Wait… What?! Against all odds, Nanami had answered she would go ‘out’ with Hajime. What did she mean? Go out or go outside? Were they dating now or just exiting the building? There was quite the difference between those two options, so assuming the wrong one to be the truth would be fatal.
“Yes. Good… Thank you,” Hajime replied, keeping his answer as vague as possible. What Nanami would do next would certainly determine which side the coin had fallen on.
Actually, forget about trying to figure out what Nanami was trying to get across. Hajime wasn’t even sure what he had meant. Considering the way he had been behaving since their reunion, it was save to assume Hajime asking Nanami out had been more than just a slip of his tongue.
Hajime was crushing on Nanami, he realized that now. He had found her attractive since meeting her for the first time on Jabberwock Island and as far as he could remember they had become good friends despite the despairing circumstances. Thinking about it more he probably had had a crush on her for a long time, but why had it taken weeks of being apart for him to realize that?
If he had feelings for her shouldn’t he be doing this properly? He felt like he should although if he didn’t know how to put his feelings into words. Even so, this might not be a good time for something so… out-there. They had found themselves in this strange place called Stella City. Shouldn’t they be trying to find the answers to the what, where, when, why, how and who first?
There were so many uncertainties, too many even. Perhaps that should be his motivation for making his move. With so little to be certain of, shouldn’t he be holding onto what he knew and try to turn uncertainties into certainties? It made sense in his mind, but if it actually made sense he wouldn’t dare say………. No matter. There was only one way to find out.
“Nanami, go out with me!” Hajime stated, striking his signature pose and pointing at her because for some reason it felt like the most natural thing to do. “I mean, go out with me, please. If you would like, that is! Not just outside, but on a date. Not a friend-date, a date-date. Although, if you would rather go on a friend-date I wouldn’t mind… Maybe I would mind just a little, but I would still say yes. Sorry, I’m getting off topic. Date me! Maybe! Please?”
When Hinata thanks her, Chiaki starts to head for the door, only to stop short when she realizes that Hinata had stayed close to the Aries constellation. She stares at him as he’s deep in thought, his face no longer as red as a tomato. “Hinata-kun? Are you still feeling sick? If you can’t walk, I can get you water and--”
“Nanami, go out with me!”
Chiaki furrows her eyebrows after hearing his declaration and watching him strike a pose. Her expression softens once he explains himself and her cheeks start to warm up the more she hears it. He was still a bit flustered, but not as messy as he was when he claimed to be coming down with a cold.
She could hardly believe it, really.
“Do you... Really mean it, Hinata-kun?”
She looks straight into Hinata’s eyes and sees a new kind of spark within them. It wasn’t the same that she had seen when he overcame himself to defeat Junko. No, it was something... Softer. More affectionate.
Words fail her after the question leaves her and she’s stuck in her own thoughts. He wanted to go on a date with her. It didn’t matter if it was as friends or partners, he wanted to be with her. The more she thought on it, the more she realizes that she held the same kind of sentiment towards him. She always had, especially when they became close during their time in Jabberwock. There, she was an AI. Hinata is an actual human being. It would never have worked.
It can work here though. Here, she was just as real as he was.
Chiaki strikes a pose similar to Hinata, but makes a heart with her hands instead of pointing at him. Then, she moves her hands back to her sides and smiles at her... Boyfriend. Yes, her boyfriend!
“Of course I’ll date you, Hinata-kun. I... I want to be with you...!”