l               Yes, this is a real chapter. It will start after I finish saying stuff.

Firstly, as always, I begin my saying stuff by saying sorry. For not updating in a long time.

animesinger143, sorry! And thank you for being such a sweet, patient person.

So this chapter (6^th) is Part One of the Seoul Land date. Part Two will be uploaded as Chapter 8 later, featuring Melody & L.

Here’s a virtual Seoul Land for you to enjoy:

http://chn.seoulland.co.kr/eng/img/park_eng.swf

And guys, I can’t thank you enough for still sticking with me even though I totally with keeping up with my schedule! I haven’t been writing for a long time because I can’t. I keep writing and deleting stuff because none of the stuff I wrote was good enough. And even AFTER I’m done writing I can’t seem to upload it due to the state of the Internet I’m experiencing right now in college. T.T

But these are excuses; no matter how true they are (They’re 100% true!). I’m to blame for everything, and I’m sorry once again.

Did you guys read Lovesick (Chapter Two)? I really love that fic and this weekend, I’ve been re-reading and re-reading it (shamelessly self-promoting here, sorry!). It’s so aggravating that I wrote that fic in just one night while I take forever to complete this one (THIS chapter is, by the way, the longest chapter in the series as of right now). Writing request fics is so much harder than I ever thought it would be.

Anyway, the point of my shameless self-promotion is that; some of you wrote to me that you’d like to request. Thank you for saying that, it makes me feel like there’s a point to all my writing & in some ways, it gives me motivation to keep going & it did wonders to my self-esteem as a writer. But I still can’t re-open the requests yet as my queue hardly ever moves (As of right now, I still have 5 ½ stories left on the queue). I’ll make sure to inform you if I ever open the requests again, though.

To the people who are already on the queue, I’m sorry because I remember saying to you guys that “I’ll probably get your story finished next week” when you first requested. I’m glad I put the ‘probably’ in there instead of making a promise.

                animesinger143, this is your story. Hope you don’t hate it!

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“Eun Mi, how are you feeling? Are you nervous?” I smile in the direction of the voice and shake my head. I take off my glasses and wipe them with the front of my dress. “I was nervous before, but not anymore. Now I just want to go on the date, you know?”

                Melody smiles softly. “Me too. I can’t believe I’m going on a date with Kim Myungsoo. With L.”

                I grin and put my glasses back on. “I know right? I can’t believe I’m going on a date with Jung Jinyoung either. Do you think they’re nervous?” I ask Melody as the coordi unni sprays my hair with some stuff that smells like orange blossom flowers. Mmm, my hair’s gonna smell so yummy.

                “I don’t know. They seemed fine.” Melody answers and closes her eyes as she gets sprayed by some hair product too.

                I take off my glasses to wipe them again since they got misted with the hair spray. I’m not sure how I feel with this double date thing. All the previous episodes of ‘Date with a Star’ only featured one ‘couple’. Having Melody & L on the date with me and Jinyoung will mean that we have to share screen time, and our chemistry with our dates will get compared by the viewers. There’s also the possibility of Jinyoung ending up liking Melody more than he likes me, but let’s not even go there.

                On the bright side, Melody made me less nervous. And should I run out of things to say to Jinyoung, I can always talk to Melody, right?

                Suddenly, all the coordinators start to become very quiet and they all stare at the door. I turn to see Choi Siwon standing in the doorway. He smiles widely and asks, “Are you girls ready?”

                “Just a second!” Ivy unni scrambles to finish doing my hair. “Eun Mi-sshi, should I curl your hair?”

                “Can I just put it in a ponytail? I’m more used to it that way.” I ask her hesitantly. Ivy unni just smiles and nods her head, proceeding to tie my hair in a low ponytail that’s casual yet dressy. Two seconds later, Melody and I are heading out of the trailer with MC Siwon, ready to go on our dates.

                Yun PD joins us on the way to the main stage in the middle of Seoul Land. He starts to explain (again) that the production crew decided to make this episode a double date because both Melody and I had applied for an amusement park date. “Besides, it’ll help you girls get rid of your nerves, right?”

                Siwon snorts. “Just tell them that you’re too stingy to give them separate dates.” Melody and I laugh as Yun PD tries to shush Siwon. “Siwon hyung! Don’t let them know that!” Yun PD turns to us with a grin and says, “I’m just kidding, girls. Actually, we’re trying to see if a double date concept will work out better for the program.” He says and extends a hand to help us up the stage. “Have a good date, girls.”

                Melody and I hold hands as we wait for the crew to put on mics on us and stuff. I have to remember that this IS a TV show and that Jinyoung and I can’t just run all over Seoul Land as we please. Sigh. But then again I don’t even know what to say to Jinyoung, much less have the courage to ask him to run away with me to the other side of the amusement park.

                At Yun PD’s cue, Siwon smiles at the camera very charismatically and greets the viewers. “Hello and welcome to Date With a Star! I’m your host Siwon, reporting from Seoul Land! Today, we have a very special date as we have two pretty girls here with us, about to go on a date with two very famous idol stars!”

                Melody and I smile at each other excitedly. It’s happening!

                I’m going on a date with Jung Jinyoung!

                “First up, we have Infinite’s L who will go on a date with Melody!” Siwon announces as he gestures to Melody. L jumped up onto the stage with a back flip and the people watching us go wild. I’m not the biggest fan of Infinite in the world, but I have to admit that his back flip’s pretty cool. Melody’s almost crushing my hand with her death grip. I never knew that someone so petite could be so strong. I laugh a little when I hear a squeal escaping from Melody as L makes his way to stand next to her.

                “And the second lucky guy, B1A4’s leader, Jung Jinyoung!”

                It’s my turn to squeal as Jinyoung oppa gets up on the stage. He stands in the middle of the stage awkwardly and Siwon asks him, “Are you going to dance?”

                I had hoped that he’ll dance to ‘Baby Goodnight’ since the dance is pretty cool, but to my horror, Jinyoung starts to do the sprout dance.

                “Oh my gosh.” I say and put my hands to my face. I never thought that I’d be embarrassed by my ultimate bias, but I am. The dance is cute, sure, but compared to L’s back flip?

                Stop it, Eun Mi. Do NOT, I repeat, DO NOT start comparing Jinyoung oppa to L, okay?

                Sigh. See? This is one of the bad sides to a double date. No matter how much you like the girl standing next to you, you’d still want your date to be cooler than hers.

               Thank god that Jinyoung oppa only did the sprout dance for like three seconds before getting embarrassed himself. He laughs and runs over to my side.

                I bite my lip to stop a squeal.  Ahhh~! Why is he more nervous than I am? He’s so adorable! His face is as red as his hair now.

                “Sorry, Eun Mi-sshi.” He apologizes in a whisper and I shake my head profusely. “It’s fine.”

                I WAS kinda embarrassed by the sprout dance but it’s okay now that Jinyoung oppa’s being cute and all.

                “Okay, couples. Ready? Get set, go!” Siwon oppa announces suddenly, making all of us jump.

                “Where are we supposed to go?” I heard L ask Melody as Jinyoung grabs my hand and starts to jump down the stage. I let out a small scream and Jinyoung laughs at me. “I’m sorry.” He says. “I’m so nervous that I can’t think straight.”

                I smile shyly at him, but I’m not feeling nervous anymore. For some reason seeing him nervous made me toughen up a bit. “Let’s go around the World Plaza. I’ve always wanted to see windmills.” I say and lead the way, dragging his hand.

                We walked for about five steps before Visor PD (I can’t remember his name) stopped us with a laugh. “Ey! Ey you kids! Come back here!”

                Jinyoung oppa and I freeze in our tracks before turning to face Visor PD. Then, I turned to my left and Jinyoung oppa turned to his right, effectively tangling each other with our arms. Since we’re holding hands, we basically made ourselves look like a human bowtie. I hope none of the cameras captured that.

                Oh, who am I kidding? Visor PD’s laughing at us, as well as about five cameramen. I let Jinyoung’s hand go and cover my face in embarrassment. Jinyoung says, “I’m sorry... But you’ve gotta admit that was funny.” I laugh with him.

                “Kids, I know you’re excited and all, but I need you to remember that we’re on a show. You can’t just walk off like that. Wait for the cameramen, okay?” Visor PD says in a gentle tone.

                Jinyoung and I nod like two bobble head dolls and grinned shyly at the crew. Once the head cameraman signaled okay, Jinyoung and I start walking towards the World Plaza again.

                “STOP!” A voice calls out from behind, stopping us once again. I’m pretty sure I heard Jinyoung sigh heavily. “What’s the matter?” He asks L, who’s holding to his hand as if his life depends on it.

                “Where are you going? Take us with you!” It sounded so much like a plea that I feel pity for Melody. Thank god she doesn’t seem to notice.  “Have you heard of the Tilt House? Let’s go to the Tilt House!” L says at the speed of light, dragging Jinyoung away from Melody and I. Melody links her arm with me and says happily, “I’ve never seen L so excited! This is going to be fun!”

                We set off running too, making the crew chase us. As I run, my mind kinda blank out a bit. So for the rest of this date... I have to be with Melody and L? And by the looks of it, L’s way too nervous to even walk with Melody, so I’m gonna be the one walking around with her. So when am I supposed to spend time with my actual date?

                “-almost like fangirling.” Melody says with a squeeze on my hand.

                “Huh?” I was too busy planning my escape to realize that Melody was talking to me. “What’s almost like fangirling?”
                “Never mind, let’s just go!” Melody pulls me along with her to the Tilt House entrance. The Tilt House is this place where there are mirrors and tons of optical illusions. There’s this thing where the water flows upwards, and mirrors that make Melody and I stick-like in one second and mammoth-sized the next. We had fun giggling at our displaced heads and concave ribcages.

                “Oh hey, let’s get donuts!” Melody says once we’re outside, and I happily ran along with her to the Dunkin Donuts cafe.  I get a donut that had Sour Patch Kids candy (Yum! My favorite!)  all over it while Melody chooses strawberry. We sit outside the cafe and I laugh at Melody for getting strawberry cream all over her nose.

                “Melody! You’re such an adorable klutz!” I take a tissue and help her wipe the pink cream off. Melody giggles and sticks out her tongue at me. And that’s when I see my reflection on the camera behind Melody, getting a close-up of my face. It was only right then when I realize that I’m acting like Melody’s date.

                Oh shoot.

                I munch the rest of my donut hastily, trying to think of the last place where we had seen the boys. I think it was when L dragged Jinyoung with him outside the Tilt House. That was almost half an hour ago. Where are the boys now?

                “PD-nim!” I call out to Visor PD. “Have you seen our dates?”

                “They’re over at the bumper cars in Fantasy Land.” Visor PD says in an indifferent tone. Does he not realize that I’m supposed to be on a date with Jinyoung, not Melody?

                As I glance over at Melody (who’s got strawberry cream on her face, again), I see that she doesn’t notice that her date’s missing either.

                Something needs to be done about this.

                And so I get up and declare to the production team that I’m going to join the boys at the bumper cars place.

                “Ooh! I’m coming too! Wait up!” Melody chases me as I march to Fantasyland, full of resolution and determination.

                Wait for me, Jinyoung oppa! I’m coming to save you!

                When we arrive at the bumper car place, I spot Jinyoung standing in line with L. Jinyoung waves to me and Melody, beckoning us over.

                “We’re gonna play for the third time. You girls coming with us?” Jinyoung ask us in a very friendly way. I nod excitedly.

                This is the way double dates are supposed to be, right? The four of us, taking on Seoul Land together!

                The Four Musketeers!

                When our turn comes on to play, the theme park staff grins conspirationally as she lets the four of us, Siwon, Yun PD and some other theme park goers in. “You guys just can’t get enough of this ride, can you?” She says with raised eyebrows.

                Due to the lack of people playing (most people choose to watch us play instead of joining us), each of us get a car to ourselves. When the starting bell rings, Melody, the girl as sweet as her name, just about goes crazy and starts to ram everyone with her bright pink car.

                It took me by surprise, watching her turn into this road rage monster, but I’m not one who would let some other girl hit me with her bumper car and get away with it.

                I’M GOING TO GET MY REVENGE!!!

                So I start maneuvering my car towards her, who’s circling Siwon like a hungry shark, and start running into her car. Melody laughs and gets away from me, chasing after L this time. The look in her eyes is seriously scary. She even starts cackling like a witch on a broomstick, making the people around us laugh and scared at the same time. Meanwhile, L, who had realized that Melody’s chasing after him, takes his car behind Yun PD for protection. Melody doesn’t care, she just starts ramming into Yun PD as well, trying to get the young PD to unblock L from her view.

                Jinyoung’s car pulls up next to me as I watch the Pink Hulk intimidate Yun PD & L at the other end of the bumper car derby.

                “She’s crazy.” He says, smiling at the sight.

                “She IS pretty crazy.”

                “I guess L has a legit reason to be scared of her.”

                I face Jinyoung, shocked at what he just said. “L is scared of her?”

                Jinyoung’s face breaks into a wide smile. “Haven’t you realized that he’s been avoiding you guys all morning?”

                “I did, but I don’t think he’d be scared of her. Why would anyone be scared of sweet Melody?”

                Jinyoung laughs as he points to the front with his finger. “Just watch.”

                I look in the direction he’s pointing at, where Melody is nudging Yun PD’s car with hers, trying to make him move. Yun PD’s laughing and laughing, showing off his fancy driving skills as he still manages to keep L away from Melody after all the hard work she’s done.

                This girl...

                “But still, he should give her a chance. I mean, until we come here, she’s been nothing but sweet and gentle. It’s not fair that he runs away from her without even getting to know her.” I say, angry at L for being a coward. Look at him, he’s hiding behind Yun PD and screaming for help from Siwon, who’s ignoring him and playing around with some strangers.

                Jinyoung looks at me with this weird smile on his face. “I’m proud of you”, he says suddenly, and my face starts heating up.

                “You’re proud of me? For what?”

                “For sticking up for Melody. And for sharing my views. Believe me, I’ve been trying to get L to meet Melody since at the Tilt House, but he keeps saying that he’s afraid. I don’t think that he’s afraid of Melody per se, it’s just that he’s not used to being around girls, you know. To dating.”

                I nod and look at my fingers. “I’ve never dated anyone either. But trying it... I’d like to try it.” My words come out incoherent and tangled. I want to tell Jinyoung that I want to just go on this date with him, without worrying about L’s fear of girls, or without having to look after Melody; but that will be embarrassing, and slightly selfish.

                Jinyoung seems to understand, though. He puts his hand on my car, pulling it closer to his. “Look, I’ll figure something out. Don’t you worry about it, okay? For the time being, let’s join forces with Melody and beat the crap out of L.”

                And that’s what we’re doing. The strangers who were hanging around Siwon have also come to Melody’s aid and we all form a circle around Yun PD+L. Melody reverses her car and rams Yun PD’s car one final time and the rest of us breaks the circle apart, giving way for Yun PD to escape. Then Siwon and Jinyoung accelerate their bumper cars into L’s, the double impact from both sides making the Infinite member jump in his seat.

                I take this chance to come up from behind, nudging L’s car slowly with the help of the others, so that he will come out of his corner. Together we form a train, with Jinyoung & Siwon at the sides, bringing L to the center of the derby where Melody’s sitting in her car with a self-satisfied look on her face. Siwon salutes her, presenting L like he’s some sort of human sacrifice.

                Jinyoung and I high-five each other and he pushes my car playfully as I try to get away from him. “We did it! We killed L!!!” He cries out in triumph.

                “Excuse me?” L stands up in his car and the theme park staff blows her whistle, indicating that L should sit down again.

                We all laugh at him and resume bumpering each other now that our mission to get L to stop running away from Melody has succeed. At least for the time being.

                After the final bell ring, I jump out of my car quickly, trying to get to a toilet. I think the staff let us play for a longer time, just so we can crash into each other longer. My head feels like it’s literally spinning from all the car crashes I’ve been through today.

                “I’m going to a bathroom.” I tell Yun PD, and Melody is suddenly by my side, clutching her head. “I need to go too.”

                The rest of the production crew waits near the big merry-go-round as Melody and I take care of our business. Heading out, we’re greeted by Jinyoung who’s waiting outside the male bathroom.

                “Hey girls.” He smiles his trademark eye smile, making my stomach feel like it’s playing bumper cars on its own.

                “Hey Jinyoung oppa!” Melody says cheerfully. “Thanks for helping me smash into L earlier.”

               “No problem. Listen, I need a favor from you.” Jinyoung says, much to my confusion. Melody seems just as puzzled.

                “ME? Not Eun Mi?” Melody asks quizzically.

                Jinyoung just nods.

“What do you mean?” Melody asks again, and fear fills my stomach as I imagine Jinyoung asking Melody on a date or proposing to her. I’m beginning to feel invisible, like I’m not needed in this conversation.

                As if he knows what I’m thinking, Jinyoung catches my eye and smiles at me before talking to Melody again. “Okay, here’s the thing. You know how L’s been running away from you all day? It’s nothing personal against you; he’s just not used to dating or being around girls.”

                I feel immense relief and silently applaud Jinyoung in my head for taking charge.

“Oh.” Melody says quietly. I wonder if she even noticed that she’s hasn’t really been with her date all morning.

                “So here’s what we’re gonna do. Eun Mi and I are going to give you guys some space to work it out. We’re gonna go away from here, so that L won’t be able to hide behind me or anything, so it’s all up to you now, okay?” I raise my eyebrows upon hearing my name suddenly. Jinyoung sounds really confident though, I guess he knows what he’s doing.

                “Okay.” To my surprise, Melody sounds firm too. “I’ll go out first.”

                “Yeah, you do that. And tell the PDs that Eun Mi and I have run away together.” Jinyoung says, holding my hand.

                “We are what?” I say, but Jinyoung’s already running in the opposite direction of the merry-go-round, taking me along with him.

                “THIS is your ‘figure something out’? Running away from the crew?” I freak out. “What if they’re looking for us? What if we’re causing trouble for them?” We’re dashing past the Super Swings now, way past the bumper cars and the merry-go-round.

                Jinyoung looks back at me and winks. “I told you to not worry about it, right? I told Yun PD. See, he even gave me a walkie-talkie and a camera.” He says, lifting his shirt a little to reveal the walkie-talkie strapped to his waist.

                I breathe a sigh of relief. So he DOES know what he’s doing. And if I’m being honest, I stopped caring about what would happen to the ‘double date’ the moment Jinyoung winked. The lifted shirt made me feel a lot better too.

                “I left the camera back there though.” He says, stopping suddenly. “Should we go back?”

                Going back would be the right thing to do. Going back would mean that we’re being responsible citizens, grateful that we’re given the chance to meet each other and that we’re using this opportunity wisely, making sure that all of our date gets filmed appropriately.

                Going back would also mean that we might have to resume the ‘double date’. And we might get separated by L and Melody again.

                “Screw it. Let’s just get away.” I say, yanking Jinyoung’s hand and making our way into Tomorrow Land.

                “I know where we should go first.” Jinyoung says, taking me into the direction of the mega-sized roller coaster, the Black Hole 2000. “Are you okay with roller coasters?”

                I blank out for a moment, remembering the time I first rode on a roller coaster with my brother. Once we got off, I literally became a tree hugger and literally kissed the ground below me. And then I puked.

                But this time it’s going to be different. This time I have Jinyoung with me. And that makes me feel braver.          

                Jinyoung keeps asking me if I’m okay the whole time we’re waiting in queue. I guess my face must have turned white or something since he keeps checking on me.

                “We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.” He says, when we’re right in front of the roller coaster train. I don’t say anything, and just slide into the seat. I hand over my glasses to the ride manager for safekeeping. Jinyoung sits next to me, a worried expression etched on his face.

                “Just tell me if you’re feeling sick or anything, okay? I’ll tell them to stop the ride until you feel better.” He says, patting my hand.

                I laugh. “Stop the ride? What, are you like this theme park’s owner or something?”

                Before Jinyoung has a chance to answer, the PA system comes on. For one second I thought that it’s the Visor PD, making a broadcast for the theme park staff to look for me and Jinyoung or something. But it’s the announcement for the roller coaster.

                “Welcome to the Black Hole 2000! We’re one of the longest roller coasters in Korea, and we’re certainly one of the fastest! At the speed of 100 km/h, we’ll have you whizzing through a black hole in the Galaxy twice and fall headlong seven times! There’s still time to change your mind!”

                “There’s still time to change your mind!” Jinyoung copies the announcement and I just ignore him, looking ahead to the first black hole that we’re about to enter. No one left the ride and I’m definitely not going to either. I’m doing this.

                “Okay then. Strap on and bye!” The announcement comes on again and we.

Start.

Moving.

                As with most roller coasters, the ride is slow at first. We enter a dark tunnel and somebody made this silly kissing sounds. I chuckle nervously and grip the handle bar in front of me tight. The train starts climbing, and even though it’s dark, I can feel that we’re miles up in the air. The climbing stops and I sigh, relieved.

                Seconds later though, the train moves forward, bringing us back into sunshine and I swear that I’m not the only one who gasped. WE’RE HANGING ON THE AIR!

                Seriously, there are NO TRACKS IN FRONT OF US!

                I lose all sanity and start blubbering my final words. “Mommy I’m gonna die oh my gosh, I’ never thought I’d die so young Mommy help I love you Visor PD sorry for running away Ivy unni thanks for doing my hair and Jinyoung o-“ the train lurches forwards-no, DOWNWARDS into our doom.

                “-PPPPPAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!” My mind is left somewhere at the top of the tracks while my stomach threatens to melt into my kidney. As I struggle to keep my lungs inside my body, next to me, Jinyoung is letting go of the handle bar and laughing his heart out.

                “ARE YOU CRAZY?! HOLD THE HANDLE BAR! YOU’RE GOING TO FALL OUT!” I scream to his face as we fall headlong (I guess the announcement didn’t lie) down the track.

                “EUN MIIIIII! EUN MI THIS IS FUNNNNN!” Jinyoung calls out, his lips stretching into a huge smile.

I guess he left his brains up there too.

                Just as I thought that the fall will never stop, the train starts to move upwards again. The inertia makes the climb much quicker than the first one, but five seconds later we’re falling again, this time in a corkscrew turn. The train twirls and turns around the track and the worst part is that for some reason, I can’t even close my eyes. I feel sick to my stomach and I’m tempted to take up Jinyoung’s offer to stop the ride.

                And yet when I turn to him, his smiling, joyous self, all my fears dissipate and my senses seem to come back. Even with my blurred vision, I can see that he looks so happy on the ride, his red hair blasting in all directions (THANK GOD I had my hair in a ponytail) and I just immediately catch a bit of his adrenaline.

                I face the front, where we’re climbing up yet again. The rest of the train is going, “That was fun! I can’t wait for the next fall!” and I’m just thinking to myself, “Jinyoung oppa is so beautiful.”

                The said beautiful man holds my hand and asks me, “You’re fine, right? We’re gonna be upside-down next. It’s so much fun, you just wait.” I nod cheerfully, surprising myself.

                “I’m fine!” I say a bit too loudly, my voice echoing in the tunnel, making people on the train laugh.

                Jinyoung’s words soon come true.  The train is still climbing up, but the track has turned so that we’re sitting upside down. Jinyoung has his hand on mine on the handle bar. One second, I’m smiling at him anxiously, and the next, I’m screaming, “I’M FFFIIIIIIINNEEEEEE!!!!” at the top of my lungs as we fall again.

                “I’m fine too!” Jinyoung screams next to me, and soon the whole train’s shrieking “We’re fine!” all the way until the ride stops.

                We get out of the roller coaster train in wonky motions. My head’s dizzier than when we’re on the bumper car and I ask to sit down. Jinyoung finds a bench in front of the Zeppelin and he hands me a cold drink that he bought from a vending machine nearby.

                “You okay?”

                “I’m fiiiinneeee!” I scream softly, stifling a laugh. “I just need some time to recover is all.”

                “Take all the time you need, Eun Mi.” Jinyoung says, drinking his own coffee.

                “How can you NOT be scared at all?” I ask him. I know that Gongchan is the fearless one in B1A4. Jinyoung, meanwhile, is one of the scaredy cats.

                “I was really, really scared, to be honest.” He says, laughing.

                I narrow my eyes at him. “You were not.” I say skeptically.

                “I was; I was really scared. It’s just that I have you next to me, you know? I can’t act scared in front of you, that’ll make you EVEN MORE scared. So I pretended to be brave.” He says with a blush.

                I hide my smile behind my peach milk can. It’s like earlier, when I find myself not nervous anymore once I’ve seen how nervous Jinyoung was. I find it sweet that Jinyoung tried to suppress his fear.

For me.

                For a moment I forget about the show and the rest of the crew. They might look for us, and catch us later. But for now, Jinyoung and I are just gonna enjoy our time together.

                We rode the Zeppelin, a Viking-type ride next. We sat at the very back, the scariest place, but after the Black Hole 2000 it feels like we’re just sitting on a swing. A very high swing. We ride the Double Loop Coaster, and again, compared to the Black Hole 2000, this one is like child’s play. We even ride the Crazy Mouse, with little kids in the other mice. Some of them recognize Jinyoung despite his now-crazy hair and ask for a picture.

              Jinyoung spots the windmill from afar and runs towards it eagerly. “Eun Mi-ah! It’s the windmill you wanted to see!”

                I catch up with him, happy that he remembered.

“We can see the Tilt House from here too.” He says, pointing to somewhere in the distance. “I’m sorry that I left you with Melody before. Did you guys have fun back there?”

                I nod firmly, reassuring him that I wasn’t exactly forced to spend time with Melody. Okay, so I kinda was. But we had a great time, Melody and I; and I have a feeling that Melody and I are gonna become friends after the show’s over.

                Jinyoung and I spend a few pleasant minutes in silence, just looking at the windmill and smelling the flowers. Then we head our way back towards Tomorrow Land for more rides, with me leading the way. “I’m sorry that I didn’t bring the camera with me. We could have taken a picture.” Jinyoung says.

“It’s okay.”

As we’re walking, Jinyoung starts singing “Smile” from behind and I’m not sure if he’s telling ME to smile or what, but in any case I’m already doing it anyway. And soon, I start to sing along. After all, that’s my favourite song on the album.

“You’re a great singer, Eun Mi.” Jinyoung says unexpectedly.

 I stop walking and turn back to face him, unable to believe that he just praised my singing. I guess Jinyoung must have been following me really closely because he suddenly walks into me and I fall backwards; with him on top of me. We stay like that for some time, too dumbfounded to even move.

               It was like a scene out of a drama or something, where the hero and the heroin suddenly fall on top of one another. Time stops, and you can hear their loud heartbeats... For a while it seems like they’re the only two people on the planet. And the fall usually ends up in a... kiss.

                “So THIS is what you’ve been doing while you’re away?” Visor PD calls out to us. He’s standing with his arms crossed and he’s tapping his feet impatiently. Jinyoung gets up and helps me to my feet, mumbling God-knows-what under his breath.

I’m terrified. What will happen now? Are we gonna be cut off from the show? I think I can live with that, but the next thought leaves me in horror. What if word gets out that Jinyoung ran away with me? What if Visor PD decides that he’s rude and irresponsible and he’s gonna ask all other show producers to ban Jinyoung and B1A4 from their shows? What if B1A4 gets shunned from society?

And all because of a girl named Kim Eun Mi.

“I’m sorry, PD-nim. Please don’t shun Jinyoung oppa from society.” I utter these words with testily, trying not to cry. I don’t even dare to look up at the senior PD in case I offend him or something. The next thing I know, the crew turns silent, as if they’re all holding their breath. I can feel it in my bones. Something bad is going to happen to Jinyoung and I. And I’m to blame for it.

But Visor PD laughs. He walks over to me and pats my head. “Don’t cry. And don’t worry. You’re gonna be fine.”

“What about Jinyoung oppa? Are you gonna hate him?” My bottom lips are giving way and my tears are on the verge of spilling. The time the two of us spent together were so precious, but it’s not worth losing Jinyoung’s career over. I should’ve convinced Jinyoung oppa to go back to the crew when I had the chance.

“He’s going to be fine too. Don’t you worry, little one, both of you are going to be fine. Just don’t run away again, you hear?”

I nod, wiping the tears that had managed to fall no matter how much I try to keep them in. The PD being nice just adds to my remorse and my tears are getting heavier.

“I’m still gonna have to punish you guys, though.” Visor PD says. Jung PD. That’s his name, I remember it now. He’s Jung PD.

“I would gladly accept it if you’d forgive us.” I say, my lips still trembling. I feel like such a bad person. I’m just a fangirl who got the chance to go on a date with my bias, and the only catch to this date was that I have to share it with one other couple.

And yet I wanted more. I’d let Jinyoung oppa take me away from the crew. We must have caused them trouble. And Jung PD is still being gentle about it. I don’t care if our part of the date doesn’t even get aired; I just want the crew to accept my apology.

Jinyoung oppa comes to my side and takes my hand in his. “Don’t cry. I’m sorry I made you feel bad. And I’m sorry I dragged you with me.”

He started it, but I still feel like the whole thing is my fault.

I glance up at Jung PD, waiting for my punishment. “PD-nim. You were saying?”

“Oh yeah, that’s right. Jung Jinyoung and Kim Eun Mi, I’ve got great news for you. You guys are going on the Sky X, free of charge.” Jung PD announces, and I get confused.

“I thought you’re gonna punish us? Instead you let us go on a ride?”

“Oh, you’ll see what I mean in a minute.”

Yup, this is a punishment all right.

I look up at the white poles forming an A above our head. In a couple of minutes, Jinyoung and I are going to be raised up into the sky. Then we’re going to fly. At least that’s the gist of what the staff was telling us. My head’s been blank since they put on these straps on us. The straps look like those huge backpacks that the army carries with them. Like armors of some sort.

Jinyoung oppa holds my hand, trying to comfort me with his words. I can’t really hear what he’s saying; my mind is anywhere but here. We haven’t even been up in the air yet, but I’m already feeling weightless. And nauseous.

I can hear Melody cheering for me perfectly well, though. If there’s one good thing that came out from Jinyoung and my ‘rebellion’ earlier, it’s that L and Melody look more at ease with each other. Melody had came up to Jung PD a few minutes after the crew found us, explaining to Jung PD that Jinyoung and I were just doing it to give her a chance to talk to L privately, and that if there’s anyone that should be punished, it would be her.

Jung PD would hear none of it. He commended Jinyoung and I for trying to bring the couple together, but WE are still the ones to receive this punishment.

Oh well. At least Melody and L seems happy. They had a meal together before and are now sharing cotton candy.

“Eun Mi-ah! Fighting!” Melody calls out from the sidelines, making a big heart shape with L. I can only glance at her. I’m SO afraid.

The staff does the final check and gets down from the platform we’re on, leaving Jinyoung and I standing, wrapped in this cocoon thing and wires hanging above us.

“All right, we’re going to drop the floor in a few seconds.” The staff announce from below the platform.

“Drop the floor?” I ask out loud before the floor literally drops, suspending Jinyoung and I mid-air. We both scream. It’s like we’re lying on our front on a swing. Which is slowly rising...

And rising.

And rising.

Soon, the two of us are so high up in the air that I can’t even tell where Melody is anymore. I can see Jung PD’s visor very well though. He’s waving at us with amusement on his face.

Yes, this is DEFINITELY a punishment.

Jinyoung is reciting some prayer that I can’t quite hear next to me. His grip on my hand is threatening to cut off my blood supply.

“Eun Mi, we’re gonna be fine.” He manages to say in between his chants of prayer. He’s one to talk.

But I’m just as scared as he is. “Are you sure?”

“No, I’m not sure.” He looks unsure, too. His face is white, like the clouds behind him. Oh my god, there are clouds behind us. We’re so high up.

“The staff told us to let go of the rope once we’re ready.” Jinyoung says, his hand on the rope as white as his face.

“Are you ready?” I ask.

“No.”

“Are you scared?” I honestly don’t know where I get the strength to even talk. I’m almost fainting when I see the people down there and yet I’m holding this interview up in the sky.

“I’m terrified.” Jinyoung says, his voice quavering. “I’m so, so terrified.”

“I’m scared too.” I say. Jinyoung looks at me and all of a sudden the colour of his face returns to normal and his hands stop shaking.

“You know what, I’m not scared anymore.” He says, and he lets go of the rope.

And then we start flying.

It is so amazing. It feels so scary to be up there, but once we let go of the rope, we’re just zooming across the poles, like a pendulum. My heart feels so free and the whole experience is just liberating.

In fact, once the staff announces that we need to get down, Jinyoung and I sigh heavily, reluctant to grab the handle that is supposed to bring us back to earth.

“That was so much fun!” Once we’re back on the ground, I scuttle to Jung PD and hug him. I feel like hugging everyone. The world is so awesome! I want to be a bird!

“Ooh, cotton candy!” I pinch of a bit of Melody’s cotton candy and stuff it into my mouth. “It’s so good! And they look like clouds. I love clouds. Flying is so fun.”

Melody giggles. “What’s gotten into you?”

“I wonder what they put in clouds these days.” L remarks. “You guys sure look high.” He says, elbowing Jinyoung next to him. Oppa is grinning and looking very silly. He grabs a bit of cotton candy too, and sits on the sidewalk next to me.

“That was so much fun. You guys should go next.” Jinyoung says, that silly smile still on his face. I’m pretty sure that the same silly smile is on my face too. L was right, we ARE high.

From being alive!

“I’m sorry, I can’t let you guys go, due to budget constraints.” Jung PD says to Melody and L, who both look super relieved that they don’t have to experience Sky X.

Pfft, they don’t know what they’re missing.

“But I’ll arrange for all four of you to ride the ShotXDrop together.” Jung PD says with a sly smile.

                Oppa is next to me, dangling his feet next to mine and telling L about the Black Hole 2000. Melody is on my other side, listening to Jinyoung with an ashen face. L is next to her, trying not to faint and not listening to Jinyoung at all.

                I tell this to Jinyoung and he grins. “Yeah, you’re right; he’s not listening to me. He probably can’t even hear me with you girls in between us.”

                I nod. “He probably can’t. That’s okay, oppa, you can tell him some other time. Are you nervous right now?” It seems like that question is on today’s FAQ.

                But unlike the other times, Jinyoung shakes his head. “I think I’m used to heights by now.”

                “Me too.”

                “Eun Mi, I’m really sorry about today. I know you felt bad. And I’m not trying to make it sound like I don’t feel guilty or anything, it’s just that Yun PD assured me that it’s gonna be okay. And just so you know, we didn’t really go around alone even after we broke away from the rest of the crew. Yun PD had planned it beforehand. He’d sent a couple of cameramen after us, filming us and making sure we stay safe. There’s even a coordi nuna should you want to redo your makeup or something.”

                “Really? I didn’t see them.”

                “Of course you didn’t. They were staying out of sight. And they were carrying normal cameras, not the huge ones. Jung PD knows this too. He wasn’t mad at you, and the Sky X wasn’t a real punishment. He just needs someone to go up there because the venue sponsors explicitly wanted the show to promote the Sky X.”

                I giggle. “I knew it! The Sky X was way too much fun to be a punishment. But thanks for telling me all this, it makes me feel a lot better. And oppa, I had a really good time today.”

                “Me too. And if you don’t mind, I’d like to stay in touch. Can you give me your phone number later?”

                I grin at him, too happy to say anything. Now that Jinyoung oppa had made that clarification, I feel so much better. Especially after seeing how comfortable L looks with Melody now. The fact that Jinyoung oppa would like to keep in touch is the icing on the cake.

Presently, we’re 52 meters up in the air, but I feel higher than that.

                “Eun Mi, you’re okay right?” Jinyoung asks me, his voice clearly audible despite the strong wind.

                “I’m fiiiinnnneeeee!” I scream as the ride plunges downwards. Actually, I feel amazing.