#;; Reanne being thrown for a loop every time Vivian opens her mouth istg

[aeipathcy]

@unladielike * ✭ ❪ cont. from here┊☓ ❫

Reanne paused and wryly smiled as Vivian double-checked whether she would continue playing. She didn't have the heart to lie, but she didn't want to let her down either. After all, it'd be awful if she lost this chance to make a new female friend because she didn't want to play a simple game that was mostly reading. There was always the option of pressing the buttons and checking out while she played right?

Wait a second—this was so unlike her! Normally she would've been blunt about not liking this sort of thing! Was she that desperate for interaction that she became meek? Urgh, that was a pitifully disgusting thought. Now—she imagined herself slapping her cheeks as a form of psyching herself up—she had to reset! There was nothing wrong with stating her opinions! If she'd rather use the little time she had playing a different game, it was still valid!

❝ Eh, to be honest, I'm not really vibing with that one, Code: Realize. The heroine isn't clicking with me. The no touch thing ruins my soul, ❞ she began to explain, awkwardly laughing as she tossed a pigtail behind her shoulder, ❝ I mean, I live off physical touch. If the point of an otome game is for the player to live out an ideal romance, I need tons of physical affection in it—a fiery, bold protagonist too. ❞ This title was supposedly the best one to try when starting out with the genre, and now she was wondering if she would truly enjoy it like Vivian would if this basic starter game was something she would categorize the same as all the shoujo manga she used to read.

The girl went wide-eyed for a moment at the nickname suddenly bestowed upon her. Riri? Who the fuck was that? It took a couple seconds for the dots to click, and only then did Reanne find herself wondering if trying to befriend Vivian was a mistake. Weren't they a bit too different here? How was she supposed to feel having her name shortened to these weird phonemes that sounded nothing like her name at all? Her name.... AHHHHHH!

Still, it wasn't like her to give up at all. She'd make it work out somehow. Even if her younger self could last without true friends, the her of today could not—and so she wouldn't try to cut this bond before it had a chance to sprout and grow. Not to mention, her therapist did say more people in her social circle might help with certain impulse responses.

Reanne smiled in relief hearing Vivian's reassurance about the keychain. At least this was just an extra copy. That was good. She carefully stowed it away in her cardigan pocket, keeping her hand there to ensure it was kept securely. While she didn't catch the meaning of this 'yumejoshi' term, she wouldn't say anything about it. It seemed the other girl was sort of in her own world right now and the Reanne was not about to burst her bubble.

❝ You got something different to recommend that I might enjoy more? I'll return Code: Realize and that other one you gave me next time we run into each other, ❞ she interjected to steer the conversation something back to something she could actually reply to, ❝ and also—just call me by name. I hate nicknames. They kill me inside. ❞