“Hey! What was that for?”

Choyoung turned her head and saw an incredibly wide auntie running out of the theater room. A few pieces of popcorn slipped off Chan's head and onto her lap, and she realized that the weird auntie had just thrown food on him. She covered with her hand, holding in her laughter as one of the employees apologized to Chan and tried to help him in brushing off the popcorn. Swatting the guy's hands away, Chan told him that he was okay and that he could clean himself off.

Through the space between her and Chan's chair, she could see another auntie hiding her face behind her scarf. They were probably in cahoots those two. Smiling, she thought, “Ah, aunties these days have nothing else to do but cause trouble,”

“Why did that weird lady attack me?” Chan mumbled under his breath, pushing off the popcorn that was on his lap. Sure, it wasn't the first time he had an odd encounter with an auntie, but it was the first time that the auntie had thrown food at him. The act was really juvenile; how could it be an auntie? Brushing his bangs out of his eyes, he pulled at the sides of his shirt “Now I smell like butter and popcorn,”

Giggling, Choyoung reached up and picked the popcorn pieces and kernel hulls that were still sticking in his hair. It was difficult to find them in his fluffy, done-up hair, let alone trying to pull them out in the dark. Surprised by the sudden action, Chan brought his head up to tell her that he could do it himself, but his breathing stopped short when he realized how close Choyoung was to him. As his cheeks began growing warm, he felt as if someone had run him over with a truck of raging emotions. The worst part was, Choyoung didn't even seem to notice!

Chan's eyes unconsciously strayed to her lips. Oh dear, how a woman's mouth could turn males on, distracting them from whatever she's actually saying. If he had a dollar for every time he would peer over in class just to watch her unknowingly play around with them, he would be drowning in his riches. Watching her slightly graze her tongue inside her bottom lip, he could feel his heart beating loudly against his chest as if it were just begging to jump out. There were just too many words to describe her lips: soft, plump, alluring, and probably even amazing to kiss. Damn his dirty thoughts.

Bringing her hand back down to her lap when she was done, Choyoung blinked twice after realizing that Chan was closer than she remembered. At least, that's what it looked like. Chan's eyes would always start to cross whenever he got too close to something, or in this case, someone. A chill ran down her spine; looking at him this way, she never really noticed how his face had matured over the years. Chan had lost a lot of weight since his elementary and middle school years, and now his jawline was a lot more defined than it had been before. His eyes were still bright with memories of boyhood, but they had lost a bit of their innocence. Overall, if Choyoung actually thought about it hard enough, he was more...attractive.

Choyoung brought her eyes down, heart racing, but she had no idea why. Biting her bottom lip, which made Chan go crazy, she prayed that he watch wouldn't start beeping in the middle of the film. Not only would that be annoying to the audience, but that would also be embarrassing to admit to Soonyoung. Then again, he wouldn't have to know since he wasn't there, but Chan would take advantage of the situation. The sensation was uncomfortable, and most certainly not wanted. She refused to believe that maybe Chan's charms were starting to take effect on her. On the other hand, Chan was still confused on what he should do. He didn't want to pull away when he had the upper hand, but he was afraid that if he pulled anything rash, it would just hurt his chances of even being considered an option.

“Excuse me, but this is a kid's movie,” Soonyoung suddenly poked his head between their seats, using his best old lady voice, “If you wanted to do that, a more appropriate movie to watch would have been that romantic film in the next theater room,”

He made sure that the scarf was wrapped around his head with the ends wrapped over his mouth. His face was pretty much covered since his glasses took up half of it. Soonyoung's ahjumma voice didn't sound very convincing but Choyoung and Chan didn't really have time to think about the legitimacy of the woman. Immediately, they pulled away and sat properly on their seats, bodies stiffening. Neither one of them ever imagined that someone would actually intrude on their, ahem, date.

“Sorry,” Chan mumbled, covering his mouth with his hand, blushing in embarrassment, “We'll behave,”

It took Soonyoung all of his willpower to keep himself from laughing; Chan looked so guilty whereas there was a flustered Choyoung playing with her fingers. It felt great being able to supervise their date without actually being there. Although, after seeing that scene, it was a good choice that he actually agreed to going with Jihoon to spy on them. Sure he had promised Choyoung that he would let her see Chan, but knowing how naïve she was, Chan would probably be able to sneak a kiss without her seeing it coming.

“Hey, young lady,” Soonyoung turned to Choyoung. Since they didn't know who he was, might as well use this opportunity to play around with them, right? She hesitantly peeked over her shoulder, waiting for him to continue with what he was going to say. He actually had to take a few moments for himself to calm down; Choyoung was just too cute for him to play with. Boy, was he going to let her hear it when she got back home about dressing up nicely for a date with someone else. Clearing his throat, he continued, “Watch out for boys like him. Back in my day, I had many suitors of his type who broke my heart!”

Chan just slid further into his seat, trying to look like he was concentrating on the movie but he looked just about ready to die from embarrassment. What did he do in his previous life that made him deserve this? On top of that, why didn't he just push for the whole chick flick thing? If they had gone to see that cheesy romance movie instead, maybe things would have gone a lot smoother. Why was that auntie watching Monsters University in the first place? He made a mental note to apologize to Choyoung about everything, but he knew that all hope was lost. Soonyoung was probably way ahead of the race now, all thanks to that weird lady.

Mrs. Kwon set the Home Style magazine she was reading down on her lap, glancing up at the other three parents in front of her. All of them were back from work and since neither Soonyoung nor Choyoung were at home, they decided to relax at the Kwon residence until they came back. Mrs. Kwon was bored. So bored that she had to verbally address her boredom by sighing. Mrs. Kwan raised an eyebrow, looking up from the People magazine she had her nose poked in, “Is something wrong?”

“Oh it's nothing,” Mrs. Kwon slid the magazine onto the low table in front of her, “I'm just wondering what our two youngsters are doing this fine day,”

She had been curious about their whereabouts for the past few days. They were always out of the house when she came back home from work, and would happen to come back around the same time too. Her instincts were telling her that something was going on, and female instincts told her that it was a love relationship thing. Of course, maybe she was just being melodramatic as usual since she did want Choyoung to marry into their family.

“Maybe they're together again?” Mrs. Kwan giggled, putting the magazine away since the conversation was getting more interesting.

The two fathers exchanged glances but continued on with reading their own magazines. It was time of the month again when their wives would talk about their kids getting together. Honestly, they wanted to join in on the conversation too but they figured that it would be out of the norm for a dad to be gossiping about the love life of their kids. It was better to leave it to the ultimate matchmakers while they just talked about it when the women were out of ear range.

Squealing, Mrs. Kwon pulled her legs up onto the sofa before crossing one leg over the other, “You think so? Where do you think they are this time?”

Even though Soonyoung and Choyoung might not know, the both of them would sometimes overhear their plans and would follow the kids to wherever they planned on going to. The last time Mrs. Wkon and Mrs. Kwan spied on Soonyoung and Choyoung was a few months ago when the teens decided to eat dinner out since all of the parents were out of the house; the parents had left the two kids alone on purpose of course. Mrs. Kwan leaned back into the sofa, “Who knows? It's always different with them. One time, Soonyoung could be taking her out to dinner, and then the next time they're clowning around at the park,”

“It's hard to believe that neither of them know that they like each other,” Mrs. Kwon pouted, staring down at the floor, “I mean, imagine how perfect it would be if they started dating!”

“Right?” Mrs. Kwan grinned, creating a whole romance movie in her head at the two kids dating, “But I can't help but feel that someone else is trying to pursue Choyoung,”

At the mention of the second boy, Mr. Kwan's stopped reading and set his magazine down on his lap. He had a vague idea at what his wife was hinting at, but wasn't sure if the person he had in mind was correct. In fact, he didn't want to jump to conclusions and start discouraging the wrong party if he were ever needed to interfere in Choyoung's love life. Mrs. Kwan noticed her husband's tense nature, and raised an eyebrow at him, “Honey, are you okay?”

“Well, I think I might know who you're talking about,” Mr. Kwan cleared his throat, “This boy you're worried about, is it Lee Chan?”

Biting her lip, Mrs. Kwan thought about the familiar face. Chan was definitely someone who appeared many times in Choyoung's life, and countless times in primary and middle school did Choyoung come home with Chan so they could work together on a school project. There wasn't a moment where Mrs. Kwan didn't remember Chan as a morally good boy. On top of that, he wasn't at all bad looking. It's just, she hadn't seen him in a while since Choyoung met Soonyoung.

“I'm not exactly worried about Chan,” she reassured her husband, “I'm just thinking that maybe things aren't as easy as Miryeong and I imagine it to be, you know?”

Mrs. Kwon caught on to her drift. She had known about Chan for a while now since Soonyoung would mention him in a conversation from time to time but she didn't really know him on a personal basis. It's not like she thought ill of Chan, but she couldn't help but wonder if he were hurting Soonyoung's chances of winning Choyoung's heart. Although, it wasn't her position to say anything to Mirae since Choyoung wasn't her daughter. By the looks of it, Mirae didn't have much of a say in Choyoung's love life either.

“Well if things don't go as expected, I suppose Soonyoung will just have to man up and move on,” Mrs. Kwon smiled, “Besides it's Choyoung's decision to chose who she really loves. If in the end she loves Chan, then so be it. If Soonyoung prevails, then hooray for us!”

Mr. Kwon didn't lift a finger from the page he was reading, “But I can't help but think that Soonyoung needs to start taking charge. He's too soft, that boy,”

“What do you mean?” they other three asked.

Mr. Kwon sighed, and set his magazine down on his lap. Something had been bothering him for a while now and maybe it was because of Miryeong's constant babying of Soonyoung. Of course, it wasn't bad that he was growing up to be a proper gentleman, but sometimes it didn't hurt to take initiative at times rather than sitting back and watching. Which Soonyoung seemed to be doing. He pushed his glasses up further on his nose, “Think of it this way. If Choyoung were to ever confess to Soonyoung, he wouldn't be the type to immediately ask her to be his girlfriend. And if someone, let's say Chan, were to suddenly confess to Choyoung, he would give those two a chance since he thinks it's only fair for them to test out their compatibility,”

“And what you're saying is...?” Mr. Kwan still didn't get it.

“I'm saying that maybe we need to give Soonyoung a little kick in the right direction so that he's driven to fight for what he wants,”

“So how are you enjoying it so far?”

Choyoung turned her attention away from her cotton candy ice cream, and up at a pink-cheeked Chan whose eyes were intently fixed on his own cup of chocolate ice cream. She found it adorable how Chan could turn from an outgoing, humorous guy to a shy, cute one in less than five minutes. It reminded her of Soonyoung, but the difference was that Soonyoung was a more obedient, and laid-back kind of guy who always put her and others first. Because her and Chan were closer in age, they viewed each other as equals.

“I'm enjoying it, honest,” she reassured him, taking another spoonful of ice cream, “Soonyoung never really took me to a mall for a casual date before, so it's a nice change of pace. I didn't think that there were many little things you could do at Coex!”

And that was a fact. There were many things that Coex had to offer other than shopping. For instance, they would have spent a solid two hours inside Game Champ since they had a wide selection of games that they wanted to try out. If Chan hadn't checked the time, they probably would have stayed there until the mall closed! After Game Champ was the water tunnel. Choyoung could probably say it was better than scuba diving. Chan's favorite part was the romantic mood inside the tunnel since it was dimply lit and kind of cold. Being able to wrap his arm around Choyoung to keep her warm, and her actually letting him was completely on the knees of the gods. Take that, Kwon Soonyoung.

Chan ate the last bits of his already melted ice cream, and threw it into the trashcan as they passed by. He was relieved that Choyoung didn't think it was a terrible first date. At least, if this were the last one he would ever have with her, it wouldn't be a bad memory – other than the auntie of course. He felt Choyoung place a hand on his shoulder, “Hey, don't worry about the auntie. She didn't ruin it for me. She was actually quite funny, if you think about it,”

“Yeah, I guess she was pretty entertaining,” Chan shrugged his shoulders, stuffing his hands into his pockets, “Although I'm not going to make way for her partner-in-crime. I still smell like popcorn,”

Lacing her arm through his, Choyoung sighed, “Cheer up! Besides, I like popcorn,”

Literally almost screaming for joy, Chan couldn't hide the grin that forced it's way onto his face. Even though it was a pretty general statement, the way he interpreted it made it seem like she liked him. Of course, he knew better than that. She actually did just like the food and that she liked him in a different way. They continued to walk down the sidewalk looking like your casual middle school couple, when they spotted a Ferris Wheel poking out from behind the buildings in the distance.

“Chan look, it's the carnival! I completely forgot that was today,” she tugged on his arm, “Can we go?”

Even though Chan looked at her weirdly, she continued to beg anyway. The last time she had been to the carnival was years ago when she was less than four feet tall; she wasn't going to let this opportunity pass by her fingertips! Chan had a personal reason why he disliked carnivals but he wasn't going to admit it to her right then and there. Mentally hitting her head against the wall for what she was about to do, Choyoung stuck her bottom lip out in a pout like Soonyoung would do when he wanted something, and widened her eyes so that they doubled in size. In an overly cute, high-pitched baby voice, she wined, “Chan, please! I want to ride on the Ferris Wheel!”

“Alright, alright!” he gave in, once again blushing like mad. Chan swore that Choyoung would be the death of him one day, “We'll ride that damned thing, but don't come complaining to me when you can't look down at the top,”

Behind them, Soonyoung emerged from his hiding spot next to a street vendor and darted after them, still wearing his ridiculous disguise over his uniform. He was already sweating like a dog underneath the coat he was wearing, but he couldn't take it off otherwise he would be running around in his soccer uniform. What's more was that people were looking at him weirdly since they thought he looked like a crazy person in that disguise! Once the two lined up for the Ferris Wheel, he stepped in line behind two other people so that they wouldn't see him. As he covered his face with the scarf, a hand poked his shoulder activating his inner ninja, “Who are you?!”

“Calm down, crazy!” the person who had tapped him held their hands up in defense, pulling down their shades, “It's me, Jihoon!”

Putting his arms back down, Soonyoung raised an eyebrow as he pushed his shades back up on his nose, “What are you doing here? Didn't you text me earlier saying that you were following Seokmin and Bee?”

“That's what I'm doing,” Jihoon gestured ahead of the line where Seokmin and Bee were talking to each other. It seemed as if Chan and Choyoung had seen them too since they cut in front of the line to stand behind their friends. Judging by the way the younger boy glared at Seokmin, Soonyoung could tell that Jihoon was furious, but he kept his mouth shut. If it was anything that Jihoon hated the most, it was being told what he didn't want to hear. Besides, Jihoon probably just didn't trust Bee in the hands of Seokmin. It was a high chance that he didn't think of her in any romantic relations – at least, that's what he claimed.

Soonyoung nodded, acknowledging that he had heard what Jihoon said, but it wasn't really important to him, “By the way, why do you think they're all going to the Ferris Wheel? Isn't it a bit weird that all four of them had the same idea in mind?”

“Well if I remember correctly, my mom told me that most young couples or two people who are close to each other will ride a Ferris Wheel as the last thing on a date,” Jihoon explained, “And my dad tells me that usually, couples kiss at the very top. Or maybe they'll even make out up there, who knows?”

“You're not helping!” Soonyoung smacked the back of Jihoon's head like Bee always does, “We have to follow them up there!”

Rubbing the back of his head, Jihoon answered back to him with an irritated tone, “What do you expect me to do, huh? We can't go in their cabins with them! That'd be weird! Unless you want to ride with me, I don't see how else we're going to follow them,”

“That's probably the greatest idea you've had in all sixteen years of your life,”

“Wow, look at that!” Choyoung exclaimed as she pressed her forehead against the cage window, amazed at how people looked like ants from a bird's eye view. Since the sun had set a few minutes before they were seated, all the carnival and city lights were , twinkling like a shower of stars had dropped down on the city. Her eyes were wide with excitement as they started to move up higher, “Everything is so pretty!”

From his seat in the middle, Chan twiddled his thumbs as he stared down at his lap. He didn't seem so interested in marveling out of his window like Choyoung was, nor did he look like he even wanted to be there. His palms dampened as the cage slightly swayed against the wind, “You act like you've never been so high up before,”

“That's because I haven't,” she turned to him, smiling from ear to ear, “At least, not since a long time ago,”

Shrugging his shoulders, Chan didn't answer and continued to distract his eyes from anything but out the window. His head spun just thinking about how far they were from the ground; he thought that he would die right then and there. Choyoung noticed that he didn't seem as enthusiastic as he was before, and instead he just sat there all quiet. Her eyebrows furrowed together in worry for her nervous friend, “Chan, are you afraid of heights?”

“Who me?” Chan suddenly looked up at her to defend his man pride. He cautiously leaned back in his seat, crossed his arms over his chest, and scoffed, “Are you joking? A man like me would never be afraid of heights!”

Biting her bottom lip, Choyoung nodded and returned to looking out her window. She felt Chan's body tense up next to hers, and she knew that he was for sure scared of heights. She fought back the urge to smile; it was a cute thought actually. She never would have imagined that an adventurous and headstrong boy like Chan would have a fear of heights. As for her, heights didn't really affect her unless it was a life or death situation. Ferris Wheels strayed from that category.

Chan he continued to sulk next to Choyoung. He refused to admit to the girl he liked that he was afraid of heights when she probably didn't. It was so embarrassing! In his head, he prayed that the ride were soon over so that he was back safe on the ground where he belonged. They both sat in silence, not sure what to say to each other now that Chan was distancing himself. By the time they reached the top, Chan felt Choyoung uncross his arms. His eyebrows raised when Choyoung laced her fingers with his, “What are you doing?”

As she looked at Chan's confused expression, Choyoung could feel her cheeks growing warm for some reason. Holding his hand in hers this time...it was different from that morning. What was going on? Shaking unwanted thoughts away in her mind, she scooted in closer to him and patted the back of his hand with her left hand, as if she were trying comfort him, “Well, you were right,”

“Huh?”

“I'm scared of heights,” she lied, looking down at her lap, “I should have listened to you,”

At this point, Chan didn't know whether or not he should admit that he was too or if he should keep up with the manly act. Then again, if he told her that if he shared her fear, then they would both be scared out of their wits, right? Clearing his throat, Chan straightened his back and raised his head proudly, “Didn't I tell you not to come complaining to me when you can't look down? You're lucky I was here with you otherwise you would have been in a lot of trouble!”

“Thanks, Chan,” Choyoung giggled at his actions, fully aware that it was all just an act, “And for today, thank you for that too,”

Ruffling her hair with his free hand, Chan flashed her a friendly smile, “What would you do without me?”

author's note : yay, i finally got my lazy together and started writing again! there isn't much i have to say other than my usual: i hope you enjoyed reading this chapter!