17th➳

Have you ever wished you could fly? That if you do, running and walking would be extinct and that there wouldn't be any car pollution. The wold would be a happier place to live in.

But that isn't the reason why I want to fly. The reason I wanted to fly was because I didn't want to be chained down to the ground like a helpless bird who broke its wing.

Or maybe it was because of Joshua I felt like I was actually flying. That I was defying all gravity and finally able to take off into the sky. And it was all because of the way Joshua made me feel.

"Hey, Nari!" greeted Joshua, throwing a hand around me as he patted me gently on my head. That smile of him continued to make lift me up into the air then straight down like a Gyro Drop in Lotte World. "How are you doing?"

My lips stretched into another smile yet again as I answered, "Fine like everyday, Jisoo. You ask me that question everyday."

"Well I need to know if you're fine or not," he said, walking down the streets with me in his arms. This made the butterflies in my stomach turn into dragons.

"Why? You're not even my boyfriend," I said in a mutter, turning away so Joshua couldn't notice the blush arising in my cheeks. "You should, um, let go of me right now. People are staring."

"Let them stare. They can get jealous," Joshua said, pulling me even closer that all the gap between us were gone.

I couldn't do anything about him anymore so I left him be. But the stares from the other students were starting to bug me.

"Yo, Joshua, why are you hanging out with her?" Jae Bum, a boy in the baseball team in school, asked, throwing the both of us a weird look.

"Is something wrong with that?" Joshua kindly asked him.

Ever since Joshua, I became a little soft. I couldn't even throw a rude remark at Jae Bum for asking such question. I only stared at Jae Bum with a taunting stare and that was it.

"Don't hang with such weirdo," Yugeom, another member of the baseball team, told Joshua.

"Yeah, Joshua," I agreed, which made Joshua throw a raised eyebrow at me. Giving him a smirk and looking back at Jae Bum, Yugyeom and the other members, I said, "Don't hangout with such weirdos."

"Heyㅡ" Jae Bum was about to step closer to throw me a punch but Jackson held him back.

"We don't hit girls, remember?" Jackson reminded him.

Jae Bum threw me a look before he and his members walked away, annoyed.

Giving Joshua a quick smile, I walked ahead of him and entered the class with a childish and teasing mood. All the girls in my class gave me that usual glare but what's the point of throwing me a look? It was absolutely useless. Even when Joshua entered the class throwing a hand around me, the began murmuring but I knew that they wouldn't do anything more than that.

"Why do people like to talk about other people so much?" Joshua asked me in a whisper, noticing everyone's eyes on us as they whispered to their friends.

In a loud voice, I answered, "It's just because people are very jealous so they talk bad about other people."

Joshua laughed and agreed. "Yeah, people sure are chatty. It's not very charming if people talked about other people."

At such words, the girls immediately shut up and kept quiet. Who knew a handsome boy's words could be such an influence?

Class began a little later and it felt like the lecture was going on and on without ever ending. I rested my head on my desk, pouting and getting sick of hearing my teacher talk. I played with the pen in between my thumb and forefinger then felt a tap on my head. I looked up and saw Joshua.

"You shouldn't be playing, little Nari," he told me with a sweet smile as he gestured to the teacher.

I scrunched my nose at him and continued playing with my pen in between my fingers.

Joshua tapped on my head repeatedly but his eyes were fixed on the teacher as he listened to her boring lecture. It got annoying and I pushed his hand away, sending him a quick glare. Joshua only smiled a victorious smile in return as he listened to the teacher.

The things he make me feel influenced on.

The class ended when the bell finally rang and my eyes were sore and tired. Once everyone ran out of the classroom to head for lunch, I lingered behind in class and rested my head on my desk. Eventually, I fell asleep without knowing what happened next.

♥

When I woke up, I found a yellow post-it note stuck on my forehead. Squinting my eyes, I removed it from my forehead and flipped it around where there were words written on it.

Want to go to Lotte World tomorrow?

From Joshua

Tomorrow? Wasn't tomorrowㅡ

I came to realize that tomorrow was the day. The day Jiyeon talked about that day in the cafe. The day of my so-called confession. I didn't know time went by so quickly and that I had to confess already.

The more the clock ticked, the more my heart raced and the more I felt nervous for the confessing. This would be my first time and there was a 80% chance I'd get rejected by Joshua. I mean, who could fall for an annoying girl like me? I basically piss them off every time I get a chance.

I shook my head. I shouldn't think of the confession. I should just concentrate on the fun things we could do in Lotte World, especially since... Oh damn it. Especially since it's going to be Valentine's Day...

I left the class as well as the post-it note on Joshua's table, unable to hide the excitement and bliss I was feeling.

Want to go to Lotte World tomorrow?

From Joshua

YES

Nari :)

♥

Joshua playfully stuck a pinch of cotton candy onto my face, giving me a pink moustache for fun.

"Yah!" I said, removing it from my face and stuffing it into his mouth. I stuck my tongue out at him and looked around Lotte World.

February 14ㅡValentine's Day. Where couples flooded the boardwalks of Lotte World as they shared a magical time together in a magical place. The rides were even flooding with couples riding the scary rides up to the romantic ones like the ferris wheel.

I wouldn't be here if it weren't for Joshua. I would be avoiding all the rides and fun and just play games which offer free meal coupons or free meals themselves but now I was able to slow down and have fun. To actually breathe in life and feel alive. To actually enjoy that I was actually born and living.

The music blasted and played around Lotte World. The stars written on the flyer were here. Who were they again? Bang... tan? Oh! I only remember their shortened nameㅡBTS.

"Want to go on any rides?" asked Joshua, attempting to stuff cotton candy into my mouth as revenge but he failed every attempt.

"Rollercoaster! Rollercoaster! Rollercoaster!" I chanted, pointing at the most horrifying rollercoaster they had in Lotte World.

"Are you sure?" Joshua asked me, glancing all the way up to the rollercoaster before us. It was most probably thirteen meters high, or so. I was making a wild guess.

"Yeah, let's go!" I said, gripping onto Joshua's wrist as I pulled him in line. The line was moving slow but after three minutes, it moved again. Before we knew it, we were in the next batch.

"N... N... Na... Ri..." Joshua called me.

"Yeah?" I turned to my left to see Joshua but when I did, his colour from his face was drained and he looked absolutely pale. The screams were even louder the closer you were to the rollercoaster so I was guessing Joshua was really scared. "Jisoo, are you okay?"

"I don't think I can do this..." Joshua confessed, gripping onto the steel handrail tightly then shuffling a step back. "I don't think... I can... do this..."

For reassurance, I lightly pinched his cheek and smiled. "Don't be afraid. I'll be right next to you if you need me. Okay? We'll make it together. If you're really scared, hold my hand." I stretched my hand out and smiled again. "Okay?"

Joshua smiled a weak smile in return and held onto my hand. It wasn't him just holding it. It was him squeezing it every time he heard someone riding the rollercoaster screamed in fear. I squeezed his hand back, hoping he felt assured and safe.

We finally boarded a cart of the rollercoaster after the previous batch left. Some still wore that blank face. That very face people had when their soul flew away and out of their body.

Joshua squeezed my hand tighter when the staff pulled the safety beat over us and adjusted it in place.

"Don't be afraid to scream it you're really scared. I'm here for you," I told him, giving him a squeeze.

Joshua didn't reply to me. When I glanced over at him, curious on how he was doing, I saw that he was close to crying.

Even a gentleman could be scared of things. 

The rollercoaster finally departed from its platform and that was when Joshua shut his eyes and squeezed my hand even more. I bet the blood circulation in my hand will stop but sometimes you have to sacrifice things for the people you love.

We finally hurried down the tracks, tossed in the air, to the side, at such a fast speed. Joshua was screaming so much, as well I. But we were both screaming for different reasons.

We arrived back at the platform after a ride that ended so quickly. Joshua wore the same face I saw from the previous batch as well. I bet his soul flew out of his body.

I nudged him lightly, hoping he was feeling all right. "Jisoo? Yah, Hong Jisoo, are you okay?"

Joshua slowly shook his head from side to side as his mouth hung open.

I pinched his cheek again and left the cart. Since Joshua wasn't moving or leaving the cart, I had to pull him out of the cart and drag him down of the stairs.

Joshua wasn't saying anything and he was still wearing the blank face.

I was starting to feel nervous for him so I wrapped my hand around his waist, giving him a smile and hopeful he'd snap out of his daze. "Jisoo? Are you awake yet?"

"H...uh?" Joshua asked, almost snapping out of his soulless daze. "Where am I? Who am I?"

"You're Maddy the Clown and you're just going to get ready to perform in the circus!" I said.

"Nice try," Joshua said, pinching my nose.

"Ow! Yah! That hurts!" I complained, massaging my poor nose. "Oww~"

"You're hurt now? Aww! Here, let me just..." Joshua leaned closer and kissed the tip of my nose lightly, which caught me off guard. "Better?"

"Mㅡmwo?" I asked. Now it was my turn to fall into a daze.

"Cute," Joshua commented, letting out a cute laugh. "Let's go watch them perform! They look cool."

"Okay." I felt like my soul had left my body now. It was like a TV who lost its channels and it just showed the colourful, buzzy thing that bugs everyone.

And I didn't even notice Joshua started holding my hand.

The music was blasting loudly and the MC introduced that BTS would be performing four songsㅡI Need You, Run, Fire and Save Me. Listening to the songs, I love the beat of it and the lyrics. Everything about it was enjoyable but the thing I enjoyed the most was Joshua's hand holding on to mine.

♥

"I'm going to go get us some ice cream for us, wait right here. Okay?" Joshua asked before running off, leaving me waiting until the lamppost which had a bench located under it. 

I just sat down and waited for Joshua, looking up at the skies that were decorated with twinkling stars. The carnival music was now replaced with a tranquil noise.

Today, by far, has been the best day of my entire life. I never really thought about confessing today. Maybe I didn't have to. Yet. Love begins with a confession but what exactly is love? What difference does it have with the way Joshua and I were acting now? I didn't see one, but maybe there is one.
Joshua returned shortly with two ice cream cones in his hand. 

He handed me mine and said, "You should always appreciate the look of the ice cream before you eat it."

Without understanding what Joshua was on about, I just examined my ice cream until the chocolate syrup seemed to make up words.

I like you, Nari.

What the...

I looked up and saw Joshua leaning on one feet in front of me, smiling. I asked him, "What are you doing?"

"Can't you take a guess?" Joshua asked with a smile.

"Um... you look like you're proposing. I hope not. Let me remind you, we're only seventeen," I said.

"I mean, you know, we could always get married earlier..."

"Joshua!" I gasped and blushed. I didn't know whether to feel shocked or happy about that.

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding," Joshua said, laughing, trying to calm me down. "You really have no idea what I'm doing?"

"I'd rather hear it from you," I said, leaning back on the bench. I had an idea of what he was doing, but I'd rather see for myself if not I'll make it awkward.

"Well, seeing you really want to hear from me..." Joshua stood up and grabbed the ice cream from my hand that was slowly melting. What? You don't expect everything to be perfect. "Just like the words on your ice cream, I like you, Nari. Hasn't it been obvious?"

I felt a wave of bliss crash over me as I stood up and took a bite from the ice cream. "Haven't you noticed, too? I like you too, Hong Jisoo."

"Really?" Joshua asked, his mouth opened widely as his eyes turned into the shape of crescent moons.

"No."

Joshua was quiet.

The moment I saw his disappointed facial expression, I couldn't help but laugh. I took another bite of the melting ice cream and gave him a sweet hug. "I'm kidding, pabo. I like you too. Do you have any idea how jealous I was when I left you alone on a date with Jiyeon?"

"Pabo. Then why'd you do it if you felt jealous?" Joshua asked me, returning the hug I was giving him.

"For my best friend," I told him. "I did it for her because she had feelings for you. I didn't want to interfere in her interest for you."

"Pabo, I'd like you anyway."

"Yah! Stop calling me pabo. Tsk." I rolled my eyes at him.

Just like that, love began. I may not exactly know what love is, but as of now, this is what I think of it. The innocent, fluttering feeling that makes you smile unknowingly. The out of sync heartbeats that warms up your entire body because of one person.

And that's how it was. Love began with a confession. It always does.

~Author's Notes~

Awwww!! ♥ I love #SooRi HAHAHA ;))

Special chapter because it's chapter seventeen ;)) sooooooo ;))

xoxo

Byun Sang Kyung