Chapter 38: The Amusement Park Date

Feeling a distinct stickiness, a shower seemed imperative. Muffling my footsteps as much as possible, I carefully made my way to the powder room, clothes bag in hand.

Since I had to leave by eight, I intended to get everything done in one go.

“I don’t have any blue clothes.”

It was then that I realized I had no clothes suitable for the blue dress code, leaving me in a predicament.

I usually only wore my school uniform to amusement parks, so after rummaging through my clothes, I eventually spread them all out and scratched my head in frustration.

Clothes for special occasions were out.

Flowy, delicate garments were also out.

And so, the exclusions continued: out, out, out.

Once all the unsuitable items were discarded, my options dwindled. I returned to my room, rummaged through my suitcase, and retrieved a pair of jeans.

‘These are blue, too.’

Having made a compromise with reality, I washed, changed into my clothes, and settled onto a chair. Waking up and washing at such an early hour was, in itself, a minor miracle for me.

With a brave resolve, I picked up the curling iron, determined to style my hair just as Woo Sori had done for me previously.

“…The left side is different from the right side?”

The reflection in the mirror showed an imbalance in my hair’s symmetry, making it look clumsy, so I continued to adjust it.

While it couldn’t compare to someone else styling it, it was certainly an improvement from when I began.

Unless one looked very closely, such a subtle difference would be imperceptible.

After tidying the curling iron’s cord, I walked past the two still-sleeping figures, returned to my own bed, sat down, and pulled the blanket over myself.

With a second blanket draped over my shoulders, achieving a state of complete “fusion,” I didn’t move an inch.

After all, I needed to conserve every bit of energy for the amusement park.

Around seven o’clock, alarms began to chime one by one beside me, rousing Chaeyeon-woo and Woo Sori from their sleep.

“You’re already all ready?”

“I woke up early.”

“Ugh, I want to sleep more.”

Woo Sori’s eyes widened momentarily upon seeing Dohwa, who was already fully prepared.

“Until what time did you play yesterday?”

“I came back at two. Yeon-woo probably stayed out longer.”

No wonder there was a zombie-like figure right beside me.

Dohwa cast a sympathetic glance at Chaeyeon-woo before quickly gathering his bag and escaping the room, anticipating the chaos that would soon ensue.

“…You’re up early.”

“You slept so soundly yesterday, someone could have carried you away and you wouldn’t have known.”

“What’s the occasion for waking up so early?”

As I encountered the three individuals, who were moving about from the second floor to the first like NPCs going about their tasks, I found myself speechless.

Were these truly the same people who had stayed up late into the night?

Chaeyeon-woo couldn’t have been alone, meaning someone must have gone to bed even later than two in the morning. Yet, everyone appeared remarkably well-rested.

I pressed down on my needlessly frizzy hair, tidying it with my hands, then placed the microfiber blanket I’d brought from my room back where it belonged.

“You don’t drink coffee, do you?”

“No. Water is fine.”

“Breakfast?”

“I’m fine.”

Ma Won-ho, who had been sitting on the living room sofa, followed closely behind Dohwa into the kitchen, coffee cup in hand.

‘Why is he following me?’

Watching Ma Won-ho, who was unusually amiable this morning, I subtly rolled my eyes toward the floor.

I bought myself some time by opening the innocent refrigerator door and peering inside, yet he remained stubbornly glued to my side.

While I filled the cup Ma Won-ho had retrieved for me, he went to the dining table, sat down, placed his coffee cup aside, and stared intently at me.

Unable to withstand his piercing gaze, I grabbed my water cup and sat down nearby. Just then, Kang Hae-il entered the kitchen.

“Did you sleep well?”

“…Yes. Did I make a mistake or something?”

“No. You just slept yesterday, what mistake could you have made?”

When Ma Won-ho, speaking with a sly grin, looked at me as if asking if I had anything more to say, my throat suddenly felt parched, and I gulped down my water.

“Aren’t you looking forward to our date today?”

I nearly choked on my water.

Bewildered by the tender voice and its utterly contradictory content, Dohwa coughed and looked at him. He saw Ma Won-ho’s mouth smiling, but his eyes were shining with an unsettling intensity.

‘What is he talking about?’

My pupils trembled as I averted my gaze, only to meet Kang Hae-il’s eyes as he brewed coffee. I sent a desperate plea for help with my eyes, but he seemed not to notice.

“Looking at someone else, are we?”

At Ma Won-ho’s single, pointed remark, my head snapped back to its original position, and a chill spread through my fingertips.

“Still, since you were the first to get ready, I’ll let it slide. But at the amusement park, wear the headband I pick for you.”

Only then did Dohwa’s eyes finally register the blue striped shirt Ma Won-ho was wearing.

Dress code: blue.

I had been so distracted by his face that I hadn’t even noticed what he was wearing. Ma Won-ho then swallowed the last of his coffee and spoke.

“Let’s be the first to leave.”

Suddenly, a strong premonition washed over me: today’s date was going to be quite arduous.

Ten minutes before eight o’clock, we departed with Jae-hyun and Kang Hae-il seeing us off. The other two, presumably busy with their preparations, hadn’t come down from the second floor.

“What time did you sleep yesterday?”

“Me? Around four, I think.”

“What time did you wake up?”

“Six o’clock.”

My hand, in the midst of fastening the seatbelt, paused momentarily. Seeing Ma Won-ho wink with one eye, I, momentarily startled, quickly composed my expression.

He had probably already seen it, though.

The thought that drowsy driving could potentially send us straight to the afterlife sent a shiver down my spine.

‘I really need to get my driver’s license.’

However, as Dohwa was the only cast member without a driver’s license, he couldn’t offer any advice on the matter. He simply sat quietly in the passenger seat.

“It’s closer than I thought.”

The amusement park was a mere forty-minute drive away. After entering the destination into the navigation and setting off, Dohwa began to hum softly along to the pop music playing.

Ma Won-ho occasionally sang along to the lyrics as he drove.

“What do you think?”

“…About what?”

“Everyone here, living together, must have someone they’re interested in, right?”

Ma Won-ho suddenly brought up the very topic I’d heard from the rabbit doll yesterday, catching me off guard. Though, in a way, it was an obvious point.

Unable to keep my hands still, I fidgeted, my gaze fixed straight ahead.

Actions born from affection.

‘Was there such a thing?’

I had sensed Chaeyeon-woo’s interest in Ma Won-ho when the three of us went grocery shopping together, but now I wasn’t so sure.

This time, he seemed particularly attached to Kang Hae-il.

Dohwa, trying not to reveal what he knew or didn’t know, spoke vaguely.

“Wouldn’t everyone have someone they like?”

“Does that include you?”

Ma Won-ho’s immediate reply left me speechless.

He spoke playfully, yet the core of his words was far from light—like throwing a snowball only to find a rock hidden inside.

“I… I like everyone.”

“Hmm, really?”

“…What about you, hyung? Can you tell who others are interested in?”

It was Dohwa’s turn to ask. Ma Won-ho, who had been focused on driving, happened to stop at a red light. He turned his head to look at Dohwa and said,

“I’m interested in you.”

“Don’t… joke around.”

“Well, just know that you’re quite popular.”

He had completely stirred my feelings, then slipped away like a cunning snake. When I clearly showed my disbelief, thinking he was just teasing, Ma Won-ho added another remark, seeing my reaction.

“It’s true. There’s probably even a king of jealousy among them.”

It was clear that none of the five people were like that. Dohwa merely shook his head, thinking it was just a teasing remark. However, Ma Won-ho refused to back down, and when Dohwa finally gave up, the conversation naturally shifted to the amusement park.

“Do you like pandas?”

“No, I don’t. Do you, hyung?”

“Yes.”

I still remembered the foul odor from the zoo when I was a child.

“You can’t see such cute creatures anywhere else. I’ll show you on YouTube.”

Taking advantage of the stopped traffic light, Ma Won-ho stubbornly took Dohwa’s phone and personally searched for baby panda videos, thrusting them in front of him.

I watched out of politeness, for Ma Won-ho’s sake.

The first video left me indifferent.

The second one made me think, ‘They’re kind of cute.’

By the time the third video played, the car had grown so quiet that I turned my head to look.

“I told you they were cute.”

He was looking at Dohwa, wearing a triumphant smile.

Feeling somehow defeated, I wrinkled my nose, then silently turned my head back to watch the baby panda in the video.

‘I should at least finish watching what I started.’

After putting the phone down, I offered my critique.

“Big pandas aren’t cute, but small pandas are.”

With a plan to visit the zoo together to see pandas, we finished parking. The moment we stepped out of the car, Dohwa froze.

About ten staff members stood before him.

“Why did you turn into a robot?”

“…Be quiet.”

Even as I spoke, I knew I was taking out my frustration on the wrong person, but I couldn’t help it.

When I had gone on a date with Kang Hae-il, there had never been cameras following us like this.

Watching the staff walk backward with their cameras, Dohwa’s pace gradually slowed.

What if they tripped while walking backward?

“You don’t need to be nervous~”

Seeing my stiffness, the PD said I just needed to act as usual. But with the added awareness of surrounding gazes, I felt myself on the verge of tears.

“At this rate, we won’t even make it inside.”

With a quiet murmur, Ma Won-ho took Dohwa’s hand and confidently led the way forward.

The staff followed suit. We walked silently to the ticket booth and stopped when asked to wait for a moment.

“Don’t be nervous about other people; be nervous about me.”

Was he telling me to relax or not?

Still holding Dohwa’s hand with one hand, Ma Won-ho ran his other hand through his hair. I looked up at him with an incredulous expression.