“Okay, everyone’s here!” Jake clapped his hands like a hyper camp counselor. “Time for some group bonding!”
“Why are you yelling?” Sunghoon muttered, adjusting his cap. “It’s ten in the morning.”
“Because we’re going to an amusement park,” Jake grinned. “You’re supposed to be excited!”
The entire group stood outside the entrance—Jungwon, Jiwon, Heeseung, Jay, Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo, and Ni-ki—each holding a ticket and blinking into the sunlight.
Jiwon shifted beside Jungwon, trying not to feel out of place. But then Sunoo draped an arm over her shoulder.
“You ready to see Jungwon scream on the rollercoaster?” he whispered conspiratorially.
“Wait, Jungwon screams?” she grinned.
“No,” Jungwon immediately defended. “That happened once. And it wasn’t even a scream—it was a… sharp exhale.”
“That sharp exhale sounded like a squirrel in danger,” Jay added.
“I hate all of you,” Jungwon muttered, but he was smiling.
They entered the park in a messy line, Jake and Ni-ki immediately racing toward the biggest coaster they could find, dragging a protesting Sunghoon along. Heeseung and Jay followed like tired older brothers. That left Jungwon, Jiwon, and Sunoo trailing behind with cotton candy and lemonade.
“Should we find a more chill ride?” Jungwon asked, glancing at Jiwon.
She shrugged. “I’m good with anything.”
Sunoo, however, was eyeing them both like he was watching a live drama. “You two are too cute. Holding hands in public now? Jungwon, who even are you?”
“I’m me,” Jungwon replied coolly, tightening his hold on Jiwon’s hand. “Just better.”
Jiwon choked on her lemonade. “Wow. Confident.”
Sunoo wiggled his eyebrows. “He’s been soft since your second date. He even smiled while reading your texts the other day and fell off the couch.”
“Sunoo!”
“What? True story.”
They eventually caught up with the others near the photo booth corner. Ni-ki was already in a banana costume, and Jake wore heart-shaped glasses, posing like he was born for the spotlight.
“Group photo time!” Heeseung declared, tossing Jungwon a pair of bunny ears.
“Nope,” Jungwon said, tossing them to Jiwon.
She smiled and put them on. “Don’t I look cute?”
Jungwon blinked. “Unfair.”
They all squeezed into the booth—eight chaotic bodies fighting over props and poses. In the final shot, Jungwon’s arm was around Jiwon’s shoulder, Sunoo was leaning dramatically across the bottom, and Ni-ki had somehow climbed onto Jake’s back.
The photo printed with glitter borders.
Jay stared at it. “We look like a sitcom.”
“A hot mess sitcom,” Sunghoon muttered.
They spent the rest of the day hopping between rides, games, and food stalls. Jiwon started feeling less like an outsider and more like one of them—laughing at Jake’s terrible puns, racing Ni-ki at the water gun game, and being dragged onto spinning rides by Sunoo while Jungwon watched in nervous amusement.
Later that evening, when the sun was dipping low and the sky was tinged with gold and lilac, Jungwon pulled her aside near the carousel.
“Having fun?” he asked.
She nodded. “I didn’t know chaos could be this fun.”
He smiled. “They like you, you know. Even Jay, and he hates everything.”
“That’s comforting,” she laughed.
He reached for her hand again, just like he always did. “Thanks for coming today. I was nervous.”
“You? Why?”
“Because… I wanted you to fit with my world,” he said softly. “But you didn’t just fit—you lit it up.”
Jiwon blinked, caught off guard.
“Jungwon.”
“Hmm?”
“You’ve gotta stop saying things like that. I’m gonna fall for you.”
“You already did,” he whispered, leaning in just enough for their foreheads to touch.
The carousel spun slowly behind them, the lights blurring like a dream.
And in the middle of the noise, Jiwon smiled.
Because maybe, just maybe… this was the beginning of something even better.
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✓ 𝗜'𝗠 𝗖𝗨𝗧𝗘𝗥. yang jungwon
Fanfiction( 𝗜'𝗠 𝗖𝗨𝗧𝗘𝗥 ) "One dare, one text, and a whole lot of feelings." --- It all began with a simple dare-one that led to an unexpected connection. Jiwon Park, a quiet transfer student, received a random text that read, "I'm cute." Thinking it was...
