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Yukina had always considered herself a rather cool and composed person. She rarely gets flustered whenever she is with her friends (although this often fails and she ends up embarrassing herself), especially in front of her childhood friend Lisa (although Lisa definitely knew all her weaknesses but just chose not to expose them). However, Yukina knew that she had two vulnerabilities that might cause her to lose the elegant aura that she always maintained whenever she was with people.
Ever since a young age, Yukina always had a soft spot for cute and sweet things. Thus, the two Achilles heels for her were cats and sugar. Her sweet tooth developed when she was still very young as her father used to reward her with candy whenever she did well for a test, or if she achieved something beyond her usual capabilities. As a result, consuming sugar never failed to ease her stress and bring her joy.
Yukina never really knew why she liked cats so much, or why her heart melts whenever she sees one. She just finds those four-legged creatures extremely adorable and irresistibly huggable. Whenever she hears a purr, her entire world immediately lights up and she instantly loses her composure. There have been times when she reminded herself that cats are just another species of animal, there is really nothing to get flustered about. But she could never resist the urge to pet one at first sight. Simply saying one little "nya" would relax any discomfort in her chest whenever she had to force herself to act indifferent whenever she sees a cat. One day when hanging out with her fellow Roselia members, she came across a cat just sunbathing at the side of the road. Yukina wanted to go over so badly and rub the cat’s stomach but she is walking together with the group. There is no way she is going to let the other Roselia members know she is a cat fanatic. Thus, she decided to keep her hands in the pocket and force herself to look away. However, the cat decided to let out a soft purr. Trying to withstand the temptation of approaching it made Yukina turn extremely pale and even caused her physical pain, resulting in the Roselia members worrying about her health while Lisa is the only one holding in her laughter. Yukina couldn't sleep that night, her mind filled with regret for not approaching the cat.
However, Yukina did have her own ways of solving this problem. She would always visit a cat cafe at a town adjacent to hers (to avoid any familiar faces) every week by herself to let loose all her desires to cuddle as many cats as she wanted. Additionally, the cafe served delicious coffee with free flow sugar. It was literally a living heaven catered specifically for her. During the times when she was alone, she would stop by any cats on the streets and pet them while imitating cat noises. She also avoided the downtown cafes whenever she needed coffee, so she wouldn't have to bump into any schoolmates or members of Roselia. She just wants to preserve her image as the cool leader of Roselia.
However, a certain brunette will come along her away and tear down this front she has been putting up in front of her friends.
Tsugumi has always looked up to Yukina and regarded her as a godly figure, whether in school or as a musician. Her image of Yukina is what Yukina always wanted to portray to people: the level-headed, ambitious leader of Roselia, who has an extreme passion for singing and always bringing Roselia to greater heights. She did interact with Yukina a few times before, mostly in school and at CiRCLE. Especially with the clashes between Ran and Yukina, Afterglow has inevitably gotten closer to Roselia. Recently, she also did a live concert with Yukina, where she performed the song that Marina's band once wrote, along with Kasumi, Rimi, and Maya. Thus, Tsugumi and Yukina did have a closer friendship compared to when they first met. Although Tsugumi still feels rather intimidated whenever she talks to the Roselia vocalist.
The first time Yukina showed her vulnerable side to Tsugumi unintentionally was during a walk back home. Yukina had to stay back for extra classes due to her poor results in the midterm test and by the time she left school, she felt like both her body and her brain was completely exhausted. She dragged her feet along the pavement, letting out small sighs every now and then.
If only there is a cat right now...
Suddenly, as if Babanbo-sama had heard her prayers, she heard a soft "nyaaa" from the alleyway in front. Her face immediately lit up and a wide smile spread across her face. Without delay, she rushed forward towards the alley and poked her head around the corner.
"Neko-chan~ Nyaa~" Yukina uses a cutesy and gentle voice to call out to what she thought was a cat waiting for her around the corner. However, what greeted her was the look of astonishment on Tsugumi's face, kneeling down with her hand still halfway in the air, mimicking a fortune cat found near cash registers. It was as if time had stopped for both of them as their eyes locked on to each other, both frozen at their spot.
"Y-Y-Yukina-senpai...?" Tsugumi stuttered, breaking the silence.
At this point, two decisions in Yukina’s head. She could either act as if nothing happened and greet Tsugumi normally and try to reason her way out of this or, the second option is to turn and run. Yukina's flight response won as she decided to do the latter.
Yukina quickly turned on her feet and started running. She has no idea which direction she is heading towards. All she could think of is how to get out of the area. Her mind is in a whirl as she thinks about how she is going to explain to Tsugumi the next time they meet, nor has she had any idea how she is going to face Tsugumi again. A brief thought of switching schools and even moving out of the country crossed her mind, but her rational side quickly diminished the thought. Finally, running out of stamina, Yukina bends over and rests a hand against the wall while panting heavily. She avoided the second-year floor for an entire month after that.
The second time is during a visit to one of her regular cafes. As usual, Yukina ordered a cup of black coffee and a slice of strawberry cake.
Yukina's unique aura (or maybe it was the Haneoka uniform) immediately caught Tsugumi's attention. As Tsugumi reeled from the shock from Yukina’s appearance, it was the exact moment she saw Yukina dumping 5 spoonfuls of sugar into her coffee. The ringing sound of the door opening also made Yukina look up. It was the exact same scene like the one back in the alleyway. Yukina held the teaspoon in midair as both of them were frozen in place. Tsugumi's mouth hung open while Yukina's eyes widened.
Yukina’s eyes darted to the exit behind Tsugumi. Her eyelids twitched a bit as she slowly lowered her spoon. There is no way she can flee now. Even though her heart was pumping furiously, there was an expression of calmness on her face. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths, trying to get herself into serious mode.
"Y-Yukina-senpai...nice t-to meet you here..." Tsugumi's voice trembled. She is still quite intimidated by Yukina, even though this is the second time she has seen Yukina go out of character.
Yukina slowly opened her eyes. Again, there are a few ways she can go about doing this. One, she could intimidate Tsugumi into keeping her secret using her senpai status. The second option is to bribe Tsugumi into keeping her secret.
Before Yukina could open her mouth to speak, she looks up and sees Tsugumi seems to be trembling significantly and is fidgeting a lot with her hands, like a student who is caught doing something wrong by the discipline teacher. At that moment, Yukina's heart actually softened for this poor kouhai of hers and she unexpectedly found Tsugumi rather cute in this exact moment. A small smile spread replaced the slight frown on Yukina's face as she chuckled softly.
"Hazawa-san, take a seat," Yukina pointed to the chair opposite her.
"E-Eh? Y-Yes!" Tsugumi quickly sat down on the chair, her head lowered, avoiding Yukina's gaze.
"Haz-" Before Yukina could continue the conversation, Tsugumi quickly spoke up.
"Yukina-senpai! I am really really sorry! I-I didn’t see anything!"
Yukina was slightly taken aback by Tsugumi's apology, she hasn't even said anything yet and it seems like Tsugumi read her mind. Yukina couldn't help but bring her hand to her lips and giggled.
"E-Eh?" Tsugumi got even more flustered as Yukina is straying even further away from her usual personality, she started waving her hands in front of her, "Y-Yukina-senpai-"
"Hazawa-san," this time Yukina interrupted Tsugumi, "don't worry about it, I trust you."
Yukina recalled her various interactions with Tsugumi, it has always been rather formal, whether it is during the times she meets her in school, or that time when they jam together with Maya and the others. It was more about schoolwork and music-related topics. It is expected since Yukina rarely talks to anyone about her private life due to her reserved nature, except maybe to her childhood friend, Lisa. This is the first time they meet in a rather informal setting.
"T-Thank you, Yukina-senpai!" Tsugumi quickly bowed down.
"Ahh...Hazawa-san, you don't have to call me senpai outside of school..." Yukina raised the cup of coffee to her lips and took a sip.
"Y-yes!" Tsugumi nodded quickly, "in that case, you can call me Tsugumi too!"
Yukina slowly placed her cup back on the saucer, she nodded with a smile. She was afraid of how Tsugumi would view her after seeing her out of her usual character twice and even scared of her spreading it to everyone, but it seems like Tsugumi is much more afraid of her. Seeing Tsugumi sitting quietly opposite her, staring at her hands, Yukina tilts her head in slight confusion.
"Tsugumi, are you not going to order something?"
"A-Ah?" Tsugumi looked up. Trying to recover from her panic, she totally forgot what she came here for, "ah sorry! I-I must've forgotten ehehe..." She chuckled nervously as she stood up from her seat.
"Fufu~" Yukina watches as Tsugumi walks over to the counter to order.
I must say...she is rather cute...like a flustered little kitten...
Yukina feels that her heartbeat quickens a little.
After that incident, Yukina seems to bump into Tsugumi more in school, whether it is in the stairwell when travelling between classrooms, or in the canteen during lunch break. Since Tsugumi already knows her love for sugar, Yukina also didn't bother to travel all the way to the faraway cafe anymore. By going to Hazawa Coffee, Tsugumi basically ensures Yukina's coffee is always at the right level of sweetness when she prepares it, saving the trouble for Yukina to add it herself when the coffee is served. Both of them also started interacting with each other more and more, and Yukina sometimes finds herself staring unknowingly at the brown-haired barista when she is working behind the counter. Yukina started to feel more comfortable around Tsugumi and she could feel a sense of affection developing for her the more she gets to know Tsugumi.
There are a few traits which Yukina noticed that instantly made Tsugumi so much more attractive. The first one being that she is always so hardworking. Being able to juggle her schoolwork, student council duties, her part-time job, and her band rehearsals, it seems like Tsugumi rarely stops to rest, which Yukina finds really impressive. Furthermore, she is always so humble and willing to learn. She always finds herself not good enough, always striving to be better even though her standards are already considerably good, a trait that Yukina finds similar to a certain guitarist. The few times Yukina casually gave her music advice, Tsugumi actually took out a notebook and listened attentively while taking down notes. The look of seriousness on her face is just absolutely adorable and Yukina couldn’t help but blush lightly whenever she sees it. Also, her smile whenever she serves Yukina at Hazawa Coffee always seems to lighten Yukina's mood after a long day. Yukina has subconsciously fallen in love with Tsugumi that she herself didn't even notice.
"So, what is going on lately? You seemed brighter than usual~" Lisa leans forward as she stared into Yukina's eyes. Yukina and Lisa decided to grab dinner at a nearby restaurant after one of the weekly band rehearsals.
"Hm? Am I?" Yukina tilts her head, replying in a monotonous voice.
"I noticed you are definitely smiling more, did something happen?" Lisa narrowed her eyes as her lips curved upwards.
"Well..." Yukina scoops up a spoonful of rice into her mouth, "...I actually do have a problem..."
"Eh? What is it?"
"There is someone...I just feel a little breathless when I meet them...like a tightness in my chest. I can't really explain the feeling."
"Hm? Tightness in your chest?"
"Yea...it feels a little bit like my heart is going to jump out of my mouth... I didn't really experience such feelings before...except well... maybe when I see cats..." Yukina blushed a little, her voice got softer and softer.
"Yukina..." Lisa's eyes lit up, she slowly cracked open a grin as a realisation dawned on her, "don't tell me... you're in love?!"
"W-What?!" Yukina exclaimed in shock, attracting a few gazes from the nearby patrons.
"Fufu~ Oh my god, I can't believe this is happening! Who is the lucky person?" Lisa laughed gleefully.
"Well... I am not sure if your theory that I am in love is true... but that person is..." Yukina paused for a while, her eyes darted left and right before she leaned in closer to Lisa and whispered into her ears, "...Tsugumi..." After Yukina sat back down, a light pink hue dyed her cheeks.
Lisa wanted to scream out loud at how bashful Yukina is acting right now as she has never seen this side of Yukina. But taking into account the stares from the other patrons just now, Lisa decided to keep her screams in by covering her mouth. However, her cheeks look like a blown-up balloon.
"Lisa...what are you laughing at?" Yukina frowns and looks away.
"Ah...gomen gomen!" Lisa took a few deep breaths and calm herself down, "I think you should tell her how you feel~"
"Tell her? But... how should I tell her?"
"Just tell her you like her! And ask her if she wants to go on a date!" Lisa edged Yukina on. She is elated that her best friend actually found someone she loves. She is kinda worried every now and then that Yukina would stay single for life. Also, Tsugumi seems to be a really good match for Yukina's cold and indifferent personality as evident from Yukina seemingly being more cheerful from her interaction with Tsugumi for the past few weeks.
"But..." Yukina fumbled with the napkin on the table, "...what if she doesn't feel the same way...?"
"Hmm...well, you never know if you don't ask~ Besides, think positive, maybe she feels the same way too~" Lisa giggled.
Yukina's eyebrows furrowed together. Lisa did make sense, if she doesn't say anything, Tsugumi wouldn't know. It doesn't hurt to take a shot.
Yukina thought that confessing her love to Tsugumi would be easy, considering her countless performances and lives in front of hundreds of people, there is nothing scary about this. However, it was much more nerve-wracking than she had expected. There had been a few times where she and Tsugumi were alone and it was the perfect moment to express her feelings but she always choked on her words at the last second. Tsugumi also didn't seem to notice that though and thought Yukina just had a dry throat. Although the brunette is rather good at reading expressions, she can be surprisingly ignorant sometimes, especially when it comes to romantic things like this. There have been a few times Yukina hinted to Tsugumi by asking her out, and Tsugumi thought it was just an invitation for a jam session. Yukina is getting more and more frustrated every time she fails to convey her feelings for Tsugumi.
Until one day, Yukina found the perfect opportunity to finally confess. Yukina ended school rather late as it was approaching late evening. The sun is already setting while Yukina dragged her fatigued body back home. She unknowingly passes by Hazawa Coffee and sees that the lights are still on.
Hmm...? Hazawa Coffee should be closed by now...
Yukina approached the cafe and peeked in through the shutters. She can see Tsugumi behind the counter, seemingly preparing some sort of drink. Yukina decided to push open the door, ignoring the sign at the door that clearly says "CLOSED." The bells at the door ring as Yukina enters the cafe.
"Ah sorry! We are closed! Please come back-" Tsugumi looked up and saw Yukina standing at the door, "Yukina-san?"
"Tsugumi, sorry to intrude. I was just curious that the lights are still on so I came in."
"Ah, it's okay!! Please, take a seat!"
Yukina nodded and sat at one of the empty tables.
"Do you want the regular?"
"Ah, Tsugumi. It's okay, a glass of warm water is fine."
"Okay!" Tsugumi quickly poured a glass of water for Yukina and brought it to her table, "here you go!"
"Thank you, Tsugumi," Yukina brings the cup to her lips, "so what are you doing just now? I saw you preparing a drink if I am not mistaken..."
"Ah! I was just experimenting with a new drink I plan to sell here, hehe," Tsugumi smiled as a faint blush filled her cheeks.
"Oh? Do you mind telling me what drink it is?"
Tsugumi started rambling about the new drink but Yukina wasn't listening, she focused on Tsugumi's face and the deep brown eyes of hers.
Minato Yukina, just stop with the small talk already. Both of you are alone, in this cafe, tell her how you feel!!!
An inner voice that sounds weirdly like Lisa is screaming at Yukina to confess now. Yukina nodded along to Tsugumi's voice as she clutched the fabric of her skirt tightly, her heart is racing a million beats per second.
"Um Tsugumi..." Yukina interrupted the girl who was a bit over-enthusiastic about explaining the new drink.
"Y-Yes?!" Tsugumi immediately sat up straight.
"I...I..." Yukina found it so hard to say the words, her heart is racing faster.
"Yukina-san? Are you okay? Ah, was it because I was talking too much?! I am sorry!!!" Tsugumi quickly bowed.
“No…” Yukina closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths.
"I like you, Tsugumi!"
Yukina's voice cracked. She looks away, her face instantly turns red.
"I see..." It took a second for Tsugumi to register Yukina’s words.
“EHHHHH???!!” Tsugumi almost fell down from her chair in shock. Luckily, she managed to hold on to the table and steady herself. "Yo-yo-you w-what?"
"I think I...like you..." Yukina repeated the words, her face still flushed.
"Me?! But why?!" Tsugumi instantly retorted, then she realised it sounded rather interrogative, "I am sorry! I didn't mean it in a rude way, I just think that I don't really have anything that deserves your love ahahaha..." Tsugumi chuckled nervously.
"That's not true," Yukina crossed her arms and shakes her head, "I find a lot of attractive traits about you the more I interact with you..." Yukina started listing how she finds Tsugumi always so hardworking, and how she always managed to read other people's feelings, her humbleness and passion to learn, and she goes on and on. However, the more Yukina spoke, Tsugumi started covering her face with her hands as she felt like her face was going to melt from the extreme embarrassment while listening to Yukina listing out her virtues.
"Y-Yukina-san! I-I get it! Please stop!" Tsugumi shut her eyes and buried her head into her arms. Yukina can see that the tip of Tsugumi's ears is pink, which made her giggle a little. She is instantaneously reminded by how cute this girl is.
"So...do you...feel the same...?" After a moment of silence, Yukina asked. This is the moment of truth, Yukina started tapping the tabletop with her fingernails, an action she usually does when she feels extremely anxious.
There was a brief silence between the both of them. Then Tsugumi, with her hands still covering her burning red face, nodded slightly. In a soft, muffled voice, Tsugumi mumbled "but I don't think I am good enough for you..."
"Tsugumi..." Yukina stood up and walked over to the barista. She gently peels open her hands. Tsugumi is still shutting her eyes tightly.
"Look at me..." Yukina spoke with seriousness but with a hint of gentleness. Yukina could feel her heart started to calm down, she is slowly becoming more composed compared to the point of confession. It felt like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders.
Tsugumi slowly opened her eyes, she met Yukina's gaze.
"You like me too...right?" Yukina asked.
"Mhm..." Tsugumi nodded again, "I thought it was just admiration...but the past few weeks interacting with you...I started to like you more...especially after seeing your softer side..."
Yukina didn't expect Tsugumi to say that. She is stunned by the confession that she forgot what she is about to say.
"S-Sorry! I-" Tsugumi quickly apologises but Yukina pulls the barista in for a hug. Feeling the warmth and the heartbeats of each other, the feeling of nervousness between them slowly died down. Yukina gradually releases the hug.
"You want to visit a cat cafe with me tomorrow?" Yukina asked genuinely, she decided to bring Tsugumi to one of her favourite spots for their first official date.
Tsugumi thought for a while, before nodding cheerfully, "m-mhm! I am free tomorrow," Tsugumi smiled again, instantly illuminating the room with it.
Yukina lets out a tiny smile. "I will see you then, fufu~" Yukina stood up and picked up her bag. She flips her silver-coloured hair and walks away. Tsugumi stood up and waved goodbye to Yukina. Then, with one last look at Yukina's leaving figure, Tsugumi grinned and walked back to the counter. Her friends in Afterglow are not going to believe this...