For as long as she had known Kasumi, it was no surprise to Arisa that her girlfriend had a habit of coming up with some rather weird—and endearing, not that Arisa would ever admit it—nicknames. Essentially every person Kasumi met had such a name bestowed upon them: Rimi-rin, Otae, Sa-nan, Jun-jun, Hagu, Kokoron...

Everyone except Arisa.

Well, and Saaya, though Arisa imagined even Kasumi was stumped trying to come up with a nickname for her. Saaya didn't really seem like the type to have a nickname; not in a bad way, either. She was just...Saaya.

And Arisa was just...Arisa.

Really, it was childish to be bothered by such a thing. She had never needed a nickname from Kasumi before; why would dating change that?

It shouldn't, and yet Arisa found herself fidgeting whenever she heard Kasumi call someone by her nickname for them. After all, nicknames were a special thing, right? They were a sign of a bond, of trust, of—

God, what was she thinking? Was she really this embarrassing?

Yes. Yes she was.

As they walked home from school one afternoon, Arisa tried her absolute hardest to build up the courage to say something. In the end, it was Kasumi who spoke first.

"Are you alright, Arisa? You seem nervous."

Arisa forced a laugh, and rather loudly. "Nervous? Me? No. I was just...thinking."

Kasumi stopped her in her tracks, circling around her and looking her right in the eyes. "About?"

"Nothing!" Arisa clutched her school bag and readied herself to run past Kasumi.

"Did you want to hold hands?"

Her grip on her bag tightened. "Yes..."

Beaming, Kasumi reached for Arisa's free hand, gleefully intertwining their fingers. Arisa fell silent. She was content with seeing that smile, for now—

—though Kasumi was eerily perceptive. "Something's still wrong."

Arisa groaned. "I really don't want to talk about it."

"Arisa." Kasumi's voice became oddly gentle. "You can tell me anything. You know that, right?"

After a bit more deliberation, Arisa let out a sigh. She was going to have to say something eventually. Might as well get it done and over with. At least it was just her and Kasumi today. Had the rest of Poppin'Party been present, she'd never be able to forgive herself. Slowly, she said, "I wanted to ask... when we first met, you didn't give me a nickname. I was just wondering what your nickname for me would be."

Kasumi hummed in thought. "Are you upset that I didn't give you one?"

"N-No! I just wanted to know, t-that's all!"

Kasumi giggled. "I didn't give you one because your name is just so pretty."

Stunned into silence, Arisa couldn't even stutter. Aloud, at least. P-Pretty?!

"Do you," Kasumi continued, "want me to give you a nickname?"

Arisa shook her head, still unable to speak.

"You're not lying?"

"No," Arisa finally said. "If you think it's pretty, then..."

Grinning, Kasumi, on the verge of singing, said, "Arisa, Arisa, Arisa—"

"Quit it!" Arisa buried her face in her bag. "You're gonna make me cry."

"Wah, I'm sorry! I didn't mean-"

Quieter, Arisa offered a rebuttal. "Not a bad cry."

Maybe it was okay, to be different from everyone else.