At the peak of the roller coaster, Haruno spoke as if suddenly remembering something:
"If there were piano wires across the track, once the coaster zooms down…"
"You've been watching too much Conan." Yuu firmly cut off her wild imagination. Didn't she see the faces of the people behind them turn green upon hearing that?
"Just imagining it—wouldn't the scene be spectacular? Like dozens of bottle corks shooting into the sky."
Casually saying such terrifying things, Haruno turned to Yuu, winking her big eyes:
"Yuu-chan, do you think I'll scream or laugh later?"
"Are you scared?"
"Nope, I quite like the thrill." Haruno smiled meaningfully.
Yuu pretended not to catch her hint, answering normally: "Then laugh. I'll try to cover my ears."
"You can't even handle your girlfriend's laughter and still dare say you love me?" Stretching out her cool fingers, Haruno pinched his cheek.
As the roller coaster began its plunge, Yuu instinctively looked ahead, only to be forcibly turned by her.
"Why… ugh!"
Everyone on the coaster screamed, but the two of them silenced each other with their lips, eyes wide and locked as they plummeted with gravity, then rose and spun sharply.
In a world where perspectives constantly shifted, only the lover right in front of them remained constant. Lips and teeth pressed hard by inertia, the near-suffocating sensation made both their hearts race in sync.
—This was Haruno's dangerous romance.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
After getting off the roller coaster, Yuu was panting with a pale face, while Haruno stretched vigorously, licking her lips with a fresh and excited expression.
"Mhm~ That was indeed the most thrilling roller coaster. So, Yuu-chan, wanna queue up again?"
"NEVER! EVER! AGAIN!"
Yuu refused with the most resolute attitude of his life, word by word.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations to the Host, you have received a reward: High-Speed Immunity (Status).]
Yuu: "Damn it!"
Despite gaining an unclear reward, at his strong insistence, they moved on to another ride first.
For example, the carousel.
"I'll sit in front, you in the back." Haruno said cheerfully, as if it was already decided. She gathered her long skirt and nimbly sat sideways on a horse.
Not a triangular one, but a brown fiberglass horse that could seat two adults.
Looking at each other, Yuu shrugged, flipped his hands, crossed his legs, and sat behind her.
With Haruno's firm, beautiful waist right there, he wrapped his arms around it, feeling its warmth and softness.
Without resistance, Haruno naturally leaned her upper body back, resting gently against Yuu's chest.
"Hmph hmph~"
Her head pressed under Yuu's chin, but Haruno laughed happily, her round, bright eyes looking up at him.
"This is my first time riding the same horse with a guy besides my dad. You better remember this moment and savor it when you get home, got it?"
Yuu inhaled the scent of her hair, replying softly: "Same here—though it's not a real horse."
Haruno didn't care: "Then next time, I'll take you to my regular horse-racing track… Oh, by the way, can you ride a horse?"
"A little."
"Really? Where'd you learn?"
"Here."
"Huh?" Haruno looked confused.
Before she could ask further, the large carousel began to spin. They stopped talking, silently embracing, watching the scenery slowly rotate before their eyes.
Below, a child of about five or six pointed at them: "Mom, look! A big brother and sister riding the same horse—are they husband and wife too? Why don't you sit with Dad?"
The woman holding his hand looked embarrassed, but before she could say anything, Haruno cupped her cheek like a megaphone, leaned forward, and shouted:
"Don't worry, when we're married, I'll kick him off!"
Yuu: "…"
(Damn it, believe me, I'll kick you off right now!)
Hearing her shout, the child and his mother froze, staring with confused expressions and wide smiles.
The horse quickly spun past them. Haruno didn't care about their reaction, turning to face Yuu, who was giving her a dangerous look, as if he had a crazy idea.
"If you wanna kick, wait till we're married—not now." Haruno smiled fearlessly, even kissing his chin.
Yuu pursed his lips: "…I think I should kick now, or I won't get the chance later."
"Then let's promise not to kick each other, deal?" Shaking her head resignedly, speaking in a tone to soothe a child, Haruno suddenly paused, then slowly furrowed her brow.
"…Wait, you're not seriously planning to kick me, are you?"
"No way! Just kidding!" Yuu flashed a fake bright smile.
Rubbing her temples, it was Haruno's turn to be speechless: "Right, sometimes you're more annoying than me."
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
After the carousel, it was the super-spinning teacups.
Thanks to his newly acquired status, Yuu held up and turned the tables, making Haruno—a perfect superhuman—feel dizzy and nauseous, joking that she experienced pregnancy early.
Yuu also got scolded by the staff for nearly breaking the ride.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
At 6:30 p.m., after Haruno recovered from the teacup ordeal, they discussed where to eat.
They decided on the park's food court, choosing whatever they liked. Yuu took Haruno's hand again, walking toward the direction indicated by the signs.
"Wait, my shoelace came undone."
Haruno stopped, preparing to crouch and retie it, when Yuu suddenly had a brilliant idea and quickly stopped her.
"Let me help."
"You help me? What's there to help?" Haruno looked at him, puzzled, but Yuu didn't explain. Instead, he pulled her to a nearby bench and told her to sit.
Then he knelt on one knee in front of her, tying the loose shoelace into a beautiful bow—unfortunately, Haruno's knee-length skirt meant that, looking up from this angle, Yuu couldn't see anything.
"You…"
Haruno's mouth opened slightly, her cheeks faintly flushing, naturally thinking of a proposal in this position… but then she shook her head, amused, dismissing the thought.
Her voice suddenly sounded:
"Haruno, hold out your left hand for a sec."
"!"
Eyes widening in surprise, staring at his serious and gentle expression, Haruno froze, unable to say anything.
She only bit her lower lip slightly, trembling with hope and nervousness, extending her slender, pale left hand toward him.
(I'm so weird.)
She should've teased, "What, proposing to me?" or lifted his chin, responding with her mature womanly demeanor to make Yuu shy.
That would've been Haruno's usual style.
Though she had an unmatched "mask" of communication skills honed in the business world, always maintaining a calm and mature appearance in front of outsiders, parents, or her sister.
But now, why was it that just because Yuu knelt like he was proposing and looked at her with that serious gaze, she felt like a young girl in love, her heart pounding uncontrollably, her hands and feet barely manageable?
Was holding back from showing affection for someone truly harder than being a versatile diplomat in business?
When her fingers were gently held by Yuu, Haruno finally smiled in relief.
Like standing on a thin wire, a hand suddenly reached out, holding her steady.
She looked at the boy kneeling before her, her eyes curving like crescent moons, her gaze softer than the distant night's darkness.
"If you propose now, we could fill out the marriage forms right away."
"That bold, huh? I'm not even 18."
Yuu couldn't hold back a wry smile, not directly responding to her words, only taking out a neatly wrapped beaded bracelet from his bag and tying it around her left wrist.
Lifting her delicate hand, he inspected it carefully, then smiled with satisfaction.
"It's really pretty."
The colorful plastic beads were strung together, cheap but beautiful, perfectly suiting her pale, slender wrist. If there were sunlight now, it would surely shine even more.
Yet under the night's darkness, Haruno still dazzled with quiet grace.
"You made it yourself?" Haruno pulled her hand back, examining it curiously. "Didn't expect you could do this too."
"No big deal, didn't even need to learn." Yuu shrugged, standing and sitting beside her. "Like it? If not, you can give it back."
"You had to add that last part?" Haruno glared at him, then smiled again.
"I like you, so of course I'll like a gift from you."
"Good." Yuu sighed in relief.
He looked up, spotting a few twinkling stars in the clear night sky, like actors taking the stage early, slowly forming a galaxy.
But perhaps they weren't visible?
In Tokyo, people replaced the galaxy's beauty with dazzling neon lights. Seeing a few constellations occasionally was already nice.
"It's a pity I didn't bring a gift for you, so I can only repay you like this."
Haruno's voice suddenly sounded.
Before Yuu could react, Haruno hopped off the bench, turned with her hands behind her back, and stood in front of him.
Then she quickly leaned down and kissed his cheek.
"…"
Yuu touched his still-warm cheek, looking at her in a slight daze.
"Hehehe~ That was a kiss full of love—you must've felt it."
Haruno covered her mouth with the back of her hand, her face flushed red, laughing shyly, without any of her former composure.
It was clearly still Tokyo's night.
Yet somehow, Yuu saw Tokyo's Milky Way shining brightly before him, flowing straight into his heart.