[What on earth happened?]
[I’ll tell you. But not right now.]
[If it’s dangerous, tell me. I’ll help you.]
I already knew you would say that. But this is something I have to finish on my own. It started with me, so it must end with me.
[It’s okay.]
[…Yeah. If you say so, I won’t interfere needlessly. But,]
You’re going to say this.
[Call me right away if something happens?][If anything at all happens, just call me.]
Our words overlapped. I laughed. It was a small laugh, light and cheerful, as if I were really just a girl of that age. Hwa-won didn’t laugh.
[…Are you okay?]
[Seeing you smile, it seems so.]
[Where are you now?]
[I’m waiting for Muk Ha-neul. We have a date today.]
[How nice.]
[It’s like a final gift.]
Today is the day we go to the amusement park!
[Why did you call me if you were going to handle everything alone?]
[Good question.]
Actually, I knew the reason. But I pretended not to and said that.
[Somehow, I just wanted to hear your voice.]
[You freak. Take your medication.]
This was, of course, a joke. It was just a playful comment. Hwa-won must have felt a chill, right? I found it amusing.
No, was it really that funny? I’m not sure. I don’t know, but that’s not what matters.
[Do you want to meet briefly tomorrow?]
[Are you asking me to comfort you because you broke up?]
[Yeah.]
[You have unexpected talent for making girls cry, don’t you?]
[I’ve made a lot of them cry, haven’t I?]
Since I’m a girl too now, that isn’t entirely wrong. I could hear Hwa-won’s sigh.
And I saw someone approaching from a distance.
The real reason I called was actually that. Really, a simple reason. Confirming if Hwa-won would really pick up, wanting to hear the voice, needing to set up a promise—these all fit, but they weren’t everything.
There was a reason I came out an hour early. Because Muk Ha-neul would never be late and would come much earlier to prepare.
So,
It was to show Muk Ha-neul.
That I was talking to Hwa-won.
With a very happy face.
[…Ha-neul is here. I’ll hang up now.]
[What? Wait a minute! You’re just going to drop a bomb and hang up…!]
I hung up before Hwa-won could finish speaking. Then I waved my hand at Muk Ha-neul, who was watching me from a slight distance. I felt genuinely happy right now. Muk Ha-neul arrived almost an hour early at the meeting place, only 10 minutes late from me. That was a bit close.
Just barely, it was hard to recognize, but Muk Ha-neul, with a slightly stiff smile, came towards me, who was sitting on the bench. As Muk Ha-neul got closer, she seemed genuinely surprised by my outfit and fell silent for a moment.
“Hello, Ha-neul.”
“Hello, senior.”
Of course, Muk Ha-neul was not someone to be underestimated. As if she hadn’t stiffened her expression at all, she soon returned to her usual cheerful smile.
“Who were you having such a fun conversation with?”
“Well, who could it be?”
It’s more about the call than the outfit. You already know, even without me saying it.
“Hwa-won, perhaps?”
“Yeah, that’s right. I was talking to Hwa-won.”
“…Oh.”
Is she feeling bad about it? She didn’t show any signs of that, but I somehow felt that way. Well, they didn’t have a good relationship, after all. They seemed to get along, but not that well.
“What’s with this outfit…?”
“It’s a date, isn’t it? I couldn’t just come out without dressing up a bit. How’s it look?”
“…You look really cute.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
I suppressed the reaction I would usually find disgusting and smiled cheerfully. No one would be able to resist this face. Not in a sexual way, of course.
Muk Ha-neul seemed to be lost in complicated thoughts while looking at me. She probably thought I looked genuinely cute but was also flustered at the unexplainable reason.
“Who coordinated your outfit?”
“Han-bom and Eun-a.”
“They have some decent sense.”
Well, good things are good. With that feeling, Muk Ha-neul relaxed her expression. Then she looked me up and down and assessed me.
“200 points out of 100.”
“That’s a weird score.”
“I think it deserves that much.”
“Are you a pervert too?”
“Not at all!”
“Your reactions are similar to Eun-a’s.”
“…Is she a pervert?”
Without answering, I just smiled like Muk Ha-neul did.
“By the way, you really dressed up a lot. You look pretty. It suits you well.”
“Hehe, really?”
This is how a date should go, right? When I complimented her outfit, which was quite different from her usual style, Muk Ha-neul seemed unexpectedly ecstatic. So, you’re aware this is a date too, huh? I feel like I’ve never seen you dress up this much before.
“Really.”
“Come on.”
Still, this much service should be enough. It wasn’t a lie that she looked pretty and suited.
“Ahem, anyway, shall we go?”
“Yeah, I’m looking forward to it. This is my first time at an amusement park.”
“Really?”
“I obviously didn’t have the luxury of that when I was in the orphanage, and when I grew up, I lost interest.”
I casually brought up what should be an ordinary story. It was a light jab. I never thought this would make Muk Ha-neul feel guilty. Yet somehow, she stiffened her expression and apologized to me.
“I’m sorry, I brought up painful memories.”
“It’s okay, it’s nothing much.”
I’m really looking forward to it.
Muk Ha-neul didn’t usually cover her face with sunglasses or hats. She already attracted a lot of attention due to her pretty looks, and since she was now a famous writer, there were often people recognizing her while she was walking around.
And now, I was here. With white hair, wearing girl-like clothes that I had never worn before.
The combination of Muk Ha-neul and me wasn’t really that well known. Recently, Muk Ha-neul had been busy, so we hardly went out together at all.
But today, I was walking alongside Muk Ha-neul without hiding myself at all—completely exposed.
Of course, it was impossible not to be noticed.
Walking to the amusement park, the focus on us was double compared to when I was alone earlier. Fortunately, since there were two of us, no one came over asking for autographs. I hope it stays that way.
By the way, I never expected there would be so many people. An amusement park on a Saturday… is that really that obvious?
“I guess we’ll have to wait a bit.”
“Sorry, I didn’t realize it would be this crowded.”
“It’s okay. This is also part of the memories.”
Yeah, it will be a memory. Even today.
“While waiting, think about what to ride.”
“I actually don’t know what there is here.”
“Search for it. By the way, I envy you, senior.”
“Why?”
“Your height, 149 cm. One of the rides here requires you to be under 150 cm, and I can’t go in. I’m really disappointed.”
“…Isn’t that usually for kids?”
“I’m still a kid.”
I glanced at Muk Ha-neul’s chest. It’s not as big as Han-bom’s, but saying Muk Ha-neul is small is also debatable.
“Goodness.”
“Wow, pervert.”
“If we said we were a couple right now, I think it’d be you who gets taken away.”
“…That’s a fair point.”
We continued to chat lightly while waiting. We might have become a couple, but nothing was different from usual. It was fun, but there were no butterflies. As time passed, we finally got to enter the amusement park.
“There’s no couple discount.”
“Heh, even if there was, I’d be too embarrassed to use it.”
I’m sure we would’ve used it this time.
Since we need to go higher.
“Wait, do we have to wait like this every time we ride a ride? That’s terrible.”
“I bought a pass, so it’s okay!”
“A pass?”
“Capitalism makes anything possible. With this, you can skip the line and go straight in.”
“Isn’t that expensive?”
“I have a bit of money.”
Ah, right, of course.
“You lucky jerk.”
“I bought it for you, how could you say that?”
The truth of that statement was solid, leaving me with nothing in response.
We had an absolute blast. We had lunch at a restaurant inside the amusement park and rode all sorts of attractions.
Honestly, at first, I thought, what’s fun about this? But once I started riding the rides, I found them so enjoyable I almost forgot the purpose for a moment. I liked the rides with just the right speed.
However, not all of them were fun. Things like roller coasters, Vikings, the drop tower, and double launch spins were terrifying. Is this an amusement ride? More like torture devices.
“…Ah, it’s not scary!”
“I didn’t expect you’d be that scared.”
After Muk Ha-neul rode the roller coaster for the first time, all the things she suggested afterward, saying they weren’t that scary, were only those kinds of rides. My resentment toward Muk Ha-neul grew.
I scream too, hilariously, in embarrassment. I screamed like a girl, “Aaaah!” and afterward, everyone was staring at me. My eyes were slightly teary, and my legs were shaking as if I was about to pee. Thank goodness I didn’t actually embarrass myself.
“I’m never riding that again.”
“It was fun, though.”
“It’s not fun!”
After exploring some rides, it was time, so this time Muk Ha-neul led me toward the zoo. This place was incredibly crowded as well, but fortunately, they said we could also pass through using the fast pass.
Unlike the rides that had been torture for about half of the experience, this was enjoyable. It was just about viewing the animals, so there was nothing difficult.
I couldn’t read the animals’ expressions, but some looked happy and some bored. Even though it was forced, if they merely sat there and sold themselves, they wouldn’t have to worry about starving or getting hunted for life. Are these kids happy?
I glanced at Muk Ha-neul for a moment. She was completely immersed in taking pictures of the pandas, not paying me any mind at all. In this regard, you are certainly a girl. You remember the names of all the pandas even when they all look the same.
“Do you think they are happy?”
“Well, I wonder? Pandas are probably happy, right? I don’t know about other animals.”
“What makes pandas different?”
“They’re probably the ones that would have gone extinct without humans. They seem to have survived thanks to being cute? They are alive when they were originally meant to die, and now they live without any worries.”
That sounds… miserable. The idea of beings that were meant to disappear surviving simply because of their cute appearance feels unsettlingly like my own story. While I was watching the pandas, one of them made eye contact with me. It seemed like it was smiling at me. Then it started munching on bamboo again.
“Let’s go see the next one.”
“Huh? Can’t we stay a bit longer?”
“I don’t like them.”
Even if the pandas might be happy, their foolishness of simply sitting around and munching on bamboo was unpleasant. Happy in captivity? That must be nice. It may very well be happy.
But I’m different from them.
Because today, I’ll fly the highest.
…And then fall the fastest.
With Muk Ha-neul.
