( closed ) this is how confessions work, right?

[unluckily]

[ Today, Naegi Makoto made the decision to call Kirigiri out for something important. At least, it was important to him, anyway. He was nervous about going through with it, especially since this would probably be easy for someone who was known for her talent as a detective, but he also thought that maybe she'd appreciate his hard work.

So when he invites her over, he has a rather large rectangular table that has boxes of many different shapes and sizes, Naegi standing behind the table, gulping a little nervously before he warns her, carefully: ]

Ah... don't touch the boxes, Kirigiri-san. [ It's like a warning, even if it doesn't work out with the slight wavering of his voice. But he's trying! ] I know you're a really good detective, and I'm probably not that good at making puzzles like this myself, but--

I wanted to try something. I guess you can call it a deduction game? Um, anyway, I brought in twenty boxes. They're all different sizes and colors. One of the boxes has something that the other twenty don't. If you want to play, there's just a few rules you have to follow. The first is that you can't touch the box unless you've chosen it. The second is that while you can ask me any question and I'll answer truthfully, you're not allowed to ask me a question like "is this the box the item is in?" or anything that indicates which box hid the item. And the third is that you can ask up to thirty questions... although if you've figured out the answer, you can pick up the box and open it to see if you're right. Only one box has a good item while the other nineteen are duds.

[ That isn't to say that they're empty, however. ]

If you don't want to do it, Kirigiri-san, it's okay. We can do something else, instead. [ AT LEAST HE TRIED???? ]

Comments

[useyournoodle]

[ Kirigiri is, of course, unfolding that paper to look for a message as soon as she finds it. It'd be very anticlimactic for all of this to have been over a blank piece of paper, after all.

So finding a message in Naegi's handwriting isn't remotely surprising. The contents themselves, however, are a bit more so. Though it certainly would explain all of his nervousness. ]

Is this your way of asking me out on a date, Naegi-kun?

[ She lifts the piece of paper into his view as she speaks, to make her meaning clear. Though her voice doesn't give any hints as to whether or not she'd consider that a good thing. She'd rather confirm this first before revealing her hand. ]

[unluckily]

[ And now he's blushing. She asks that question and he decides to go with the truth. He said he'd be honest for thirty questions, even though this doesn't count for it anymore since she found the object already. ]

Y-- yeah. Do you not like it, Kirigiri-san?

[useyournoodle]

I didn't say that.

[ ...Not that she's saying anything, really. But there's a small smile on her face, now, which is probably a good sign (unless he thinks she's about to mock him instead).

It's cute of him, to come up with this 'deduction game' as a means of confessing his feelings for her. Sure, it had its design flaws, but she wouldn't expect anything perfect from him. He tried, and somehow, that means something to her. ]

...Dinner, tonight. Will that work?

[ That's a date, right? She's not going to admit that she's not particularly well-versed in these matters... her detective work has always kept her busy, too much so to focus much on boys. ]

[unluckily]

[ It's true that he didn't say it, but she didn't... not say it, either. Which makes him nervous for what seems to be a few seconds before she finally asks that question, something that makes him gasp in what seems to be definite surprise. Ah. ] Y- Yeah, that would... [ He's so bad at being smooth. So bad. Maybe he should thank the gods that she doesn't mind it too much -- it seems. But eventually, he manages a smile himself, finally relaxing a bit. ] I'd really like that.

that'd be a very different ship...

[useyournoodle]

Good.

[ She should... probably say more, but she's not any better at this than he is, honestly. He told her he liked her, she answered him by asking him out on a date, and now he agreed. She's not sure where to go from there, aside from actually going out later. ]

I was wondering how long it'd take you to confess.

[ Now, this is teasing. For all her detective prowess, she actually hadn't picked up on his feelings... but he doesn't need to know that. ]

shhh you saw nothing

[unluckily]

Wha-

[ It's official: Kirigiri Kyouko is the worst. It's true that he likes her regardless of that, but still... ]

H-How long have you known?!

[useyournoodle]

Long enough.

[ Which is technically true, if you count "since a minute ago" as enough. She's purposefully being vague so she can continue teasing him without outright lying. ]

You have too honest a face, Naegi-kun.

[ Also true, if not actually related to the conversation at hand. She really is the worst. ]

[unluckily]

[ If he's to be honest, he's not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. Even though she's being vague, he doesn't exactly see through her. Maybe it's his naivety at play or perhaps it's something else entirely, it's hard to tell.

But he's definitely flustered. ]

R-Really? [ Extremely flustered. ] Is that something that you don't... like?

[useyournoodle]

[ ...Okay, fine, she'll take pity on him and let up her teasing somewhat. She doesn't want him to die of embarrassment. ]

No. I'm quite fond of your foolishly honest nature, actually.

[ This is the girl who hates being lied to and being left out of secrets, after all. So it really is for the best that he's an awful liar in most cases. ]

I find it... charming.

[unluckily]

...

[ At first he doesn't say something, because the gears in his head are turning before he finally realizes what she means and his cheeks burn -- not that they weren't already, considering -- and he finds himself jerking back, waving his arms in the air with frantic motions.

He's trying very hard. ]

T- That's...! [ He should consider himself lucky that he hasn't tripped on something yet - specifically, a box. ] I-

[ Words are failing him when this is the wrong time for them to be failing. ]

That makes me really happy... Kirigiri-san.

[useyournoodle]

[ Only Naegi would get so embarrassed after a girl says she likes him when he's already confessed and she's agreed to go on a date with him. ]

Does it surprise you that much?

[ He should probably be careful, walking backward like that... ]

[unluckily]

[ Does it surprise him? Yes, absolutely. He didn't expect her to actually go out on a date with him, or even call him charming. It's not that he doesn't have confidence in himself, but rather... he doesn't seem to think of himself as a rather attractive individual? So he's pretty much reeling from all of it. ]

Ah... yeah. I didn't think that I would be able to date you, Kirigiri-san.

[ That is what this is, right? He's dating!! ]

[useyournoodle]

[ They have agreed to go on a date together, so she can agree that it's dating at this point. So he doesn't have to worry that she'll object over semantics. ]

You should have more faith in yourself, Naegi-kun.

[unluckily]

I...

[ He's nervous, and it shows so easily in that shaky voice of his. But he tries so hard to smile. He tries so damn hard, even if it's awkward, especially as he's laughing in that awkward manner that he rubs the nape of his neck. ]

I-I'll try, Kirigiri-san.

[useyournoodle]

[ He's so nervous.... is she really that terrifying? She has to wonder. ]

Relaxing may help, for one.

[ Maybe it won't help matters any to reach over and grab one of his hands with her own (gloves still on, of course), but she does so regardless. ]

[unluckily]

[ Is Kirigiri really that terrifying? To Naegi, she's not. It's more that he finds himself nervous at doing something new that makes him anxious. But he manages to hitch a breath--

But he's then caught off guard when she puts her hand in his own, parting his lips in a bit of surprise. ]

Thank you.

[ Because that really did help him relax. ]

[useyournoodle]

[ She's glad to see that he's finally calming down a bit... hopefully that means he won't be too nervous over their date later, now that he's able to process it all. ]

You don't need to thank me. For any of it.

[unluckily]

Even though I don't have to thank you for it...

[ He hesitates a little bit, not out of nervousness but rather out of something more when he finds himself smiling at her in a manner that's relieving. ]

I want to, Kirigiri-san. Not just for this, but for everything you've done.

[useyournoodle]

[ Really, there isn't anything for him to thank her for. If he's talking about the mutual killing game... everything she'd done had benefited herself, in addition to him and the rest of their classmates. And she wouldn't have agreed to go on a date with him if she hadn't wanted to. ]

You say that like you didn't do anything yourself.

[ Maybe he hadn't contributed much to the actual mystery-solving itself, but his optimism and determination had been an asset all the same. She'd christened him SHSL Hope for a reason, after all. ]

[unluckily]

[ He laughs a little bit to himself in a way that's self deprecating but he smiles with a bit of of affection and appreciative. ]

Well... it's not as if I didn't, [ he can admit to that much ] but you did a lot more, Kirigiri-san.

[useyournoodle]

We all did what we could to beat the mastermind.

[ It just so happened that some people could do more than others... their classmates weren't particularly helpful, after all. ]

It's not a contest of who did the most.

[unluckily]

I know it's not... but I still appreciated everything that you did.

[ There's no way that he's going to acknowledge all of that. ]

It's not wrong to feel that, right?

[useyournoodle]

No, of course not. Your feelings are your own.

[ And she'll accept them, even if she thinks they aren't necessary. ]

I'm simply glad we survived, and that we are here together.

[unluckily]

Thank you... Kirigiri-san. [ He sounds rather pleased with himself that she's accepted his feelings in full. ] And I'm glad, too. U-Um, anyway... what should we do now?

[useyournoodle]

Is there anything you'd like to do, Naegi-kun?

[ If they wanted, they could just go on the date now rather than wait for dinner... or they could simply spend time together. She's fairly certain she'd enjoy most things with him, though that's too sappy a thought for her to ever admit out loud. ]