The theatre was quite full when Iino and Ishigami walked through the front door. It almost seemed to be a small ecosystem buzzing with life with people chatting and smiling in every corner of it whether they were in the arcade off to the side, the gachapon machines, or even standing in line. Ishigami pulled his coupon out of his pocket, examining it briefly before looking up at the lines.

"So, I suppose that we should exchange these for tickets?"

"Yes, Ishigami, we should probably do that."

…

Why isn't he/she doing anything?

Allow me to explain! Ishigami comes from a privileged family that had no need for coupons or discounts and when combined with relying on his friends whenever he actually did go out to the movies, he was completely clueless about this process! You might think that Iino might have an idea or two, but she's no different at all! Spending almost all of her time throughout her entire life either studying or fulfilling her duties on the disciplinary committee and now the student council, this girl's experience with public venues was next to zero. As such, one thought was circulating through both her and Ishigami's minds:

How do I get this idiot to get our tickets?!

The intensity in the area was palpable and people around them backed off as sparks began to fly between them!

If he/she finds out I can't do something this simple, there's no way I'll be able to live that down! Their imaginations ran wild, each conjuring an image of the other in their mind.

"Oh? You don't even know how to exchange coupons for movie tickets?"

They shuddered as they braced for the inevitable:

"You really are quite cute."

A menacing aura emanated from them, parents hid their children, everyone around them backed off and Iino looked poised to strike until…

"Excuse me? Do the 2 of you require assistance?"

Ishigami turned towards the voice.

"Oh, no, we're perfectly fine- wait, what?!"

Standing in front of Ishigami and Iino was Kaguya Shinomiya wearing a workplace uniform.

"Shinomiya-senpai?! What on Earth are you doing here?"

Kaguya simply smiled at Ishigami, her voice staying mostly composed before affection crept into it as she went on.

"Well, since Miyuki-san had a lot of part-time jobs, I figured I should give that sort of stuff a try to understand him a little bit better."

Her register went back to normal and the sentimental look that had begun to form on her face disappeared to a more composed, polite look.

"In any case, I suppose you wanted some tickets?"

Iino and Ishigami both handed her their coupons.

"In that case, then follow me."

Kaguya sighed as she saw both Iino and Ishigami breathe a sigh of relief.

I guess I was like them too, once…

She reminisced about her first trip to the movies before stepping aside from the machine to reveal the seating selection screen.

I would want to lend them a hand, but I probably shouldn't meddle in their relationship too much…

"It's all yours'."

Ishigami and Iino walked up to the screen, prompting Kaguya to step aside, watching from afar. Ishigami immediately scanned the screen, locating every available seat in an instant. Indeed, his harsh gaze was one of a man on a mission. His mission?

I've gotta snag a pair of seats in the back!

The back seats in the movie theater! While they may be regarded as the worst possible option when actually trying to enjoy a movie, the back seats open up an infinite wealth of possibilities to those who use them! Whether it be accidentally using the same arm rest, kissing, or other forms of PDA, the back allows a near infinite amount of possibilities for couples and future couples! Unfortunately, both Iino and Ishigami know that this knowledge means that asking for a backseat would essentially be saying that they want to be away from prying eyes, maybe accidentally bumping hands while reaching for popcorn, or sharing a drink, or maybe even more than that! Voicing one's desire for a backseat is essentially saying that you want to get touchy and intimate with your partner, or in other words…

It would be like confessing my f**king love! x2

"Wait, so which seats are available?"

Iino pokes at the situation from afar, attempting to find which options were at her disposal. A clever move by her. After all, intelligence is a cornerstone of warfare. Ishigami scanned the seating chart from top to bottom several times for confirmation, coming to the realization that:

All the seats in the back are taken!

Of course they would be! In any romance movie, the backseats are quickly snatched up by an endless horde of couples who think the exact same things as our heroes! But wait, it looks like Ishigami has an idea so this isn't a full rout just yet!

If I'm guessing that this theatre is full of normie couples, then Iino and I would probably blend right in if we took seats close to the edges…

"So, which seats do you want, Iino?"

A maneuver that has become an immediate staple of their warfare! By asking Iino directly which seats that she would prefer, he avoids giving himself away while forcing a response out of her! While I hesitate to call this move 'genius' the 4th time it is used, it is nevertheless quite a reliable strategy! Now, how will Iino respond?

Hm… If I suggest a backseat, Ishigami will definitely try to use that to force a confession out of me.

Allow me to explain! When Iino asked for which seats were available, Ishigami neglected to give an audible response! As such, her intelligence is severely lacking at this moment!

However, a seat near the edges would give me plenty of opportunities for intimacy- I mean forcing out a confession as well as being an innocuous enough suggestion for me to make.

"I guess that I'd like one of the seats close to the edge would work for me."

"Oh, I see."

The 2 of them remained silent as Ishigami retrieved their tickets. However, his mind was anything but calm!

She just straight-up asked for one of the edge seats?! Wait, hang on, is this some kind of trap?

Ishigami composed himself, stretching his brain cells to their limits as scenario after scenario flew through his mind.

Does she have some sort of plan? Or maybe…

Hopefulness began to leak into Ishigami's mind, a small blush generating on his face.

Maybe she just wanted to just do that kind of stuff with me?

This display did not go unnoticed by Iino whose mind began to race as soon as she took one look at his face.

Is he blushing? But why would he be doing that? I didn't even suggest the back seats! Unless…

Iino's face went bright red as scenario after scenario flew through her mind, the possibilities all coalescing into one profound realization permeating through her brain:

Is he planning on doing stuff like that anyways? No way…

Just how far is he/she planning to go?

And so, with their guards up, they managed to find their way to the concession stand.

"So, what do you want, Iino?"

"Hm?"

Ishigami pulled a card from the back of his phone case.

"Take your pick. I've got more money than I know what to do with, so be my guest."

Iino's jaw dropped and she wiped away the drool that had begun to gather at the side of her mouth before her mind went wild.

He's paying? I was only going to get a small drink and popcorn, but maybe I should splurge a bit here? Kyaaa~ He's really gonna spoil me~ Then again, would it be rude to ask that much of him?

Before she could decide, however, a certain something on the screen caught her eye:

"Special deal for couples! Pay 50% more for double the popcorn and 2 drinks!"

Couple deals! A cornerstone of almost any romcom, this scenario nearly always forces two potential love interests to act like a couple! From there, any number of things can ensue, from public hugging, accidentally bumping hands when reaching for popcorn, or all sorts of romantic intimacy! In addition, Iino knows that brandishing such an item would be the same as telling everyone with line of sight to back the hell off because this one's mine! As such, declaring one's desire for this scenario would be no less than a declaration of love! Of course, this means that Iino's all too aware of the implications of voicing her desire to have the couple's deal, and as such, has already begun scheming!

Not only would I save money on it, I could also use this to try to extract a confession from him. The issue is bringing it up without being backed into a corner myself…

Thus, a determined expression briefly formed on Iino's face before turning into one of faux innocence.

"You know, I'd like to get a large set, but I wouldn't want to make you spend that much… Do you see any discounts?"

Priming! By mentioning something close to or related to something else, one can prompt a reaction from someone else using seemingly random words! In this case, Iino's being just a little more direct than would be usual, but given her circumstances, this is just the type of aggression that she needs. Now, all that's left is to see how Ishigami responds. Did he even look up at the board until now? Let's take a look into his brain now, shall we?

You couldn't be more obvious if you tried!

There was no way he wouldn't have looked at the options! Heck, he even found the couple deal before Iino did! On top of this, while there were other deals, all of them were just the standard drink + popcorn combo.

Besides, there's no way in hell Iino's gonna pass up a chance for free food! And she's doing all that while launching an attack on me? Damn, she's good… Now how do I get out of this one?

Ishigami began pushing his mind to its limit, looking for anything to counter back while mulling over the consequences.

If I get it, then she could use that to back me into a corner, but if I don't…

He shuddered as a mental image began to solidify in his brain.

"You're too embarrassed to even consider being seen as a couple? I was trying to get some extra popcorn, but I suppose you couldn't handle the thought of being that flustered? You really are quite cute."

Something between determination and a survival instinct sprung forth within Ishigami as his mind went into overdrive, spewing out idea after idea until…

"So, you were talking about the couple's deal, right?"

A genius play by Ishigami! By asserting that any and all desire to be seen as a couple is coming from Iino, he not only opens the door to the possibilities of having a shared tub of popcorn, but he also dodges the embarrassment of actually being the one to ask for the couple's deal! On top of this, by acknowledging this deal's existence, he is able to avoid sending the message that he is too embarrassed to be seen as a couple! On the contrary, this single maneuver places the responsibility to directly ask for the order the deal right back onto Iino.

Every engagement in the past has gone exactly like this! Iino strikes first, Ishigami parries, and Iino rebounds until in the end, no progress is made. However, with the help of their fellow council members and the pressure of holding up the line, Iino only saw one option. She walked up to the stand, her legs began to feel like jelly, sweat began to pour from her face as she gulped, her face beginning to grow hot. She knew

"Excuse me? Can I get the large combo?"

Ishigami slumped over, a sense of defeat creeping into his body.

Ugh… Of course… Well, at least we're watching the movie together-

"That would be the… the couple combo."

Time stood still for a second, Ishigami looked over at Iino's back, his face turning red as he saw her ears turning the same colour. Her turning around gave him all the confirmation he needed as her face was roughly around the colour of a fire truck.

"I-it's more food, so I figured…" - Iino

"Yeah, of course…"

Did she actually get the couple deal! Yes! I can't believe it!

I might've lost this time, but this couple set'll open up all sorts of opportunities for attacks!

And even as each of them were thinking of new and improved ways of forcing the other person to confess their love, neither of them could hold back their pure, childish smiles.

Result: Ishigami's victory (for now).

Next up: Movie time!