Bittersweet Memories (A Stray Kids Short Story Collection)

Scavenger Hunt X

     The following week, Chan's family told Seungmin that going to Busan would be a wonderful idea. There was a lot to see and definitely surprises to expect.

     "You sure you don't want me to come along?" Chan asked.

     Seungmin shook his head. "I have a feeling that this is the final stretch I need to complete on my own. I'll be fine, I promise."

     Chan, being the angel he was, lent Seungmin his car. Seungmin spent two more weeks with him before deciding it was time to put himself into the unknown. He was all packed and ready. A quick hug goodbye and he was off.

     There was only one place Seungmin knew he was going. The arcade mentioned in the letter. If he had ever had even a sliver of an idea where this hunt was going, this was the point where he officially had no clue.

     Seungmin had been to arcades a few times in his life. He had always had a blast and his friends called him a "natural" Maybe this whole scavenger hunt aside, he could just enjoy himself. That had become his theme of the trip so far.

     Seungmin didn't bother looking for a place to stay. He parked the car in the arcade parking lot and headed inside. A few minutes later and he was ready to tackle the mini-basketball game.

     He played against himself for a while, trying to score as many points as possible, which would result in tickets to buy prizes. He was on a roll until he heard a voice next to him.

     "Hey, do you want to do multiplayer?"

     Seungmin turned around. The person talking to him was a short man with chains hanging from his pants and a backward baseball camp. He was pulling off the edgy teenager look pretty well if you could ignore the fact that he was probably around Seungmin's age.

     "Uh... sure?"

     "Really? Your winning streak would be shattered."

     Seungmin raised an eyebrow. "Is that... a challenge?"

     The man gave a smug look. "I'm a regular at this place. No one can beat me in any game here."

     Seungmin stood at eye level with the man. "Then I assume you don't get many newcomers here."

     The man chuckled, a childish excitement in his eyes. "So is that a challenge accepted?"

     "Loser gives up their tickets to the winner."

     "You're on."

     Seungmin didn't know where his cockiness had come from. Something about arcades brought out his competitive side.

     "What's your name?" Seungmin asked, inserting a coin into the machine to begin a new game.

     "I only give my name to winners."

     The game began.

     That statement fired Seungmin up. The man wanted a winner? He'd give him a winner.

     The five minutes timer ended and Seungmin fist-pumped at the one-point lead he had. "Let's go!" He looked at the man with a smug look. "Who's a winner now?"

     However, it looked like the man hadn't even heard him, his eyes glued to the scoreboard. "How- how is such a thing possible!?"

     "If you want a name to go with this impossibility, it would be Kim Seungmin," Seungmin said, putting a hand out. "Good game."

     The man stared at Seungmin for a few seconds before reluctantly also putting his arm out for a handshake. "Good game," he grumbled.

     "So, do I get a name for my win?"