17 Seconds

The lady at the counter took my ticket, and ripped it in half. She punched the stub into my stomach, and I walked forward. "Let's go! Move it!" I said. Mia and Amy were close behind. I was not ready to wait for them much longer. The weather was perfect for a day at Cedar Point. I was full of energy, full of life.

"I'm hungry." Amy said. "Can we get a Coke to split?" I turned back at her. She stopped cold. "I'm not riding that."

She was in shadow, yet there were no clouds in the sky. Reversing yet again, I saw the structure looming before me. It's mere presence was jaw dropping. I saw the colossal beams, bent ever so slightly. A deafening roar swept the surrounding area. A billboard flashed in the distance. One hundred and twenty three miles per hour it read. We walked closer to the sign. It read: Top Thrill Dragster.

"I'm not gonna go either." Mia said.

"You guys suck, you know that?" I replied.

"We know." Mia joked. "We'll be on that bench." The two girls walked off, still laughing.I took a breath, jogged in place, and walked into the queue.

The line was unsurprisingly long. It was, of course, the coaster's opening season. I was alright though. Others may not have though so. It was not until someone asked me if I was alright that I noticed my leg. It was twitching uncontrollably. This was, in fact, normal for me. Odd spasms can happen in either of my legs.

"Hey!" The person behind me had tapped me on the shoulder. "Line's moving."

"Thanks." I said, trying to avoid sarcasm in my tone. "I'm just excited."

The man and his two daughters started laughing. "So are we." I let out a chuckle of my own.

The station was a brightly colored concrete square, where two seperate cars were constantly loading. The line divided near the entrance, to avoid confusion. Inside, potential riders were corralled into tight lines. Thankfully, the system had been perfected. Since at least one train was being loaded at any given time, the line moved quickly. My hand shot up.

"Second call, single rider." I heard over the loudspeaker. "Second call." Apparently, I had great reflexes, I had not even heard the first call. A man standing on a gate pointed at me. I felt my adrenaline rushing. He rolled his hand toward the car.

"Yes!" I yelled. People nearby laughed. For some reason, everyone was full of life today. My eyes glistened as I saw my chariot. The front seat had one seat occupied, the other empty. For now. I lowered myself, filling the hole.

The car rolled out slowly onto the track. I had forgotten how bright the sun was. I was startled by a voice.

"Right here Bobby!" It was Mia. "You got in the front!" She and Amy both gave me a thumbs up.

"Hey, spit when you reach the-" I felt my head jolted back. I slowly turned my head forward, and saw it. The mother of all hills.The big one. It was upon the car now, and we climbed. We climbed so fast I thought I would miss it. I was rushing to the top, or so I thought. We were slowing, and fast. It was fine, as I realized we were reaching the Top Hat. Just then, I spat. If it hit someone, they did not care. We were all looking at our surroundings, and yelling. I lifted my hands off of the sweat drenched handbar.

The hazy sky was amazing. I could see the lake beside me, and I read a sign saying "Breakers" in the distance. That was my hotel. Wow, I thought to myself, you really can see everything. It was so infinite, yet blurred. We were falling. My restraint was loose. I knew this was normal as well, for roller coasters are supposed to put their riders on edge. Still, I was slipping. Slipping out of my seat, out of my soul. I was fully conscious at the time, yet, there was not track below me. Only a hole.

So quickly my excitement had faded, my energy depleted. I was not in my soul, I was in my body. My lifeless body. Headed for death. As I descended into the hole, I thought of Mia's face. It was a new sensation. It was acceptance. It was death itself. It was not scary, but blissful. My soul was never there, I was merely human the entire time. The infinite world I saw was distorted. I was one small person on one small planet. I was there for a short time, then I faded into dust, six feet down. I closed my eyes.

The coaster swooped down into the home stretch. The magnetic fins guided us to a halt. I opened my eyes. The sun was so bright now. The person next to me gave me a high five. For the first time I analyzed his face. His hair was graying. He had developed quite a few wrinkles as well. Yet, his face was full of that energy. Full of life. I saw Mia and Amy on the bench in the distance. I waved, and they ran to the exit gate.

"How was it?"

"Did you scream? And did you spit like I said to?"

"Yes." Amy was in shadow again. I looked up. Clouds were creeping into the sky. "I gotta go you guys. I'm riding it again." I pointed up at the clouds. "And I don't have forever."