“I’m too short for this ride!” Dahyun bleated, an amused attendant tightening the strap across her lap.

Puppy dog pout having no effect, she wondered if an entrancing foreigner approach would work any magic in its place. Suddenly crying “Help me!” through accented English and mounting tears with hands frantically jiggling the metal harness restraint were to no avail. Her eyes flashed for a friendly face that would save her, be her hero. Just a few meters away were her friends. Snickering, the two pals waved from the front of the line, their smartphones already recording every bit of horrified anguish etched into Dahyun’s face. 

As if by a miracle, at that moment, a hand reached over from the left and grabbed her own. Dahyun turned, glancing up to see a gentle, reassuring smile from her partner just before the world and everything in it blurred into one.