nexfarious

[nexfarious]

i found my favorite ao3 author lets fucking go gang

hello!! i’m so flattered to hear i’m your favourite author, genuinely! means the world to me :))

[nexfarious]

i think some of the dangan guys deserve long hair and some of the girls deserve long skirts / trousers

[nexfarious]

this looks so fun and i love my friends so bad . let’s do it

tagged by @hyenagirlbulge smile

Challenge: make a poll with five of your all time favorite characters, and then tag five people to do the same. See which character is everyone's favorite!

i tag ummmm . @calabrithedragon @chihirolovebot @nexfarious @enby-berries do it if you want : )

[nexfarious]

shirogane erasure

[nexfarious]

some of you need to romanticise the fucking paragraph break

[nexfarious]

i’m searching for you in my fading memories .

alternate versions .

whooh . WHOOH !!!!! good GOD !!!!

listen to the song linked while looking I think it really adds . look up a translation too if you want ! listen to the entire lies of p ost in fact . its fucking fantastic .

NOTES .

in april 2022 , i drew a fanmade book cover for the danganronpa x reader fic Sleep Awake . in december of 2023 i redesigned my reader for that story for the third time and thought it appropriate to redraw that old cover with their new design . and yesterday , january 13th 2024 , i finished that bitch . View the fruits of my labour .

in my last Notes section i talked about nerfing the lighting . well um . i nerfed it again . i dont know if it was fate or if i just . idk . didnt want to but i axed both original concepts - the yellow overhead light ( mostly) , and the light blue under light - and just Winged the fuck outta it . that ' mostly ' means that the light source is Still overhead but i just took the colour out to make it more neutral .

another thing i brought up were the shelves and how i wanted to add more items to them . I did it this time , but not to the extent that i really wanted to . i'd hoped for more Clutter and ultimately couldnt think of anymore than a few items . SAID ITEMS BEING !!!!

the pills . self explanatory , since they haunted the majority of cases 2 and 3 .

chess pieces . cute little reference to the chess scene ! even if the scene itself didnt feature real chess pieces , the imagery wouldnt work if i didnt use real pieces .

the letter opener . dont need to explain this one . but i Did originally plan to have it in shin's hand ( explaining why that one is balled like that , because there was originally a Thing in there ) but i couldnt figure out how to draw it and make it look Good . i only added it back when i was colouring the trinkets on the shelves and realised that i Forgot to put it back into the drawing .

the joker card in the bottom corner . also shouldnt have to explain this one .

LITTLE DETAILS I THINK YOU SHOULD LOOK AT .

THE HANDS !!!!!!!!! i decided at the very last second to make them vaguely see through . and theyre all a persons ! amami and shinguji are the obvious ones , but the two holding at the top are supposed to be ouma ( on the scarf ) and akamatsu ( on the rope ) . i would have included tojo's as well but i couldnt fit it in the composition without it looking awkward and out of place and i thought there were already enough references to case 3 as is .

and you literally cant even see it but if you look REALLY closely at oumas hand . his skin is a little grey and you can see the veins through the skin . wonder what happened there . Guess we'll never know !

THE BOOKS !! did the same thing as last time with a Little More . purple books are ouma , green are both amami and tojo , blue is both kiibo and chabashira , pink is akamatsu , and red is phys themselves . i know phys's canonical colour association is olive green but consider : shin is red . look at him . hes Red . that ones for me specifically .

with that . i did all of those books by hand . i drew about 9 variations of books and copy pasted them sure but i Shaded and Coloured them all individually . youll never guess how fucking LONG that took . so yeah . no one book has the exact same shading . goodie !

THE JOKER !!! yes i know i talked about it in the previous section but i WILL talk about the card itself . because i unironically am so in love with how that drawing came out . the little guy featured there is my Lies of P oc scaramouche or scaramuccia ( i use them interchangeably ) . hes a silly jester :3 . the depiction on the card is of him in his prime , before . All Of That Happened . story-wise he's a super famous circus performer known as " The One Man Show " because all of his acts are done alone and are absolutely insane . hes very good at what he does which is Why he doesnt have a crew . and the only reason hes so good is because he't not even human , just pretending to be !

additionally , i originally planned for that joker card to be a Real Life Joker . because a little known fun fact about me is that i collect playing card decks ! but i looked and literally NONE of the ones i currently own would have fit the piece . so . yeah . i just ended up drawing darling scaramuccia . heres the full image im so chuffed

i think thats all i got for the drawing itself . i initially started this back in early december but got stuck and picked it back up a couple days ago , so its been marinating for a bit . hope we all like it ! i think its Better than the original . THE SERIOUS STUFF .

its so fucking insane to think that its been almost 2 years . not only have i truly rediscovered my love of reader insert fanfiction after so many years unable to even think about it without feeling a little sick to my stomach , but ive made so many good friends and core memories through this fic . i even got back into writing . literally never thought id write again after my 11th grade english class and my 10th grade creative writing class . and im having FUN with it . wild .

anyways , this one goes out to vee @chihirolovebot for writing one of The Fics of all time , putting up with my insane ramblings about idol these past months ( READ SWINGING RIGHT NEOWWWW ) , and for letting me help design their dnd characters . godspeed .

it goes out to nex @nexuswrites for beating better genshin character builds into me , giving great fic recommendations , creating thief of detectives quandary fame . READ DQ ( THREAT ) !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! , and being a fellow p5 and pokemon lover . i miss the coordinator and justice

and of COURSE !!!! rei @berry-creates . the gay the myth the legend . a fellow oc haver and lover , a fantastic writer , and an overall lovely person . this one goes out to u for sharing oc playlists , playing splatoon with me , and for creating maddie . theyre a little freak and i want to study them . i love seeing u go insane over them its like enrichment for me bc i too am also a little mentally ill about them im just really good at hiding it .

theres a whole lot more i could say and more people i could talk about but this is long enough , isnt it ?

thanks for a beautiful 2 years of physouma yaoi . heres to the upcoming sleep awake case 6 , epilogue , all the future additions to the one shot book , the entire rest of dq , tfp , and sams , and more blorbos to put in the smoothie maker . this took a whole two hours to write .

cheers , boys .

song of the post .

[nexfarious]

hi! i finished binging dq recently and i wanted to share some of my thoughts bc the brainrot it has given me is literally insane like. You dont understand. i didnt want to put this probably gigantic block of text in the ao3 comments so i figured id send it here so you can decide if you want it posted or not!

back to the topic i need to put thief in a blender (said with as much affection as possible btw). theyre soo painfully realistic and have a very unique perspective on the killing game which isnt rlly explored in fanfics so im eating it up! their talent is so cool and i cant wait to see them use it more later on. i also love how despite their paranoia and distrust they are still. Kind. Like they still reached out to ryouma and it literally saved his life!!!!! btw i think not killing him off in ch2 was a really good writing choice bc i think him dying after That scene with thief would just destroy them entirely -but on the topic of ryouma! im very glad you decided to give more spotlight to characters that werent given much of it in canon (or fanon ngl). him and tsumugi are characters that im rlly interested in but the game straight up gave them next to nothing, which i guess is very usual for danganronpa but yknow. Its still disappointing

thief and saiharas relationship makes me want to use both of them as a chew toy bc theyre so. So!!!!! im literally obsessed w them. we are still pretty early in the killing game but so many of their moments are already rotating in my mind At All Times. from the detective/criminal dynamic, to how much they care abt each other (thief obviously having a soft spot for shu despite not trusting people is soooo cute i need them gone). though that one scene in ch19 (i think?) where its said that their situation wld be considered romantic if it thief didnt have a knife at his throat is Life Changing and ive been thinking abt it so much -the contrast is just so good and the scene itself is so sad. also "Maybe this really was truly Shuichi, another side reflected to all of you, gleaming in the light like shards of a prism. Maybe you couldn’t see all of the sides right now, in this moment, but what you could see was so wonderful, spots danced in the back of your eyes." is such a beautifully written paragraph but the fact that thief thought this in the middle of a trial is so hilarious to me but i still support them. sometimes you really need to admire your Friend in a life or death situation to be able to push through. I get it

ok enough of those two. i love how you take the time to explore thief's relationships w other people as well. the break up scene between them and tsumugi had me blankly staring at my screen for good 30 seconds i think. the brief thief/ouma collab was great as well. i already mentioned ryouma but he is so dear to me head in hands.......cant wait for ch3 to physically beat the shit out of me

i have more thoughts but i also think this is too long already so ill stop it here. anyways i love your writing so much and im looking forward to more of dq! take care of yourself and have a nice day/night!

hi umm . this ask destroyed me emotionally, threw me out the window and then stole my lunch money /pos

this is genuinely so so lovely to read, i can’t believe you would take the time out of your day to come and tell me what you think of my fic,,, that’s so sweet <3

thief is my little freak whom i need to microwave at the highest temperatures. i think a lot of people should be more selfish in the killing game tbh, there’s a lot of characters who are ready to throw away everything for each other, i mean even a lot of the killers have selfless motives (kirumi, kaede) which is totally fine but!!! where my selfish bitches at where are the guys who just want to survive. despite all their paranoia though, they are a good person at heart which is something i’ve always found compelling in writing them.

WHY DIDN’T RYOMA LIVE IN CANON!!! you’re telling me a major theme of the game is overcoming yourself and pushing through despite hopelessness and then you just . kill off the other guy who’s canonically suicidal? it kinda left a bad taste in my mouth tbh. “oh you have nothing left to live for? die” i love ryoma i love mugi (obviously) and they deserve better than what the game gave them

they haven’t had much time for each other because we’re not even halfway through the game but UGH thiefhara means so much to me . thief wants to keep everyone at arm’s length but is actually way too soft to go through with it because there’s a detective with pretty eyes (which is so real btw) . i cant tell you anything about the plot but let it be known that chapter three is gonna have quite a few important moments in their relationship!!!

tbh the knife scene was something i just came up with as i was writing and thought “yeah okay that would be funny” and now people seem to love it,,, good thing i love it too

thief’s friends are so incredibly important to me btw . tsumugi who just wanted to be their friend but was rejected and has turned to angie and tenko, ryoma who still doesn’t have a reason to keep going but wants to try because there is someone who cares enough to reach out, kokichi (derogatory/with love), kaede who betrayed them in thief’s mind and still haunts them - someone who broke their trust after they went out on a line for someone, kaito whom i need thief to spend more time with because honestly he deserves more scenes

i hope chapter three slam dunks you into another dimension anon (said with so much sincerity and love), we got major canon divergence incoming ^-^

ANYWAY !!! don’t ever apologise for sending me your thoughts it’s actively encouraged and motivates me to write!! if you ever have anything more to say you are more than welcome to leave a comment or another ask i promise it makes me giggle and do a little spin in my chair of evil . hope you’re doing well too anon

[nexfarious]

Than you so much for making your V3 Danganronpa Autistic Reader fic, it got me hooked for hours already and I'm still not even done with the 1st trial

It's really great and well done, I really love how you adapted everything to the inclusion of the Ultimate Thief while also giving them their own reasonings, strengths and weaknesses

I’m so glad you enjoyed reading my fic, it means the world to me!! I hope you enjoy all the fluff and the angst that happens in the second trial and rest assured that the third chapter of the game is coming… sometime. 💕

This ask was lovely, so thank you for sending it to me :3

[nexfarious]

@chihirolovebot Phys and @nexuswrites thief in Dr:S. They’re having a little beach day with ice cream :3 pretty fun to think on what my phys and thief would wear to swim and their ice cream. Personally I love strawberry and Vanilla 💞 (chocolate is okay..) but yeah :33

[nexfarious]

hi omg it’s phys and thief from @chihirolovebot sleep awake and @nexuswrites detective's quandary respectively 😋😋 doing a little jig in the school gym. Definitely Regular occurrence ya know 😚😚 so like I saw this super cool pose a while back and was like oh me gee I need to draw the two mcs !! So here 😎😎 anyways I love these two fics so much and their authors are literally so fucking cool and amazing and they’re so talented and I love them lots !!! So yeah 😚😚🎉🎉

[nexfarious]

please reblog for science!!!! 🙏 I also encourage you to add your response in the tags + the type of reader characters you tend to write (only if you feel comfortable, of course!)

[nexfarious]

AAA IM SCREAMINGG OVER THE NEW DQ CJAPTER!! /POS

I've always wondered what would happen if someone who wasn't the culprit took advantage of the fbp I'm DHJSBSB next chapters gonna be SO GOOD

-💞anon

Happy to see that you liked it, 💞 anon!!!!

Okay!! So!!

I’ve always been super interested in the idea of someone claiming the FBP who didn’t actually do the kill because… what the hell is Monokuma supposed to do? But you also need a character who’s in a certain mindset in order to actually consider that to get an alibi. So I guess I kinda just put the reader in a situation that reflects their outlook. :)

[nexfarious]

actually no that last anon is wrong - the problem with sleep awake is that there’s no mugi content

this is SO real and correct and after sleep awake is finished i'll write another mugi oneshot where u get to kiss her ( real )

[nexfarious]

after todays chaper(which is so good btw i love the little awkward romantic bits throughout your fic🤍 ur an amazing writer),, I wanna take shuichi to an arcade and win him a bunch of stuffed animals n prizes and spoil him DHJZBSK esp if it's his first time at an arcade (this is maybe a request 👀 if it's not too much trouble)

-💞anon

ARCADE DATE — SHUICHI SAIHARA

pairing — shuichi saihara/gn!reader

content — no killing game au, established relationship, food/eating mention, reader gives shuichi pet names (shu/shulock)

notes — heart anon!! hope you’re doing okay!! thanks for reading the chapter, took me a little while but i hope you like it <3 who doesn’t want to spoil shuichi, really?

i’m sorry this took so long, i rewrote it like three different times because i wasn’t happy with it :(

Your phone buzzes with a text from Shuichi as you sit outside the arcade, watching the neon lights blink in and out of existence.

Shulock <3

I’m really sorry, but I think I’ll be late.

It’s not that I don’t want to go, please don’t think that! I just got held up at the firm with a case.

You

it’s fine, i’ll get us something to drink. milkshake for me, coffee for you?

Shulock <3

That sounds nice. Thank you.

You almost laugh at the formality of his texting. Despite everything, it was a habit he’d never gotten out of — you could urge him away from all-nighters crammed with paperwork with the promise of affection, but you couldn’t convince him to stop using capital letters.

Sliding off the little perch you’d found tucked between the walls of the bustling streets, you head inside the arcade. The woman at the till takes your order for a strawberry milkshake and a black coffee, handing them to you as soon as her coworker finishes making them; there’s even a cute curly straw in the plastic confines of your milkshake.

After you add a lid to the coffee cup, you stroll off to an unoccupied table and shoot off a quick text telling Shuichi that you’ll be waiting inside. It doesn’t take too long for him to arrive, but you pass the time by watching a gaggle of kids gathered around a rhythm game, cheering their friend on.

Catching a glint of dark blue hair, you wave Shuichi over as he awkwardly hovers, undoubtedly looking around for you. He’s dressed casually, rocking a grey hoodie.

You hand him the coffee as he approaches. “You look tired. Everything okay at the firm?”

“A-Ah, yeah, it’s alright,” he takes a swig, careful not to burn himself. “Just another infidelity case that needs to be handled. It’s mostly boring stuff, like paperwork.”

“You don’t need to worry about all that stuff while we’re here, though. No cases, so don’t even think about it,” you chide lightly, finishing the last of your milkshake and binning it.

He nods and inspects the perimeter of the arcade, looking slightly overwhelmed by the maze of colourful machines and games. “Well… I was wondering if you’d show me around.”

“Sure, sure.”

When he finishes the last of his coffee, you take Shuichi’s hand and lead him towards a line of claw machines. He clings to your interlocked hands like a koala, trusting your judgement. With a light push, he’s placed in front of the controls.

“This,” you gesture to the prizes at the bottom, miniature stuffed animals with button eyes, “is one of the cooler machines. You direct the crane at the top with the joystick and try to get the prizes inside. It’s about precision.”

You insert the money, watching Shuichi laser focus on a tiny stuffed penguin. He gets the hang of the controls pretty quickly and you watch him struggle to grasp the poor animal between the metal jaws of the crane. By the sixth or seventh attempt, he frowns, unsuccessfully watching the empty claws return back to the original position.

Shuichi gives you a resigned look, “I, uh, don’t think I’m very good at this…”

“That’s okay!” you’re quick to reassure him, “first time for everything. Let me have a go. You wanted that penguin, right?”

Ignoring his protest of you really don’t have to!, you insert another coin in the hopes of living up to your own expectations of getting that penguin. It takes you a few tries as it slips out of your grasp multiple times and you even outwardly curse the machine, but that slippery penguin ends up caught on your hook, falling into the grey depths.

You retrieve the plushie with a gentle hand, holding it out to the detective. “Here you go. For a hardworking boyfriend.”

“Y/N…” he covers his face, hiding his lovesick red blush, though you can see the nervous smile peeking underneath. “Th-Thank you.”

“You’re more than welcome, Shu.”

You move his hand away to sneak a kiss on his cheek while no one’s looking, laughing gently when he shuts down from the sudden burst of affection. He needs a moment to recover, you realise, backing away to let him reclaim his personal space.

After Shuichi regains his bodily functions, you lead him over to the air hockey table and challenge him to a game. A vivid line of glowing plastic splits the table down the middle and you take up the purple side, explaining the rules as you insert the money and the air powers up.

He figures this one out pretty quickly and you’re soon outmatched — though you had an early lead by taking advantage of Shuichi’s lack of knowledge on the game, he quickly accesses the weak spots in your defence and exploits them, bouncing the puck off the walls and confusing your peripheral vision.

You’re more enamoured by his expression. Though his face is pinched in concentration and his eyes are darting back and forth between your side of the table and his own, he seems to have completely forgotten about the presence of anyone else. Wearing a fiery determination that you’d only seen after becoming particularly passionate about a case, you’re unable to focus on the game.

Eventually, Shuichi hits it into your goal once more and no puck returns, the icy display lights up and leaves you with a flustered expression and a crushing loss of five to three.

You’ve never been so happy to lose.

[nexfarious]

loving this character isn’t enough I need to unhinge my jaw and sink my teeth into them 

[nexfarious]

Venus my beloved!! Do you have any tips for characterizing Ouma? Sending love <333

CRESSIE MY LOVE!! BOY DO I EVER!!!

here’s a screenshot i sent my friend who asked a similar question; this is more in relation to his dialogue but there is some stuff abt his personality too!

[nexfarious]

red velvet and oolong.

feat. tsumugi shirogane/reader

synopsis. your first date with tsumugi shirogane, the girl in your class you've been crushing on for months.

content. pure fluff, zero angst look at me go, gender neutral reader, pseudo-confessions, non killing game au, college au, first date, food/eating mention, cats, dubious genshin lore.

words. 2019

notes. for nex!! u absolute gem. i really hope u like this :*

commission me or leave a tip!

You’re going to be late.

The train to central street notoriously waits for nobody—you’re going to have to run to the station, at this point. You wanted to be gone seven and a half minutes ago, but you’re still here, in your room, panicking over which pair of shoes to wear.

The flats would be comfier, but the sneakers go better with your jeans…

Cursing, you fling both aside and drag out a safe alternative, a worn pair of combats, snatch up your coat and head for the door. As you hurry down the road to the station, you pull out your phone and check your missed notifications.

There—at the top—is one that makes your heart lurch. 

Shirogane <3

>> hello !!! just checking we’re still on for today (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

>> im getting there for around 1:30… that’s alright, isn’t it?

Quickly, you fire off a reply confirming both your appearance and the time. You almost can’t believe it—you’re actually going on a date with Shirogane. Today. Now, if whatever gods are watching allow it. The girl in your textiles design course you’ve been crushing on for the better part of a year, the one who takes a seat diligently at the back of class but is always the first to raise her hand when the topic interests her. The one who unabashedly uses the practical time to craft the most intricate cosplays you’ve ever seen, and should someone inquire about them, will engage them in conversations often topping half an hour. You sit on the other side of the class, watching the light sparkle off her glasses, the pretty flush on the apples of her cheeks, her curtain of ink-dark hair sway as she rambles about some manga you’ve never heard of. 

Once, you’d passed her as she was carefully applying a row of train-track stitches with white thread down the side of some sort of cream-coloured waistcoat, shaded with midnight blue and gold accents. You’d only questioned the method, watching her pale, polished fingers work so steadfastly, and you’d somehow gotten roped into help sew the other side for practice whilst she told you all about the character.

“So you see,” Shirogane babbled as she sewed, “because he doesn’t like to show his face in public so much, many people get the idea that he’s a little boring or even just some kind of figurehead. But, if you really look into the lore, you’ll know that he shouldn’t be underestimated—after all, it was him that managed to stabilise the Yashiro Commission and Kamisato Clan, and he couldn’t have done that without a certain degree of cunning, you know?”

You hadn’t believed in love at first sight until that day, really. 

The things you love about Shirogane are the things a majority of the student body seems to find strange or off-putting. Her exuberance, her passion, the way she can talk for hours about something you’ve never heard of without making it seem boring. Sometimes, when you feel lazy, you leave your own coursework untouched and occupy yourself twirling little braids in her long, shiny hair as she rambles to you. 

It’s good. It’s nice.

You were sort of content to keep it as a weirdly touchy friendship—Shirogane is passionate in everything, and it was almost impossible to discern whether her feelings towards you were platonic or not. But the other week, when you’d been sharing lunch under one of the apple blossom trees on the college grounds, she’d been delicately picking at a sandwich. She was doing that thing where she tore chunks off the bread and popped them in her mouth instead of taking bites. One swallow left her with a smear of sauce on the corner of her mouth, and without thinking you’d reached out to wipe it away. Your thumb made the faintest graze over her lower lip as you did, and you watched, frozen, as Shirogane’s whole face darkened with a spectacular blush. 

For once, she stopped talking. You missed the song of her voice immediately, but it seemed she did, indeed, have an off-switch. Your hand on her face.

You asked her out the next day. She agreed. And now here you are, trying to will yourself not to sweat as you hurry off your train into the central city. It’s not too busy, thankfully, and you manage to clamber off and out of the city station with around fifteen minutes to spare. You take a moment to readjust your clothes, press a hand to your cheek and nervously pop another mint before setting off in your intended direction. 

You’re nervous. Man, it’s been a while since you got nervous like this. Shirogane is just so… well, you haven’t wanted something to go right this badly for a while, to put it lightly. Maybe it’s just ‘cause you’re in the same class, and a disaster of a date would make it extremely awkward.

Then again. Maybe it’s the delighted gleam in her dark eyes when she realises you’re listening to her. Maybe it’s the liquid lightning that zips directly to your brain when your fingers brush, hers cool and soft and smelling like the cinnamon-scented moisturiser she uses. Maybe it’s the little squeak she lets out when you greet her with a hug from behind, the way she buries her face in your neck in embarrassment. 

Maybe it’s just her.

She’s waiting at the fountain in the middle of the city square, fiddling with her phone. It’s a bulky thing, its sky-blue case studded with keyrings and stickers and gems, cutesy between her nails. They’re painted, you realise with a throb of affection. Candy-pink. You’ve seen her bite them in school a lot, so there isn’t much to paint, but you think it’s so sweet that she tried. As you approach, she spots you suddenly, flusters, and makes a show of clambering to her feet, tucking her hair behind her ear awkwardly.

She looks so pretty that it almost stops your heart in your chest. You’ve always thought she was cute, no matter how she protested or insisted on how plain-looking she was, but here in the soft noon light, she’s almost unreal. A soft blue sweater adorned with white clouds drapes itself over her shoulders, falls over a white skirt that hangs to her ankles. Her hair is pinned back from her face for once with white hairclips. The coordination floors you, although really it shouldn’t. What else would you expect from someone who puts as much love and care into their clothes as Shirogane?

“Hey,” you greet her breathlessly as you finally get close enough to be within earshot. She jumps.

“Hello!” she squeaks. “Hi! Um, you look lovely.”

“Ah, thanks.” You pick at your outfit consciously. Are your ears burning? “You, erm… you haven’t been waiting long, have you?”

Shirogane gives an airy laugh. “Well, no, not really. Um. To tell you the truth, I’ve been here since around twelve. I really didn’t want to be late. It’s fine!” she hastens to add, seeing your stricken expression. “I had time to wander around some bookstores, see?” She holds up a plastic bag bulging with volumes. “So it’s—it’s really no trouble.”

“If you’re sure…” You bite your lip. “So—are you hungry?”

Shirogane beams; it lights up her whole face. “Oh, starving!” 

Relief breaks over you as Shirogane loops her arm through yours, as the two of you begin to walk. Why did you think this would be any different from school? It’s Shirogane. She’s Shirogane there and Shirogane here. She still pushes her glasses up when she talks. She still smells like cinnamon and plastic. She still smiles at you all the same. 

When you arrive at your destination, you carefully watch as her eyes glaze over in amazement. She looks from the place, to you for confirmation, and then back again, head shaking wildly. “Oh,” she says, hushed, awed. “Oh, is this…”

You squeeze her arm. “I thought you might like it.”

She turns wide, dark eyes to you, glimmering with the delight of a thousand stars. “A cat cafe?!”

You laugh and lead her inside. She steps over the floorboards like it’s holy ground, eyes round as coins and reverent as she peers around, awestruck. The host checks your name and leads you to a booth by the window; the seats are cushy, candy-pink, and just to your left is a scratching pole occupied by a fat ginger kitten. 

Shirogane sinks into her chair, hands clasped. She can’t stop looking around. 

“Is it okay?” you dare to ask, hesitant to break the spell but starting to get a little unnerved by the silence. Abruptly, Shirogane turns her stunned gaze to you, face breaking out in a sunlit smile. 

She reaches across the varnished-wood table and clasps your hands. “It’s wonderful. It’s just wonderful. I’ve always wanted to come somewhere like this, but I plain forget to make bookings…” She looks at you, touched. “Thank you. It’s… lovely. It’s so lovely.”

You can feel your face beginning to burn; her fingers feel so hot against yours. You’re thankful as a waiter brings over complimentary glasses of water, gulping your share down quickly. The glasses are frosted with cute little cat faces picked out. 

The whole place is almost overwhelmingly cute, actually. Lace doilies act as placemats, and the menus are studded with stylistic kittens with eyes round as coins and pink button noses. Plastic vines and strawberry-shaped fairylights string the ceiling and dangle over you. And—

A soft black cat at your feet stretches and leaps nimbly, landing heavily in Shirogane’s lap. She looks like she’s about to cry.

The waiter laughs as she wanders back over to take your orders. “That’s Jiji,” she tells the dark-haired girl, who is stretching out a shaky hand to stroke over the cat’s soft back. It twitches, curls up against her stomach and appears to go to sleep. “She’s very friendly, but really sleepy, too. Can I get you guys something to drink to start?”

With one last fond look at Shirogane and Blair, you order a red velvet latte; waveringly, Shirogane orders oolong tea. When the waiter leaves again, Shirogane looks up at you slowly.

“This is,” she begins, hushed. “This is the best day ever.”

Something warm and full bubbles in your chest, like a flower giving bloom in spring. “It’s barely even started yet, Shirogane.”

“I don’t care,” she insists, legs kicking at the booth chair as though in example of her obstinacy. “Oh, I plain don’t care. Nothing could ruin it. I—I mean, this place, and Jiji, and you…” She trails off, going pink, but bravely doesn’t break eye contact. You feel like you’re melting. “It’s just perfect. It’s—it’s everything I ever wanted. I thought you’d be plain sick of me, by now…”

Her free hand—the one that isn’t occupied stroking Jiji—drums anxiously on the table. You don’t think, really, because if you think about it for too long you’ll get cold feet. You just move; your fingers thread themselves through hers, conscious of how much rougher they seem. Shirogane stares down at your interlocked hands, mouth agape, eyes perfect circles.

You clear your throat, face burning. “I don’t,” you start, then swallow. “I wouldn’t want to be here with anyone but you. I’m… God, I don’t think I could ever get sick of you, Shirogane.”

Her lip wobbles. “Oh,” she cheeps out, a little bit like a baby bird. “Oh, I… I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of you either.”

And that—that feels like a confession, of sorts. Shirogane is blushing like it was one, and your face is certainly on fire, and your hand is still holding hers, after all. When the waiter comes back with your drinks, you see that the foam on yours has been powdered with a decorative cinnamon heart. Shirogane only goes redder when she sees it, quickly bringing her steaming tea to her mouth and taking a generous gulp.

You can’t help but wonder, in some far-flung part of your mind, if she’d taste like oolong if you kissed her.