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"Hey, I want to listen to some love stories!"
A voice that was suddenly raised in the middle of the cozy atmosphere of Crase Cafe successfully gained everyone's attention. They all turned their heads towards the owner of the voice—Kagamine Rin, who was clenching her fists in front of her orange juice while puffing her cheeks.
"Huh, Rin? Why all of a sudden?" Miku asked.
"Because!!" the yellow haired diva banged her hands to the table sulkily, in which Meiko immediately took her glass away in fear she'd spill it. "It's been awhile since An-chan is dating Akito-kun, and Kohane-chan is also dating Touya-kun, but—!!"
She pointed her finger accusingly at the girls mentioned.
"—An-chan and Kohane-chan never once share their love stories with us!!!!!"
I can't wait anymore! I'm so curious~!!! Rin whined loudly, making the others sweated. It was true that today was a rare day when conveniently all of the guys were absent to do some practices together elsewhere while the girls were all present in the cafe, even Luka was here. It's a perfect day for some girls talk, don't you think? Rin probably thought something like that.
An scratched her cheek nervously, a faint tint of red was already creeping to her face at the mention of love talk, "Ahh... love stories, huh... There's really nothing interesting about me and Akito, though?"
"It's fine, it's fine~ I'm sure everything you guys share will sound interesting to my ears! Please, An-chan, Kohane-chan~?" Rin already scooted closer to An and Kohane's seats, her hands were holding her cheeks as she gave the two a pleading look.
"Hey, Rin... you can't just ask something like that. Their relationship is their privacy, you know?"
Meiko scolded, which made Rin pouted her lips. "But, Meiko... Aren't you guys curious too?"
"Ah, true, true! I'm actually curious too!" Luka raised her hand. "It can't be helped if An-chan and Kohane-chan really don't want to... but I'll be really happy if you two can share some sweet stories, it sounds fun~"
"Well, it'd be a lie if I say I'm not curious about it," Miku joined in. "Isn't Meiko also the same? You've been curious whether they're getting along fine or not, right?"
"Geez, you guys... Alright, but if An-chan and Kohane-chan are really uncomfortable about this then we should really stop pestering them, okay?" Meiko sighed before turning at the girls. "Then? What do you think about it, An-chan, Kohane-chan?"
An and Kohane exchanged glance with each other for a while. Despite the bashful blush, they eventually giggled and nod. Getting the approval, Rin and Luka cheered happily. I don't guarantee it's gonna be interesting, you know? An added between their excitement, which they answered by raising their thumbs up.
"Oh, but I don't really know what kind of story that Rin-chan and the others want to hear. Do you have anything in mind?"
"Hmm... Ah! How about telling us how was Kohane-chan's first date with Touya-kun as a starter?" Rin suggested.
"My first date with Aoyagi-kun..." Kohane mumbled before smiling as if she just remembered something good. "Uhm, sure. I can tell about that day. Ehehe... it's a bit embarrassing though. Guess we both were a little too excited about it..."
"Huh, Aoyagi-kun?"
"Azusawa... you're already here too?"
At the meeting place for their date this Sunday, they stared in surprise at their dating partner who wasn't supposed to be there for another hour. Kohane was sure they scheduled their meeting at ten last night, and it was still a little past nine in the morning now. Touya also checked his messages with her again to make sure he didn't get the meeting time wrong.
There was no mistake at all. The both of them somehow arrived in the meeting place one hour earlier even though they didn't plan it at all. It's like we're sharing the same thought, they eventually laughed at each other.
"What a coincidence... right?"
"You know, Azusawa..." Touya rubbed his nape. "I think I got too excited for today. I couldn't sit still because I kept thinking about wanting to see Azusawa soon. In the end, I arrived here one hour earlier than planned."
The taller man said, smiling a bit in embarrassment for admitting that he couldn't wait for the date like a little kid. Seeing this, Kohane held his hands, "Me too, Aoyagi-kun! My heart was racing all night because I was really looking forward for the date and I ended up waking up too early. I couldn't sit still too..."
"I see," his smile softened. "If that's so I'm glad I'm not the only one who's too excited for today... so we both couldn't wait for the date that we arrived a lot earlier. It feels like..."
"Like a grade-schooler waiting for their first field trip?"
"Mhm, that might be true. But it's two high-schoolers waiting for their first date."
"Fufu, you can't help always getting excited for your first after all~"
They both smiled happily. A fluffy feeling spread from the hearts and a warm feeling was transmitted from their joined hands. The clock showed that it was still too early from their supposed meeting time, but there was no problem with that.
"Should we just start our date then, Azusawa?"
"Sure!"
The date ended up starting earlier than planned, and they had more time to spend together for the day.
"We had to wait for the movie to start... so we looked around the shops quite a bit," Kohane said, her cheeks were tinted in pinkish color as she smiled. "But the date was really fun, I got to do a lot of things with Aoyagi-kun! Oh, the strap in my pencil case is also something we bought together to commemorate our first date. They're matching!"
"Wahhh, a matching strap!!! Also Touya-kun and Kohane-chan, do you guys have lovers' telepath~!?" Rin squealed.
"What even is a lovers' telepath, Rin?" Meiko sighed.
"That's very Touya and Kohane-like to arrive one hour early together for the date. After all you two really suit each other," Miku nodded to herself.
"Wah, Miku-chan—! I'm embarrassed if you say something like that," Kohane held her face. "Aoyagi-kun kept saying sorry for not being able to research for a nice place in preparation so I wouldn't have to walk around too much... but honestly, I actually love it more to walk together side by side like that. Aoyagi-kun's hand is big and gentle... noticing the difference in size while holding hands makes my heart race."
"Kohane..."
"Kohane-chan, so cute~"
"As expected, Touya-kun and Kohane-chan are so sweet with each other... I can feel the sweet air even just by listening to the story~" Luka joined her hands together. "Then? Then? How about An-chan and Akito-kun?"
"E-eh, me?" An jolted slightly when Luka suddenly turned to her, meaning that it was finally her turn to share her story. For Kohane and Touya to have such a sweet first date was expected, but she was a bit hesitant to talk about her own."My first date with Akito, huh... Nggh... it was so so so embarrassing, can we change the topic?"
"Do you prefer to share story about your first kiss then, An?"
"Alright, everyone. I will now tell the story about my first date with Akito so listen properly."
"Oh, An-chan has given in!"
The others laughed as An's face turned bright red at the mention of 'first kiss' from Miku and she immediately changed her mind. Sharing the story of their first kiss would be at least ten times more embarrassing than first date, was what she got after weighing the two options inside her mind. Taking a deep breath, she started to refresh her memory about that day.
"You see, it was our first date... but I already made a big mistake."
"A big mistake?" Rin tilted her head.
"Mhm..." An rubbed her nape. "I was too nervous about the date and I kept going back and forth on deciding what I was gonna wear for the date... I mean, Akito works part-time in a clothing store, so he knows a lot about fashion trends and such. I thought I should also put some efforts to impress him even just a bit. 'I will make that dishonest Akito compliment me!' before I knew it, I was choosing my outfit with that kind of determined goal in my head. Because I was too into it, I lost track of time and ended up staying up until very late."
"An-chan, don't tell me...?"
An nodded at Kohane's worried look. "That's right, Kohane... I overslept and got late for the date."
"Is that the big mistake you mentioned?" Meiko asked, but An shook her head this time.
"No... the mistake is a whole another problem."
An hurried her steps to their promised meeting place, the heels of her pumps were clacking against the concrete under her. Twenty minutes late already, she bit her lips as she checked the time on her watch. She had sent a message to Akito that she was already on her way, but he must already be so grumpy now.
After looking around, she finally saw a familiar orange hair in a distance. But when she was about to call out to him, she noticed he wasn't alone.
—I'm just late for twenty minutes and someone's already picking you up?
Maybe because she wasn't really in a clear mind after panicking for being late, that was the first thing in her mind when she saw him talking to some unknown girl in his good-guy persona, looking like he was being really nice to her. Ah, I see? Is this your way of getting back on me for being late, Akito? As she thought that, other possibilities that could've saved her from her future embarrassment didn't get to enter her mind at that time since she was already picking up her pace towards him. It was an annoyed feeling that she couldn't explain.
"Excuse me! This person is my boyfriend, though?"
A strong pull on the right side of his body. He looked over to see an out-of-breath An was already hugging his right arm, with something unbelievable came out of her mouth. For a moment, both the girl and Akito stared at her dumbfoundedly before letting out a laugh.
"Oi, An... she was just asking for direction."
"Ha—!? O-oh, I'm sorry!"
A mistake. A big mistake. A very big mistake. Her face was almost sharing the same color as the tomato she hated so much when the girl bowed politely after Akito asked whether she already understood the direction he showed her. She even sent a lukewarm gaze at the two of them before walking away, as if to say 'I'm sorry for intruding', and An felt like digging a hole for herself.
"...Pffth—haha..."
"Akito, don't laugh!"
"Ahahahahaha!"
"Hey, I'm telling you to stop laughing! Why are you laughing even louder!?"
"Haha... Say, did you think someone's picking me up and run so fast you got out of breath?" he teased, and she gritted her teeth. He was totally having fun with this. "What? Did you think I might get stolen or something?"
"That's not it, I was just not thinking clearly... argh, forget it! If Akito won't stop laughing, I'm leaving already!"
"Oi, come on. Don't be like that when you just arrived... Alright, alright, my bad, but you're the one who arrived late in the first place," he took her hand to appease her annoyance and began to walk together from the place. "If you don't want me to be alone for too long then don't be late next time. Well, I feel kinda nice seeing you like that though."
"Hey... don't be so conceited. Who do you think is that clingy?"
"Yeah? Who's the one hugging my arm tightly earlier?"
"~~~Ughhh!"
"Well, that's that. Anyway now, what's your reason for being late? Depends on your answer I might ask for a cheaper treat."
"No way, you're already thinking about the compensation—? Uh, about that..." She averted her gaze anywhere but him. "Let's see, I got too excited in choosing my outfit for today and ended up staying up too late... something like that?"
"Hee? That's unusual. Don't you usually just wear anything that matches your taste? Why'd it take so long?"
"Mmh, that's true... but, today isn't just any usual day," she said while scratching her cheek awkwardly, which made Akito raised his brow. "Aside of my taste, I'm also thinking about 'would Akito like this one? Or does he prefer this one?' because I was choosing my outfit with the goal to impress you in mind, so it took a longer time to decide... but now that I think about it, maybe a part of it was also because my heart was so noisy all night that I needed to keep myself occupied."
Hmmm, she thought she heard him humming, but he didn't say anything else. When she glanced at him to check, he was already holding his face in his palm, seemingly groaning. The faint red color on his ear might just be her hallucination.
"Whatever the reason didn't change the fact that I'm late for our appointment today, so that's on me. What do you want, Akito? I'll treat you today as an apology."
"...No, it's fine. You don't have to treat me to anything."
"Huh, for real!? I was so sure you were gonna ask for a giant pancakes or something..."
"Haa...? What do you take me for?"
"I mean, it's Akito after all! Well, if you really don't want anything then that's fine... just don't regret it later, okay? I won't ask you twice."
"An."
"Hm?"
"It looks good on you, today's outfit."
Suddenly an honest compliment came. An blinked for a moment, the she smiled widely at him, "Akito, say it one more time!"
"One more time...? Geez, alright... Your outfit looks good on you today, you're cute. I like it."
"Hehe, I see, I see~" She grinned from ear to ear before panicking with her phone, "Wait, oh no! I forgot to record it... Akito, how about saying it just one more time?"
"Oi, cut it out already... I'm not doing it. Let's just go."
Stingy! She stuck out her tongue when he rejected her request but still smiled happily in the end. It took her a while to notice he already changed the way they were holding hands into intertwining their fingers.
"I don't know why but he strangely didn't get angry at all even though I was late... On the contrary, for the whole day, Akito seemed to be... very sweet...?" An tilted her head, still having hard time understanding his behavior although the first date was already quite some time ago. Kohane and the others looked as if they were gonna burst.
"An-chan!!!! Akito-kun must be so happy that day! That's so cute... Ahh, I want to see that scene too~!!"
"H-huh???"
"An-chan, what do you mean by big mistake? Are you sure it wasn't an organized plan to make Akito-kun's heart race instead?"
"There's no way I could think about that kind of plan, Meiko-san!" she shook her head hard when Meiko gave her a knowing look. "Anyway, it was really a big mistake! I was so embarrassed, what I did was so lame... and Akito keeps bringing up about that day whenever he wants to tease me, that annoying guy!!"
"Akito would definitely do that alright..." Miku sighed, saying something about Akito's strange pride under her breath.
"An-chan... this is just my personal opinion, but I think Shinonome-kun keeps bringing up about that day because he thought of what you did as endearing. I agree with Rin-chan, Shinonome-kun must be really happy about it."
"...Eh, you think so, Kohane...?"
"Of course! I mean, An-chan ran up to him saying 'My boyfriend!' out loud," Luka said. "If I were Akito-kun I'd hug you right away! Boo, he missed his chance~"
"Whah—! Enough, enough, let's not linger in this subject any longer!! Time out!!!"
An hurriedly waved her hands to get them to stop talking, face dyed completely red at the comments. She wouldn't be able to handle the embarrassment if she were given more than this, the others laughed. Their relationships seemed to be getting along fine, Meiko sighed in relief, but then she held her cheek in one hand. Miku noticed the worried look.
"What's it, Meiko?"
"Hm? Oh, it's nothing, Miku. It's just..." Meiko thought, "In a few years, Shiraishi An will become Shinonome An and Azusawa Kohane will become Aoyagi Kohane. Thinking about when that time will finally come, I think I'm a bit nervous."
"Oh, I think I get what you mean! But rather than nervous, isn't it more like excited? Shinonome An-chan and Aoyagi Kohane-chan sure ring a nice bell~ Hey, hey, do you think we can also attend the wedding?"
"Well, there's still at least ten years or so before that happening... but, as long they put the phone in a place where no one will see, I think it's possible for us to see the wedding too~"
" " Guys, it's still too soon to talk about!!!! " "
Two girls complained in unison at the sudden advancement of the topic. As usual, a carefree atmosphere and laughter once again filled the air of Crase Cafe that day.
"Akito, Touya, are you guys sure you're not gonna come in?"
"...Sorry, it seems we'll be here for a while. You guys can just go ahead, Len. We still need some time."
"Whoa, guys... your faces are so red! Are you guys sure your hearts are okay too?"
"Please just leave us alone already, Kaito-san..."
The guys who accidentally overheard things in front of the cafe also seemed to be getting a severe damage from the talk, but that was for the girls to find out later.