Distant Hearts: When Rejoined as One

It's weird spending a holiday alone—not totally, but mostly.

That underlying heartache presents itself when it's one that me and my parents enjoyed.

For the past seventeen years of my existence, we've claimed the spooky season as one of our favorite times of the year. Christmas was a close second, but it didn't knock Halloween out of the park.

That energy may have come from our love towards horror movies, the decorations, the thrill, and all the things that fell under the word 'frightening'.

My parents were those type of parents. The ones that didn't mind the desensitizing nature of most things Halloween, nor were they religious thinkers. I vaguely remember the moments we'd sit together in the living room while watching The Wicked. Then, I'd be hit with some hazy images of us carving our own individualized pumpkins as a family.

The reminiscing would stop there.

For the entirety of the month, my excitement for today was the highest it's ever been. Although I never let myself dwell on it for too long, I knew that the day wouldn't be the same without them around, like nothing else ever was.

That's the sole reason why the aura felt so different this morning.

When the thirty-first finally did come, that light of anticipation dwindled and dimmed from the moment I opened my eyes. The atmosphere felt bleak, and the sky looked grey, despite no thunderous clouds in sight.

And, even though my hype for the day had lessened, I didn't allow those realizations to completely shroud my mind with sadness.

I couldn't let it, not when I had many moments to look forward to with my friends.

Although I tried my hardest to maintain that same eagerness for the eventful evening to come, I still couldn't shrug off the bothersome feeling of emptiness that weighed me down during most of the morning.

As I was trying to eat breakfast in peace, its prominence grew stronger, and overwhelmed me. It wasn't long before I lost whatever appetite I had. Into lunchtime, it continued to burrow at my happiness, pinpointing how different this Halloween was compared to the past seventeen others.

Throughout the day, Jimin's persistent yet successful attempts at chitchatting was a major distraction from my thoughts and that sinking feeling in my chest.

Like always, my mind wouldn't stop racing, too busy commemorating the past—more so, the times that made me smile the most.

Now, all those scattered, spurt-like memories depress me.

And, as much as it makes my heart writhe in agony to recall any little moment with my parents, I'd love to remember more—more from the distant past of my childhood.

Contradicting, huh?

"Can you tell me if my mask is on correctly?" My cousin asked in distress while shifting his mask from side-to-side for the perfect fit.

Rolling my eyes at the fact that moving it around would only it up, I casted a glance his way to check. It was one of those old-fashioned elastic masks instead of the ones that are pulled straight on, like mine. It was generic, holding less intricacies that'd usually frighten a person, which made it bearable to look at.

Once I noticed the lack of detail on his mask, it caused me to evaluate the rest of his plain costume in its entirety. Just like Ghostface's attire, he sported a dark, lengthy robe that didn't go past his converse shoes.

Simple, but effective.

Everything looked fine to me, so I gave him a thumb's up.

"How does mine look?" I dusted off my shoulders, showing off the trademark coverall's that Michael Myer's would always wear in the movies. To enhance the costume with some gore, I slabbed on crimson food coloring in different areas of my clothing, preferably over my chest, my sleeves, and my pants.

Not too much, but just enough.

Since Jimin's appearance was rather bland, I generously proposed an array of creative ideas to help upgrade his look. Instead, he had the audacity to call me a psycho for adding fake blood stains, as if it was an absurd thing to do during Halloween.

"If I'm going to be honest, you look as creepy as ing ever." He cringed, not bearing to make eye-contact through the holes in my mask. That cower-like reaction has assured me that I've done a great job with detail. "No offense, but I don't even want to look at you."

"None taken," I smirked—one he couldn't see.

It was late into the evening; Mystic Land just opened for the annual Fright Nights event. The sun had fully set by now, so the temperature was gradually lowering to a decent degree. If I hadn't taken a curious glance at the sky, I wouldn't have noticed the fullest moon perched amidst some clouds, gleaming with a certain ominous essence. Jimin was amazed.

After shooting texts back-and-forth in the group chat moments later, Jimin and I met up with the guys after fetching all our tickets. It was perfect timing, since Jin and Namjoon wouldn't stop rambling in excitement about petrifying the girls.

According to Jungkook, Joohyun and the others were already inside the amusement park, waiting for us to arrive in our Marvel superhero costumes. I almost feel bad about lying, but that makes our scare tactic that much easier.

It feels like we've been stuck in this never-ending security line for ages. For the time-being, we've been conversing amongst ourselves, and me being me, I got distracted and briefly scanned over everyone's costumes.

To start off, I gave everyone props, but I must admit that Jin's Hellraiser fit was by far my favorite. Like the majority of everyone else's, the mask was high quality, but the rubber nails sticking out of his head was ing insane.

Hoseok's costume was unbearable to look at because 1) I dislike clowns in every shape or form, and 2) it looked that realistic.

Yoongi as Freddy Krueger was more amusing than scary, since his mask didn't fit correctly over his head. Rather, it'd bend backwards because it was so small. Despite mentioning it to him, then laughing in his face, he'd shrug his shoulders and flip us off, proceeding to explain that he didn't have time to get a new one. However, his attire is extremely spot-on with the red and green sweater, as well as Freddy's notorious sharp glove.

Namjoon's Leatherface mask was horrifying. He brought his own chainsaw, too! Don't worry, it's made purely out of rubber, but from afar, it looks legit. Like the slasher character, he wore a long-sleeved t-shirt under a white apron that was smothered in dirt, fake blood, and other sorts of unknown blemishes.

Jungkook bought his Jeepers Creepers costume online, so when it did arrive, it was the bootleg version. The mask wasn't badly detailed, but it could've been better. Still scary, but not to its fullest potential. It also didn't fit right, as it was a similar situation to Yoongi's. In his case, it was too large. The poor guy could barely see out of the eye holes. Keen to detail, he had thrown on a black trench coat and a cowboy hat.

Bogum had a great Jason Voorhees costume. He sported a simple ski-mask with trickles of red dots splattered all over it. He had bought a toy machete to add onto the look, like Namjoon did. He smacked Jimin and Jungkook upside the head a few times with it, and it was a main source of entertainment the whole way through security. Even the bag checkers were suspicious of the fake weapons. At least, we weren't the only ones in the park that carried them—tons of visitors were prepped in their favorite costumes, too.

"Now that we're out of that line," Jimin said, letting out a breath. "Let's head over to the Fountain Square. That's where the girls are waiting."

The rest of us nodded in response and resumed onward.

On our way over, Jin and Namjoon gave us all a brief elaboration of their scary plan for the trillionth time. To sum it up, once we've arrived at the fountain, Jin was going to send a text to the group chat. In hopes that the girls see it at the same time, it should distract them long enough for us to creep behind and frighten the out of them.

It was unoriginal, and totally lame, but imagining the scared look on Joohyun's face is exciting me even further.

Bogum and I stuck by each other's sides, conversing about the details that this portion of the park held. He, then, informed me about the line of restaurants, stores, booths, and other arcade-styled games that you'd need to walk through before fully delving into the rest of the park.

I couldn't wait to explore.

Thankfully, the spouting fountain wasn't far away at all. In fact, me and the guys arrived in the vicinity with no sweat. It was plopped in the center of the cobblestone path that we were following, dividing it into two. You couldn't miss it.

As I selectively identified the details in the area, I couldn't help but think that it was a nice touch to add multi-colored accent lights that flashed underwater, making the sight much more beautiful. Some were even displayed within the landscape surrounding it.

From my observations, the Fountain Square was evidently a great lounging area to take a plethora of photographs, either with family or friends.

I had no doubts that I've been here before, because as I stood in place and inhaled the environment, it caused a weird sense of nostalgia to flow through me.

Bright side is, when it comes to forgotten memories or moments in time, that spurt of familiarity never fails to accompany me, shooing away how foreign a place may seem.

Though, obstructing my thoughts altogether, I was smacked with a beautiful diversion. In a sea of many strangers, I managed to locate Joohyun, and not a second later, every sliver of my attention was absorbed by her and her only. All at once, I lost my ability to think straight, but then again, who'd be able to while looking at her?

It's funny; even at a fair distance apart, and under a sunless sky, her breathtaking exterior emanated that same vibrant glow that could only be replicated by her. I may sound like one of her admirers, but it's true; casting a short glance or a quick look isn't enough to fully take her in.

This state of astonishment was difficult to overcome. My goal was to grasp some sort of clue to the theme of her costume, but she did a great job of washing all that away with her presence. It's like it wasn't of any importance, pushed back to the furthest corner of my mind.

I did stare for a while, completely enveloped and then some. She was distracted by her phone, standing beside Sooyoung, Chaeyoung, and Yeri, but I hadn't minded them yet.

Before I could even begin to retract those weird yet unstoppable thoughts, my vibrating phone did the job for me.

Slipping it out, it appears that I've received a message from none other than Joohyun herself:

Hey! Have you arrived yet? If so, where are you?

It's too bad that I can't reveal that type of information just yet.

From afar, Jin and Namjoon grabbed our attention with mischievous hand signals that were entirely unreadable. Bogum and I looked at each other, laughed, then proceeded to near the girls from behind. They had no idea what was coming, and that was enough to get me on the verge of laughter.

Once everyone was in position, Jin started his silent countdown to three, giving me time to send one, final text to Joohyun.

It read:

I'm right behind you.

In a matter of seconds, I creeped up behind Joohyun, placed my hands on her shoulders, and jolted them whilst simultaneously yelling:

"Boo!"

To be frank, I couldn't hear myself over the violent splashing of water that spewed from the fountain, and the amount of coherent shouting of, "Boo!" that resonated through the air. Though, it appeared that our plan was mighty successful, even amidst this overly rowdy area of people, as it created a substantial domino-effect of shouts and screams from the girls.

Countless of random witnesses that, too, sported different costumes had pointed and laughed at the scene, acknowledging how hysterical our friends reacted.

You should've seen the look on Joohyun's face! If only, I had taken a photograph at the exact moment, simply to capture her wide-eyed, spooked-out expression. It's one of the funniest things I've seen all day. Anyone that knows her would claim that her reactions are usually dramatic, but this was just over-the-ing-top. After she emitted the loudest, heart attack-like gasp of her life, her hand flew to her chest, presumably to slow her quickened heart rate.

It was the perfect time to laugh at Joohyun, but as soon as I could gulp in some air, a harsh punch to my chest disrupted any chance of one being released.

Instead, I was coughing my lungs out whilst rubbing at the spot that Joohyun just jabbed like she was using a self-defense technique.

"What the hell?" Was that even necessary? "Are you trying to kill me?"

"Taehyung, is that you?" Of course, it's me! Didn't she see my text? "Jesus, are you stupid? You're the one scaring me half to death!"

I scoffed in absurdity, flailing my arms in the air for accentuation. "So, that gives you the right to nail your fist into my chest?"

"Could you blame me for thinking you were someone else?" She asked, frustratedly placing her hands on her hips like the sassiest person in the world. "Ever since the girls and I arrived, we've been keeping an eye out for eight weirdos in superhero costumes, and definitely not—" she gestured erratically at my attire, agitated. "Not whatever you're dressed as!"

"It's obviously Michael Myers," I crossed my arms, suddenly intrigued by everyone else's response, and if they're anywhere as vicious as Joohyun.

With just a simple look around, I concluded that I was right. All the girls are as equally aggressive and fierce as my best friend. Just as I evaluated our crew, I witnessed an outraged Seungwan playfully shove a chuckling Yoongi. I checked on Bogum, only to find Sooyoung throwing the harshest glares at him. The poor guy was too busy cowering in fright to conduct a plea. I could say the same for the others, too.

And, despite the current scowl on my face, I couldn't be too angry about the punch. Considering that we lied to the girls, and almost gave them synchronized heart attacks, it's what we deserve, right?

"Whatever," she muttered, "Did you guys secretly plan this to get under our skin?"

She's referring to our costume switch-up, and evidently enough, our attempt at petrifying them.

I sighed, ignoring that penetrative aura of aggravation that Joohyun's emitting:

"Maybe. So what if we did?" I asked as her irritability doubled after hearing my sly reply. I'd laugh, but I'd only be digging my own grave. "Oh, stop being so serious. It was supposed to be a joke, you know."

She wasn't that angry about our surprise entrance, but she was slightly tilted at the fact that we tricked them into believing we were arriving as the Avengers.

"Mhm," she frowned, staying quiet.

"Seriously? The silent treatment?"

No response.

I'm starting to think she's trying to make me feel bad.

I sighed, again: "Well, remind me to never scare you, again..."

At that, the corners of her lips lifted—so slight, but I pay attention.

"As long as this experience is engraved into your skull, I'm sure you won't dare to," she flashed me a wicked, tight-lipped smile that widened with every syllable.

Her words left me baffled and nothing less. "You're not even going to apologize for practically bruising my chest?"

"Nope." Just as I was starting to feel guilty about scaring her, huh? Never mind that. "You lied; you deserved it."

See? I had a strong feeling that the change in theme was the primary reason for her antagonized responses.

"You should blame Jin and Namjoon," I said, gesturing towards the two pranksters that we're currently getting a piece of Dahyun and Seulgi's minds. "It was their idea. Not mine."

"I figured as much," Joohyun tilted her head, unconvinced. "But it doesn't change the fact that you still went along with it."

"Well, I imagined this scene to turn out way differently than it did—more laughter, less pain." In my mind, there wasn't supposed to be any counterattacks that'd ruin the entertaining aspect of this situation. At least, the throbbing pain in my chest had subsided, and I can breathe normally, again. "I'll admit, you've got one hell of a punch. Despite your small stature and bunny-like features, I'm borderline afraid of you, Joohyun."

"Small stature? Bunny-like features?" Why is she restating what I just said? Oh, no, she's offended, but doesn't that insinuate that she's cute? "You should be afraid of me."

Seeing as her fist flung into the air and was aimed straight at me, I squinted my eyes shut and braced myself for another impactful punch or a justified smack.

Maybe, both.

Lucky for me, my other best friend spoke up and saved me.

"Joohyun, you're dressed as a superhero, too?"

Indeed, after blinking one-too-many times and giving Joohyun's costume a brief once-over, Bogum's right. Judging by the red star adorned on her golden tiara, it's obvious that she's dressed up as Wonder Woman. If it wasn't for that particular detail, I wouldn't be able to tell.

Due to the few articles of clothing draped over her actual costume, it's clear that she made sure the attire was comfortable enough to roam through the park. I'm not much of a beauty guru, so I can't go into detail, but she's wearing more makeup than usual. Her eyes and her lips are accentuated, causing me to stare longer than usual.

While Joohyun was drawn into a separate conversation with Bogum, Sooyoung, and the others, I didn't care to listen in on it. After all, it was the right time to point out that the girls had collectively negotiated on wearing superhero costumes. It took every ounce of my focus not to laugh aloud. Don't get me wrong; it's not that they look stupid in their getups (they're far from it) but the fact that we psyched them out is comedy gold.

Here I thought that they were doing individual ideas, like Jungkook said a few weeks ago.

Guess, the girls wanted to surprise us by matching, further lessening the amount of humiliation we would've felt.

That's generous.

When I think of it that way, convincing the others to change up the theme makes me feel like a complete .

Once Seungwan and Yeri started interrogating Jungkook and Hoseok about who suggested the sudden change in decision, Jimin stepped in and pointed an accusing finger at me. Of course, I rolled my eyes, defended myself, and flipped him off. That must've lightened up the atmosphere, because everyone started cracking up.

I joined in, acting like I was amused, but I couldn't care less. I was too busy inwardly pleading that we can resume our adventure through the park, instead of standing in the middle of Fountain Square.

My hopes and wishes came through in the end, because after some last-minute consultations about our plans for the night as a group, that's exactly what we did.

And, the more that I hang out with them, the more I come to understand something that I've never been too familiar with:

The qualities of true friendship.

Twenty minutes.

That's all it took for a group hangout to break apart.

It was going strong until it wasn't.

Embarrassingly enough, the two supposed lovebirds—Jimin and Chaeyoung—wanted to ride the Ferris wheel, thirsty for a cliché experience.

After Jin and Dahyun argued about their dancing abilities for ages, and deciphered who's better than who, Jin challenged Dahyun to a Dance-Dance Revolution match. Before we knew it, they had sprinted off towards the Arcade center, and I didn't even know this place had one.

Not even a minute later, Sooyoung dragged Bogum in the opposite direction, demanding strawberry shortcake ice cream (pretty sure it was another excuse to separate from the group and have some alone-time).

Seungwan pulled a jealous Hoseok and a confused Yoongi to the nearest photo booth for some pictures.

Namjoon and Seulgi were so involved in a conversation that they walked off unknowingly.

It barrels down to Jungkook and Yeri, who rushed to the rollercoasters with an insane amount of excitement.

That'd leave two by their lonesome.

Joohyun refused to leave my side, and I didn't mind sticking by hers.

If she wasn't with me, she'd be by herself, and it'd be the same outcome for me, too.

So, while we delved further into the park at the slowest pace possible, it was an unspoken agreement to partner up and explore Mystic Land together.

Correction: I was the determined explorer while Joohyun was the annoying tour guide.

So, as she rambled on for centuries, I bit my tongue and allowed her to do so. It was difficult to not interrupt her, especially when I'm uninterested in all the details that I'd soon find out anyways.

Then again, I get it—she's just trying to be informative, as it's been years since I've been back here. Plus, catching me up to speed would enhance my experience.

"As you can see, this area mostly consists of stores where you can buy merchandise, like clothes, stuffed animals, cute necklaces, bracelets, and all that fun stuff. The food here is amazing, too. Seriously, this park has one of the best restaurants, so we'll go later, okay? Oh, and there's this one store that..."

As she went into detail about each of those sections, I tuned out momentarily. Funny thing is, she figured that out quickly. Perhaps it was my unresponsiveness to her yapping that made her notice—or, maybe, my blank stare. Either one.

"Hey, are you even listening?"

Expecting her to ask, I turned to her and unconvincingly said,

"Yes."

(If you were wondering just now, she forced me to abandon the mask ages ago, and if I refused, she wouldn't talk to me for the rest of the night. I didn't believe her one bit, but then again, I wasn't going to test her.)

"Repeat what I just said, then."

.

"Uh..." If I look into her eyes, she'll detect my uneasiness, so I tried to stray away from doing so. Pretty sure the last thing she mentioned was a store, so... "You were talking about a store."

"Yeah? Which one?"

Now, why is she testing me?

I vaguely answered: "Your favorite one."

"Wrong." Well, I'm no mind reader, so I didn't expect to be right. "I was talking about a candy store that we'd visit a lot as kids. Before we'd leave the park, our parents would take us there to gather a bagful of sweets. There were so many different kinds that we'd have a hard time choosing. Every time I come here, I always mean to go, but never do. It's kind of sad to admit that it's been a while."

Now, I feel guilty for tuning out of her ramble earlier.

And, for some reason, I caught onto the unspoken notion to not ask why it was sad to admit such an experience. In a way, I already knew what she'd say.

"In that case, sorry for spacing out." There must've been so many memories made here—so many that I can't even begin to know if it wasn't for Joohyun's small recaps. "I feel like this is a dumb question, but I have to ask; how do you remember specific things so well?"

"It's not dumb at all," she shook her head, musing over my words, "As time goes on, I've realized that the moments I've never forgotten are usually the ones that I always look back on."

I believe that. For a memory to become eternal, it usually derives from a place of importance.

"Makes sense," and, just then, I felt another rush of guilt and sadness wash over me. More so, for being unable to remember. I don't think that feeling will ever leave. "I'm sure those times meant a lot to me, too."

"Yeah," she said, nodding in agreement. "I think so, as well."

"Would you like to go now, then? To that shop, I mean?"

She thought for a moment, her chin caught in between her thumb and index finger.

"Why don't we go for a quick visit before we leave tonight?" She clamped her hands together, flashing a delightful smile my way. Judging by the undeniably adorable look that she's giving me, her goal was to convince me into conceding to her wishes. "Please?"

Joohyun's insane to think that I'd need to be persuaded in the first place.

Really, who could say no?

"Sure thing."

She beamed brighter than ever before, an exhilarated gleam in her eyes.

I'd also mention that she's the prettiest girl I've ever seen, but I'm afraid she'd take it the wrong way.

So, after admiring the smile that grazed her lips, I hummed positively in return, and focused forward.

Now's the time to think up something to do in the meantime.

What would she even like to do? Should I ask?

Going against my thoughts, I considered my options by searching my surroundings. There're stores, more stores, and a line of booths. Shopping is an utter bore, so I squinted at the array of games that was offered. It's like walking through a corny- carnival. It wasn't a surprise to see that most of them were occupied by couples that'd ceremoniously win the other a stuffed prize of some sort.

Gross.

Although, there was one that caught my eye—one that was completely empty, and hey, no couples in sight!

"Hey, do you like basketball?" I asked.

"What?" She's lost. "No."

Who doesn't like basketball?

"Too bad," is all I said, before I blindly grabbed onto her wrist and pulled her towards said-booth nearby. The station only had two, medium-sized basketball hoops, so it was playable for someone as tiny as Joohyun. I'd say that aloud to rile her up, but my arm's still sore from her punctual punches. Seeing as the game is ready to start, I turned to her, "You ready or what?"

"No, I'm not." She got ahold of a ball from the side tray, eyeing it as if it was an estranged object. "I'm sorry, but why are we playing this?"

"Because, games are exciting and competitively thrilling," I let out a brief laugh at the perplexed look on Joohyun's face and picked up a ball of my own. "Why are you asking? Scared of losing?"

"Not at all." Rolling her eyes, she muttered: "I'm just not exactly good at basketball. Or, sports, for that matter."

"So, you're not up for a challenge, then?" I raised a brow. "Thought you liked challenges."

"I do, it's just..." No continuation followed.

"It's just, what?" If I keep pestering her, I'm determined that she'll agree to our basketball match in no time. Let's be real, she has no other option but to accept my challenge!

"Nothing," she groaned, then mumbled a forced, "Fine, I'll play."

See, Joohyun can't decline. She may be stubborn, but she's not stubborn enough to flick off that competitive spirit of hers.

"Awesome." Now, what's a suitable amount of points for a beginner like Joohyun? I believe five-thousand would give her enough time to catch up or get a decent lead—that is, if she could achieve one. "So, I was thinking the first to get to five-thousand points wins. What do you think? Fair enough?"

Joohyun remained silent, presumably in thought, and just as I was expecting her to come up with another excuse of some sort, she surprised me with,

"How about one-thousand points?" Coming out of left field was her newfound boost of confidence. Seriously, it threw me off for a second, but I regained my composure. If she thinks she's going to successfully distract me from a win, then she's wrong.

Doesn't she know that one thousand points makes the challenge much simpler to achieve?

Impressed, I smirked:

"Making things easier, I see." What's her ploy? She must be up to something, right? "For someone that claims they're not good at said-sport, you seem pretty confident in winning."

"Well," she smiled cheekily, then looked up at me with a certain spark of certainty and intimidation in her eyes, "I rarely lose."

Now, where did all that determination come from? Or, is she trying to fool me by pulling some sort of mind game?

"Guess, that makes two of us." Still, I couldn't help but snicker at her unexpected boldness, partly fascinated by it. "Let's start on three, shall we?"

My mouth parted to vocalize a quick countdown, but my focus was absorbed by none other than Joohyun, once more.

Before my very eyes, she had set up her feet into a player's stance. It was one so forced that it looked unnatural, especially for someone that isn't much of an athlete. The sight was, indeed, amusing—so amusing that it deserved to be criticized with a few, good ole chuckles on my part. Those minor chuckles transformed into laughter as soon as she looked up at me, seemingly confused by my reaction.

"Why are you laughing?" She asked.

"Because of the way you're standing." I propped the ball under my arm as I rested my hands on my hips, arching a quizzical brow at my best friend. 

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"That," I gestured towards her adorable stance. "What is that?"

"My ready position?" That alone caused my smile to widen, before I couldn't hold it in anymore, and released another whole-hearted, yet pitiful laugh. "Why do you keep laughing at me?"

The subtle pout that she emitted seized my heart and flung it out of my chest.

"Did you just say, 'ready position'?" I snorted.

"Yes, I'm pretty sure that's what it's called." She's one interesting human-being, that's for sure. "Is there a problem with it?"

One of a kind, as some would say.

"Oh, not at all!" She's taking this rather seriously, so I suppose I'd do the same. Mimicking her, I jumped into my own ready position, as well. Supposedly finding my stance the source of quality entertainment, she let out a few giggles of her own, before I called: "By the way, loser buys the winner ice cream, got it?"

"Guess, you're buying it for me then," she winked, bumping her shoulder with mine.

I scoffed, not believing a word.

"We'll see about that."

On the bright side, at least I hadn't bet on something too costly. Ice cream's manageable. Though, conducting some sort of bet at that very moment is one of the few regrets that I have of the night so far.

During the seconds leading up to the match, I was so self-assured that I'd end up the winner, and even so, the amount of cockiness that I was emanating remained unacknowledged. Knowing the results now, I should've kept that side of me under control because it surely bit me in the .

That's probably another regret of the night, since Joohyun never lets me live anything down.

Before our little competition started, I wish I had paused and considered how meticulous Joohyun can be. Seeing as she's my best friend and all, catching onto her undercover tricks should've been easy.

Yet, after losing two of the three matches that we've played, and beckoning for a rematch as soon as I lost, I've concluded that I've been fooled; bamboozled, as one would say.

Joohyun acted like she was the worst player in existence, yet she was shooting hoops and gaining points like a professional would. Perhaps, that's what threw me off the most—her surprise of being a secretive all-star player.

Then, after she'd win, she'll say, "I never knew I was so good!" And, I'd roll my eyes at her, because she sure as hell did know.

Jesus, what isn't she good at?

At least, I won the third match, so I can't tell myself that I'm totally  at the game, but she did come out as the better player. For that, I applauded her. 

I've come to understand that, no matter what it is, Joohyun tends to impress me. Her driven mentality, and the competitiveness that she's shown today, is a grand example of many. Even if she's already winning by a landslide, she manages to be as attentive as ever, throwing every bit of her focus into getting that extra lead. Sometimes, it's astonishing, and other times it's downright intimidating.

But, most of all, it's an admirable attribute—one that I fully realized just by observing her.

"Hey, Taehyung?" Joohyun's bragged about her previous victories for the past five minutes, so I didn't pay her any mind. She was difficult to shrug off, considering that she wouldn't stop prodding me somehow, whether it was poking my arm or calling my name to get my attention.

It was useless to ignore her any longer.

"What?" I said sourly, walking two steps ahead of her. I can't bear to witness the smug look on her face.

I winced as she let out an adorable laugh that may have caused my bitter mindset to slowly disperse.

"I'd like two scoops of cookies and cream ice cream, okay?" And, now that bitterness is back for round two. Not that I'm surprised. She enjoys every antagonized reaction that I send her way. "Can you remember that?"

I merely scoffed as I was on the verge of breaking this partnership we've formed tonight.

"With as often as you remind me, I don't think I'll be able to forget."

That is, if she ever stops rubbing it in my face.

Half an hour later, and no, Joohyun hasn't stopped rubbing it in my face.

The instances have only tripled.

It's not like she doesn't have a reason to be overly eccentric about her wins, especially when she beats me at nearly everything that we try. To my surprise, we've been sticking by these carnival-styled game booths for a while now. In truth, the competitive mindsets that we share is a horrible characteristic. It feels like we're on some never-ending time-loop, in which all we've done is combat each other in the most corny, unskillful games that currently surrounds us.

Balloon darts, for instance.

Joohyun and I battled for greatness around three to four times, seeing who can rack up more points by popping balloons that hung on the largest wall I've ever seen. I never thought it could be so engaging to do so. The best part is, every single time we'd burst one, Joohyun would jump in fright. I couldn't help but find it adorable and amusing at the same time.

At least, I can proudly admit that I won most of those matches, but she managed to pull through in the last one.

Of course, she must win at least once against me—I don't think we'd stop playing until she did.

Yeah, she's that determined in beating me.

Let's not forget the fact that she can't stand when I win.

I'll be honest; I can't stand when she wins, either.

It that we're so alike in that department because it's a literal revolving-door effect of challenges.

Despite that, I can't say that I don't find enjoyment in the competitive atmosphere that we've formed in so little time. It's both exhilarating and profoundly hilarious to defeat her because she either pouts, whines, rolls her eyes, or does any other action that falls under the definition of 'sore loser'.

To be frank, I act the same way, but right now, I feel more anxious than anything else.

Why's that?

Well, for the past ten minutes, Joohyun's been pestering me to try High Striker, or the game that's more commonly known as the ultimate strength tester. You know, it's the one where you slam the hammer as hard as you can in order to hit the bell at the top.

Now, I'm not too fond of that type of game for multiple reasons. Not because I'm uncertain about my strength capabilities, but because if you don't hit the bell, it's extremely embarrassing. 

I'm not kidding, either. For some reason, people on the sidelines love to gather around, observe, and hype up the atmosphere, which doubles my discomfort.

"Why don't you just try it?" My best friend egged on, causing me to groan inwardly. It's difficult to not feel obligated to do what she says whenever she acts like this. And, although I don't want to partake in this little contest, she defeated me at a beanbag toss prior to this. Yes, that meant she had full control in the next booth-choice, and yes, she chose this one. "Please?"

Oh, no. Not the, 'please'.

"I'm not really into testing my strength in front of all these people, okay?" No, I'm not being melodramatic; there is a literal crowd of people herding around us at this very moment. "How about we do something else this time? Like, ride a rollercoaster, maybe? Isn't that much more thrilling?"

"It is, and we can head to the rollercoasters right after this!" It sounded like a promise, but for now, I can tell that High Striker held her attention and it wasn't budging anytime soon. "Are you not confident in your abilities or something?"

Should I just be honest?

"No, not at all, actually."

She scoffed a brief laugh, not necessarily convinced. "What's the actual reason?"

"That is the actual reason." Seriously, I bet the audience has bundles of tomatoes at the ready for catapulting if I fail.

"You explicitly said that if I beat you at the beanbag toss, then you'd play any game that I'd choose next." Sounds about right.

"And, it has to be the one that weirdly gains the most attention in this entire park?" It's more than weird. It's along the lines of freaky at this point. I leaned closer to Joohyun and whispered in secrecy: "Look, I'll agree to anything else you choose, but this? I'd rather bob for ing apples."

No lie uttered there.

Bobbing for apples must be better than being the sole focal point of over twenty people, thriving off who could ding the damn bell first.

"Fine," she sighed, giving in way too quickly.

"Really? That's all it took?" I'm not totally trusting this situation, given how unpredictable she could be at times like these. When she wants something, she's expected to do a lot more convincing than this.

"I guess," she muttered half-heartedly.

Well, at that point, I should've calculated her responses better than I did. Indeed, she is my best friend, and I knew her better than most, so I shouldn't have totally believed her right then and there.

It seems like my refusal only caused Joohyun to step up to the plate and test her own strength. This may be an exaggeration, but another handful of spectators drew into the scene like moths to a flame.

Again, it was inherently freaky that she gained this much attention, simply by showing up, but perhaps, they're more interested in her than anything else.

Believe me, I tried to stop her, but she shook her head and added, "I'm doing this," for dramatics. She spoke as if she was set out to complete a mission, and High Striker was the mission needed for completion. All I could do was give her a few words of encouragement because it'd be awful of me not to.

This was a true display of bravery on Joohyun's part.

The number of gatherers and observers was reaching a suffocating amount, but I didn't pay them any mind.

My only thought was: what is possessing her to do this?

"Wow, who is she?"

"She's trying the High Striker?"

"Dude, trust me, there's no way she'll hit the bell!"

Not going to lie, that last one antagonized me, plucking a different kind of nerve in my body. They'd be surprised by how many times this girl could leave them feeling absolutely astonished.

Another load of random chatter flooded all around me. It was difficult to focus on anything else, but Joohyun's signature ready position that she sported so well. She even stretched her limbs out beforehand.

Amongst the crowd of people, her determined gaze met mine. In truth, we're not too far away, which I'm grateful for. She sent me a discrete wink—one meant for me and me only. Indeed, she was something else, so I grinned in return, and gave her a supportive thumbs up.

After I witnessed the staff member tell her something, he passed on the massive sledgehammer over to her. It appeared heavy in her grasp as she slowly dragged it across the ground and heaved it over her shoulder in one-fell swoop. For a moment there, I was afraid that she'd either hurt herself, strain something, or needed some sort of help, so I stepped toward her, ready for any sudden signs. Of course, she was completely fine, but I was still on guard.

I felt as if a given reminder felt necessary, just so she'd be extra cautious while handling that thing.

"Hey, be careful, okay?" I took another step forward as those words left my lips willingly, and I made sure that she heard it loud and clear. Although I was doubtful that she was able to catch onto what I said due to the various incoherent conversations that dragged on, it seemed like she was able to, anyways.

After we made immediate eye-contact, she nodded, and smiled a lovely smile—one filled with appreciation and understanding.

Once again, my heart fell victim to her ways; to the affect that she gives off; to the way she can paralyze anyone's will to think normal thoughts.

You know exactly what I mean.

"Alright, little lady," the head negotiator of this contest spoke up. "Normally, we give our manly contenders one attempt to successfully hit the bell, but for you, I'll give you three tries!"

In disbelief, I snorted to myself.

That's pretty ist, if you ask me.

Joohyun doesn't play that game.

"All I need is one." See? It's expected of her to say something so confident, so awesome, and so self-assured.

Entirely impressed, I admired my best friend as she stood tall and defiant, a confident smirk playing at the corner of . It seemed like her words caused the crowd to react enthusiastically as they belted out a numerous amount of hoot's and hurrah's, as well as various 'ooo''s and 'ahh''s. It was as if that statement of hers was the ultimate reason to finally label her as a badass. And, to add onto it, she was completely unbothered by the staff member's implications.

And, she was right, too.

All she needed was one attempt.

It's very much possible that the dude riled her up with that unnecessary insinuation, further assuring that that bell would damn-well ring victoriously in the end.

Although the staff remained completely slack-jawed and speechless, the audience was enveloped in a total craze. Yes, the crowd, indeed, went wild, and it further amped up the atmosphere to a frenzy. Even as they were wooing and recognizing the girl's efforts, all I could do is smile fondly while watching her do the same.

It's times like these that make me realize how likeable Joohyun is. Perhaps, it's the unexpected things that she decides to courageously do, even if it's totally out of her comfort-zone. Her incredible, instantaneous ability to wow a crowd with a single appearance—like now, for instance. It's baffling, to say the least. Maybe it's because she's so mesmerizing, and so captivating, or maybe, she's simply worthy of catching anyone's attention in one single glimpse.

I don't believe I've ever clued in on this side of her before—not like this, I mean.

It raises my interests.

Her endless determination toward achieving things and proving people wrong is nothing but commendable in my eyes. So, what if it's just a little game? It shows her courage, and the lengths she goes to simply do something awesome, even if she's not obligated to.

Sometimes, these thoughts become so overbearing and so dangerous that I cross the line, leading me to believe that, maybe, just maybe—

"Hey, were you watching? I really showed that guy, huh?" Joohyun interjecting my train of thought with her eccentricities is the best gift I could ask for.

I gave her a deserving high-five, before proudly saying,

"You sure did," I snickered, wiping away any questionable thread of thoughts that still dangled in my mind. Maybe, if I wasn't so trapped within my own head, I would've partaken in the craze, as well. "Not like I'm surprised, though."

After responding with an appreciative, "thanks," she said: "Here, take this."

I quirked an eyebrow at the goofily outrageous hat that was embedded in her arms, outstretched for me to take.

Now, why the hell would she choose that as a reward? There's a whole selection of awesome things to pick from, but a humiliating, oversized chicken-like catastrophe is what caught her eye?  

Hoping she wouldn't say what I think she's going to say, I blinked, then asked,

"Why?"

"Because, I think it'll look great on you," Oh, God. The worst is coming next. "Will you wear it?"

Is she kidding? "Hell, no!"

"Too bad." Like a maniacal psycho, she started giggling, like all the other times she's got excellent ideas to either embarrass me to death or to ruin my life even further. "You have to."

"And, why do I have to?"

"Because, you chickened out and didn't do the High Striker when I asked, so it's only right. Plus, I won, didn't I?" Fair enough. She flashed me another one of her bright, yet goofy smiles, and suddenly, it got more difficult to say, 'no'. "Wear it for me. It's my only wish."

"You have weird wishes."

"Sure do."

Let's be real; she just wants me to be a laughingstock for every person that I walk past.

With a displeased frown, I threw it over my head quicker than ever. Although it pained me, I might as well have gotten it over with and let her have her notorious laugh.

And, of course, as soon as I had placed it on, Joohyun busted out into a fit of cackles that didn't seem to ever end. It'd echo in my ears, making me dread this situation more than I can describe. Even a few of the people that gathered to witness her superhuman strength had pointed a finger or two at me, snickering until I was out of sight and out of mind.

"God, I must look so stupid." No, I don't need a picture to see. I already know.

I facepalmed, beginning to walk away from a teasing Joohyun that is currently having trouble breathing properly. The girl can barely speak, as she's too busy doubling over and holding her aching stomach from laughing so vigorously.

Not that I blame her; if she was wearing this thing on her head, I'd be having my own laugh, too.

"Hey, wait up, let me take a picture of—" How did I foresee that coming?

"No, thank you," I shook my head rapidly, emphasizing my decision by waving my hands back-and-forth in theatrics. I was partly in disbelief at the fact that she even considered I'd want a picture taken in this... condition.

"Oh, come on, Tae," she bumped her elbow into my bicep, urging me to agree to her photo-taking pleas. "We should capture these fond memories. It'll help us remember during rough times."

That's laughable.

"Pretty sure we'll never forget this moment," I said as bluntly as I could muster.

"If it makes you feel any better, I think you look cute."

Coming from Joohyun, that tiny compliment caused me to come to a complete stop and whirl around to my left to face her.

I guffawed: "Did you just call me, 'cute'?"

Then, surprising me further, the flash on her phone went off, temporarily blinding the out of me.

Geez, couldn't I have been warned, at least?

"Knew that'd make you look at me," she cheered happily, and again, I was left quite baffled, seeing as she played yet another one of her impressive tricks on me. It's not a surprise that I fell for it. "Thanks for the picture. I'll be saving this."

"You're ridiculous," I said through a sigh.

"Yeah, and you look it."

" you."

She laughed. "Are you sure you don't want to see what you look like?"

"Maybe, later." That translates to never. "At least, after this downfall of a moment settles."

Gotta' stay slightly optimistic for Joohyun.

"You know, you didn't have to listen to me and end up wearing it."

That's a very true statement. "Whatever, I felt obligated after you impressed the crowd with beating the High Striker."

She was about to respond, but hesitated, then proceeded with her thought moments later:

"Did I impress you?"

As we continued to delve deeper into the park, I side-eyed her.

She wasn't looking at me, or at least, she didn't dare to.

I smiled a little, reminiscing on her moment of success.

"You can say that." The roar of the crowd and her gorgeous smile is the most of what I can remember, because after that, I couldn't stray away from all the thoughts that compiled solely of her. It kept my outward reaction at bay, but inwardly, I was throwing a party. "Guess, that's why I don't mind looking like a fool for a while."

"I wasn't lying, you know." Huh? What is she referring to?

Knitting my eyebrows out of perplexity, I turned my head and studied her expression in an effort to catch onto any clues,

"Lying about, what?"

"Hey, you know what sounds extremely fun right now? Rollercoasters!" Why did she just pretend like she didn't hear me? Should I still question it?

It's probably nothing, anyways. I'll shrug it off.

"Yeah, it does," I smirked, a fantastic realization presenting itself. "That also means I get to take this hat off."

"Not if you're wearing it correctly."

"Huh?" God, could it get any worse for me? Is there any bright side to this situation?

She, then, proceeded to explain,

"You're supposed to tie the legs securely under your chin." Still, I had no clue what she was talking about, so I continued to stare at her, as dumbfounded and puzzled as ever.

I was slightly caught off guard as soon as Joohyun stepped in front of me, letting out a troubled sigh. She took a brave step closer and got ahold of the dangling legs that was connected to the chicken hat itself.

Ah, those legs.

I forgot how exaggerating this thing was.

"See these?" She lifted them up to my line of sight, and I nodded. "They're meant to be tied into a knot."

"How was I supposed to know that?"

I'm going to be honest: I couldn't pay attention to much of anything besides how pretty she was up close. It was like one pathetic mental note after another. To act like my mind was somewhat put together and not short-circuiting, spewing out words of nonchalance was my best bet as her fingers worked the lace in careful, yet perfect loops.

"There." Even as she started speaking, and that small, lovely smile brightened up her features, it wasn't a good enough distraction for the entrancement I've been put under. I'm not kidding: it was incredibly difficult to inspect anything else but every detail of her face, as if I've never looked at her a day in my life. "Too tight or too loose?"

This may be too much, but looking into her doe-like eyes is like—

"Taehyung?" Is she calling my name? "Hello? Why do you keep staring at me?"

Oh, , I think I just got lost in her eyes.

Is that what the phenomena is called?

"Huh?" I've been resurrected! "What did you ask?"

She tilted her head, smiling a little. There was something hidden in that smile of hers but identifying what it was would only end up as an unsolved mystery.

"I asked if it felt too tight or too loose," she pointed at my chin. "The knot."

"Oh," I nodded, finally understanding. It feels perfect to me. "It's fine. Thanks."

"Good," she said, absentmindedly taking my hand and dragging me to wherever she pleased. "Let's go ride rollercoasters!"

Outwardly, I beamed along with her, but inwardly, I wondered, "did she really think I looked cute?"

Now's a good time to roll my goddamn eyes.

What am I becoming, exactly?

It feels like the more I surround myself with Joohyun, the more I get pathetically hazy in the mind.

It's time to stop that.

While it may be a scary thought, let's see what other surprises this night brings.

A/N: This is merely part 1 of 2! Next chapter is coming very soon. I've already started it. I'm not going to lie though, writing this chapter was hell, not because it was difficult to, but with all the that bombarded me this past month. There's no way I could've given you an entire chapter with everything I wanted to include from this night either. I didn't want to split it, but as you can see, I've written 9k words for this, and if I were to combine the rest of the night into this one, it probably would've exceeded 15k.

Again, thanks to those that wait for these delayed updates. I hope you like this one, or slightly enjoy it at least. I don't think it's that bad but it could've been better in all areas. Just want to give a huge thanks to everyone that reads, votes, and comments, in general. Love you, guys.