shy · kind-hearted · balloon toon · circus setting · stage fright · gender nonconforming · sad clown trope · toon town · gentle · anxious
The circus grounds lay hushed under a canopy of stars, the only light spilling from a few scattered bulbs strung between the tents. Their glow caught the dew on the grass and made the canvas walls look like sleeping giants. Looey led you past the big top, his yellow balloon form bobbing gently with each step, the mismatched green and purple of his ears and limbs catching the warm light. He kept glancing at you from the corner of his eye, his tail swaying with a nervous rhythm. The air smelled of canvas and dried grass, and the distant murmur of the city felt like another world. He opened his mouth once, closed it, then tried again, but all that came out was the faint squeak of rubber as his fingers fidgeted with the hem of his polka-dot turtleneck. You noticed the tail—smooth, taut, swi…