kangdae never knew why people thought wednesday hard to hang around with. yes she had a bit of a harsh way of speaking, but he knew she was a nice person underneath the rough exterior. he knew that for a fact because she was always willing to help him when he would get injured during quidditch practice, and if she wasn’t a nice person why would she give her time to him. so kangdae tended to ignore the venomous tone that often left the younger woman’s tongue.
instead, he clicks his tongue and wiggles his finger teasingly at her “ wednesday-yah, don’t you know? you should’t call people idiots, lemme explain why as someone who’s older than you, it’s hurtful, and i know you’re joking because we’re so close, but other people may get hurt by it okay?”
“oh, my bad! i just saw the braids and thought the wizard of oz,” kangdae laughs, unashamed as always, never embarrassed for admitting to not knowing something.
“ wednesday addams?” he repeated the name, the letters foreign on his tongue. ,” no, i don’t really keep up with most western stuff, that’s really cool though, were you named after her?” he questions, eyes wide with curiosity, “ it’s a cute costume though, the dress looks good on you.” his words at ease now, flattery coming easier than anything else to him.
kangdae shakes his head, sarcasm doesn’t come easily to him, always blunt, never expecting a hidden meaning to most things, “ no! but i saw this girl dressed like one, “ he turns his head back, trying to see if the person was still there, “ okay she’s gone now, but! but! i’m superman yknow, from the DC movies? look ain’t my cape cool?” the pride is evident as he holds up the red material.
there’s a line forming behind them, as kangdae belatedly realizes they’re in front of the maze, oh, “ wednesday! come on, we should start going in before people get mad!” he explains, quickly interlacing their fingers and starting to step towards the entrance of the maze. “ i heard it’s like super intense, but i think we should be able to handle it right?
SHIN KANGDAE IS...DIFFICULT. not sure how to further expand on that, but to paint a picture: it’s like working the graveyard shift in retail with a playlist cursed to loop pharrell’s happy and something else vaguely grating on a happy beat. and before her is this egregiously dense mountain of a man with puppy dog eyes that can’t and won’t take a hint.
seriously, she’s like dropping hints that she doesn’t want him around.
one time by actually telling him she doesn’t want him around.
but kangdae’s degree of thickheaded is severe—and wednesday supposes she can’t outright tell him off for doing nothing. he is, at his infuriating buoyant core, a good guy. and she has no reason to refute him otherwise. still, she wonders how she comes off to him—if it’s so much as a taking pity on an impudent child who’ve shut the world out as it feels like it is to her. whatever.
"you’re only one year older.” don’t patronize me mother fucker. words better conveyed through a scowl than anything. “but yeah, okay, fine, whatever.” she quickly tacks on, just in case this turns into a full out lecture (that’ll really harsh her vibe).
“uh huh,” somehow, coming from someone like kangdae—she’s not surprised he wouldn’t know. “no—” though, valid, she’s heard that stupid fucking joke tons of times. “i was named after—” her mouth pulls into a thin line, eyes dulling momentarily. she remembers having this conversation with mom awhile back, but also—fuck her. “never mind what i was named after.” wednesday quickly dismisses, brow raising at the compliment but saying nothing of it. she’ll blame it on the night, the atmosphere, maybe the leotard is squeezing the blood out of his brain, whatever the fuck. he knows she hates that kind of thing.
“superman.” yes, i know who the fuck superman is! do i look like an idiot!? well. that’s kinda on you for assuming kangdae understands any sort of derision. “nice.” wednesday commentates dully, watching him hold up his cape like a child showing off. “it does fit you, i guess, all perky good guy and symbol of light or hope or whatever the saying goes." about as fitting as wednesday addams, brat queen of the dark and unfeeling fits her.
well, sort of. this wednesday can’t be unfeeling no matter how hard she tries.
“going in?” ah, the first quizzical look of the night. “where—” she barely catches sight of the sign overhead before kangdae is walking them in. oh, the maze. well—it wasn’t like she had anything else planned. but wednesday has never done anything in the interest of being easy. “yeah, but—don’t you have friends to go to these things with you?” her eyes lower to their hands, nose scrunching in slight disdain as she shakes his grip free. not so much against him as it is against the implication hand holding gives.
“or unsuspecting wide eyed girls who’d cling and whine the whole way through thinking it’s cute—” BOO! she jumps at the sudden appearance of a passing ‘ghoul’, hand gripping onto the fabric of kangdae’s cape. there’s a brief flicker of surprise that passes wide eyes before dissolving into something less than impressed. teetering on vexation. partly at herself for being predicable but mostly at this whole insufferable setup. goddamn jump scares.
“i fucking hate it here.”
