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“I’m really bored- let’s play ‘would you rather’!” Paige said happily.
Tsuki had dropped by the store late at night after board game night with Chi and Moca. (Surprisingly, Moca didn’t flip the board despite losing against Chi, which the two of them counted as a win). The two had already left for the night and Tsuki was craving some snacks, leading him to Yori’s. Unfortunately, they had run out hours ago according to Paige, so now Tsuki was here, chatting with her as they passed the time.
“I’m game!” Tsuki said.
Paige looked at him cheekily. “Hmm… alright! Would you rather take over Scarlett or Ratthew’s job for the night?”
“No brainer. Ratthew, for sure. I’m no mixologist or anything, but I like to think I can make a good coffee.” Tsuki laughed at the thought of himself behind the counter. Ratthew would most definitely ban him from the bar if he saw the way he’s made tea in the past.
“Good answer! Uhh,” Paige put a finger on her lip as she was thinking. “Ooh! Would you rather be on Dawn or Bobo’s bad side?”
“Oh, that’s tough. Dawn?”
Paige nodded. “How ‘bout this- would you rather go on a date with Chi or Ken?”
Tsuki paused. It was a pretty tough question; Chi has been his friend since forever and was extremely fun to hang around. Ken, on the other hand, was… well, he’s-
“What about me?”
Tsuki and Paige spun around at the deep voice behind them. To their horror, it was Ken. Paige squeaked embarrassingly, almost dropping her whittling knife. Her face paled yet flushed simultaneously as her eyes darted to the stairs.
“Uh, nothing!” Paige managed to utter. She hastily glanced down at the wood chips on the floor. “I’m just going to- going to grab a broom.” Paige scrambled to the exit, her footsteps fading as she quickly ran downstairs. The broom was leaning against the wall in the corner, Tsuki noticed as he watched her run out.
‘ Traitor ,’ Tsuki thought. He turned to face Ken, who was looking at where Paige was, bewildered.
“Er, did I say something?” Ken asked.
Tsuki chuckled nervously. “Nah. It’s nothing. What’re you here for?”
“My shift’s over, so I came here for a pack of chips.” Ken eyed the selection before groaning. “‘Guess they’re out of stock.”
“Yeah, that stuff’s usually sold out at the end of the day,” Tsuki said. “It’s better to grab some earlier. Yori and Pipi restock every morning, so you can find some tomorrow.”
Ken nodded and turned to the exit. Without looking back at Tsuki, he asked, “So, what were you two talkin’ about? I heard her say my name when I got up here.”
Tsuki ignored a certain warmth rushing to his face. “We were just playing ‘would you rather’, that’s all.”
“Really? What’s that gotta do with me?”
Tsuki shrugged. “Well, she just asked me if I’d rather date you or Chi.” He waved at Elfie as they both reached the shop’s exit, turning to where Paige was hiding and glared. She just smiled before dusting basically nothing to avoid any scolding from Elfie for not doing her job.
When they reached the front of the store, Ken turned his head to face Tsuki. “So, what did ya’ say?”
“What did I say to what?”
“Who’d ‘ya pick, man? Me or Chi?”
It was Tsuki’s turn to glance over at Ken. “Huh?”
“I mean, Chi’s a cute girl, isn’t she? I could see why you’d want to choose ‘er. You hang out with her a lot? Her and Moca, that irritable turtle? I mean, I’ve heard that she’s really into books, yeah? And, uh, that Dragons and Dungeons game. You two both share a lot of hobbies, so it’s no surprise that you’d want to date ‘er-”
“Ken!” Ken’s eyes snapped up to meet his. “”What’re you talking about, dude? Chi’s a good friend of mine. We hang out a lot, yeah, but she’s just a friend.”
“So. Are you insinuating that you’d date me?”
Tsuki’s body jolted at the question, not expecting Ken to be so forward about it. “Er, well-”
“You don’t have to, you know. But ever since we’ve started talkin’, I haven’t been able to get it off my mind-”
“Wait, wait, wait.” Tsuki placed his hand on Ken’s chest. “Are you asking me out?”
Ken’s face went red as he rubbed his nape awkwardly. “Eh, yeah, sorry. Is it too much?”
“No! No, no, no. It’s- It’s fine! I’m just shocked that you’re even asking me out at all,” Tsuki said, waving his hands around. “To answer your question, yeah, I’d like to go out with you.”
Ken groaned. “Man… you’re too cute, what the hell. Wanna, I don’t know, have a picnic by the pier next Saturday?”
Tsuki laughed. “Yeah, sure. I’ll be sure to bring some chips, yeah?”
“Yeah,” Ken smiled softly.
The two walked back to Tsuki’s treehouse hand in hand, dropping Tsuki off before saying goodnight. As Tsuki closed the door with Ken’s number in hand and the ghost of a kiss plastered on his lips, he grinned at his luck and decidedly ignored the way his ears twitched excitedly at the thought of their date next weekend.