[Book 1] It Started at Disneyland

Chapter 1: Disneyland Pt.1

Inspired by ~ Myself

Amanda aka Dahae + Kim Minseok ft. Luhan & Marcela aka Miyoung 

Getting lost in new places is never a good thing. Getting lost in a foreign country is definitely a bad thing. Getting lost in a foreign country surrounded by thousands of people who probably don't even speak your language is probably about the most frightening thing that could ever possibly happen. But there was something worse: getting lost in a new place in a foreign country while you are an idol in a new yet popular Korean pop group. On top of all of this, the group has been recognized by some of the thousands of people, many of whom are documenting the very event through pictures, videos, and even stalking.

xxx

Aw fudge...

The man paced back and forth across the small, and surprisingly empty, wooden bridge. He was supposed to be the hyung, the responsible one, yet he managed to get himself separated from his entire group of friends and lost in a place he was totally unfamiliar with.

Nice going Kim Minseok.

He mentally slapped himself at his stupidity. He was just going to use the bathroom. They had all been looking around a store and seemed so preoccupied that he hadn't thought to tell anyone. His destination was directly across from the store that the rest of his friends had been shopping in. It didn't take long for him to finish up in the bathroom but when he stepped out and looked around, his fellow group members were nowhere to be seen. He remembered what Yifan and Joonmyun had said earlier; if anyone was to get lost, they were to meet up at Sleeping Beauty's Castle which was in the middle of the park. They had all been given maps and shown the castle that they were to meet up at. Unfortunately, Minseok was surrounded by a bunch of mountain-like rides that blocked out any sight of the castle. Reaching into his back pocket, he pulled out the map he had been given and began fumbling with the folds. Once he had finally managed to get it open he groaned in annoyance.

Nooo... It's in English...

He stared at the map, trying to find something on the map he could understand. After giving up on trying to read the English on the map, he found the castle in the dead center of the map. He felt overjoyed in that split second before remembering he had no idea where he himself was. He couldn't help but pout and hang his head down in defeat. Right as he slouched over, he felt something slam into his shoulder. Minseok's head shot up as he hissed a small 'aish' at the sudden collision. He was surprised to see a woman who looked about his age staring at him, her eyes wide in shock.

Oh no! She recognized me!

International fans weren't too common but Minseok wouldn't be surprised if she knew who he was. EXO had been figured out in the beginning of the day so it wouldn't be a big shock if their appearance at Disneyland was already all over the internet. They both stood there staring at each other with wide eyes.

The woman was the first one to say anything and break the silence," A-Ahm... I'm so sorry... I don't usually bump into people... Are you okay?"

She bit her lip and stared at him worriedly, the pink tint spreading across her cheeks an obvious indication of her embarrassment.

Minseok nodded slightly and observed the girl. He was shocked to see her turn around, not asking him for anything or gawking over him too much. The next move he made shocked him, why he did it, he had no idea. Before he could stop himself, he had reached out and grabbed the girl's wrist. She froze in place for a few seconds, her shoulders visually tensing. She turned around and looked at the man with the same shocked expression she had been sporting when she crashed into him. Minseok cleared his throat awkwardly before trying to muster up whatever English he could remember.

"H-Help...?"

 He flashed her his gummy smile before holding the map in front of him hopefully. She couldn't help but laugh at the boy's cuteness and Minseok could swear he felt his heart stop.

That laugh...

"You are too cute..." she mumbled before walking over to the boy's side and examining the map. "What do you need help with?"

He paused and took in her words, blushing when he noticed what she said. He bit his lip while trying to think up the right English words to answer her question.

"Help... Lost... I am... I am lost!" he fumbled over the words and stared at the floor in embarrassment at his lack of English vocabulary.

When he never got an answer, he looked up to see her looking at him seemingly deep in thought. Before he could say anything to her, she began talking in a different language.

"You don't speak much English do you?"

The sudden change from English to Korean was quite shocking to Minseok but he answered with a yes anyway. She smiled back at him and that same heart-stopping feeling he had felt before returned.

"My Korean is extremely rusty and limited but I can try to help. My name is Amanda but you can call me by my Korean name, Dahae, if that is easier for you," the woman gave a slight bow that he returned directly after.

"My name is Kim Minseok, or Xiumin, whichever you prefer. But you probably know that already huh?" he laughed lightly, she was probably just being polite earlier and didn't want to say anything about who he was.

The American looked at him, an extremely confused look on her face," How am I supposed to know who you are? This is the first time you have introduced yourself to me silly."

She laughed and punched Minseok's shoulder lightly.

So she really doesn't know who I am...

He couldn't help feeling a little down about it. He didn't know why he was upset; it should be a good thing that no one had noticed him yet.

"Oh wait..." Minseok cocked his head to the side slightly at the woman's words.

"Xiumin is a Chinese name right? Do you speak Chinese? My Chinese is much better than my Korean..." she grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of her neck.

He couldn't help but be shocked; she knew not one but two Asian languages. He caught himself staring before it became too awkward and nodded once more before answering her question from before.

"I got separated from my friends earlier and I know where I'm supposed to meet them but I have no idea where I am and I can't read this stupid map," he replied in perfect Chinese.

Amanda moved over to Minseok's side and peered over at the map he had spread before him.

"Okay we are here," she pointed at the upper left hand corner of the map before continuing," is that all you need cutie?"

Analyzing the map in his hands, he noticed that he was in the back of the park.

"E-Excuse me but... would you mind walking me to Sleeping Beauty's castle? I would hate to get lost here again."

She beamed happily and nodded," Of course! I would love to!"

They both couldn't help but to smile. They had just met and really didn't know much about each other but they had gotten together pretty well so far. Minseok knew it was silly, but he couldn't help but to hope to be able to keep in touch with her in some way. Little did he know that she was thinking the exact same thing.

"I'll lead the way," she chirped, walking slowly ahead of the boy.

He came up next to her and followed every turn she made, keeping his eyes locked on her movements to ensure that he wouldn't get separated from her.

"How do you know Korean and Chinese anyway?" Minseok asked, trying to make as much conversation as he could before he would be separated from her andprobablyneverseeheragain.

"Ah, well I took four years of Chinese in high school so I'm pretty good at it. Korean is all thanks to my friends. Some of them are Korean, others are obsessed with Koeran culture, and most are really into Korean Pop music," she explained while maneuvering through the small crowds.

He gnawed on his lower lip slightly before asking her the first question that had popped into his mind after she had given him her answer," Have you ever heard of EXO?"

She scrunched her eyebrows in thought as they continued to move towards the innermost point of the park.

"Yeah I think I have... But I wouldn't recognize any of them unless I had a picture of them in front of me to compare them to."

Obviously.

"Uhm... You may want to keep close. There is a really big crowd ahead of us."

In order to make sure the boy kept up with her, Amanda grabbed Minseok's hand in her own while pulling him forward through the crowd swiftly yet gently. Minseok kept his head as low as possible, trying to keep his identity a secret as well as trying to hide his obvious blush. He couldn't help but stare down at how their hands were intertwined together. Before he knew it, his guide had stopped moving, causing him to stop as well.

"Well... We are here."

She flashed him a small smile but it was obvious that she was disappointed. Minseok couldn't help but share the same unhappy feeling. They both stood there looking at each other in silence until a small buzzing noise broke their little moment together. The girl let out a loud and displeased sigh before releasing the boy's hand and reaching in her pocket to flip her phone open. It was only then that Minseok noticed that the whole time they had been standing there, they had been holding hands. Before long, the American shoved her phone back into her pocket and broke the silence.

"Those were my friends, I should get going... See you."

The last two words seemed strained, as she knew the probability of meeting him again was slim if anything, but a girl could hope right? Minseok felt a small tug at in his chest as he watched her walk away and couldn't help but frown. He stared at the crowd she had disappeared into a few seconds longer than he really needed to before he felt a pair of arms wrap around his waist.

"Seokkie~" the voice cooed.

Minseok recognized the voice immediately," Hey Luhan."

xxx

"Unnie! Where were you?!"

Amanda laughed at the youngest of the group and hugged her tight," Someone got lost Miyoungie so I decided to help him."

"Him?! Was he Asian? Was he cute?!"

The elder laughed once more before nodding," Yes Miyoung, he was very cute..."

Miyoung giggled before jumping up and down happily and rapidly changing the subject," Did you hear?! EXO is here at Disneyland!!!"

EXO...? Haven't I heard that name befo-

She stopped mid thought and looked down slightly at the younger," Do you have any pictures of this EXO group?"

Miyoung nodded before pulling out her phone and pulling up a picture. She went on a mini rant about finding EXO that the older just began to tune out. So far none of the faces she had seen in the picture resembled anyone she had seen. When she was about to give up on her search and dismiss her earlier assumption, her eyes caught on the boy in the back.

"Wh-What's this one's name?" she asked, nervous of the answer she would receive.

"Oh him? That's Minseok, but his stage name is Xiumin."

Miyoung stared at her friend who had kept her eyes locked on the picture the whole time.

"Is something the matter Dahae?"

"Oh my god..." she whispered," That's the boy I helped. I... I met EXO's Xiumin. I talked to EXO's Xiumin. I held-"

I held EXO's Xiumin's hand.