When Friday arrived, Jungkook hadn't returned to school yet but we had all visited him at his home a few times. He was getting antsy sitting at home constantly but the medicines he was taking made him way funnier than normal. Tae and I were currently sitting in art class talking about my date tonight. I had no idea what we were doing, Jimin had suggested wearing something comfortable though. "Tae, come on, I know you know what he's planning. Just give me a hint? Please?"
"Nope. I'm not saying a word."
"Kim Taehyung. Please????"
"No! Jimin will have my head if he finds out I told you! Do you want me to die?!"
"Um. No. But I REALLY want to know what he has planned!"
"Aly I will put paint on your face and in your hair if you don't stop asking! Just wear something comfortable and bring a light jacket or something just in case."
I groaned in frustration at Taehyung. I hated not knowing things. Especially when they involved me. After art was over I walked to history, a little nervous. Tia was already in her seat playing on her phone when I sat down. She looked over at me for a second, "So are you nervous?"
"A little. I'm more nervous that I have no clue what he's planning. No one will tell me anything and I'm honestly a little frustrated."
"Aly you have got to calm down. You can't be in control of everything. Sometimes it's good to let others be in control."
I snorted and shook my head. A moment later Jimin sat down and gave me a cute smile. "You sure you won't tell me what we're doing?" I asked him sweetly.
"No can do, I'm not telling you anything about it," he replied. I groaned and put my head on my desk. There was no use in trying to focus on history today. I doodled in my binder until it was finally time to leave.
Before I went home, Jimin walked me to my car and told me that he would pick me up at seven o'clock. When I walked into my house I sat on the living room floor with Penny. I petted her for a while before going to get ready for tonight. Once I showered and flat ironed my hair I thought carefully about what I should wear. Jimin had told me to wear something comfortable and Taehyung said to maybe bring a light jacket. After staring at my closet for what seemed like an hour I pulled out a baby blue two piece outfit. The shorts were flowy and high waisted so they could pass for a skirt and the top was a matching tank that was cropped. I figured that would be decent enough no matter what the date consisted of. I did my makeup slowly and with care as to not smudge anything. When I finally finished it was almost time for Jimin to pick me up. I ran a brush through my hair one last time and brushed my teeth for the twentieth time before slipping on a pair of white vans. I normally didn't carry a purse but as this outfit didn't have pockets I grabbed a small bag that could hold my phone, money, and lipstick. Before I could walk out of my room I remembered to grab a cardigan just in case. No sooner had I taken it off the hanger, there was a knock at the front door. I ran to open it and found Jimin holding flowers. He grinned sheepishly and offered the flowers to me, "I didn't know what your favorite flowers were...so I picked the prettiest ones that I could find that weren't the typical roses." I smiled back at him and took the flowers. They were gorgeous, there were Purple Coneflowers, Black-Eyed Susan's, and an abundance of Indian Blankets. Mom called them Firewheels, though. The assortment was gorgeous and smelt lovely. I grabbed his hand and led him inside so I could put them in a vase of water before we left. "They're perfect Jimin. I couldn't have asked for anything more beautiful."
After putting my flowers in water, I climbed into Jimin's car. "I hope you don't mind a drive to get there," he said.
"No, that's fine. So you're really not telling me what we're doing?"
"Nope," he replied with a smirk.
"Will you atleast tell me where we're going?"
"I'll tell you that when we get closer," he answered while pulling out of the driveway. I watched as we left the city and got onto the interstate. We talked easily for around twenty minutes before he told me that we were headed to Seabrook.
"I've never heard of Seabrook," I told him.
"It's a small town. But I have some things planned out." I honestly didn't care, I was just happy to be with him. The fact that he had thought this out though, that made my heart flutter and my stomach do backflips. Sure, I had dated a little before but no one had ever put time and effort into a date for me.
Fifteen minutes later we got off the interstate and I saw the sign saying we were in Seabrook. Jimin was right, it was small. It was cute though. He parked on the main street and looked at me. He looked nervous. "Promise me you'll still like me even if this date is a disaster?"
"I don't think it'll be a disaster, but sure. I promise." He smiled at that and got out. I followed and he took my hand as we walked. I let him lead me around this small town while he talked. The sun was getting low in the sky when I saw a cluster of bright lights in the distance. It smelled like salt here and there was a gentle breeze. "It smells like the ocean," I commented randomly.
"That's because the bay is right here. That's where we're headed. Well, not the bay exactly."
"What do you have planned Park Jimin?"
"You'll see," he said with a grin. A few minutes of walking later I saw what the cluster of lights were. It was a boardwalk filled with games and rides. I looked over at Jimin and saw he was looking at me already. I squeezed his hand, "This is too cute Park Jimin."
"You like it?"
"I love it."
He led me to a few game booths where he won a plushie. "For you," he said while offering me the cute calico cat stuffed animal.
"This is too cute," I said while hugging it to my body. I hated to admit it, but I was horrible at fair type games. I hadn't won anything but I was determined to win something for him. I was getting frustrated when I lost for the fourth time in a row and Jimin was dying of laughter. "It's not funny!"
"But it is! You're so mad at a game! It's so cute!"
"I want to win!! I don't like losing!"
"Okay, here. Let me help you." We were currently at a ring toss game and I only had a few rings left. "You're trying too hard."
"What does that mean? I'm just trying to get a ring on one of those coke bottles!"
"You're thinking too much. Just take a deep breath and let it happen," he said quietly. He pressed his chest against my back and took my hand. My mind went blank and he pushed my arm forward to throw the ring. Sure enough, it landed around the bottle. I squealed while hopping up and down. "I did it!" I turned around and wrapped my arms around Jimin who was laughing.
When I got done being excited the man working the booth told me to pick a prize. I looked at all the prizes carefully and picked a chick plushie. When it was handed to me I had a huge smile on my face. "Jiminah, please accept this cute little chick I won for you," I said while presenting the stuffed animal to him. He smiled back at me and took it, "I'll think of you every time I see it now." We walked hand in hand down the boardwalk while the sun got lower in the sky.
"Come on, I have a plan!" he said while walking quickly. I followed him to a large Ferris wheel and we got on. He put his arm around my shoulders and I leaned into him. We had our stuffed animals in our laps while we rode the wheel. "I wanted to watch the sun set over the bay on the Ferris wheel," he told me. It was gorgeous.
"You put a lot of thought into this, didn't you?"
"Not really. I just googled what time the sun would set."
"I love it," I replied and kissed his cheek. When the Ferris wheel ride ended we got on a few small rides. I wasn't a huge fan of rollercoasters or anything, but he chose the smaller rides for me. He held my hand while I squealed into his chest.
"You're cute when you're scared," he told me after we got off the last ride.
"I was not scared. I was just...nervous."
"Suuurrrreeee, come on. You've got to be hungry."
With that he led me down to a small booth. "It doesn't look like much, but they have the best food." I looked over the menu and ordered my food. I grabbed my bag to pay, but Jimin grabbed my hand and put in his order and paid.
"I could have paid you know," I told him.
"I know, but I wanted to pay. This is a date after all."
"Yeah, but do men have to pay on every date?"
"I'm not paying because I'm a man and because of stereotypes. I'm paying because I want to. Because I want to do something nice for the girl I like."
"Okay okay, but I'm paying on the next date."
"So there will be a next date?"
"I hope so," I answered shyly.
After eating we walked for a while and enjoyed the warm night. "Come on, I have one more thing planned," Jimin said while pulling me back towards his car.
"Wait, there's more??"
"Yup, I think you'll like this one the most."
"How will I like this more? It's already been a movie worthy date," I giggled while I got into his car again.
"You'll see," he replied with a smile. We drove outside of the main town, past all the lights. He turned onto a dirt road and I looked at him confused.
"Where are we going?"
"Alyson, just trust me. Okay?"
I nodded while he stroked my hand with his thumb. He drove a few more minutes before stopping in the middle of a field. He turned off the car and looked over at me. "Do you trust me?"
"Um....yes?"
"Then close your eyes."
"Why?"
"You said you trusted me. Now close those pretty green eyes. No peeking either."
"Fine," I grumbled while shutting my eyes. I felt him get out of the car and heard him messing with something.
After what felt like forever I felt my door open, "Okay, keep your eyes closed. I'm gonna lead you. I won't let you fall. Promise." I nodded back at him and followed him, stumbling over the uneven ground here and there. He kept his promise though. He didn't let me fall. At last he stopped, "No peeking, remember?"
"I'm not peeking!"
"Okay, I'm going to help you sit down. Do you trust me enough to lay down? There's a blanket."
"I guess?"
"I'm not going to do anything to you. I just want you to see something."
"Okay..." he helped me sit and I felt around the blanket. I laid flat on my back and waited. I felt him lay beside me and grab my hand. He squeezed gently, "Okay, you can open your eyes now." I opened my eyes slowly and saw hundreds of thousands of stars.
"Jimin...it's gorgeous," I whispered, getting a little choked up. He had somehow found a place far enough away from the city lights so we could look at the stars properly.
"I love the stars," he told me.
"Thank you. For tonight. This is...more than I could ever ask for," I said while scooting closer to him. He squeezed my hand lightly and I could feel him smile.
"So, what's your story Aly?"
"My story?"
"Everyone has a story. What's yours?"
"Um...I'm seventeen. My mom and dad got divorced when I was fourteen. That's when I started painting and drawing. I chose to stay with mom. I haven't talked to my dad in almost a year. My mom and I moved to Houston for her job."
"I'm sorry your parents got divorced."
"Don't be. I never liked my dad."
"Why? Can I ask that?"
"No, it's fine. He was rarely home when I was growing up and when he was home, he yelled a lot. He and mom were always fighting. When they told me they were getting divorced I was relieved."
"He...didn't hurt you or anything, right?"
"Physically? No."
"Aly..."
"No, it's okay. Come on. Tell me your story."
"Well...I'm seventeen too. My family is from South Korea. My parents are still together, we go every summer to South Korea to visit family. I dance to release my emotions. You're the first person I've ever been on a date with."
"Wait, what? You've never been on a date?"
"Nope."
"But...this...it's...perfect," I struggled to get the words out.
"I'm glad you think so," he laughed. We laid there for a while, talking nonsense and getting to know each other better.
"Jimin?"
"Yeah?"
"I...I want to tell you something..."
"Okay...?"
I took a deep breath, "I'm pansexual."
"Okay....and?"
"You don't care?"
"No. It doesn't change how I feel about you. I think it's great that you aren't worried about someone's gender to be attracted to them."
"Really?"
"Really. But I'm glad you're attracted to me."
"Psh, and where did you get that idea?"
"I saw you blushing when you saw me dance," he said while poking my side.
I laughed, "Okay but you look so different when you dance!"
"Oohhhhh you think I'm sexy, don't you?"
"Oh my god, shut uppppp!!!! I do not!" I was laughing while I responded to him.
"ALYSON CARLOTTA BLAIR THINKS I'M SEXY!" Jimin shouted.
"Park Jimin! Stop!"
"Nope!"
He sat up and shouted some more and I sat up as well. I covered his mouth with my hand and he continued to shout into it. I was past laughing, I was dying. I hadn't laughed this hard in years. He removed my hand from his mouth and laughed with me. I fell back onto the ground and held my stomach. Jimin had finally stopped shouting, but he was laughing super hard too. He fell beside me and faced me. I finally caught my breath and stopped laughing. We were so close I could feel his breath on my face. I could look at him laughing every day of my life and not get tired of it. His smile alone could light up a whole room. He made my stomach do somersaults and my brain fog up. When he stopped laughing he reached out and touched my cheek. Without thinking I leaned forward and kissed him lightly. I pulled back to look at him, but he leaned in and kissed me back. His lips were soft and tasted vaguely of vanilla. I could feel myself blushing when he released me.
"I've wanted to do that for a while now," he told me in a whisper. His voice was low and made me shiver. "Come on, let's go home."
I nodded and he took me back home. Before I got out of his car he caught my hand. I turned back to him and smiled. He had the cutest pout ever. I leaned in and gave him a quick kiss and grabbed the calico cat plush he had won for me. "Thank you Jiminah," I said while getting out. I smiled as I walked into my house. This was honestly the best date.