“Doesn’t it feel nostalgic?”
The voice interviewing with a fist-shaped microphone was full of playfulness.
“How does it feel to kiss again at the place of your first kiss? Please share your thoughts.”
“Ah, I’m not sure if I should say this here… First, I want to dedicate this honor to my husband and daughter—”
Saebyeok now knew how to joke around quite well.
“Coincidentally… I happen to be the husband? Is there anything else you want to give your husband besides honor? Like, anticipation for tonight, or that tonight will be hot, or hot night?”
“Aren’t all three the same thing?”
“They’re different. First of all, the position…”
Gong Pyeonghwa must have aged a bit, as he spoke like a middle-aged man rather than the fresh young boy he once was.
“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”
“Oh, why!”
“Is that even something to say?”
Saebyeok had aged along with Pyeonghwa. Perhaps that’s why he no longer kept his thoughts to himself like before.
“Besides, our first kiss spot was the Ferris wheel, you know?”
He spoke his mind now.
“If you want to ask for my thoughts, you should recreate the experience exactly the same way first. Do the interview again.”
And now he was quite good at seduction too.
◀◀◀
On the morning of the sophomore class trip, Gong Pyeonghwa surprisingly overslept and got on the subway in the wrong direction.
“Gong Pyeonghwa. You’re dead.”
Seonwoo Jeong, who had gone completely in the wrong direction thanks to Pyeonghwa’s confident assurances, kicked Pyeonghwa’s butt as they transferred to an express train.
Despite this, Pyeonghwa couldn’t avoid being late, missing his chance to naturally meet with Saebyeok, and went straight into the amusement park.
“Since we’re late because of you, you have to ride the carousel.”
Seonwoo Jeong, who preferred cute attractions, clung to Pyeonghwa like a leech, not wanting to ride alone as it would be embarrassing.
Of course, Pyeonghwa liked carousels too. They were fun! But, but!
‘I need to exchange pheromones with my boyfriend!’
Pyeonghwa, who had stayed up all night worrying about Saebyeok after he’d sent crying emoticons saying he felt lethargic last night, wanted to see Saebyeok right away.
But they were in different groups.
‘Sob. We’re just like Romeo and Juliet…’
‘Go with Gyeonu and Jiknyeo instead.’ [Korean legend of star-crossed lovers]
Just briefly passing by each other was all they could manage.
When Seonwoo Jeong rode the slow train that circled the entire amusement park, Shin Saebyeok went to ride the Viking ship. When Pyeonghwa entered the adorably named Panda World, Saebyeok’s group rode the thrilling high-speed train.
With such polar opposite preferences, Pyeonghwa kept biting his lips all day.
Meanwhile, Seonwoo Jeong remained cheerful regardless.
“The pandas are fucking cute.”
“I fucking want to punch you, Seonwoo Jeong…”
“What? I couldn’t hear you.”
“No, I said you’re cute…”
Sigh… Having committed some sin, Pyeonghwa was dragged around by Seonwoo Jeong until he finally got the chance to even step on Saebyeok’s shadow at the fast food restaurant during lunch time.
“Hey, Seonwoo Jeong. Let’s eat with those guys. Their food looks tastier.”
“What are you saying? Looking to start a fight again? Shut up and go to the corner.”
Seonwoo Jeong, who loved peace more than Gong Pyeonghwa whose name meant “peace” only in name, mercilessly turned his back to Saebyeok’s group and devoured his hamburger.
Pyeonghwa ate his hamburger while shedding tears of blood internally.
‘We’re in love under the same sky, why can’t we even have a meal together…’
Some bastards can clean up their image with just a bowl of seolleongtang, but me, me!
‘I’ll be devoted to my family! I’ll bring in good money! I’ll tell you I love you multiple times a day and give you tons of kisses, so why! Why me!’
No matter how much he wailed and pounded the ground in his heart, Pyeonghwa and Shin Saebyeok couldn’t meet.
‘What are amusement park rides that they fucking separate us…’
While Pyeonghwa was thinking this, Saebyeok excitedly rode the flume ride, and continued to ride every spinning attraction with enthusiasm.
Pyeonghwa peacefully rode the hot air balloon, peacefully played whack-a-mole, and peacefully rode the carousel three times.
‘Doesn’t this guy ever get tired?’
Seonwoo Jeong, with his persistent childlike innocence, rode the carousel again and again. They had already ridden it three times, but he lined up as if it were his first time.
Thinking that at this rate he wouldn’t be able to meet Saebyeok today, Pyeonghwa pulled at his hair.
Just then, a good idea came to mind!
“Jeong-ah.”
“What?”
“Let’s go to the haunted house.”
“Get lost.”
Pyeonghwa didn’t give up. This was the result he expected. Pyeonghwa dragged Seonwoo Jeong along.
‘No need to use my head. Just use my body.’
With bulldozer-like strength, Pyeonghwa dragged the carousel-addict all the way to the haunted house, and when it was their turn to enter, he suddenly claimed he was afraid of ghosts, pushed Seonwoo Jeong in alone, and ran away.
He could hear Seonwoo Jeong cursing colorfully and damning his future, but Pyeonghwa cheerfully ran through the amusement park.
He immediately called Saebyeok to meet up, and soon they made secretive contact.
“Jeong-ie?”
“Call him Seonwoo Jeong. Why are you addressing him more intimately than me?”
“Are you really nitpicking that now… Never mind. Fine, where’s Seonwoo Jeong?”
“Probably being eaten by ghosts or something. Anyway, are you okay? Still feeling lethargic? No fever? Did you sleep well? No indigestion? No headache?”
Sometimes thinking Pyeonghwa was more motherly than his actual mother, Saebyeok suppressed his laughter.
“I’m fine.”
“How’s your semicircular canal? You were only riding super fast attractions.”
“What about you? You only rode cute things.”
“…Yeah. I’m a bit adorable, you know.”
Not wanting to tell the story of how he’d been Seonwoo Jeong’s dog all day, he just summed it up as him being adorable.
“I think my friends are going to start looking for me. I told them I was just going to the bathroom.”
They’d finally met and it’s a 1-minute cut? Is it because there’s no bridge of magpies? Is that it? My beloved Shin Gyeonu.
Pyeonghwa wanted to cling desperately, but he knew he couldn’t.
Knowing Pyeonghwa, who was nothing without romance, Saebyeok honestly didn’t want to part either.
Since they’d started dating, their only actual date had been at the library, which they used to do even before dating.
They’ve finally come to an amusement park, and they have boyfriends, but they can’t walk around with their boyfriends? Despite being in the same school and same class?
“Fuck…”
In the end, Pyeonghwa let out a small curse. His voice was grumpy. His lips were protruding as if truly wronged, which made him look pitiful. It wasn’t a feeling Saebyeok didn’t understand.
“…When we date publicly, let’s definitely come back here to eat together and ride attractions together.”
“Sure.”
“Let’s take couple photos and buy ugly dolls.”
“Let’s do that.”
“And also…”
Pyeonghwa seemed to have had a lot of envy built up over half a day, talking endlessly. Each time, Saebyeok listened attentively and sincerely replied that they would do all those things.
“Just inherit already. Really…”
A boyfriend who makes you laugh right up until the moment you part? Not common. Saebyeok smiled and naturally parted ways with Pyeonghwa.
And after parting with Saebyeok, Pyeonghwa realized too late.
‘Ah shit- I was trying to meet him for a pheromone shower.’
They just parted.
“Oh come on.”
Meeting after 23 hours felt so poignant that he forgot his purpose.
I guess when you’re blinded by love, you sometimes lose sight of the essence.
Pyeonghwa sat on a bench, nervously shaking his legs, trying to figure out how to meet Saebyeok again.
To get the imprinting effect, he needed to exchange pheromones steadily at least once a day. He needed to do today’s pheromone exchange.
Now that he thought about it, it seemed like pheromones were slightly leaking from Saebyeok.
What if the alphas from other classes notice? What if those rude guys try to grab Saebyeok’s wrist? What if they try to drag him to a secluded place? What if they say they’re bored and ask for just one kiss? What if they try to force something?!
“Not as long as I’m alive!”
“What do you mean ‘not’? Yes you will!”
Seonwoo Jeong, back from the dead, put Pyeonghwa in an aerial arm lock.
“You throw me into a ghost den and just relax? Say something! Say something!”
“Please spare me!”
“Something other than that, you bastard!”
Pyeonghwa, who survived by tapping out, was dragged back to carousel hell rather than to Saebyeok’s side.
The sun was slowly beginning to set. With each passing moment, Pyeonghwa grew more anxious and shook his legs.
“Ah! Bad luck. Stop shaking. Are you scared? Scared of the carousel?”
“Blood circulation. Blood circulation. Bastard.”
Gong Pyeonghwa, a man crazy in love, kept shaking his legs even while sitting on the carousel.
Finally, at 6 PM, when it was time for the closing roll call, Pyeonghwa, who could finally even step on Saebyeok’s shadow, blatantly sprayed his pheromones.
Saebyeok’s shoulders twitched, and alphas from the other class released defensive pheromones, asking what was going on.
“Ah, these mannerless bastards releasing pheromones in a public place.”
Pyeonghwa, who had been more mannerless than anyone, glared at the alphas from the other class and growled.
The teachers gave each of them a knock on the head to resolve the situation, and most dispersed as they watched the setting sun.
Children who had to go to cram schools reluctantly boarded the subway, while those who wanted to enjoy the day changed out of their school uniforms, planning to play until late at night.
Pyeonghwa caught Saebyeok, who was about to go home.
“Today’s! We haven’t done it!”
Startled by the sudden attack from an assailant, Saebyeok jumped, but soon relaxed when he saw the handsome face inside the hoodie.
“You scared me.”
“Sorry! But! I was worried! Were you surprised earlier? Because of me… I’m sorry for suddenly releasing pheromones. I couldn’t control it. Were you very surprised? Are you okay?”
Pyeonghwa grabbed Saebyeok and searched for a remote and stable location.
Everywhere they went was a minefield. If they went left, they’d frequently run into guys in casual clothes; if they went right, teachers; the bathroom had too many people.
“Why are there people everywhere!”
Well, it’s an amusement park after all.
Saebyeok made a bored internal retort and allowed himself to be dragged around as Pyeonghwa wished.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
