WildHearts4

Lance had walked at least ten miles out of town before he stopped to rest. He sat his suitcase down and curled up in a pile of hay, instantly falling asleep. When he woke up again, it was light outside, which meant he had to keep walking. He wasn't sure if his mother would send someone out to look for him, so he made sure to lay low and keep a sharp eye out for vehicles.

He walked for hours without tiring, having been used to walking everywhere since he was little. He was, however, getting hungry. His stomach growled loudly, as if to put emphasis on that fact, and Lance sighed. Stopping, he opened his suitcase and pulled out the miniature loaf of bread he had stolen from the fridge before he left. It was barely bigger than his hand, and he devoured it hungrily in minutes. Sighing, he grabbed his suitcase and started off again.

About another half hour into his journey, Lance could hear cheering and laughter coming from somewhere down the road. His ears perked up in curiosity as he made his way up a hill. When he reached the top, he could see a small fair in the distance. He smiled fondly, remembering times when his mother used to take him and Stacy to every town fair they had. Deciding he had time for a pit stop, Lance continued walking down the dirt road, turning off into the fair grounds.

There were brown tents set up all over the place, with games and other activities taking place inside them. There were clowns, sword swallowers, and families all over the place. Lance smiled as he watched the little kids jump on their father's back and tug at their mother's skirt. He saw a large ring in the middle of the fair, with bleachers of people all around it, and decided to check it out.

As he passed by a hot dog vendor, Lance failed to see the man running it watch him with curious eyes. The vendor, caught up in watching this kid, failed to watch what he was doing, and ended up cutting himself on one of the rotating bars.

"Ah shit!" he cried out loudly, his bleeding finger immediately going to his mouth to suck on.

Lance turned around at the loud curse, and started walking towards the hot dog vendor. He set his suitcase down and looked at the larger man.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked with concern.

The man chuckled slightly, then winced at his finger again.

"I just cut my finger," he said sheepishly. This kid, with the blonde spikes and green eyes, actually looked concerned about him. He smiled at him and stuck out his other hand. "Name's Joey Fatone."

Lance shook his hand. "I'm Lance," he said, watching as Joey's eyebrows shot straight up.

"Damn kid," he said with a whistle, "that's some voice ya got there!"

Lance ducked his head to hide his blush, but Joey saw it anyway and grinned. Lance coughed and looked up, taking Joey's finger from his mouth and inspecting the cut. He looked at it for a second, before tearing a shred of cloth from his shirt. He spit on the cut and started to wrap it up.

"The spit stops the cut from getting infected," explained Lance, laughing at the look on Joey's face. He wrapped the finger up tightly and dropped the hand. "There ya go."

Joey looked at his finger and nodded. "Not bad," he said. "Thanks."

Lance shrugged. "No problem."

Joey saw the way he was staring at the hot dogs, and he smiled, picking out the fattest one and handing it over. Lance shook his head and backed up.

"No, I can't pay you," said Lance, even as his mouth started watering.

Joey shrugged and held the hot dog out further. "No charge," he said. "It's my way of saying thanks for spittin' on my finger."

Lance laughed, and after a second took the hot dog from him. Joey watched in fascination as he devoured it hungrily, and handed him another. Lance nodded his thanks and took it.

"So...," said Joey, amused by this scrawny boy's big appetite, "are you here with your family or something?"

Lance shook his head, swallowing the food in his mouth and looking up at Joey.

"Nope, ain't got no family," he said, taking another large bite.

Joey nodded. "Where're you going?"

Lance shrugged and looked at his suitcase. "I don't know," he admitted. "Just had to leave."

Joey nodded. "Yeah, I know what you mean." He watched Lance finish eating and grab his suitcase.

"Well, I better be going," said Lance. "Thanks for the food."

Joey grabbed his arm when he turned to leave. "Wait," he said. "You need a job, right?" Lance nodded, and Joey pointed to a large brown tent. "Chris's looking for some help. You're kinda young, but so was he when he started working. Tell him Joey sent ya."

Lance thought about it, and realized he didn't have any other choice. He grinned at Joey and nodded. "Okay," he said, "I'll ask him."

Joey grinned and slapped Lance on the back.

"Great!" he said. "Welcome to Kirkpatrick's Riding Horse Show!"