Butterflies in my stomach
It's been four months since they were dating each other. But nothing memorable happened ever since that moonlit night when Takanashi confessed his feelings for Mahiru. "It's almost as if we're couple paradiso" wondered Inami as she sat next to her beloved boyfriend watching a romantic movie at a multiplex. As she saw a boy sitting in the row above slide his hand across the shoulder of his girlfriend, she too wished for the same to happen to her.
"But I guess not!" she thought with a dead pan expression on her face as she stared at her boyfriend who was in a trance like state enjoying the sight of a young girl running after a puppy.
"I guess I can't expect anything from a sixteen year old boy who considers anyone above the age of 12 as senescent"
But somehow she thought that maybe it was fine. She liked the way he was because he accepted her for what she was. As the movie ended, she saw the would-be lovers embrace and kiss. As she saw the last scene she imagined herself and Takanashi in the same position.
"Aree…did I just imagine that?"
After the movie ended, Takanashi commented on how good a movie it was to which she simply sat glued on her seat with a lost expression on her face. Her boyfriend repeated the same question to which she did not reply and he spoke up "Inami san, Inami san". Breaking out of her melee she said "Gomenasai, I was too lost in the movie. Yeah it was a great movie. I loved it!" "Ahh, I loved the little girl, Mari chan. She was simply exceptional" he said with glee. "Yeah. She was really sweet and lovely" said Inami whilst nodding her head. "Plus she was so insanely cute" he added
"Ahh! Naruhodo. Geiin wa sore ka?" (Oh! I see. So that's the reason why you wanted to watch this movie in the first place!) She thought with a smile on her face and a bead of sweat appearing on her forehead.
As they walked out of the movie theatre and down the plaza, Takanashi kept on talking about the movie while Inami just kept on thinking about stepping forward in their relationship.
"I wonder if I can hold hands like the couple in the movie…"
"I wonder if I can be expressive like the couple in the movie…"
"I wonder if I can ki-", she thought as she felt her lips and blushed hard when she came to a halt, tugging her boyfriend's jacket while he stopped and asked her "What's the matter, Inami san? Was the movie not good or am I blabbering away too much. I'm really sorry it's…" as he continued, Inami interrupted "No. it's not that" she said as she avoided looking into Takanashi's eyes and blushed hard. "Then what is it?" he asked "You can be completely frank with me, Inami san. But if you don't want to…" he added looking away "No. it's just that I was thinking how awesome their love was. It's just that…."
"It's just that…." he asked
"It's just that…." she said without looking straight into her boyfriend's eyes "It's just that I wish we could hold hands like the others" to which her boyfriend held her hands up and said-
"Like this?"
"No, not like this" she blushed and gestured to another couple walking intimately on the other side of the street.
"Ahh" he saw and added "But you see, don't you think it's better to take one step at a time" to which he stepped in beside her and softly grabbed her hand to which she felt like butterflies were flying in her stomach. "Calm down, Inami san" said Takanashi. "Now why are you crying?" he asked. "No, I'm not" she said wiping a tear and added "It's just that I'm so happy that I have such a cool boyfriend." The smile that Inami gave was enough to make Takanashi weak in his knees and blush wildly as he thought "Ah, she's so innocently cute that she could kill me with her looks and the best part is she doesn't even notice it!" "Anyway" he said clearing his throat "It's best to get going now. It's getting late anyway. You don't want your dad to worry about you. Right?" he added like a worried guardian. She nodded her head, held onto his hand and followed him through the flurry of people walking across the streets in the early hours of the vivacious evening.