AN: Thank you SO much to all of you who have reviewed and followed this story so far! It was really exciting to see so many people enjoying it 3 A special thanks, as always, to FloraOne for being my biggest supporter and encourager, and for ALSO being such an amazing beta for me. This wouldn't be half as funny as it is without your help!
Enjoy this second installment, and please feed my ego with reviews and feedback :) Sailor Moon still isn't owned by me.
Over the next few days, Mamoru was in close contact with Minako. Closer contact than he ever had any desire to be. She had been designated as the goto between him and the rest of the gaggle of girls. Life made it nearly impossible to get them all in the same place at once these days, and since Minako's life was the least hectic, she claimed it was because she was taking time off to "explore" herself, she became the chosen one to liaise with Mamoru.
The plan had been set. The girls had told Usagi that they were going to have a girl's night at Rei's Saturday evening. Usagi had been ecstatic to hear of their plans. It had been ages since they'd gotten the chance to have a sleepover. Little did she know, Ami, Rei, Mako and Minako were all going to conveniently cancel on the unsuspecting moon princess. After such disappointment, they knew she would run to her greatest source of comfort, Mamoru. He would then suggest that she have girl's night with him instead, setting the night's events into motion.
Minako had insisted on having a meeting for them to discuss the activities that would be best for his evening with Usagi. Most of her suggestions had been innocent enough. He could easily agree to "chick flick" watching, junk food eating, and even nail painting. But as Minako started to veer from his comfort zone, he began to visibly sweat.
They met at the arcade the day before the girl's night was to take place. Usagi was busy having dinner with her parents, so for once, there was no danger in running into her there. Mamoru wasn't surprised to find Minako had beaten him there so she'd have a chance to shamelessly flirt with Motoki. In order to tear her away, Mamoru was forced to buy her dinner. After all, she had informed him, it was the least he could do for her after she'd done so much work for him!
"Ok, Mamoru, so we've agreed on food, TV choices and mani/pedis. Next on the list is...Ah, yes. Makeovers. I included this one for you, obviously. Usagi is flawless. You on the other hand…"
"And just what exactly is wrong with my appearance?" He growled at her.
"How about we start with the one-eyed, one-horned giant green monster you wear all the time."
"For the LAST time. There is nothing wrong with my jacket! Usako told me she likes it, so it stays."
Minako laughed an evil, unearthly laugh that would have put Esmeraude to shame. "And you believed her? God, you really are an idiot...Ok! Next up, we have Cosmo quizzes!" She thrust a magazine at him, which he took from her reluctantly.
"Cosmo? This is a sleaze magazine Minako. It has half naked people on the front of it with tips on how to 'please your man'? I'm NOT taking a quiz on...oh let's see here...what my personality is in bed, Minako. The only thing this is good for is lining Artemis' litter box." Mamoru flipped the magazine back around to show her the page he'd landed on.
"Mamoru whatever your middle name is Chiba! You promised to keep an open mind. Usagi loves doing these! We all know they don't tell you anything, but it's still fun to do them. And besides, you might learn a few things about the female anatomy. Not that you need much help in that department from what we hear…" She winked at him suggestively.
"Is nothing sacred, anymore?"
"Not when you choose Tsukino Usagi as your soulmate, no."
"You can't choose a soulmate, Minako."
"Whatever. You know what I meant. So, quizzes are a go during facial time! The next item of business will be one that no good slumber party can survive without, gossip time."
"What on earth could I possibly glean or gain from gossiping with Usako? She tells me everything about you girls, you know."
"HA! Oh, Mamoru. You're just like a precious little kitten. So, sweet. So, innocent! But there's a TON to be learned during gossip time! Like, at our last sleepover, we learned that you have a serious love of dildos."
Coffee spewed everywhere. "WHAT?!"
"Or was it doritos...Let me think. Hmm. Yes, it was definitely doritos. Sorry, about that. They're so similar!"
"Why don't we just keep going? For the love of all that is good and sacred in this world."
"Right, of course! We usually take turns doing each other's makeup, and braiding hair. It's usually during this point of the evening when Ami pulls out her textbooks and starts reading. I think it's because she's jealous she can't have her hair braided, but I haven't been able to confirm this conclusively. DON'T BE LIKE AMI, MAMORU. I know it's hard, but you MUST resist! Usagi's life depends on it!"
Mamoru placed his hands in his head, shaking it slowly in frustration. "How in the world did you make it past middle school?"
"Well, Ami says it was divine intervention, but my bet's on the ten minutes I spent in the broom closet with the monitor after the test."
"And on that note, I think we're done here."
Minako rolled her eyes dramatically, while she stood to slowly made her way to the front of the arcade, leaving a group of middle school boys speechless at her... turned back and waved brightly.
"Bye Mamoru!" She called as he practically away ran out the door of the arcade. "Good luck! Can't wait to hear the results of your, 'Will He Be Good in Bed?' quiz! I have bets on yes, but Rei says no! There's chocolate riding on this!"
Making a mental note to tell Usagi she desperately needed new friends, Mamoru waved a quick goodbye to Motoki, and began to make his way back to his apartment.
This had all seemed so simple before his meeting with Minako. A bunch of food, movies, pajamas, and you called it good! But this was...complicated. This will be easy, she'd said. There's nothing to worry about, she'd said. If this were true, why did he find himself panicking over remembering things like fish-tail braids and whatever the heck contouring was?
Ugh. Women.
It was early Saturday morning when Mamoru found himself reviewing the checklist Minako had left for him outside his apartment door, complete with a matching set of Sailor Venus pajamas for the evening, which he quickly hid in a drawer, praying they would never be heard from again. Minako knew enough about him, it would seem. Her face didn't need to see it firsthand. He wasn't entirely convinced she hadn't hidden a camera somewhere in the material anyway...
He was nearly ready. All that was left was heading to The Crown to wait for Usagi to take his bait, and he was determined to make this a special night for her. Minako had graciously laid down some ground rules for the evening:
Absolutely NO school talk. Including but not limited to- gory medical stories, "interesting" math problems, or any other topics that made Usagi look at him like he'd grown an extra head. If he could imagine Ami saying it, he shouldn't say it.
Stick in the mud, anti-social, anti-fun Mamoru-baka of old was banned from making an appearance, no matter how many episodes of The Bachelor she forced him to watch.
After begrudgingly agreeing to Minako's rules, Mamoru had decided to add two of his own to the list. Simple things really.
No "sexy time" allowed. Unless Usagi just happened to look at him in just the right way, and then he just happened to touch her...ok, maybe he wouldn't take that one completely off the table. You know, just in case Usagi wanted to or something.
The most important of all: Never let the smile leave her face.
While technically this was a gift to Usagi from the girls and him, he knew it was just a much a gift for him than anything else. In spite of all their prying and meddling, all four girls knew how much Usagi and Mamoru needed each other. Perhaps, he'd be able to thank them in about 25 years. If he expressed his thanks before then, Minako would actually know she'd been right, and that was dangerous and uncharted territory.
After making sure one last time that his apartment was shinier than Mr Clean's head, he left his apartment and made his way to the arcade.
Mamoru waved in greeting to Motoki, and soon made his way to a booth in order to await the arrival of his future wife. Coffee soon appeared in front of him, (he knew being friends with Motoki would pay off eventually!), he placed his reading glasses on and pretended to read one of the most official looking books he owned. He was an expert at getting people to leave him alone, and his favorite trick was one he had affectionately dubbed the, "Smart People Glasses and Big Book Double Punch." While it never completely stopped female gawkers, it at least forced them to keep their discussions of his "hotness" to their own tables.
It wasn't long before he felt her walk in, but much to his dismay, he couldn't feel her usually bright and shiny aura. The emotions coming off of in waves her were sad and dejected. Mamoru chanced a look up at her, and saw her walking towards Motoki with her shoulders hunched, feet dragging and head held so low her pigtails were almost scraping the ground.
Everything was going according to plan.
Soon, Mamoru heard Motoki mention his name, and pointed Usagi to the booth he was sitting in. Putting his book down, Mamoru looked up at Usagi, flashing her a brilliant smile. "Usako. How are you?"
She sat down in the seat across from him in a huff, laying her head down on the table. "Errytinsruedmamosan." Usagi's words were muffled by the table and her arms that were cradling her head."
"Uh..what was that? Usako, you're going to have to speak up. My fluency in 'Muffled Usagi' has waned over the years."
She looked up at him, tears filling her eyes. "Everything is ruined Mamo-chan."
"What's ruined, love?"
"Everything!"
"Could you possibly be a little more specific?"
She rolled her eyes at him in mock annoyance. "Mamo-chan, tonight was supposed to be my sleepover with the girls. I was SO excited about it, since it's been so long, but they all bailed on me!"
"I'm so sorry Usako. But I'm sure if the girls had to cancel on you, they had very good reasons."
"Oh, really? What makes you so sure of that?! I don't exactly think that Mina organizing her bow collection is a 'good reason'!"
It took everything in him not to smack his head against the table. Minako had come up with this entire rouse, but hadn't managed to come up with a better excuse?
"Well...I'm sure everyone besides Minako had a good reason, didn't they? They all love you so dearly, I can't imagine them hurting you purposefully."
"Yeah, I guess they were good enough reasons. But it still hurts, Mamo-chan!"
And then, she gave him that face. The pouty one with the sad eyes that she knew he couldn't resist. Mamoru was so tempted to tell her everything, to take away the sadness that was threatening to spill out. He quickly pinched himself, and came back to his senses. She would appreciate everything that had been done for her once the plan had played out in its entirety.
He covered her hand with his own in a vain attempt to comfort her. "I understand, Usako. Is there anything I can do to help you feel better? A milkshake, perhaps?"
"Why do males always assume that sweets are going to fix a woman's problems?!"
"Well, would it fix them?"
"...yes. But that's not the point!"
Five minutes later found Usagi sipping on a strawberry milkshake, but her spirits hadn't seemed to have lifted. Mamoru gazed at her with understanding in his eyes, and a slight smirk on his face.
"Mamo-chan, what are you smiling about?"
"Huh? Oh...heh, it's nothing, Usako. I just like watching you sometimes."
"If I ever wake up in the middle of the night and you're "watching" me like that, we're getting a divorce."
Mamoru chuckled at her, and Usagi went back to her neglected milkshake. After a few more minutes of silence, he felt that it was time to lay the trap. "Say...Usako. I know it's not the same as having your sleepover with the girls, but what would you think of having a slumber party with me, tonight?"
A confused look came over her features. "...but it's not Thursday." He nearly choked on his coffee.
"I know it's not Thursday, silly. But we could have your girl's night at my apartment. Just you and me. What do you say?"
The confused look on her face only grew. "A girl's night, with YOU? Mamo-chan are you sick?! Oh, God, did you hit your head again? How many fingers am I holding up?" She stuck eight fingers into his face.
Mamoru grasped her wrists and gently lowered them back down to the table. "I'm fine Usako. I just thought it might be fun to spend the time with you. We could eat junk food and watch The Bachelor and whatever else it is you girls do at these things."
Her face softened into a beautiful smile. "Oh, Mamo-chan, you're so sweet. It's so like you to try and cheer me up when I'm sad. But I couldn't ask you to do that. I know you probably have way better things to do with your time."
"What could possibly be a better use of my time than spending it with you?" She forgot how to breathe for a second.
"You do have a point there…" Usagi replied, winking at him. "Are you sure, Mamo-chan? You know I'd love to spend that time with you, but it doesn't have to be a girl's night if that makes you uncomfortable."
"Usako, I promise it's fine. It'll be fun! Besides.." He paused, winking at her before continuing. "I've been dying to find out if I have what it takes to become a makeup and nail artist. Would you do me the honor of being my model?" She giggled.
"I think we can arrange something."
"Good. Why don't you go home and grab your stuff, and I'll meet you at the supermarket in an hour so we can get supplies?"
"Sure, Mamo-chan! I'll hurry, I promise." She stood up, and moved to kiss his cheek, but Mamoru turned his head in order to kiss her fully on the mouth. A gorgeous blush graced her cheeks as she gave him one last peck on the lips, whispering, "Bye, Mamo-chan." As she turned to head out the door, hips swaying seductively for his benefit.
Thank god he hadn't taken taken sexy time off the table.
AN: tune in next time for the stunning conclusion of "Girl's" Night In! It should be out within a week or so! Thanks for reading 3