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It’s with a thinly veiled excitement that Honami offers to take Kanade to a nearby cafe for a drink. Of course, her stomach sank upon seeing the bags under the girl’s eyes, and her offer was out of genuine concern, but she can’t help but feel warmth bloom in her chest when Kanade agrees to come. The two of them, drinking tea in a little cafe together… It sounds like a date, and it had been a while since their last. Both of them have been so busy lately, what with Leo/need’s schedules getting busier and Kanade with her own circle. It seems almost fortuitous that they’d bump into each other today of all days, and Honami wants to seize the opportunity while it lasts.
So she takes Kanade’s hand in her own, their fingers intertwining as she guides them both to the teahouse she has in mind, chatting about what she’d been doing earlier that day. The cafe itself is one of Honami’s favourites; it’s tucked out of the way, never gaining so much traffic that it becomes truly busy, but it’s warm and comfortable, and the gentle floral decor always brought a smile to her face. She hopes it can help Kanade relax, too. Honami is no stranger to all-nighters, she’s had one or two in the past, but Kanade’s an entirely different beast. She needs to take care of herself sometimes, too.
They enter the shop, heralded by a tiny bell ringing above their heads. Kanade’s eyes flit up to it adorably, like a kitten intrigued by a new toy. Honami giggles to herself as she finds them both a table, tucked away by the window graced with a pastel gingham tablecloth. After Kanade admits she’s not very familiar with teas, she asks Honami to order something she thinks she might like. Honami’s more than up to the task. In fact, she knows just the tea to get.
Soon, a tray of a teapot, two delicate cups and a small slice of lemon cake are brought to their table, and they thank the server as she leaves. Kanade peers at it curiously, as if trying to guess what Honami had got them.
“It’s almond and vanilla,” Honami explains with a smile, bringing both cups towards her. “But we’ll give it a minute to infuse a bit more. It’s already fairly sweet, but there’s both sugar and honey blends here if you like it sweeter.”
Kanade looks at her with wide eyes, before softening into a smile of her own. “You know so much about tea.” she says, tinged with a subtle awe.
“Oh, that’s not true.” Honami insists, running a hand down her ponytail and playing with the ends. “I only know a few things. But I thought you’d like this.”
“I do. I love it.” she replies, her eyes warm. Honami’s cheeks tickle pink at her sincerity.
“You haven’t even had any yet…” she says with a laugh, her bashfulness quite apparent. “A-Anyway, I think it’s been long enough! Let’s try some.”
She fills both of their cups three quarters of the way, leaving room for any milk Kanade might want to add. “Would you like any sweetener?” she asks, setting one cup down on Kanade’s right.
She considers it for a moment, then shakes her head softly. “No, I’d like to try it as it is first.” she says. Then she bites her lip, her cheeks flushing pink. “Besides, you’re… already plenty sweet, so…” she mumbles.
It takes a moment for it to register, but when it does, Honami feels her whole face heat up, all the way to the tips of her ears. It’s the first time Kanade’s ever said something so close to flirting, and she can tell that Kanade’s just as embarrassed about it as she is. She doesn’t know what to say, electing to make some kind of strangled sound in the back of her throat that about sums up her feelings on it.
“T-That was really cheesy, forget I ever… said anything.” Kanade half-hides her face behind her hand, though it doesn’t do anything to distract from how red she is.
“N-No!” Honami squeaks, and oh, she just keeps digging herself into a deeper hole. “It was adorable! I loved it!”
Peeking out from between her fingers, Kanade can’t help but let out a nervous giggle, and Honami does the same, the two of them descending into a fit of laughter. With each other being both girls’ first and only experience with romance, neither is quite sure how to navigate things like this. But they’re certainly willing to try.
After stirring in her own milk and honey (she has a bit of a sweet tooth, after all) Honami sips on her tea, and she lets out a happy little sound as she lets the flavours swirl on her tongue. It’s every bit as delicious as she remembered. Nervously, she glances up at Kanade, who brings the cup to her lips with uncertainty. She hopes that she likes it.
Taking a sip herself, Kanade’s eyes close, like she does when she’s listening to a new song for the first time; always with a desire to fully immerse herself. And when a smile blooms on her face, Honami mirrors it with one of her own.
“It’s lovely.” she says, with all the warm softness that so characterised her in Honami’s eyes. “Perfect, even.”
Giddy from her success, Honami reaches her hand across the table to rest on Kanade’s, who holds it tenderly. She rubs the pad of her thumb across Honami’s knuckles, and Honami giggles again, her happiness too much to contain.
Then, with a start, she realises Kanade’s cup is still a bright amber, still steaming. Her eyes widen as she asks, “You didn’t add any milk!?”
Kanade blinks, glancing down at her cup, then back to her girlfriend. “...Was I supposed to?”
“Well, it’s up to personal preference whether you do or not, but… Was it not way too hot?” Maybe it’s just Honami’s sensitive tongue, but she always at leasts adds some cool water from the tap if she has her tea without milk, or she’ll scorch herself.
“Oh, that’s what you meant. I usually eat my instant noodles without waiting for them to cool, so I’m used to it.” she explains.
Honami sighs, ever exasperated by Kanade’s attitude towards feeding herself properly. But there’s fondness there, too. “How you take your tea is up to you, but at least make sure it’s not going to burn your tastebuds off first, okay?” she says, chuckling lightly.
Kanade nods, laughing with her. “Okay, I promise.”
“I wonder if anyone’s ever put their noodles in the fridge to cool them?” Honami wonders aloud.
“My friend puts ice cubes in theirs.” says Kanade.
She has to suppress a laugh. “Ice cubes!”
As they start to chat back and forth about the ethics of putting ice cubes in hot beverages, they might as well be somewhere else entirely, so lost in their little conversation that their world reduces to just the two of them. Until, that is, a persons’ silhouette passes by the window, coming to a stop in a way that draws Honami’s eye. So too does Honami’s heart come to a stop, immediately recognising who it is.
It’s Ichika. One of her best friends and her bandmate, looking back at her slightly stunned, neither of them having expected this surprise encounter. Honami watches, mortified, as Ichika’s gaze goes from Honami, to Kanade, to their joined hands on the table between them.
Before she can even blink, Ichika’s cheeks go red and, clearly feeling very awkward, carries on her way and disappears down the street.
This is a slight problem. Not a big, terrible, world ending problem, but just a minor one. The problem is that Honami hasn’t actually told anyone about herself and Kanade yet, not even her closest friends. Not out of shame or anything like that; she simply wanted to keep some level of privacy while the two adjusted to their new relationship, out of love for Kanade more than any personal reason.
But now, it seems that plan’s been dashed entirely, and tomorrow’s rehearsal is going to be quite the awkward one.
“Good work today,” Shiho says with a nod, slipping her bass off and resting it against one of the many desks in the Sekai’s classroom. Rehearsal comes to a close, and they all disperse, stretching their limbs for a much needed break.
Honami’s more than glad for the reprieve from sitting at her drumkit. She loves drumming, but if there’s one downside, it’s how cramped she can get from sitting on a stool for a prolonged period of time.
As they all begin to loosen up, Shiho heads for the classroom door, turning back to them all. “I’m gonna go talk to Miku for a sec, I’ll be right back.”
They all give her a wave as she ducks out, then turning to each other with satisfied (albeit slightly tired) smiles.
“That was totally awesome~!” Saki gushes, doing a little dance to express her excitement. “We straight-up nailed all our songs today! We’re gonna be perfect by the time our next live comes along~”
Ichika chuckles, reaching for her water and unscrewing the cap. “You’ve been on a roll, that’s why.” she says, before taking a long drink. “I feel like I’ve been able to keep up too, lately. And Honami’s also…”
She turns to Honami, clearly meaning to continue her praise, but as their eyes meet Honami sees the previous day’s encounter flash before her. Ichika’s eyes go wide once more, a blush on her cheeks as she takes another long sip of her water instead.
Saki tilts her head at her, confused by the sudden derailment. “Icchan? What’s up?” she asks.
Ichika sets down her water, now empty. No more excuses to stall. She glances up at Honami, then back to Saki. Ichika-chan, I love you, but you’re horrible at being subtle . “I-It’s nothing, really. I’m just thirsty. Yeah.”
Saki doesn’t seem so convinced. Neither does Shiho, for that matter, who had chosen just that moment to re-enter the room. “What’s happening here?” she asks, an eyebrow raised.
“Shiho-chan, Icchan’s not telling me something.” grumbles Saki, her arms folded across her chest, and with that frown on she looks the picture of her older brother.
Shiho frowns, too, her eyes on Ichika. “...Everything okay?” she asks.
“Umm… I…” Ichika’s eyes flit between Saki, Shiho and Honami, her panic obvious. The poor girl’s put on the spot, struggling to decide whether to protect Honami’s secret or come clean.
Honami swallows. It’s not fair to Ichika to stay quiet any longer, and besides, she’s been wanting to tell the rest of her friends for over a week now. If there was any time for her to talk about Kanade, it’s now. She just needs to muster up the courage. As Ichika flounders under the pressure, Honami takes a deep breath.
“I-I’m actually seeing someone!!” she blurts, more at her feet than at her friends.
The room is quiet, everyone including Ichika stunned by her outburst. The silence drags on for several long seconds, Honami balling up her fists in the sleeves of her cardigan as she stares at the floor.
Shiho speaks. “...Is it Ichika or something?”
Honami snaps up to stare at her, and she hears Ichika spluttering beside her. “N-No, we’re not--!” they both rush to say, tripping over their words in their haste.
Saki interrupts them by bouncing over to Honami, grabbing both of her hands and holding them tight. “Hona-chan! You’re dating somebody!?” she gasps, her eyes wide and sparkling. She’s practically vibrating on the spot. “What’s she like? Do I know her? Oh! Is she in our school!?”
“S-Saki-chan, slow down!” She laughs, her cheeks red, but her overblown excitement helps Honami’s anxiety to fade considerably. “No, you don’t know her, and she’s not in our school.”
“Is it that girl you housekeep for?” Shiho asks, now by Ichika’s side. “Yoisaki-san, right?”
Honami freezes. “H-How did you know!?”
“You talk about her more than you realise.” she replies, her smile teasing. “Don’t worry, I didn’t suspect anything beforehand, but I couldn’t think of anyone else it could be.”
Beside her, Saki sniffles. “Hona-chan… You always were the most grown-up out of all of us…”
“She’s not getting married, Saki.” laughs Ichika. Then she turns bashful, rubbing the back of her neck. “Um… Sorry for interrupting your moment yesterday.” she apologises.
She shakes her head. “Oh, don’t apologise! You didn’t mean any harm.”
Shiho looks between them. “Ichika, you knew?”
Ichika’s laugh turns awkward. “Haha… I sort of, um, saw them on a date yesterday. Total accident.”
Saki gasps again. “You were on a date!? Hona-chan, you have to tell me everything!”
In hindsight, she should’ve expected Saki to be all over her when she learned the news. But it’s far from a bad thing; in fact, she’s so happy that she can’t help but grin and laugh. “I will, I will! I need a minute to breathe, first…”
She’d never realised how much fun gushing about her girlfriend could be until she finally got the chance to do it — even if, as Shiho says, she’s kind of been doing it a lot already — but now she doesn’t think she can stop if she tries. Saki giggles with shining eyes as she perches on the desk, listening intently to Honami’s every word as she talks about herself and Kanade. She starts by recounting the date they shared the day before, and eventually leads into talking about how they started dating, and the kind of things Kanade does with her circle. That part earns Shiho’s attention in particular, especially when she plays them a sample of Nightcord’s most recent upload, a song posted two days before. The reason for their impromptu date, funnily enough.
While Honami chats with Ichika, relaying Kanade’s praise for her singing (“She thinks your voice is lovely!”) she fails to notice Saki sneaking her phone from her desk until it’s too late. Saki grins, mischief all over her face as she unlocks Honami’s phone and begins to do something devious with it. Honami mildly regrets letting Saki add her fingerprint to her phone’s passwords, but she knows the girl would never do anything legitimately mean, so she lets her play around until she’s done. With a hmph of triumph, she plops the phone back in Honami’s hands, which is open to her messaging app, and oh goodness, she’s sent a text to Kanade.
Me 5.34pm
HIIII omg this is saki!!!! im one of honachan’s besties
tysm for looking after her! we can tell she rlly loves u a lot (´｡• ω •｡`)
i cant wait to meet u sometime btw!!! ik she said ur shy but im super nice i prommy!!
Honami laughs as she reads it, imagining the look on her girlfriend’s face at receiving this sort of text out of the blue. It’s so Saki. She locks her phone, not expecting a reply for a few hours at least (who’s to say she’s even awake currently, her sleep schedule being what it is), but to her surprise, it only takes about fifteen minutes for her phone to buzz.
Yoisaki Kanade 5.50pm
it’s nice to meet you saki-san
if anything, i feel like i should be thanking you. i’ve heard a lot about you all from honami
so... thanks for being there for her
Feeling fuzzy inside, she shares her screen with her friends, and Saki positively squeals as she reads it. “She’s so cute!!” she gushes. “Can I text her back?”
But before she can, another text pops through.
Yoisaki Kanade 5.51pm
by the way, i really liked your solo from the last song you guys did. you’re a very talented keyboard player :)
With determination Honami has only seen from the girl when stakes are dire, Saki plants her hand on Honami’s shoulder with a firm expression. “Hona-chan. I will play at your wedding.”
Honami bursts into laughter the same time Ichika does, with Shiho and Saki following soon after. The days’ chatter only renews the love she has for her three closest friends in the world, and the endless adoration she has for her partner. Finally being able to talk about her so freely with them is a joy she wouldn’t give up for the world. And, her heart fit to burst, she can’t remember why she ever wanted to wait at all.