Usagi and Mamoru finally arrived at the Shinjuku shopping center after a short and silent walk.
Since it was the first, real date for both of them and everything still felt so new and quite awkward between them, neither really knew what to say to the other without immediately acting like a complete idiot.
Arguing with each other and teasing each other was so much easier for them both. From there, Mamoru was almost relieved when he spotted a men's fashion store right next to the entrance of the mall. Determinedly he marched towards the open door and only a few moments later he stood together with the blond girl in the distinguished store and looked around with interest.
The store had quite a large selection, whereupon Usagi and Mamoru decided to browse it step by step together more or less systematically.
'Wow, this is really a huge selection of great clothes. I'm pretty sure we'll find irresistible outfits for Mamoru's muscular body today!'
Usagi was easily lost in her daydream of an upper-body free Mamoru, while he was highly concentrated inspecting the selection of clothes.
A shimmering black leather jacket hung on a hanger on the wall, right where Mamoru was currently standing, and caught Usagi's full attention.
'That one looks incredibly great. It will be perfect for him!'
Highly pleased with her fashion sense, Usagi headed straight for the jacket and was about to reach for it when just at that moment the tall, black-haired man unexpectedly blocked her path to proudly present his prey to her.
"Well, what do you think?"
Mamoru held up a mustard yellow casual shirt with a purple collar and button placket of the same color with satisfaction and conviction.
'Oh holy crap!
Usagi cried out loudly inside, definitely unable to keep her thoughts to herself.
"'Are you serious? You're kidding me, right?!" came her immediate reply, while shaking her pretty head in disbelief and vehemently.
Mamoru now looked first at her and then at the shirt with a mixture of disbelief and thoughtfulness
"Uhh, well, maybe I could pair it with a dark brown belt and dark blue denim pants?"
This innocent suggestion was not at all met with backlash.
"Mamoru ... let's be honest ... NO!" came back promptly as an answer from Usagi.
Quite loudly, in fact.
"Ohhkaaay... what about..." concentrated, he slowly let his gaze wander through the selection in the fashion store. "Ahhhh, this one? Fits perfectly, doesn't it!"
With a startling accuracy, he grabbed a long-sleeved men's shirt from the rack, stretched it high in the air, and grinned triumphantly at Usagi. She, in turn, seemed anything but thrilled about his latest choice.
Where the hell was Mamoru's good taste!
"A pink shirt? Are you buying for a girl I know nothing about?!"
Usagi's eyes widened in utter horror at her assumption, and she quickly turned around in all directions, suspicious and even slightly panicked. Apart from her, there was no other woman far and wide in sight.
"Of course not! There's quite a fitting color for a well-educated and confident modern man, I think. In fact," Mamoru put his arms behind his head and looked at her now, slightly mischievous, "I've always been very fond of that shade. Who knows, I might even become a trendsetter in it."
Unperturbed by her expression, Mamoru grabbed another pair of tan chino pants and casually swung both textiles over his right shoulder, ready to make his way to the cash register.
Usagi just shrugged helplessly, conceding defeat at his argument.
'Obviously, he remains true to himself and won't change his bad taste in fashion. Not even for me! I just hope he won't wear that combo too often.'
At one point, she still let her gaze wander through the store's selection and suddenly spotted a light green sweater being on top of a pile
"Okay... what do you think of this then? That pretty much hits the nail on the head, doesn't it?"
Usagi hastily grabbed the garment and spread it out so Mamoru could see the front.
He glanced with a raised eyebrow at the yellow lettering "earth" printed below the sweater's breast pocket.
"Yeah, not bad at all. I even have a pair of light blue denim pants at home that would go perfectly with this cozy sweater."
Satisfied, Usagi looked at Mamoru. So there was a little hope of getting him back on the tasteful side after all.
It wasn't as if Mamoru regularly wore outfits that were more akin to old clothes. Not at all! Usagi had always been a fan of his dark brown leather jacket, and he definitely looked like an Adonis in jeans and a white shirt. So maybe this sweater was an unusual splash of color in his closet, but the English lettering just went so well with his last name and light green was definitely a change from his grass green, slightly worn all-around jacket.
"Yeah great, go for it then!" Usagi was more than relieved that Mamoru finally owned a tasteful piece of fashion that she had picked out for him.
,At least he didn't take something like that one awful patterned eighties style t-shirt. The one with the disgusting eggshell yellow, washed-out purple, and horrible mint green that he once scared me half to death with at Game Crown Center. I really wonder if he'll ever wear that combo again? Please, please not on any special occasions like birthdays or anything!'
Furtively, Usagi looked at her date for today, but was suddenly interrupted by a strange sound. A grumbling sound that came suspiciously from her stomach area also caught Mamoru's attention
"Oh... best to leave it at those three parts then, and go in search of something perfect for you: Food."
Mamoru's slightly amused look coupled with this smug remark immediately made Usagi seethe
'He just can't help it, can he?'
"Haha, very funny. Now I get to choose and you pay!"
She fired back with a high red head. Usagi could only hope that Mamoru hadn't invested too much money in his new outfit so that he still had the financial means to satisfy her immense hunger.
After he bought the clothes, they left the fashion store and continued to stroll through the large shopping center. A colorful, larger picture hung quite prominently on a bookstore window and immediately caught Mamoru's attention. As he approached it, he stopped as if rooted to the spot and held Usagi by the arm, who was already busy ordering food with her pretty head.
"Usak ... Usagi, look!"
Usagi turned her gaze to the picture he was pointing at with a slightly trembling finger and saw ... both of them! It was frighteningly similar to Yumemi Yumino's portrait in the way it was drawn, but apparently the artist had decided to take Yumemi's work a little further and completely rearrange Usagi and Mamoru in this painting.
Before both of their eyes was a scene that showed them... much more in action with each other. Honestly, both were frighteningly close on it!
Mamoru was lying - in oil on canvas - next to Usagi, leaning his head slightly over hers. Briefly, she was on the verge of touching his black hair falling into his face, reaching out her hands lovingly to him. Both were practically naked, - Usagi was sure that she was at least topless in this picture and did she even have white wings with long feathers on her back there?! -, it almost seemed as if they were about to kiss - Mamoru gently touched her chin - and to top it all off, they exchanged very intense and longing, highly amorous looks with each other.*
Usagi turned more than tomato red, but simply could not avert her gaze, for the tension between them that had been created in this painting was absolutely breathtaking, magical, and utterly captivating.
'It's a masterpiece!
Something deep in her heart was desperately trying to get through to her head, but it was simply not possible for Usagi to understand at that moment what exactly that message contained. Apart from the fact that this picture seemed almost pornographic - if it wasn't art after all - Usagi liked it somehow... Until a second thought popped into her head.
'Oh my god, what if this picture becomes our reality one day?'
When she finally managed to avert her eyes from the artwork, her gaze lingered on Mamoru, who seemed similarly confused and touched as she was. Slightly embarrassed, he turned his attention back to the painting when he noticed her staring at him, taking a closer look at the artist's signature as he did so.
"N. Takeuchi, huh? Who the heck is that!"
...
After another awkward moment, and without any response from her to his question, he explained to Usagi, now wearing a boyish grin on his slightly red face
"Well, I never expected Youmemi to paint us more than once anyway. I mean, that would be rather a waste of time wouldn't it, ahaha."
Usagi snorted. There he was again. The good old Mamoru-Baka. One comment from him and the mood was gone. All the emerging, tender, romantic feelings in her were blown away in milliseconds. And so this was what a real, genuine date should look like? Usagi sighed deeply and was almost starving. He would have to pay for that. Mamoru would have to pay for such terribly out-of-place comments. A very high price to be exact.
Because he didn't have the slightest idea how much she could eat!
--
Not half an hour later, Mamoru's purse was at low tide, while floods of food were safely tucked away in Usagi's belly
"Mhmmm, oh how delicious!"
After all, it was so easy to make Usagi Tsukino happy: After several slices of pepperoni pizza, two steamed noodles, three double cheeseburgers, a huge mixed salad with balsamic dressing, twelve fried shrimp tails, a big bowl of custard, and a huge chocolate ice cream, she rubbed her belly in glee and walked through the shopping center in high spirits alongside a completely perplexed Mamoru
"I haven't eaten such a delicious meal in a long time."
Mamoru was honestly absolutely speechless.
He knew that Usagi generally had a good, yet quite healthy appetite, he had seen her eat many times - most of her meals consisted of highly unhealthy fast food. But he had to admit that this amount of food she had nearly inhaled today surpassed anything he thought a human being could ever eat all at once. Surely it was because she was a superhero and therefore needed a lot of energy for all the fighting, he concluded thoughtfully as he walked beside her.
If he had held her in his arms as Tuxedo Mask, she always seemed so feathery and fragile!
"Since we've obviously accomplished our individual missions for today," out of the corner of his eye he caught a glimpse of her returning annoyance at his ironic remark, "I'd prefer to go back to the park and get some rest, don't you think?"
"A certain amount of food is essential for survival now, Baka! Bad behavior obviously isn't!"
Mamoru froze and looked at her, completely dumbfounded. Had Usagi just answered him with sarcasm! He began to chuckle somewhat awkwardly, nervously running a hand through his midnight black hair
"Ahem, if you don't like walking around, we could go for a boat ride on the lake there or..."
"No, walking in the park should be fine, as long as you try to be a little nicer to me than you have been so far today."
Within moments, however, Usagi's good mood once again turned to mild disappointment. She had always thought that a real date was supposed to be ultra romantic, but with Mamoru and his instinctive desire and unspeakable talent for teasing her whenever he could, Usagi got the slight feeling that her romantic expectations didn't quite match reality.
"You must know," Mamoru's previous, brief uncertainty had disappeared all at once. Instead, he now put on a very serious face, "it's a kind of protection. In my life I had to... build walls."
Usagi was not really prepared for his sudden confession. He had already told her in the elevator that his parents had died in an accident when he was six years old. Mamoru seemed to cope quite well with these traumatic circumstances and Usagi had simply not had enough time to process all this information about the accident. But of course, these were wounds that could never heal completely and to build walls around one's own feelings was therefore all too understandable.
Without adding anything to his comment, Mamoru turned around and made his way to the park. Wordlessly, Usagi followed him and after almost half a minute, she couldn't stand the silence anymore.
"I didn't mean it, Mamoru," she put in, not letting any sympathy show through, "it's my very first date and I always thought there would be such other things going on."
"Other things? Like what?"
Now Mamoru was actually curious and looked at Usagi with a raised eyebrow as they passed the wrought iron gate to the park.
Usagi couldn't possibly tell him about her true expectations at that moment, so she spontaneously thought of a rather innocent explanation and finally came up with a suitable answer.
"Well, so, having a good conversation with me without making fun of me all the time would be quite a good start... I guess."
"Alright... pick a topic then."
Mamoru told her lightly and headed for the familiar park bench. He gave her an encouraging smile and gestured for her to sit on the wooden bench.
Usagi took a seat and looked up at Mamoru, who was still standing in front of her. He had already brought up the subject indirectly, so she could go into it. Even though it certainly wouldn't be easy.
"Family ... And I'll start!" She added quickly.
"Good, then it's your turn. I'm listening."
With an unreadable expression, Mamoru sat down as well and gave Usagi his full attention.
"Sooo...okay, I live with my mom Ikuko, my dad Kenji, my brother Shingo, and my cat Luna in a house in the Azabu-Juuban district. Shingo - who is four years younger than me - can really be an pain in the neck, but I love him anyway. Especially when he was born, I was so happy to finally become a big sister that I even brought my mom flowers when she was in the hospital. I think it was a bouquet of red roses or something..."
dreamy Usagi stared down at the lake in front of them, mentally reviewing that special time from back then
"Red roses you say? That's funny," Mamoru cleared her throat, "when I was in the hospital for the accident back then, I remember very well a little blonde girl who gave me a single red rose. She had her hairstyle in this unique style, just like..."
Suddenly, they both looked at each other in complete bewilderment.
"The girl" - "The boy" they whispered breathlessly to each other "...that was you!"
After a few moments Mamoru was the first to recover from this unexpected realization
"So...when you threw your crumpled English paper at me, I guess that wasn't our first encounter after all."
"At least not in this lifetime."
Usagi replied with an expressionless face. She was still shocked, because she had locked that so special event tightly in her heart back then, even though it was more than ten years ago. That adorable little boy with the black hair and ocean blue eyes. So clouded was his view because his only friend had to leave him. Usagi had felt so sorry for him. So she had tried her best to cheer him up and had given him one of the roses from the middle of her bouquet, which was actually meant for her mother.
"I've always thought what must have happened to you after we met."
Usagi smiled openly at him.
"Well... as you can see," he felt his walls that surrounded his heart start to get tiny cracks as he gazed at Usagi who was looking at him full of warmth, "I became a sarcastic baka and now I'm sitting next to a schoolgirl with funny braids who's supposed to be my date for today."
"You forgot to mention that your fashion sense has increased tremendously since you decided to let me help you, except for the pink shirt of course!"
This time it was up to Usagi to tease him and at the same time slowly break the ice under which his emotions were firmly locked.
"Like I said, I like pink so much that I wouldn't even mind if my future child got pink hair one day!"
Mamoru declared with an amused look in his eyes.
"Oh my god, now you're exaggerating, Mamoru!" Usagi began to chuckle. "Let's go back to our original conversation, please! Next topic, you choose and you get to ask me a question. Anything!"
"Alright, just give me a second" Mamoru frowned for a moment and finally found a suitable topic quickly "Ok, what's your biggest wish? Mine is a simple answer. I would like to become a doctor. I chose this profession mainly because I think it's the best way for me to help people, at least in my normal life."
"That's actually my greatest wish," Usagi now spoke in a calm voice that carried a slight sadness.
Mamoru was irritated by her answer and looked at her with some confusion
"What do you mean, Usagi?"
She pulled her legs to her body and wrapped her delicate arms around them.
"When I wake up in the morning, a pure white curtain of lace is rustling in the breeze."
Hold on! ... Mamoru had heard that from her mouth before, after all. But not in this world? Not in reality! Was it... In one of his... of her... dreams?
With a deep sadness on her face, Usagi decided to let out what had been weighing so heavily on her mind since that day she became a fighter for love and justice.
„The cuckoo clock in the room says its seven o'clock, and Mums voice says "You'll be late if you don't get up!" I'm still half asleep, and I think „Please let me sleep for three more minutes." I'm late for school every single day like clockwork, my teacher makes me stand out in the hallway, and I still get failing grades of my tests."
She had to swallow hard at this fact. Being Sailor Moon had made her school life much more difficult in terms of grades or completing homework, especially after a difficult battle in the middle of the night against the Dark Kingdom. A few moments later, Usagi had regained her composure and continued in a low voice
„The crepes we'd all eat on the way home. We'd gaze dreamily at a party dress in a shop window. The little things bring such joy and I'm happy."
"This," she pointed at Mamoru, avoiding his gaze, "makes me very happy, and - to give an honest answer to your chosen topic - my greatest wish is ... I wish I could return to this life. A normal girl is what I would like to be... so much."
"Usa-" With every word she uttered, he felt her pain, the huge responsibility that weighed on her tiny shoulders, and the desperate longing for a way out of this seemingly never-ending nightmare- fight against evil. The light-hearted atmosphere just moments ago had been replaced by a somber and sad mood as Usagi had shared her heavy thoughts with him.
"Hey."
Tears welled up and watered her sad eyes as Usagi turned her head to Mamoru. Bravely, she tried to continue defending her wish from him and herself.
"I mean ... I'm a fourteen-year-old schoolgirl, and there are so many things in my life that are happening to me for the very first time."
She felt her tears now leaving her eyes and running silently down her cheeks. Usagi no longer wanted to pretend they weren't there, that they weren't proof of this great burden of being chosen.
"Sometimes I feel like I would need a lot more than one life for everything that's happening right now."
"Me too,"
He could only agree with her statement, for Mamoru knew all too well that his superhero alter ego had more than turned his normal life upside down. And with Usagi so close to him right now, his two identities had already been mixed together in a very confusing way. He actually wanted to leave the Tuxedo Mask / Sailor Moon relationship out of it today on purpose, and not bring up the silver crystal issue again. this date was actually supposed to be between Mamoru and Usagi.
And nothing and nobody should prevent that.
But Mamoru had to admit to himself, at this moment at the latest, that denying that they both shared so much more than just this simple life was not an option.
"Usak...Usako"
Mamoru couldn't let her cry any longer and looked firmly at his girl. Finally, he rose from the bench and pulled her up with him so that Usagi was standing directly in front of him. Mamoru placed his one hand on her small shoulder and while wiping away her tears with his free hand, he looked deep into her sky blue eyes
"If there's one thing I've learned so far, it's to savor the moment! We're both in this together, please don't ever forget that. I'm right there with you. You're not alone."
Usagi sobbed out loud at his words, but she still tried her best to smile at Mamoru through her tears.
"I had a vision of you when I met with the girls yesterday. You were mortally wounded and about to die. I don't want that to happen. I just want my normal life back and ... spend it with... with you!"
That was the truth and nothing else mattered as he took her hands in his.
There was nothing more important in this whole wide world as his eyes closed and he brought his face very close to hers.
There was only them as his lips locked with hers and they kissed.
'He's so sweet, he's so tender.' It has happened before. Sometime... Somewhere... A long, long time ago.'
--
For those who would like to see the picture that Usagi and Mamoru were looking at in the mall:
https/danni-bunny./post/653619423523012608