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“C’mon sleepyhead, it’s time to get up.”
“No…Five more minutes…”
“Four, it’s already almost noon and you’re still in your sleeping bag. Any longer in there and the sun will dry you up and you’ll miss our shopping day, Agent Snore.”
“Marie,” Four pleaded with puppy-dog eyes, “you wouldn’t let that happen. You said it would be your treat.”
Marie sighed into a soft smile, letting Four know that the eyes work. Once she stopped laughing, she said, “I’ll be getting ready in the cabin, silly. Make sure to grab a muffin off the counter before we leave.”
Of course, Four herself was not yet ready in the slightest considering she just woke up from a long night not in her own bed. Yesterday’s work in Octo Canyon ran so long that Marie made them dinner and set out sleeping bags for the two to sleep outside in. Yeah, she was sleeping next to Marie, who she’s crushing on hard. Four thought (and lightly spiraled), is the two going shopping a date? Does Marie like her like that? Could anyone like her like that? Even so, there’s no way Marie of all people would date her, Marie’s a whole celebrity and Four didn’t know about her until a couple of months back when Four became an agent. Even with those thoughts, she still had to actually get up and walk over to the cabin. After rifling through the string bag she brings to the Canyon whenever she works, she found an outfit that wasn’t tacky. It was just a t-shirt and basketball shorts, but those are 90% of her wardrobe anyway. Marie was still using the bathroom to get ready, though, so Four decided to grab that muffin from the kitchen.
Marie ended up being done and walking into the kitchen right when Four finished her muffin. That was good timing because Marie was stunning and Four would’ve dropped the muffin if she still had it. Even in casual wear, Four was enchanted by how pretty and graceful Marie always was.
“What, is there something on my face?” Marie asked.
“Oh, uh, no, you’re just, you’re always, uh—no, no, it’s nothing,” Four stuttered as she felt a blush wrap around her face. Quite an embarrassing thing to do, and it was worse because there was no way Marie didn’t see the blush. It could’ve been worse, though. At least Four didn’t blush so hard that the color of her tentacles pulsed. She would rather splat herself then and there than face Marie if that happened.
After what felt like an eternity of awkward silence (maybe ten seconds), Marie reminded Four that she should get changed so they could go into Inkopolis Square to shop. After stuttering through an “okay” and scampering to the bathroom, Four finally got changed and brushed her hair, leaving the two ready to go shopping.
- - - -
“So, Four, where are we going first? What clothes do you want?”
“Uh, any of them? I don’t really have that many. At school, we just had our uniforms, so I have the two uniforms and maybe five outfits of athletic wear like this,” Four said sheepishly. “I guess we should start with whatever the Galleria shops have so I can get some basics to start with.
“You’ve lived here how long and you haven’t even gone shopping for basic outfits? Good thing being an agent provides you with a uniform,” Marie teased.
“Yeah, yeah. It’s not like battles have that big a payout, and Grizzco never seems to be open when I would have time to work shifts there,” Four said neutrally. Too neutrally, perhaps. Marie said a quick “Oh” as she started to worry that she struck a nerve with Four. Marie thought hard to remember the last time she had to worry about money. She has had more money than she can mentally grasp since she became a pop star before starting high school. Four, however, is the same age as her but has had a normal-ish life if she’s telling the truth. Marie didn’t believe that Four was being entirely honest, but she didn’t want to press. It was supposed a fun day with an amazing squid with no unfun conversations.
“Well, that doesn’t matter today, so go get what you want. Make sure to try it on first, though, get clothes that look good on you.” With that, the two went into the shops and browsed.
When Four was done picking out some new outfits, she tried to show the individual pieces to Marie to see what she thought. Marie had another idea, though.
“You should runway model the clothes! It’ll be fun!”
“Model?! How?” Four asked.
“First, you go into the dressing room and put on one of these outfits you’ve put together. Then, you come out and show it off to me. Don’t forget to strike a pose,” Marie giggled.
Four was flustered at the thought, but it was also perfect. What better way to make sure your crush likes your style than if she helps you pick it out?
As Four went back to set up her outfits, Marie was left with a bit more time to think. When was the last time she was out in public? She’s only made the necessary grocery runs for the cabin in the four months since she started staying there instead of her apartment. It’s also not like she was going out much before she actually left the city. No fans were flocking to her like before, though, so her casual disguise must be working. That one’s a better thought than no one caring about her now that she’s not at the top.
Then out came Four in her first outfit to show off: some Firefin streetwear. Marie joked, “You sure you’re not gonna overheat in those? That’s a lot thicker stuff than you usually wear. Still, it looks nice and comfortable, like walking in a blanket. I like it.” Four really seemed to like that praise as she went back to grab the next outfit: A more formal Splash Mob outfit.
“A button-up, cardigan, and pants, huh? You look like you’re going to some event, real classy.” Marie couldn’t tell if Four was playing a character or was confident in her outfits, but she was definitely walking tall with that one.
Next up was a chaotic, punky blend that Marie hadn’t seen before. It must have popped up after she stopped going out. “What’s this, Annaki? That’s a new one to me. Looks real loud and independent. Reminds me of you, Four.” Marie was focused on the clothes, but that one made Four start blushing. If Marie kept complimenting her she’d probably explode. There were still more outfits, though, so no explosions yet.
Four’s newest set to show off was from another new-to-Marie brand of sleek whites, blacks, and silvers with hints of red: Toni Kensa. Four came out in some black boots, leggings, a silver jacket, and goggles tinted slightly red. After hesitating, Marie said, “I don’t know, Four. It doesn’t look as vibrant as your usual stuff. The coloring on you, or lack thereof, makes it look almost robotic.”
“Yeah, this one was kinda a stretch for me too. It’s cool-looking stuff, just not for me I guess. Hold tight, I got one more.”
After a little bit, Four came out in some classic Zink athletic wear. Marie suppressed laughter, saying, “Ah, so Zink instead of Tentatek. Can’t not get more, huh?”
“Yeah, yeah. What can I say, it’s comfy. A bit more classy, too,” Four played off, hoping she gave the joke back right as Marie panicked that she chided Four too much to be a joke.
“Yeah, I guess it is. Well, you got anything else to model or will it be those four for Four? For we should check out if you’re done,” Marie said with a cheeky smile.
“You sure do love that I pretty much go by Four at this point, huh,” Four sighed. “But yeah, I’m ready. Not looking forward to carrying these around the rest of the day, though.”
“Well, you won’t have to! There’s this service where you can set a time and they’ll just get the clothes delivered to your apartment and they’ll be there for you tonight!” Marie beamed.
“That’s a thing? That sounds too good to be reasonably affordable…”
“Oh, please, it’s not that much. Plus, it’s part of this being my treat.” Marie knew that it wasn’t that much of an extra charge for her specifically considering that whole thing about having more money than an eighteen-year-old who got it all as a teen pop star, so she decided against saying how much it was.
“This is a pretty big treat to do for me, though.” Four was pretty sure that it was going to be a lot, even if Marie didn’t want to put down specific numbers.
“Four, it really isn’t. We still have the rest of the afternoon.”
“Well in that case, there is this cafe I’ve been wanting to go back to for a bit. I think that you’d love it.”
- - - -
At the cafe, the two ordered their coffee and some snacks. However, the cafe had become a lot more well-known and popular since Four had last stopped by.
“When did you say you were here last?” Marie asked as the two squids stood in a slightly less busy corner waiting for their coffee to be ready.
“Three months, maybe four. It was more of a hole-in-the-wall then, though. It was mainly me and about ten other regulars here. It was always really good coffee, though, so I can see why they’re more popular. I do miss the quiet, though.”
“Late afternoon is usually a pretty busy time, though. Maybe we could come at a different time of day next time we come here,” Marie offered. Four instead froze for a moment. Was she doing this so right that Marie was already thinking about having other days out with her? It’s not like there’s anything wrong with that, friends hang out after work all the time. There’s nothing different about it now, even if that friend Four wants to hang out with is the prettiest squid she’s ever met and that work is one where they get to know each other really well. Yeah, there’s nothing different with this and other times Four has gone out with friends after school or after a shift at work. So why does it all feel different?
“Um, Four? Did you hear me? You’re spacing out,” Marie pointed out, snapping Four back to reality.
“Oh, uh, I, yeah, maybe next time we should come at a less busy time,” Four said. She hoped Marie didn’t see how hard she was blushing. “I think it would be pretty clear before lunch if we wanted to aim for that.”
“Maybe, that usually falls after you do your first kettle of the day.” In a more sing-song voice, Marie added, “We could even routine of it.”
Absolutely flustered, Four softly giggled and looked down until their coffees were ready. On the way, though, the squids found why the corner they were in was less busy. Simply put, it was nearly impossible to squeeze through everyone sitting down to get to the front.
“Here, take my hand,” Four said, leading the way forward. As the two got past everyone and said, “Excuse us!” more times than they would care to count, they were also very close to each other for an agonizingly long thirty seconds as they moved forward with hands tightly held.
When they got to the front, Four grabbed their coffees and Marie grabbed their bakery items. As Four thanked the barista, the barista’s face lit up with familiarity.
“Hey, how’s it been?” he asked excitedly. “It’s been months since you were last here. We thought something happened to you or you had to move or something.”
“Oh, it’s nothing like that. I’ve just been busy finding a job I like that’s actually stable.”
“Really, no Grizzco? I’ve heard they pay well.”
“Eh, they’re never open when I’m free. Might check them out part-time if I ever get the opportunity and need the money.”
“Well then, what do you do? And by the way, who’s the friend you're here with?”
“Oh, she’s a coworker,” Four said a bit too quickly. “We work outside of the city, doing, uh, hmm.” Turning to Marie, she asked, “How would you really describe what we do?”
In a speech that felt slightly rehearsed, Marie said, “We do investigative exploration out past Mt. Nantai. Some corporation gives us grants and other funding to see if there’s anywhere out there worth setting up any business operations for.”
“Wow,” the barista said, buying every word of it. “That sounds cool and adventurous. I can see why it’s an attractive opportunity for any freedom-loving young adults,” he said, winking at Four. “Anyways, I better get back to making orders. Come back soon, yeah? And have fun on your date, you two,” he added with a laugh.
After a moment spent finding a table, it hit Marie, who nearly shouted, “Date…DATE?!” Both she and Four went silent. Marie tried to meet Four’s eyes once they were sitting down, but Four was very intently staring down at the table while her face was flushed with the same goldenrod color as her tentacles. Marie realized that she was also probably blushing in her pale green.
“Oh, he’s just…joking. Yeah, he’s joking. He’s probably the employee I knew the best when I was a consistent regular here, but I didn’t expect him to pick right back up with jokes about my love life.”
“Pick back up?” Marie inquired.
“Yeah, I would end up talking with him about my love life, or lack thereof, when business was slow. He knows how bad I am about asking anyone out. Who knows, maybe he assumed that I finally got a girlfriend when I stopped getting coffee here.”
“Makes some sense, I guess.”
“Yeah.”
The two had their coffee and snacks in an awkward silence so tense you could cut it with a knife. Finally, Marie started, “So…”
“So?”
“So, is this and the clothes shopping something you would consider a date?” Marie skittishly asked. She remembered how she felt about Four yesterday, which was that she would gladly do anything for her.
“Well, I, uh, w-would you want it to be?” Four slowly stammered out. As she did, she hunched forward and put her head down. She was getting ready to cover her face and squeeze her eyes shut. Marie couldn’t let that happen, for she knew that this was her chance.
“I would love for this to be a date,” Marie responded decisively. With a slight waver, she continued, “And I would love to know you better. I’ve met a lot of people, trust me, but I don’t think any of them have been interesting to me like you have. None of them have taken over my thoughts like you have. Taken over my heart like you have. I would love for you to be my girlfriend.”
Four was completely and utterly dumbstruck. Realizing she should say something instead of leaving her mouth agape, she inelegantly stumbled out, “You’re so, well, different from everyone I’ve ever met. I don’t feel as much like I’m taking time away from you when I’m with you.” With a lovestruck sigh, Four whispered out, “I love you.”
“I love you too, silly. Oh, and you’re shaking now. What’s wrong?”
“You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting to do this. Plus right now I’m so happy I feel like I’m gonna explode.”
“Well if you’re gonna do that then I should come over to sit next to you, shouldn’t I Four?” As Marie did that, Four immediately buried her face into the sleeve of Marie’s jacket.
“Cute,” Marie mumbled as she smiled to herself. The two squids sat there for a good ten minutes until Marie’s phone buzzed with a text from the Galleria.
“Oh, Four, we’ve got to go soon. Your clothes are gonna arrive at your apartment soon and you need to be there to sign off on it.”
“…fine. It’s not that long a walk, so we can take our time.”
With linked arms, the two walked back to Four’s apartment. The whole way there, they were talking about the things they saw as they passed and silly moments from Four’s turf wars and things Marie had seen on show tours. Once they got to Four’s apartment, she made sure that the clothes were what she ordered and Marie signed off on her card being the one that paid for it.
After that, it seemed about time for Marie to get going. Before that, though, she said, “Hey, Four. Today was nice. I had a lot of fun.” Before Four could react, Marie gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and said, “See you tomorrow, sweetness.”
“Wait, no!” Four called out after processing what just happened.
“Oh?” asked Marie as she turned around.
“Can I, uh, can, c-can…” Four stuttered before trailing off. With a deep breath and a slight goldenrod pulse in her hair tentacles, she started again, saying, “Can I, like, ki-kiss you too before you go?”
With a crooked smile, Marie laughed, saying, “I thought you’d never ask, sweetheart.”
There in the hallway outside Four’s apartment, Marie and Four embraced and leaned into a nice kiss on the lips. Both squids' tentacles were brightly pulsing their respective colors. No one was there to see them, but they wouldn’t have minded if someone did see. The only thing in the entire world that mattered was each other.
After they broke the kiss, Four went inside and Marie decided to actually go back to her apartment for once. In their own separate apartments, both spent the rest of their time that day wondering how on earth they managed to go from mutual crushes to girlfriends.