Mario Kart

Mario Kart

By Jaewon

Summary:

A cozy night in turns competitive when Sana and her boyfriend battle it out on Mario Kart. Sana gets seriously into the game while he keeps joking around, leading to playful chaos, teasing, a silly “fight,” and plenty of laughter that ends in warm cuddles and sweet moments.

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The living room smelled like the popcorn we had just popped in the microwave and the faint vanilla scent of the candle Sana liked to light on quiet evenings. Rain tapped gently against the windows, making the whole apartment feel like a warm little bubble away from the world. I was sprawled on the big couch in sweatpants and an old t-shirt, Nintendo Switch controller in hand, while Sana sat cross-legged beside me in one of my hoodies that swallowed her petite frame. Her hair was up in a messy bun, and she had that focused glint in her eyes already.

“Ready to lose again, baby?” she asked, bumping my shoulder with hers as the game loaded up.

I grinned. “You say that every time, and yet here we are.”

Mario Kart had become our thing on nights like this. Sana was ridiculously competitive about it. She practiced rainbow road in secret—I’d caught her at it twice—and she picked the best characters and karts every single time. Me? I just picked whatever looked fun and tried to make her laugh.

We started with a standard cup. Sana chose Rosalina like always, pink kart shining on screen. I went with Yoshi because he made her smile. The first race began and she immediately leaned forward, shoulders tense, thumbs flying over the buttons.

“Nooo!” she cried when a green shell hit her right before the finish. She had been in first the whole time.

I crossed the line in fourth place, laughing as Yoshi did a little victory dance anyway. “Fourth isn’t bad! I call that character development.”

Sana shot me a look, half annoyed and half trying not to laugh. “You’re not even trying. You threw a banana peel on purpose right in front of me!”

“That’s strategy, babe. Psychological warfare.”

She huffed but couldn’t hide the smile tugging at her lips. We played the next race and she dominated again, cheering when she got first by a solid margin. I came in fifth this time after accidentally driving off the track twice.

“See? I’m helping you get better by giving you motivation,” I teased, poking her side.

Sana swatted my hand away. “Motivation? You’re just being annoying on purpose!”

The more we played, the more serious she got. Her tongue poked out a little when she concentrated, and she kept muttering things like “Come on, blue shell, not now…” under her breath. I, on the other hand, kept joking.

During one race on Moo Moo Meadows, I deliberately slowed down to drive beside her just so I could bump her kart gently.

“Hey!” she yelped as her character spun out. “That’s cheating!”

“Nah, that’s love. I’m just keeping you company.”

She paused the game and turned to glare at me, but her eyes were sparkling. “You’re the worst. I’m dating the worst person.”

“Yet you keep coming back for more races,” I shot back, grinning.

We kept going, the stack of races growing. Sana won most of them, getting more and more into it. At one point she actually stood up on the couch during the final lap of Rainbow Road, balancing carefully as she tried to drift perfectly.

“Yes! Yes! I’m flying!” she cheered when she nailed a shortcut.

I clapped for her dramatically. “My girlfriend is a pro gamer. Someone get this woman a sponsor.”

She flopped back down, laughing now, the competitiveness melting a bit. But then I managed to snipe first place from her with a lucky red shell in the very last second of another race. The victory music played for Yoshi and Sana’s jaw dropped.

“No way. No way you just stole that from me!”

I pumped my fist. “Skill issue? Or destiny?”

That was the moment things turned into playful war. Sana tackled me sideways on the couch, controller forgotten as she tried to pin my arms. “Take it back! That win doesn’t count!”

I was laughing too hard to fight back properly, rolling with her until we were tangled up. “It totally counts! Fair and square!”

We fake-wrestled for a minute, her trying to grab the controller while I held it out of reach. Her hoodie rode up and she kept giggling every time I tickled her sides on purpose.

“Cheater! You’re using tickles as a weapon!” she squealed, trying to escape but not really trying that hard.

Eventually she ended up on top of me, both of us breathing a little heavier from laughing. Her bun had come half-undone, strands of hair framing her face. She looked so pretty like this—flushed cheeks, bright eyes, that big smile that made my whole day better.

“You’re lucky I love you,” she said, poking my chest.

“Very lucky,” I agreed, reaching up to tuck her hair behind her ear. “Even when you get scary serious about cartoon racing.”

Sana leaned down and kissed me softly. It started sweet but quickly turned into a few more playful pecks as we kept teasing each other between kisses.

“You know I let you win sometimes,” I murmured against her lips.

She pulled back with a dramatic gasp. “Liar! You would never.”

“Okay, maybe not. But I love watching you get all competitive. It’s cute.”

We went back to the game after that, but the energy had shifted into something softer. She sat between my legs now, back against my chest as I wrapped my arms around her waist. We played a few more races like that, my chin resting on her shoulder. I still joked around, making bad commentary the whole time.

“And there goes Rosalina, flying gracefully into the wall again—oh wait, that was me. Never mind.”

Sana elbowed me lightly but leaned back further into me. “You’re impossible.”

“But you love it.”

“Yeah… I do.”

At some point we stopped keeping score entirely. The Switch stayed on but we were mostly just talking and playing half-heartedly. She told me about her day at practice, how the new choreography was tricky but fun. I shared stupid stories from work that made her laugh. Every so often I’d “accidentally” make her character crash and she’d pretend to be mad before dissolving into giggles.

Eventually the controllers were set aside. Sana turned around in my lap so we were facing each other. I pulled the blanket from the back of the couch over us, wrapping it around her shoulders.

“You know you’re my favorite player, right?” I said, tracing small circles on her back. “Even when you destroy me.”

She rested her forehead against mine. “And you’re my favorite loser. The only one I want to play with.”

We stayed like that for a long time, trading soft kisses and quiet jokes. The rain kept falling outside, but inside it felt like the whole world had slowed down just for us. Sana’s competitiveness was one of the things I loved most about her—it showed how passionate she was about everything. And my goofiness balanced her out, turning intense moments into memories we’d both laugh about later.

“Rematch tomorrow?” she asked sleepily, nuzzling into my neck.

“Only if you promise not to ban me from using Yoshi.”

“No promises.”

I chuckled and hugged her tighter. “Deal.”

We talked a little more about nothing important—dream vacations we wanted to take, what snacks we should buy for the next game night, silly “what if” scenarios about Mario Kart tournaments in real life. Her voice grew softer as tiredness set in, and I just listened, content to hold her.

Being with Sana was like this all the time. Playful fights that turned into cuddles. Serious moments mixed with uncontrollable laughter. She made ordinary nights feel special just by being herself.

As her breathing evened out against my chest, I reached over and turned off the TV. The room went dark except for the little nightlight in the corner. I pressed one last kiss to the top of her head.

“Love you, my serious racer.”

She mumbled something that sounded like “Love you more” before drifting off completely.

I smiled in the dark, feeling warm and lucky. Tomorrow we’d probably play again. She’d get competitive, I’d tease her, and somehow we’d end up right back here—laughing, kissing, and reminding each other why we fit so perfectly. For now, I closed my eyes and held my favorite person close, the quiet sound of rain the only thing left in the room.

Some nights you don’t need big plans or fancy dates. Sometimes all you need is a Nintendo Switch, a competitive girlfriend, and the kind of love that turns silly arguments into the best memories.

And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

(Cute Girlfriend. - Jaewon)