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Being alone at a lesbian izakaya bar makes Kikuta bored. It's almost 9 pm, but his date hasn't come yet since earlier. Maybe she thinks that they're in a traffic jam—or something else, probably buying some snacks.
Kikuta found herself in a warm and comfy feeling in a red-and-black striped long sleeve shirt, dark blue high flare jeans, white sneakers and some nice lip tint he wore a few hours ago, and some baby pink blush on. His hair is flicked back more than usual.
It's been 20 minutes. 20 minutes later he waited for someone, while smoking her cigarette.
"Excuse me," a waitress at the bar approaching her while putting his shōchū and chicken karaage on the table. "May I take the menu book? Do you need others? Any additional order?"
Kikuta nodded. "A pack of cigarettes maybe would be enough for me. Oh, and a yakitori and peach chūhai , please!"
She nodded and leaves Kikuta alone while taking his order. Kikuta checks his phone— once again , opens LINE and checks some messages from his date.
They should've been here , at least that's what Kikuta thought.
Someone waving at him and approaching him slowly, and tapping her shoulders.
"Kikuta-san?" A soft voice asking her slowly, almost making her surprised. "That's you, right?"
He looks at them with a curious glance. She looks very feminine, sporty and pretty with a white t-shirt, indigo blue jumper jeans dress, a star-shaped bag and white sneakers. They look really cute with an up-do pigtail.
"Oh, um, yeah! You're Ipopte, right? Come sit next to me."
She nods. Kikuta lets Ipopte sit next to her while he waits for their order, but he can't take his eyes off of them. They looked very calm, charming and—
—Kikuta realizes that she tends too much about Ipopte.
"Kikuta-san? Are you…" she asks, "...alright? What happened to you? Does something keep bugging you?"
He closes his face with his hands, holding back his embarrassment—trying to calm down, as fast as she can in front of them.
"No! I'm okay, really!" he exclaims. "I'm fine…it's just…"
"...just what?"
"You're pretty ."
She smiled. They seemed pretty chill, if that's what he thought of Ipopte and if he would being honest—she thinks that Ipopte is prettier than the profile picture that they used on LINE.
The waitress quickly puts their menu, and Kikuta puts back her phone on the bag, drinking his shōchū and eating his chicken karaage quickly.
"Kikuta-san, you're eating too fast," Ipopte whispers slowly in her ears. ‘’Are you not afraid you’re getting choked on your food eating too fast?’’
‘’Nope,’’ Kikuta replies, ‘’I’m okay with eating fast.’’
Ipopte quickly nods while she sips her peach chūhai and eating the yakiniku, sometimes they open their phone to look at something—or just randomly scrolling through social medias.
‘’Hey. Wanna go out somewhere?’’
She’s surprised by her words, quickly drinking their drink and putting it back on the table. ‘’Uh, yeah! Sure! What kind of place do you wanna go?’’
He pulls out her hand from the seat, taking them and running away from the bar after Kikuta takes her cigarettes. Ipopte was surprised to see Kikuta taking her somewhere, out of places that they even didn’t know—maybe something good—or worse, something bad.
‘’Kikuta-san! Wait for me!’’
⋆˚☆˖°
They were running away for 20 minutes. Something that Ipopte herself couldn’t imagine how far they were running away with Kikuta from the lesbian izakaya bar to a place that she even didn’t know where.
An abandoned hotel . That was unusual for a date night, she thought. But she couldn’t blame him for picking something weird for a date.
They went upstairs after getting into the hotel, looking for a nice dating spot. Hiding and looking for a date spot in an abandoned place was something that Ipopte wouldn’t think of before— is this even a right place?
Nevermind , she thought. But really, maybe dating in an abandoned place is not really a bad thing that they expected before. She thinks this is something that she never felt before, something thrilling but exciting for dating. Noboribetsu at night is prettier than she thought, and looking from a view from an abandoned place is a really good spot.
‘’Kikuta-san! You’re scaring me!’’ she shouted softly while putting her bag on the floor, ‘’a lot of people almost saw us earlier when we ran away from that lesbian bar, you know! What if they were-’’
He interrupted their words, and chuckled. ‘’Why? I feel that it's funny that people saw us running from that bar, running away like teenagers who were having fun on their own…and having fun as a couple, I think. I just think that’s cute, really.’’
She was surprised. So she’s not angry after all? And she takes it as a joke?
"Yeah, I guess you were right…" they said as they were tilting their head. "I think you were right. Like the fact that you called me Ipopte instead of Ariko earlier at that bar…"
She flustered. So Ipopte notices him? Geez . Kikuta quickly closes her mouth with her hands, but Ipopte just laughs out loud looking at him.
Ipopte can't stop giggling. "Kikuta-san! Why did you have to be so embarrassed like that? I don't mind if you're calling me Ipopte, really! I'm not angry at you! That was cute, you know! I just…I just gotta be honest that no one ever calls me with Ipopte before since everyone just called me with Ariko only."
Oh . Oh my goodness . He quickly leaning and crawling closer to her, kissing Ipopte's cheek. That was quick, but they were enjoying it.
Once more, she wasn't feeling right to kiss her like that. What if Ipopte was angry with her? What if they don't like it?
Kikuta was wrong. Ipopte just chuckled and smiled at him after that kiss, probably holding out their embarrassment or happily being kissed by her.
‘’Uh…’’ she was flustered, looking at her, ‘’...why are you chuckling?’’
‘’I liked it,’’ she whispers softly in his ears.
‘’But…that’s just…’’
‘’A cheek kiss ? Yeah?’’
He couldn’t speak anything in front of them except blushing. But Ipopte was eager to know her responses were—maybe she couldn’t say it to her. She pulls her to sit next to her, and tries to confront her in any possible way she can, in an intimate way—getting closer to Ipopte.
Kikuta’s eyes widen. ‘’About that…do you think I’m a bit too much?’’
Ipopte looks at him again, with a curious glance of what Kikuta says after the accidental kiss and answers, ‘’Of course not. I don’t think that’s a bit too much or something. I just think…that’s sweet of you, Moku, I’m dead serious. As long as I’m with you.’’
He stared wide-eyed at them. If that’s what Ipopte says are true, she would kiss her again in this abandoned hotel, almost midnight—then she wouldn’t miss a chance again to kiss them. Kikuta smiles, and laughs.
‘’Can we do it again?’’
‘’Of course.’’
He pulls out their hands, chuckling and laughing for a while. She pulls her into a soft, deep kiss—and enjoying their unusual first date again.
But maybe this isn’t a bad first date as what Ipopte thought before. And she loves him.
⋆˚☆˖°
When I call your name,
it sounds like I’m saying I love you
I can’t hide my trembling heart,
no matter how many times I say it
It’s like that everyday looking at you,
feels like love
It’d be nice if time stopped right now,
with just us two¹