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Working at the local county fair wasn’t how Jisung had expected to spend his last high school spring break, and yet that was exactly where he had ended up. It had actually been his mother that had landed him the job, stumbling upon the opportunity through her Facebook groups that Jisung tried his best to ignore the existence of. He was just glad his mother had no compulsions on figuring out how to work Twitter, leaving him safe to whine on his profile about how much he did not want to be working at the fair and would much rather be sleeping as much as he wanted before school started up again.
Honestly, he had never seen the appeal of going to it even as a normal visitor. He had no urge to hop on the dubiously assembled (and terrifying) rides or waste his money on overpriced food and games. Still, at least he would end up with a good hunk of cash by the end of the week.
Jisung only had to deal with the frankly mortifying recognition of his classmates in the meantime.
At least he would be graduating in a few months and wouldn't have to see any of them again. For now, he just tried his best to ignore their existence as he continued controlling the line for the swings.
“Hey kid, get ready,” The middle aged man that ran the swing’s controls called out. Jisung wasn’t to be trusted with them, a fact that he was more than thankful for. Even if it left him making awkward small talk with whoever was assigned as his coworker for the day. Eunhyuk was one of the most responsible options so far, calm and friendly compared to the whirlwind that had been Taemin.
Jisung was still nervously twitching every time the swing’s systems were switched, horror stories of fair accidents ringing in his ears.
Luckily the rush of people needing to be unlocked from the swings was a good distraction. Jisung was quick to circle along the ride, helping anyone that needed it in unlocking the belts until he had arrived back to the front of the ride. Then it was another round around the ride, Eunhyuk assisting in locking people in until they could both return back to the controls and watch the ride rise up into the air.
As soon as the swings started circling Jisung was quick to look away, stomach tied in nervous knots as he stepped back over to the entrance gate. Anything would be better than looking at the ride and imagining the various disastrous scenarios that could happen. Or, well, almost anything. Catching sight of some of the people in his math class standing in line was arguably worse, and Jisung was quick to look anywhere else.
That’s what led him to locking eyes with the boy that had been tasked with running the carousel. It wasn’t the first time it had happened in the past two days either, nor was it the first time that Jisung saw the boy looking back.
But then the boy was turning his head towards his own coworker, a tall man in his twenties with dark red hair, opening his mouth to respond to whatever had drawn his attention. Over the past couple days Jisung had discovered the boy didn’t have a coworker just so they could run the controls, but instead it was for assistance in wrangling the overwhelming number of children that swarmed the carousel. Jisung had to carefully consider whether he was jealous of the boy or not, but as soon as the swings started rotating in his periphery he was quick to realize that no, there was no envy within himself.
There was curiosity though, and it was what kept his gaze trained on the boy.
His hair looked darker than Jisung’s had been before he convinced his mom to let him get highlights, wavy and dark but glinting blue in the light. It also looked like he was wearing eyeliner, with the way his eyes seemed so noticeable even with the distance between them. Ripped jeans hugged his legs, the uniform shirt baggy in a way that screamed the wrong size and the front tucked into his waistband in order to compensate for the extra fabric.
He also had a choker around his neck, something silver dangling from the black leather. It matched his silver bracelets, the rings on his hands, the multitude of piercings in his right ear that flashed in the sunlight. Jisung just wished he was close enough to identify the differences in each individual piece of jewelry, studying and memorizing each and every one.
Unfortunately they were stuck on two different sides of the dusty dirt path that separated their rides, and the hoards of people crossing through Jisung’s eye line didn’t help. It was honestly a miracle that Jisung could meet the boy’s eyes at all.
Jisung was jolted out of his thoughts as he realized that was what he was currently doing, gazes once again locked together with the boy. Jisung could feel a nervous shiver work it’s way down his spine, panic beginning to lick at the edges of his brain as the boy didn’t look away.
But then Eunhyuk was calling his name, drawing attention to the swings lowering back to ground level, and Jisung was once again making his rounds around the ride.
The moment between them probably would’ve been left forgotten - at least until Jisung was laying in bed that night, despairing over his failure in social interaction - if it wasn’t for Jisung meeting the boy’s eyes again and again as the day went on. It wasn’t even just him starting it, either. Anytime he glanced over to the carousel his eyes would automatically lock onto the boy, finding that he was either already staring back or meeting Jisung’s gaze within a few moments.
A few times Jisung got to watch as a slow smile crawled over the boy’s lips, leaving Jisung ducking his head on instinct in order to hide his flushing cheeks. Peeking up from under his overgrown bangs afforded him the sight of the boy laughing in delight, and Jisung just knew his eyes would be sparkling if they were close enough.
By the end of Jisung’s shift he had lost count of how many looks they had exchanged, careful smiles sometimes being replaced by a quick wave that Jisung shyly returned before the boy was focusing back on his job.
“So, are you gonna go talk to him?” Eunhyuk questioned curiously, appearing at Jisung’s elbow and almost giving him a heart attack.
Jisung yelped, raising a hand up to his chest as he watched the older man wipe at the sweat beading on his forehead. Despite it being the second week of March it was already far too hot, and Jisung didn’t know how the boy was wearing as much black as he was without dying, “What? No, I– Don’t scare me like that!”
“You should,” Eunhyuk encouraged, a cheeky smirk pulling at his lips, “Isn’t he cute?”
Jisung glanced back over to the boy just in time to watch him smile kindly at a kid as he pulled her off one of the carousel’s horses, his eyes scrunching and dimples appearing. Jisung was doomed.
Eunhyuk just snickered, pushing at Jisung’s shoulder with too much force and almost making him trip on his feet, “Go on, kid. It looks like his shift is ending right now too.”
Eunhyuk wasn’t wrong, Jisung admitted. There were two other people standing at the carousel's controls as the boy and his coworker finished shuffling children out of the ride’s exit gate and back to their families. One of those two was already stepping over to the entrance to let in another hoard of children as the boy stepped out of the exit as well, waving a hand towards his coworker. Then he was glancing towards the swings, eyes darting around before a smile lit up his face once he caught sight of Jisung’s nervous form.
“Good luck.” Eunhyuk murmured, ruffling Jisung’s hair as he finally left. Jisung was quick to try to straighten it, nervously watching as the boy walked towards him, darting around the crowd until he was barely a foot away.
Jisung wasn’t prepared for conversation, especially when he realized that the boy was even prettier up close. Even if his bangs were wet with sweat and his eyeliner was smudged at the corner of his eyes.
“Hey,” The boy began, his voice like wind chimes and his cheeks dimpling with his smile, “I’m Chenle. What’s your name?”
🎡
Jisung didn’t know how he had been lucky enough to end the day by walking at Chenle’s side, but he wasn’t going to question it any time soon. Not when conversation flowed easily between them, the brightness of Chenle’s personality easily pulling Jisung out of his shell. They discussed their highschools (they were each other’s rivals, barely ten miles separating the campuses), how they ended up working at the fair (Chenle’s parents were just as guilty as Jisung’s mother), and which ride they would want to try out before they headed home considering they already had free entry to the fair anyway.
“How about the Fireball?” Chenle suggested, walking far closer to Jisung's side than he was prepared for. He was tugging at the red and black shirt he had pulled on after they stopped by the staff room, changing out their sweaty uniforms shirts for their own clothes. Jisung had pulled on the white graphic tee he had haphazardly shoved into his backpack earlier that morning, running late and uncaring for the wrinkles it would form.
Tilting his head curiously, Jisung glanced at Chenle before letting his eyes dart around curiously. “Which one is that?”
“You don't know?” Chenle questioned with a little laugh before pointing towards the largest, most terrifying ride the fair sported. “It's that one.”
Jisung caught sight of it immediately, drawn to the loudest screams in the area. It was a pendulum that rotated its seats as it swung back and forth, causing the riders to constantly change position as the ride progressed. Their feet were free to swing in the open air, and Jisung could see a few peoples legs kicking wildly as the ride ascended into its next swing.
Jisung felt his stomach roll immediately, quickly shaking his head and looking at Chenle desperately, “No thank you.”
Chenle looked at him for a moment, eyebrows raised curiously, before he was glancing around the rides once again. Eventually he settled on one to the left of the Fireball, the line for it just as long.
“How about the Zipper?” Chenle asked, nodding his head towards the ride. Jisung watched for a few seconds as the cages people were locked in flipped upside down as they were lifted high in the air or low in the ground, screams reaching Jisung's ears even from this distance.
“I don’t–” Jisung began, gulping nervously as he picked at the nail of his thumb for a few seconds before cautiously turning his head to meet Chenle’s eyes, “I don’t really like rides much?”
Chenle let out a little sound of understanding, eyes quickly flitting around all the rides surrounding them, “What about that one, then? It’s not that intense, it just goes in a circle.”
Jisung followed the direction Chenle pointed towards, blinking in surprise at the ride going in a fast rotation but otherwise staying level with the ground. He could see the name of the ride, Twister, lit up already even though it was at least an hour before sunset, the ride’s seats glittering in the sunlight.
Deciding not to be a complete killjoy, Jisung nodded his head, “That’s alright.”
Chenle’s answering grin made it worth it, even as his heart skittered nervously. Or maybe that was just his reaction to Chenle grabbing at his wrist and pulling him towards the ride as he happily started chattering.
What followed was a mix of nerves and adrenaline as they waited in line until they were finally allowed entry. Chenle instructed Jisung to climb into the seats first, watching as he pressed himself against the outside corner before following him up. A quick buckle of the belt and Jisung shuffling his long legs into a more comfortable position and then the ride was starting.
Jisung’s heart was in his throat the entire time, but it was only partly due to the ride. Most of his attention was focused on Chenle’s bright laughter, on the way Chenle grabbed at the safety bars futily as he was slung into Jisung’s side with the force of the ride. Jisung’s hip was digging painfully into the side of the seat, but his other side was pressed snugly against Chenle’s side, lighting up all his senses.
🎡
After the ride Jisung was led to a few more rides (the pirate ship, the tilt-a-whirl, the alpine bobs, even the bumper cars) that didn’t make him want to jitter out of his skin, but finally Jisung managed to draw a line as the sun was starting to set. Chenle’s eyes were lit up with the multicolor lights of the fair, his hand clammy with the heat of the day when he slid it into Jisung’s.
A surprised jolt, a curious look exchanged, and Jisung was lacing their fingers together as he glanced away, a blush on his cheeks as he gently started tugging Chenle towards the food court. They bickered lightly over which stalls to visit, Jisung complaining quietly about the price gouging as Chenle slapped down the money for an oversized cup of lemonade.
Still, it was as enjoyable as any experience with Chenle was turning out to be. Eventually they found their way to an empty spot on the picnic tables, sitting across from each other with far more food than Jisung had anticipated.
He watched as Chenle took a piece of steak off his kebab, fiddling with ketchup packets for his chicken and fries and nodding along as Chenle started talking about their coworkers. Apparently Johnny, the man who worked alongside Chenle at the carousel, had been caught in a rather compromising position with one of the ferris wheel operators and had only been let off with a light warning considering he was friends with some of the upper management.
“Really? Here?” Jisung sputtered incredulously.
“You haven't noticed?” Chenle asked, sipping quickly at his lemonade and not even reacting to the sourness of it, much to Jisung’s surprise. He had pulled a rather embarrassing expression when Chenle had let him have a sip of it while they were waiting for their fried oreos, “Loads of people fuck around here.”
“Um,” Jisung began hesitantly, tearing at the paper his straw had been wrapped in, “No?”
Chenle raised an eyebrow before letting out a quiet laugh, shaking blue tinted bangs out of his eyes and reaching forward to nick another one of Jisung's fries, "Then you're really oblivious. I swear I caught Renjun and Donghyuck going at it in the bathrooms."
Jisung scrunched his nose immediately at the thought of the building, trying not to squirm in disgust at the unsanitary thought, “The bathrooms?”
Chenle seemed to empathize, grimacing as he shot a look towards the distant building, “I know. Even getting blown behind the food stands is better than that.”
Jisung spluttered, “What?”
There was a worrying glint in Chenle's eyes as he smiled sweetly, dimples appearing and distracting Jisung immediately, “Yeah, I just saw Jeno appear around the kebab stand and he looked fucked out. Imagine my surprise when Renjun followed after him a minute later.”
Jisung squirmed, cheeks flushing as he looked away awkwardly. It had Chenle's teasing smile dropping into one of concern, one slightly greasy hand reaching out to wrap around Jisung's wrist, “Hey, sorry, are you uncomfortable?”
Jisung shook his head, tilting his face away in a desperate hope that Chenle couldn't see how flustered he was, “No, it's fine. I'm just not that used to talking to people about things like this.”
Chenle blinked slowly for a moment before he was tilting his head slightly, the long chain of one of his earrings bouncing against his jawline, “How old are you?”
“I turned eighteen a month ago,” Jisung answered easily, watching as Chenle’s eyes brightened.
“Oh, you’re only four months younger than me then!”
After that information was revealed they descended into more chatter about their histories, their hobbies, anything and everything that came to mind as they decimated the food between them. Chenle shamelessly stole Jisung’s fries with a pretty smile, and Jisung just watched as a warm, bubbling emotion filled his chest.
At some point they had turned to talk about Chenle’s piercings, the older boy pointing at the industrial bar stuck through the top of it and explaining that it had been far less painful than Jisung would expect. Jisung felt nauseous just at the idea of it, even if Chenle did make it look very good. Jisung had a suspicion that that was more due to the fact that Jisung thought Chenle was pretty but, well.
“Hey, Jisung, I think your phone’s ringing.” Chenle’s voice brought him back to the present, the words garbled around the last of the oreos and his finger pointing to where Jisung’s phone lay on the table.
Jisung could feel himself blanching at the sight of his mom’s contact, and he was quick to answer and assure her that no, he hadn’t been kidnapped, that he was actually still hanging around at the fair.
“Oh?” She questioned curiously, no doubt surprised considering Jisung hadn’t been shy about his opinion on the terrors of fair rides. Then her voice turned coy, a smile evident in her tone, “Did you meet a boy?”
Jisung spluttered, of course, blushing hotly and only turning redder as Chenle looked at him curiously, his lips pursed around the straw of his lemonade.
“I’ll take that as a yes,” His mother stated smugly, not letting Jisung get a word in edgewise as she continued, “Have fun. Drive safe. Get the boy’s number.”
“Mom!” Jisung hissed, only to be answered with the click of the line disconnecting.
Chenle raised an eyebrow, fluffy hair drifting into his eyes with the cooling breeze and stealing Jisung’s breath away. Maybe his mother had the right idea.
“Hey, can I get your number?”
🎡