Chapter 18 She Came to Mind Unintentionally
After lunch, Juniper snagged two tickets for an animal show, all hyped to take Camilla to see the dolphins.
Weaving through the crowd, they followed the herd to the southwest animal show pavilion.
Inside, the AC was blasting, making it feel like a whole different world compared to the blazing heat outside.
Camilla wasn't really into the animal show, but Juniper was all about those dolphins. During the interactive part, she handed the camera to Camilla to snap some pics.
Juniper's grin was contagious, and soon enough, Camilla found herself smiling too.
Half an hour later, the show wrapped up. Camilla handed her bag to Juniper, saying she needed to hit the restroom.
Turning the corner, she spotted Amara washing her hands at the sink.
Camilla hesitated, then walked past her straight to the stall.
When she came out, Amara was still there. It seemed that she had been waiting for her.
Camilla ignored her and focused on washing her hands.
The water dripped, the scene was quiet, but the tension was thick.
When she looked up, Camilla met Amara's gaze, then calmly looked away like she was just another stranger.
Amara smirked, glancing at the bracelet peeking out from under her sleeve. "Camilla, what a coincidence."
Camilla didn't bite.
Amara kept going, all casual, "How've you been lately?"
Camilla gave a faint smile, "Not bad."
Amara's eyes flickered, like she was trying to figure out if Camilla was for real or just faking it.
A few seconds later, she smiled, "Really? Moving out of the villa must be rough, huh?"
Camilla shot back, "That's none of your business."
"Actually, I should thank you," Amara's eyes got all teary, her innocent face looking all pure and pitiful, "If you hadn't stepped aside, I wouldn't have Leopold all to myself."
Camilla just listened, the water flowing as she carefully rinsed the soap from her hands.
She washed slowly, taking her time.
"You must've seen that sea of balloons earlier, right? Today's my birthday, and that was Leopold's surprise for me." Amara smiled, raising her hand a bit, "Oh, and this is his birthday gift to me. Isn't it gorgeous?"
"He said my hands are beautiful and soft, perfect for this bracelet. The moment he saw it, he wanted to kiss me." Amara blushed, her eyes all misty.
Camilla instantly recognized the logo on the bracelet when Amara turned her wrist.
It all clicked.
So, he was picking out a birthday gift for Amara that day at the jewelry store.
Camilla turned off the faucet, her nails digging into her palm, the pain snapping her back to reality. She smirked, "Is that so? Congrats."
With that, she walked away.
Juniper was already waiting at the exit, waving when she saw Camilla.
"Didn't eat enough? You look kinda off."
Camilla tiredly rubbed her brow, "Juniper, I wanna go back."
"It's only three o'clock, we haven't been here long!" Juniper widened her eyes, grabbing Camilla's arm, "Stay with me a bit longer. I already queued up online."
She blinked, "It's supposed to be the most popular attraction in the park, the Haunted Town."
Camilla, "Aren't you scared of ghosts?"
Juniper was a boss in work and life but was surprisingly terrified of heights and ghosts, to the point of freaking out at the mention of horror movies.
"You're not scared! With you by my side, I feel super safe."
Camilla sighed.
In the end, they went.
At the haunted house entrance.
"Show your e-ticket, please."
Juniper whipped out her phone and scanned it at the booth. With a beep, they were in.
"You're good to go."
Behind the staff was a curtain split down the middle, with a cold breeze blowing from inside, revealing a dark passage.
Every now and then, you could hear someone scream. Juniper gulped, grabbing Camilla's hand, inching forward.
Camilla almost had to drag her along. Seeing her scaredy-cat act, Camilla chuckled, "Maybe we should bail?"
"No way! We're already here!"
Juniper was clearly freaked out but wouldn't admit it, pretending to be all brave as she pulled Camilla forward.
Suddenly, a creepy doll jumped out, "Ah! Camilla, I'm scared!"
Leopold turned sharply; he thought he heard someone calling Camilla.
But after looking around, he didn't see her.
He frowned.
Amara didn't notice Leopold's distraction. She clung to him, "Leopold, I'm scared. Will you protect me?"
Leopold snapped back, giving a noncommittal grunt.
In the pitch-black surroundings, with only flickering red lights, Amara clung tightly to Leopold's arm, too scared to move forward.
When an actor dressed as a ghost, with half a face peeling off and blood on it, appeared, she screamed and clung even closer to Leopold.
"So scary, Leopold, is it gone?"
Amara buried her face in Leopold's chest, trembling.
Leopold patted her back half-heartedly, "It's gone."
The cheap makeup and dirty ghost costume made it hard for him to understand why anyone would be scared by such lame effects.
He thought, 'Camilla wouldn't be scared.'
The name popped into his mind, making Leopold tense up.
Why did he think of her so easily? He had wanted to break up long ago.
"Leopold?"
Amara looked up, seeing a fleeting depth in Leopold's eyes, making her puzzled.
Leopold composed himself, "Didn't you want to keep going? Let's move."
The screams weren't just from one person.
Juniper had psyched herself up before entering, but when she saw the ghost in the coffin suddenly open its eyes, she freaked out, bolting away in a flash.
Camilla tried to catch her but failed because Juniper was too fast, leaving her stunned.
Juniper could outrun anyone at that speed.
Juniper ran towards the exit, but after she passed through, the exit closed.
Camilla, left behind, had to find another way out. She looked around and accidentally met a pair of eyes.
The actor in the coffin blinked, the long tongue prop in his mouth flopping out, looking both pitiful and funny.
Camilla paused for two seconds, then stepped forward to help him tuck it back in.
The town had three exits, and in the dim passage, Camilla unsurprisingly got lost.
She wandered for ten minutes, thinking this place should be called a maze, not a haunted house.
After all, who would design three nearly identical exit routes, with one being a dead end? What if there was an emergency?
The next second, an urgent alarm blared overhead.
Camilla was silent.
This was too coincidental. Did her words have that much power?
As the fire alarm sounded, people in the haunted house panicked, rushing towards the exits.
Where Camilla was, there were fewer people, but they were still desperately trying to get out.
Not knowing where the exit was, she could only follow the crowd. The space around her became cramped, making it hard to breathe, so she slowed her pace.
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