Chapter Two – The Theoretical Perfect First Date

The first date is an important event in a relationship.

Listen to your date, compliment them, and make sure they are happy.

Just relax and have fun with your partner. It's only the first date.

The thirteenth time he checked his watch, he felt the onset of worry. By the twentieth, the minute had only just changed, yet that worry had built into intolerable levels of apprehension. At that moment in time, Nagisa was twenty-three minutes late. Rei did his best to remain calm as he stood alone on the sidewalk, still amidst several pedestrians. Surely, after the confirmation that his feelings were mutual, he hadn't forgotten about their date? Subconsciously, his hand dug into the depths of his pocket to retrieve his phone. He checked for a message, just to see if Nagisa had replied to one of the seven texts he'd sent in the past fifteen minutes, and was met with disappointment. Before he closed it, he noticed the minute change again. Twenty-four minutes late. Ten minutes wouldn't have bothered him, but twenty-four was cause for concern. Twenty-four minutes without a word from Nagisa was a valid reason to feel panic.

What if something awful had happened to him? What if there was some sort of accident where, as Rei stood waiting at their rendezvous point, Nagisa lay on a stretcher in an ambulance headed to the nearest hospital? A knot caught his throat and his breakfast began attempting a getaway. He quickly snatched his glasses off and began cleaning them half-mindedly. What was he thinking? It probably wasn't something so drastic as a life-threatening situation. There was no sense in getting himself worked up over hypotheticals. But suppose it wasn't a hypothetical? He replaced his glasses and grabbed for his phone again, typing out another text frantically and ignoring the high number of typos he had made in the process. Surely, if Nagisa received it, he would understand the gist of it.

His thumb had only just pressed the send button when he heard his name called from a distance. Jerking his head up as an instinctual response to the voice, an overwhelming sense of relief washed through him as the shorter blond boy came stumbling toward him in a shaken state, bursting out in apologies. Even with all the mental and emotional turmoil the ordeal had put him through, Rei only released a deep breath, smiling fondly at Nagisa as he continued babbling.

"I'm really, really, really, really sorry I'm so late!" Nagisa apologized, "I promise I didn't forget, Rei-chan, it hasn't slipped my mind even for a minute! I even planned to get here early! And I wanted to text you, but I was in such a hurry when I left the house, I forgot my phone at home! Were you waiting very long?"

"No, I just got here myself," Rei said without a second thought.

Nagisa checked Rei's expression thoroughly for genuineness as he panted, and once confirming it, he smiled back at his response. This was a conversation they found themselves starting with frequently when meeting up, but Rei understood what it meant to Nagisa and made sure to respond this way whenever appropriate. After all, now that they were official, this phrase would have to be customary.

"So," Nagisa said, holding his hands behind him to pose cutely, "What are we doing today, Rei-chan?"

Rei pushed his glasses back, smiling proudly as he stood up straighter.

"I have the entire day planned out," he stated matter-of-factly, "We'll first have lunch at the ramen shop on the main street, followed by a matinee showing of Soul Reaping at the cinema. Afterwards, I've allotted some time for us to travel down to the harbor in Iwatobi by train for a walk on the pier and to do some shopping from a list of highly rated shops, as well as have dinner at a place which, according to their reviews, has excellent beef bowls and seafood, and then we'll take the train back here for a sweet treat before I walk you home to close the night."

Nagisa's eyes widen with wonder as he listened to Rei list the events of the day, his smile never faltering.

"Woow, you really do have this planned out to the last detail," he said, "You really meant what you said about leaving nothing to be desired!"

Rei smiled proudly. It sounded almost as if Nagisa had expected less of him, but it was clear now that he understood his intent to deliver.

"But of course!" he said, confidently flipping his hair, "Well then, we should be off. Feel free to be wooed by this date, Nagisa-kun!"

"Yay!" Nagisa cheered, "Ramen ho!"

Before Rei even had time to blink, Nagisa took off ahead of him.

"W-Wait a minute!" he cried, "Don't leave me behind!"

After a brief moment of scrambling, he caught up with him, and only at that time did Nagisa close a fair amount of distance between them so they could walk alongside each other. Despite the delay, the date seemed like it was off to a good start. Nagisa enthused about their date in his usual animated fashion, to Rei's content. He loved seeing Nagisa in his element, as it was where he truly came alive. It was that part of him that Rei fell for in the first place. A brief breeze passed through them, catching Rei's attention. At that moment, whatever Nagisa rambled on about was drowned out. A very sweet scent wafted from his direction, unmistakably a perfume of sorts, twined with a rather potent version of the strawberry scent from the previous day.

Just then, Nagisa cut his sentence short, taking notice to Rei's fixation.

"W-What?" he asked, his voice tight with recognizable self-consciousness, "Why are you staring at me like that?"

Rei frantically went back to his mental notes for assistance. 'Compliment your date.'

"N-Nothing bad!" he stammered, "It's just… you smell nice."

"I smell nice?" Nagisa repeated, a blush faintly tinting his cheeks, "Oh. Actually… my sisters sort of knew about my date with you today, and they ambushed me on my way out the door and attacked me with some of their perfumes. They said they were trying to help me come off more attractive to you, but I thought you wouldn't like it if I had so many different smells, so I tried to wash it off in the shower. That's why I was so late meeting with you…"

His eyes shifted to his feet as he spoke, the expression on his face darkened with shame and disappointment. Was he really that upset over being late? He had said he had been looking forward to it, and his apology was so unusually extreme that Rei was left with no other choice but to believe that it was true. It was clear that his mistake was hurting him greatly, and that he felt responsible for the late start. If anything, it was up to Rei at this point to redirect him from blaming himself for his sister's actions.

"It smells like strawberries…" he said, "That's not your sisters' is it?"

"No…"

"I like it. It suits you well."

The blond's face reddened at the comment before he looked to the side suddenly.

"Ah! We're passing the ramen shop!" he shouted, making a sharp turn to the right to approach their destination.

Why the redirect? Was that wrong? Rei paused only for a moment, troubled by the failure in his compliment. Maybe it was impolite to compliment Nagisa's smell. Perhaps next time, he should compliment him differently. He hurried after Nagisa to avoid being left behind again.

The savory scent of broths, spices, and fish cakes wafted in their direction as they stepped in, working up a bit of an appetite Rei didn't have before entering. There were few customers, so it didn't appear there would be much of a wait. Nagisa immediately began scoping out the pictures from the menu, marveling at each of the dishes a little more as he went on.

"Wow, everything looks so tasty!" he exclaimed.

This fueled Rei with a bit of confidence as his date deemed his choice acceptable. With food, it was hard to go wrong with Nagisa, but it was still comforting to know he would be bringing him happiness through his own carefully selected restaurant.

"Lunch is on me today," he said proudly, "So, order anything you want."

He immediately regretted the words as they carelessly rolled off his tongue, and Nagisa looked to him eagerly with a twinkle in his eye.

"Well, then in that case—" he started.

"Perhaps I should rephrase—any one thing," Rei clarified, glaring at the smaller boy.

"Ehhh? But Rei-chan, I'm starving…" Nagisa whined, "I had to skip out on breakfast this morning because of my sisters."

"You really shouldn't overeat since we'll be in such a hurry today…" Rei murmured, feeling himself caving in compassion for Nagisa's empty tummy, "I don't want you getting sick. One ought to be enough."

"Four."

Was this really turning into a negotiation? Nagisa's lower lip pouted and he frowned, not in the slightest coming off intimidating, however crumbling Rei's stubborn front even further.

"Two," he responded firmly, stiffening his posture to make himself appear more authoritative.

"Three," Nagisa said, straightening his back and puffing his chest out to match Rei's while using a voice that was clearly meant to mimic his.

Despite himself, Rei let out a soft laugh, to which Nagisa pouted harder. He could no longer fight against such insistence.

"Fine," he chuckled, "Three it is."

There was barely a transition between Nagisa's pout to his big, shining grin. As he rattled off his three choices to the chef behind the counter, Rei discreetly peeked into his wallet. There was a fair amount of money he had carefully saved inside, though this lunch was going to dent it substantially, leaving enough for the movie tickets, but little for concessions and for spending at the harbor, and even less for dinner and ice cream. Rei took a deep breath and sighed it out evenly. They could manage a decent date with these savings, assuming all went right. He would just have to make inexpensive decisions for the rest of the day. No sweat.

Though the shop was mostly empty, they took a seat at the back, where they could speak without worrying about others overhearing their conversation. For the first few minutes of their lunch together, the only sounds were the uninterrupted slurping of noodles from Nagisa's side of the table. The sound itself was a bit grating, but Rei enjoyed seeing Nagisa so content with his food. Only after Nagisa had inhaled the broth and all of out his second bowl did Rei hear him take a breath.

"Is it good?" he asked, knowing the answer already.

"It's delicious!" Nagisa exclaimed, "I can't wait to try the beef!"

"Try to eat it a little more slowly, Nagisa-kun… We have plenty of time before the movie."

"You worry too much! I'll be fine."

Despite the nonchalant response, he took a single bite out of the next bowl and chewed it for awhile, to Rei's surprise. Since when did Nagisa listen to his 'nagging'? Still, the lack of conversation following was concerning. Dates weren't supposed to be this quiet were they? Even out and about, Rei was used to seeing couples engaged in conversation. By the time Nagisa was most of the way through his last bowl, the silence was beginning to weigh on Rei's mind more heavily. He picked at the vegetables in his bowl awkwardly, trying to find a way to break the silence.

Suddenly, Nagisa spoke up.

"So, um… I'm kinda surprised you asked me out."

Rei's head snapped up from his bowl and directed his attention toward Nagisa. The blond teen blushed a little at his food, his chopsticks hovering over it. This was crashing. He needed to fix it immediately.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean for this to be uncomfortable," Rei started, "I really intend for today to be fun, I'm just—"

"No!" Nagisa interrupted quickly, "I didn't mean that! I meant… I'm surprised you have feelings for me, too…"

This was a more direct conversation than he expected, but one he was more than willing to address.

"You mean-? You had difficulty coming to terms with your feelings for me as well?" Rei asked.

"'As well?'" Nagisa asked, his lips pouting slightly while his tone was faintly offended.

The guilt panged around in his chest like an angry wasp.

"N-Not that-! I-It's just-!" Rei fumbled over his words helplessly, drowning in his panic, "I-I-It's not because it's you! It's just that-! You know-!"

"I'm a boy?"

Rei went silent as Nagisa finished his statement, sparing the speechless one a smile.

"It's okay, Rei-chan," he said, "This wasn't anything new to me when I fell for you, but if it's new to you, then you must have spent a lot of time coming to terms with those feelings."

"Well…" Rei murmured, sipping his drink, "It's not just so much the fact that you're a boy as it is… that I fell in the first place. I never really looked at anyone before the way I see you, so I suppose it just took me by surprise when I finally realized I was feeling something so illogical."

"Illogical?" Nagisa asked, "You don't think love is beautiful?"

"Absolutely not," Rei stated, "Being so head-over-heels for another makes one lose their sense of self, do uncharacteristic things, and fumble all over themselves. It invades every single thought, even dreams, and never lets you forget how miniscule you feel around that person, and how you constantly have to prove your worth in order to appeal to them. And for what? To never feel reassured? Yet you strive to appeal, and the cycle continues in sickening redundancy. Performing the same task repeatedly and expecting different results is most certainly not logical, nor beautiful."

"So what made you decide to ask me out then, if it's so illogical? Isn't that pretty illogical?" Nagisa asked.

"Anything can be broken down into theory," Rei said, sitting up straighter to adjust his glasses with a proud smile, "Even with there being as many variations and flexibility in love, I'm certain I can boil it down to a science that is sure to make itself clear to me as our relationship progresses."

"You're melting my heart, Rei-chan," Nagisa cooed in a mocking tone, stealing a bit of pork out of Rei's bowl and popping it into his mouth, continuing to speak through it, "Besides, you're so unfortunate that you fumble all over yourself all the time anyway. That's hardly uncharacteristic…"

"Don't say unnecessary things like that!" Rei complained, then more softly, "I didn't mean for it to sound like I'm only studying a relationship to understand it. I guess… if anything, I'm studying it to make myself suitable for you. What I feel for you is unfamiliar, but very real and very strong. I already tried keeping it to myself, but that wasn't enough. I just… I want to make you happy. Even if you didn't return my feelings, I still would have done anything to make you happy. I've fallen victim to everything illogical about this already, haven't I?"

Nagisa had taken his attention off of his bowl, watching Rei quietly as he spoke.

"You don't have to make yourself suitable," he said, "Rei-chan is perfect for me."

An intense blush took Rei's face instantaneously. Nagisa finished off the rest of his bowl, only blushing slightly. He had a tendency to speak his mind, as Rei had heard many times, but to say such an embarrassing thing so calmly without even a stammer left Rei with butterflies in his stomach. With his head down, he pushed the rest of his pork ramen towards Nagisa shyly.

"You can have the rest if you want it," he murmured, taking a sip of his drink after.

"Yay!" Nagisa cheered, "I love you, Rei-chan!"

The sting of the water that entered Rei's nose at the words was present for the next hour.

"Sold out?!"

Rei's heart crumbled at the words. This could not be happening. How could a movie with an atrocious name like Soul Reaping sell out on the first day of its release, in the middle of the afternoon no less? Nagisa let out a soft, disappointed sigh, only further discomforting him. The teller behind the glass pane bowed his head apologetically.

"I'm sorry for the inconvenience," he said, "All of our matinee tickets are sold out for the day. We do have some available for the evening showing, if you're still interested."

Both looked to each other for an answer. After some hushed exchange about whether it would fit in with the evening plans or if they should see it another day, they finally settled on waiting until later in the evening to decide. Though they had a plan B, Rei's tension wasn't eased as they walked away from the theater.

"That's too bad," Nagisa sighed.

"I'm sorry," the words fell out of Rei's mouth instinctually, "This was a shortcoming in my planning. I hadn't anticipated a movie would sell out this time of day…"

Nagisa looked up at him suddenly.

"It's not your fault, Rei-chan! Today is the first Monday of summer, after all. Lots of people are going out today, and Soul Reaping has a pretty big cult following. It can't be helped. Besides, it's not like it's going anywhere any time soon. There'll be plenty of other times we can go."

He was right, of course, but Rei knew he was disappointed. This was a large portion of their first date they would have to fill in the meantime. The best thing to do in this situation was not to let his panic show. They just needed to move onto the next activity.

"W-Well… This is for the best anyway!" Rei said, "The train could always arrive late, and this will give us a bit longer to spend at the pier. There are plenty of places to go, so we'll have time to stop by as many as you wish!"

"See? It all worked out!" Nagisa said with a grin.

"Of course! When planning a date, one must always account for these sorts of circumstances!"

Nagisa seemed to be going along with Rei's feigned confidence and continued to smile on their way to the station. As long as the trip to the pier went smoothly, their date would still be fine.

The tug of the train braking jerked Rei out of the beginning of a dream. Only at that time did he realize that he had fallen asleep, with Nagisa cuddled up close to his side and drooling on his shoulder again as he slept. He caught the end of the automated message repeating itself over the speaker. Perfect timing. He gently coaxed Nagisa out of his sleep so that they could depart.

Once they stepped into the new station, Rei's eyes fell upon a sign. He pushed his glasses up, hoping to focus on the words better. But to his horror, he did not recognize the stop's name. The train's doors shut behind them as the cars began to move away, leaving the two behind.

"You've got to be kidding me," Rei sighed to himself.

"What's wrong, Rei-chan?" Nagisa asked through a yawn, rubbing his eyes.

"We missed our stop. This isn't the harbor."

"It's not…? But there are signs for ocean stuff all over…"

Rei's eyes shifted around the station wall at each large poster, all of which were very nautical-themed. But…

"It's for a wharf, not the harbor… I don't even recognize this city's name…"

He stared at his feet, irritated. Of course this was happening. Now they would be spending extra time waiting for a train to take them back. He had no idea how far they had strayed from their destination, but it would surely set them back again.

"Let's go check it out!"

Nagisa spoke enthusiastically, as if he hadn't just been asleep. He started towards the station's exit, but Rei caught him by the arm.

"Nagisa-kun, we have no idea where we are right now!" he pointed out, "I haven't looked into anything about this place – we don't know what's here!"

"All the more reason to go scope out the area then! There's bound to be something fun around here we can do. C'mon!"

He walked forward anyway and dragged the flustered boy along with him. Surrendering to his whim, Rei let go of Nagisa's arm to walk alongside him on his own. If this was really what he wanted, it would be in Rei's interest to humor him.

The distance from the station to the wharf was fairly far, about thirty minutes by foot. Though the grassy, hilly scenery was nice, it was spoiled by the heat of the midday, summer sun blazing down upon them. When they neared the ocean, they were greeted by a cool, salty breeze.

"Ahh, that feels good," Nagisa sighed, spreading out his arms to take it in as much as possible.

He looked back at Rei with a playful grin.

"Hey, Rei-chan," he said, "Let's just spend the day at the beach! We can go swimming in the ocean, and collect beautiful shells and sea glass, build a sandcastle, watch the—"

"We're not prepared to do any of that," Rei said with a chuckle, also growing anxious about straying too far away from the schedule, "We don't have our swimsuits or anything to carry shells in, or tools for constructing proper sand castles."

"We don't need any of that stuff," Nagisa said, "We'll just get in the water with our clothes on, and we can carry the shells in our pockets."

The idea of being stuck in wet clothes the rest of the day was less than desirable, and this would require heading straight home afterwards. Not only that, but they would have to board the train that way, soaked, reeking of sea water, and gritty with sand. Nagisa really didn't seem to be thinking this through at all.

"Let's just stick to the wharf for today," Rei said gently, "We can go to the beach another time."

Nagisa's smile softened.

"Okay," he said, then lightening up a little, "I can't wait to see what it's like! I hope they have good food, 'cuz I'm kinda getting hungry…"

The brief pause caught Rei's attention. Even with his perfectly sound reasons, was it right to veto Nagisa's suggestion? He didn't appear terribly hurt, but… Rei decided he would have to make it up to him at a later time.

Salty scents drifted from so many directions. The voices of the bustling crowd at the pier blurred into a single incoherent buzz that drowned out the sounds of the crashing waves. Rei was overwhelmed by all of the different senses to take in, but Nagisa was raring to go. He would have to pull it together for the sake of their date.

"This looks fun!" Nagisa said optimistically, "Come on, let's look around."

He offered Rei his hand. How brazen, Rei thought. He cleared his throat, blushing.

"Stay close to me," he said simply.

Nagisa shrugged and lowered his hand to his side again. With Rei leading the way, they stepped into the busy stretch of the wharf. Instantaneously, he was ill at ease. His eyes followed the shops warily, finding mostly cheap souvenir and novelty stores. Nothing particularly caught his eye, aside from the restaurants he would have to keep in mind for later. The food would have to save this trip. He stopped walking for a moment to take note of the aromas coming from each establishment, noting the most appetizing scents. A number specialized in fried foods, which he wanted to avoid, though the cost could be considerably cheaper. On the way, Nagisa had mentioned he was hungry, so it would be best to stop some place to buy him a snack.

"Well, Nagisa-kun," Rei spoke loudly, "What sort of food are you—"

But in the time Rei had turned away, Nagisa was gone. Frantic, he began whipping his head side-to-side, looking past the crowds of people to find Nagisa, but in vain. How could they have already gotten separated? Maybe Nagisa was right to want to hold Rei's hand. Even if it was in a public setting, it could have prevented this. Now what was he supposed to do? Nagisa didn't even have his cellphone on him, how was he supposed to find him among all these—

"Here you go, Rei-chan."

Rei turned around quickly to meet a rather large heap of blue ice cream with colorful candies on top in a waffle cone at his nose, and at the end of it was Nagisa holding a second in his hand. Simultaneously with the relief that washed through him, Rei felt the onset of annoyance.

"Don't just leave me standing in the middle of a crowd without warning!" he pouted loudly, "Where did you go?!"

"I just went into the ice cream shop," Nagisa said, gesturing toward the building behind him, "The sign said they were famous for their bubblegum ice cream, and there wasn't a line, so I thought we might put it to the test!"

"Sweets again?" Rei asked, still irate.

Of course. He'd intended for them to stop for a sweet treat, most likely ice cream, after dinner. Asking for that much to go smoothly would be expecting the world apparently. A cold sensation took his nose as Nagisa pressed the frozen cream to it in a quick motion, all the while wearing a smile.

"Don't start nagging until you've tried it," he said, "Hurry and eat it before it melts."

Rei accepted the cone from Nagisa bitterly, unwrapping the napkin that had been curled around it to wipe his nose off. He stared at it unsurely, put off by the bright blue that was no doubt the product of heavy artificial coloring. The candies on top were likely bubblegum balls, if he understood correctly, which would probably be hard and disgusting due to the frozen state of their vessel. Why did Nagisa choose this? Hesitantly, he looked to his boyfriend, who stared up at him with wide, eager eyes. If it would make him happy, Rei would indulge him. Besides, Nagisa paid for it. At this point, it would be rude to refuse it. Taking in a breath, Rei brought the ice cream closer and gave it a little lick, and only at that time did Nagisa do the same with his. The sweet cream flowed down his tongue evenly, strongly flavored of bubblegum. Yet…

"This is incredible…" he said quietly.

"It's really good!" Nagisa announced more enthusiastically, going back for another lick.

Despite his previous grievances, Rei went in for another as well, taking more of the ice cream and a gumball. The ice cream was still delicious, but the gum was hollow, leaving behind a stringy, flavorless mess that lodged itself in the grooves of his teeth. Nagisa also displayed a grimace.

"The gum's a little gross, though," he admitted, picking at his teeth and pulling out tiny strands of white.

Awkwardly, he looked at his feet.

"Sorry…" he said, "The gum is weird, but the ice cream is still tasty, right?"

Rei smiled.

"Right," he said, then holding out his napkin, "Here, pick out the gum and I can throw it out so we can enjoy it uninterrupted."

Nagisa beamed up at him before plucking the gum out of both cones and placing them in the napkin. Once the unpleasant pieces had been taken away, the rest was very enjoyable.

The next few hours of the date were nice and leisurely. Further down the stretch were a series of tables and booths where vendors sold various foods and handmade crafts. Nagisa made sure they stopped by every single one to browse, and he admired each product happily. Rei also found a number of beautiful items to admire, to which Nagisa shared in his wonder. Many times, Rei offered to buy Nagisa things he appeared interested in, but he politely declined all of his attempts. While Rei stepped aside to take a closer look at a vendor's line of meticulously assembled jewelries, Nagisa made a purchase on his own. He approached Rei and took his wrist, fastening a simple, but pretty seashell bracelet to it. Afterwards, he flashed his own wrist to show off an identical bracelet with a grin. Rei was briefly mortified that Nagisa spent money on him when he was the one who was supposed to be paying for things, but seeing Nagisa so happy to have bought them matching accessories calmed him. He supposed a small purchase wouldn't hurt anything, especially if it made Nagisa happy. As long as Nagisa was happy, he was keeping to his responsibilities well.

By dinner, the earlier elation had faded and Rei was back to wracking his nerves. At first he thought it was fortunate all of the restaurants had exceedingly divine food fresh from the sea. Until the divinity came with a hefty price, and Nagisa proved to be price-blind. Too embarrassed to admit he could not afford most of the food, he tried to make the cheaper options sound as appealing as possible to his date, who nodded along neutrally. When the waitress came around, that was when Nagisa ordered half the menu anyway and Rei had to speak up about his dwindling funds. To which Nagisa responded casually,

"That's okay, I've got it covered."

Unwilling to inconvenience Nagisa further, Rei still ordered lightly. During the meal, he slumped in his disappointment in himself. There was no way he would ever have the money to fill Nagisa's stomach (or stomachs, as their friends often speculated.) He clearly he to rethink the lengths, times, and activities of these dates if he didn't want to go broke. Perhaps packing so much into one day was exceeding a bit too much.

"It's really okay, Rei-chan."

He peeked up at Nagisa, who smiled at him sympathetically.

"You paid for lunch," he said, "It was my turn to pay."

"But I invited you out today," Rei mumbled, "I should be taking responsibility for the purchases…"

"Don't worry about it! Let's just enjoy ourselves! Besides, you can't get food like this just anywhere. Here, try the lobster risotto!"

He held a spoonful of the delicacy out to him, but Rei looked away from it. His stomach was already in knots, and trying to finish his own food was a struggle itself. The spoon retracted eventually.

"The view here is amazing," Nagisa went on, "I've never been somewhere with seaside view seating before."

"Yeah… It is nice," Rei agreed without looking up.

The silence from earlier set back in, thicker than ever. Now, Rei knew it was his fault. How could he let this happen? Nearly every plan he made for the day fell through. Everything he wanted to do for Nagisa—everything wonderful and perfect Nagisa deserved—resulted in failure. What kind of a start to the relationship was this? From the moment they arrived at the movie theater—

The movie theater. He had one last shot. Rei checked his watch quickly. If they caught the next train, they still had a chance to make it. They could make it in thirty-five minutes.

"Nagisa-kun, we might be able to catch the evening showing of Soul Reaping if we leave now!" he announced abruptly.

"Eh?" Nagisa asked, caught off-guard, "Were we still planning on doing that today?"

"We still have time, so why not?" Rei asked, catching the attention of the waitress for the bill, "What's a date without tons of fake gore and one-dimensional protagonists' terrible life choices?"

What in the hell was he saying?

"Well… I do hear the 3D version has some great splattering scenes," Nagisa mused with a smile as he reached for his wallet.

Oh, lovely. At least he was on board with it now.

With the bill paid and the dishes at least mostly cleaned, now began the race against the clock. By foot, it took them thirty minutes to the wharf from the station. With a few minutes gone from the original thirty-five, they would have to sprint. It was nothing Rei couldn't handle, but Nagisa wasn't nearly as adept at running as he was with swimming, which slowed the pace a little at first, but much more drastically once they headed uphill. Nagisa's running tapered off to defeated trudging.

"Rei-chan… can we please… slow down…?" he panted.

"I'm sorry, Nagisa-kun but we can't afford to lose any time," Rei said, genuinely apologetic for wearing him so thin, "Come on."

He took Nagisa's wrist and pulled him along, and for awhile Nagisa matched pace. For awhile.

"Ah! Rei-chan, hold on!" Nagisa requested suddenly.

"We only have fifteen minutes, we have to go!" Rei reiterated.

"But I really think—"

"We can't!"

"Rei-chaan," Nagisa whined.

"I promise we'll rest on the train, but we have to hurry or we'll miss it!" Rei insisted.

Why was he being so adamant about this? He couldn't possibly have to use the restroom again; Rei made sure there were plenty of opportunities for that so he wouldn't be uncomfortable. Even stopping for the briefest moment could cause them to miss the last showing. They couldn't afford to lose even a minute. Suddenly, his arm caught and he jerked in midair, halted in the middle of the path as Nagisa braked without warning.

"Nagisa-kun, we don't have time-!"

"Would you just look?" Nagisa asked impatiently, facing towards the ocean.

With a great roll of his eyes, Rei decided to humor him and look out at the horizon for a moment, just to catch a glimpse of whatever Nagisa was trying to point out so he'd be able to listen to him about it on the train. But at that single glance, he found his eyes locked. The radiant red sun hovered just over the horizon, shining dancing lights upon the ripples of the ocean's surface and casting the sky ablaze in orange. The clouds above were fluffy and cream, drifting peacefully in the calm, steady breeze. He'd seen plenty of sunsets in his lifetime, but something about this one made him stop. It made him forget completely about their next destination, about the train, and about the stars. For now, his mind was directed solely to this offering of nature's beauty, which he had almost completely overlooked.

"They don't stay the same for long."

Rei looked down at Nagisa as he held his arm in his, smiling back at him.

"Sunsets change so fast," he said, "One minute they're there, and the next they're gone. That's all. I just didn't want you to miss something this beautiful."

Nagisa looked back out at the sunset again, and as he turned too, Rei realized it had already changed to a new shade of beauty in the moment he looked away. Sunsets were indeed ephemeral, changing in a blink. Had he insisted upon pushing forward to catch the train, he would have completely missed out on the beauty but a turn of head away. A weight pressed on his shoulder, and he saw Nagisa resting his head upon it lightly. He was content there with Rei, being able to watch the sky from where they stood. There would be no possible way to indulge in this and take Nagisa to his movie, but perhaps it was for the best. After all, this wasn't such a bad alternative.

"Would you like to sit?" he asked.

The question caught the blond by surprise, but he quickly nodded with a smile and led Rei out of the path so they could sit on the grass together. He sprawled out on the grassy carpet, leaning his weight back on his arms, while Nagisa sat similarly with his arm crossing with one of Rei's. Just as when they had been standing, Nagisa made his head comfortable against Rei's shoulder.

The colors in the sky continued to fade over the next several minutes, lining the bottoms of clouds in bright red just before the sun sank beneath the horizon. Once the colors of sunset had disappeared, the next minutes brought in stars one by one. Nagisa was just as content watching the stars, and Rei had always been fond of them himself, so they continued to stay. Rei took the opportunity to map out the summer constellations for Nagisa, who held on to his every word in utter fascination. The warmth that grew between them the longer they sat beside each other became more comforting as time went on, making it almost hard to part when the hour grew late.

"We should probably head home now," Rei said gently, "We don't want to miss the last train home."

"Okay," Nagisa sighed contentedly, nuzzling his cheek to his shoulder.

Reluctantly, they parted. Rei stood first, offering his hand to Nagisa. The blond stared at it moment, then smiled and placed his hand in his. On his feet, he laced their fingers, blushing all the while. Rei never noticed how small his hands fit in his before. His lips turned slightly as he led them back on the path, keeping his pace steady. Anything to make this moment last.

For once, the silence between them wasn't discomforting. The rocking of the train lulled Nagisa to sleep again, but Rei remained alert to watch for their stop. During the hour-long commute, he gazed at the weary boy fondly, even as the drool soaked through his shirt again. Waiting for him at the rendezvous point seemed like days ago—no wonder he was so tired. The day full of set-backs made for a long one indeed, though a lot had been planned for just a single day. There were notable successes and failures that came up throughout the day, but it at least seemed to be ending on a good note. That was all he could really ask after everything.

The walk to Nagisa's house seemed so much shorter than the traverse to the wharf, almost to Rei's dismay. They had already spent the entirety of the day together, yet it only now felt so short. Nagisa's hand gripped his a little tighter as they drew closer to the end.

"Oh," he said softly, "I'm sorry about the movie, Rei-chan."

This surprised Rei, having come out of nowhere.

"N-No, I'm sorry we didn't get around to it," he said, "I really wanted to take you today."

Come to think of it, why was Nagisa only expressing sympathy towards the one fall-through? Wasn't most of the day based on fall-throughs? Or was the movie truly that important to him?

They stepped up the porch and turned to face each other. Nagisa smiled at him as he always did, charming and sweet. He deserved the world, but everything Rei could offer fell short. But had he at least come close? With a short sigh, Rei prepared himself for the worst.

"Can… I ask you something?" he asked.

"Sure."

"Was today… Was this date… acceptable for you?"

"Huh?"

"I tried to make today memorable for you, but I can't help but wonder if maybe you felt differently. So, be honest… what did you think of this date?"

Nagisa blinked, surprised by the question, and then put on his warmest smile.

"Today was a lot of fun," he said, "I liked going to the wharf and getting ice cream, and watching the sunset and the stars together."

"Y-You did?" Rei asked.

Now that he thought about it, none of those were planned, nor were they even his idea. Nagisa didn't specifically mention anything else, meaning he was probably uninterested in what Rei had planned and disappointed in what they missed. Even after putting together a full schedule of things he was sure would mean a lot to Nagisa, it was still a C-grade date at best, based on what went as planned and how happy he kept his date. Nagisa deserved better than that, and Rei knew it.

"But…" Nagisa went on, "I liked having you to myself all day the most. Getting to spend all that time with you… Even though it was tiring, you were so determined to fit as much into the date as possible to make it fun for me. And it was! I can't wait to do this again!"

Again? Rei's heart skipped a beat at the words and at the beautiful smile before him.

"Although, maybe from now on we should just try to do one thing at a time, like… go to the summer festival?" Nagisa asked, a hint of shyness in his request.

"Th-The summer festival?! I-Is that where you want to go?!" Rei asked, taking mental notes and storing them away to flesh out later when he was at home, then continuing as Nagisa nodded, "Th-Then it's settled! That's where we'll go for our next date! We can go in yukata like last time! Just the two of us!"

Nagisa grinned and giggled.

"You really are cute, Rei-chan," he said, "And, um… thank you. For today. I know you spent a lot of time on it. Thank you for everything."

Rei couldn't keep himself from smiling. He hadn't exactly expected Nagisa to thank him for the date, and hearing him say so was nice. It was nice to know Nagisa appreciated the time he put into planning their first official date. He was rendered speechless, wanting so badly to respond with something as simple as an "anytime," but only able to smile and blush back at him. Their eyes locked, and neither spoke a word, occasionally tittering to avoid complete silence. Nagisa gazed up at him longingly, as if awaiting something else. Closure, mostly likely, Rei concluded.

"Um…" he started clumsily, "Th-Thank you for accompanying me today… I should probably, um… G-good night."

Was that really a way to end a date? He was already turning away while wondering, so it was happening regardless. Even as friends, this seemed a strange way to leave things, but maybe under the circumstances of their young relationship it was acceptable.

"Ah, R-Rei-chan?"

The reluctant voice brought his feet to an immediate halt, and he turned back around to face the boy who now held himself shyly. Clearly, he too felt they were leaving things weakly. But he said nothing either. Both wanted more, but Rei wasn't sure what he expected of him. Surely, he didn't mean that? But then Nagisa took a few steps closer, until he was but a foot away, and tipped his head upwards, tilting it to one side as he closed his eyes. There was no mistake—he was definitely asking for a kiss good night. Rei swallowed hard, pushing his glasses back stiffly as he continued to watch Nagisa pucker. This wasn't the plan. This wasn't the plan. Rei wasn't even sure how to give him a proper kiss good night. Should it be a brief, light peck on the lips, or something perhaps longer, deeper, and more romantic? The first kiss would surely leave a lasting impression, and if done incorrectly, it could set a poor tone for the evening, not to mention their relationship.

But he stood there in front of him with his lips pursed, waiting patiently for his. Did this obligate him to carry through with it? He took a deep breath and lowered himself in a half-bow, just so he would be able to reach Nagisa's lips, making careful observations about the way he had his head leaned and lips held. His head was tilted to Rei's left, meaning that Nagisa would want to kiss with both of them tilting to their respective rights. His lips were only slightly puckered, likely expecting a kiss that would be quick. Once he thought he had determined the proper technique, Rei leaned in closer, slowly closing his eyes. He could just barely feel Nagisa's breath against his lips. They had to be close to making contact at this point. Just a hair forward, and they would share their first kiss. The kiss that decided how well they would strive as a couple. A kiss he could never take back if he screwed it up, and a kiss he would never get back for himself, rendering his own first kiss a regret he could never atone for because it would be his own fault for not properly studying kissing techniques and attempting this prematurely, thus deeming him fully responsible for the demise of their budding—

"NOT YET!" Rei yelped, jumping back as his nose bumped Nagisa's awkwardly.

Nagisa opened his eyes, frozen in place with a weak smile.

"Eh?" he asked, "What do you mean?"

Rei fumbled to readjust his glasses, only making the positioning more askew as his hands trembled violently. To make matters worse, he could tell his face was some disgusting shade of red, judging by how fiercely it burned as he stammered his way into an excuse for his behavior.

"I-I-I-I don't want to do this," he stuttered, then realizing how heartless it sounded, "N-Not that I don't want to kiss you, because I do, I absolutely do, and it's very hard for me not to every time I look at you—" (What was he saying?!) "—I-I MEAN-! I JUST DON'T THINK IT'S APPROPRIATE TO MOVE SO HASTILY ON A FIRST DATE IS ALL! I FULLY INTEND TO KISS YOU, NAGISA-KUN, BUT IT CAN'T BE TONIGHT, OKAY? IT HAS TO BE SPONTANTEOUS AND AFTER A FEW DATES! AND TO BE HONEST, I HAVEN'T FULLY STUDIED THE THEORIES OF KISSING, WHICH I INTENDED TO STUDY MAYBE TONIGHT OR TOMORROW SO THAT YOU WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED WHEN THE TIME CO-"

The sound cut off in his throat at the sudden contact of Nagisa's soft lips against his cheek, rendering him speechless and only able to stare at him as he stood flat on his feet again. He gazed up at Rei with that genuinely sweet smile he loved so.

"It's okay, Rei-chan," he said, "You can give me that first kiss whenever you're ready. And I'm sure when you do, it'll be perfect."

Rei still couldn't force a sound. His cheek still tingled with the soft warmth of Nagisa's lips, now spread into such a loving smile. It really was painful to resist returning the kiss to those lips, but trying that now after his embarrassing outburst would completely annul the purpose of waiting. Nagisa's smile again shifted into something more teasing.

"Plus, you were yelling again and I thought that might shut you up," he smirked, "What might the neighbors think, hearing you plotting how to steal my first kiss?"

His first kiss? Oh, no. Oh, no. That only put more responsibility on his shoulders. Nagisa had never been kissed either, meaning that this wasn't just their first kiss they were talking about, it was the first kiss! Now it absolutely had to be perfect! He couldn't let Nagisa's first kiss be anything less than perfect! He had to study as much as he possibly could. Maybe kissing on the third date would be premature after all. Maybe, on the fourth, or fifth, or thirty-seventh date.

"Um…"

Nagisa's smile was now uncomfortable, though he kept eye contact.

"I… did something wrong, and you're mad, so… I guess I'll be seeing you tomorrow?"

Now Nagisa was actually becoming concerned that he was going too far with his teasing? This really was a change. But what he had done was perfectly acceptable by Rei's standards; it just surprised him was all. He couldn't let him leave thinking he had wronged him. Who knows if it would keep him up all night, riddled with guilt and worry that Rei would still be "upset" in the morning? And yet, his voice was mute. Nagisa finally broke eye contact to stare at his feet, gently patting Rei's shoulders before turning around. Rei blinked and finally registered what was going on, lunging for Nagisa's arm and jerking him back to face him. He cupped his face in his hands and stooped a bit, planting a kiss on his cheek as tender as the one he had received. Nagisa's hands slowly slid around his wrists as he leaned closer into him, inhaling softly. He wasn't sure why he didn't expect his cheeks to be so warm and smooth, but the sensation was soothing. Nagisa didn't seem to have any intentions of pulling away, so perhaps this wasn't so bad, though it was probably longer than appropriate. Rei knew he shouldn't press his luck, pulling away slowly and leaving his cheek without a sound. Perfect. He tilted his head, pressing his lips closer to his ear.

"I promise," he whispered, "I'll get this right for you, Nagisa-kun."

He brought his face back so he could look him in the eyes, surprised by how red the blond's cheeks were. Even so, he retained a grin that kept Rei's mind relaxed despite his racing heart. Nagisa tucked his hair behind his ear shyly.

"Good night, Rei-chan…" he said.

"Good night, Nagisa-kun," Rei responded, "Sweet dreams."

Nagisa smiled a little wider before quickly turning back towards his porch. He lingered in the threshold, gazing back at him for a moment before stepping inside.

Rei turned back and began the quiet, lone trip back to his apartment. The whole way, he fantasized about collapsing into his bed after his nightly hygienic routine. He certainly needed a long rest after this day. First thing in the morning, though, it was back to planning out the next date.

The thought for some reason reminded him that he had forgotten to tell Nagisa something important. He would have his phone now, so he could send a text. Rei took his own phone out of his pocket and quickly typed out his message to catch Nagisa before he went to bed.

Thank you for today, too. I enjoyed your company thoroughly. I look forward to spending time with you at the summer festival.

He eased, knowing he had properly thanked him back. Not long after the message was sent, he received a reply.

I look forward 2 spending it with u 2~! :D I promise to be on time next time. ^^; sweet dreams Rei-chan~ ^3^

The last characters brought a warm tingle back to Rei's cheek, and he smiled. Nagisa gave him butterflies in his stomach and in his heart. It should have felt uncomfortable, but it wasn't. How illogical, indeed. And yet, he knew he wanted to feel that more. It wouldn't be easy to give Nagisa everything he deserved, but with persistence and a better knowledge of what made a perfect relationship, he would give him everything and beyond. he opened a reply and typed in a less-than symbol and the number three.

As the text sent, Rei took notice to the date displayed on the screen. An idea flashed in his mind and he hurried the rest of the way home. Though he had a few days' time, he wanted to begin planning immediately, and his fantasy of sleep soon faded away. He promised he would get this right for Nagisa, and just maybe that day wouldn't have to wait much longer.