“I’ve got this, just support me,” Sam called to her.
“I’m not running down the street at your side supporting you,” Quinn snapped. She put her hand on the pumpkin and started rolling. Jack let out a war cry beside him and ran by.
“He’ll burn himself out. We need to just keep things steady,” Sam said.
“It’s not that far. We need to go faster,” Quinn said, her competitive streak rising.
“Trust me. I know how to do this.”
“You said you’d never rolled a pumpkin before.”
“I’m naturally good at everything.”
Quinn ground her teeth together. She then watched Joe elbow Dylan in the ribs. Piper lurched sideways with her husband but righted herself. She then ran to catch up with her cousin and tripped him with her foot.
Quinn laughed as Joe went down, landing on the pumpkin face-first. She saw Luke up ahead.
Someone tripped, and their pumpkin got away from them and rolled into the curb. It split, and pumpkin splattered everywhere.
“Move it, Quinderella!” Fin drew alongside. “That guy is a douchebagette. I talked to him earlier. He’s no good for you.”
“I’m rolling pumpkins with him, Fin, not having his babies. And douchebagette is the female term.”
“Faster, Fin!” Maggie had her sights set on her brother, who was up ahead. In fact, everyone was ahead of them.
Fin flashed her a smile and ran by.
“Pick it up, Sam,” Quinn said, giving the pumpkin a push. “If I have to do this, I’m not coming last.”
They closed in on the others. The Trainers appeared to be hell-bent on annoying each other now, and not winning.
“Stop it!” Luke’s partner, the celery stick, was not happy with the goings-on.
Especially as Joe had just dropped his shoulder into Luke, and he was bent at the waist, wheezing.
“That’s cheating!”
“Go peel a cantaloupe,” Piper muttered.
“Do you peel cantaloupes?” someone asked.
“Holy guacamole, it’s going to be carnage soon,” Bailey said.
Luke straightened and shoved Jack in the back as he passed. He fell and rolled over his pumpkin and back to his feet.
“Slow down, I said!” Sam snapped at her. “We have no control going this fast.”
“Don’t speak to me like that,” she said calmly. Volatile people didn’t frighten Quinn; they annoyed the shit out of her.
Sam looked shocked. Clearly his mother had not taken him to task often enough for his dick attitude.
“I know what I’m doing here. You don’t.” He made the mistake of moving closer and getting in her face.
“So what? You’re like this professional pumpkin roller after doing it for about five minutes?
His nostrils flared. Around them, the Trainers were annoying the crap out of each other, and the laughter and heckling coming from the spectators was loud. Another pumpkin smashed into the curb beside them.
“I am good at all things.”