"Chapter Ten;
First Date Crisis"

The next day, I left Shigure's at noon, thanking the guys for caring for me. When I got home, I changed into a yellow t-shirt, purple pants, and my black boots, seeing as how the only thing I had to wear was my school uniform.

Now, I was at home, trying to find a good dress to wear on my date with Haru. I admit it, I was nervous. My first ever crush, and date. Yeah, nothing to worry about.

I was running back, and forth through ideas, and then, I heard the phone ring. The caller ID flashed 'Estate, Yudinte' and it was Kanye's number. So, like always, I answer. "Hello?"

"Ai! Hatori Sohma claimed you left, so I thought I'd check on you early! Is something wrong?" He asked.

I sighed. "I'm just nervous! Haru set up reservations for us to go to Tsukigokuro tonight." I told him.

"Tsukigokuro? I'm impressed! Especially for a first date. Do you know what to wear?" He asked.

I sighed. "That's part of the problem! I can't find anything. I don't do the whole formal thing, remember?" I asked, anguish was evident. Tsukigokuro was a formal-wear restaurant.

I heard a 'hm' from Kanye, before he spoke again. "I was told of a shop that could help you! I'm not sure if you've heard of it, but it's called: Ayame's Wedding Shop for Men. They do prepare things for females; I think you should start there!"

Haru did mention this shop, claiming that Yuki's older brother owned it. He also claimed the two were barely anything alike in personally, but the characteristics were similar. "Okay! Thanks Kanye!" I said.

"Goodbye, Ai!" With that, we hung up.

I grabbed my coat, again, then went out to find the shop. I asked for directions, and soon enough had found the shop within the half hour. It was pretty girly, and there were men inside the shop, looking at female clothing. I thought the name was just meant to direct attention, but I could see I was wrong.

I looked around, and found a counter top. Standing behind it was a man with long white hair, golden eyes, and pale skin. He wore a red robe, from what it looked like, and I kept it at that. He looked like Yuki, but was about Shigure's age. This must be Ayame.

Taking in a deep breath, preparing for anything, I walked up to the counter. Ayame seemed to have been daydreaming, as far as I could tell, staring at the people looking at his designs, and fabrics. "Excuse me." I called. The man turned his head to me, confused at the moment. "Are you Ayame?" I asked.

He smiled. "Why yes I am! Welcome to my shop, dear girl! How may I help you?" He asked, cheerfully. Haru wasn't kidding about this guy.

I looked at him, slightly startled, before continuing. "I'm going on a first date, tonight, and have nothing to wear. We're going to a formal restaurant, so I wanted to know if you could help me find something." I replied.

Ayame was bouncing up and down, clapping his hands as he did so. "Let's see what we have for you!" He replied, dragging me a back room, labeled 'Employees Only.' "We have all sorts of dresses, my dear, but we do need you to choose. Pick a dress, any dress!"

I looked around the room. A lot of these dresses were wedding dresses, which made me believe I'd be coming back if the betrothal kicked off. I skipped them, and went on to other dresses. Reds, oranges, yellows, floral, silk, and cotton, just none of them seemed to speak out to me.

I stopped, staring at a certain dress. It was royal blue, and it sparkled. The dress was strapless, and it had a long hem to it. There was a tear at its right side that stopped a little higher than mid-thigh. The dress itself was truly amazing. "I see you found our latest model!"

I turned around, and saw a woman in round glasses. She was wearing a maid's outfit, and her skin was somewhat darker than Ayame's. Her hair was brown, curled, and in pigtails, and her eyes gleamed brown. She was smiling, warmly. Haru warned me about her, too. This must be Mine.

I nodded, shakily. "It's a gorgeous dress!" I complimented.

"As gorgeous as it may be, no one has seemed interested in this piece. Until you, that is!" Ayame said, walking up behind Mine. "Oh, where are our manners? You two haven't properly introduced yourselves!" Ayame proclaimed.

I was concerned about what happened, and if Shigure had told him about me. "My name is Mine!" She said, holding out her hand.

I shook it. "Ai Yudinte!" I told her. I released her hand, then turned to Ayame. "I'm more of a dark colored person, Ayame! Is it alright if I buy this piece?" I asked.

He looked shocked for a moment, then jumped up and down, clapping his hands, once more, in glee. "But, of course!" He answered. "We'll just get one ready for you, then you're on your way!" He answered, happily.

Apparently, for Mine to get one ready would take a couple minutes, meaning I was stuck in the same room as Ayame. This should be interesting! "So, who's the lucky boy who gets to gaze upon a beauty, such as yourself?" He asked. Saw that coming.

I looked away from him. "Promise not to laugh? I got too much of that at school." I told him.

He smiled. "There's nothing to be ashamed of, when it comes to romance, lovely Ai. Who is it?" He asked, enthusiastically.

I took in that breath, again, preparing myself for anything. "Your cousin, Hatsuharu." I answered him. And...

Ayame had just began bubbling joyous laughter. "I didn't think that Haru could get himself a date!" He claimed, trying to stop laughing. He smiled, gracefully. "I can't wait to call, and say congrats to him!" Naturally, I hit him down to the ground. It was at this moment I hoped he wasn't part of the zodiac.

Mine came back a little while later, as Ayame iced his head. "Here you go!" She said, handing me a bag.

"Thanks!" I said, taking it from her. "How much will this cost, Ayame?" I asked him.

He chuckled. "Just tell me what Haru thinks about you in the dress, and it's all yours!" He answered.

I was surprised, but then again, being the romantic one of the family, I assumed that was reasonable. "Okay! I'll come back as soon as I can! Bye, Ayame! Nice meeting you, Mine!" I said, running off.

"Buh-bye!" Ayame yelled to me, waving.

I was on Savuki Street within fifteen minutes. This was where a lot of shoe stores, and beauty parlors were at. I felt weird, coming here. I normally didn't care about appearance because Haru didn't, but now I was shaking, thinking about how the date would go.

"Yudinte?" I heard someone call. I turned, and saw PYFC girls, all four of them. Joy. "What are you doing here?" Menagawa asked, pointing at me.

I decided not to be sarcastic, considering the fact I needed experts, and sadly, they came pretty close. "Truth?" I questioned. They all nodded. I sighed. "If you want to know the truth, it's that I have a date tonight, and I'm unprepared." I answered.

They shot a glare, at first, then smirked. "It's with Hatsuharu, isn't it?" Kinosha asked. I sighed again, and gave her a nod. "Wow! And where is he taking you?" She asked.

I swallowed something hard, I wasn't one for being personal with them. "Would you believe me if I said Tsukigokuro?" I asked.

They gasped. "How'd he get reservations?" Namagisha asked, shocked.

"He said that they were happy to. He is a Sohma, after all, and they do fund more than half of the restaurant, and most of the property belongs to them." I answered.

"Wow! You're so lucky!" Said Mai. I call her by her first name, simply because her, and I got along better.

"Thanks!" I said.

Kinosha pushed passed Menagawa, and the other three in front of her. "So, wait a minute! You've got a date at an all formal restaurant, and you don't have a dress, accessories, make up, or an idea for your hair, and it's happening tonight?" She questioned.

I chuckled nervously. "Well, actually, I've got the dress, but no, I haven't a clue of what else I could get. Haru's never really cared much about how I look, but how I feel." I admitted.

Menagawa stared, shocked. "You need help!" She said, hooking her arm with mine.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"We're making sure you don't look like a fool! C'mon, let's get started!" She answered, dragging me towards one of the shoe stores.

It was a vibrant pink, with pictures of women in dresses; I was in the right place, then. They dragged me into the changing rooms. "Let's see the dress on you, so we know what to look for." Said Kinosha.

She shut the door. I did as I was told, simply because I didn't know what else I was gonna do. I got into the dress. It practically showed off my breasts, seeing at how low it was. Of course the skirt was covering my legs, but when I stepped forward, most of my right leg just showed itself off. I turned around, and as expected, most of my back's skin was visible, and it stopped just above the waist line, which was rather thin.

I sighed, and stepped out. They stared at me. I was avoiding their stares by all means; I knew this dress wasn't exactly me, but it was close. "It's beautiful!" Namagisha commented in awe.

I swear, it was embarrassing. "Uh...thanks..." I said.

They shook their heads. "What size are you in woman's shoes?" Kinosha asked.

"Nine-nine and a half." I answered.

They nodded. "#2, stay here, and wait for her to be done changing! We'll go find some shoes for her." Menagawa told Mai.

"Right!" She said with a nod.

They went off, and I changed back into my regular clothes. I got out, and Mai lead me to where the other three were. They each had a set of heels, each a different height, and color. "Sit down!" Menagawa said, pointing to the gray bench. I did as told, and took off one of my boots. Kinosha handed me a black heeled shoe, six inches as far as I could tell. "When dating, Ai, you need to have things prepared! The basic colored of dress shoes being two. These colors are black, and white, however, you can go outside of the box, and get other colors like pink, orange, and purple." She told me as I got on the heels.

I nodded, and stood, nearly losing my balance. How they could stand in these, I'd never know. "I guess you have to get used to the crushing pain, and practice balancing yourself." I said.

They nodded. Mai sat me back down, as Namagisha handed over a white pair, about two inches. When I got those on, I felt more balanced. "If anything, having more than one pair ready is crucial. If not, then you're lost. You thought right coming out to get some." Kinosha said.

I nodded, taking the four inched, royal blue heels Menagawa had. "Why are you helping me, anyway?" I asked as I got the shoes on.

"We're not helping you!" Menagawa answered. I stopped, looking up at her puzzled. "The prince's cousin will be ashamed if you go unprepared, and in the process, our dear prince will be. We're helping Prince Yuki." She explained.

I wanted to say Yuki could care less, but knew that it would only lead to my own downfall. So, pretending to think it over, I looked up at her. "I guess your right! The oozi might be ashamed if his dear cousin is embarrassed." I exclaimed.

"That's right, now stand up!" She commanded. I did as told. I didn't feel as comfortable, but I wasn't completely off balance.

When we were done, I was gonna pay for the shoes, but the girls, apparently, didn't want me doing anything, but paying attention to the lessons. Which meaning, I was being schooled, and they were paying for everything. This was turning out better than I thought.

The next few stores, they told me about make up, and accessories, along with all sorts of advice on guys that only few I knew were useful. In the end, they bought me three pairs of shoes, my own make up set that all professionals use, and some of the most expensive things out there; I wondered how they got the money for it, but I pushed it aside, and decided not to ask.

We departed at the train station. "Remember what we taught you, and you'll be fine! Mess this up, and we'll be sure to get back at you!" Menagawa threatened.

I still had to come up with a way to get back at them, but instead, I thought I owed them. "I understand! I was really nervous before all of this. I'll put a good word in for you four the next time I see Yuki!" I told them. They squealed of excitement.

I walked home. I did owe them, now, but it didn't mean Haru wouldn't threaten them the next day. I said I'd tell Yuki about it, not Haru, and by the time Yuki would grab hold of Haru the threat would have already been made. It was good enough!

When I got home, I looked up at the clock: 6:02 pm. Haru said he'd be over at seven. I got a quick shower, I blow-dried my hair, brushed it, and put it into a braid. I got on the dress Ayame gave to me, and some niellons (idk how to spell it, and spell check glitched). I got on some make up; just some cover up, lip gloss, white eye shadow, and mascara. It felt weird, but I welcomed it as a new start.

When I finished getting on the shoes Menagawa had got for me, I heard a knock at the door. I got up, came out of my room, and towards the front door. I opened it, and saw Haru in the doorway.

He was wearing a tux. It looked grand on him; it made him look like the mystery dater. He was my date! Next to the tux, Haru was wearing white dress shoes, a silver wristband watch, and his regular accessories.

He was staring at me, a light hue of pink arising upon his cheeks. He was adorable! "Uh...hi!" He said, turning his blushing face away.

I giggled; my hand to my mouth, that was smiling, and blushing in the same tone. "Hi!" I greeted, warmly, moving the hand away.

Haru looked at me with his regular dazed look, scratching the back of his head. "You ready to go?" He asked, offering me his arm.

I took it happily. "Sure!" I answered.

We began to walk out of the building. We walked down the first set of stairs, and as we got to the second, Haru spoke. "You look beautiful!" He commented.

I blushed, and turned away. Haru's looking fine comments had just halted. I was surprised to say the least. I turned back to Haru, a shy smile on my face. "Thanks! You look better, though." I told him.

Now it was his turn to be embarrassed. Haru had turned his head with a darker tone of pink arising on his cheeks. "Thanks!" He simply said, looking at me through the corner of his eyes.

I just smiled, as we made it out the door. Waiting in front of the building was a black car, and inside, I saw Hatori. "Our chauffeur there?" I asked.

He just gave me a sly grin. "Just not on the way back." He replied. I giggled, as he released me arm. Haru opened the door for me, giving a hand gesture. "Coming?" He asked.

I rolled my eyes, and got in. I scooted over, allowing Haru to sit down. We buckled up, before Hatori turned his head, to look at us. "Where are you taking her, Haru?" He asked.

Haru, with the same grin still on his face, let his arm ride over my shoulder, gazing at me with that maniacal eye, before turning back to Hatori. "Tsukigokuro." He answered.

Hatori looked at us, surprised. "How do you intend to pay for it?" He asked.

Haru just let his head rest on mine, and allowed his eyes to close, before looking back at Hatori. "I have my ways." He answered.

I knew what that meant. He had most of the money, and their were some people who owed him one, so they forked over what they had. Hatori nodded, and began the drive their.

After a couple moments, I let my head rest on his shoulder. It seemed to have fit right into the curve of his neck. I felt Haru's other hand grasp my waist, and pulling me towards him. I was nervous, still, but with Haru near me, I felt more secure. It was the one question that rang through my mind that was bugging me: 'What's gonna happen after this?'

i was going for unexpected. hope u enjoyed.