Amusement Park Panic
“By the way, Yujin-nim. Are you heading out for that ‘promise’ today?”
“Promise?”
As promised, Sia was the one who spoke first while sliding the rolled omelet into place.
“Of course I don’t mean with me. How could someone like me possibly follow you there and burden you like that…”
“Not that—what promise? I don’t have anything scheduled for tomorrow.”
“Huh? You definitely told me you were going to the amusement park with Seo Eunha on the weekend.”
Ah.
Right.
I had completely forgotten that I’d brushed off my conversation with Seo Eunha by lying about an amusement park trip.
“Amusement park? Me and Ahjussi? When?”
“Yujin-nim clearly said he was going to the amusement park with you on the weekend.”
“Ah, that was…”
Seo Eunha stared at me in silence while Sia beamed with clueless cheerfulness.
“Sorry. I couldn’t tell you the truth about what we talked about, so I made up the amusement park thing to cover it.”
“Was it because I said something without reading the room? I’ll spend the entire weekend on the veranda as punishment! That way I won’t make any more mistakes…!”
“Quiet down.”
Couldn’t be helped.
“Eunha-ssi, you hate places like amusement parks, right? Staying home, eating ice cream, and watching TV would be much more comf—”
“Let’s go.”
Huh?
Aaa.
“To buy ice cream?”
“Wanna die? I said we’re going. To the amusement park.”
“No, no, I was just saying.”
“Hey, used… clearance sale. Bring the Ahjussi.”
“Yes? Y-yes!”
Seo Eunha suddenly stormed into her room.
“Then I’ll stay behind and guard the house. You two have fun. A guard dog is used to—”
“You’re coming too, Sia.”
I had grown somewhat accustomed to her self-deprecation by now.
“But if I tag along… Ah! I’ll pay for everything. It’s only right for the woman to cover all the date expenses. Yesterday Yujin-nim said it was fine since it was your house, but today…”
Cancel that.
If I didn’t shut her up, the self-deprecation would never end.
What the hell had that senior ex-boyfriend done to her?
“Shh, shh. I want to pay. Just taking a pretty girl like you out already boosts my self-esteem through the roof.”
“As expected of Yujin-nim. Treating me like an expensive display accessory… it’s far too much, and it makes me so happy…!”
Someone just kill me…!
This wouldn’t do.
Time to launch Project: Raise Sia’s Self-Esteem.
Come to think of it, Sia didn’t have any proper clothes either. I headed into the room to consult with Seo Eunha.
“Eun.”
That was all that came out.
Saying “Eunha-ssi” shouldn’t take even a full second.
Yet just getting the first syllable “Eun” out felt like it took an eternity. How fast did the follow-up “ha” need to be?
“Die, you perverted bastard!!!”
“I’m sorry!”
The instant I stepped in, a murderous aura exploded from Seo Eunha, who was in the middle of changing. I bolted back out of the room.
Sia looked up at me as I sighed in relief.
“You need to change too, Sia.”
“This is fine!”
A baggy white t-shirt and short pants.
Was that really going to cut it?
“It’s only eight in the morning and it’s the weekend, so it’ll be crowded. Let’s take our time and go buy you some clothes first, Sia.”
“Clothes? I’d love that! I’ll definitely wear them as my burial clothes when I die! I’ll put them on today and store them carefully in a box!”
Please just wear them normally and then toss them.
Seo Eunha emerged after changing.
But.
“School uniform?”
“Have you never been to an amusement park, Ahjussi?”
“Uh… maybe when I was fourteen or fifteen?”
“It’s the trend to wear school uniforms at amusement parks. Count yourself lucky. A guy like you getting to go on a date with a big-breasted high school girl like me? You couldn’t buy that experience for any amount of money.”
She really was pretty.
Because she was young, it felt less like romantic excitement and more like taking a daughter or little sister out.
I’d seen her in uniform plenty of times while dropping her off at school, but this was the first time we were going out together.
“Let’s hit the clearance sale and rent uniforms there too. I’ll even pay for that part.”
“You will, Eunha-ssi?”
“So don’t buy clothes for that bitch.”
So that was the real goal.
“Buying her clothes should be fine, right?”
“Who knows what that gloomy bitch will do with clothes you bought her.”
“I won’t do anything! I’ll treasure them in the storage room and use them as my burial clothes!”
“That’s even gloomier than sniffing them, you know?”
I couldn’t take your side this time, Sia.
Still, at least the dilemma of what to dress her in was solved.
“Whoa, there are so many people!”
I had to be out of my mind—coming to an amusement park on the weekend when it was already packed on weekdays.
“But Eunha-ssi, is it really okay for a villain to come somewhere like this?”
“Why? Worried I’ll suddenly smash that Ferris wheel and roll it around?”
Honestly, given the villain image, that didn’t seem entirely impossible.
‘Roll around inside the Ferris wheel like a hamster wheel!’
Or something like that.
‘You rode the roller coaster because it’s scary anyway, right? You should be thanking me for helping!’
Or that.
“Aren’t you imagining something incredibly rude right now?”
“Since we’re already here, how about we grab some hot dogs or something and just walk around? The big rides will have long lines, so let’s keep it light, light.”
I stuffed food into Seo Eunha’s mouth before she could say anything else.
“……”
Sia stared silently at the drink.
“Want some?”
“No, no! I—I’ll buy it with my own money! It’s fine!”
“What is your happiness?”
“Yujin-nim’s happiness…”
“That’s right. What do you want? Strawberry? Watermelon? Mango? …What the hell even is ‘the sweet encounter of chocolate banana frozen mango and mint watermelon frappé’?”
Surely she didn’t actually want that.
Fortunately, unlike my anxious guess, what Sia pointed to created a different kind of anxiety.
Large Double Straw Couple Juice
A drink cup with two straws attached.
For someone who once had a partner, every single action screamed “eternal solo.”
Honestly, since I’d never dated anyone either, watching Sia get excited made my own heart flutter a little.
“One Large Double Straw Couple… juice, please.”
“That’ll be 32,000 won.”
A drink that cost as much as an entire chicken in my hand.
I used to flinch at a six-thousand-won beverage whenever I went out, yet here I was buying a 32,000-won drink that was barely recyclable with my own money.
Still… if it made Sia smile so happily, it was cheap. Yeah…
“So this is what a 32,000-won drink tastes like…”
“Good?”
Seo Eunha watched us with half-lidded eyes.
“Don’t tell me you’re jealous.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
She had claimed it was fine if I met other magical girls, that she didn’t care at all. Yet the moment anything connected to a magical girl came up, this was how she acted.
Anyone watching would think she’d confessed to me.
With a face and body like hers, anyone would feel their heart race, but…
We’re not in that kind of relationship.
"Dark Fantasy Adventure Room"
Oh, this was something I loved as a kid.
An attraction where you wandered through a dark room filled with occasional jump scares and maze-like paths.
“Do you like dark places?”
“Huh? Ah, if it’s with you, Yujin-nim, it’s fine.”
“Eunha-ssi, sorry but…”
“Wanna die?”
Since outside food and drinks were prohibited, I handed her the cup while already anticipating the reaction. Sure enough, it was exactly what I expected.
“You lied about going to the amusement park with me, then go in there flirting and even share a drink? If that thing disappears while you’re inside, I won’t know a thing about it, got it?”
“Just for a little while, please. Cooperate until I fix Sia’s self-deprecation.”
I whispered so the blankly waiting Sia at the entrance wouldn’t hear.
Seo Eunha snatched the drink cup from my hand.
“Thank you.”
“…It’s for Ahjussi’s happiness.”
“You really don’t have to worry about me that much. As long as you’re satisfied, Eunha-ssi—”
“Shut up and get in there. Hurry up and come back out.”
I was practically chased inside the attraction with Sia.
“It’s brighter than I expected? It’s called Dark Fantasy, so I thought it’d be pitch black the moment we stepped in.”
“Ah, well…”
Pop.
The lights cut out instantly.
“Only after you come in this far. Sia?”
“Heuk… heuk…! Ha…!!”
Sia collapsed beside me, breathing raggedly.
The bright, adorable girl from moments ago had vanished. In her place was someone trapped in pure panic.
It was too dark to even check on her properly!
“What’s wrong? Sia? Sia!”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I did wrong… I’ll do better. I’m sorry, please don’t hit me. No more, I don’t like it. No, I’m sorry. I won’t say I don’t like it. I’ll do better…”
Her voice trembled so badly it sounded crushed, pitiful.
She curled into a ball, clutching her own head as she shook.
“Sia! Snap out of it! Sia!”
I grabbed her shoulders and shook her desperately, but the attraction’s sound effects had grown loud enough that my voice barely carried.
“Ah, aaaa!! No!! I did wrong! Senior, I’m sorry! It was my fault!! I won’t do it again! You don’t have to feed me! No, no. Aaaak!!!”
I couldn’t even begin to imagine what she had gone through.
To her, a dark room wasn’t simply a place where nothing was visible—it was a space soaked in violence.
She had been fine sleeping at night, so why was this happening now?
It wasn’t a popular attraction, so there was no one nearby to ask for help.
“Sia, it’s me! Yujin! I’m not your senior! That bastard isn’t here!”
I forced my arms around Sia as she sat on the floor clutching her head.
“Aaaak!! Don’t hit me! Please, please…!”
When I cupped her cheeks and turned her face toward me, her unfocused eyes finally began to regain clarity.
“Yujin… nim? Yujin-nim, Yujin-nim…!”
Sia clung to me desperately, sobbing.
“It’s okay. This is an amusement park. Your senior isn’t here. It’s just you and me, Sia.”
When I lifted my head toward the familiar boots in front of us—
“Trying to make a baby?”
Blood-red eyes that glowed even in the darkness.
Seo Eunha stared down at us with a murderous expression.