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Marie took a sip of her coffee. She looked to her side and saw Callie was texting, nothing out of the ordinary… However, this time, she looked way happier… Like, she could psychically see hearts appearing around her head-
“Uhh… who you texting, Cal?” Marie asked, sipping her coffee.
“Big Man!” Callie responded in a dreamy and joyful tone. Ooookaaayyy… Didn’t expect that-
“But hold on. Isn’t Big Man outside?”
“Yep!”
“So why can’t you just go outside and… y’know… talk to him face to face?”
“Oh, Marie! It’s not sweet if we do it like that?”
“Heh. Sweet. You say that as if you’re dating him.” *Marie chuckled, taking another sip.
“Wait… Didn’t I tell you?” Callie put her phone down and tilted her head.
“Tell me… what…?” Another sip.
“Big Man and I are going on a date today!” Immediately after hearing that, the older cousin spits out her coffee. She began to cough, choking on the caffeine. She wiped her mouth and grunted.
“WHAT?!”
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Today was finally the day! The manta still couldn’t believe this was actually happening. To think, only a few years ago he was jamming out to one of their songs back in high school… Now he knows the Squid Sisters personally and is about to go on a date with one of them! Even his bandmates couldn’t believe it! Frye and Shiver had been a massive help this last week. They took Big Man shopping to buy some new clothes for a date! It was a tad bit difficult as most stores didn’t have manta-size- But luckily, he did manage to find something! Fyre and Shiver definitely weren't big fans of it, but Big Man liked it! Next, they went to scout out some places he could take Callie to. The Onaga suggested a ramen place and the Hohojiro suggested a sushi place. They both sounded like nice places to go, but the manta wanted to take the inkling somewhere nice and soothing… Like a cafe! And he knew just the place! Actually, now that he’s thinking about it, he did end up doing most of what his friends said they would help with on his own… Though, that’s not to say they weren’t a help! They definitely were! He wouldn’t have thought of his ideas without them!
It was almost time for his date! Clothes? Check! Send Callie the address to the cafe? Check! Flowers? Check! Everything was in place. Suddenly, his phone vibrated. He checked the notification to see it was from his other group members. They both wished him good luck and a wonderful date. The manta smiled, responding with a thank you. Seconds later, he got a response from Callie. She sent a thumbs up and said she was leaving her house right now. He should start leaving too then! Big Man made his way out the door.
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“I still can’t believe it…”
“That’s the third time you’ve said that now. You’re sure to start believing it by now. Anyway, how do I look?” Callie did a little twirl in her new outfit. Marie sighed and nodded with a smile.
“You look great, Cal.”
“Look, I’m sorry for going on a date with one of your employees and not telling you sooner. Besides, he’s the one who asked me first! And I would be a fool to deny that cute face of his.”
“Wh- N-no! That’s not-“ Marie placed a hand on her forehead and groaned. “First off, I don’t care if you and Big Man are going on a date. I just find this whole thing… unexpected- Secondly, is he technically your employee too?”
“Pssh! Everyone knows the assistant boss isn’t really a position and is more of just a person who stands behind the actual boss.” Marie was about to refute that claim but then she realized she was sorta right- That’s exactly what Callie had been doing since she became the boss of those three. The inkling shook her head and chuckled. Then, a ring was heard from her cousin’s phone. She was quick to see what it was.
“It’s from Big Man! He sent me the location of where we’re gonna meet! Oh, a cafe!”
“Heh. A safe choice. That’s just like Mantaro…” Marie said under her breath. Callie typed out her response and stuffed her phone into her purse.
“Well, I think it’s time I get going.”
“You two have fun. Tell Big Man I said hi.”
“Thank you, Marie, and I will! You’re welcome to stay here as long as you want, just lock the door behind you if you leave. Alright, cya later!” Callie waved goodbye and went out the door.
“Tell Big Man if the date goes well, I’ll give him a promotion!” She shouted out to make sure her cousin heard her even through the building walls.
From the looks of it, Callie didn’t live too far away from the cafe. All she needed to do was turn this alleyway annnnddd… Huh. She expected the alleyway to be empty, but instead, there were two figures standing side by side with their backs turned. Eventually, they turned around. They were both wearing masks: One of an eel, the other of a shark. Callie stood there for a second and blinked… before waving at the two figures.
“Hi, Frye! Hi, Shiver!” There was a moment of silence between the three before the two masked inkfish huddled together.
“I told you she would recognize us! There was no point in wearing these masks!” Shiver whispered loudly.
“I knew she would figure us out but I didn’t think it would be instant… It doesn’t matter! Let’s just do what we came here to do!” Frye spoke. They both nodded and turned back around to face Callie. They moved their mask slightly to the side, revealing half of their faces.
“Boss Assistant Lady. We’ve come here today to wish you luck on your date with Big Man.” Frye began.
“He is our closest and best friend. He’s smart, kind, and lovable, but he could be a bit dense at times-“ Shiver continued.
“He’s a big guy with an even bigger heart! So don’t break it, okay?!”
“Regardless if you’re the Boss’s cousin, if you send home Big Man with a broken heart, we will not forgive you.” Callie smiled throughout the whole thing. She nodded and put a hand up to her chest.
“Awww, you guys are so sweet! You two really do love Mantaro, huh? I promise, with all three of my hearts, I will make sure this is the best date ever for the both of us!” Callie sounded genuine and determined. That’s all the two wanted to hear.
“Good! Now get going! You’re not late just yet!” Fyre said. Callie nodded and continued her way toward the cafe, waving as she left the two behind.
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Big Man felt his body shake. He couldn’t be getting cold feet now! He was literally standing outside the cafe! He ended up arriving ten minutes before the time they said they would meet… Was he going to have to stand here alone with a bouquet in his fins for the whole ten minutes-
“Mantaro!” Suddenly, the manta heard a voice. A familiar one.
“Ay!” (“Callie!”)
“Looks like we both got here pretty early, huh?”
“Ay… Ay…” (“Hehe… Yeah…”) The manta ray blushed slightly, a little embarrassed. Callie looked him up and down.
“You look great! I love the hat and tie!”
“Ay! Ay…” (“Thank you! You look great too, though I never expected you to wear beige…”)
“Hehe! I’m always full of surprises! I actually brought this a few weeks ago but never found the chance to wear it. I figured now might be the best time to do so.”
“Ay!” (“I think the color suits you perfectly!”)
“You’re too sweet, but enough of the lovey-dovey talk!” Callie took the shades off her shirt and put them on. “We should head inside.”
“Ay. Ay! Ay…” (“Yeah, you’re right. Oh! Hold on a sec, I want to give you something…”) Big Man handed Callie the bouquet of magenta flowers. The inkling was greatly surprised!
“Big Man, these are beautiful! Thank you so much!” She sniffed the colored plant. “They smell wonderful too!” The manta was glad to see she liked them. He had to pay a fortune to get them because apparently, it’s not easy to find magenta flowers…
From there on, the date continued. You would think people would notice two popular idols dining at a normal cafe but you’d be surprised what wonders a hat and a pair of sunglasses can do. They had a peaceful time at the cafe. Callie ordered an iced coffee with an unhealthy amount of sugar, not as much as Frye usually does though! And Big Man ordered a very lemony tea. As they gulped down their drinks, they began to talk. Starting with stories from the past.
“Marie wasn’t super interested in becoming an idol at first, but eventually she came around after weeks of me nagging. Though looking back on it, having to do idol work plus school and agent work was a doozy.” Callie said, taking a sip of her coffee.
“Ay. Ay?” (“Wait a minute. You guys were still in school when you were doing idol stuff?”)
“Of course we were! We were only 17 at the time. Though, because of our rising popularity and the fact we were busy during the day, we usually weren’t allowed to attend during the morning. We would take night classes or have to hand in our work extra early in the morning. It absolutely sucked!”
“Ay.” (“Well, it looks like you managed to pull through, so good job!”)
“Heh, yeah. What about you, Big? How was your school life? I remember reading in an interview you met Frye and Shiver in middle school.”
“Ay. Ay.” (“I knew them before that, we just didn’t get to know each other until middle school. Though to answer your question, it was pretty good!”)
“Come on! More detail than that!” The manta chuckled at her eagerness.
“Ay… Ay- A?.“ (“Okay, okay… Actually, there isn’t much to say- I wasn’t super popular but I did not have any friends, I just went on about my days, y’know?”) The inkfish nodded, taking another sip.
“Ay. Ay!” (“There would be days after school where I would go in the music room and play the piano until everyone needed to leave the building. Thanks to that, that’s how I ended up getting to know Frye and Shiver!”)
“Oh, yeah! You did say in the interview they barged into the classroom while you were playing piano!”
“Ay. Ay!” (“Yep. I thought they were delinquents trying to rob or beat me up at first!”) The two chuckled.
“I never would’ve expected you to play piano at first glance. You should totally play for me someday!”
“Ay! Ay…” (“Oh! Well, I haven’t played in a while so I may be a bit rusty…”)
“Oh, come on! Just imagine, you playing the piano while I sit on top with a pretty dress singing out a heavenly melody!” Callie raised her hands as she looked toward the manta. His face now had a slightly reddish tint to it. The inkling chuckled, making a slight reddish tint appear on her face as well.
“Actually, that gives me an idea!”
“Ay?” (“Oh?”)
“We should do a collab!!!”
They continued to talk about varying topics for the next hour until they finally left the cafe. They walked through the city side by side. It took some time, but eventually, they began to hold hands. Both of their faces lit up. It was embarrassing, yet they both enjoyed the moment. They eventually ended up at an arcade. A bunch of squid and octo kids ran around, yelling and screaming to their heart's content. Callie’s starry eyes shined even brighter when she noticed the UFO catcher in the corner of the building. She tugged on Big Man’s fin and pointed towards it.
“OMC! Big look!” Her finger pointed directly toward the octopus plush. “I need that plushie! Do you think you can win it for me?
“Ay…” (“Oh, uhhh, I can try…”)
“I believe in you! Go, Big Man!” Hearing those words of encouragement was enough to make the manta determined to get that toy! He walked up to the machine and inserted a coin. Let’s do this!
*Bzzt!* FAILURE! Okay, that’s fine. You never get these things on the first try. He can just try again. He put in another coin.
*Bzzt!* FAILURE!
*Bzzt!* FAILURE!
This continued for about 30 minutes… The manta was down to his last coin. This was his last shot… He inserted the coin and carefully moved the claw. I place was perfect, there was no way he could miss this! The claw descended and he was right! It picked up the plush! After all this time, he finally got it… Unfortunately, he celebrated too late. The plushie slipped out of the claw! It fell in what seemed like slow motion… but something unbelievable happened! Right as the plus hit the bottom, it managed to knock back another plush into the hole!
*Ding!* WINNER!
Big Man opened the slot and claimed his prize. It was a tiny octopus key charm.
“Ay… Ay… (“Well, it’s not what you wanted… but I hope you like it…”) Big Man said with a nervous chuckle. Callie took the charm and smiled.
“It’s adorable, Mantaro! It’s alright if you didn’t get the one I wanted, I have too many octopus plushies anyway.” The inkling smiled. “I’ll make sure to take extra care of this charm, thank you!” Her words were genuine and her smile was even brighter. The manta’s face turned the brightest it ever had. He used his fin to cover his blushy face.
“Come on, Big! There's still some other stuff we can do!” Callie dragged him by the fin and out of the arcade.
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It was now evening. The day was coming to a close. The two sat on a park bench licking their ice cream cones. Big Man had vanilla and Callie had chocolate.
“Ay. Ay?” (“I had a lot of fun today. Did you?”) Big Man asked.
“Mhm! Today was amazing! I haven’t had a date in so long, I forgot how fun they can be!”
“Ay?” (“When’s the last time you’ve been on a date?”)
“Well, if I’m not counting that… all the way back in high school!”
“Ay. Ay?” (“Wait. Not counting what?”)
“I’ll tell you someday, I promise!” Callie said with a smile as she licked her ice cream. Big Man was curious but if she said she’ll tell him someday, he might as well for that somday. He licked his frozen treat.
“Ay. Ay…” (“I still can’t believe it, though. That I went on a date with you…”)
“Well, you better believe it because it’s all real!”
“Ay… Ay…” (“Hehe, yeah… Though I still wonder…”)
“Hm?”
“Ay?” (“Why did you say yes to me?”)
“Because I like you, silly! I already thought you were cool before, but after this date, I can confidently say you’re the perfect guy and perfect boyfriend material!” Big Man’s face blushed intensely.
“A-Ay?! Ay-!” (“B-Boyfriend material?! Does that mean-!”) He was cut off by Callie moving closer to his face. She was blushing well.
“Yep! It’s exactly what it means!” The inkfish giggled. Suddenly, the manta wrapped his fins around her. “Oh!”
“Ay! Ay!” (“I’m so happy! I love you so much, Callie!”) She smiled and hugged him back.
“I love you too, Mantaro!” They stayed wrapped in each other’s arms for a bit until they finally let go. The sun was beginning to set.
“Ay. Ay?” (“It’s getting pretty late, we should probably get going. Should I walk you back to your place?”)
“Ah! So gentleman-like! I would love that Mantaro.” They both got up from the bench, hand in fin as they walked off into the night…