first date

It's best to keep expectations low. How easily one forgets this in the heat of the moment.

The train doors smoothly slide open and you find yourself staring down an outside boarding platform. The cold air mingles with your breath to mask your vision from the bottom up. Your teeth chatter and you feel yourself shaking, and it's not just from the cold. Stepping out of the high speed tube, you whip your watch out from underneath your coat to check the time.

The urban sights are unfamiliar, it's a part of the city you rarely visit. You shuffle through the crowd of commuters, doing your best to not be in anyone's way and most of all, not let anyone walk by you too close to where you flinch back unconsciously. The man you almost walked into gives you an incredulous look as you take a seat on a bench where she could easily spot you, and you bring a finger to the hole of your ear, and speak to no one in particular.

"This is Anon. I've reached the rendezvous point."

"How are things?" The vibrations in his eardrum say.

"We're in luck. It seems I'm here before her."

"Any problems?"

"Well the weather guy is good for nothing. It looks like tonight's supposed rain is going to be snowfall instead..."

"We'll use it to our advantage. All right, Anon. You've already covered romantic dating in VR training."

"I've completed over three hundred missions in VR. It feels like I'm some sort kind of legendary heartbreaker..."

"Okay, we'll skip that part then. Make sure to keep your chin up, maintain eye contact. If you need to contact me by Codec, the frequency is 140. 85. When you want to use the Codec, push the SELECT button. When we need to reach you, the Codec will beep. When you hear that noise, push the SELECT button."

"Uhm...the SELECT button? Where's that?"

"What do you mean it's- oh, right. Sorry, reading an old manual. We can talk and listen to each other without pressing any button at all. But don't worry, the Codec's receiver directly stimulates the bones in your ears. No one but you will be able to hear them."

"All right, then you'll know if I need your help. Thanks, Natsuki."

"N-No, don't say that! She can't know we're talking! What's she gonna think if she hears you say my name out loud?! Call me by my codename, "Campbell". Got that?"

"Ah, right. Right, haha." The vibrations go away, but not before hearing a groan from the other end, and you are left to your own devices.

Your eyes wander around and they fixate at the next incoming train. It feels uncomfortable, knowing that Natsuki, 5 miles away, can see the exact same thing you can. Every blink is an irritation, an invitation to scratch your eyelids, but you fight the urge. Contact lens cameras, Codecs, literature club members from alternate dimensions, it all seems like a great, big fairy tale sometimes.

The train pulls in at the station at a dizzying speed - your eyes can barely fixate on any particular thing through the windows. You hope you're not making "Campbell" barf doing this. But one of the last few carts pass by and you see her, in there, standing, eagerly waiting to be free of the metal box. She notices you, out there, and a small smile spreads upon her face, and the train abruptly crumples to a stop.

You stand up and jog to meet her. Nothing separates you two now but a thin, red door. It slides open, and now you get to see not just her face, voluptuous hair and green scarf, but her grey coat, black skin-tight pants and boots that had a few pompoms dangling from it's opening. Absolutely plain, but undeniably stunning - she could make anything look good.

You stare into each other's eyes, at a loss for words before the subway cars beep and boop informing everyone to stand clear of the doors. Your date stutters in panic as the doors start closing, and Natsuki yells into your ear to get 'er out of there. You follow the order after a bout of brainfreeze.

Your mind blinks, and you now find your arms wrapped around another body. The subway car speeds away, uninterested or amused with the moment. With rosy cheeks, she looks up towards you and stutters, "Hello, Anon."

"Hey Monika." you muttered in a daze. Those two words sounded so foreign. Her coat was wool, and you enjoyed the sound of your hand rubbing against it. Her back and truly, her whole frame was so small compared to yours, yet your hands wanted to explore every inch...oh god, what were you doing?! You jumped away, hands up in the air like you just molested a stranger.

"Uhm, yeah, uh, hey! How are you doing?" Words come out of your mouth. You could hear Natsuki slap her palm against her forehead.

"I'm doing great. Those trains don't wait for no one, do they?" You both share a tiny laugh. "Honestly, I didn't expect for you to be on time, and earlier than me no doubt."

"W-Well, I-I," you scratch your forehead. Then, a vibration in your ear signals your angel coming to save the day.

"Say, 'Of course I would be! I wouldn't want you to have to wait for me in the cold.'" You repeat it ad verbatim.

"Aww, Anon, that's so thoughtful. Well, with that said, let's head for the restaurant - make sure we have to spend as little time in the cold as possible." She raises a gloved hand towards you. You match her movement in a more cautious fashion, and she snatches it and pulls you along, wrapping herself around your arm. She casually points in the direction to head to and you remember how to walk. Left, right, left right.

"Hey, dingus! Don't go limp now, get your head in the game!" Natsuki says through Codec.

"Right, right, sorry."

"Did you say something, Anon?"

"Uh- tonight looks really wonderful, don't you think?!"

"Mm, yeah. I really love the look of downtown when snow's falling, especially..." Monika continues talking but it's hard to focus on her. The world felt so disorientating, like you were wearing non-prescribed glasses. Your head was hot, and you couldn't tell up from down. Every step was met with the fear of tripping over and falling.  Maybe it was the hustle and bustle of these crowded streets getting to you. Or was Monika's presence so damn infectious? Thank god you had foresight and begged for backup.

"...and then she said 'Sorry, no. I have to do this and that.' I mean, really? This and that? What kind of excuse is that?"

"H-huh?"

"Anon." She stops in place to peer into your face asking, "Did you catch what I said?"

"O-Of course!" you say, scratching the back of your forehead. Was your smile too big for the occasion?

Natsuki, through the codec, says "Either say 'She's lying through her teeth', or 'She must have her reasons'."

You choose the second option, and she puts a finger to her lips. "You think so?"

"People are busy, right? You know that."

"Hmm, yeah, I guess. It's not worth worrying about, anyways! Thank you, Anon, it's always nice to hear your opinion on things." You bare your teeth in a smile as response. "Oh, we're here!"