In the days that followed after you accepted Yujin's challenge, you took it upon yourself to somehow prepare for it as much as you can.
Still, it's true that no matter what kind of preparations you make, there's a very high chance that she will be able to beat you in a straight up race at the park.
Granted, you were neither out of shape nor fit enough to go toe to toe against a real athlete like her, but there's no harm in trying to.
Like she said, there's always the chance that you might pull off an upset, and that you're counting on that to happen.
But even if it won't, you promised yourself that you will gracefully accept defeat.
After all, you are a gentleman, and being so means that there's nothing wrong when it comes to losing against a girl.
Clinging on to your resolve that you'll do your best no matter what, along with the prize of a big hint to the game as your inspiration, you are now ready to test yourself against Yujin.
With that, the day finally came at last, with you having arrived at the park earlier than she did, as you saw no sign of her yet.
"I never thought I would be here much earlier than Yujin-ah. Heh, I hope that this is a good sign that something good will happen to me today." You thought, as you took a moment to gaze at the beautiful sunrise from above.
After a bit of waiting, you then decided to take a seat near to where the meeting place should be, which is right near the fountain square.
Fortunately, it didn't take long for your opponent to arrive a couple of minutes after, with you chuckling upon seeing her rushing towards you.
"Sorry for making you wait, Y/N. I wasn't able to wake up on time, so I kind of rushed to get here."
"That alright, Yujin-ah. But let me guess. It's because you failed to wake up at the sound of your alarm clock again, am I right?"
"Huh? How did you know?" She asked, all the while feeling surprised that you were able to guess the reason correctly.
"Looks like I was right then. Gaeul and Wonyoung told me about that habit of yours a while back, and it seems that you're still not a morning person." You replied, giving her a chuckle afterwards.
"Hehe, well you're right. It's not really befitting the image of an athlete, does it? I guess I need to work on that as soon as possible. But that aside, I'm here now, so don't think that I'm not in top form today, Y/N. Just like I told you, I'm always ready to face a challenge."
"You really are that confident, aren't you? Then again, there's a good reason why you should feel like that. To be honest, I'm not really sure if I can provide a decent competition for you today, so please go easy on me." You pleaded.
"No can do, Y/N. I gave you a promise to give it my all against you a few days ago, and I intend to keep my word. That's why I expect you to do the same. Come on, there's a good prize on the line with your name on it. All you have to do is to prove to me that you deserve to have it."
If anything, Yujin really does have her own unique way of instilling confidence in others, which is a clear sign of how much she had matured compared to when you met her the first time. This was enough for you to feel a bit proud knowing that you were able to witness her change from the very start.
"Okay. Thanks for the encouraging words, Yujin. I shouldn't have thought like that. Regardless of the outcome of our little match today, I'll be alright knowing that I did my best. I'm ready now."
"Great! Now that's the Y/N I know! Right then, we should begin. See that path over there? That will serve as our starting point, and from there we will run for a couple of laps around the park. First one to finish wins the race. There's nothing complicated about that, right?"
"Yeah. Now let's go."
The two of you walked towards the start of the path. Once there, you both did a few stretches and warm ups to get yourselves ready. After making sure that you're all set, you and Yujin stood next to each other, with both of you ready to give it your all.
A man who happened to pass by volunteered to be your "official", and at his signal, the race had begun.
For the first part of the race, you felt surprised that you are able to run side by side against Yujin, and it was clear that she is not going easy on you when it comes to her pacing.
You then give her a smile while feeling happy that you're doing better than you expected, with you hoping that you'll be able to keep it up all the way to the finish line.
But alas, you forgot the one thing that athletes have more than an ordinary person does, and that was stamina.
While you were doing good at the start of the race, maintaining that speed for a great amount of time was something that you were just incapable of doing, unlike her.
Towards the end of the first lap, you began to experience signs of fatigue, as your pace became much slower compared to when you started.
In comparison, Yujin simply continued running at a steady speed, with her showing no signs of exhaustion. From there, you understood that you really had no chance to win, regardless of how you feel about it.
Still, that didn't stop you from doing the only thing that you can do for yourself now, and that is to finish the race no matter the outcome.
It's the least you can do to partially keep your word for yourself and to Yujin as well. Sure enough, that decision of yours had indeed impressed her.
"Huh....I guess I.....really had no chance.....against you.....Yujin-ah..." You said while panting, as Yujin helped you take a seat on the bench to rest.
"What did you expect, Y/N? I always train every day after school, so winning against you in a race is easy. Don't forget, I'm a champion now." She boasted, making you laugh.
"Haha, that is true. Well, at least I did my best, even though I lost against you. I have no regrets."
"That you did. But you know, you actually ran faster than I expected, which surprised me."
"Did I really?"
"Yes, and that's why you should feel happy for yourself that you were able to. If I will compare how you did today to my own lap times when I first began to train as a member of the track team, it's nearly similar. All you need to do is to follow my own training regimen, and you'll get better for sure. What do you say?"
"Hmm, that's an interesting suggestion. I still don't believe that I'm cut out for being a full-time athlete like you, but I guess following your routine is a good idea. Thanks for the advice, Yujin."
"No thanks needed. I'm just happy that you're interested in it. Well, I think now's a good time for us to find a perfect spot to have our lunch later this afternoon. Shall we?"
"Hold on. I didn't bring any food for us today, so the first thing we should do is to find a place for us to eat after we change."
"Tsk tsk tsk. Come on, Y/N. You think that this bag I have here with me only contains my spare clothes? Just so you know, I came prepared for our lunch this afternoon just in case. I hope you'll like it."
"What? O-oh, then I suppose we won't have to buy our food today then. Wow thanks. I promise I'll make it up to you somehow." You assured her.
"There's no need for that, really. All I want is for you to give me your honest opinion about my cooking later, okay?"
"Sure, if that's what you want. Now I'm looking forward to it." You said, making her smile in return.
The next couple of hours were then spent in looking for the best picnic spot for the two of you to enjoy, which also allowed you to stroll around the park at your own leisure.
You may have visited this place plenty of times by now, but you never get tired of how pleasant it is to look at, even more so when you have a cheerful girl like Yujin accompanying you as well.
Judging from the look on her face, she truly is having fun while taking some photos here and there with her phone, while admiring the natural scenery around her. Seeing her looking bright and cheerful was enough to make you feel the same way.
After having explored the whole park, you managed to find a decent spot for yourselves, and it was also located near the changing area, which was very convenient.
With this, both of you decided to change to your spare clothes before lunch, just so you will feel refreshed before your meal.
Right after you did, both of you returned to the same spot you found, as you helped her set up the picnic table before anything else.
Yujin then took out the simple meals she prepared from her bag, placing them at the table for you to see.
From their appearance alone, it was almost certain that her dishes were still not perfect, especially when you compare it to the food that Rei prepares for you often.
But of course, it would be rude of you to say that to her, especially since you know that Yujin tried her best to make these for you too.
"Umm, what do you think?" She hesitantly asked, eagerly waiting for your opinion.
"To be fair, I won't judge it from how it looks, Yujin-ah. But I promise to tell you what I think about it as soon as we're done eating. Will that be okay for you?"
"Y-yes, I suppose you're right. Umm, here you go."
Seeing Yujin looking so uneasy throughout your lunch session also made you uncomfortable as well. Suffice to say, all that matters to her is your opinion about the food she made, and that she's waiting to hear your honest verdict on it.
"Well Y/N, how was it?" She asked again as soon as the two of you were done.
"Okay, how do I say this? I know that it would be very improper of me to compare what you made for us today to what the others make for me, especially Rei. But you know what, it's really not that bad. It's edible, flavorful and I actually enjoyed it. That's what's important, isn't it?"
"Is that true?"
"Yujin-ah, I'm telling the truth. If anything, I would never lie to you because it's not worth it. You asked for my opinion, and I gave it to you. That's all I did. That's fair, right?"
"Mhm. Phew, I'm glad that you still liked it, but I promise that I'll do better. Just you wait. One day, I'm going to be better at cooking than Rei, so I hope that you'll be looking forward to it."
"You know I will. I wouldn't expect less from the leader of The Sinister Six." You jested.
"Huh? What is that?"
"Nothing really. It's what Jungwon called you back when he saw you and the others arrive at the airport for our school trip."
"Oh. Now that I think about it, that's not a bad name for us, hehe."
"Hold on. You're not seriously planning on using that, are you?"
"Got you! Of course we won't! That name sounds silly, so I might have to confront your friend about that. But speaking of making names, I remembered the time when Gaeul-unnie told us that..."
Hours flew by as you and Yujin continued your conversation, with her sharing to you a lot of things about the moments she spent with them whenever they had the time.
The way she talks about her friendship with them made you realize just how close they really are, and that she was very happy that they continue to be like that even as time passes.
One can wonder what the future has in store for them, as you wished that their friendship will continue to prosper just like how it is now.
Despite this line of thought, you can't help but wonder if the outcome of the game they started will somehow affect their bonds to each other to some extent. Indeed, this made you feel uneasy, even after you promised to yourself that you'll see it through to the end by giving them your answer.
"Would you look at that. I can't believe that it's already three in the afternoon. I guess we really had a great time today, Y/N, at least I think we did."
"You don't have to worry about that, Yujin-ah. I had fun spending time with you today, and I hope that we'll be able to get another chance to do so."
"That's very kind of you to say, Y/N. Thank you. Hmm. In exchange for making me feel very happy today, it's only right for me to do something good for you in return, and I think I know how to do that."
Her lips curved into a smile just like before, with you feeling curious as to what she's up to this time.
"Okay then. Even if you lost against me today, you still did your best to finish the race. For that, I will still allow you to ask me about the hint I promised you."
"For real? You don't have to, since you won fair and square. I have no right to receive such a big hint knowing that I failed your challenge."
"True, but at least you didn't give up and instead decided to finish the race despite knowing the outcome. That alone made me decide that you earned this one. As for the others, you don't need to worry about them. We all agreed to give you one last hint to help you with your decision, which would be the best for everyone."
Her words did manage to convince you, especially with that last part.
While you are still worried about the aftermath of your decision, it would also be unfair for them if you won't be able to fulfill your promise to see the game through until its conclusion. This alone was reason enough for you to try and to what is right, for all your sakes.
"All right. Then I hope you don't mind me asking this question to you, Yujin-ah."
"I won't, Y/N. What is it that you want to ask me about, but I'll tell you now that I won't answer if you ask me directly as to who your mystery girl is, hehe."
You smiled at what she said, for you know that it would be a fool's errand to try and outsmart Yujin in any way.
Instead, you already thought of two possible questions that you want to ask her, but like she said, you can only ask one.
Now then, which question will you choose?
A. Ask her for a hint about your mystery girl.
B. Ask her about the truth on how they came up with the game in the first place.
Your choice in this chapter will greatly affect what happens in the next one, along with the choices that will appear there, so keep that in mind.
As always, thank you for reading.