Chapter Text
It was no secret that Hitoka was popular. Online, that is.
Several bloggers checked her blog for her take on the latest fashion trends. Hundreds of fervent followers watched videos she uploaded in which she put together outfits and made suggestions about the material to use, the cut, color schemes, and much more, based on questions she received. Some were even there for the occasional cat videos and the pastel aesthetic.
And it didn’t stop there. Web-based newspapers and news blogs had articles featuring her unique venture; some had even conducted a phone interview and then gone on to publish the transcript on their website. She wasn’t mainstream enough just yet, but she was quite well known for her cute personal style and vast reserves of information on many aspects of the fashion industry.
It was definitely no secret to her boyfriend. This was probably because there was a routine in place; every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, Kei would receive the following text:
I uploaded another thing! Check it out for me? ^_^
Kei didn’t really care about anything to do with fashion, and it wasn’t as if he was generally bad at saying no, but he found it hard to refuse his hardworking, adorable girlfriend. And so, every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, within five minutes of receiving her text, he found himself on her blog, checking out her latest entry.
One such day, for no reason in particular, Kei let his eyes scan the background of Hitoka’s blog after he finished reading (and liking) her newest post on the latest collection by some designer (that he couldn’t care less about). And that was when he saw it.
There, in a font so small and color so similar to the background that the text was nearly invisible, was a link to her main blog.
Kei wasn’t sure what to express surprise at: how suspicious it was that the link was made to look this inconspicuous, the fact that the main blog was linked on the sidebar, the fact that she even had a separate main blog (he thought her fashion blog was the only one she had), or how he had never noticed it before. He let the cursor hover over the link for a few moments, hesitant until he finally gave in and clicked on it.
His first impression was that Hitoka’s main blog did not even remotely resemble her fashion blog.
The background theme was more neutral (though there was a recurrence of pastel), the font was ordinary, and it seemed like the posts were not as orderly as they were on her other, more popular blog. However, Hitoka had maintained her sense of organization: everything was properly tagged. Kei also noticed that she made almost no posts of her own, and surmised that this was her space for sharing what she found interesting by other people. Curious, he clicked on the search bar at the top, so as to see what kinds of things she thought were worth sharing based on her top tags, and the list consisted of tags he definitely expected, like “art”, “aesthetic”, “humanity”, and “study tips”.
And then, at the bottom of the list were two tags that piqued Kei’s interest: “asexual” and “bisexual”.
Eyes widening slightly and darting across the screen, Kei closed the tab as quickly as possible.
It wasn’t as though he’d stumbled upon something confidential; Hitoka’s blog was visible to non-users of the website, and she had put the link on her fashion blog, which she knew her boyfriend regularly browsed just because she asked him to. Yet, somehow, it felt wrong, like he was snooping.
Kei took a deep breath, picked up his phone, and typed a text to his girlfriend, using the most nonchalant tone he could manage.
Found your main blog.
He knew she was most probably busy answering the several asks pouring into her fashion blog as a result of the recent update and wouldn’t answer anytime soon. So, the notification of a new message startled Kei a little. He peered at it, a bit cautious.
Oh you spotted the link haha
He immediately sensed the nervousness through Hitoka’s choice of words and absent punctuation and hesitated in his response. He didn’t want to make her feel as though she was going to be coerced into sharing something with him that she didn’t necessarily want to. On the other hand, though, he did want his shy girlfriend to open up a bit more, especially because she had always been able to get him to do so. He would have to tread carefully from this point onwards to ensure that he conveyed that right, Kei realized.
So he changed the topic entirely, instead.
What do you want for dinner? I’ll cook.
It took a few minutes for Hitoka to respond, and her boyfriend knew this was probably because she was confused. But this topic was familiar territory; she absolutely loved his cooking.
You are?? My favorite, then, please! :D
Kei smiled at his phone, eyes softening.
Your wish is my command.
“So”, Kei began as he handed Hitoka her glass of wine and sat down, “How was work?”
“Oh, you know”, she sighed. “Some people can honestly be so dramatic and angsty. If I wasn’t into designing, I would probably have written a book on the people I work with.”
They clinked their glasses and took identical swigs, gazing at nothing in particular and letting the room fall silent. Kei waited, placed his glass on the coffee table, and then cleared his throat.
“Uh, about earlier…”
His girlfriend turned towards him, tilting her head slightly. “Hmm?”
He swallowed and continued, “I saw the commonly used tags on your main blog.”
Hitoka froze and turned so she was facing forward once again. With a tremble, she placed her glass on the table, as well. Kei knew that she instantly knew what he was talking about. So much for trying to ease into the subject, he supposed.
Feigning a smile, she asked, “And?”
He decided to stop beating around the bush.
“There were two tags there… bisexual and asexual…”
“I see.”
Kei could tell that Hitoka was averting his gaze, knowing she would find questions there.
Instead, she added, “Did you click on them?”
He sat up straighter. “No, I didn’t.”
Her smile turned natural and she exhaled, sounding amused and fond all at once. “You’re so good to me, Kei.”
Kei relaxed against the couch a little, once more. Maybe he was doing this right, he hoped. He figured it was time to lighten the atmosphere a bit.
Pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose, he noted, “The term ‘bisexual’ was above ‘asexual’ on the list, so it has been used more often, I believe.”
His words had the opposite effect. Hitoka lowered her gaze to where her hands were fidgeting in her lap, smile still present, and asked, “Are you telling me I might be bi?”
Her boyfriend’s breath caught at the back of his throat.
“I mean, just because you use these tags… it doesn’t have to mean anything about you, in particular, at all, really.”
He silently wished that his girlfriend would grasp his acceptance from his tone.
“That’s right, it doesn’t have to”, Hitoka replied, slowly. Then, curling in on herself as she was trying to make her frame smaller, she went on, “But, if I ever felt like I was bi or anything similar, would that be okay?”
Kei stared at her for a few moments, taking in the slightly hunched-over figure sitting next to him. He briefly wondered if, over the course of their relationship, she had ever seen the indescribable light in his eyes whenever she caught him glancing over at her.
And then, leaning forward, he gently put one arm around her shoulders, placing his free hand on her cheek to raise her face so that their eyes would meet.
“Hitoka”, Kei gave her the most meaningful look he could manage. “That’s okay.”
She sniffled and let out a giggle, sagging against him in relief, and he lovingly swiped away the single tear that leaked out of her eye before moving in for a tender kiss.
They both smiled through it, and when they broke apart, Kei added, “I love you.”
“I love you, too, you lanky, handsome goof.”
“Your goof, though.”
“All mine.”