Chapter Text
Waking up a few minutes before your alarm goes off is a curse. No matter how hard I try, I can't fall back asleep, knowing that soon the horrisonous alarm will tear across the peaceful silence of my room. Yet I'm far too exhausted to wake up early, thus I simply lay in bed with my heavy eyes shut until it's the official time to wake up.
That's how this morning went.
I woke up twelve minutes before I was supposed to. I sighed when I checked the disappointing time, knowing that falling asleep wasn't an option. I stared at the golden sunlight leaking in through the curtained windows and instead of even trying to fall back asleep, I thought about the plans for today. Seungkwan will pack the utmost unnecessary things, yet still forget sunscreen (which will result in a horrific sunburn, followed by the former screaming so loudly on every ride that he loses his voice. Then Seungcheol will be too busy chasing after girls that he'll never talk to again after today. All while I am left with the responsibility of taking care of Seungkwan and keeping Seungcheol in line, thus forgetting to enjoy myself and have fun. But at least I'm getting out of this boring house.
The evil alarm finally went off and I turned it off with an irritated groan. I dragged myself out of bed and sluggishly got ready, skipping breakfast because Seungcheol promised donuts on the ride there. For the day I packed money and a change of clothes, knowing Seungkwan will bring everything else, and then some.
When Seungcheol arrived late, I was hoping that he already got the donuts, however, the only thing that Seungcheol brought me was disappointment. I sat down and yearned to be smelling the pleasant smell of donuts instead of Seungcheol's car's usual smell of stale cologne and angst.
Then we were on the way to pick up Seungkwan. It came as no shock to me when the boy wasn't ready to go once we arrived. When he finally came out, he was holding an overstuffed backpack in his arms, and his wavy, grapefruit pink hair was made perfectly like always. He jumped into the car, completely ecstatic to go. In fact, he was so eager that he wouldn't stop talking about it the entire way there.
The nearly two-hour-long car ride was a mix of arguing, singing, Seungkwan trying (and failing) to get us to play road trip games, and making fun of each other. Not to mention Seungcheol's frightening road rage, especially once we got to the park. We'd left early so we could escape all of the traffic, yet cars still crowded the entrance.
"Maybe if Seungcheol hadn't taken forever to pick us up, we wouldn't be stuck in bumper to bumper traffic," Seungkwan nagged.
Seungcheol gave him a lethal look in the rearview mirror, "You know what, Seungkwan?!" he yelled.
Before he could continue, I grabbed his shoulder and gave him a stern look, warning, "Listen, I'm beyond done hearing you two bicker. Shut up, both of you, we're almost there."
The duo quieted down after that. Seungcheol found a place to park the car and the feeling of stretching my cramped legs was refreshing. We jogged towards the entrance, and after paying, we strolled through the crowded roads right towards the fast rides.
We hopped in a line and while we waited to go on, our empty stomachs reminded us of Seungcheol's lack of donuts. In effect of our annoying griping, the eldest ensured that he would feed us. Then, the non-existent donuts fleeted our minds as we were next in line for the ride.
Why are most roller coasters made to go to fast that the creators of them forget that it only lasts twenty seconds? That was all I thought about for the next three rides. Though afterward, it was finally time to eat. Even though the food Seungcheol bought was virtually solely sugar, I was too hungry to turn it down. We took some seats on a bench by the carousel and watched the pretty horses spin and spin and spin while we ate.
"Do you see that chick in line? The one with the lavender hair?" Seungcheol excitedly asked us.
I couldn't miss that purple hair. It was a thin girl standing in line for the carousel with her friends.
"She's hot," he continued, in awe.
"It kind of looks like a boy in my opinion," Seungkwan admitted, stuffing his face with the treats.
After a closer inspection, I almost choked from laughing so hard. Seungcheol attempted to convince us that it was a girl, but by the end of his argument, he probably wasn't fully convinced himself.
Next, Seungcheol and I had long been finished with our treats while Seungkwan, on the other hand, had bought more and was still eating while we waited in line for the next ride. When it was our turn, the staff stiffly told him to throw the food away, but he insisted on finishing the last bit. With a beyond miffed look by the staff, Seungkwan gulped down the rest and we got on. The ride was slower than the rest, but it jerked us around like rag dolls. I had a pounding headache by the end, but only by the middle, Seungkwan was holding his stomach in his hands and moaning in pain.
Seungcheol and I rejoiced at the fact that he was sitting alone in the backseat.
When the ride was over, the youngest bolted out of our car and was intent on finding a trash can. Reluctantly, we followed him and rubbed his back while he was hunched over the garbage can. He didn't throw up, which was good to some degree, however, he still wasn't feeling right. Seungcheol offered for him to sit down while him and I went on the next ride, but Seungkwan insisted that he felt good enough to go with us. Seungcheol and I exchanged a look of uncertainty, but the last thing we wanted to do was hinder him from having fun.
The next ride that we rode was dubbed the best ride in the park. It was fast, long, and had loops. The line was easily the worst though; completely packed and troublesome. It was lines like these that made me regret not purchasing one of the passes that let you go straight to the front of the line. Nevertheless, the three of us thrill-seekers knew that it was worth it, even though Seungkwan felt like he was going to hurl. We chatted and joked while we were in line, and Seungcheol noted how the lilac princess was near us. He also admitted with a sigh that yes, it was indeed a boy. Yet that didn't change his attitude towards him, as he was still grossly infatuated with the boy's looks. I simply tuned him out.
Once we were next in line, our hearts beat in our throats with excitement. The previous riders had come back into the station with mussed hair and puffing chests and huge grins. They disjointedly exited the cars and we replaced their spots. Seungkwan requested to sit with Seungcheol and I didn't complain one bit, unlike Seungcheol.
While I buckled myself in, a petite and timid boy took the seat next to me. He had fair skin and short, midnight black hair, and a look of pure anxiety on his face. I watched shyly and silently as his little pale hands fastened his seat belt and adjusted his metal safety bar.
I was finishing adjusting my own safety gear when he gently tapped on my shoulder. I turned to meet his dark chocolate eyes. The poor kid looked beyond terrified.
"H—"
"Hey, uh... Is it okay if I hold your hand? I-I didn't want to ride this, my friends made me, and uh, it would help if...you know...if I...held something..." he spewed out faster than I could say hi.
I felt a blush rising on my cheeks from such an adorable question. "Uh, yeah... I guess," I said, offering my hand to him.
He shot me a nervous smile while he took my hand in his, intertwining our fingers together. His hands were hot and sweaty already.
I couldn't quite focus after feeling his grip tighten around my hand. The next thing I remember, the ride bolted to life, springing out of the station. Then Seungkwan screaming loudly. My hand being held tight. Darkness, then light again. Upside down, then sideways, a bump, a loop, a sharp turn. His fingers in between mine. The ride coming to an abrupt stop. It couldn't have lasted long enough.
He shakily peeled our hands apart and I watched him as he avoided my gaze, unfastened all the contraptions on us, and rejoined his friends: lilac prince and some brunette. He had trouble finding his balance.
Back in my reality, the next thing I saw was Seungkwan emptying the contents of his stomach onto the wooden floor. I got out of my cart and helped Seungcheol drag him out of there and back to fresh air. Seungkwan was practically crying with guilt and embarrassment. The staff were remarkably pleasant about it, which meant nothing to Seungkwan, who continued apologizing even after he'd been forgiven 12 sorry's ago.
We sat him down on a bench and caught ourselves eavesdropping on the trio that we'd encountered on the previous ride.
"Let's go to the haunted house!" The brunette offered.
"I don't want to, it's scary!" Mr. Can-I-Hold-Your-Hand whined. Lilac Prince nodded in agreement.
I glanced at Seungcheol, who was also listening in on their chatter, and he gave me a look that silently spoke, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
The two of us sprang out of our seats and joined the boys.
I offered to my cute hand-holder, "That's where we're going! If you want, I'll sit next to you again to make it better."
Seungcheol had a different approach: "Hey," he said slyly, leaning coolly against a fence, "I'll keep you safe," with a wink.
I failed to stifle a chuckle while the brunette next to me burst into laughter.
"What's your name?" Seungcheol asked the brunette.
"Hansol," he said awkwardly with a voice too deep for his looks, a smile tugging at his lips.
Seungcheol pointed at Seungkwan, who was currently doubled over in stomach pain and embarrassment on the bench nearby, "You can sit with him."
Hansol raised an eyebrow, "Didn't he just throw up?"
Seungcheol pursed his lips and shook his head. Hansol shrugged his shoulders.
"Well, then," Hansol said, "Let's go."