Chapter Text
“What should I do for Yoshiko’s birthday?” It feels weird asking Chika such a sentimental question. What’s more, it was usually Chika coming to You for advice—which positions to try with Riko, better techniques, etc. Matters of the heart were, to put it plainly, not You’s strong suit.
Chika thinks for a moment. Her face scrunches and she looks for an answer off somewhere on the ceiling. She snaps her fingers suddenly. “Wear nothing but an apron and ask if you can take her order.”
You snorts. “Be serious.” It’s actually a really good idea and she makes a mental note of it. She hears Kanan shuffling from on top of Chika’s bed.
“Mari is always pretty clear with me what she wants for her birthday. We also have a birthday dildo and cake flavored lube.”
“What the fuck is a birthday dildo?” You asks with a disgusted scowl.
“Whoever’s birthday it is gets to use it.”
“Shut up, Kanan,” Chika growls as she peels off her sock and throws it at her. She turns her attention back to You. “Ok, well, what does Yoshiko like? Start from there.”
“Uhhh…”
“You do know what she likes…right?” She sees judgement in Chika’s eyes.
“She likes videogames, I think?”
“What do you mean you think?”
“I don’t know, she was telling me about some game she preordered. I…wasn’t paying attention.”
“What else does she like, because I don’t see this going anywhere.”
“Uhhhhhhh…”
“You Watanabe what the fuck kind of girlfriend are you that you can’t name two things Yoshiko likes?”
“She likes Satan.”
Kanan chuckles this time. “Hey, maybe you can offer yourself as a sacrifice.”
“Kinky,” Chika concurs.
You heaves an exasperated sigh. “I’m not good at this, ok? This is the longest I’ve ever been in a relationship with someone. It’s weird to actually, like, care about someone’s feelings.”
“You’re the epitome of sensitivity.”
“Shut up, you know what I mean.”
Kanan peers down from the edge of the bed, her gaze soft and reassuring. “You’re overthinking things. I’m sure she’ll be happy with some chocolate and a card.”
“But that’s so…vanilla.”
“There is nothing wrong with vanilla.”
“Says the bitch with a cake flavored dildo.”
“I said it was cake flavored lube. I actually got it from your mom, Chika.” Kanan ducks as Chika’s last sock flies over her head. You can ’t help but laugh, but deep in her gut she knows she’s fucked. She doesn’t mean for it to be dramatic or cliché, but she’s honestly never felt this way about anyone before. She wants to do something special, but the fact that she can’t even come up with a single idea makes her feel terrible.
-
Riko’s reply is exactly like Chika’s. What kind of girlfriend are you. You’s cheeks flush and she pushes her phone against her forehead.
She’s the worst girlfriend ever. It’s official. She thought about asking Ruby, but it seemed inappropriate to approach her junior about a relationship question. She feels her phone buzz and sees another reply.
“Yoshiko is a surprisingly simple person, believe it or not. Just knowing that you care this much about her will make her happy.”
“Yeah, but I can’t wrap that up and hand it to her.”
“You can cook, right? Just make her a chocolate cake or something.”
“I’m gonna do that too, but what about a present?”
“You know you can always just ask her.”
“Yeah, but that wouldn’t be romantic.”
“You’re such a sap.”
You decides to erase the vulgar response she has typed out. Riko sends one more text while she’s trying to think of something witty.
“You’ll figure it out! Yousoro!”
She flops back onto her bed. She’s so frustrated she thinks her skin is crawling. There isn’t much else she can do but brood, so she decides to try shopping. She grabs her wallet and heads out the door. At the very least she hopes to find some inspiration.
Through all her meandering she ends up in a little boutique. There’s lovely knickknacks scattered about, but nothing particularly eye catching. There’s tons of feminine trinkets and purses, hairclips and even a wall of stuffed animals. They draw her in. Girls liked soft and cute things, right?
You deliberates between a spherical Shiba Inu and a pink octopus with a moustache. She’s not sure which one she likes more, and there’s a rainbow alpaca she spots in the corner of her eye that makes her choice even harder, so she fishes her phone out of her pocket and texts Riko again.
“What’s Yoshiko’s favorite animal?”
“Seriously? Sharks—literally everyone knows that.”
Of fucking course she likes sharks. It couldn’t be frogs or giraffes or something. She doesn’t bother asking what kind of sharks Yoshiko likes because there aren’t any stuffed animals. She tries to think of a time where Yoshiko has ever talked about them. You sort of remembers Yoshiko monologuing during Shark Week, but a) You was drunk and b) it was Shark Week—everyone loves sharks during Shark Week.
You groans internally. Dejected, she sets the pink octopus down and leaves the boutique empty handed and somehow feeling worse than when she’d walked in. You is ready to curl up into a ball or text Yoshiko that she should just go ahead and dump her. It shouldn’t be this hard to think of something to get your girlfriend for her birthday, especially when she was as beautiful and smart and quirky and hot as Yoshiko.
She passes a sign for the aquarium. They’ve been to there a million and a half times, but it’s always been fun. There are sharks there—tiny ones, but maybe she could arrange to have a private feeding or something to make the trip special. At this point, she’s ready to feed herself to the sharks.
Macabre as the notion is, it does give her an idea. It’s crazy, but totally doable and something she knows only one person can help her with. She rips her phone back out of her pocket and calls Kanan.
-
"So can you do it?" You can hear Kanan exhaling slowly through the phone.
"I mean...I know a guy."
"Please, Kanan, I need this so bad. You're my only hope."
She hears Kanan chuckle and she prays—which is starting to become a habit—for the answer. "You're gonna owe me so much for this. And don't think I've forgotten that time you and Yoshiko fu—
You hangs up. She’s so happy she has little prickles of tears in her eyes. She texts Kanan a giant thank you and promises she'll make it up to her. Her heart is about to burst from her chest and she can't help but jump excitedly in the air. She doesn't even care that people are staring at her. In fact, she grabs the nearest woman by her shoulders.
"I just got my girlfriend the best birthday present ever!" she says, almost in a scream. The poor stranger smiles nervously and congratulates her, but You is already skipping off down the street. She had two days to prepare, but she wasn't sure at all that she could wait that long.
-
As expected, those two days passed by agonizingly slow. But, the day finally arrived and You shot out of bed happier than anybody should be at 6 in the morning. She looks at the clock again. Holy shit, was it really 6 in the morning?
She slips out from under the covers, careful not to wake up Yoshiko, who could put a dragon to shame with her temper. What You can't resist is giving her girlfriend a peck on the cheek before she goes.
"You're gonna have the best fucking day, you beautiful hellion."
Into the kitchen she goes, pulling out all the ingredients she secretly purchased the night before so she can make breakfast. You puts on an apron and nearly decides to wear only that, but changes her mind at the last second. Perhaps she goes a bit overboard, but she prepares a healthy line of strawberry crêpes, chocolate chip pancakes, eggs and fruit salad (with mostly strawberries).
She sets the table, puts flowers at the center and takes a moment to admire her handiwork before she sets off to wake up Yoshiko. As she moves to return to their bedroom, Yoshiko teeters into the kitchen, likely lured by the smell of delicious food.
You's face lights up when she sees her, even though Yoshiko looks like a battered raccoon with dark circles around her eyes and hair going every which direction. Yoshiko rubs her eyes sleepily and yawns.
"What smells so good out here?"
"That would be the breakfast your hot girlfriend prepared for you because happy birthday!" You feels like a little kid. Yoshiko gives her a drowsy smile and steps into her for a hug.
You has been waiting to embrace her since she woke up and squeezes Yoshiko tightly in her arms.
"I made your favorite, babe." You stifles the urge to say "me" and guides Yoshiko to her spot. She sets a glass of chocolate milk in front of her and pours herself a glass of orange juice.
Yoshiko surveys her plate and grins with so much exuberance and warmth that You can't help but feel proud to have been responsible for it. Yoshiko has the brightest smile You has ever seen and it makes You's chest tighten. She just wants to spend all day kissing her.
"W-well you enjoy your breakfast, because I still have to give you your present."
-
The place they're going is a bit out of the way. First they have to make it to the station and ride the train for about an hour, then it's a another long walk to a private section of the beach.
Yoshiko doesn't necessarily mind the walking, especially since You told her ahead of time that it would take some effort to get there. They pass the time chatting, and it's still early in the morning so it's quiet outside. The sun is gentle and the sea breeze ruffles their hair a little. They walk hand in hand and You feels a cocktail of happiness, calm, anticipation, arousal and fear. She tries to settle down by listening to Yoshiko talk, but her mind is going a mile a minute.
They finally arrive and You knows they have because the three men and woman standing by a big dive boat all wave at her. She hears Yoshiko asking about them, but You can't spoil the surprise just yet.
"You must be the love birds," one of the men says as he sticks out his hand. They give each other small bows and You shakes his hand as he introduces himself.
"We are," she replies. "And nice to meet you, sir."
"Kanan told me you've all gone diving before, but I still have to give you all the safety guidelines. Kanan brought your scuba gear, so go ahead and get changed below deck."
"Alright, thanks!"
After greeting and thanking the other members of the crew, You takes Yoshiko aboard the boat and below the deck. She hopes Yoshiko doesn't notice the giant metal cage at the bow. Amazingly she doesn't, and it's probably because she doesn't take her eyes off You.
"We're going diving?" she asks as they begin undressing in the cabin. You is so worked up she can't even appreciate Yoshiko's bare silky skin. Oh well…if today goes as well as she hopes then there will be time for that.
"In a way...yes."
Yoshiko seems excited, but You knows that plain diving isn't exactly thrilling, especially since they've each gone diving a hundred times (the perks of being friends with someone who runs a diving shop).
"Just trust me, ok? This isn't going to be anything like that." They're almost fully suited, save for their masks and oxygen tanks. "Oh, and one more thing."
"What is it?"
You curls her index finger and beckons Yoshiko hither. When she steps forward, You hooks her arm around her waist and pulls her into a deep kiss, which catches Yoshiko off guard undoubtedly, but she melts into it.
She can't ravage her girlfriend right now, as much as she wants to, so You breaks them apart and they head back upstairs. She steers Yoshiko away from the cage, but the sight of it makes fear the dominant flavor in her emotional cocktail. Maybe she should go ahead with that plan of ravaging her girlfriend because she may or may not die today.
They head out to sea as the crew explains the nuances of diving and all the precautionary stuff they're legally obligated to recite. You knew there was a finite amount of time that she could keep Yoshiko's birthday surprise a secret, so the moment the crew members start talking about sharks, she feels Yoshiko's hands tighten around hers.
It must not have really sunk in until they were walked over to that cage, because now Yoshiko is gripping You's arm like a drowning cat. If not for the thick neoprene of her suit, her nails might've gone straight through her skin. She's shaking now, but You draws her in for another hug.
"We're gonna be fine," You says and more for her own benefit, because she's scared shitless. "These guys are professionals. Kanan knows them, remember? She's the one who hooked us up and you trust Kanan, right?"
"Not since she parked us in the ocean." Yoshiko's voice is more of a squeak. An adorable one, at that.
"I'm here, babe."
"I know...I just..." Yoshiko takes a deep breath. "I'm excited and terrified. I've always wanted to do this, but I can't believe I'm gonna do it right now."
It's Yoshiko now who kisses You and she does it fervently, like it'll be their last kiss ever. She slips on her mask and gives You a thumbs up.
Oh god, You thinks. I'm going to die. You has always considered herself outgoing and daring to some extent. But this is fucking insane. She has flashbacks of every shark movie she's ever seen as they step into the cage. They're not even all the way in it yet and she feels like she's going to throw up. But she has to be cool. It's for her girlfriend. For Yoshiko. Yoshiko's birthday. Her girlfriend Yoshiko's birthday.
The cage closes behind them and You jumps. She can't look as terrified as she is—she does. Her heart, once bloated with gooey sentiments of supreme love and adoration, is now threatening to jailbreak out of her rib cage because it's not stupid enough to get into a metal cage and be plunged into the deep blue sea to be at the mercy of the 124 shark species that can be found in Japan. Yeah, she did her research.
They're in the water before she has time to say her goodbyes. All sound ceases, except for the garbled hiss of her regulator. You had expected an army of sharks to be surrounding them, but she's surprised when she finally opens her eyes that they are surrounded by a vast expanse of nothingness.
The ocean is a dark blue, and that's about all there is to be seen. She looks up and sees the white patters of the sunlight hitting the top of the sea, but when she looks down she finds a terrifying maw of infinite darkness. She doesn't look down again.
Yoshiko taps her shoulder. Expecting to see a shark, You scans all around, but Yoshiko just wants her attention. Since she can't kiss her, she tries to touch their foreheads together, but it's awkward because of their headgear and doesn't work. Yoshiko's shoulders bounce as she laughs and You isn't scared for a second.
Then she sees it. A mass, kind of an American football shape. You hears a muffled splash and looks up to see big lines of bait being dropped in the water.
Oh god no.
She tries to point out the oblong figure in the water, but You can't find it. Part of her hopes it was just her imagination, but Yoshiko grabs her hand and bubbles out of her regulator in a way that can only mean one thing.
You turns slowly and as soon as her eyes settle on it, her whole body freezes. Her heart stops and she's certain her soul has exited her body because about twenty feet away is a huge shark.
It's surely not the biggest shark in the world, but as far as You is concerned, it's leviathan. It's light blue on top with a white underside and big black eyes. It has a fairly long nose that would look comical if You wasn't looking at it directly in the face. She looks over to Yoshiko and her eyes are wide and dazzling, alive in a way that contrasts with the shark's dark plates.
Moving slowly at first, it dashes over to the bait above them and rips it apart in a display both fascinating and horrifying. They're so enthralled by it, that they don't immediately notice the second shark, or the third.
You doesn’t want to swim around the cage, but she does a small circle to see what else is around them and there's a few new arrivals, much to her own horror. They're all the same kind of shark, save for one that's fucking terrifying. It's grey with small cat-like eyes and teeth—so many teeth—jutting out of its mouth. This one is far bigger than the other sharks and they’re smart enough to dart away from it as it approaches a bait line.
It feels like the two of them are in the ocean for an eternity. This is the only turnout they have so far: five blue sharks and one grey shark. Yoshiko leaves You’s side to hang onto the bars of the cage, trying to get a better look. She’s far more confident than You, but not wanting to be apart from her, You swims over.
She knows she should be looking at the sharks, but she can’t take her eyes off Yoshiko. She can tell by the squint in her eyes that she’s smiling. As odd as it is, You feels privileged. Sure, she’s miles off the coast in a cage out in the middle of the ocean surrounded by sharks, but she’s alone otherwise with the one person she thinks she might love most in the world. She swoons over the light in Yoshiko’s eyes and when Yoshiko laces their fingers together, You knows for certain that this is the happiest she’s ever been in her entire life.
Suddenly, all the sharks disappear. There’s still some bait left in the water and You wonders why they would all leave at the same time. She doesn’t have to wait long for the answer, because Yoshiko taps her shoulder and points behind her.
You never pretended to have any knowledge of sharks and she could barely tell one kind from another, but there was no mistaking this one. First, it was massive, easily three times the size of the other sharks. It was dark grey on top and milky white on bottom and You still can’t even fathom just about big it is. This is undoubtedly the mack daddy of all sharks.
It’s a fucking great white.
Expecting Yoshiko to be as scared as she is right now, You is flabbergasted to see Yoshiko staring in absolute awe of the real leviathan as it glides past them elegantly. It moves slowly through the water and so close that You could probably touch it if she was crazy enough to stick her fingers through the bars. She nearly has a heart attack when she sees Yoshiko doing just that. She stretches her arm out between the bars, straining only a little big to get her hand far enough that her fingertips brush against the side of the great white. Yoshiko recoils a bit, but there’s enough shark for her to feel it again once more before it passes them completely.
She withdraws her arm and You sees tears in her eyes and she thinks for a second that maybe Yoshiko is hurt, but then Yoshiko hugs her. Her heart drums in her chest and she’s trembling. She hangs on tightly. As scared as You has been thus far, there is no place she would rather be than surrounded by the deep blue sea, in a cage just below the water’s surface with her arms wrapped around her favorite person, two specks in love and infinitely happy to be.
They watch the great white take the last of the bait and it lingers for a little while, circling their cage a few times. Yoshiko doesn’t put her hand back through the bars and that’s probably for the best. You doesn’t know how long it’s been since it arrived. Both are captivated by the way the shark moves like a ghost through the water. Neither of the would probably even know it was there if they weren’t watching it intently.
Once the shark departs, You is ready to get the hell out of the water.