"So, we ended up at the amusement park after all, huh..."
Zhong Yan's mouth twitched as he stared at the overcrowded entrance gate, the line stretching so far it looked like a living, breathing dragon.
On a weekday, the crowd might not have been so overwhelming—but today was the weekend. Bad luck.
He held Anby's hand as they stood together in the sweltering midday sun, sweat steadily dripping down their foreheads.
Zhong Yan pulled out a packet of tissues from his pocket and wiped the sweat from his brow. Then he glanced at Anby beside him.
She wasn't doing much better. The sun was merciless, and though her face remained composed, her sweat-soaked shirt told a different story. She was holding up under intense heat.
Zhong Yan knew he had to do something.
He grabbed a fresh tissue and began gently dabbing the sweat from her forehead.
While doing so, he said, "You stay in line here. I'm going to that stall over there to get us something to cool off—and maybe find a sunshade."
Anby didn't reply with words, only gave a quiet "mm" and rubbed her finger against the back of Zhong Yan's hand—like she was saying, don't worry about me.
Zhong Yan smiled and let go of her hand, jogging off toward the nearby stall.
Just like the amusement park entrance, the stall was surrounded by people scrambling to buy relief from the heat. Fortunately, there was no need to queue—Zhong Yan shoved his way through and made it to the front quickly.
The stall was packed with merchandise, and the icebox beside it was loaded with cold drinks and ice cream that were disappearing fast.
Zhong Yan's hands moved quickly. He pulled out a handful of Denny, grabbed drinks and ice cream for two, and even found a large sun umbrella big enough for them both.
Once he had everything, he haggled with the vendor—putting his bargaining skills to work and shaving a nice chunk off the price.
Returning to the line, he handed the drink and ice cream to Anby and opened the umbrella, shielding them from the punishing sun.
With shade overhead, they no longer had to worry about being roasted. Seeing that Zhong Yan now had both hands full with the umbrella, Anby kindly opened her drink and held it up to his lips.
Then, she pressed her unopened ice cream gently to his cheek to help him cool down.
It was a heartwarming scene—unless you were one of the poor souls behind them without ice cream, cold drinks, or an umbrella. Several onlookers turned their heads away, unwilling to watch the display any longer.
Zhong Yan and Anby, however, were unfazed. The chilled comfort settling into their bodies was enough to restore their mood.
Before long, they reached the front of the line and were granted entry into the amusement park.
Inside, the crowds were no different—people queued for every ride. Each attraction looked like it'd require at least twenty minutes of waiting.
But that didn't dampen their spirits. Since they hadn't eaten anything since heading out, they made a beeline for a burger joint inside the park.
Why burgers?
Simple. Anby liked them.
Zhong Yan had once told her to cut back on the burgers, but that was more suggestion than rule—he liked them too.
The burger shop had free air-conditioning, so naturally, it was packed with people escaping the heat. Most ordered food, but some just came for the cool air.
The staff didn't mind, as long as they didn't cause trouble. Kicking people out could scare off paying customers, after all.
But that wasn't Zhong Yan and Anby's concern. A smiling server had already walked over with menus in hand.
"What would you two like today? It's Crazy Weekend, so all menu items are 50% off! And if you're a couple, you get an extra 40% off on top of that!"
She pushed the menus toward them, likely guessing their relationship from how they looked together.
That kind of discount—50% off, then 40% off again—was rare. Zhong Yan wasn't going to miss the chance to cash in.
"Miss, how do we prove we're a couple?" he asked, glancing at Anby, who was studying the menu without any sign of disagreement—if anything, she looked completely on board.
"Oh, there's no strict rule for it," the server said cheerfully. "But you two look so close—it's obvious you're a couple. You can enjoy all the discounts, no problem!"
Zhong Yan's charm seemed to work—she was beaming as she jotted down their couple status. Once they finished ordering, the discount would be applied.
"Zhong Yan, I want these." Anby handed him the menu after making her selections.
Zhong Yan figured she'd ordered a few standard combo meals—but the moment he looked, he was floored.
Couple burger combo. Couple fried chicken combo. Couple barbecue combo. Couple sushi combo…
She'd basically ordered every single item labeled "couple."
Forget the price—the amount alone was more than the two of them could ever eat.
"Are you sure you want all this?" Zhong Yan asked, lips twitching as he stared at her.
Anby tilted her head with a puzzled expression. "Is that... not okay?"
Zhong Yan took a deep breath.
"It's okay. Of course it's okay. Miss, we'll take all of these." He handed the menu to the server.
Clearly, whether they could finish the food or not... was nowhere near as important as what his girl wanted to eat.
The server blinked at the order, momentarily stunned. Were young couples really this rich and desperate to show off?
Little did she know, the Denny these two had earned so far could cover her entire lifetime's wages.
And even more unimaginable to her—despite already having reached "life winner" status...
Zhong Yan was still chasing a dream.
And that dream? Still a long, long way from being fulfilled.