“AHHHHH” I hear their deafening shrieks as they plummet straight toward the ground. My heart is pounding so hard as I take one more step forward that I can feel the throbs in my head.  I'm only 6 people away from stepping foot on that ride and going up almost 300 feet. This is a horrible idea, I think to myself, Just turn back now. My mind races to every irrational scenario; I'm gonna die, we are gonna get stuck at the top, my seatbelt is gonna fall off. I'm so focused on my thoughts I didn't even notice that only one more person was standing between me and Orion. 

I told myself I would never ride a big roller coaster, my fear of heights wouldn't allow it! Yet here I am, about to go up higher than ever before. As I take my final step forward, my pulse quickens and the sun feels harsher than ever before. My legs turn into jelly, barely taking me across the pavement, eventually stopping and being put to rest as they sit. Why did I do this, why... why... WHY. My lap bar goes down and my seatbelt glides across me, smooth as butter. *Click* I'm locked in. This is it. I can't get up now, there's no changing my mind now.

 All around me are happy faces, and bright smiles filled with excitement and joy. My face is the opposite. My face is terror, anxiousness, and queasy. My friend notices as she turns to me and says, “It'll be okay Annabelle, it'll be over in just a few minutes”. This doesn't ease my nerves, nothing can. I can't believe what I've gotten myself into. The kings’ island employees walk down the row, ensuring we are secure in our seats, which brings me little to no relief. I can hear my heart beating through my ears, in my chest, and all around me. It's a fear I've never felt before. The feeling makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand straight up, it makes me quiver like a leaf in the wind, and it makes me forget about everything else in the world. As my fear is slowly overtaking my body, it happens. I hear a click and we are off.

 The ride starts moving, slowly inching forward as my heart starts beating faster. I'm filled with worry and regret about my decision. My anxiety starts to betray me as my breath pace starts to quicken. inhale… exhale out, I tell myself in hopes to calm the panic deep inside myself. My breaths are shaking as if they are scared. I can't even begin to imagine what the drop will feel like. We are slowly ascending the hill, I can hear every gear moving. My eyes are glued shut, I can't risk looking down and putting into perspective how high up I truly am. My stomach churns like I'm about to puke my guts out and all the color drains from my face, leaving me looking blank and empty. My hands are gripping the lap bar harder than they have ever gripped anything prior. They burn because of the amount of pressure on them. As the ride gets slower I know we are nearing the top, so I decided at a moment's notice to ignore the fear and open my eyes. OH MY GOD. The entire amusement park looks as though it could fit in the palm of my hand, and the people look as tiny as ants. It feels exhilarating and terrifying all at once. As my mind wanders to the small world below me, the ride comes to a stop for just a moment. It was the longest moment of my life, as I sit there, at the peak of the roller coaster knowing I'm about to free fall at about 90 miles per hour.

 My seat goes slowly over the curve and then, at a moment's notice, we shoot down. I see only the ground below me and a fire ignites inside me. “AHHHHHHHH” This is it, this feeling, something I never knew I was missing out on until now. Pure euphoria flows through my veins as I fly down the hill. My stomach drops in the best possible way and a smile full of nothing but joy takes over my once horror-filled face. I will never miss out on an opportunity because of fear again. We go up another hill and my hands fly into the air, no longer holding on for dear life but flowing freely in the wind. I feel like a bird in the sky, having no worries and just moving to wherever the wind guides me. The sharp turns give me a rush of adrenaline like nothing before. Like my blood turns into pure excitement and travels throughout my body. I never want to touch the ground again, this is my new home. This is better than anything from my wildest dreams. As we do one final loop I find myself wishing it could never end, wishing that I could never leave this seat for the rest of time itself. It slowly moves forward and I'm back at the beginning, back to where it all started, back to where I discovered my new love.

 As we step back into the busy crowd only one thought lingers in my mind “Again?” I say, hopeful that we are on the same page. No more words are exchanged, we just start running back into the line. What I was so scared of, I think to myself, you only live once and I was about to let my fear of heights hold me back, never again. As I bolt forward, not looking back, I am so grateful I took a risk. If I didn't, I wouldn't have discovered something I love so much and that makes me so happy. I thought I was just gonna have a normal King's Island day, riding the small rides my fear confined me to, but not this time. This time I learned that being held back by fright only causes you to miss out on things.  So, next time I'm afraid to try something new I'll reflect on this moment and never let my fear get in the way of an exotic experience