merry-go-round.
the air itself is capricious; whimsical with small tints of anxiety and thrill. dark clouds are rare and when they do occur, it takes him a moment to comprehend that even though this is an amusement park, not everybody lives with ecstasy brimming in their hearts.
clouds of different colors come at nine intervals and they remind him why the merry-go-round is his favorite ride.
seohyun
“do you know where the ticket booth is for the ferris wheel?” her voice is soft, not unlike a gentle gust of wind. he almost doesn’t notice her.
he turns toward the muted murmur. she stands there (clear, limpid eyes zoned in on him calmly) with her pale arms wrapped around her torso. “oh! hi, there. it’s right around the corner; twelve o’clock, then turn left. you’ll find it there,” he explains patiently.
her cheekbones lift as she smiles, sharpening and defining her facial features. “thank you.”
the crisp fabric of her cotton dress glimmers a luminescent white in the orange and pink lights; her hair appears like a thick icing of russet silk floating above the rest. she looks back and offers him another grin before finally walking away. he has this strange feeling - as if she’s about to vanish into thin air.
yoona
rooted to the sidelines, the young woman declines her sister’s offer time and time again with a tolerant smile until the latter gets bored of coaxing and goes on the merry-go-round by herself.
“why don’t you go?” he finds himself asking although he makes a point to not talk to girls like her (delicate, pretty and too well-groomed) often. she shakes her head. “no, thanks. this isn’t my kind of thing. i mean, no offense or anything.”
cracking a grin, he assures her, “none taken.”
her hand moves to her face and he expects her to tuck in the loose tendril by her cheek but instead, she cups her fingers around her mouth and barks, “unnie! you look like a total idiot! i’m taking a video.” arms falling down to her sides again, she winks at him.
hyoyeon
“why aren’t you in school?” she asks nosily, chin rested on her palms. her eyes are imploring (somehow he feels like she is not a stranger then) and her lower lip juts out into a crooked pout. he responds with a grin. “this is a mere part-time job.”
she nods before questioning, “how much do you get paid? what time do you go to work?”
bothered by the humid air and by her incessant inquiries, he couldn’t help but say, “why are you asking many questions? okay, that was rude, sorry. anyway, i get paid enough to buy myself a mcdonald’s meal every couple of days and i go to work at about 5.30 pm.”
“it's okay. i was just asking since i'm applying for a job here. sure looks like fun! we can work together,” she coos and although he grins back, he’s mentally cringing - oh, god, please, no.
sunny
she looks a little off the moment she stumbles over toward him. she’s not drunk, clearly, but judging by the greenish hue of her face, it’s evident that she’s just been on a shaky roller-coaster ride.
“not a good experience?” he chuckles quietly. a loud groan resounds. “not good” - she shakes her head (it makes her even dizzier; it’s as if everything is spinning at ten thousand miles per hour and she’s falling down the rabbit hole) - “at all.”
his eyebrows shooting up, he couldn’t help but ask curiously, “then why’d you even go on it?”
“the adrenaline through my veins,” she answers, but then she laughs. “or the fact that i was dared. choose whichever one seems more likely.” she's contradicting her first statement clearly, but he knows that proves it to be true as her eyes glow harder and her fists become solid. “i guess you were dared,” he comments.
jessica
“here you go,” a skinny girl chirps, her ochre hair shining like a golden halo underneath the lit lanterns.
catching the coins in his palm, he teases, “you look a little too old to go on this ride.” rolling her eyes heartily, she climbs onto a cordovan horse speckled with red. “everybody’s a child at heart,” she retorts, the ribbon in her hair askew and her skirt rumpled.
“well, here we go!” he pulls the lever and the globular machine begins to move. she squeals as she rises and falls (like she has no other piece of her childhood left and this is the final chapter) according to the rhythm of the music. she catches his eye and waves cheerily.
the ride’s about to end in a few more seconds - he knows the entire routine by heart now - but he finds himself slipping in a few extra coins into the slot, just to let her live life a little longer.
taeyeon
a bunch of preschool kids are taking their own sweet time on the merry-go-round; they giggle and yell and try push each other off and to be perfectly honest, it’s giving him a terrible headache. he sees his very own inner turmoil mirrored in the eyes of the girl across him.
“your charges?” he jerks his head in the kids’ direction. sighing, she mutters, “unfortunately, yes. cousins and a few others. i'm stuck babysitting.”
he blanches sympathetically. “i can only imagine how tough that is. even standing here is driving me nuts, let alone taking care of them,” he explicates (although it gives him a sense of security; the world is still intact and sane if the kids are still that way) with languid eyes.
“tell me about it.” but a smile forms on her lips and they stand together, gazing at the kids silently.
sooyoung
“i’m really jealous that you get to work here,” she remarks casually, leaning against the gates surrounding the massive machine.
“why is that?” he asks (he would understand if it comes from someone else but coming from a person who seems like she has it all, it doesn’t feel right) with a raised eyebrow. his eyes scan the perimeter. he’s worked there for so long that he’s failed to notice anything extraordinary.
she shrugs. “i don’t know. i just am. it’s a great place to be.”
about to enlighten her on the many downsides to working at the amusement park, she then blurts out, “besides, you get to meet people - that’s a huge bonus. you know, girls with good hair, a killer smile and extremely long legs.” he pauses for a moment before groaning, “you’re talking about yourself, aren’t you?”
yuri
she sits behind the complicated machinery of the popcorn stand next to the merry-go-round sullenly. her fingers drum against her thighs in a dawdling, gloomy rhythm (it contrasts too starkly with the general pulsating air of the place) that makes him depressed.
“you’re alright?” he plucks up the courage to go and speak to her on his break precisely seven minutes later. the tempo of her fingers hasn't slowed.
moisture glimmers in her eyes as she mumbles a morose no. “who cares about being at amusement park if you feel hollow inside?” she whispers, her tone raw. he doesn’t know what to say, so he purchases a bag of popcorn and shares it with her.
shrieks of laughter vibrate around them but the popcorn tastes like sandpaper in his mouth.
tiffany
“you work here but i bet you haven’t even been on this before.”
startled, he looks up from his cell phone and meets a pair of sparkling eyes. they curve upwards as soon as she has his attention (she could have it all the hours of the day if he isn’t so busy, to be honest) and she lifts her hand in a wave. “hi, there.”
“um, hi,” he splutters. “i didn’t notice you getting on earlier.” she shrugs flippantly and sways over to the fence separating her from the merry-go-round. “there were so many people. i don’t blame you.”
remembering her question earlier, she turns to face him again. “so, am i right? have you ever been on this ride?” she regards the contraption with a reflective look of fondness. he feels his toes tingle when she moves that gaze onto him.
“well...no. i never had the time and judging by the looks of it, it’s nothing that special.”
her eyes expand in childlike delight. “that’s where you’re wrong. come on!” he is yanked out of his seat when she grabs him (his blood runs quick and his head feels light) and directs him toward the now deserted merry-go-round. “give it a shot. it’s like magic.”
he would’ve laughed at this point but there’s something about the way she says it - as if she has ultimate faith and hope in it - that makes him feel like maybe, it’s something worth doing.
“just close your eyes. the merry-go-round is a magical ride, as cheesy as that sounds. i’m not lying about this,” she promises with crinkled eyes and an expression that is filled with everything he expects to see in a child who still believes in all the little things.
he obeys. his eyelids close and he lets himself get carried away.
everything feels light and airy; his worries melt into nothingness (or maybe they were never even there) and he’s walking on clouds. for once, he feels alive and free as if there’re no hardships in the world. he opens his eyes and the first thing he sees is her, beaming brightly.
(“it’s like magic,” he repeats and his cheeks are flushed, eyes aglow. she shyly encloses her cold hand around his trembling fingers and whispers, “i told you so. it’s like magic.”)