Stepping outside of a vibrant clothing store, a young man with pitch black hair and eyes in his adolescence stood awkwardly with a short-sleeved black shirt and shorts. His gaze turned to the skies, the colorful ocean of blue and white, before looking to the surroundings in front of him. He saw it, a gigantic bustling ground surrounded by gigantic walls with water everywhere. A water park.
Yin glanced and saw a sign that read: "On hot days, the City of Smiles allows everyone in! There's just one rule! Don't forget to smile!!!"
The amount of exclamation marks made him cringe underneath.
Yin sighed and followed the sidewalk to the water park. He only knew a few things about water parks. They served great food and attractions. Well, that could be said about most theme parks.
However, his thoughts were interrupted. A large man with auburn hair and curly mustache with arms as thick as Yin's head and one hell of a burly chest with streaks of chest hair barely visible from his hot-pink top stared face to face with Yin. His gaze was hidden by vibrant purple sunglasses. Yin could tell he was going to be exposed, that he wasn't from here. He gulped.
The burly auburn haired man cleared his throat and smiled, before pointing his sunglasses down with one finger and stared intensely at the young man.
"You don't look to be around here." His voice was gruff and grizzly. If Yin even knew what that means. However, he kept his inner turmoil and stared indifferently up at the older man.
But just before he could even open his mouth, a large arm hooks around the burly auburn haired man and takes him away. The sound of his laughing is heard along with a group of people.
'Phew… Holy shit… I thought I was a goner…'
Yin sighed and knew that a friend or acquaintance of his probably saw him. Thank god… if there was any. He didn't believe in any religions after all. Not after what he had been through.
After the rather intense but short-lived moment, he turned and made his way to the path of the water park.
Yin saw the towering arches that were most likely the entrance. He stifled his inner protests and smiled weakly as he walked onto the pathway showing him where the directions were. He immediately went to the food court and got himself an assortment of food and hungrily wolfed it down. He didn't remember when he had a meal as great as this, but he didn't care. He took greedy gulps of water and sighed contently… He would never take food or water lightly ever again in his life. And this free food was obtained so easily… Just by smiling, albeit forced, he got what he wanted. This city was weird with having only one rule as simple yet prominent as this.
Looking back up, he saw giant slides and fountains bustling with crowds of people of all ages. He was surprised that people could be like this as well… The young man sighed and stepped out of the shaded table area and soon found himself face to face with a giant dome housing several hundred, if not close to a thousand people inside. Yin couldn't believe such a massive structure was made, let alone there were several domes in this water park… That made him think: 'How large is this city?' Yin shook his head and stepped in.
He was met with a kind looking woman with silky blonde hair and soft emerald eyes that shone like jewels. She smiled and looked at Yin. He smiled awkwardly and stared back. The kind looking lady with blonde hair smiled even brighter and spoke out with enthusiasm.
"Enjoy your stay at The Water Dome, sir! And remember, don't forget to smile!"
And with that, he was let through the steel gate. Immediately, the sound of rushing water hit him. Crowds of people bustled in large and small groups. People were sitting on the soft yet coarse floor on towels or white lawn chairs, all wearing various colorful, striking, simple and intricately colored swimwear… Yin looked down at himself and sighed, making his way to the direction that pointed to "Locker rooms".
***
Stepping out of a vibrant kaleidoscopic room filled with lively human bodies and lockers, a tall young man with ivory skin and pitch black hair and eyes stepped out wearing black swim shorts. Yin didn't know why, but everything he wore turned black… But he dismissed the thought and stepped foot into the barely surfacing edge of the water.
The cool liquid soothed the heat enveloping him from the beating sun above the dome. As Yin stared into the crowd he felt… Alone. Clearing his mind, he stepped into the water and sighed, feeling the cold caress of the barely warm water around him cooling his body.
"This… This is good." Yin sighed contently.
He didn't know when he would have a chance like this again. To be full with a warm stomach. To not have his throat dry from thirst. To enjoy the sun… He wanted it all and he had taken it for granted. But now he wouldn't. He was going to enjoy his life fully. Yin felt something creep on his face. A faint curl of his lips. He was… Smiling. He looked into the reflection of himself waist deep in the water and saw it looking back at him.
A powerful beaming sun over his head like a full halo, encompassed by an ocean of blue and white clouds accompanying the radiant ball of heat… and a young man who was smiling with pitch black hair and eyes stared back at him. He was crying with a smile. As tears fell from his cheek, the pale reflection vanished into ripples, leaving the young man back with his own image.
"The world… When did it get so beautiful?" He whispered to himself silently. He sighed and smiled, stepping out of the cool water and making his way to any spot he wanted, he didn't care, because he knew it was going to be fun. And he only wished for that at this moment.
Yin stepped onto the warm coarse floor of the Water Dome and made his way to a massage parlor. What the hell is that? Anyways, he stepped in. It was dimly lit, but his sense of smell was assaulted with the scent of lavender and several other incense. He stopped himself from covering his nose with his hand as a beautiful figure appeared before him. She wore a rather provocative violet swimsuit and smiled. Her eyes and hair were both sharp and a deep purple in color. It was the best he could think of to describe her without having… Thoughts.
"Greetings sir. Welcome to the Lavender Palace, where all men and women can relax and release their stress~." She said, dragging along the last bit with a small grin.
'Dammit. Did he walk into the wrong place? Was this place only for adults? He didn't know that, but it would seem rude to leave… Would it? Did leaving contradict having fun? What the hell is it with smiling… Argh this is too frustrating!'
Yin closed his eyes and shook his head mentally. He smiled weakly and nodded with an awkward pause. "Uhh… Yes! I wanted to get a massage."
'Gosh he hated himself right now for being so cringeworthy.'
He swallowed his nervousness and followed her into a secluded room dimly lit with violet lamps. As he walked deeper into the establishment, he could see several rows of doors all in the same dim color of violet. If Yin didn't know any better this looks more intense than just a "massage room". He sighed and dismissed his own thoughts. The same purple haired lady walked to his side and hit him with a kind gaze and the same neutral smile he saw with every person.
"Sir, before we start, is there anything you need?" She said in a soft voice that seemed to seep into his ears.
Yin jolted slightly and nodded as he cleared his throat.
"Ah, ahem. Yes… I need to… Use the bathroom!" He cleared his throat and smiled weakly as he said with hope that she would let him go. Gods he wished she did.
The purple haired lady paused for a bit, held her hand to her chin, looked him up and down, and then with a satisfied grin, nodded.
Relieved. Yin felt so much relief that she bought it so easily. He quickly walked off to the hallway that led to the entrance. Just as he left through the doors, an older man in his early thirties went past him. Facing the outside world of the Water Dome again, he never thought he would feel relieved like this. Yin sighed heavily and quickly walked away from the massage parlor, never daring to look inside ever again.
"Phew… That was crazy…" He let out an audible sigh as he closed his eyes with relief. He made his way to a larger section of the Water Dome. There was another colorful dome but smaller, with rows of seats aligned on its walls and steps leading from the floor to the top, and a giant pool with a diving board high above it.
Jumping from the board were men and women, each with striking swimwear. The audience was enamored by the show, all of them wearing bright smiles and cheering the divers off like a mob. The divers performed several acrobatics midair, before effortlessly dropping into the ginormous pool of water without a single splash. What amazed Yin more was the sheer size of the whole Water dome… It was as if a small town could fit in here.
Making his way to another section, he saw giant colorful tubes filled with running water. 'Water slides.' He thought. Giant serpents that coiled and ran through the air held up by steel poles with humans sliding in their plastic bellies and having the time of their lives. Yin wasn't a big fan of heights, he never really did find it amusing to say the least. Satisfied with staying on the soft coarse floor, he could tell it was meant to imitate sand, especially with it being the same light tan color. Without him noticing, he steps on a soft object that lets out a loud surprised yelp.
"Hey! Watch it!" The sudden loud noise catches his attention as he turns his view to his side and sees that he had stepped on a girl's hand. She looked to be the same age as him. She wore a blank white swimsuit, hiding her fair skin and lithe figure. She had short white hair to her neck, and pale opal eyes giving him a stern frown on her face. Stern? Frown? Yin froze and stared intensely at her. She stared back with even more anger.
"Uhm, hello?! Earth to idiot!" She shouted just enough to snap him out of his inner questions.
"Oh! Yes, sorry!" He hurriedly removes his foot and bows his head apologetically. Though she had other plans. She stood up, reaching his height equally as she shoved her way closer to him, making Yin take a step back.
"Sorry won't cut it–Hey, what happened to your lip?" She stopped her sentence abruptly and stared intensely into his bottom lip. His bottom lip? … He had forgotten that he had nearly bit it off back then.
"It's covered in black blotches. Did you bite it?" She asks, sounding a bit quieter as she pulls out a small tube of ointment and leans closer, before swiftly rubbing it on his lip.
Yin felt the urge to pull back but was quickly caught by her hand, which somehow was stronger than it looked. Not to say he was weak but he didn't think she could stop all of his movement with one hand.
"Uhm.. I'm sorry but do I know you?" He thought that if someone was daring enough to just touch a stranger's lips like this, they surely at least had to be very close.
The young fair skinned woman with short white hair and pale opal eyes stared into him and shrugged indifferently before putting away the tube of ointment in one of her bags on the towel floor. Yin felt a strange tug when she was close to him, but he just couldn't put his finger on it.
"My name is Yang. You?"
Yin's eyes widened and he felt the world shrink down to just the two of them. His eyes focused on her striking white hair and her pale opal eyes staring into his. His lips formed a small grin as he remembered words from his mother about his past.
"Me? My name is Yin."
–End.