the bus driver, though the truck driver assured them another transport would be along shortly to bring them along as well.
With little ceremony, the truck rumbled down the road, moving slowly toward the spotlights just over the hill.
Even this slow pace was a welcome relief from the stagnant box they’d spent the last few hours in. The open air made talking difficult, and most of the students turned to their phones to entertain themselves for the half hour it took to crest the hill and reveal their destination. Phones switched from web browsing to photo taking as they caught sight of where they were headed.
The dancing spotlights did not prepare them for the site they advertised. Plopped unceremoniously amidst the hills of scraggly grass and smatterings of trees was a full on amusement park. Multicolored twinkling lights outlined stalls and rides, showing off how complex the place was and much there was to do. A roller coaster and carousel stood out, larger than life, appearing to dwarf the hills the park was set against. Carnival music surrounded them, as though it had been blocked by the same hill that prevented them from seeing the park only a few minutes ago.
Pictures taken, the class stared in disbelief, wondering if they’d lucked out after an afternoon of suffering and were now getting something way better than the previously planned event.
The truck rolled on, turning down a long drive. The final approach was flanked on either side by tall trees whose tops had been shaped into perfect spheres. Between the trees and the road was a topiary whose members were shaped into various figures in numerous poses; lions roared, donkeys kicked, a mermaid rose dramatically from the waves, a minotaur crouched in combat, a nude woman gracefully covered her breasts, and giant squirrels nibbled at nuts formed from leafy branches.
The buildup continued as they reached the front gate. The massive iron structure opened slowly at their approach, groaning softly but moving smoothly as it bifurcated to create a passageway through the large stone wall that surrounded the park.
The truck circled a large, neon-lit fountain, stopping so the cart carrying the students sat between the fountain and a stone path leading to the rest of the park. The place was packed with a large number of other youths, some dressed in other local school’s colors, jerseys, and letter jackets.
James studied the fountain as he descended from the trailer with his classmates. It was a two-tiered structure made of marble, with sculptures of numerous figures drinking from it. Around the base were larger creatures including a horse, centaur, and alligator, among others. The smaller top tier had a satyr, mouse, siren, and several birds built into it, all enjoying a drink or a bath.
James mused softly, “They sure like weird creatures, don’t they?”
“Doing who in the what now?” Matthew asked dismissively as he joined his friend, his eyes taking in other details. After spending a few more seconds watching a young lady walk into a nearby building, he turned to see what James was talking about.
He sighed dismissively.
“A fountain? You’re focused on a fucking fountain when we’re surrounded by an amusement park and every girl our age in the school district?”
James shrugged, “I was just noticing a stupid detail, okay? They got a weird creature thing going on, and I think that’s noteworthy.”
“Oh sure, that’s fascinating, I guess,” Matthew rolled his eyes. “How about, instead of this, we do something interesting?”