Ch.78 : Date with Fanny

It was the weekend, and finally... the long-awaited date with Fanny was happening.

Nic was still buried in his bed, face smashed into the pillow. The sun hadn't even risen that high yet, but suddenly—

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!

"Hey Nic! Wake up!" came the familiar loud voice from behind the door.

With messy hair and half-lidded eyes, Nic dragged himself to the door. As soon as he opened it, Fanny stood there with arms crossed and a fierce look on her face.

"It's now or never!" she barked, then pinched Nic's cheek with terrifying force.

"Ow ow ow! That hurts! Fanny, stop!!" Nic yelped, flailing helplessly.

"This date's happening, right?" she glared at him.

Nic gently patted her head, fixing a loose strand of her hair. "Of course it is. No backing out this time."

Fanny plopped down on the couch in the living room, turning on the TV while waiting. When Nic finally got ready and returned, he tried sneaking up behind her.

"BOO—!" he shouted while slapping her shoulder.

But Fanny only glanced sideways, unimpressed. "You ready?"

Nic was the one surprised. "Huh? Why didn't you flinch?"

Fanny stood and gave him a light but solid punch in the stomach. "Weak. I'm not some kid you can scare with that."

Nic decided not to mess around any further. And so, they set off.

---

On the train ride, Fanny leaned back in her seat and side-eyed Nic.

"So... where are we going?"

Nic grinned. "We're going to... Death Park."

Fanny rolled her eyes. "Seriously? You're that sure?"

"Absolutely," Nic replied confidently.

"Hah, fine. But don't expect me to cling to you in fear or anything." She laughed smugly. "I'm immune to that kind of stuff."

Nic turned to her, gently holding her chin, and looked into her eyes.

"I brought you there to have fun..."

Fanny paused, then gave a tiny smile. "Then don't screw it up."

---

As soon as they arrived, a towering roller coaster loomed in the distance like a giant iron monster. They grabbed their tickets and entered with excitement.

First stop? Of course—an abandoned hospital-themed haunted house.

"What? Seriously? A haunted house?" Fanny scoffed. "This is... kinda lame."

"Chill. We'll warm up here," Nic said while pulling her inside.

Inside the attraction, Fanny kept rambling as she inspected the surroundings. "This stuff's only scary to kids. Look at this—lame..."

From a distance, something was watching them. Fanny narrowed her eyes and walked forward, leaving Nic behind.

"Come out! Try scaring us, I dare you! Let's see who runs first!"

She turned a corner expecting a jumpscare—only to find a fake statue. Fanny scoffed. "As expected."

But when she turned around... Nic was gone.

"Huh? Nic?" she called. "Nic! Hey, where'd you go? Don't play around!"

No response.

Fanny began to get annoyed. "Niiic... seriously, quit it. Where the hell are you?"

Still no answer. She wandered alone through the corridors, now visibly uncomfortable.

Suddenly, a "ghost" approached from the side. Fanny readied a punch but held back. The ghost actor quickly ran off, clearly spooked by her stance.

"Not scary, just annoying," she muttered.

Tired of searching, she opened a random hospital room door and stepped inside. A fake corpse lay on the bed. Unbothered, she sat on the edge of the bed to rest.

"Stupid Nic! Can't believe he ditched me..." she grumbled.

But then, the corpse moved—and hugged her from behind.

"AAAHHH!!"

Fanny panicked and threw the "corpse" onto the floor.

"Damn creep! Who told you to hug someone else's girlfriend?!"

She stomped on its back while still fuming.

Suddenly, the corpse grabbed her leg!

"AHHH—!" Fanny fell, and the figure pinned her down.

This time... she couldn't move.

"W-What?! Why's it so strong?!"

Panic overtook her, and tears welled in her eyes.

"NIC! NIC!! HELP ME!!"

The corpse... laughed.

"Huh?"

Seeing her cry, the "corpse" finally let her go.

"Cuuute~ Crying already?" said Nic, breaking character with a cheeky smirk.

"...NIC?!"

With a face red as fire, Fanny screamed,

"THAT'S NOT FUNNY!!!"

She kicked Nic, sending him flying into a wall, then tackled him, pinching his cheeks and smacking his face repeatedly.

"You jerk! What the hell was that for?! Huh?!"

Nic laughed weakly. "Ow—haha, just teasing... didn't know you had that side... ow ow stop!"

"YEAH THIS IS MY SIDE!!" she kept smacking him.

After venting her rage, Fanny stood with her arms crossed, glaring.

"How the heck did you even become a corpse?! Where'd you get that costume?!"

Nic looked down, trying not to laugh.

But when Fanny glanced away then looked back—Nic looked totally normal again. No blood, no costume, no makeup. Just clean clothes and a sheepish grin.

"Huh? Wait... weren't you—?"

Nic stayed silent, feigning innocence.

In truth, he used his God of Illusion skill to mess with her. Just a trick of the eyes. Nothing more.

Fanny growled at his smug smile.

"You're soooo annoying! Want me to slap you again?!"

Nic quickly pulled her into a hug. "Sorry~ Don't be mad~"

"Let go! Stop being all clingy!"

As they walked out of the haunted house, Fanny kept grumbling while Nic continued apologizing in a cutesy voice. The ghosts and zombies were left stunned, ignored by the two troublemakers. When a zombie jumped out, Fanny just said,

"Move it, trash ghost."

Eventually, they exited the haunted house, and Nic gave Fanny a piggyback ride.

"Where to now?"

Fanny pointed at the massive roller coaster.

"That one."

"Seriously? Jumping straight to the extreme?" Nic asked, surprised.

"I'll stop being mad if we ride that," she said, pinching his waist.

Nic sighed. "Fine, bossy queen."

They sat in the front row. At first, it moved slowly.

"This is it?" Fanny yawned. "So boring."

But as the coaster reached the top...

WHOOSH!!

The ride plummeted, twisting and turning at lightning speed! People behind them screamed like banshees. One guy even confessed on the spot.

"I love you, MY LOVE WAAAAA!!"

Fanny looked back.

"HEY! GET A GRIP!"

The coaster went wild—loops, zig-zags, drops. Nic looked like he was about to faint. Fanny turned pale but stayed stubborn.

"Fanny, scream already!" Nic shouted. "It's not fun if you hold back!"

Fanny hesitated, then finally—

"WAAAAAAAHHH!!!"

She screamed at the top of her lungs—then smiled.

"WOOOO THIS IS ACTUALLY AWESOME!!!"

Nic laughed too, holding on tight. The two of them felt like they were flying free from reality.

Once the ride ended, Nic bolted straight to the restroom.

BLUUURGH!!

A rainbow erupted from his mouth.

Fanny waited outside, grinning.

"Ha! What a wimp. Can't even handle that much!"

Nic pinched her cheek. "Yeah yeah, miss tough girl…"

After that wild thrill, they moved on to calmer games—can shooting, ring toss, claw machines. Fanny was super into it, cheering every time she won and calling the games "too easy." Nic just smiled, happy to see her that excited.

Eventually, night fell. They had dinner at a rooftop restaurant overlooking the glowing theme park below.

Colorful lights sparkled across the grounds. A gentle breeze brushed past. Soft music played in the background.

Fanny slowly spooned her ice cream.

"You ever been to a theme park like this before?"

Nic nodded. "Once, when I was a kid. This is only my second time... but it feels different. More special."

He looked at her. Fanny smiled softly.

"This is my first time. Never had the chance before. Most guys were scared of me. A few tried, but... meh. They were weak."

"Well, I'm not scared," Nic said casually.

"Because you're a playboy," Fanny teased.

"More like a crow," Nic said, smirking.

"A crow? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Don't overthink it."

Fanny chuckled. "Honestly... this is the weirdest first date ever. But also the most fun I've ever had."

Nic smiled. "From now on, you can rely on me. Even if you're strong, you don't have to do everything alone."

Fanny didn't reply. She just leaned her head against his shoulder.

The night ended peacefully, beautifully. They went home with light hearts and one more sweet memory added to their growing story.

To be continued...