JAY JAY POV
Mia, Ben, Dave, Sarah, Jare, and I finally made it out of the house. We'd decided to spend the day at the new amusement park that just opened up, and the energy was already peak chaos.
"Mia, come on! We're waiting for you!" Sarah yelled, checking her watch for the tenth time.
Mia finally stepped outside, frantically double-checking her bag. "Calm down. It's not like you're actually going to go on the rides anyway," Mia teased, shooting Sarah a knowing look.
"Actually, no! I finally convinced her," Ben piped up, grinning like he'd won the lottery. "Sarah said she's doing the rides with us today. And guess what? They also opened the new haunted house, so we should definitely check that out too."
Sarah looked like she was already regretting her life choices at the mention of the haunted house, but I didn't give her a chance to back out.
"Ben, give me your camera," I said, stepping toward him. "I need to record this. I haven't posted anything since we arrived in the Philippines, and my followers probably think I've been kidnapped."
Ben nodded and handed over his gear. I took the heavy DSLR and hung it securely around my neck, adjusting the lens.
"Alright, everyone look over here!" I commanded, framing the shot as we headed toward the car. "London's finest and the local dorks are taking over the park. Try to look like you're having fun, Jare—stop looking at Mia's bag and look at the lens!"
Jare turned bright red, and Dave let out a laugh, shoving him toward the van. I hit the record button, capturing the banter and the bright Philippine sun. Today was going to be legendary—or at the very least, I'd get some great footage of Sarah screaming her head off in a dark room full of actors in masks. Either way, it was a win for me.
We finally stepped through the gates, and the park was spectacular. The lights were just starting to flicker on, painting the whole place in neon glows.
"Woah, this looks so good!" Sarah breathed, her eyes wide as she took in the massive roller coasters and the smell of popcorn in the air.
"I know, right?" I agreed, adjusting the camera strap. I looked up at the sky; the orange and purple hues of the sunset were already beginning to bleed into the horizon. "Since it's evening and the sun is going down soon, it'll be the perfect time for the haunted house. Until then, we should definitely hit the rides."
Ben was in full vlogger mode, expertly pivoting the camera to record our reactions before flipping it around to film himself.
"You heard the lady!" Ben said to the lens, grinning. "We're starting with the high-speed stuff before we head into the dark. If Sarah faints, you guys are seeing it here first!"
"I am not going to faint!" Sarah protested, though she peeked nervously at the towering drop-tower in the distance.
I laughed, capturing a candid shot of Jare and Mia walking a little too close to each other in the background. The atmosphere was electric.
"Alright, first stop—the roller coaster!" I shouted, pointing toward the loudest screams. "Let's go!"
We climbed into the roller coaster cars, the metal clicking into place with a heavy thud. Ben and Dave ended up sitting next to me, while the others took the row behind.
"Don't lose my phone," I warned Ben, seeing him holding it out to get a high-angle shot of our faces.
"Nah, I won't. Look, it's secure in this lanyard thing," Ben said, giving the strap a confident tug.
Dave, however, didn't look convinced. He leaned over and gave me a long, suspicious look. "Jay-Jay, did you eat anything before we got on this?" he asked, his tone dead serious.
"Yeah, I ate my meal and even had dessert," I replied, wondering why he was acting like my personal nutritionist all of a sudden.
Dave's eyes widened in horror. He immediately unbuckled his seatbelt and looked back at Jare. "Jare, we're switching! Your twin ate a full course meal and I am not sitting next to her. She's definitely going to throw up on me."
"Coward!" I shouted, but Dave was already scrambling out of his seat.
Jare, who was sitting right behind us, just rolled his eyes at Dave's dramatics. He was positioned in the middle, and I noticed that Mia was already death-gripping his hand like her life depended on it.
"She's not going to throw up, Dave. She has a stomach made of iron," Jare muttered, though he moved to swap places anyway.
"It's the principle of the thing!" Dave yelled, safely tucking himself into the row behind me.
As Jare settled in next to me, he shot me a look. "If you do feel like you're going to puke, aim for Ben's camera. It'll make for a great viral video."
"Thanks for the support, Kuya," I said sarcastically, gripping the safety bar as the coaster began to chug slowly up the first incline. I looked back at Mia, who was pale but still holding onto Jare's arm for dear life, and then at Sarah, who looked like she was reconsidering every life choice that led her to this moment.
The clicking of the chain grew louder and faster. I took a deep breath, the Manila skyline stretching out below us.
"Here we go!" I screamed, just as the car peaked and tipped over the edge.
The car peaked, hung there for a split second of agonizing silence, and then plummeted. My stomach stayed at the top while the rest of me raced toward the ground at a hundred miles an hour.
"WOAHHHHH!" I yelled at the top of my lungs.
In the pure, unadulterated terror of the drop, my hand shot out and clamped onto Ben's hand with a grip that probably cut off his circulation. Hey, don't blame me! I might be a Mariano, but I'm not ready to meet my ancestors just yet. I'm too young, too pretty, and I still haven't officially told Keifer his lollipops are actually kind of good.
"Jay! My hand! I need that for the camera!" Ben screamed over the rushing wind, but I wasn't letting go.
Beside me, Jare was laughing like a maniac, his hair flying everywhere as he threw his hands up in the air. Behind us, I could hear Sarah's high-pitched shrieks and Dave shouting something about justice.
We hit a loop, and the world turned upside down. The lights of the park became a dizzying blur of neon. I squeezed Ben's hand even tighter, my eyes wide. I've played field hockey in the rain and survived London traffic, but nothing prepares your heart for a vertical drop in the dark.
By the time the coaster finally screeched to a halt at the loading platform, my adrenaline was redlining. My hair was a complete disaster, and Ben was massaging his fingers, looking at me with a mix of awe and pain.
"You okay there, Jay" Jare teased, nudging me as the bars lifted. "You didn't throw up on Dave's empty seat."
"I told you! Iron stomach!" I gasped, finally letting go of Ben. My legs felt like jelly, but a huge, manic grin was plastered on my face. "That was... incredible. Let's do the haunted house next. I need to see if Sarah's scream can get any higher."
Sarah shot me a deadly glare that promised revenge later.
"Actually, let's do the bumper cars," Mia suggested, probably wanting something that didn't involve hanging upside down or being chased by actors in masks.
I nodded in agreement, my legs still feeling a bit like jelly from the coaster. I took my phone back from Ben and switched it to recording mode, panning the camera across the vibrant park scenery until I reached the neon-lit bumper car arena.
"It's so warm here in the Philippines," I said to the camera, adjusting my hair. "Back in London right now, we'd be buried under five layers of coats and shivering. Here, it's like a permanent summer."
Ben came up behind me, casually draping his arms around my shoulders as he looked into the lens with me. "Well, I'm definitely not complaining about the weather," he said with a grin.
"Idiot," I muttered, though I was smiling. I shoved his arm off playfully as we finally reached the front of the line.
The smell of ozone and the sound of rubber colliding filled the air. My competitive London spirit flared up. "Warning to everyone!" I called out, pointing the camera at Jare and Dave. "In London, we drive on the left, but in this arena, I'm driving over anyone who gets in my way! Jare, you're my first target."
"Bring it on, Jay-Jay!" Jare shouted back, already eyeing a bright red car.
We scrambled for our vehicles. I hopped into a sleek blue one, buckled the strap, and gripped the steering wheel. I could see Dave and Ben plotting against me on the other side of the floor. This wasn't just a ride anymore; it was war.
I positioned my phone securely against the dashboard, keeping the recording going as I gripped the steering wheel. I kept flipping the camera toward me, capturing my expressions every time I narrowly avoided a collision.
Suddenly, a massive THUD jolted my entire car. I looked to my left and saw Ben grinning like a maniac in a yellow car. He backed up, tires screeching, and aimed for me again.
BAM!
"Ben! Stop it! That's your third bump!" I shouted, my voice going all high-pitched and childish as I frantically tried to steer away. "Go find someone else to harass! Go hit Jare!"
"You're just an easy target, Jay Jay" Ben laughed, swerving around to try and pin me against the rail.
"I am not an easy target!" I yelled back, sticking my tongue out at him. I slammed the pedal down and executed a sharp U-turn, managed to sneak up behind him, and—SMACK!—I caught the back of his car perfectly.
"Payback!" I cheered to the camera, laughing as Ben's head snapped forward from the impact.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jare and Mia essentially just driving in a circle, probably too busy talking to actually participate in the carnage, while Dave was currently being ganged up on by three random kids.
"Check this out, guys," I said into the phone, giving the viewers a front-row seat to the chaos. "This is the Mariano driving school experience. If you can survive Ben, you can survive anything."
Just then, Dave came out of nowhere and T-boned me from the side.
"DAVE! YOU'RE DEAD!" I screamed, abandoning the camera to focus entirely on revenge. For a girl who grew up in London, I was surprisingly good at demolition derby.
The bumper car session ended way too quickly, leaving us all slightly dizzy and laughing as we stepped back onto solid ground. By now, the sun had fully dipped below the horizon, and the park had transformed into a glowing wonderland of neon lights. The air was finally cooling down, making the Manila humidity actually bearable.
"Okay, after the haunted house, we should check out the Ferris wheel," Mia said, looking up at the slow-moving giant nearby.
Jare immediately shook his head, looking like the ultimate killjoy. "I don't think so. We need to go home. It's getting late and the traffic is going to be a nightmare."
Sarah, Ben, Dave, and I didn't even skip a beat. We looked at each other and started the countdown.
"3..." we chorused in unison.
"Come on, Jare. It's fun! Don't be such a bore," Mia said, leaning in and giving him that look that usually melts his brain.
"2..." we continued, louder this time.
"Jare, seriously. Just one ride? It'll be fun," Mia insisted, grabbing his arm.
"1," we finished, all of us staring at him with expectant grins.
Jare sighed, his shoulders slumping in total defeat. "Fine. One ride."
We all rolled our eyes at the exact same time. It was like a choreographed dance.
"Typical," I muttered, shaking my head. "He tries to act like the responsible leader, but one word from Mia and he folds like a cheap deck of cards. Honestly, Kuya, have some dignity."
"Shut up, Jay-Jay," Jare grumbled, though he didn't pull his arm away from Mia.
"Alright, to the haunted house first!" Ben shouted, hoisting his camera back up. "Let's see who the real cowards are."
I adjusted my camera strap, feeling a mix of excitement and genuine dread. "If a ghost touches me, I'm punching it," I warned the group. "London rules apply to the afterlife too."
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