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In hindsight, maybe Haruka should have been paying more attention to her date, because it is approximately five minutes after entering the movie theater that she loses her in the midst of endless foot traffic.
Though, in her defense, what had distracted her was the trailer for the very movie they were going to see, playing on a large monitor right in the middle of what would be an expansive interior were it not filled to the brim with people. Only a couple minutes of taking her eyes off her is all it had taken.
“Minori?” Haruka calls out into the crowds that pass her, in part confused, in other part, slightly concerned. Her phone’s penguin charm dangles as she grabs it from her purse, and she is swift to hit the call button, the only thing that manages to be quicker is the speed that the call is answered with. “Minori?” She tries again. “Where exactly did you go? I apologise, I may have gotten too consumed by the trailers playing on the monitor and—”
“Ah nonono! It’s fine Haruka-chan! I—” Minori’s soft voice frantically tries to assure her in between loud bumps, there is then a particularly deafening thud, followed by a Minori-typical wail.
“Minori?!” Haruka says again, in far more worry. “Are you alright?! Where are you?”
More thumps, and then comes a response.
“I’m okay! I just dropped my phone! I can see you, I’m coming right over!”
When Haruka brings down the phone to scan her surroundings, it takes no time to spot her, a given, since Minori has a way of glowing so much brighter than those who surround her. Minori bounds over with a large tub of popcorn. Her hair flies about as she clumsily weaves between people, only narrowly avoiding spilling kernels with the way she bugs the bucket to her chest.
Haruka wastes no time in meeting her halfway.
“I’m sorry for worrying you Haruka-chan!” Minori begins once in range. “I just saw that you were really interested in the trailer, so I thought I could quickly get us a snack— OH! B-but you’re okay with sweet popcorn, right, Haruka-chan? Because I think you mentioned it before— butnowthatIthinkaboutitImighthavejustdreameditso—”
Haruka has to blink a few times to catch up to the different speeding tracks Minori jumps to. But she ultimately opts to gently takes the tub from her shaky hands, tucking it into the crook of her arm, she pushes her mask down and subsequently grabs her hand. The latter movement successfully renders Minori entirely silent.
“I do like sweet popcorn,” she simply says, smiling.
“H-Haruka-chan’s smile… while holding my hand…” Minori voices out loud, staring at their interlocked hands in reverence.
Haruka only fondly watches her do so as they follow the tides to their showing room.
Given their shared profession, along with the fact that Haruka’s name is still well known among many, it is only natural that they seat themselves towards the back of the cinema, there are only a few seats to either side of them, so Haruka considers it safe to entirely remove her mask.
Minori spends the majority of the pre-film ad reads hopping from one topic to another, punctuating every other sentence with hushed exclamations along the lines of how she can’t believe she’s actually here with Haruka. That they’re actually in matching clothes and going to watch a movie together. That she genuinely cannot believe she isn’t dreaming. That it’s their very first movie date.
And if that isn’t some food for thought, because Haruka knows that their definitions of date don’t quite align.
In any case, Minori brings out the water bottles she had also bought, passing one to Haruka to set aside as trailer after trailer plays for other features. Minori also takes the time between furtive looks at the screen to puff her cheeks at the untouched popcorn bucket between them. She had earlier vowed to wait until the movie began to take from it, and Haruka thought it adorable then, and finds it especially so now. That being said, she also refrains—
Suddenly, haunting music plays as a thriller trailer comes up, startling Minori from her snack trance.
“Eek!” Minori emits, before hiding her face in Haruka’s shoulder on instinct.
Haruka’s heart palpitates a couple paces too fast, for reasons not relating to fear.
In some near perfect timing to the end of the trailer, the lights spontaneously go dark.
Minori’s face is buried further into Haruka’s shoulder, and she even slightly shakes, and Haruka knows right then and there that she would be willing to die for her.
The opening begins, and upon noticing, Minori whips her head back from Haruka, stammering apologies and the like. Haruka gently reassures her, before pointing out the first emperor penguins that waddle onto the screen. She also taps the popcorn tub, and she swears Minori’s eyes sparkle as she grabs a handful.
Haruka goes on to do the same, and she will admit she’s certainly had better popcorn before. But that is of no matter.
From then on, she let’s herself be entranced by not only the narrative, but the demonstration of penguin behavior. Watching an entire herd of penguins sing and fall in love. She feels dread when a father loses his egg, then intrigue at the dancing quirk of his born chick.
“So cute…” Minori says aloud as the chick taps its tiny feet on the snow. Haruka is inclined to agree.
They watch together as the small penguin grows, being degraded his whole life for not possessing an ability to sing like the others.
Minori begins sniffling at a certain moment when the protagonist is forcefully outcast. Haruka fishes out tissues from her bag, only belatedly realising that she too is frowning.
The movie continues at an enthralling pace, and after a tense confrontation, the protagonist befriends these small latino adélie penguins and is recognized for his talent by their kind. The penguins dance and party, and she’s avidly entertained, only finding herself more content by the palpable joy and relief that shines on Minori’s agape face.
Haruka shakes her head, moves to grab more popcorn, it just so happens to be at the same moment Minori deigns to do so. Their hands touch, and Minori gasps, as if the contact was any more significant than a wayward glance. She silently laughs, endeared.
It’s after many antics and a heart-stopping plummet from a cliff that Minori inhales loudly in realisation.
“We’re the enemy…” she whispers in dismay, right before mindlessly shoving popcorn into her mouth.
“I don’t think it’s quite us so much as the parties responsible for taking far more natural resources than they should,” Haruka replies in discontent. “The team responsible truly took no measures to preserve the environment.”
An adventure begins, and it’s therefore a little towards what Haruka assumes to be two thirds through the film that the popcorn tub is emptied. Minori generously hands her a wipe, and Haruka makes sure to praise her for her foresight. The manner in which Minori holds her breath to contain a scream is far funnier than the film could ever be, especially once she attempts to distract herself by turning away and wiping her entire face.
It is through the lull the movie takes to narrate that it finally occurs to Haruka that she’s taken far more interest in Minori than the widescreen before them. She also realises the inverse is most certainly not true. She decides to do nothing about this fact.
It is in Haruka’s study of Minori’s side profile that she notices a wayward strand of hair. She doesn’t think much of reaching out to tuck it behind her ear, however, Minori instantly lets the bottle of water she was holding slip out of her grasp and fall to the ground. Haruka attempts to keep her in place with hand in order to retrieve it herself, and Minori disregards the signal to help anyways, leading to them both leaning down, which leaves their faces all too close.
…
..
.
They both dart back upright, and Haruka’s cheeks are quite a bit hotter than before as she passes the bottle to Minori, forcefully returning her attention to the birds on screen.
To the movie’s credit, Haruka does manage to become reabsorbed into the tense action of a hunt for the main characters. Although, she’s taken right back out upon feeling Minori’s lower arm brush her knuckles as she pumps her fists anxiously. Maybe as a small payback, she takes Minori’s hand, however, Haruka soon notices that she is too taken by the film to even properly notice. She decides that she can let that be.
In a tragic turn of events, the protagonist of the story is taken into a zoo, and he loses all hope of returning home, then regains it in the strangest way.
“He can dance,” Minori whispers, as if it were a revelation. “We can see him dance— we like his dancing—!”
The men in the row before them loudly shush her. Haruka stares at the back of their heads, displeased.
“Sorry,” Minori whispers, dejected.
Haruka holds her hand tighter.
“It’s alright, I quite enjoy hearing your thoughts,” she tells her, fervently. “And you may continue afterwards if you’d like, alright?”
Minori flushes enough to be visible even in the dim lighting, and Haruka is satisfied.
The rest of the film passes without incident, though Haruka’s heart nearly melts at Minori performing a small jig in her seat alongside the singing and dancing of the penguin ensemble.
It is safe to say, Minori is practically bouncing in high spirits as they exit the movie theater.
“I really enjoyed that movie! Mumbo is just so cute— and wah! His friends are so charming too— and—” on and on Minori goes as they walk through the night, and on and on Haruka listens, perhaps wishing she’d never stop. Minori swings their hands back and forth as they head towards the station, and they enter the train together.
“I’ll walk you home,” Haruka tells her.
Minori’s mouth falls wide open, but far be it from Haruka to miss the gleam of excitement in her demeanor. Minori truly does wear her heart on her sleeve.
“Really?! B-but you don’t have to Haruka-chan! I’m fine on my own—!”
“I’d still like to walk you home, Minori,” Haruka insists. “Could you let me?”
Minori shuts her mouth, flushing a pretty peach as she brings a hand over her mouth. Multiple emotions flash through her eyes, too fast for Haruka to keep up with, but she finally lands on something… reserved.
“Haruka-chan… walking me home…” she says in a tone similar to her habitual admiration, but far calmer. Her hand is warm in hers, and Haruka considers the battle as good as won.
They make it to Minori’s abode with little difficulty, though perhaps a bit too soon for Haruka’s liking, and, if she could be zealous, she could say that Minori feels the same, judging by her conflicted expression as she looks to and fro. Though, Haruka knows they cannot very well hover outside for too long, the night is chilly, and Minori hadn’t bundled up the same way she had.
It’s that thought that drives her to grab both Minori’s hands in each of hers before speaking:
“I truly enjoyed myself,” she initiates.
“I… I really did too,” Minori replies softly, and Haruka appreciates her quieter beauty then, her hair lit white at the edges in the porch lights. The tender way she looks at Haruka, the slight bite of her lower lip. “Thank you for inviting me, Haruka-chan.” She squeezes both of Haruka’s hands. “Really.”
Haruka, truly and deeply, cherishes this girl.
“I have to thank you more for accepting,” she earnestly responds. “Truly, if everyday could be like today has been, I believe I could live the best life there can be.”
Minori’s smile is wobbly as she meets Haruka’s eyes.
“I never know what to do when you say things like that, Haruka-chan,” she nervously laughs. “I feel like I might pass out.”
To be able to say such things so easily, is so utterly of her.
Haruka gently chuckles.
“Please don’t, you’ve done so well up until now,” she half jokes, though the words escape her in a near whisper.
Minori looks at her, then, and her eyebrows furrow into something determined as she squeezes Haruka’s hands and suddenly leans forwards.
The softest press on Haruka’s cheek.
“..?!”
Minori’s shouting a goodbye, barely even getting the words out as she makes a mad dash for her front door. She’s fumbling with her keys as she tries to jam them into the lock. She’s made it through the door, slamming it behind her. Minori’s… forgotten that the door does not automatically equate to complete sound proofing.
It’s only after far after Minori’s screams die down that Haruka finally whirs to life. She raises a hand to her cheek, brushing her fingers against touched skin, and bathes in the intense warmth she feels, similar to that of pure hope. Minori is indeed an idol through and through.
…
..
.
She truly couldn’t ask for anything more.