Chapter Six: Fairy Tales and Arcade Escapades

“You know, how is this any different than hanging out normally?” Miya asked, aiming a curious look at Jimin, who was checking the route on his phone.

After confirming they were headed in the right direction, Jimin shot Miya a mischievous grin and replied, “Well...it’s different because now I get to do things like this,” as he unclasped his hand from Miya’s and tugged her towards him so that he was walking on the side of the sidewalk closer to the road. With a firm arm around her waist, Jimin continued to walk down the street, looking everywhere except Miya’s eyes.

Feeling the familiar burn rising in her cheeks and ears, Miya looked down at Jimin’s hand, a warm presence on her body. She naturally inclined towards him as they walked without talking, making the occasional comment on the shops and stalls they passed. All the while, Jimin’s grip remained soft but firm around her, holding her close but ready to let go if she felt even the slightest discomfort.

Overcoming her sudden shyness, Miya broke out of her trance as she recognized a familiar sign on the corner of the street and stopped abruptly causing Jimin to do the same.

“Jimin...is there a particular reason that you brought us to campus?” Miya questioned, raising an eyebrow.

Looking abashed, Jimin offered a small curve of a smile and proceeded to usher the both of them forward on their path.

“Don’t worry about where we are, I had a great place in mind for our first date” Jimin babbled, as he filled the once silent air with chatter, trying to lessen his nerves. Soon, the pair arrived and stood before a wide staircase leading up to a tall building with rustic columns framing the front.

“...the library?”

Miya’s carefree laughter bubbled out while Jimin sheepishly ran his hands through his hair. The tinkling of Miya’s voice started to subside when Jimin took her by the hand and led her inside the building, making a beeline for the back corner of the second floor. Although summer classes had started, students were sparsely spread out on that lazy Saturday afternoon.

“Where are you taking me, Jimin? Our usual spot is on the third floor,” Miya shakily asked, the occasional chuckle escaping her lips. At her question, Jimin halted and turned around to face Miya with a deadpan expression.

In the most serious tone he could muster, he replied, “Narnia.”

Miya wasn’t sure whether or not she was supposed to laugh or play along, but she decided on the latter for Jimin’s sake. Holding back her giggles, the two weaved through the bookshelves quietly as to not disturb the people studying around them. As they ventured deeper into the library, the desks and students slowly disappeared and were replaced with smaller bookshelves and large lettered labels.

The first thing Miya noticed were the vibrant colors that adorned the walls in comparison to the dreary grey she was used to seeing everywhere else in the library. Upon closer inspection, she saw miniature tables and chairs as well as bright bean bags and stuffed toys littering the floor.

“There’s a children's’ section in our library?”

In Miya’s mind, this made sense since their library was also open to the general public, but most university students inhabited its premises.

“I stumbled upon it one day during finals. I couldn’t stay awake so I wandered around and found this place. It’s perfect for a nap especially since students rarely come by this section and no one wants to bring their kids to the library at midnight.” Jimin replied, taking Miya into a corner near a bookshelf.

Jimin plopped himself into a beanbag and gestured for Miya to sit in the suspiciously small seat adjacent to him. He grabbed a book off the shelf at random and spoke with his best teacher voice, “The Little Mermaid.”

“Oh, so we’re doing storytime now, are we?” Miya raised an eyebrow at him with a smirk.

“Hush, hush. Don’t interrupt me - I’m trying to entertain the children,” Jimin admonished, as he waved his arm in a large sweeping motion to the empty space before him. “As I was saying...Once upon a time, a beautiful mermaid princess inhabited the waters of the Atlantic Ocean-”

“Are you even reading the words? I’m pretty sure The Little Mermaid is supposed to be set near some European country or something,” interrupted Miya.

“She lives in Atlantis so she’s in the Atlantic Ocean, okay?”

Confirming her belief, Jimin continued to “read” as he flipped a couple pages forward and looked at her before continuing, “The little mermaid wanted nothing more than to meet and fall in love with the land prince she had saved. She traded her most prized possession, her voice, for a chance to walk on land and be with her beloved prince. At first, the prince and princess began well. But eventually, he lost interest and became engaged to a princess of a neighboring kingdom. Heartbroken, the mermaid princess threw herself into activities she believed could win her prince’s attention. Since she traded her voice away, she could not pursue her love of singing and delved into dancing instead.”

“Okay, hold up. That was definitely not in the Disney version or in the Hans Christian Anderson version. Where are you going with this, Jimin?” asked an incredulous Miya.

“Trust me, it’s just getting good.” Jimin countered cheerily. “Now, where was I? Oh, right!”

“The mermaid princess threw herself into dancing and soon received recognition for her hard work. Even her beloved prince who she thought had thrown her away noticed her abilities and sent her a bouquet of roses in admiration. When she finally thought she had regained the affections of her love, she was confronted by the evil sea witch who gave her her legs. The witch reminded the mermaid that if was not able to find her true love in three days time, she would disappear into sea foam. And, if she did not receive confirmation of true love, she would be forced to kill the prince in order to stay as a human. Torn, the princess took every opportunity to sway the prince.

However, on the third night after the sea witch’s visit, the mermaid princess had found her prince with the neighboring kingdom’s princess in a passionate embrace. Wallowing in sorrow, she princess did not want to kill her prince and retreated back to her dance studio. With nothing left but sadness in her heart, the mermaid danced her pain away, tears spilling down her face. She knew she would not take another’s life, and i