I'm Not Excited [DISCONTINUED; REBOOTED]

Photo Booth Memories

[ Days Later; Coney Island Boardwalk ]

"It's really hot today," Illyana remarked.

The couple decided to take a day off, as they'd barely seen each other in almost a week. And what better place to go to than to world famous Coney Island.

"But it's really empty. You should see it during the peak of summer," Illyana went on. "Then again, most kids are back in school."

"I'm barely ever here in the summer. We're usually out on tour, far away from America. It's so weird," Ezra replied. "New York summers are killer though. But, then again, so are our winters." He chuckled in a relaxed manner.

The two walked together, fingers intertwined, looking like the most casual couple in the area. A few people did stop and stare, trying to remember where they'd seen the face before. But they weren't fazed by it; they just kept walking on, smiling and laughing at each other's dumb jokes.

"Isn't it good to be back for the last remaining weeks of the summer?" She asked, smirking devilishly. The cool wind blew on her hair and summer dress, while Ezra's bangs flopped a little.

"Except for the horrible heat, yeah, it's really good to be here." Ezra smiled, looking at her in awe.

"I used to come here every Saturday, every summer when I was younger. Dad would take us to the arcade, where there's this old photo booth and we'd take the silliest of pictures," Illyana reminisced, allowing her mind to become flooded with happy childhood memories. "I got horribly sunburnt here. I looked racially ambiguous for a whole week. Dark skin, green eyes, bright red hair. It's not a nice combo."

"... Do you have pictures of that? Oh my god, Illyana." Ezra teased her, nudging her shoulder, much to Illyana's dismay. "How old were you? Please, tell me old enough to be completely embarrassed." He placed his arm around her shoulder, not caring about the frown currently showing on her face. "But seriously, do you have any pictures available?"

Slowly, Illyana turned her gaze towards him, still frowning. "Hey! It's not funny! My skin peeled for like, days! I couldn't move and sleeping hurt like a bitch. Hmph. Not like if you've never gotten sunburnt."

Ezra scoffed, allowing his other hand to move around the air. "Pfft! I was twenty two when I got sunburnt for the first time. Twenty two, Illy! That was real painful and real embarrassing! But, hey, I didn't look racially ambiguous because, well, y'know, I don't look like part of the Weasley Family reunion."

Illyana smacked Ezra in the chest as they approached the boardwalk's arcade. "Oo, I'm so gonna beat you at table hockey, Koenig," Illyana stated mischievously. She skipped into the arcade, looking at all the newer games inside.

"Like if that'll happen!" Ezra rolled his eyes, following Illyana. As he walked in, he saw teens playing in the machines, all smiling and laughing, cheering after winning tickets, and of course, Illyana looking in awe at all the games. He took his raybans off and placed his hands in his pockets. "I'm guessing you haven't been here in a good while?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah... Around ten years?" She replied, watching a kid, no older than fifteen, play Mario Kart. "A while before my dad got his diagnosis and stuff. This was our happy place." She smiled sadly.

Ezra nodded, placing his hand on her shoulder. "I'll go get tokens, you choose what games we play, got it?" He asked, leaning in to kiss her cheek.

"Yeah," she replied, scrunching her nose. "I'll be here."

Ezra nodded and walked away, leaving Illyana to keep watching the Mario Kart playing kid. The game looked fun, she thought, but she didnt believe she could make it more than one round in the Rainbow Road course.