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“I-I kind of don’t even know where to start…”
Higuchi’s wide, overwhelmed eyes scan the women’s clothing department in front of her, focusing on a new item as quickly as she notices the last. She squeaks when a hand abruptly lands on her shoulder, clearly on her last nerve, and Gin walks into view to shoot her an apologetic smile.
“That’s what I’m here for, isn’t it?” Gin reassures her, but Higuchi’s eyes keep flitting to the different clothing styles neatly lining the racks. It’s early—every item is in its rightful place, and there are only a few straggling shoppers peering around in the store.
Higuchi lets out a soft, anxious sigh, taking a step forward toward a rack of silky-looking skirts. “I feel like I’m intruding on something,” she murmurs, glancing over her shoulder with a nervous look. She looks down at herself, dressed in her neat blazer and collared shirt, then raises her head to look at the other women ambling around in the department.
Gin steps forward as well. “Hey, look at me. Don’t look at them.” When Higuchi hesitantly does what she asks, she offers her another soothing smile. “Nobody’s watching you,” he says softly, and leans forward to press a quick peck to Higuchi’s cheek, which immediately sets her face on fire. Her cheeks light up pink and she reaches up to swipe at her cheek grumpily, giving Gin a stern look that hides an undeniable softness in it. Gin can’t help but hide a smug grin under their hand at their girlfriend’s flustered reaction.
“You’re right,” Higuchi mutters after a second, still absentmindedly rubbing her cheek with her thumb, “Everyone here is just doing their own thing…”
“Yeah. You’re okay. …You’re welcome here, you know.”
Gin’s smug expression softens into a more genuine happy one as Higuchi turns her attention back to them, looking shy rather than anxious now. “So… Where do we start? You’re the boss, I-I’m not really good at this sort of thing…”
“That’s the first time I’ve heard that from you,” Gin laughs under her breath, “I’ll have to write that down. Usually you’re trying to get me to listen.” Higuchi pouts at her, prompting Gin to raise her hands in an admittance of defeat. “Sorry. What are you going for here? You don’t seem like you’d be that comfortable in anything flashy. I mostly go for casual dresses and long skirts when I feel fem, want to try that?”
“Uh… that sounds nice,” Higuchi says, lips curving into a soft smile, trailing after Gin as he leads the way to a rack of sundresses. Suddenly, she gasps; Higuchi darts ahead of him to get a closer look at a specific dress, slipping it out of the rack by the hanger and holding it up.
“Oh, did that one catch your eye?” Gin stops next to her and takes a cursory look, too. It’s a light, casual collared sundress, white at the chest and abruptly switching to a dark navy from the waist down. Lemon patterns dot the skirt portion, decorated with leaves and little white flowers. “You should try it on! This one is in your size, too.”
“You really think I’d look good in it?” Higuchi breathes, gaze locked on the dress in her hands.
For a moment, Gin is tempted to say ‘you look good in everything,’ —that isn’t what Higuchi needs to hear right now, though. “I think it would look perfect on you,” they state matter-of-factly, and not waiting for Higuchi to second-guess herself, they hustle her into the nearby dressing room, drawing an indignant yelp out of their girlfriend in the process.
Higuchi stands, staring at herself in the mirror, eyes brighter than Gin has ever seen them before in her life; she’s almost convinced the sunny look on Higuchi’s face is going to blind her. Even with one hand pressed over her mouth, it’s still obvious that the woman is beaming. With a happy little laugh, Higuchi grasps the hem of her dress and does a little twirl. The fabric flows out in a circle around her knees, and she’s so awestruck by her appearance in the mirror that she stumbles against Gin’s shoulder, resting her weight on them. Gin supports her without a complaint, a smile creeping onto their own face at Higuchi’s cheery disposition.
“How do you think I look?” Higuchi asks giddily. She turns to face Gin, anxiety welling up in her eyes at the same time as exhilaration.
Gin is quick to assure her and keep the happy moment going strong. “I think you look gorgeous. But it doesn’t really matter what I think, right? See how happy you look?”
Higuchi turns to look in the mirror, a twirl in her step, and she physically can’t get rid of the smile on her face. It only grows, until tears are prickling Higuchi’s waterline, and she whips around to barrel into Gin, enthusiastically burying her face into Gin’s neck. Gin gasps and quickly wraps her arms around her girlfriend as Higuchi squeezes the living daylights out of her, tears of happiness dripping onto Gin’s shoulder.
When Higuchi lifts her head, she doesn’t give Gin a second to catch his breath before capturing his lips in an excited kiss, almost pushing him against the wall in her giddiness. It’s his turn to fluster, now; Gin’s face flushes as he cups Higuchi’s cheeks in his hands and returns her affection, excitement of his own bubbling up in his chest.
“Thank you,” Higuchi whispers when she pulls away, her eyes soft and still teary. “I love you. I’m so grateful that you came, I— I don’t know if I would have felt comfortable doing this at all if you didn’t come with me. I would probably have chickened out by now…”
A soft smile creeps onto Gin’s face, and she averts her eyes, embarrassed. “Of course. I just like seeing you happy, you know, you’re always so exhausted. …I love you too.”
Higuchi returns the smile and pulls Gin into another sweet kiss; Gin chuckles and returns it, lifting their hand to run their fingers through Higuchi’s silky blonde hair.