[log] Tanegashima Shuuji & Tachibana An ☆

[acchimuitehoi]

Who: Tanegashima Shuuji & Tachibana An
What: They go on a date to see flowers, eat pudding, and go on a row boat. Shuuji finally fesses up to his feelings for An.
When: September 28th
Rating: PG

Shuuji felt inspired to finally do something.

With his conversation with Kuranosuke in the back of his mind, he remembered that he really ought to be following his own advice and just telling An directly that he was attracted to her. Compliments, singing her praises, physical affection, and everything he generally thought was fairly indicative of his feelings toward her did not seem to work, but maybe the gardens would provide the perfect backdrop for telling her.

The car, though it would have been private, would have interrupted their fun singing along loudly to show tunes on the way. He tried to teach her a bit of the Chinese version of the Mulan soundtrack as they drove, all the while thinking about how he was going to finally fess up.

I really like you and want to kiss you. How ‘bout it?

Somehow, he was just certain that would not go over as planned.

An was really looking forward to today. After looking like it was going to rain the sun was peeking out of the sky and it looked like it was going to be a nice day.

A friend of hers had uploaded a few pictures of herself with a field of cosmos and around a park that An thought it looked like it would be a great place to visit. Upon looking up more information she found that the park offered quite a bit of things to do besides just looking at pretty flowers, especially when she noticed that it even rented out boats on the small lake and it reminded her of a proposition from a fluffy headed someone.

Sure Shuuji had said canoeing but row boats were similar? So she invited the older man to come with her. An wasn’t exactly sure how interested he’d be in the whole display but he seemed happy to come along with her.

She found herself laughing as she tried repeating the lyrics that Shuuji sang but she couldn’t exactly get the pronunciation right. An always had an easier time with English but had never really given chinese much of a thought. Shaking her head, she put up her hands, “I don’t think theres any way of not getting me to not butcher this song.”

An wasn’t wrong. Shuuji laughed and said, “practice makes perfect, right? If you ever come visit my family again, you’ll be able to sing in Chinese to my grandmother and she’ll be super impressed.” Though, Shuuji’s grandmother had actually quite liked both of the Tachibana siblings during their visit to Tanegashima. The only member of his family that hadn’t quickly taken to her was Tokitaka, the family parrot, but that was hardly a surprise. The parrot was notorious for tormenting their visitors. He had heard from Kippei that the parrot sent him to the laundry room, a closet, and finally the kitchen looking for the bathroom in Kippei’s drunken stupor.

“It does, but I think I'll be needing lots of practice in that case.” She added as she looked out the window. An wasn't exactly sure if she'd find herself singing to the elderly woman but she did want to try learning some Chinese if she ever did visit again.

They were finally almost there, the park was relatively close but traffic had made the trek alittle longer. Not that she had minded as they had been having some fun. “ hǎochī?” She worded slowly to Shuuji and then grinned. It was one of the few words she had picked up to at least use during her stay since to at least show some appreciation.

Shuuji nodded appreciatively. “As long as you know that, you’ll definitely make her happy. She likes cooking for others.” In fact, every time he visited there he stood to gain a few kilos just from all the wonderful treats his grandmother would prepare for him. The rub of it was that she also sent him home with a giant care package so his, albeit impressive, metabolism had its work cut out for it if he was going to be fitting into his pants after spending time back home.

They had been fortunate that the weather was nice that day - mostly sunny, but not too hot out. Given the time of year they could have been caught in rain but it seemed like they were going to get away without it. “Looks like we’ve escaped the rain,” Shuuji commented. “But I brought my bunny umbrella just in case.” Like half the population of Japan, he, too, had a clear umbrella from daiso. But his was covered in a cute bunny pattern and was comfortable enough for two.

“She was very sweet~” She had definitely made An feel at home when she had visited and she even learned a few new recipes while she was there. Learning a bit more words would do her good.

At the mention of a bunny umbrella she couldn't help but let out a snort. “Then you were more responsible than me, I forgot to bring mine but at least I didn't forget to bring us lunch.” The park did actually have a restaurant but An thought it was a nicer idea to just make some and enjoy being outside.”

“Between the two of us, we have managed to be responsible,” Shuuji agreed with a nod. He was looking forward to whatever picnic An had packed and wouldn’t want it to be spoiled by rain, either. Even if she was laughing at his bunny umbrella. But, really, was she even surprised at this point?

They pulled in and found a place to park, though it was obvious they were hardly going to be the only visitors of the park that day. Not that it was unexpected that it would be a popular place given the weather and the brief nature of such places. “We’re here,” Shuuji told her as though that were not obvious. “Want help carrying stuff?”

Once the car stopped she put her hand up, “ I think we did pretty well, you make sure we don't get wet and I make sure our stomachs are full. I wouldn't want to hear yours rumbling.” She teased as she opened up the passenger door. Looking into the back An thought for a moment and shook her head, “ I think I'll be alright.” All she had really was a bag that carried their lunch , she hadn’t thought to bring much more than that and a few necessities.

“Alright.” Shuuji closed the car doors once An was unpacked and locked the car, starting to make his way to where they would be setting up their picnic. He tapped the umbrella on his shoulder as he walked. “What do you think - food first? Wandering first?” He was not really the sort that waited until he got hungry to eat, he would eat when there was food, so it was up to An.

With her bag in hand she tilted her head and looked at him and then at her watch, it wasn’t exactly lunch time but maybe eating early would be a good idea and as a way to beat the crowds a bit. “We can have lunch and then wander, plus we can come back real quick and leave this behind.” She motioned to her bag and smiled, “I think there’s an area near the entrance that would work.” At least that’s what it looked like when An looked at the map last night.

‘Sounds good,” Shuuji said agreeably and led them toward the entrance to find the spot that An mentioned. There were already some picnickers set up there, but there was plenty of room for them to set up a blanket and get comfortable on the grass. Even though they had hardly scratched the surface of what the park had to offer, even in this area it was beautiful and there was a sweet scent in the air. He set his umbrella down and looked back to An. “I can’t wait to see what we’re having for lunch.”

With the blanket set up, An started with opening up the bentos box that she had made, “I took some liberty but I probably should have asked you what you wanted to eat.” She knew that Shuuji wasn’t a fussy eater so she tried thinking of things they’d probably enjoy. “So we’ve got stir fried vegetables, egg salad sandwiches, inarizushi and some onigiri.” The last of which An had some fun with and made to look like snow bunnies, she was sure he’d get a kick out of that.

Shuuji was easy, it all looked good. Then his eyes settled on the onigiri and his heart swelled. He leaned closer to her to investigate them more closely. The little ears and eyes… they were perfect. Shuuji knocked his shoulder playfully against An’s. “Here you are just calling them ‘some onigiri.’ These are adorable - how long did they take?” He didn’t bother to move away again now that he was close.

Her smile grew at his reaction and pushed back lighty, “Not very long, it’s just shaping some rice and adding bits of seaweed.” She usually wasn’t one to make charabens but it was something subtle and cute so it worked for her.

Looking back to the the boxes she let out a sound in thought, “I hope this is enough for the both of us..” Blinking, she then grinned, “I also brought dessert but I’ll keep that for later since it’s a surprise.”

“If not, there’s always McDonald’s on the way home,” Shuuji joked. He scooched closer and picked up one of the onigiri. He hesitated, trying to decide which side to bite from, before taking it head-first. It seemed like a swift death that way.

An would hope it was enough or she would have to rethink how much Shuuji actually ate.

As she picked up a sandwich she watched the older man as he looked unsure as he finally took a bite, “Poor rabbit, I wonder if I should have made them into normal shapes.” She mused as she took a bite from her own sandwich.

“Now you’re just making me feel bad,” Shuuji said with a laugh, wiping a bit of rice off his lips. Food that was shaped like animals was adorable and made him happy, but also made him not want to eat it. But since An made it for him, he obviously wouldn’t refuse. “It never stood a chance.”

An raised an eyebrow as she chewed, “ It’s not entirely on purpose.” She said as she hid behind her sandwich and taking another bite. Looking at it for a moment she raised it up to his face, while she wouldn’t talk but her face was easy to read, Want a bite?

Obligingly, Shuuji took a bite from the sandwich and chewed. It was delicious - he would have to dig in to the rest of what she brought for them. He got so excited about the bunny onigiri he almost completely ignored the rest of the beautiful meal she made. Before she could take the sandwich away, he took another intentionally giant bite that was nearly a fourth of the sandwich and smiled at her with his cheeks puffed full of sandwich as he chewed.

Having swallowed all An could do was open her mouth before pouting once that most of her sandwich was gone, With her freehand she grabbed onto one of his cheeks and pulled lightly, “You were supposed to try, not eat the whole thing.” While she was supposed to look annoyed she couldn’t help but be amused as the pout was starting to turn into a smile. Oh well, there was more where that came from.

“If you don’t make it taste so good I won’t eat it all,” Shuuji whined, just letting her drag him by the cheek. He had the perfect sort of full cheeks that could be tugged on. He added, “it was an indirect kiss, right? I just wanted seconds…”

“While I’m glad you liked it….” She started while letting go of his cheek, “I don’t really believe in that kind of thing.” She finished what was left of her sandwich and pulled out a bottle of iced tea from her bag to take a sip. “If anything you ate my germs.” With that she took a sip before offering the bottle to Shuuji, “And drinking them. Hm?”

“Mm, Ladybug germs,” Shuuji joked, accepting the bottle and taking a drink. He then offered the back end of the bunny onigiri to An, it was only fair. “Would you like to snack on mine, too?”

She shook her head with a smile and paused to look at his half eaten onigiri before grabbing one for herself from the bento “I think I’d rather eat an entire one.” An tried to take an equally big bite but all she ended up doing was covering her mouth with bits of rice as she tried chewing through it all. An wanted to laugh at herself but she’d probably choke if she did.

Shuuji laughed and lifted his hand to wipe away the rice on her lips, but his fingers stopped shy of her mouth and then instead brushed over her cheek. Acting on instinct, he leaned closer and touched his lips to hers gently, lingering only a moment. Even when he broke the kiss, he didn’t move away entirely, meeting her eyes with his hand rested on her cheek.

An was almost sure that Shuuji was trying to just clean her mouth when he lifted his hand up but she didn’t imagine that instead she would get kissed . She didn’t even have time to react and all An could find that she could do was swallow and stare back at him as she felt her face grow hot. “Do you really want my germs that badly?” Yes, that was all she could think up as she tried to process the situation.

“...Yes?” Shuuji offered quietly.

With his answer she was quick to push the rest of her onigiri to his mouth, “Here then~” She said as she tried to will away the flush from her face.

Shuuji chewed, swallowed, and laughed, not sure what had come over him or if it had really been alright for him to do it. “I’m sorry,” he said, moving away and focusing his eyes on the blanket below them. “I got too friendly.”

Sure she was embarrassed among other things but seeing Shuuji apologize didn’t seem right to here either. Wiping the spare bits of rice from her mouth , An decided to knock her head against his shoulder, “ Don’t apologize, I don’t know about friendly but don’t worry about it. I don’t like seeing you look dejected, I prefer it when you have a dumb goofy smile on your face.” It was a simple kiss but it was enough of a message for her to notice that Shuuji might actually like her.

With a sigh, Shuuji admitted, “this isn’t the first time, though. Not the first time I’ve thought about it. There was that time on the beach under the stars, that time in the kitchen covered in flour…” He looked at her, mustering a smile though it wasn’t quite so strong around the edges. “I’ve wanted to kiss you all those times.”

An listened closely, remembering all those moments. They were all memories that she remembered enjoying at least she remembered baking a cake with Shuuji well, under the stars was another story but there was something that she knew and that she was comfortable with the older man. She wasn’t sure where she stood but An enjoyed spending time with Shuuji.

She swallowed once and didn’t look away as she took a breath, “ All I want to know is if you’re serious about it.” An didn’t want to lie to herself , but it was something that she needed to know, just because he wanted to kiss her didn’t mean he might not want to kiss other people as well.

“Yes,” Shuuji said after a pause, collecting his thoughts. “But I also really like being your friend.” He didn’t like the words coming out of his own mouth, but it was a terrible habit of his to be this way. He fell hard and fast and then just couldn’t even look at anyone else. Even if he appeared to be flirting or saying nice things to others, it was all with no intention behind it. It couldn’t be because there was this one person that made him feel like the sun wouldn’t rise without her. “So… that’s more important to me than any kisses.”

This was where An really needed to think about what she wanted to do, because if Shuuji was going to be serious than so was she. “I could make a terrible joke but I won’t.” At least she was trying to be. “ I really like being your friend too..and I’m still not sure..what exactly it is that I want or feel and that’s not fair to you.” An paused and looked away towards a group of trees, “I’m willing to try? Like when we went on that date...” Had it been that long already? Licking her lips she looked back to him with a half smile, “I guess that date sort of stopped being a date after a while huh?”

“Yeah, kinda.” Shuuji nodded to himself. He knew that what he was feeling wasn’t going to be what An was feeling, but he was still genuinely surprised that she wanted to give it a try. It took him a few seconds to process the reality of it all - that she was worried it wasn’t fair to him, that things on their first attempt at a date had taken a sudden turn before dinner... “I don’t want to rush anything that isn’t right, either. I can wait as long as you need.”

It had been selfish of her in the first place to having agreed to go out with him not when she had someone else on her mind. “It’s not rushing- it’s something I’ve decided if you’re willing.” She said looking at him seriously. An wouldn’t even had said anything in the first place if there wasn’t something that made her want to think about the possibility. She knew that it was better to let him down if she truly didn’t feel anything at all. “I don’t know if it’s the right thing to do but let’s just enjoy ourselves?”

There was some old adage about well behaved women seldom making history - Shuuji thought that sentiment summed up An pretty well. “Okay,” he said, smiling at her. “I always do with you.” She was like sunshine - he couldn’t possibly not enjoy himself with her. He wondered if this was what all those people felt when they looked at Kippei, like they were staring directly at the sun. “And if nothing else… you feed me bunny onigiri if we go out, so…”

Taking a long breath she shook her head again and pulled out two pairs of chopsticks, “Let’s just finish lunch, shall we?” There was still things she was processing but at least now she didn’t tiptoe around Shuuji’s feelings.

Shuuji was all too happy to join her in lunch - food was a nice distraction from the bit of awkwardness as they figured out where they were going to proceed from there. Once they were done eating, they packed up their blanket and food and returned it to the car so they could have hands free to explore the flowers - it was the real reason they came, right? Not the showtunes or the kissing or the… whatever they were doing from here.

As advertised, they were surrounded by beautifully bloomed cosmos in every direction. The soft, small flowers coated the ground around them bringing out excited chatter from the other guests who are taking selfies with the flowers or couples on dates cooing over the flowers as they snuggle up to one another. For Shuuji, it brings his mind back to a peaceful place.

An somehow felt like a bit of the weight had been lifted off her shoulders as they got back to their lunch and began chatting up. All she could do was be herself and just see where things went and they enjoyed the rest of their day.

Here they were now finally having made it the giant field of cosmos . A bright smile made its way to her face as she really took in the sight before her. There were just so many shades of pinks and purples that she really wanted to get a closer look to see how different they really were. While there was other people it didn’t seem as busy as she thought it would be, maybe they did good in eating lunch early. “Have I ever told you that I’m really bad with plants?”

Shuuji got as close as he could to the flowers to smell them. “Are you?” He looked over at her. “All plants, or just the ones that are hard to care for like orchids?” Shuuji himself kept a fair number of plants in his apartment, but they were all tolerant to low light and drought (if he inevitably forgot to water them). He would have a hard time killing them.

“Yes..like...I think if I touch one of these flowers, it’ll just wither away and die.” She joked as she let her hand circle around a flower without touching the petals. “No matter what plant I have it just dies, I’m destined to owning plastic plants.” She laughed once and brought herself closer to the flower that Shuuji was inspecting and giving it a whiff. “It smells really nice.”

“It does.” Shuuji also gently touched the petals of one flower. There was something soothing about the smooth, soft sensation. “Or you’re gonna have to find someone who has a green thumb,” he offered. Though plastic plants could honestly look so real, sometimes - sometimes more real than the living ones, sometimes nearly indistinguishable.

She raised an eyebrow with a lopsided smile, “You think? The plastic cactus that I have doesn’t look to bad and on the plus side I can’t get pricked.” Lifting her head up she looked around once more before pointing towards an opening in the field, “Should we go for a little walk?” While they couldn’t walk exactly where ever they wanted but there was paths that they could take that put them right into the middle of the field.

“Sure,” Shuuji held up his phone. “I think there’s a map online.” He pulled up the website, scrolling through some menus to try to find it. “Or… maybe we’re just going to have to wing it.” He shrugged, looking at their options before deciding to take the middle path wherever that led them. He walked a bit more slowly than usual so as to not to force An to walk at an uncomfortable pace.

“Guess we’re going on an adventure.” At least what they we were walking into was just a field of flowers and not an actual maze. While An was used to walking fast due to having short legs and needing to keep but Shuuji’s slower pace was welcomed as they walked side by side looking over the display.

“How did you find out about this?” Shuuji asked, looking to An as they walked. “I probably wouldn’t have thought to come here on my own.” Not that he wasn’t the sort to enjoy wandering away from the city from time to time, but he didn’t have his fingers on the pulse when it came to places like this. He probably should have, he must have been missing out on all manner of incredible things.

Shuuji wasn't the only one, “A friend of mine posted a picture on Instagram, I thought it'd be nice to come since they offered other things to do as well... like row boats or biking.” She smiled up at him, “You wanted to go canoeing right? Next best thing.”

“Row boats are basically just wider canoes,” Shuuji agreed, though the two things were vastly different. It did make him happy that An was looking out for a place for them to go on their promised canoeing trip. “It would be nice to check out the bike paths, too. Unless these are the bike paths.”

While the flowers were beautiful , it was good that they could do more than just view the

flowers with the time it took for them to get there. “Row boat seem slower but we could ride bikes as well, I'm up for anything.” Looking around them and considering that the path barely fit the two of them all she could do was shake her head. “Maybe, but I think it's just for walking.”

“Are we going to sing while we row boats? Because I think we should work on your Chinese Mulan lyrics.” He grinned at her impishly. Though, it seemed as though there was a very specific song designed for singing while rowing boats.

With a look that said it all, she pushed on Shuuji by the arm and laughed, “I think we should keep the Disney songs to the car, I don't think anyone wants to hear us singing.”

“I want to hear you singing,” Shuuji corrected her, snagging up the hand she had pushed him with to hold her hand. Her hand felt strangely small in his, but familiar. “And who cares what all these people think? It’s very important you learn Mulan for my aging grandmother.”

As Shuuji grabbed her hand she looked to him but gave his hand a friendly squeeze, “ I don't really care either but I think your grandma would prefer I learn actual Chinese and not know how to sing Make a man out of you”

“You’d be astonished,” Shuuji said with a laugh. It would genuinely impress his grandmother if An learned Chinese, especially if he were to present her in the future as a significant other. But the charm of learning it through a Disney song might win her even more brownie points. If that was what An wanted, that was. He also couldn’t help but hum the song under his breath as they walked. “Did you know Jackie Chan is in the Chinese dub?”

An knew that Shuuji loved Disney, while she didn't feel as strongly,she definitely was a fan. “ That tidbit I didn't know but I'm not surprised since Jackie Chan is pretty much the face of China.” At least when it came to celebrities.

Looking around it looked like they were nearing an opening, “Want to take a picture with the flowers?”

Shuuji was so used to having his picture taken that he didn’t even flinch at the request. “Sure - I need a new phone backdrop, anyway.” He fished his phone out of his pocket so they could take a selfie with it. “We’re going to figure out how to scootch in - maybe we should sit down?”

She wanted to say some about him making it his background but instead An noticed what he said next and half pouted, “You're too tall, maybe if you bend down it'll also work, or maybe on your knees?”

“Or, what if I kneel and you sit on my knee? That’ll be about right, I think.” He knelt beside her, encouraging her to sit. That way they could get in close, as well, which was ideal for a selfie. No one would need to awkwardly crane or bend for the photo.

After staring at him for a moment, An let go of his hand and took a seat but did try to keep most of her weight off from his knee. “Should we use your phone?”

Shuuji wrapped an arm around An’s waist to stabilize her and held out his arm with his phone in hand. “We can always take pictures with both phones if you want one for your background, too. Or I can send it to you.” He looked to the phone, putting on his best model smile and said, “Okay~ cheese!” He snapped the picture when they were both smiling.

“I think just sending me them will be good enough.” She said as she put on a smile.

Since it was bright out it was hard to make out how well it turned out, “We should take another one or two just in case.” Posing again, this time before Shuuji could snap she stuck out her tongue and pulled on his cheeks.

Shuuji laughed. He would have his revenge for that one. Before the next snap of the shutter, he turned his head to kiss her cheek, trying to capture the exact moment in the picture.

Trying to actually not kid around she, smiled again but was quick to turn her head once the shutter went off to raise an eyebrow at the older man. “That's sneaky...” She said playfully. Even if it was she wasn't so surprised that he did that.

“Too sneaky?” He rested their foreheads together, the arm holding his phone lowering. He looked at her through his bangs, the slightest smile touching his lips. “Then, no surprises this time. May I kiss you?”

At his proposition, An could feel a smidge of heat return to her face, “It was sort of sneaky..” She mumbled as she thought for a moment before nodding lightly against him. “ I still think you're sneaky even if you're being honest now.” If An was going to try than she wasn't going to back away now, even she had to admit that Shuuji was being cute.

“I’m always honest,” he insisted softly before touching his lips to hers, again. The kiss was gentle, heartfelt, though not chaste. This time he didn’t pull away, immediately, but also wasn’t going to push his luck. His arm wrapped around her back pulled her closer against his chest.

As Shuuji pulled her closer, An lifted a hand to rest on his shoulder as he kissed her.It wasn't like the kiss Shuuji had given her at lunch that was gone in a flutter of a second and this time she had time to react as she kissed back slowly. It was all about enjoying the moment.

Encouraged, and not the type to shy away from a bit of PDA, Shuuji dragged it out. He really didn’t care if they were being watched judgingly from all angles, what better place to show your affection for someone than amidst this beautiful field of flowers? He only broke the kiss to rain a series of little kisses on her lips, the corner of her mouth, her cheek, and finally the tip of her nose, before pulling away. He smiled dopily at her.

An could feel her face grow warmer at every display of affection that Shuuji added, the kiss had been sweet but so were all the one that he had added on until she wrinkled her nose at the last kiss he placed on it.

The corner of her lip twitched up as she moved her hand to push at his face, “I’m still debating if you’re sure about being always honest.” Her words were playful as she pulled away from him but not before placing her own kiss on his nose.

Shuuji chuckled, closing his eyes for a moment and letting out a little sigh. “Let’s just add that to the list of things we’re figuring out. At least you don’t think I’m an axe murderer.” He helped An back to her feet and stood, brushing off his left knee that had been resting on the ground.

He pulled out his phone to look at the pictures they had taken. “Hm~ which one should be my background…”

She laughed as he brought that up, “I’m 99% sure that you’re not an axe murderer, I could be wrong.”

As he pulled out his phone, she stepped closer to look at the photos, they were all really cute in their own way, “You should probably keep the rabbits.” An joked.

Against her advice, Shuuji picked the one of An making a silly face while she tugged on Shuuji’s cheeks and set it as his background. He also texted her the photos, as promised. “What I really need is a picture of us with the bunnies, then it will be perfect.”

“Maybe next time.” She smiled lightly as he chose his background, it was the most amusing of the the three.

Looking back to the opening and then to Shuuji, she pulled on his shirt, “Want to go explore the rest of the park?”

“Yeah, let’s go.” Shuuji followed her lead, this time, taking her hand once more. They had spent a fair amount of time eating and dallying so the sun was high in the sky and it was a warm, sunny afternoon. Perfect for a walk through the flowers.

With a grin, she pulled the older man along as they made their way onto another path. While An didn’t have a map there were a few signs and it wasn’t like they were in a rush to get anywhere so she just took any random turn that seemed right. The field had been lovely but the forested area that they were in now was equally as nice and not as congested with people.

“So...you know I was wondering..” She started, her eye’s flickering up to look to Shuuji. “ why do you like me? If you don’t mind me asking.”

That was not a question that Shuuji was prepared to answer. He didn't really have a reason. It was more like a photo box of memories. He liked her spirit, her humor, that she loved books, that she fed his bunny obsession, that she learned how to tell his grandmother that her cooking was delicious in Chinese. He liked her for her, all of her, even the parts that tested his patience.

“Under the stars,” he said finally, holding her hand a little tighter. “That's when I was sure of what I felt.” Since then they had more misadventures including a disastrous cake baking adventure and today's date. “But it's never been about why and more about how much. And that night on the beach, the answer became ‘the most.’”

She turned her head to look up at Shuuji as he answered, An could tell that he was being sincere when he spoke and it made her blush even though a small smile played on her lips as she looked back and found a sign that indicated that they were going towards the lake, “I’m pretty sure I said a lot of odd things that night.” An joked as she swung their hands up, “But..it’s good enough for me.”

“What about you?” Shuuji asked, swinging their hands back like a pendulum like a pair of kids. “What made you decide that maybe we could give it a try, after all?” He knew that when they went on their first date, An had been interested in someone else at the time. And there was the whole axe murderer accusation…

Of course he was going to ask and for that An almost regretted having asked in the first place. Her eyes looked around the area as if that was going to give her the exact answer she wanted to give Shuuji. Pursing her lips, An let out a breath, “I like spending time with you..you’re funny and laid back and you can be charming…” She mumbled the last bit before looking back up to Shuuji, “You’re also really kind, I like that about you.” With that, she could feel herself blushing again and pouted, “I think that’s enough of a reason for now.”

“Good enough for me,” Shuuji said, continuing to swing their hands. “Thank you, too. I want to be all those things for you, Ladybug.” She looked like that was almost painful for her to answer and Shuuji didn’t want her to be embarrassed. She was right, the best part of being together was that it was always relaxing and laid back with her.

“You know...You can call me An from time to time..”While the nickname that Shuuji made up had grown on her she did enjoy being called by her name. “I think you’ll be just fine.” She smiled back up to him as they finally arrived to their next stop. While it wasn’t a massive lake it was big enough that that they rented out boats to row out onto it. “Shall we row?”

It wasn’t that Shuuji had forgotten her name, it was that calling people by their names didn’t come terribly naturally when he preferred to give nicknames that were like a secret handshake. It felt weirdly formal, but if she said it, it must be because she felt like it would be nice to hear her name from him more.

“Yeah, let’s do it.” Shuuji said, going to figure out how the boat rentals worked and getting them set up with their boat and oars so they could go out on the lake. The lake was huge, but it still didn’t quite satisfy the same urge to be around water as he would feel when he went to the ocean. He missed the ocean terribly living in the city. He helped An into the boat so they could get out on the water.

As they drifted out toward the more central area of the lake, Shuuji commented, “Last time I went on one of these, I was with a very contrary person. We ended up rowing in a circle for about five minutes before we agreed to work together.”

Looking around them there were only a few boats out so it would be easy for them to maneuver about. “You’d think after a minute of going in circles you’d give up and start rowing in the same direction,” She laughed and moved her oars lightly, “This is nice~ Sorry it’s not a canoe but I like it.”

One would think, Shuuji agreed silently. “It is nice. As long as we still get that pudding, I’ll forgive this for not being a canoe.” At least in a row boat they could see one another instead of a canoe where they would both be faced the same direction in line. It was actually quite nice to ride with someone who sat beside him and helped row rather than letting him do all the work, too.

Oh,that’s right. The pudding was the missing piece and An had that covered..at least sort of. Letting go of her oar for a moment she pulled up her bag and rummaged, “I couldn’t actually bring any pudding but..” She stopped her words and pulled out a bag for Shuuji to see, a grin played on her face, “Do you think these will do?” Limited edition Caramel pudding kitkats would have to save the day.

Shuuji looked at the package and couldn’t help the grin that broke out on his face. It wasn’t quite pudding, no, but that she had the foresight to bring the next best thing was actually quite thoughtful. “Looks delicious,” he said. “And easy to share.”

Her grin grew at Shuuji's reaction. “You think? I don't know how tasty they'll actually be but it's worth a shot.” An mused as she opened up the bag and handed him a bright orange wrapped piece. She knew it was silly gesture but it was still sort of fun.

Shuuji unwrapped the kitkat and did not hesitate to bite in. It wasn’t pudding, but it was delicious. “Mm~ this is perfect,” he told her. “Thank you.” Given the small size of the packaging for limited edition kitkats, it was gone before he realized it.

Mimicking Shuuji’s actions she also took a bite and stared at him before laughing as she chewed, “The only thing about pudding in this is the name.” It tasted more like caramel but it’s wasn’t that bad. “Remind me that we should get actual real pudding next time.”

“Maybe a pudding parfait? Something layered with whipped cream and brownies, or something like that.” But even if it tasted more like caramel than pudding, it did the trick. And even if this wasn’t the exact date they talked about or planned, it was just about the best date Shuuji could have imagined.

That sounded heavenly, “You know I have a sweet tooth right?” That was clearly rhetorical but if anyone one knew her just a tiny bit they’d just know.

Setting the bag down, she looked to the oar and back to Shuuji, “Should we row or bit or would you prefer we go around in circles?”

“I do have some experience in going in circles,” Shuuji said thoughtfully as he scanned around the pond. His eyes landed on a small nook that was surrounded by cattails on the shore that was a little bit off the beaten path (or at least wasn’t occupied by other boats). “But there’s a nice area over there with cattails - should we go check it out?”

Looking behind her she could make out the bunches of cattails and gave a nod before picking up her oar again, “Might as well or we’ll just end up sitting here eating kitkats.” Not that eating kitkats was ever a bad option but the spot looked interesting to maneuver into.

“That wouldn't be the worst thing,” Shuuji joked, though he took up rowing again nevertheless. It was a peaceful day to drift across the lake.

“We can eat them on our way back to Tokyo.” She joked back as they rowed together.While An was petite it wasn’t like she didn’t any arm strength , playing tennis and working out to keep her strength up did help her out.

“If we eat them, we can’t sing Disney songs at the top of our lungs.” Shuuji kept with An’s rowing pace not wanting to actually send them into circles. He was going to have a hard time picking an absolutely highlight of the date, but it the Disney songs at the start of it were pretty great. He would hate to miss out on the way back.

As they finally made their way into the nook, An took a moment to admire the cattails before raising an eyebrow at Shuuji with a teasing smile, “Should I be taking you to Karaoke? Sounds like you need a session.” Letting go of her oar, she pulled out her phone and raised it up to snap a photo of the older man, “If we’re going to be singing Disney again, I ask we change up movie soundtracks.”

Shuuji nodded thoughtfully. “Who needs karaoke when you can get a private concert? Joke will be on you if my music career takes off and you have to buy tickets to hear me sing.” He leaned closer, trying to see the picture An had taken. “But we can do whatever you…” He tilted his head. “Why did you take my picture?”

Giving him an unimpressed look, she tapped on her phone to pull up the picture she had taken, “If it does, wouldn’t your songs end up online? I could just listen to them there.” Looking at the picture the quick that she had taken wasn’t actually to bad, he seemed relaxed. “I was told if I took pictures of you I’d get paid. Blame the paparazzi.” She joked.

“You could at least buy my songs on iTunes and support my budding career.” It wasn’t a bad picture of him, actually. Shuuji tended to be photogenic even when he wasn’t posing deliberately for his work. He was just a naturally photogenic person. “That one isn’t going to sell for much - now if you were to try to sell the one of me kissing you, that’d fetch a nice price.”

“Maybe I could do that much~” Shuuji’s music career wasn’t something she could picture all too much but if he really wanted that than she’d be a good friend and support him. Putting her phone away, An stared at him before nodding thoughtfully, “You’re right, that would probably be worth more. Then they could make up whatever they liked to make it more interesting...Like me being an ex convict or being part of a cult or something.”

“You have that ex-con cultist sort of look about you,” Shuuji said thoughtfully as he admired her. He wasn’t sure exactly why he was still thinking about it, but he gently nudged her shoulder. “So, why did you really take my picture?”

“I know, right?” She smiled playfully and nudged him back, “You’re not going to give up are you?” Leaning back, she tapped on the wood they were sitting on as she gave it a thought, “Just a whim I guess, commemorate that we actually rowed a boat? I thought it was a nice picture to take.”

Well, they were actually rowing a boat. It was sort of sweet, though. “Maybe for our next date, I should take you to see one of my shoots - they get lots of candids that don’t get posted and I bet they’d take your picture, too, if you wanted. Might be kind of fun, right?” Though, truth be told, photoshoots could be gruelling ordeals of contorting one’s body into unhuman positions to approximate a shape that was just going to get photoshopped anyway. Depended on where it was getting published.

Date. That’s right,they would be going on more dates…She’d have to think of other thigns they could do might enjoy together. “I think it’d be interesting to go see what it’s like, I’ve never been to one but I don’t know about getting pictures taken.” She said threading a hand through her hair. An didn’t want to lie to Shuuji either.

“Oh, well, and you don’t have to.” Shuuji shrugged one shoulder. “Not everyone is comfortable in front of a camera or particularly enjoys it.” He reached out one hand to settle over one of hers in a comforting motion. “I think maybe I made you think too hard.”

She pursed her lips, it wasn’t that she minded getting her picture taken but the atmosphere it just seemed almost out what she considered her comfort zone. “I think that you’re thinking to hard about me thinking.” She teased with a smile as she looked down at their hands, “You’re the model...It’s kind of second nature to be in that world at this point.”

“I think you might be thinking right.” Shuuji linked their fingers together, giving her hand a little squeeze, and then took his hand back. “I don’t know if you ever really get used to getting thousands of pictures taken.”

“I’m sure you’re fine.” She gave his hand a squeeze back, “You should invite me to an interesting photoshoot...like having to be dressed as a giant pumpkin.”

“If I go as a pumpkin, will you go as Cinderella?” Just after the words came out of his mouth, Shuuji amended, “No, we should go to a costume party like that.”

At Shuuji’s question, An couldn’t help but laugh, “I think I’d rather join you as a pumpkin. It seemed like a lot more fun than being dressed up as a princess.”

With a practiced serious expression, Shuuji said, “But if you’re a pumpkin, then I should be dressed as Cinderella.”

“Perfect,” She smiled, “I’d love to see you in an obnoxious dress and heels.”

“Wouldn’t I be quite a bit taller than you, then? It might be better to go as Cinderella in actual slippers. Not glass slippers, actually just slippers.” He had a few pairs of bunny slippers that would do the job if he could get away with that. Then it would just be a matter of getting the blue gown.

Everyone usually was quite a bit taller than her in general so An put up her hands and waved him off, “Would it really matter? You are plenty tall now.”

“But when the prince comes to find me, he wouldn’t look for a man wearing glass slippers.” Shuuji grinned widely at An, just imagining what this would end up looking like. He could go all-out and wear a blonde wig, too.

She blinked once and grinned, “Maybe the prince is looking for a man. We shouldn’t think so one dimensional.”

“You’re right.” Shuuji nodded. “That was narrow-minded. So, tell me about this prince - is he sweet? Smart? Handsome? Funny? Does he like bunnies?” It was going to be a deal-breaker if Prince Charming wasn’t a bunnies guy.

“He’s pretty decent and he possibly likes rabbits so maybe you should give him a chance.” She winked at him before laughing and shaking her head.

“Hm~ I think I’ll stick with the good thing I’ve got going on,” Shuuji replied.

A smile remained on her lips, time would tell but for now the time they had spent together had been fun and An was enjoying herself. She certainly didn't imagine that Shuuji would have confessed to what he had been feeling but, “Hope you don't regret it~.” Her words playful as she leaned a hand up to poke Shuuji in the cheek. There was no need to rush.