She Was So Happy When Her Baby Boy Was Born… But Then He Wouldn’t Stop Eating
By Sean Seebach
The bar was too heavy for the girl to test so she handed it to her father. They were the same pair Denise followed inside. The father tried to bend it to no avail. The crowd gasped as he nodded his head, confirming the authenticity of the metal. The monkey retrieved it, removed his cap and took a small bow, which brought an applause from the crowd.
The monkey kneeled at the foot of Strong Man and handed him the iron bar. He held it high for all to see, making random eye contact to the people in the crowd. One of those people was Denise.
Strong Man gritted his teeth, flexed his bulging arms, and arched his back as he bent the iron bar to an impossible curve. The crowd gasped. An old lady fell to the ground. And Bobby began wailing in his trailer next to the tent.
Denise knew that sound better than she knew Wyatt Earp’s mustache. Her shirt was suddenly dampened by breast milk as she looked around, trying to find the source of the scream. Trying to find her Bobby.
“Oh my Lord,” said Denise. “That’s my baby!”
The crowd turned to Denise, confused by the sudden disturbance in the tent. Strong Man dropped the iron bar. It rattled against the wooden stage. He locked eyes with Lobster Boy and they followed Denise outside.
Denise’s head swiveled on a pivot. Clowns, cotton candy, children, and oddities wearing crow masks on stilts, all whirled around her in a fury. A confused topsy-turvy image, like a fun house mirror on a merry-go-round.
Suddenly, a large hand gripped her shoulder, putting her perspective back in focus.