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When Ran received tickets to Smile Land from her dad -courtesy of one of his students- she didn’t exactly know what to do with them.
Going with Afterglow seemed like the first logical choice; they were joined at the hip and always went to places like this. The problem? Ran only had two tickets, so there weren't enough for all of them.
The second idea Ran had was giving them away to someone else. It was pitched to Moca on a visit to the convenience store during her friend's shift, but the location gave way for Lisa to put a third idea on the table:
"Well, if you only have two, why not take Yukina on a date there?" The brunette suggested as she restocked some cans. "You could even go the weekend before her birthday, spoil her a little~!"
"Oh~ Lisa-san may be onto something~" Moca said as she grinned teasingly. "You could even take Minato-san on to the ferris wheel and kiss her like you're in a romance movie~"
"S-Shut up, that's unrealistic." Ran grumbled, but her face was red.
Moca dramatically put a hand on her chest. "Eh? Ran doesn't wanna give her girlfriend a little smooch~? Lisa-san are you hearing this? Poor Minato-san~"
"That's not what I meant! It's just… not her type of place..."
Lisa chuckled. "Oh don't worry about that. Spending a day with you would be enough to make her happy~ And it's a one in a lifetime chance, so take it~!"
"You have both our blessings~" Moca added.
And as embarrassing as the whole exchange had been, it was a good idea. Ran was still unsure about how much Yukina would enjoy the place, but if Lisa had given her the go-ahead then it was probably fine. Ran just had to learn to manage the situation.
So she proposed a date, which Yukina had questioned a little bit at first -since formal dates were never planned, they often just happened- but ultimately agreed to go, easing some of Ran's anxiety.
'Some' is a keyword. Ran still stressed out over so many things while on a call with Moca that the latter had to reassure Ran every so often: with choosing an outfit -'Don't worry. Minato-san thinks you look smoking hot in anything~'-; or with deciding if she should give Yukina an extra gift -'I'm sure she'd appreciate some extra kisses instead~'- ; to even if she should take snacks with her -'Okie, Ran~ You're going to an amusement park, not a road trip~'-.
Needless to say, this was very intense for Ran. She didn't want to mess up.
When the day of the date came, everything… was comfortably normal, to her surprise. Yukina was waiting for her at the gate and she looked as beautiful as ever. The unusual thing was that she had braided her hair, but aside from that her behavior was the same as always, which was a relief since she didn't know what to do. Did Ran like romance? To some extent. But did she know how to be romantic? Not at all; she always hoped to do things as they felt right and if Yukina was ok with that, then she was on the right path. That was her philosophy.
The day was pretty good too, relatively sunny yet fresh and it progressed without issue.
They went on all kinds of attractions, including a few roller-coasters -in which Ran discovered Yukina was terrifyingly silent on them, even if she looked like she was going to faint-, a haunted house -Yukina's idea, and she looked so interested in the seasonal attraction that Ran just kept quiet and clung onto her girlfriend the whole time- to even... the ferris wheel in the afternoon- And if there were one or two kisses when they were at the top, Moca didn't need to know or Ran wouldn't hear the end of it.
As the evening got cooler, they decided to take it easy for the rest of their date.
Holding hands and sharing cotton candy -well, Ran only took a few bites from Yukina’s cone until the sweetness became overwhelming- helped keep the cold away as they wandered through an older part of the park, where the attractions were smaller and the fair game stalls were more numerous. It was more like the carnivals downtown rather than Smile Land, but it seemed like a good place to take a break.
When Ran could no longer move forward, she realized Yukina had stopped dead in her tracks as she saw a kid walk past them, struggling to carry a very big and round cat plush.
A new idea sparked in Ran’s mind, all she needed was to encourage Yukina a little. "Do you think they won it here?"
"I- it's likely…" Yukina was very cute like this, with blushing cheeks and wide eyes.
They still had time to linger, so… "We could see if we can find one like it."
"... Do you think?"
"Yeah… unless you don't want to?"
"That's a silly assumption." Yukina shook her head. "They came from over there, so let's go." Ran huffed jokingly and smiled, walking after Yukina, who's eyes darted from place to place to find their objective.
Seeing Yukina so determined made Ran secretly promise herself that they'd get the plush for sure.
It didn’t take long to find the stall with the item: a game of 'ring a duck' that looked… complicated: each row had a pool of plastic ducks that moved around the water, placed around more than a meter away from the standing line. Surely throwing the rings with enough precision would be a challenge, but they needed to try.
They paid for a round each. Yukina went first.
Her form was a little weak from the beginning- Could Ran judge when she hadn't tried yet, though? The first ring didn't even make it to the pool, the second and third went straight into the water, the fourth finally fell on a duck and the fifth bounced on a duck before being submerged as well.
Yukina pouted for a split second before immediately asking for another opportunity. She didn't do too well either, and the two games earned her a bunny finger puppet and a small sticky frog toy, so not the ideal outcome.
She let Ran take her place and took a disappointed bite from her cotton candy after Ran handed it over. "I would try again but I have to keep something for lunch this week, or Lisa will scold me."
"That's ok. They say third's the charm."
"I believe you'll have an outstanding performance, Mitake-san." Yukina nodded firmly. Did she have to phrase it like they were about to do a musical duel for their lives? Probably not, it was just Yukina being Yukina. But It did help to fire her up.
They. Could. Do. This.
Ran took a deep breath and remembered what she’d seen from the people who had ringed more ducks: to keep her arm as steady and straight as she could, and also visualize the trajectory of the ring.
It was far harder in practice, and her first attempt wasn't any better than Yukina.
So Ran tried again.
Worry was making her rush with her throws.
And again. Her own third attempt could be the charm?
No. She did well on the first three rings but flicked her wrist too much in the last ones.
But she almost had it! The smiles on the plastic ducks seemed to mock her, so she sent them her best glare as the man running the stall handed over a small bird plush.
Yukina sighed beside her, bringing Ran back to reality, and she was surprised to see she had been too focused on the game to notice Yukina had eaten all her candy and was storing the new prizes -a horse and dolphin finger puppet, aside from the bird- Ran had won in her purse.
The eldest turned to her as she finished. "Mitake-san, it's alright if you stop."
"I can't just yet. I feel like I'm getting closer." That, and Ran wanted to wipe the grins off those damned plastic ducks that just happily swam in the pool. Her pride was on the line.
Ran felt around her pockets and… she had spent almost all her money already. Yukina must’ve read her blank face because she furrowed her brows.
"You really don't have to do it…"
And she was right, she didn't have to, but, "no, I want to try once more."
As Ran handed the money to the man, who started getting everything ready for the game, Yukina nervously twisted the strap of her purse and approached Ran.
"I have mixed feelings about this, but… good luck," Yukina said before quickly pecking Ran's cheek.
Ran was left a little dumbfounded, making sure the man hadn't seen. If her head had been hot with irritation before, it was all replaced by the warmth of Yukina’s lips.
Invigorating, if she was to be honest, but also very distracting. She had to get it together.
The man gave her the 5 rings. Ran had to make them count for the sacrifice of her wallet and for Yukina.
She threw the first one. It landed on a duck.
So did the second one. Ran had to pause to breathe again.
The third ring didn't have so much of a smooth landing, almost toppling over the duck, but it didn't fall down. Phew…
Yukina rubbed her back. "... You can do it."
Ran nodded and threw the fourth. Another win.
Now the fifth was all that separated them from getting the cat plush.
The sound around them was nothing compared to the roaring of Ran's heart on her ears. Her palms were sweaty, too; a bad thing to happen since the ring could slip from her hand.
She calculated as best as she could and let it go.
She closed her eyes and Yukina lightly squeezed her shoulder. Whatever needed to happen would happen, but it didn't hurt to hope for the best.
"Hm, that was a good throw," The man hummed. "It looks like you've won a prize of your choice!"
She… she did it?!
Ran and Yukina exchanged a look, too in disbelief it had actually worked. Ran had to signal with her head to remind Yukina that her time to pick a cat had come.
Yukina carefully approached the line and Ran let her eyes linger on her girlfriend, feeling a surge of pride run through her. She soaked in the way Yukina slightly fidgeted with her hands while she chose. In the end, she went for a pink and white cat.
The look on Yukina's face and the sparks in her eyes were priceless -and also worth every yen spent- as the old man handed over the prize to her. It looked more like he'd dropped the plush, due to its size, but Yukina was definitely delighted either way to hold the giant cat.
"That's a good friend you have, miss, if she's willing to do all that for you!" The man said.
Yukina didn't call him out on calling Ran a 'friend'. She just looked straight at Ran with a small smile and replied, "yes, she's very good to me."
Words like that were only ever said when they were alone, or sometimes to tease her with friends, but having a stranger hear it was weird for Ran, and all of her bravado was gone, giving way to her growing blush.
"Hah, well… i-it's nothing…" Ran shyly offered her arm for Yukina to take, "we should get going."
After exchanging a brief goodbye with the staff, Ran had to guide Yukina all the way back to the main fountain of the fair game area since the latter couldn’t see very well where she was walking. They decided to sit down on a bench and Ran let out a sigh of relief, slumping on the bench. This had taken a lot out of her.
Ran watched how Yukina fixed her new gift's fur, like if it were a kid that needed grooming from its mother, and took time to recover. She was still embarrassed over Yukina's words earlier, but she had been true to her word and made Yukina happy. That was what mattered.
Suddenly their eyes met.
Yukina arched an eyebrow. "... Do I have something on my face?"
Ran shot her eyes open for a second before realizing she'd been staring. "No, you just look Pleased."
"Well, you did go through the trouble of winning this for me. I am grateful… oh, but also sorry for your savings. I wouldn't mind sharing my lunch with you if you need it." She did look apologetic.
Ran shook her head and looked away, her voice becoming quieter as she spoke, "don't worry. Seeing your smile... is always worth the trouble..." It was the truth. She was allowed to be a little irresponsible sometimes.
There was a small silence, followed by Yukina's impossibly cute chuckle. It prompted Ran to look back at her, and when she turned, Yukina cupped her face, hiding them behind the plush and inching closer and closer until all Ran could do was expectantly glance between Yukina's eyes and lips.
"You're always so charming, Mitake-san," was the last thing she heard before the world tasted once again of cotton candy, and this time it wasn’t because of the treat itself.
The sweetness this time was so much nicer, too.
Being in the open, they could only allow themselves to be brief, but the fluttering of Yukina's lashes as they broke apart was promising. It sent electricity down Ran's spine.
Yukina rested her head on Ran's shoulder and intertwined their fingers as the youngest tried to cough some of the embarrassment away.
"You always take me by surprise when you do that..."
"Then I should make advances more often, get Mitake-san used to them, hm?" Yukina said, a grin audible in her voice. "Maybe that way people will know you're my girlfriend and not a friend."
"Now you're just teasing."
"What if I am? It's fun to see you blush."
Ran rolled her eyes, and resisted a smile with a pout. "You're spending too much time with Moca."
Yukina giggled at this and hugged the cat plush tighter. Ran closed her eyes, listening to Yukina's breathing until she spoke softly again, "I will treasure this gift forever, you know?" Yukina nuzzled Ran's cheek. "I love you, Ran."
Ran's heart skipped a beat.
"I-I love you too... Yukina..."
The aforementioned hummed contentedly, settling back and enjoying their quiet moment as life continued around them. Everything was well.
What was Ran worried about in the first place? There were some ups and downs, sure, but being with Yukina always made things better, and Ran wouldn't trade it for the world.