The big date

Checked his phone, 8:27 AM. Stared out at the crowd of people, walking past him like he wasn’t there. Took a look at the buildings around, billboards of new albums for the biggest bands in the country, international movies hitting the box office, and the next big games.

Looked at his phone again… 8:28 AM, it just ticked over. He was getting impatient, every second that went by his brain told him to just leave. But he remembered the pact, a blood oath set by him and his brothers. Although, now that he thought of it, there was no blood. But it didn’t matter!

He could see the futures of his decisions. If he left, he would wake up 10 years in the future telling his coworkers he used to date the country’s biggest star, all before he was laughed out the building, back home to cry himself to sleep.

The future he saw if he stayed was not guaranteed, but it was higher than no chance, and that was what he was fighting for!

He balled a fist as he felt more triumphant.

He checked his phone again… 8:28 AM.

“Ah god dammit!”

“Sengoku, stop looking at your phone! You look like a psychopath”. He heard Usui’s voice. His index finger gently touched his ear and he responded “I can’t help it! We’re supposed to meet at 8:30… I hope she hasn’t gotten lost”

“She hasn’t. Stop stressing or you’re gonna blow!” Miyamura’s voice next. “Oh, and stop pressing your ear like you have a mic, you look like a tool.” He added.

“Noted.” Sengoku responded, with his finger on his ear.

The set up was simple. The three were not watching from afar like a secret agency. No, they didn’t have the brains. They were strategically placed around Sengoku, and would follow along on their date. Amongst the shadows, Usui dubbed it. Natsuki finally got the chance to call Usui a moron.

All of it, was so that they could assist in any way they could, to make sure Sengoku could show Saki what he was made of.

“You don’t think this is a set up do you?” Sengoku whispered, his head lowered.

“What?”

“It’s not just a mean joke, right?”

“Do you think she’d do something like that?” Natsuki rebuked.

“No.” Sengoku responded like a child to his parents.

“Then stop being a baby! Either she’s running a little late or she got freaked out seeing you talk to yourself, either way, shut up.” Natsuki whispered with a flair of irritation.

…

Look at the phone, “8:29 AM”

“Oh my god, please be quiet!!”

*-*-*

8:35 AM. That line about her being freaked out was worrying him now, but he knew if he said anything, Natsuki might just reach over and slap him… again.

But he started to hear a ruckus. And there she was, surrounded by a sea of onlookers, enamoured with her.

If he could fall for her any further, he would have now.

It may have still been a little cold out, but she didn’t care. She had a flowery dress, with a thin jacket over it. Black thigh high tights, to die for. She had noticed him before he had noticed her, she waved energetically with a smile on her face. She might as well have been Medusa, ‘cause Sengoku was stone.

As she skipped over to him, he could see those watching her as she went, wishing she was running to them, it was a strange sense of pride for him. That was until he saw the enormous bodyguard following a few steps behind, enough to give her room but close enough to break the hands of people that got too close.

“Yo, Sengoku! Sorry, am I late?”

Ah, an anime line he always wanted to say.

“N-no, I just here got…”

…

Dammit.

She giggled, oh god that cute laugh.

“What’s that even mean?”

He blushed. “Y-you look, nice…”

She tilted her head to him, “is that so? Well thank you, you don’t look so bad yourself”.

He couldn’t take that smile, she was the Valkyrie to his Viking, come to lift him up and take him to the promised land. She looked at her guard, and he nodded silently.

She grabbed his wrist and pulled him forward, “C’mon, let’s go get those parts!”

*-*-*

Travelling Man was the destination, the top floor to be exact.

“Here it is” he mumbled.

She took a step in. The walls were lined with technology. She had never seen such a place. “Well, this sure is intense.”

But where she was frozen in place, she could see the fire in Sengoku’s eyes.

*-*-*

“Oi, Natsu, how’s it look?” Miyamura whispered.

“All clear. Why the hell are you whispering? They’re on the other side of the store.”

“If we’re gonna be incognito you gotta act like it!” Usui responded.

Natsuki looked at them like he would a dead bug, “you guys are really into this aren’t you?”

“Never mind that for now. What’s going on? All clear isn’t very clear.” Usui whispered.

“They’re looking at tech shit, what do you want me to say!?”

The two had their eye on the cases, the chassis. There were a few that stood out, but she was glued to the one with the LED’s built in.

“Uhh, Saki-san. Do you have a preference?” He asked, knowing the answer, and she responded as he expected. She pointed at it and nodded her head like a little kid trying to convince their parents.

“I can add LED’s to the others…” he tried to reason. It was expensive, clunky, and way too small for the hardware he wanted to put in.

“Well… this sucks. It’s almost like he doesn’t need us” Miyamura complained.

“He doesn’t need us. As I said, he’s gonna act like him. Anything we do just ruins how genuine it is” One of Natsuki’s unexpected nice moments.

“You’re so sappy lately, you eat something bad?” Miyamura asked.

“Shut up.”

Usui appreciated the comment, but there was a code red.

“Hate to burst your bubble boys, but we actually have something to do.”

They could see onto the street from the fifth floor, and a dangerous being approached.

“Code F.”

Now back to their apartment, the day before.

“While we are there, I need you all to keep an eye out for someone.” Sengoku slapped a picture onto the whiteboard that they bought specifically for this briefing. “This here, this is Nishiki Machio.”

The boys stared at the picture. It wasn’t a flattering image, certainly didn’t do Nishiki any favours. Overweight, stubble, a crazed look in his eyes and hair that looked like it was last washed 3 months prior.

“…seems like a nice chap…” Usui commented, trying to sound convincing.

“Yeah, we’ll he’s not. He’s Saki’s self proclaimed biggest fan, and is at EVERY show of hers. It’s becoming a bit much, they recently stopped doing meet and greets just because of him. If he shows up, I need you to redirect him.”

Back to the present day.

“Natsuki, you’re up.”

*-*-*

He rushed down the flights, quick as a flash. But Nishiki was close to the entrance. Letting him in was an instant failure, and there was no getting him next time. Luckily, the fire exit was open, and he rushed through like lightning.

Nishiki reached for the handle.

“Dear sir.”

He turned. Somehow, Natsuki had acquired a vendor’s outfit and approached the man mountain.

“What?” He asked rudely.

“I can tell you have your finger on the pulse on pop culture, my friend!”

He seemed interested. “Correct.” He responded, Natsuki felt a bit sick.

“You see, right now, at my store. We will host a once in a lifetime product. A backstage ticket, to Sawamura Saki’s next show.”

His eyes lit up. “Go on.” He was drawn in, taking a hit from his vape.

“It came to our store from a friend. He works closely with Ms Saki’s manager, and he has informed me one lucky fan will get the backstage experience. Speaking to Saki, hugging her, being with her alone!”

Sweat was pouring down the portly man’s face. Time for the killer blow.

“Did I mention? They’ll be shooting a gravure piece?”

“WHERE IS YOUR STORE?!” He cried.

“Down that road and to your left.”

There he went, Natsuki watched him leave. “Man, what a scumbag.”

*-*-*

Saki flew around the store, checking out whatever caught her attention. Sengoku was never far away, especially when she was noticed by fans and they got a bit too close.

She was super interested in one of the cases, mainly due to the fact that it was her merch that she forgot about. Sengoku knew all about it, and if it wasn’t so god damn expensive, he’d already have it.

Once she had seen the store she worked her way back to Sengoku.

“Oi, Sengoku?” She called. Around the corner, he was in dream land.

“I11?! Isn’t this only supposed to come out next year?! 16 cores… this sort of stuff powers supercomputers! The power this thing’s capable of!!” Practically jumping for joy.

The look of pure, childlike excitement, she couldn't stop herself smiling.

And so, the choice was made, they picked up a few strips of LEDs along with a keyboard. Next up, was the CPU and motherboard.

“We aren’t getting them from here?’ Saki asked.

“I, I know a place where I can get them cheaper. Better options as well” he muttered.

“Is that so?”

Sengoku did know of another location, and the options and price would be better, but this was also to extend the date out.

*-*-*

They toured the building. On the fourth floor, they talked about anime and their favourite shows. She was beet red when she found the x rated section but they moved swiftly on.

She looked good in everything she tried on the third floor. White wigs, red, blue. Even dressing as Cassandra from the new hit anime everyone was watching, only to realise afterward how skin tight it was. Sengoku’s nose bled gloriously.

Down to the second floor, where they spent too much time reading through Oni Killer, Your Story and Empire. It left them either hyped enough to fight or on the ground crying their eyes out.

And the ground floor, was where Sengoku showed off his knowledge. Bringing her all the games that were masterpieces and those he disliked but appreciated still. Talking about his passion was easy for him, and she seemed to like his dorkiness.

*-*-*

The boys were around the second store, well, less store more market. Sengoku was speaking to the merchant as Saki signed autographs and took pictures with her fans.

“Come in, Agent Kyo to Usui, Come in, over”

“Roger, I hear you loud and clear, agent Kyo. Come in agent Natsu, over”

“Would you two please knock it off, over”

“Agent Kyo, to agent Natsu. Uhh, that’s a negative, stop being a spoilsport, over”

“There are literally people staring at us…”

They were positioned strategically around the market. Usui was in the shrubberies in the park, a few kids were curiously staring at him.

Miyamura had taken a seat on the bench a little behind Sengoku and Saki, and was using a newspaper to cover his face, however, it was upside down.

Natsuki wanted to be anywhere but here right now. He was the wanderer in life and mission, moving between stalls with a stupid sunglasses mask combo that got him a few stares, ironically the disguise was the only thing covering his embarrassment.

“Agent Kyo, come in, over.”

“Agent Kyo here, what is your status, over.”

“No issues agent Usui, Over.”

“How is the situation on your end, agent Natsu? Over”

“Same as it is on your end, dumbass!”

“Uhh, please could you repeat agent Natsu, over.”

“The same as you! Over!”

“Affirmative, over.”

“Never thought I’d be the smartest one out of us.”

Sengoku was still as awkward as expected. Saki was finishing off an ice cream she got at the market, free of charge as per her celebrity status.

“Ahh, that hit the spot. I used to love ice cream”

“Used to?”

“Oh, yeah my manager’s really strict. I need to keep up my public appearance she says when she scolds me”.

“He’s back! Over.” Usui cried.

Through the shrubberies he saw Nishiki, looking irritated… and parched.

“Again?!” Sengoku complained quietly.

“Affirmative, over!”

“Enough with the over stuff. Your turn Kyo.”

“Aye.” He confirmed.

*-*-*

“Dear sir.”

“Not this again.” Nishiki complained, catching his breath.

“Please come this way~~”

“No thank you.”

Plan A was failing, time for plan.

“Is that the popular vtuber Mistress Oishi? She looks drunk and lewd.”

His head whipped back. “Where!?”

“That direction” Kyo pointed.

He was gone before Kyo noticed.

“For a large man he is rather rapid.”

*-*-*

They had moved on, the final piece of the puzzle was bought, and now it was time for a rest before the date ended. The conversation had stopped, it was an awkward silence that Sengoku had no hope of breaking.

“Hey, do you mind answering a personal question?” She asked. Sengoku shook his head. “What do you want?” She blurted out.

“What?” His usual jitters stopped at the surprising question.

“Well? You know what I plan on doing, right?”

He paused, wondering if it was some sort of trick question. “You want to be a singer”.

“Ding ding! Correct.”

He was still clueless.

“What do you want to do in life?”

Ah, now he realised.

“I love working with computers, and I’m a big fan of games. I want to be a designer, game designer that is…”

“Do you have a passion for it?”

“I guess.”

“Then that’s great!” She smiled. “People always say to think before you do and that you need to follow your head not your heart, but what’s the point of life without something to strive for?”

“I can understand that… but, why do you ask?”

“Hmm? Nothing much, I just wanted to know more about you” she smiled, Sengoku got a lightning bolt through the heart. “Is that why you became a singer?” He asked.

“Hmm, that’s a bit of a difficult question. I’ve always loved to sing. When I was a kid, we lived in America for about 3 years. There was a singer I went to see. Everything she did was amazing, the crowd had so much energy, the music just made you want to smile and cheer. In that moment I realised how much joy it brought people, and I wanted to share that moment with them. Just seeing people genuinely enjoying the moment I can’t help getting all warm inside”.

Her words resounded within him.

“Well, enough of that” she blushed slightly. “It’s been an eventful day, I’ve learned a lot about computers so thank you for that. I’m looking forward to showing off my new skills.”

“I’ll get back to working on the pc. I should have everything I need now.”

“Hm!” She nodded excitedly. “Keep me posted, who knows, if it's cool I might just have to keep it for myself!”

“CODE… I CANT REMEMBER! NISHIKI!”

The boys saw him again, he was close, and approaching.

“Usui!” Kyo shouted, and Usui nodded. It was his turn.

“Dear sir?”

“No!” He shouted loudly. “Not falling for this again! Move.”

“But dear sir I”

“I don’t care now move before I… is that? SAKI.”

MISSION FAILED.

He breezed past Usui and bolted towards her. Neither Sengoku or Saki noticed. It was the end.

But her guard came out of nowhere, and launched the man flying with a single hit.

“Uh… we’ll that escalated quickly.” Said all three.

Saki was ready to leave, but Sengoku was reminded of their first meeting.

In the setting summer sun, still giving warmth despite it being so late. It was the perfect time for graduated middle schoolers to wreak havoc and celebrate.

Sengoku and his friends travelled half the country to see their favourite band play on the big stage.

But while his friends were few in a sea of fans. His eyes were glued to the nobody on the corner of the street, guitar in hand, nervously working her way through her set.

All before she took her chance and threw her everything out on the line.

He should have moved along, he shouldn’t have noticed. But she was so much more. It was almost like an out of body experience for him. He could see everything around him and nothing at the same time.

This was Sengoku’s love at first sight.

“Saki-san!” He shouted to her. She stopped in her tracks and returned.

What’s up?”

“I don’t know if you’ve heard, but on the day of the Rose Ball, there’ll be a festival. There’ll be stalls, shows, events…”

“Oh, yeah I know I’m performing.”

“Well, our club has decided to set up a competition. We’re each making a game to show off, the best one will be our choice for presentation.”

“Sounds good! I’ll come by when I can, just make sure you win it!”

“Well, about that. I have a request.”

She waited for his proposal. Here it was, a declaration of things to come. Step one was achieved. Now to aim for the sun!

“I can make a good game, but I need music. That’s something I can’t do, but I can write a song, so…”

“So?”

“Please sing my song!”