Ayaka had been feeling pretty bad the last few days. Her plan to confess to Momo was foiled, and she couldn't think of another way to do it. Currently, she was lying on her bed with an empty look, staring at the ceiling.
She brainstormed for some time until she found an obvious solution. Ayaka decided to invite Momo on a date. She wouldn't phrase it like that to her, but it still was a date.
Her plan was to meet around noon and have lunch, then go to the Aquarium, see cute animals, and enjoy some time together, and at last, find a place where they could be alone and say what she felt. Flawless.
With this in mind, Ayaka picked up her phone and after 30 minutes of anxiety, she finally invited Momo to the date. Soon, nervousness started to plague her, and the longer Momo took to answer, the worse it became.
This was the invite she sent: "Hey Momo, how are you doing? I was wondering if you'd have some free time Saturday morning. Since our festival plans were canceled, I wanted to make up for it."
The meditation exercises she ran in the meantime, helped calm her nerves. After what seemed like an eternity (10 minutes), her phone vibrated, indicating a notification.
Ayaka snatched the phone instantly and saw her answer, "I'd love to go! I'm so happy that we get to meet again. I was bummed out that I wasn't going to see you again soon." This answer was way better than what she expected. Her hopes of the confession working out skyrocketed, but so did the insecurity that this could just be friendliness between girls.
She replied with confidence, betraying her insecurities "Great! I'll be looking forward to it."
Going back a few minutes, inside Momo's room. She was studying quietly and peacefully, until her phone suddenly sounded. Momo didn't check the phone immediately, she never liked to interrupt her education to use her cellphone, but today she did.
When she read that fateful message, her eyes widened and she jumped from the chair. Momo pondered for a bit, deciding on how to answer the text. In the end, she tried being forward, explicitly saying that she wanted to see Ayaka again, in an attempt to make her feelings clear.
The date Ayaka set was in 3 days, on a Saturday, so Momo had time to prepare. However, to her teenage mind that was not nearly enough time. She immediately ran to her closet and rummaged through all her hundreds of clothes.
After narrowing it down to twelve different outfits, Momo decided to take a break and do something else.
Meanwhile, as soon as Momo accepted the invite, Ayaka summoned Jirō to her house, so she could get some help picking the outfit she'd wear.
Jirō was sitting on Ayaka's bed, with her legs crossed like she was some big-shot critic.
"That's way too slutty,"
"Too many accessories"
This criticism went on for a while until they finally found something that clicked.
Ayaka wore a sleek, minimalist outfit that carried a sharp elegance. A light-gray trench coat hung open over a white turtleneck, the clean fabric tucked neatly into slim black trousers that tapered at the ankle. Simple black loafers completed the look, giving her a tall, composed silhouette. The neutral tones and sharp lines made her appear refined, giving her a mature look.
"Yeah, that's the one. If I didn't know you, I'd definitely say you're a rich sugar Mama" Jirō commented playfully
The compliment made Ayaka gain a lot of confidence. "Thanks for the help. By the way, how are things going with Kaminari? Did he invite you to go somewhere?" She inquired about her friend's love life.
"This time, I was the one who invited him. We're going to watch a movie together and have dinner next week. Not a lot, compared to the festival. But, what matter is the intention." There were hints of disappointment in her voice, "Oh yeah, how are you planning to "prepare" for the date? If you know what I mean."
Ayaka's face quickly turned red, "Shut up!"
Her friend laughed loudly, earning a glare from Ayaka. She explained her plans to Jirō, and to her surprise, she had no objections.
Soon, Jirō was dismissed and went back home.
Now, Ayaka had nothing useful to do. So she decided to do something she was very excited to do. She was on her PS5 and started Hollow Knight: Silksong. Ayaka bought it the second it was released, it was a game she was looking forward to for its release for years.
The more she played, the more engrossed and addicted she became to this game. Ayaka felt like the barely played, and it had already been 6 hours since she started playing.
The expectations she had for the game were already grand, but it managed to surpass all of them. Sometimes she almost crashed out— taking double mask damage and missing Pogo Jumps— but after some more time, she ended up enjoying those things.
A knock suddenly came from her door, and her father entered the room. Sometimes, he would try to initiate a conversation with his daughter to try to know what's going on in her life. Since her mother's passing, they rarely spoke about what they had going on with their lives.
Once, he was drinking with some friends—who also have children of their own— and they asked about Ayaka. The only thing that Itsuki knew was her aspiration to become a hero. He didn't know about how her school life was going, about her studies, and especially about her love life.
The main reason for today's talk, was to find out if Ayaka had a special someone. Itsuki was growing more and more suspicious that this was the case. He would catch his daughter constantly laughing at her phone, of course she could always be watching those stupid reels, but that didn't seem to be the case.
Her father's entrance went unnoticed, he didn't make a lot of noise and Ayaka was wearing headphones, so when she turned back and saw what seemed like a sleep paralysis demon, she almost had a heart attack.
"Argh!" Ayaka yelled, jumping from her chair, "Dad, since when have you been there!?" Her heart was still racing from the jump scare.
Itsuki let out a loud laugh, looking at his daughter's expression. "I just got here." There was an awkward silence after he said this.
Ultimately, Ayaka was the one who broke it, "Did you need something from me?"
He hesitated before replying, "Yes, you've been holed up in your room the entire day. We barely had a chance to talk. Actually, we barely talk anymore in general, you don't tell me anything about your life, which makes me worried." Ayaka felt terrible hearing this. She hurt her father and didn't even notice it.
Maybe this was the perfect chance she was looking for, an easy way to come out and talk about what she really felt with him. And she took that chance.
"I'm really sorry, I didn't realize you felt that way. There really isn't a lot going on in my life, school is great, I've made some friends, nothing much…"
Itsuki could tell that she wasn't telling him everything. He would be lying if he said it didn't bother him a little, but he decided to let her take her time. Maybe he could ask just one time before leaving, if she avoids the question, he won't pry further.
"I see… that's great. Is there anything else you'd like to share? I know it's hard to talk about 'that' with your father, but getting this kind of information is important. I don't want you getting pregnant-" He was interrupted by a very embarrassed Ayaka.
"H-hold your horses. If by 'that' you mean my love life, you don't have to worry about an Ayaka Junior coming into existence. First, because I'm not interested in men, and second, do you take me for a hoe? I'm not even remotely prepared to do 'that'!"
'Oh shit. Did I just accidentally say I'm a lesbian?' In the heat of the moment, it slipped out without her noticing it. (That's what she said)
Silence reigned in the room. Both of them had no idea what to say, so they just stared at each other in complete silence. The lack of preparation for this made Ayaka way more nervous than she should be. Her father never expressed any homophobic thoughts, but she didn't know how he would react if it were his one and only daughter.
"So…" Itsuki finally said something, only to be cut off by Ayaka. It was clear that he was also uncomfortable with the situation. Ayaka because she didn't expect her coming out to be like this, and Itsuki because he felt bad for pressuring his daughter to say it unprepared.
"Please, let me speak first…" It was clear that she was anxious, her breathing was faster and a few drops of sweat could be seen on her forehead, "Dad, I am a lesbian. I-I know this might be a disappointment for you, but it's who I am." A weight was suddenly lifted from her.
"Ayaka, of course I'm not disappointed in you, why would I? If anything I'm disappointed at myself, because I didn't make you feel comfortable enough to tell me before." There were hints of sadness in his voice. Ayaka got up from the chair and sat beside him on the bed.
"Don't be so harsh on yourself, I was planning on telling you anyways. And, while I was completely unprepared to say it today, I'm glad I did. Also… I have a date on Saturday." Her cheeks gained a bit of colour when she thought about it, "If everything goes right, I'll introduce her to you soon."
Tonight's talk ended up as a huge success for both of them.
The next days went very normally for Ayaka. She read and played games in her room, had an occasional anxiety crisis when she thought of her upcoming date, but nothing important happened.
Now, the day she was so excited for finally came. The date was scheduled for noon, but Ayaka was in front of the restaurant at 11am. She stood there, stiff like a tree, waiting nervously for her date. A few even thought she was a statue, one of them even trying to take a picture with her, while telling his partner how realistic it was.
A black car stopped in front of the restaurant. A bald man came out, and opened the door, from inside, a beautiful woman was revealed. It was Momo. She wore a flowing white shirt dress with long, slightly puffed sleeves cinched at the wrists, paired with a slim black belt at the waist. She accessorized with a layered pearl necklace, white socks with sneakers, and carried a structured black handbag.
When Ayaka saw this, her heart skipped a beat. When her hair fluttered with the wind, so did Ayaka's reasoning, she was completely love-struck.
When Momo's eyes fell on Ayaka, her gentle grin, turned into a wide and beautiful smile. They both paced towards each other for the greeting, Ayaka went straight for a hug, surprising Momo.
Today, Ayaka had a game plan, she was going to bet everything on the attack. It would put great strain on her fragile innocent heart, but for the greater good, she could bear it.
"D-did you wait here long?" She questioned Ayaka.
They let go of each other and continued talking, "Not at all, I just got here" She took a look at her phone and saw that it was exactly noon, the precise time for their reservation "Let's go in, shall we?"
The restaurant Ayaka picked was a really fancy Italian Food one. It took her a surprisingly long time to choose this one. She preferred this over a traditional Japanese food restaurant, because the ambience of this was more 'Date Like'. And the ones she had that had that fancy schmancy vibe were outrageously expensive.
Pasta, pizza, calzones, risottos, and much more, those were just some of the options they had for the main dish. For the appetizers, Ayaka and Momo chose a portion of Arancini, and some non-alcoholic drinks. For the main dishes Ayaka was still incredibly indecisive, so they both put it off for now.
Neither of them had been on a date before, so the first few conversations were a bit awkward. However, it didn't take long before they couldn't stop talking.
The appetizers arrived quickly, and they enjoyed them thoroughly and finally ordered the main dishes. Ayaka decided on a Mushroom ragu and prosciutto lasagna, and Momo ordered a delicious seafood pasta.
When it came, Momo offered Ayaka a bite, which was fed directly to her by Momo. Ayaka moved her head forward while gently adjusting her hair behind her ear. Both of their hearts skipped a beat.
Now, empty plates and cups filled the table. They both finished eating and left. In the end, Momo paid the bill when she went to the bathroom, tricking Ayaka.
When they left the restaurant, Ayaka decided to do something that took all she had. She slowly touched Momo's hand, seeing as there were no negative reactions, she interlocked their fingers into a lover's hold, and went to the Aquarium to continue their date.