Miracle Land Amusement Park.
I won't explain it again, but just know that it's massive.
The twenty highschoolers were now standing in front of that land of joy.
Riku Arai, Yuto Murusaki, Daichi Tanaka, Taiga Fujimoto, Daiki Sakamoto, Takumi Hayashi, Shun Kurata, Haruto Minami, and Kaito Sugiyama were among the first to line up near the entrance, each reacting to the park's sheer size in their own chaotic way.
The girls group behind them consisted of:
Hana Mizuno, Mei Hayasaka, Aika Nakamura, Arisa Hoshino, Rin Sasaki, Sora Yukimura, Hikari Aoyama, Noa Kamizuki, and Ayane Fujii—each chatting, snacking, or pretending not to be excited.
The last to arrive was Reika Tsukino, big round glasses on, sipping from a boba cup like she owned the place. "Tch. They better have real roller coasters this time."
"Someone's acting cool again," Aika giggled.
"She'll be screaming first," Sora whispered.
Hana nudged Mei, nodding toward Riku. "Are you… going to talk to him today?"
Mei looked away. "Why would I?"
Daichi's voice cut through the crowd. "Boys versus girls! Whoever gets more Miracle points wins!"
"Heck is a Miracle point ?" Haruto disgustingly asked.
Kaito pulled up a small notebook from his pocket and corrected his glasses with his middle finger.
"Listen, idiots. Every ride in Miracle Land has a points system depending on difficulty, fear factor, and thrill rating. It's also given when you win mini games, such as shooting, and etc. They're called Miracle Points. I did the math. If we plan our route strategically—"
"We're not in a war zone, commander," Taiga interrupted. "We're just here to ride stuff and eat overpriced popcorn."
"You're just scared of the Mega Plunge," Kaito snapped back.
"You're all scared of the Mega Plunge," Reika said flatly, also adjusting her glasses with her middle finger pointed directly at none other than kaito. "And if you're not, you will be."
"Okay, smartass. Shut up and get in the line." Kaito replied.
Reika took a long sip of her boba. "Fine, fine.. I'll make sure to wave at you from the top when you chicken out halfway."
"Ooohhh!!" Daiki, Taiga, Takumi and Haruto chorused dramatically, fanning the flames.
Kaito just rolled his eyes. "Talk to me after you survive the Haunted house with zero screams."
"Guys," Hikari chimed in cheerfully, "can we at least pretend we like each other for one day?"
"No," said Taiga, Reika, and Kaito at once.
"Why is Taiga joining in them?" Riku asked.
"Do you think asking will give you a logical answer?" Takumi silently answered his concern.
Meanwhile, Aika had looped her arm through Sora's. "I say we start with the candy maze. Easy points, no screaming, and we get snacks."
"Agreed," Ayane nodded. "Let the boys break their necks on the crazy stuff first."
Daichi overheard that and gasped. "Are you underestimating us?!"
"Yes," said Mei, finally speaking.
Daichi froze. "....I understand."
---
Twenty minutes later, the park was alive with screams, laughter, and Shun quietly regretting everything.
The boys had charged toward the biggest rides first, dragging a very reluctant Shun with them.
"THE MEGA PLUNGE – 6 Miracle Points."
A towering monstrosity of steel and regret. The kind of ride where your soul leaves your body before the drop even begins.
"I feel sick already," Shun mumbled, clutching the safety bar like it was his last lifeline.
"You haven't even sat down yet," Takumi pointed out.
"I know."
Daiki was bouncing in line like a golden retriever on energy drinks. "This is it, boys! If we survive this, we win the war!"
"You do realize there are like 47 more rides, right?" Taiga deadpanned.
"No time for math. It's courage hour!" Daiki declared.
As the ride launched, the boys screamed in unison. Well, most of them.
Shun's scream wasn't a scream. It was more like a whisper of pure existential dread that somehow got drowned out by the wind.
When they got off, Haruto was laughing so hard he couldn't walk straight. Kaito had wind-tunnel hair. Riku looked like he aged a year.
Shun staggered to a bench and just sat in silence, gripping the edge like the ride was still moving.
"I... died back there," he whispered.
Meanwhile, the girls were having a very different experience.
"Candy Maze – 2 Miracle Points."
"Oh my gosh, this is adorable," Hikari beamed, holding a giant lollipop.
"Look at that marshmallow tunnel!" Aika gasped.
"I want to live here," Arisa said, hugging a candy cane post.
Even Reika cracked a small smile as she adjusted her glasses. "Okay, fine. This isn't bad."
Ayane handed Mei a pink cotton candy. "You good?"
Mei looked toward the distant roller coaster screams. "Yeah."
"Still not talking to him?"
"Not yet."
Back with the boys, they'd moved on to "Shoot the Cans – 1 Miracle Point per target."
"I was born for this," Kaito said, locking in his stance.
He missed the first three.
Shun hesitantly stepped up next. "I... I'll try…"
He aimed. Bang. Bang. Bang.
All three cans fell.
Everyone stared.
"He cooked." Taiga stated.
Shun embarrassingly nodded and gave the gun to Riku, cause now it was his turn.
"You better not fail this." Takumi threatened.
He shot the first shot, it ricocheted off the first can, hit the other, ricocheted off the other and hit the third one.
Riku paused, gradually put down the gun, and raised both his hands upwards.
"Hands gifted by Heaven!." He said, looking at the sky in pride and victory.
Everyone once again stared silently.
The shopkeeper quietly started shedding tears, handing out 2 big teddy bear and 9 Miracle points.
---
Score:
Girls:7
Boys: 14
---
Riku said, showing everyone the picture of the scores.
Kaito stared at the screen and smiled but then it vanished.
"Why am I the one carrying the teddy bears!?" He yelled, turns out, losing meant being treated as a loser.
"But wait, what are we actually going to do with the teddies?" Shun suddenly realised and asked.
Riku shrugged. "I don't know. Throw them away?"
"Let's not," Takumi said, already eyeing one of the teddy bears like it might explode. "We can just give them to the girls. They like cute stuff, right?"
"I'm not giving mine to Reika," Kaito grumbled, adjusting his glasses as one of the teddy bear heads bumped his chin. "She'll say it's a bribe."
"Yours?" They all turned to Kaito.
"How is it yours? You stupidly lost our chance. That's riku and Shun's." Takumi said, patting kaito's shoulder like a dad councelling his child.
"Mine?" Shun and Riku asked.
"Mine?" Shun and Riku echoed at the same time.
Shun stared at the teddy bear in his hands like it had suddenly gained weight.
"I-I mean, I just hit some cans. It's not a big deal…" he mumbled, cheeks warming.
"It was a big deal," Daiki declared, slapping Shun's back like he was knighting him. "You carried the round, bro. If this were a game, you'd get MVP."
Riku raised a brow. "Pretty sure I made a triple ricochet miracle shot."
"Yeah, but yours was flashy. His was raw talent," Taiga added, arms crossed. "Shun's the silent sniper."
Shun turned pinker. "That's making me shy…"
"So, gonna give it to your sister kanna?" Yuto finally spoke.
"Of course." Shun smiled.
"Now.." Daichi turned to Riku.
"You don't have a sister, do you?"
Riku blinked.
Then he slowly tilted his head.
"Nope," he said.
A pause.
"...So?"
Everyone leaned in with sly grins.
"So," Daiki smirked, "who's getting the bear, loverboy?"
"I'm donating it to science," Riku said flatly.
"What kind of science needs teddy bears?" Haruto asked, pretending to jot it down like a serious question.
"Emotional support research," Riku replied without missing a beat.
"Ohhh he's dodging," Takumi chuckled.
Kaito narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "You could give it to Mei."
That instantly shut Riku up for half a second too long.
"…Why would I give it to her?"
"Why not?" Daichi pressed, nudging him. "It's not like you've been staring at her every time she walks by or anything."
"I haven't."
"You blink funny when she shows up," Yuto added.
"I blink normally."
"No one blinks that precisely."
Riku threw his hands up. "Okay, wow, are we just diagnosing my eyeballs now?"
Shun stayed quiet, glancing at Riku, then at the bear, then at the direction where the girls were.
Then quietly, he said, "I think she'd like it."
Everyone stopped and turned.
"…You mean Mei?" Riku asked.
Shun nodded shyly. "She doesn't look like it… but she really likes soft stuff. Like, really soft. She used to bring a sheep pillow to school in elementary. She told me once it helped her sleep during lunch break."
Riku's grip on the bear tightened slightly.
"...Tch."
Daiki slapped his back. "See? Fated! It's your bear. It's her weakness. Now go win the war."
"I'm not giving a bear as a love confession," Riku muttered.
"You're right," Takumi agreed solemnly. "You need two bears."
Riku groaned.
But he didn't hand the teddy back.
---
Back with the girls, the scoreboard dinged again.
Boys: 14
Girls: 19
"Oh?" Ayane raised an eyebrow. "They didn't catch up."
"Nope. Reika smashed another strength game, and Rin finally beat the claw machine," Aika smiled.
"Claw machine?" Mei asked.
"Yeah. She got a frog plush. She named it Violence."
"...Why?"
"She said the claws almost killed her."
Mei shook her head slightly and looked at her own phone.
And paused.
Because the latest photo Riku sent her…
Was just the teddy bear.
The bear, sitting on a bench. Looking straight at the camera. Like it was waiting. The caption, "ferriswheel".
Mei stared at it for a second.
Then quietly smiled to herself.
"…Idiot." Her grip slightly tightening on her phone.