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Dan Heng sat on the swings quietly.
He sighed, fidgeting with the rustic chains. School was already over, which means it was time to go home. But with his parents still stuck at work, that meant his older sister should be on her way to come pick him up.
“How long are we gonna wait for Lingsha?” A loud voice cried out, gaining his attention.
Dan Heng turned his head to face the pink-haired girl who stood atop the base of the swings, moving her body back and forth in rhythm.
“Dunno,” He murmured with a shrug. “And stop swinging so much, or you’ll get hurt!”
He was unfortunately rewarded by one of her cheerful smiles. “I know, I know~” March drawled out, slowing down her speed and then flashing him a raspberry in return.
Dan Heng rolled his eyes at her silly behavior.
To no one’s surprise, he was stuck with this goofball, who was ironically his classmate and next-door neighbor.
He shifted his gaze to the right, spotting the large clock nearby.
Pushing the bridge of his glasses, he took a moment to read the time carefully. 2: 13 pm.
Dan Heng groaned, lowering his head as time continued to tick away.
It’s only been ten minutes since their teacher dismissed their class, but even now, they remained where they were—loitering around at the schoolyard playground (and, to Miss Yukong’s recommendation, to be as close as possible near the faculty window in case they needed anything).
Even if they both tried walking home together, Dan Heng was certain that he’d get in trouble for sure, especially if it involved March, whom his family made it their duty to look after while her own family worked overseas.
The best (and unfortunate) option was to wait until Jiejie arrived.
“Heyyy thereee!”
Both Dan Heng and March turned their attention to where the voice was coming from. It wasn’t long until they registered two small shadows fast-approaching them.
“Hellooo!” March waved back, just as excitedly. She jumped out of her swing, nearly tripping over. “Ahh!”
Dan Heng caught this and immediately left his swing to reach her. Thankfully, he made it in time as he managed to save the idiot from her fall.
“March, you gotta be more careful!” He scolded, removing his hand from her wrist as he shot her a stern look.
March blinked and then smiled away, sticking out her tongue. “Whoopies!”
Dan Heng rolled his eyes. Honestly, this idiot…
“Seriously, if you get hurt, I’m gonna be in trouble—”
“Whatcha two doing?”
Dan Heng and March looked up again, surprised to see that the voice from earlier belonged to a boy around their age.
“Are you Caelus?” March blurted out, and to her shock, the boy nodded eagerly.
“Yup, that’s me!” Caelus greeted, giving her a thumbs up. “Hey, so you do know me!”
“Well, duh! Of course, I do!” March confirmed, giggling as she jumped to her feet. “We’re classmates!”
Behind her, Dan Heng shot her a weird look. He sighed, crossing his arms as he gave the new boy a quick once-over.
Caelus laughed. “Funny, I don’t remember a pretty girl like you at all.”
“I’m Dan Heng, and she’s March Seventh,” Dan Heng answered nonchalantly as he stepped forward, naturally acting as a buffer between March and Caelus.
Caelus whistled, then snapped his fingers. “Wait, hang on! Are the two of you the ones that live next door to each other?” He brought it up, genuinely curious.
March beamed, visibly shaking with joy as she opened her mouth wide, showing a glimpse of her missing front tooth. “Uh-huh!”
Caelus chuckled at her enthusiasm. “Sure must be nice to have someone with you twenty-four seven!”
“Geez, Cal! You have me, you know!” Another voice joined in, revealing the small girl hiding behind Caelus.
March shifted over and, as she met the new girl’s gaze, immediately gave her a friendly wave. “Hey there!”
“This is Stelle, my big sis.” Caelus introduced, pulling his sister from his back. “Big sis, this is March and Dan Heng.”
“Hey, hey!”
“Hello.”
Stelle nodded back, keeping a stoic face. “Hey, back.”
“Sorry about her; she can be a bit of a blank slate,” Caelus commented, which earned him a rough shove on the elbow.
March giggled. “That’s alright! The more friends, the merrier!” March rejoiced, which caused Caelus to agree instantly and Stelle to blush at the implication.
“Wow, we’re friends now? Sweet!”
“...Friends sound nice.”
While March entertained her two new friends, Dan Heng remained in the background, quietly watching the trio interact in front of him. For one thing, he stayed in his personal space, exactly how he wanted it to be…for a good few minutes.
Alas, he couldn’t help but feel like something wasn’t right.
Somehow, they found themselves meeting the infamous twins, the same troublemakers he’d heard rumors about from his other classmates, and even from their homeroom teacher, Miss Yukong. Apparently, the brother and sister duo were notorious for their pranks and over-the-top games.
And by sheer luck, March managed to worm her way through and befriended them.
Then there was the issue with Caelus getting a little too friendly with her…
Dan Heng grumbled, trying hard not to give in to his inner voice. Darn it, if only Jiejie had arrived sooner and picked them up, then none of this would’ve ever happened!
He hated to admit it, but he was also secretly envious of how easily sociable March was with other people. In just a few seconds, she managed to make friends with their new classmates! Still, knowing this bothered him.
March was a naive nine-year-old, and so, of course, Dan Heng personally made it his responsibility to look out for her.
Caelus and Stelle weren’t exactly strangers.
They were classmates, sure, but at the same time, they barely knew anything about one another.
“Hey, I know! Why don’t we play a game?”
Hearing this, Dan Heng felt shivers down his spine. Oh no, not again.
The very thought of having to play a game catered by March triggered something in Dan Heng, forcing him to recall an unfortunate incident not too long ago…something which involved a fake wedding of some sort.
The very thought of March suggesting that very same game to the twins, and possibly Caelus agreeing to play the part of her groom…well, let’s just say that Dan Heng saw and burned instant red.
There’s no way I’m going to let that happen!
“What are you guys doing?” Dan Heng spoke up, forcing himself to join the conversation.
March looked over, perking up instantly once she registered his presence. “Dan Heng, you came just in time!” She cried with a high-pitched squeal. “Check it, we’re gonna be playing damsel in distress!”
Dan Heng stopped in his tracks, brows furrowing hard. “What’s that?”
Hands on her hips, March proceeded to puff her chest. “It’s simple, really!” She began with her head held high. She pointed to the tall, elevated portion of the playground with the spiral slide attached. “Whoever is the damsel will be waiting over there at the top of the tallest tower.” Then she moved her pointed finger to the base of the slide and the rubbery ground. “There’s gonna be a dragon who’ll be guarding the damsel, and then knights that will be saving the damsel.”
Dan Heng blinked.
Even Caelus and Stelle exchanged weird looks.
Seeing this, Dan Heng secretly felt bad for them.
“What will be the objective of the whole game?” He asked curiously.
“Well, whoever saves the damsel wins the game!” March finished, smiling.
Dan Heng blinked, unamused. “That’s it?”
“Uh, yeah…I guess,” Caelus admitted, smiling nervously as he scratched his head. “Unless you’ve got something else in mind?”
Dan Heng thought hard. “Why don’t we pick a different game like hopscotch?”
“But that's boring!” March whined, much to Dan Heng’s dismay.
Then an idea struck her.
Right away, Dan Heng watched as a wicked smile appeared on March’s face.
He gulped, slowly backing away.
For as long as he could remember, March was always up to no good. First, that stupid wedding, and now this…
Suddenly, they locked eyes.
There it was, that twinkle in her big, pink-blue eyes.
March had an idea.
The most ridiculous idea.
And no matter what, Dan Heng knew that he was going to be forced into her bidding.
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Somehow, Dan Heng underestimated her, as it seemed that this wasn’t the worst thing he had in mind.
But who could blame him, knowing March and her history of ridiculous games?
When it wasn’t with him or his sisters, Dan Heng felt instant pity (and slightly envious) for any poor souls that March would drag into one of her silly games.
And yet, that seems to be the case.
“Remind me why I’m the damsel?”
March looked up and then smiled. “Because you whine too much!”
Dan Heng shot her a glare. “What did you say?”
March urged him over to a spot on the tower, ignoring his protests. “See, you just did it! So, you’re perfect!” She joked, followed by a wink. “And anyway, you don’t have to do so much!”
Dan Heng raised an eyebrow, still clearly peeved by her decision.
“All you hafta do is stay up here on the slide tower, be dramatic and pretty, and then wait until your dashing knight comes to save you!”
Dan Heng blinked. “And who will be the knights?”
“Me!” Caelus cried from the bottom, waving his arms.
“And me!” Stelle chimed in as well.
Dan Heng pressed his lips, then slowly moved his head over to the giggling idiot. “What will you be?”
“I’ll be the big bad dragon!” March revealed, then proceeded to make a loud but adorable growl. “I’ll be the one fighting the knights! And if I win, then I’m gonna gobble you up and make you mine~”
Dan Heng blushed hard at her weird implication.
Huh. For some reason, that kind of outcome didn’t sound too bad at all—
“NOT ON OUR WATCH!” Caelus cried, already getting into his role. He already held up a tree stick that he found nearby, waving it above his head. “DON’T WORRY, PRINCESS! I’LL COME SAVE YOU NO MATTER WHAT!”
“...Yeah, what he said!” Stelle exclaimed as well, retrieving a smaller tree stick from the ground. She moved closer to her younger brother, puffing her chest in an effort to imitate his heroic pose.
Dan Heng stared at the twins blankly, then looked over to March, who seemed to be a little over her head as she cheered the valiant knights that were supposed to ‘kill’ her.
All he could do was sigh and shake his head.
Dear Aeons, what in the world did he get himself into?
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Dan Heng frowned, crossing his arms as he stood alone on the slide tower.
He watched as March climbed down using the climbing wall. Once she had landed on the ground, she was quick to whip her head back up and gave Dan Heng two thumbs up. “All right, we’ll be starting now!” She signaled, waving her arms. “Now, be dramatic and cry for your knights to come save you!”
Dan Heng groaned. As if he could even do that.
“Oh, please save me, anyone…” He said in the most high-pitched (and deadbeat) tone, waving a hand to imitate a handkerchief blowing in the wind. “I’m stuck in this tower…”
“HAVE NO FEAR, DEAR PRINCESS! WE’RE HERE TO SAVE THE DAY!”
“...Yeah, what he said!”
Dan Heng slapped his forehead hard, trying to keep himself from wanting to just slide down and leave them in the dust. At this point, walking home and getting scolded sounds like a much better option than anything.
But March was still here, and there was no way he was leaving her.
Not to those twins, nor Caelus especially.
As he stayed put, curiosity got the better of him as he looked below.
There was March with her arms filled with mini foam balls (is that supposed to be her fireball attacks?) running straight for the twins.
The twins, on the other hand, decided to split up, with Stelle heading for under the slide while Caelus focused his full attention on his enemy.
Dan Heng sighed, arms over the railing as he watched March throwing and then failing to hit Caelus with the foam balls.
It wasn’t long until she ran out of them, and as she gathered her balls quickly, Caelus snuck from behind with his trusty ‘sword’ at the ready.
Dan Heng’s face drained of blood.
“MARCH! WATCH OUT!”
“Huh?”
March whirled just in time and, with a smile, threw all the foam balls she had directly at Caelus.
In an instant, Caelus fell dramatically on the rubbery surface.
“AGHHHH! AVENGE ME, BIG SIS!”
“I’m right here, Cal!”
Stelle came out from hiding, jumping on the slides as she readied herself to face March.
March threw her head back and laughed. She roared (adorably) with all her might, arms flapping wildly as she pretended to ‘fly’ to Stelle. Once the other girl was within range, March proceeded to throw her foam balls again.
“Take that! And that!”
Stelle held her ground, grunting as she applied more pressure on her tree branch against March’s attacks.
For once, Dan Heng found himself immersed in the whole game.
His knees buckled, itching to rush out and help March as she struggled against Stelle’s defense.
He wanted to do something, anything, but alas, he was the damsel, and that meant he was stuck and helpless. He wasn’t supposed to move around lest he might end up completely ruining the immersion of the game.
March would definitely kill me if I didn’t follow her absurd rules.
And so, he did what any damsel in distress would do—with hands over his mouth, Dan Heng yelled at the top of his lungs:
“YOU CAN DO IT, MIGHTY DRAGON!”
He watched as March and Stelle froze in place, completely confused by his yelling.
Dan Heng was quick to hide behind the railing after his face went fully red from his embarrassing action. His heart thumped, knowing how stupid it was and yet…
Did it work? Did it help her?
Curious, Dan Heng poked his head out.
Warmth filled his chest as he caught March laughing and smiling as she ran around the playground with the two tree sticks once owned by the twins.
She did it.
She defeated the knights!
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“Hahaha! Sucks to be you, princess!” March growled loudly, all the while keeping her voice deep as she tried hard to embody her dragon role.
Dan Heng backed away, staring at March in horror (and amusement) as she approached him on all fours.
Dan Heng gulped, and yet, he couldn’t look away as March stared back at him with fierce intensity.
“YOUR KNIGHTS FAILED TO COME SAVE YOU!” March groared, followed by a mix of prideful and hearty laughter. “NOW, I’M HERE TO EAT YOU!”
Hearing this, Dan Heng’s heart skipped a beat.
“Y-you will?”
March nodded, finally getting back to her feet as she wiped her dirty hands on her dress. “That’s right!” She chirped, and for a split second, she was back to her regular self.
Dan Heng tried his best to keep his poker face (despite his glasses lens heating up).
Despite March’s poor attempt to look and sound vicious, she was too darn adorable and, in a way, had already failed to capture the ferocious dragon. Not that Dan Heng would openly admit it, but to his eyes, she looked more like a disgruntled hamster.
Even so, Dan Heng backed away further and, after a few more steps back, found himself pressed against the tall, rubbery wall.
Now here he was, being cornered and about to get ‘eaten’ by the cute ‘dragon’.
“Now it’s just you and me, princess,” March growled with a wicked smile.
Somehow, their current position made his heart beat harder and faster than ever before.
His knees buckled as Dan Heng inhaled a sharp, deep breath.
Surely, this feeling inside him was out of fear and nothing else, right?
All of a sudden, March grabbed his right arm, catching him off guard.
“What are you—”
Dan Heng’s words failed to reach her ears.
Because never in his wildest dreams would March do exactly what he was going to do to him: without warning, she bit his arm hard and then—
“CHOMP, CHOMP, CHOMP! GOBBLE, GOBBLE!” March cried loudly, using her other free hand to imitate a dragon’s mouth. Once she was done, she pushed his bitten arm away and proceeded to rub her belly. “NOW YOU’VE BEEN EATEN AND INSIDE MY TUMMY!”
Wiping her mouth with the back of her right hand, March flashed Dan Heng the biggest smile as if her words weren’t the stuff of nightmares.
And yet, it gave the opposite effect on Dan Heng, who burned up.
He slowly looked down, eyes widening as he found his arm covered with her bites.
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“I WON! GAME’S OVER!”
Dan Heng simply stood, still deeply red in the face. She just bit him (and how many times!?), and now, the game was over!?
“Wait, that’s it!?”
March turned to face him and nodded. “Pretty much!” She confirmed with a thumbs-up. “I mean, there’s not much else after.”
Dan Heng looked at her as if she had magically grown two heads. “So, there’s no happily ever after?”
March stared back in confusion. “What do you mean? The dragon eats the princess and lives happily ever after all by herself! Isn’t that great?”
Even after March’s explanation, Dan Heng’s gut feeling was screaming for him to disagree.
This couldn’t be how the game ends, right?
Thankfully, March noticed his mixed reaction.
With a smile, March stepped forward, taking his hands.
“Okay, okay. How about this? After the mighty dragon defeated the knights, it was the princess who rescued her kingdom by deciding to befriend the enemy. And so, the princess and the almighty dragon became the best of friends”
Dan Heng heard this and snorted. It was ridiculously silly and sappy, but…
“...That sounds a lot better.”
“You don’t like to leave things empty-handed, huh?” March points out, which earned her a pointed look.
“Having the dragon just kill off the knights and the prince sounds pretty redundant, don’t you think?”
“Yeah, I agree,” March admits, then puts on a smile. “So then, the dragon and the princess making a pact should be more exciting, right?”
Dan Heng blinked, stunned by her words.
Once more, March pulled him forth, and together, they climbed a bit over to the railing.
Down below were the twins who acknowledged their presence and their joined hands.
“Dragons won’t eat pretty princesses or dashing knights. They are not to slay dragons either!” March went on, then spared a glance over to Dan Heng, who blushed at her strange declaration.
Smiling widely, March cried to the whole world with all her might:
“AND THAT’S OUR HAPPILY EVER AFTER!”
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A mix of laughter and cheers erupted as all eyes were set on the lovely newlyweds sitting behind the venue. March, dressed in her beautiful white and accentuated red wedding dress, smiled brightly, entertaining the whole room with her failed (but adorable) dragon roar. Then there was Dan Heng sitting next to her, trying hard to cover his deeply red face but ultimately failing in the process.
Caelus remained where he was behind the podium, grinning from ear to ear as he watched his two best friends receiving their moment in the spotlight.
For a brief second, a memory from the back of his mind resurfaced, and suddenly, he was back in the playground as his ten-year-old self, watching the same scene unfolding before him—of March climbing up the slide and proceeding to hug the brightly red-faced Dan Heng, who didn’t have the heart to push her away even if he tried.
“Fourteen years ago, the almighty dragon and princess—who were wonderfully played by the lovely bride and groom—made the impossible happen.”
Gripping the microphone with his dominant right hand, Caelus proceeds to hoist the wine glass with his other. His full attention was on his two best friends, who exchanged bashful smiles with one another. “And together, they will build a kingdom that will last a lifetime,” He went on with a prideful look, continuing with the remnants of his knight roleplay. “To his royal highness and his valiant dragon, we cheer! Hear, hear!”