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The alarm rings, marking the time as 6.30am.
It's rare that Baekhyun wakes up early other than for school. Usually, on a weekend like this, he will not wake up so early, let alone set an alarm. Yet he opens his eyes, forces himself up. His hand finds his phone, his thumb sliding on the screen to turn off the goddamn alarm. Yawning, he leaves the bed to get ready. Brushing his teeth, showering, deciding on a t-shirt with stripe motives over ripped jeans, complete with dark jacket and sneakers. Satisfied with his look, Baekhyun heads out of the house, taking the train to their promised meeting point.
"Baekhyun-ah! Here!"
Baekhyun searches the source of the voice calling his name. He spots one member of their Chingu Line, Jongdae, clad in a comfy white hoodie and blue jeans, waving excitedly at him and approaches.
Today is special. Chingu Line, the so-called circle consisting of him, Chanyeol, Jongdae, and Kyungsoo, are going out to an amusement park.
"Took you long enough, Baekhyun-ah. Did you get lost in the road of life?" Jongdae teases.
"That's lame," Baekhyun elbows Jongdae, recognizing that Naruto reference. Jongdae groans when his side gets hit, elbowing Baekhyun in return.
"Where's Yeol and Soo?" asks Baekhyun, eyes sweeping the area around them. There are people, but no one he recognizes besides Jongdae.
Jongdae shrugs, "Dunno, I'm the first one here." He notices an empty bench nearby and points, "Let's sit and wait, they should pop up soon."
Jongdae stares at his watch while slurping on a cup of iced americano. Baekhyun yawns, leaning on Jongdae's shoulder, still groggy from lack of sleep. He wonders where Jongdae gets his coffee from, he can use some dose of caffeine to wake him up. "Dae, can I have some coffee? I feel so sleepy I can die."
Jongdae turns and offers his coffee cup, which Baekhyun takes with glee. He studies Baekhyun's face, noticing the dark circles under his slightly red eyes, frowning, "You do look like a zombie. Don't tell me you stay up again last night?"
Baekhyun eagerly sips the cold coffee, letting the caffeine seeps into his system, refreshing him. "Yeah, Yeol, Sehun, and Zitao invited me to play squad in PUBG, and we ended up playing until like... 2am?" Baekhyun yawns again.
"Well, you can nap first while we wait for Chanyeol and Kyungsoo". Jongdae shifts, giving Baekhyun a more comfortable position to lean on.
"Speaking of the devil, where the heck are those two idiots? Asking us to come so early.. but I can't even see their noses..." Sudden realization forms in Baekhyun's mind and he gasps, looking at Jongdae, "Don't tell me Yeol overslept."
"Gimme a moment, let me call him," Jongdae offers, taking out his phone.
Baekhyun opens his own phone and texts furiously in their Chingu Line group chat,
Baekhyun
WE ARE HEREEE
WHERE ARE YOU GUYSSSS
He adds a bunch of angry stickers.
Baekhyun looks up from his phone seeing Jongdae cutely taps his foot on the floor, waiting for the call to be picked up.
The call connects. "Morning..." a deep, familiar voice that is definitely Chanyeol's replies.
"Chanyeol ahhh.. We are here already, where are youuu?" Jongdae whines. He puts the call into loudspeaker mode. Baekhyun tilts his head closer to listen.
"Uhh sorry guyss.. something bad happened," Chanyeol adds, hesitation apparent in his voice.
The look at Jongdae's face turns into worry, "Something bad happened?"
"I got stomach flu."
"What?" Baek yelps, "Ya, Park Chanyeol, did you eat expired food last night?"
They can hear Chanyeol shrug from the other end, "I don't remember.."
"Okay so basically you can't come today?" Jongdae, confirming.
"Yeah guys, sorryyy," Chanyeol's baritone voice sounds apologetic, "and I was really looking forward to it too..."
Jongdae replies, "It's alright. We can still go together next time. You rest first and get well okay?"
"Mm-hmm. You guys just go ahead without me," says Chanyeol.
"Alright then."
"Bye Chanyeol, get well soon." Chanyeol hangs up the call.
Baekhyun's attention is back on his phone and apparently there are new messages in their group chat.
Kyungsoo
sorry guys, I can't come.
my mom asks me for errand and I can't say no.
Baekhyun types a reply.
Baekhyun
yeol can't come too >ㅅ<
what the hell, you two
we are not complete without you
Kyungsoo
just go play with jongdae
Baekhyun
just the two of us? no fun
Jongdae raised his eyebrows, "No fun? Whyyyyy," he whines.
Kyungsoo
why not?
since you guys are already there
Baekhyun throws a look at Jongdae, a bit sulking, "So... what now? They ditch us."
The noise around them gradually becomes louder. Baekhyun notices that the ticket booth is opening and people around them start to form a queue. Jongdae grins, "Since we are here already, let's just have fun without them, shall we?" He tugs on Baekhyun's wrist, pulling him to join the queue. Baekhyun is a bit startled since usually, Jongdae doesn't initiate things.
Oh well, let's just go have some fun.
--
Baekhyun, Chanyeol, Kyungsoo, and Jongdae have been inseparable since they met on the first day of high school several weeks ago. When the four of them are together, Chanyeol and he are the loud ones. Baekhyun converses with Chanyeol a lot, jumping from one topic to the other. In many aspects, they are similar to each other. Kyungsoo though is very different, deadpan serious and can be savage occasionally. Jongdae usually doesn't draw attention to himself. He tags along, observes, responds - usually with his loud distinctive laughs. Honestly, Baekhyun is not extremely close with Jongdae compared to Chanyeol, but he likes having Jongdae around. Baekhyun likes talking and Jongdae always listens. Not to mention, Jongdae is very diligent and always taking notes in class, which Baekhyun often borrows for revision.
It's always the four of them or alone. Baekhyun is unsure, how can it be fun when they are not complete as Chingu Line? Today, for the first time, they hang out just the two of them. Baekhyun can't help but curious to learn more about Jongdae when he is not around his 2 other best friends.
One thing he quickly learns, Jongdae is adventurous. While queueing for tickets earlier, he and Jongdae browsed the park website looking at rides they might be interested in. Man, there's a lot of rides his one friend wants to try.
The moment they receive their tickets and step inside, Baekhyun's senses are overwhelmed with the vastness of the amusement park, dubbed to be expansive and unique with numerous rides both indoor and outdoor. It is their first time here, so he absorbs everything around him, looking at the signages for direction.
"Uwaaa!" Jongdae points at a big sphinx statue on one side, "That's Pharaoh's Fury, I want to try that!"
They walk inside the ride, passing through the corridor decorated with Egyptian statues and pillars, leading to a waiting area. The cart arrives in front of them, uniquely shaped like a jeep. Jongdae, the daring man he is, jumps in the very front seat. Baekhyun watches in horror. He is SO not going to sit right in front.
Jongdae pats the seat next to him, "Baekhyun-ah, come on!" pouting and raising his eyebrows. Jongdae's expression looks like the "<_>" emoji he always uses in chats.
Baekhyun may be one of the top students in his class, often being called a genius, acing his test despite only cramming the night before. But there are things he cannot handle. One of it: Jongdae making that "<_>" face.
Just by that one gesture that he hates (and loves), it makes Jongdae looks million times cuter and makes it million times harder for Baekhyun to say no. He sighs, plops on the seat beside his friend and puts the safety on, bracing himself for whatever is to come.
They scream and exclaim as the cart-jeep goes down the track inside the tunnels. It feels like they are on an expedition exploring an ancient Egyptian ruin. The cart-jeep turns inside Egyptian styled rooms filled with statues, mummies, hieroglyphs, sphinxes and colored lights in high speed. Surprisingly, the ride isn't that bad.
They hear cheering from outside the building as they exit the ride. "Let's go outside!" Jongdae cheerfully tugs on Baekhyun's jacket sleeve and pulls Baekhyun beside him, breaking through the crowd. Baekhyun can feel the rush of wind caressing his face and messing his hair as he and Jongdae nearing the door.
Once outside, they found themselves on the bridge leading to a separate island. There is a big white castle greeting them as they walk closer and more rides can be seen left and right. He finds the weather very nice today, warm but not too hot. The sky is blue and the sun shining bright, several clouds spotted in the sky.
Jongdae finds a directory map, pondering and tracing routes with his finger. Baekhyun leans in, trying to guess where Jongdae wants to go. "What do you want to ride?"
"Over here is Gyro Spin, it seems interesting," Jongdae points, "Atlantis is over here," he shifts his finger to another position, "Oh! This one is Gyro Drop, I really want to try this."
They head to the Gyro Spin first, because the queue is not that long. Baekhyun's eyes widen in shock when he realizes what Gyro Spin is. It's a big circle thing where people sit around it. The circle spins horizontally from one end to another, not straight from point A to B, but on a track curved downwards like those slopes used for skateboarding.
Jongdae seems to enjoys it, exclaiming loud and all smiley. On the other hand, Baekhyun feels dizzy, like the entire world is spinning afterward. He has to cling on the barricade railing when they exit the ride to prevent himself from collapsing.
Jongdae raises his eyebrows in concern, "Baek, you okay?" Baekhyun nods weakly, taking in deep breaths, "Just a bit dizzy."
"Wait here, I'll be back". Baekhyun nods, closing his eyes while leaning on the railing, trying to calm the dizziness. Jongdae darts to the nearest vending machine and back with 2 bottles of water in his hand. He passes one to Baekhyun, who immediately gulps it down. He feels better afterward.
"Where shall we go next?" asks Baekhyun.
Jongdae observes the surroundings. "I want to ride Atlantis but let's go to the Gyro Drop since it's nearer."
They walk approaching a very tall tower. Baekhyun looks up, a writing "Gyro Drop" is written on the tower. He gulps.
Baekhyun puts "be brave, be humble" as his life motto, always trying to live fearlessly. But there are things he cannot handle, like heights. He never tells a soul about this fear, save from his family. Baekhyun wants to be seen as someone reliable, bright and brave among his friends, so he usually refrains from revealing his fear and weaknesses. Now he regrets it.
His breath is getting shaky as he approaches the ride. Jongdae must have heard his heavy breathing because he keeps glancing at Baekhyun. "You know, we can go back and rest if you are still dizzy from earlier," Jongdae suggests.
Baekhyun shakes his head, putting up a brave front, "Nah, I'm okay. I can do this." He doesn't want to disappoint the super-excited-to-the-point-of-beaming Jongdae beside him. Anyway, Baekhyun notices, the ride goes pretty fast. People sit around a circle, which spins as the circle goes higher until it reaches the top. Then the circle thing goes down very fast. I can certainly survive that if I close my eyes, Baekhyun thinks.
When it's their turn, Baekhun sits besides Jongdae, putting on the safety. He immediately closes his eyes when he hears the engine hums, he can feel the seat turning clockwise and air pressure building under his shoes. As they go higher, he feels rush of wind on his face, can hear Jongdae laughs and shout "Woooohhhhh" with his loud voice. Then finally, they stop.
"Baek, open your eyes! It's pretty!" Baekhyun slowly flutters his eyes open and trying not to look down. They are so high up, he can see the skyscraper buildings around him, the lake that surrounds this Magic Island, the bird's eye view of Seoul. Jongdae is right, the view is so beautiful.
Just a second after, Baekhyun feels as if his heart leaps out from his mouth the moment he, Jongdae and the rest of the riders are suddenly dropped down as if free falling at 100km per hour. He screams and cusses. Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, am I going to die?? Baekhyun panics, shutting his eyes. His hand founds Jongdae's and he squeezes it tightly. Within seconds, they are back to the ground again. Baekhyun takes time to compose himself before taking off the safety and leaping from his seat.
"Are you alright?" Jongdae looks are filled with concern.
"I'm not riding this one again, ever," Baekhyun grunts as they leave the ride.
They walk past a food stall, a smell of cooked corn is in the air. "Want one?" Jongdae asks, tilting his head towards Baekhyun. Baekhyun nods, he suddenly feels hungry. They order grilled corn on the cob each, munching on the corn while strolling, exploring the park. Baekhyun notices that Jongdae makes very cute expression whenever he chews.
Finished with the corn, Jongdae pulls him to another queue, shorter this time, which Baekhyun later realizes is leading into a haunted house. He takes a deep breath before stepping inside. He has been to one before back when he was middle school and it was not a pleasant experience. He is terrible with jumpscares. Unsure about this haunted house, he shifts a bit closer to Jongdae as they walk the dark corridor.
"Scared?" he can hear Jongdae smirks.
"No, no," Baekhyun denies, "If a ghost dares to show in front of me, I will punch them," trying to act brave.
Jongdae chuckles. Baekhyun laughs nervously, Oh great Baekhyun, now you can blabber like that but how will you react if you really see a ghost inside?
He finds themselves in a room with walls made from black bricks, very dimly lit only from a fake candle hanging on the wall, creepy background music can be heard. They continue walking as there are a group of visitors behind them. Baekhyun hates that they are positioned in front of this batch of visitors, meaning that whatever jumpscares are coming, he and Jongdae are going to get it first. There is a turn ahead of the corridor. Baekhyun yelps when something touches his cheeks. Apparently, it is just a long spiderweb hanging from the ceiling. Jongdae laughs and Baekhyun frowns, lightly smacking him.
The door on the side suddenly opens, revealing a scare actor dressed in white with long messy hair. Baekhyun screams and clings on Jongdae. The 'ghost' goes back inside. Feeling anxious, Baekhyun drags Jongdae, walking faster passing the area.
They get in another room, filled with stacks of dusty crates here and there - a storage room probably. Baekhyun eyes cautiously as they walk on a path between the crates. Just before they enter another room, another 'ghost' appears from the side behind one stack of crates when he least expected it. Baekhyun screams again, moving backward bumping into Jongdae. Jongdae pulls him away from the ghost into another corridor. This time, Baekhyun feels a tug on his foot, making him shriek and jumps, eyes searching who pulled the prank on him, finding a pale white hand on the floor which pulls on his foot earlier slowly returns to its original position, hidden. Jongdae laughs but Baekhyun is not amused. They keep walking and he can see the light coming from outside. Finally, they are done with the haunted house.
"If a ghost dares to show in front of me, I will punch them," Jongdae imitates Baekhyun's statement earlier, which Baekhyun replies with a death glare.
"Stop teasing me!!" Baekhyun whines, swatting Jongdae's shoulder.
"Alright, alright," Jongdae raises his hands in resignation.
Baekhyun feels his stomach rumbles and looks at his watch. No wonder, it is almost 1pm. "I'm hungry, let's find something to eat."
Baekhyun knows a lot of things from general knowledge, random trivia, jokes to useless memes. But there are things his mind cannot comprehend, like Jongdae's appetite.
The four of them spend a lot on food whenever they hang out. Baekhyun likes many kinds of food and is not picky except cucumber, he hates it with a passion. He always thinks he eats a lot. He has seen how much Chanyeol can take - definitely much more than Baekhyun, perfectly understandable because Chanyeol has a much taller body and did a lot of physical exercises. Kyungsoo doesn't eat that much but he appreciates good food. Now alone with Jongdae, he finally notices how much food this lean man can actually take.
After the corn they had before haunted house earlier, Jongdae has stopped at almost every food stall they pass trying churros, corn dogs, curly fries, and ice cream. Baekhyun shakes his head, "Why not we go inside and find something heavy for lunch?"
The food area is flooded with people as it is lunch hour. They managed to find a seat and a waiter approaches, passing them a menu. Skimming the menu, Baekhyun decides on a burger and Jongdae orders a pasta, taking coke as drinks. As the restaurant is on-peak period, the staff tells that they have to wait for quite a while.
Bored, Baekhyun takes out his phone and clicks on the Twitter icon. He scrolls and stops when he sees a funny meme post which makes him laughs.
"What is it?" Jongdae leans over, curious. Baekhyun passes his phone to Jongdae, who takes it and also chuckles upon seeing the image.
Jongdae returns Baekhyun's phone, "It's funny. Where is this one from?"
"Twitter," Baekhyun replies nonchalantly. Jongdae replies with a simple, "Oh."
Baekhyun looks up to Jongdae, confused, "Wait, Dae, you are on Twitter?" Baekhyun asks. Which high school student nowadays are not on Twitter?
Jongdae shakes his head, "Nah, social media is not for me."
Baekhyun is in shock. "Wait, what? You are the first person our age I know who doesn't have a social media account. Why not?" Baekhyun sips on his coke but keeps his eyes on Jongdae.
Jongdae shrugs, fidgeting with his fingers, "It feels like a pressure," he explains, "When you have an account, you are supposed to post something every now and then. I don't always know what to post and I don't like if it becomes a chore."
Baekhyun ponders, "You have a point". Deep inside, he is disappointed though as Baekhyun initially plans to find Jongdae's Twitter and stalk his tweets, getting more insight into what he thinks, likes, etc.
Well, he can find out directly from the person himself, he thinks as he puts his phone on the table.
---
"Why are we queueing here? I thought this ride is for kids?"
Baekhyun frowns, "Why not? Adults can ride carousel too," Baekhyun points at several tall people amongst the children, obviously adults, riding white horses going up and down on the ride called Camelot Carousel. "And besides, you," he points at Jongdae, "are definitely still a kid at heart, running like Naruto and liking Disney movies."
"Right back at you," Jongdae smirks, "You and your obsession with Pokemons?"
Baekhyun tries to ignore the creeping embarrassment, "Why not? They are cute!" he shoots back, pouting, "Besides, so far, all we have been taking are the rides you want. I want to ride something too."
Jongdae ends up going on the ride as well, climbing on the white horse besides Baekhyun. The engine hums, the ride starts turning. Music that reminds him of those tunes from the music box can be heard filling the atmosphere. The horses go up and down in a certain beat pattern, which Baekhyun finds therapeutic.
This carousel is pretty and the lighting here is nice too. Baekhyun takes out his phone, trying to take a perfect selfie. Jongdae notices what Baekhyun is doing and secretly craning his neck out, photobombing every time Baekhyun presses the shutter button. Annoyed, Baekhyun smacks him and Jongdae dodges, giggling.
They head to Bumper Car ride next. Baekhyun recently learns driving, it helps with his skill on this ride. He turns the steering wheel, driving around the area and then purposely bumping into Jongdae's car when he is off guard, making the other yells. Jongdae definitely doesn't want to lose either. He takes a sharp turn and bangs into Baekhyun's car, making them bounce on their seat from the impact. Baekhyun laughs, reversing and trying to escape from Jongdae's hot pursuit. It is really fun.
People say time passes quickly when you are having fun. Hours pass, the sky turns from blue into a darker shade of navy. The lights from various rides become more prominent as the day greets dusk. There is an announcement board as they walk past and Baekhyun reads, "The notice said that there will be a parade here tonight." Jongdae is excited, "Let's stay and watch".
Some indoor lights in the park are dimmed, an announcement can be heard, signaling that the parade is about to start. Mascots, carriages and big floats pass by one by one inside the barricaded area. There is one float decorated with flower wreaths and greeneries resembling a garden, with people wearing flower crowns and flower decorated outfit waving from the top of it. One float has Egyptian hieroglyphs written all over, a sphinx replica and pyramid on top of it with people wearing wig and costumes as if coming from the ancient Egyptian era. Another float with a shiny surface and fairy lights passed. People, male and female, dressed in shiny fabrics and glowing LED lights dancing along to the music. Baekhyun is impressed. He takes out his phone to snap some moments, saving them in his memory.
He never knew that hanging out just the two of them will give him this much fun. He can't take his eyes off Jongdae beside him, his cheekbones prominent, eyes sparkling and lips curl forming a happy smile. Seeing Jongdae all happy and smiling like a little child makes him feel warm and fuzzy inside.
"So beautiful, right Baek?" Jongdae suddenly turns, facing him.
Baekhyun stares for a while, at loss of words and looks away, embarrassed. He can hear Jongdae chuckles.
Jongdae looks up and points at big balloons decorated with LED lights on the ceiling, "Let's ride that one!!"
"Wait. Dae, seriously? Isn't that too high?" Baekhyun worries.
"Since we are already here, let's just gooo!"
The ride that Jongdae points, Aeronauts Balloon Ride, is shaped like hot air balloon suspended to a track on the ceiling. It has something like wicker basket attached underneath it for up to 6 people to stand inside. Baekhyun traces the track of the ride with his eyes, and he groans inside when he realizes that the balloon ride goes around the park. It's going to be a long ride, not a short one like Gyro Drop earlier. His heart beats faster and faster as the crowd in front of them getting lesser and lesser, group by group hopping inside the ride. His brain tells him to not to proceed, to back away, but his heart feels bad leaving Jongdae alone.
It's their turn. Jongdae steps inside with no hesitation, gesturing to Baekhyun to go in too. Baekhyun holds the side of the wicker basket, tentatively takes a step inside. He can feel the basket floor vibrates a bit under his weight. Oh no. He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, calming himself. The vibration stops. Ok good, he puts his other leg inside quickly. The sudden movement makes the basket shakes slightly.
If this thing keeps swinging, can it last through the ride? Are we too heavy? How if we both fall down and die? Millions of questions and worries run in his head. "Is this safe?" he doesn't realize he voices his thoughts aloud.
The staff crew who is attending to them replies, "Don't worry sir, this is safe. This ride is maintained regularly. Many people ride this every day and there are no casualties so far." The staff closes the door and secures the latches. This doesn't convince Baekhyun though. They are inside this ride, with only big balloon above their heads and basket holding them up in the air.
Their hot air balloon slowly takes off from the balcony, raising up to the ceiling, leaving the comfort of the ground. The staff crew, the other visitors, the other rides, everything is getting smaller and smaller in his sight. No no no!! Baekhyun is not ready. Oh my God. We are so high up. It's scary.
"Baekhyun, you okay?" he can hear Jongdae's voice, filled with concern.
He is definitely not okay. Baekhyun can't think, can't relax, his heartbeat hammers like crazy, it's getting hard to breathe, his body starts trembling and he feels tears about to leak out of his eyes. He wants to be anywhere else but here.
"Baekhyun, Baekhyun, calm down. Look at me," Jongdae cups both sides of Baekhyun's cheeks, making Baekhyun look at him instead. "Easy, easy. I'm here," he says very gently, looking at him straight in the eye, giving the most comforting smile Baekhyun has ever seen. Baekhyun can no longer see the surroundings with his sight focused on Jongdae like this, so he starts to relax, his breaths slowing. Seconds pass and Baekhyun feels the noise around them gradually fading into the background as he takes in Jongdae's concerned eyes, basking in warmth and comfort.
In the past few weeks, Baekhyun thought he knows Jongdae: his classmate who is kind and helpful, also a friend of Chanyeol and Kyungsoo. However, spending the day with Jongdae uncovers many different sides of him Baekhyun has never seen before when they are in school. The dauntless and adventurous side. The playful and mischievous side. His gentle, caring side that is always there. All his warmth and charms are in the full force today, giving Baekhyun feelings he never experienced before, making his heart flutters in admiration. He cannot control his growing feelings towards the one man smiling in front of him.
Jongdae's hands leave his cheeks, now lightly rubbing Baekhyun's shoulder over and over in an attempt to ease him. Their faces are so close together. For the first time, Baekhyun pays attention to the beauty marks on Jongdae's face, crescents that his eyes form when he smiles, his dimple, envying his smooth complexion and very long eyelashes which curve beautifully upwards. His gaze travels down to Jongdae's nose, down to his lips, curling like a cat's, wondering how it's like to kiss it.
Baekhyun feels his cheek heats up when the thought passes his mind, making his heart beats faster. Embarrassed, he parts away from Jongdae, ruffling his hair with his hand. "Sorry for freaking out. I should have told you that I am afraid of heights."
Jongdae shakes his head slightly. "No, it's my fault too. I'm sorry for not noticing during the Gyro Drop. If I know, I won't ask you to go up here." He leans to the side, placing his chin on top of the wicker basket. "I'm curious how the park looks like from above," he says softly.
Baekhyun hums, "By the way, I never know you are so brave? You can take rides easily, you are not afraid of heights, you don't even scream when ghosts ambush us in the haunted house.. Kim Jongdae, tell me, is there even anything you are afraid of?"
"God?" Jongdae turns to him and answers almost immediately, sending them both chuckling. Jongdae opens his mouth like he wants to say something at the tip of his tongue. Baekhyun waits, looking at him, but he wavers and turn back, looking down at the scenery.
Baekhyun braves himself to shift closer to the edge and peeks down, hands tightly gripping the safety ropes around the basket. His sight is greeted with colorful glowing lights from the various rides underneath them. It scares him to look down from such height, but with Jongdae, he feels comfortable, he feels safer. The view is breathtaking.
--
Baekhyun is glad that his feet reunite with the ground again, but his legs feel like jelly and his entire body shivers the moment they landed. Jongdae manages to catch him, helping him to a bench at the corner. They sit there, giving Baekhyun time to calm himself.
"Thanks for today," Jongdae says, "I had a lot of fun".
"You're welcome and thank you," replies Baekhyun, "... for earlier. I was so freaking scared up there."
"But you made it," Jongdae smiles encouragingly, "Sorry for being selfish and making you ride with me."
"It is bearable because you are there for me," murmurs Baekhyun.
Jongdae turns to face him, head tilted to one side, his eyebrows raised as if not sure he heard things properly. Their faces are once again so close to each other. Jongdae's thin lips are parted and inviting, Baekhyun suddenly has the urge to kiss him, he can't hold it anymore. He leans in and meets that lips with his own. His lips are soft and a bit chapped, but it feels warm just like Jongdae.
Baekhyun waits, one second, two seconds, anticipating in case Jongdae pushes him away. But he doesn't. Baekhyun gathers his courage and adjusts his position, pushing forward a bit more, kissing deeper. Jongdae welcomes him, parting his mouth slightly wider. He swears he hears Jongdae moans softly.
He slowly pulls back to catch his breath, feeling Jongdae's warm breath against his face. "What was that?" Jongdae blinks, confusion written all over his face that is now turning slightly pink.
Baekhyun grins sheepishly, he blurts out without thinking, "You are so adorable I can't help falling for you." When he realizes what he just said, Baekhyun's eye widens, feeling his cheeks flush and yelps, covering his face with his hand in embarrassment. "My god, I'm so cheesy, I hate myself," he groans. Jongdae doesn't say anything in return and Baekhyun doesn't dare to look up and face him.
After some awkward moments of silence that Baekhyun feels like forever, Jongdae clears his throat, "You know, I totally don't mind if we do this again, hanging out just the two of us," he pauses, picking his words, "I like it."
Baekhyun's mind goes blank. I like it, as in... he likes the hangout part? The amusement park rides? Or does it mean... Jongdae likes him? Baekhyun laughs nervously, "Today feels awfully like a date, doesn't it?"
Jongdae gets the idea and chuckles, "Yes, because it is our first date." I like it refers to the last option then.
Baekhyun looks up to meet his eyes, warm and loving. "So, today is our first date then?" Baekhyun just wants to make sure. Jongdae nods, giving a slight smile, the apple of his cheeks are turning pink and he absentmindedly rubs the back of his ear. Looking at Jongdae being all shy like this makes Baekhyun grins.
"Can I hold your hand?"
Jongdae lifts his right hand, hanging in the air for a while tentatively before brushing it lightly against Baekhyun's, which he gladly takes in and hold tight.
-- Bonus Scene --
Not far from the bench, two shadows looming behind a big decorated plastic tree, peeking and grinning in delight. Chanyeol and Kyungsoo throw knowing looks at each other upon the sight of Baekhyun and Jongdae holding hands.
"Mission accomplished!" Chanyeol raises his fist in celebration. "I'm so happy for Dae. Finally. He has been into Baek since we first met, but look at him, all shy. I feel bad for lying, but he does need a bit of push," Chanyeol coos, "Oh god, Soo, they are so cute together".
"Shhh be quiet Yeol, they will notice us if you are too loud."