Aran Aranea, a boy living in the capital city of Lucida, Astrum.
This boy has experienced intense moments since entering high school.
In his 14 and a half years of life, he has already fought against a criminal organization and a mutated monster that can rip through the bodies of humans like a hot knife through butter.
All of that, but he has never experienced going on a date with a girl... Until now!
YEAAAAHHH!!!!!!
He has been internally screaming inside his mind for about 2 minutes now, confusing the girl that was in front of him.
Not being able to take the awkward silence any longer, Kristina waves her hands in front of Aran's face.
"Hello, you okay there?"
She asked him, making Aran's mind return to reality.
When Aran saw Kristina's confused face, he immediately cleared his throat and acted as if nothing happened, trying to act as cool as he could.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine!" Aran said, voice cracking as he tried to clear his throat.
"Just... Running a tactical simulation."
Kristina blinked. "A simulation... about what?"
"How to not mess this up," he muttered under his breath.
"What was that?" she tilted her head, amused.
"Nothing! Just, uh— Sorry..."
Aran suddenly apologized out of the blue. His brain's circuits are so fried, he's malfunctioning...
"I'm probably acting like a creep, haha..."
Trying to keep the mood up, Kristina waved her hands off.
"No no! It's fine! Have you been waiting long?"
She asked him, trying to steer the conversation away.
"Nah, not really. I just got here a little early, that's all!"
He chuckled, scratching his head.
Breathing in and out, he tries to think back to the flow chart he created in his mind.
Okay, we kinda messed up the introductions, but thankfully Kristina was kind enough to help me recover.
The next step would be....
To lead the way!
In an article that Aran read, taking the initiative is an effective way of making the date go smoothly. So, he planned out the location beforehand.
Clearing his throat, he straightened his back and spoke.
"So, our first stop is the movie theater. I figured we could watch something together to have something to talk about later!"
He chuckled.
But as the words left his mouth, Aran's brain suddenly went into overdrive as he realized the fact that he basically just gave away his plan.
Wait, why did I say that out loud?!
You should've just said, 'Hey, wanna see a movie?' you idiot!!!
Kristina smiled, clearly amused by his sudden rush of words. "That's a pretty smart plan, actually."
Aran blinked, surprised. "You think so?"
She nodded. "Yeah. Helps avoid those awkward silences."
He felt his chest loosen just a bit.
Okay, nevermind. You're a genius, me.
His voice sounding lighter, he smiled before speaking.
"Alright then! It's just a few blocks away, so it won't be a long walk. Shall we head off?"
Aran asked Kristina, gesturing his hand towards a certain direction.
"Sure! Lead the way!" Kristina replied with a bright smile that made Aran's heart flutter once more.
________________________________________
As Elio saw the two start to move, he used his perk to charge his legs up before jumping several meters in the air, landing on top of a building's roof.
After a few minutes of leaping through rooftops, he finally saw Aran and Kristina stop in front of the movie theater.
Elio crouched on the edge of a nearby building, peering through a pair of binoculars like some overdramatic spy.
As he watched the two of them speaking with a good vibe going on, he couldn't help but grin.
"Hoho~ watching a movie? Looks like you actually planned this out!"
He gave a subtle fist pump.
"Go getter, Aran!" He cheered.
Just then, his stomach let out a pitiful growl.
He grimaced, clutching his midsection.
"Ugh… why didn't I eat something first..."
He'd skipped breakfast to get here earlier than Aran—just in case this turned out to be some kind of cruel prank.
Now he was paying the price, hunched behind an air vent, fighting the urge to sprint to the nearest food stand.
"Ugh... I should've ordered something at the café, earlier..."
________________________________________
"So uh... What do you wanna watch?"
Aran nervously asked Kristina, trying to steady his voice.
Kristina tilted her head, her finger gently pressing on her cheek as she scanned the holographic movie board glowing in front of them.
"Hmm…" she hummed, eyes flicking between titles.
"We've got a romcom, a thriller, something animated, a documentary on dragon physiology…"
Aran blinked. "That one's been showing for three years."
"People must really love dragons." she replied with a smirk.
Then her eyes lit up as they caught something that interested her.
"Ooh! What about this one?" she pointed to a bright poster with fire, explosions, and dramatic poses.
"Blazing Hearts: Final Requiem!"
Aran did a double take. He remembered putting this movie on his watch list when the first teaser came out.
"Wait, that's an action-romance war drama… with a tragic ending..."
"Exactly," she said, grinning. "High stakes, big feelings, and some cool magic fights. I'm in!"
Aran felt his nervousness spike, then mellowed out into admiration.
Wait... Could it be that she...
HAS GOOD TASTE?!
Magic, explosions, over-the-top emotional arcs—it wasn't just a good pick.
It was the right pick.
Aran looked at Kristina like she had just passed an unspoken test.
"Yeah! That one sounds great!" he said quickly, practically slamming the purchase button with more force than necessary.
Kristina raised an eyebrow at his enthusiasm. "You're really into this one, huh?"
Aran coughed. "What? Me? Noooo... I mean, I've only watched the trailer like, seven times. No big deal."
She laughed. "Well then, lucky me."
A loading wheel spun for a second before the screen dinged softly.
"Next showing is in... two hours," Kristina read aloud, leaning in.
She glanced at Aran, amused. "Guess it's more popular than we thought."
"Ah... heh." Aran tried not to look completely deflated.
....Crap.
He scrambled mentally through the backup options in his date flowchart. And then, like a spark in his brain—
"Wanna hit the arcade while we wait?" he blurted out. "It's just across the street!"
Kristina's eyes lit up. "Now that sounds fun."
Seeing her enthusiasm, Aran smiled as he led the way, both of them continuing to speak to each other on the way.
________________________________________
"Eh? They're... Leaving?"
Elio asked, confused as he peeked through his binoculars.
"Where are they headed off to?"
Following their path, he saw them cross the road and enter the building that Elio was standing on.
It was none other than the arcade that Aran and Elio went to the day they became friends.
But there was one problem...
"Wait, weren't we supposed to be banned from ever coming back here?!"
He yelled out, remembering the day he broke the punch machine.
"Just what are you thinking?!"
________________________________________
"Um... Aran, why are you wearing a mask?"
Kristina asked, raising an eyebrow as they stepped into the arcade. Her tone was amused, but her expression was clearly curious.
Aran froze mid-step, already halfway through adjusting the black cloth over his nose and mouth.
"Uh... no reason..." he said, voice muffled.
Kristina looked at him skeptically.
Aran let out a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his head.
"I just, uh... heard the air conditioning in this place is kinda strong. Gotta stay warm, y'know?"
A loud DING sounded from deeper in the arcade, followed by a scream of joy from a kid winning a prize.
Though she felt there was something off about Aran's behavior, she decided not to pry about it any longer.
"Is that so...? Well, yeah it is kinda chilly here. Anyways, what games are we going to play? I don't really come to places this much, hehe!"
She asked him excitedly.
However, Aran was still on high alert, as he felt an employee's gaze aimed straight at his head.
"Hm... That guy looks... Familiar."
He said.
Hearing this Aran spoke to Kristina with a slightly panicking voice, surprising her.
"Uh...! Let's check that out, first!"
"O-okay!"
She said, quickly walking to catch up with Aran.
As the two of them moved deeper into the building, Aran could hear the employee mutter something under his breath.
"Yeah, maybe I was just seeing things. That kid didn't seem like the type to have any girls around him, hehe..."
'Jerk!'
Aran yelled out in his mind.
As they disappeared into the maze of game cabinets and neon lights, Aran exhaled a long, relieved breath.
'Crisis narrowly avoided.'.
Aran led Kristina through the buzzing arcade until they stood before a large, flashy game with neon arrows and pounding bass.
"Dance or Die?" Kristina read aloud. "That sounds... intense."
"Yeah," Aran nodded, scanning the instructions.
"But it's just rhythm-based input, right? Step on the right arrow at the right time. Should be simple enough."
Kristina smiled. "You sound confident."
Aran cracked his knuckles. Timing. Coordination. Agility. All things he was trained in. This was basically a kata with music.
How hard could it be?
They stepped onto the pads, and the game's announcer blared:
"LET THE GROOVE DECIDE YOUR FATE!"
Kristina laughed. Aran narrowed his eyes like he was preparing for battle.
The countdown began.
3... 2... 1...
The music hit. Bright arrows exploded across the screen in every direction.
Aran's brain clicked into combat mode.
Up. Down. Left. Right. Quarter beat pause. Then a double right. Wait—diagonal? What—
His foot hesitated.
MISS.
Okay, relax for a second," he muttered. "It loops in 4/4. Probably a 32-bar count. Adjust weight to the heel—no, wait, center yourself—
MISS. MISS. MISS.
Kristina was laughing, bouncing casually to the beat, hitting about 70% of the steps with a goofy smile on her face.
"You okay over there?" she asked, barely looking at the screen.
"I'm... looking at the patterns!" Aran snapped as he tried to keep up.
Wait—is that a tempo shift?! The rhythm isn't consistent! Who choreographed this madness?!
Then came the spin step.
Kristina twirled like she was at a party.
"Don't overthink it! Just get lost in the groove!"
"I-im trying!"
Aran tried to rotate, overcorrected his stance, and spun right off the pad.
He caught himself mid-fall by grabbing the metal bar behind him, popping back to his feet instantly. But the machine had already called it:
"DANGER ZONE. FINAL LIFE!"
Kristina gasped, hands over her mouth.
"You okay?!"
"I'm fine!" he said, eyes wide, heart pounding like a jackhammer. "Just... a miscalculation."
The final seconds counted down.
Kristina hit her steps. Aran stared at the screen, now less like a warrior and more like a man desperately trying to disarm a bomb.
"GAME OVER!"
Kristina: 87,000 pts
Aran: 24,100 pts
"...I'm starting to think this game is rigged," Aran muttered, breathing heavily.
Kristina smiled and nudged his shoulder. "C'mon don't be such a baby about this, hehe!"
He let out a long sigh, half-defeated, half-laughing.
"Maybe... maybe we should try something with less arrows next?"
"Sure! What do you have in mind— hm?"
A sudden notification buzzed inside Kristina's purse, getting her attention. She glanced down instinctively.
Although it lasted only a second, Aran caught the flicker in her expression—the slight furrow in her brow, the way her smile faded into something unreadable. It wasn't dramatic. Just... different. A quiet shift, like a cloud drifting in front of the sun.
Disappointment? Annoyance?
Aran couldn't quite tell.
Kristina quickly tapped her phone, the screen going dark again. When she looked up, the cheerful expression was back—almost too perfectly.
"Sorry about that. What were you saying?" she asked.
Aran opened his mouth, then paused. For a second, he thought about asking. But something told him not to—at least, not now.
Instead, he just let out a breath, half from exhaustion, half from restraint.
"I was saying we should do something less cardio-intensive," he said with a crooked grin.
"Yeah, you're right, I'm kinda tired…"
She said with an exhausted and anxious voice, before sighing and quickly shifting her attention to somewhere else.
"Oh! How about we try that one out?"
She pointed ahead—at a photo booth nestled between a rhythm game and a retro racing cabinet. Its neon lights flickered invitingly, advertising filters like Cute Cat Ears, Romantic Frames, and Battle Mode with an unnecessarily intense font.
Aran blinked. "O-oh. That one?"
"C'mon, don't tell me you're scared of a little camera flash," Kristina teased, tilting her head.
"N-no! I mean, it's not like I'm nervous or anything. I've just never… y'know… done the whole photo booth thing before," he muttered, scratching his cheek.
Kristina giggled. "Then it's about time."
She grabbed his wrist—not forcefully, but firmly enough to pull him along—and Aran practically short-circuited at the contact.
KYAAAAHHHH—
His brain was screaming, but his legs moved on autopilot.
Inside, the booth's curtain fluttered closed behind them. The screen buzzed to life, offering them choices.
"Alright," Kristina said, tapping the display. "Let's do something fun first. Oh! Look—'Mecha Battle Mode'!"
Aran peeked over her shoulder. The screen previewed both their faces in metal armor with glowing visors. It looked ridiculous. He loved it.
Kristina grinned. "Ready?"
He nodded, swallowing hard. "Totally."
Click.
The flash popped. The photo booth snapped the first picture just as Aran flinched, his helmet graphics glitching into an oversized duck beak.
Kristina burst into laughter. "Okay, okay, that one's definitely going in the keep pile."
"NOOOO—!"
Aran tried to cover the screen, but Kristina was already laughing too hard to care.
"No way, that was golden! Look at your face—duck-beak mech pilot of doom!" she snorted, clutching her sides.
"You glitched it on purpose, didn't you?" he accused, half-smiling as his cheeks turned red.
"Maybe," she said playfully, tapping for the next filter. "Alright, your turn to pick."
Aran hesitated. "Uh… okay. How about… this one?"
Trying to ignore the heart filter a few pixels away, Aran chose another one to prevent any misunderstandings from happening or risk creeping Kristina out.
It was a simple star background.
Click.
The photo showed Kristina throwing up a peace sign while Aran tried—and failed—to look cool, resulting in a blurry half-smile.
Click.
The third had both of them mid-laugh, Kristina leaning slightly into him. For a moment, Aran forgot about everything else—the nerves, the plan, the lurking danger of being recognized—and just enjoyed it.
Then came the final prompt:
"Last photo! Choose a filter!"
Kristina hovered her finger over a list of frames. One said "Romantic Sunset", another "Besties Forever", but she paused when she saw the one labeled simply:
"No Filter – Just You"
Without saying anything, she tapped it.
Aran blinked. "That one?"
Kristina gave a small, almost shy smile. "Yeah. Just felt like… being real."
Click.
The booth captured the quiet moment between them—no exaggerated poses, no silly faces, just the two of them, sitting close.
Time went by quickly as two hours have already passed. It was time for the movie.