"So, what do you think?" Kanan came out of the closet, a proud look on her face. Mari, on the other hand, was immediately scrutinizing her, looking her up and down.
"Hmm... Kanan, do you take constructive criticism?"
"Sure. Lay it on me."
"Your outfit is ugly."
"That's not constructive." Kanan sighed, dropping down to the floor. This was getting hopeless. Every time she came out in a new outfit, Mari shot it down in no uncertain terms. At this rate, she was going to run out of outfits. "What's wrong with it this time?"
"For starters, wearing a shirt with fish on it on a first date is a big no-no. You look like a walking aquarium. Where did you even get sky blue jeans anyway?"
"They were on sale."
"There was a reason for that." Mari sighed and clicked her tongue, stepping over Kanan and walking into her closet. She began to browse the rest of the outfits, wondering why she let Kanan have a choice in the matter for this long anyway. "Islander shirts, tie dye shirts... Hmm, really Kanan? Underwear with dolphins on them?"
"Stop looking through my underwear drawer!" Kanan snatched the underwear out of Mari's hands and threw it back into the drawer, thoroughly embarrassed. "How can there not be a single outfit in here that you approve of? Even though I'm going on a date with Dia, not you."
"That's the thing, Kanan! Dia is a highly fashionable person. Like myself I might add." Mari always seemed so haughty when she talked about fashion. "What if I hadn't been here and you'd gone on that date in those ugly green overalls and those, those... things?" She pointed derisively at a pair of crocs next to Kanan's feet. "I couldn't ever admit to anyone that we were friends again."
"You're overreacting, Mari. I doubt Dia is as picky about clothes as you are. Besides, there's nothing wrong with crocs!"
"They went out of style the moment they were conceptualized." Mari kept going through Kanan's clothing, desperate to find anything at this point to prove that Kanan didn't shop with her eyes closed. "I'm going to burn all these clothes, okay? Starting with your clown pants."
"Don't you dare." Kanan narrowed her eyes, unsure if Mari was being serious or not. Sometimes it was hard to tell. "If you do that, I won't have anything to wear!"
"That actually might be a good idea. Just go naked. I'd bet she'd like that."
"Mari!" Kanan blushed and hid her face in her hands. She was regretting asking Mari for help with getting ready for her date. This wasn't worth the advice she might end up getting. She just wanted to look good and impress Dia on their first date. Dia was so beautiful and regal, somehow so much above her despite the fact that they lived in the same town. Still, she figured there was at least one outfit that would be good enough. Apparently nothing was good enough for Mari's ridiculously high standards.
"You know what? This is useless. There's not going to be anything acceptable in here." Mari stepped out of the closet and dramatically slammed the door shut, barely missing Kanan's foot. "We're going to go shopping, and since I'm such a nice, wonderful friend, I'll pay for the perfect outfit for you."
"You don't have to do that-"
"The money's nothing to me. I'm more loaded than an uzi. Now come on. Put on some real shoes and let's go shopping!"
"Alright, alright... Are you trying to say I shouldn't wear the crocs?"
"You shouldn't wear the crocs... or the uggs. Don't you dare put those on either."
"Why are we going into this store, Mari? They only sell suits."
"Because you'd look good in a suit, dummy. Dia won't be able to keep her eyes off of you." That did sound appealing... Kanan sighed and followed Mari's whims, deciding that it couldn't hurt to at least try on a suit or two. Besides, Mari was paying, so it wouldn't be her wallet taking the hit.
"Okay, so this one looks good... And this one. Oh, this will be nice!" Mari began to throw multiple outfits at Kanan, who caught all of them before they hit the ground. By the time Mari was done, Kanan could feel the weight of the clothes in her arms.
"Is all this really necessary? I don't want to have to try on all of these."
"Like you've got better things to do." Mari began pushing on Kanan's back, guiding her towards the changing rooms. "Come on, go in there and let's see what you got!"
"Alright, alright!" Kanan stepped forward, away from Mari's pushy hands and into the changing rooms. She made sure to lock the door before dropping all the suits unceremoniously on the floor. "Well, might as well get this started..."
One by one, she changed into each outfit Mari had given her, looking herself over in the mirror. She felt out of place in such fancy clothing, but if Dia might like it, then she could give it a shot. The biggest issue was with the tie. She had no idea why Mari thought she should wear a tie, and she had no idea how to tie it. Though she tried, it ended up in a strange knot that she wasn't able to remove.
"Uh, Mari? I'm having trouble with the tie."
"Unlock the door and let me in, then." Kanan did so, with Mari whistling appreciatively upon entering. "Woah mama, you look fi-i-ine!" Kanan rolled her eyes and pointed to the tie, which Mari stared at in disbelief. "How did you even do that?"
"I don't know! Can you please untie it? I can't wear this on my date!"
"Don't worry your pretty little head about it. Mama Mari's gonna take care of it." With deft hands, she undid the knot that Kanan had accidentally created without any problems at all. "Tada!"
"Thanks, Mari... But please don't call yourself 'Mama Mari' ever again."
"No promises." Wrapping the tie back around Kanan's neck, she tied it perfectly, letting it rest comfortably against Kanan's chest. "That's perfect! You look so dashing, Kanan! Dia will be swooning for sure!"
"You really think so?" She looked herself over in the mirror, playing with the collar of her suit. She started to imagine being on that date, and having Dia unable to keep her eyes off of her. The thoughts made her smile, as well as made her cheeks turn pink. "Then we should buy this then, right?"
"Esattamente!" Mari clapped Kanan on the shoulder, scooping up the rest of the clothing and carrying it out of the changing room. "Now get changed back into your regular clothes. We've got a suit to buy!" Kanan quickly changed back into her regular clothes once the door was closed, carefully putting the outfit she had chosen back on its hangers and carrying it outside. Mari was standing just outside with a smile, the pile of clothing left haphazardly on the waiting bench.
"Mari, you can't just leave all those clothes there..."
"If you pay for the suit, I'll put them all back."
"... Never mind."
"So are you sure you don't want me to hide at another table while you're on your date? You can just say the earpiece is a hearing aid. I'm sure she'd buy that."
"I would rather you didn't do that." She was not about to have things become super awkward when Mari's cover was inevitably blown. She'd seen that one Spongebob episode enough times to know what would happen. Besides, she was sort of miffed that Mari didn't think she could do this on her own. "I'm perfectly capable of having a good date without your help."
"You say that, yet you were going to wear overalls like some kind of lime farmer. I don't know if I trust your judgement about yourself. You know, I don't even have to be there physically. I can use a drone-"
"I think we're good." Like that was going to be any better. "Thanks for the advice, Mari. The good advice, anyway. I'm going to go pick her up and take her to dinner now."
"Remember what I told you! Don't talk about dolphin mating rituals until the third date!" Blushing, Kanan left Mari's hotel and went into the parking lot to start up her truck. She wasn't going to talk about dolphin mating rituals anyway... Coelacanths, on the other hand...
She drove to the Kurosawa household, parking by the house and grabbing the flowers she had on the passenger seat. She'd had to argue with Mari about that, since Mari felt that a bouquet of diamonds would be a better thing to give to Dia. While she couldn't argue with that, she could argue that it was stupidly expensive and even a bit tacky. Mari was offended that Kanan of all people dared to call one of her ideas tacky, but she was adamant against the idea. That was one of the only things she'd gotten to choose for herself that day.
She knocked on the front door and waited, flowers in hand. Normally she wouldn't be so nervous, but this was her first-ever date, and she wanted it to go well. She wiped the sweat forming on her forehead, noticing that her hand was shaking. Curling it into a fist only made her seem angry, so she shoved it in her pocket and hoped that wasn't too informal. Then the door opened, and there stood Dia in all her gorgeous glory.
The dress she was wearing was red and modest, yet still screamed her beauty to the world. It hugged her just right, and Kanan found it hard to take her eyes off of her. "Good evening, Kanan. Are those flowers for me?" Thank God for Dia saying something, or she might've stood there gawking all night.
"Uh, yes, they are." She held them out to Dia, who took them with a soft smile.
"Thank you. They're beautiful. Do you mind if I put them in a vase before we go? You can come inside if you'd like." Kanan nodded, stepping inside with Dia's permission. Dia then left the entranceway to find a vase, leaving Kanan alone to check out the interior. Even with the small amount of the house she could see, she could tell that the Kurosawas were rich. It was a more regal richness, though. Different from Mari's way of doing things.
"U-Uh, Kanan?" Kanan jumped at the surprised voice, wondering if Dia had circled around to come back out from a different angle. But when she turned around, it was only Ruby. She breathed a sigh of relief, smiling at Dia's younger sister.
"Heya Ruby. Hope you don't mind me stealing your sister for the night."
"I-I don't mind." Ruby giggled, then looked up at Kanan with a surprisingly serious expression. "U-Uh, so..." She looked around, as if trying to make sure Dia wasn't in earshot. "S-Sis really wants you to kiss her, s-so kiss her before the date ends!"
"Wha-" But Ruby scurried away before she could inquire further, leaving Kanan confused. Dia wanted her to kiss her? Really? Woah... She was still trying to process that information, not even realizing that Dia had returned.
"Is something wrong, Kanan?" That snapped Kanan out of it. She turned to Dia, smiling sheepishly.
"No, not at all. Shall we go?" Dia nodded, then Kanan allowed her to leave the house first before following her down to the truck. She opened the passenger door for Dia like a proper gentleman, turning back to look at the Kurosawa household as Dia got inside the truck. Ruby was at the window, waving at Kanan. She gave a quick thumbs up, then ducked down to avoid being seen.
Kanan worried that everybody's expectations were going to weigh her down. She closed the passenger door and took a deep breath as she walked around to the driver's side. It was important for her to remain calm, or otherwise she'd say something stupid. She got into the truck and started to drive towards the big city, where they had a reservation for a fancy restaurant - again with Mari's help. There'd been one thing she'd at least been able to think of herself before Mari came up with it: music. She knew how much Dia loved idol music, so she got Mari to burn her a CD of Muse music that Dia would like.
"You don't have to play music just because I like it, you know?" Dia smiled, which made Kanan's heart thump a bit erratically. How could one girl be so beautiful? "Though I do appreciate it." Kanan beamed at that, happy to have done something right. Score one for the dolphin.
When they got to the restaurant, Kanan did her best to be a proper date for Dia. She held open both the car and restaurant doors, and pulled out Dia's chair for her. It wasn't that she didn't do these kinds of things, but it felt weird to be doing them in a date context. She'd been friends with Dia for all these years, and now they were on a date. It was too easy to want to slip back into the old, comfortable ways they always interacted. That wasn't very formal, though. She did her best to act like she knew Dia would appreciate.
"You look nice in that suit, Kanan. It really fits you."
"Thank you! That dress is really lovely on you." It took all of her efforts to not say that the suit really suited her. She felt that kind of restraint earned her at least one cookie, maybe two.
"I was hoping you'd like it." Dia's cheeks went pink, but she was saved from further explanation by the waiter, who came and took their drink orders. The one thing that didn't change with them on a date was that they were able to easily converse with each other. That was the benefit of knowing someone for years: there was usually something to talk about. She didn't even mention anything about mating. Not one time. Though she couldn't help but talk about sea life once or five times. It was something she knew a lot about. Thankfully, Dia's family business had a lot to do with the water as well, so the conversation wasn't entirely one-sided.
Normally, Kanan wasn't much for fancy foods. She knew that Dia and Mari were more diverse with their palates, but hers was more seafood-driven. However, this menu had a nice selection of seafood that she could choose from, saving her the embarrassment of having to ask if they had a kids menu. They chatted happily until the food came, then they started to dig in.
"Mmm, this is delicious!" Kanan sighed happily, taking another bite of her food. Her eating wasn't quite as delicate as Dia's was, but that fact was never brought up. Dia just smiled and nodded, more than aware of Kanan's more casual eating habits. It didn't really bother her.
"It's quite exquisite. I'm glad you're enjoying your meal, Kanan." When they finished their meals, Kanan tried to pay for it all, since she was the one who had asked Dia out on a date, but Dia wasn't having it. Even though her wallet begged her to take the deal Dia was giving her, she still tried to insist on paying it. Dia wasn't one to not get her way, though, so they ended up splitting the bill. Kanan wasn't sure how romantic that was, but her wallet gave her a prayer of thanks all the same.
On the drive home, Kanan began to think about what Ruby had said earlier. She had put the thought of kissing out of her mind, but now that their date was almost over, it was front and center in her brain. This left her with one chance to kiss Dia, which apparently she wanted. Oh man... She'd thought about kissing Dia before. Maybe a bit too much starting in high school. Now that she actually had the chance, she was nervous. Maybe she should have practiced kissing before going on this date.
She would occasionally glance over at Dia, usually finding her staring back. Dia would smile, and she would blush and look back at the road. Was she even a good kisser? Well, she was going to find out. Unless Dia didn't tell her... Now she was sweating again, stressing out over something as simple as a kiss. She was playing herself here.
Parking by the Kurosawa's house, Kanan got out with intentions to open Dia's door, but she'd already opened it and stepped out before Kanan got there. She smiled awkwardly, suddenly unsure of what to do with her hands. They were walking up to the door, and she was going back and forth in her mind about what to do. God, why was she overthinking this? She'd never been this way around Dia before. Even when she was crushing hard, it hadn't been this difficult to make a decision.
They were at the door when she made her decision. Dia was saying something - "I had a really nice time, Kanan" - but Kanan was having a hard time paying attention. She could feel her heart beating faster in her chest, and before she could chicken out, she cupped Dia's cheeks in her hands and dipped in for a kiss. It was quick and a little sloppy, but it left Dia dazed all the same when Kanan pulled back. Her heart was still pounding like a drum in her ears. She was sure Dia could hear it.
"Well... You certainly are bold, aren't you?" Dia smiled, a light blush on her face as she looked at Kanan. There was a hint of shyness in her gaze. "Will you do it again?" Perking up instantly, Kanan nodded hard and swooped back in to kiss Dia again. This kiss was longer, and Kanan swore she could hear bells ringing louder than her heart. She wasn't sure if she was having aural hallucinations or Mari had snuck up on them and started ringing bells to mess with them.
"That was nice," Kanan murmured dumbly, a big, goofy smile on her face. "Does that mean you want to go on another date?"
"Why don't you ask me properly, and maybe I'll say yes?"
"O-Oh, right! Will you go on another date with me, Dia?"
"Hmm..." Dia rubbed her chin in thought, leaving Kanan to sweat it out for a moment longer. "Come up with an idea for our next date, and I'll be happy to go on another date with you." She smiled warmly, kissing Kanan on the cheek. "Thank you for the date. It was very nice. Call me, okay?" Kanan just nodded dumbly, watching as Dia went inside.
She might have stood there like an idiot until the sprinklers came on, until a phone call broke her from her stupor. She answered it in a daze, not even looking at the caller ID. "Hello?"
"Kanan! Did your date go well?" Mari's shrill, excited voice burst through the speakers. Kanan had to pull the phone away from her ear to avoid going partially deaf.
"Uh, yeah, yeah it did. It went great, actually. Really great."
"That's great! That kiss was pretty steamy, huh? Glad you listened to little Wooby. Use some tongue next time!"
"Wh-What?" Kanan blushed, staring at the phone in shock. "How did you know that?!"
"Look up." She did so, and saw a robo-looking thing flying above her, a lens pointing directly at her. "Say hi to my drone, Miss Peekaboo!"
"Mari, I'm going to destroy your drone with a rock." She looked down to start trying to find something to throw at it.
"No, not Miss Peekaboo! Kanan, no!"