"I don't think this date will be a good fit for me. I might have to say no."

"Oh, I thought the story would pull you in, and eventually result in a yes," Kotonoha said.

“This is really good, don't get me wrong. And you’ve apparently done entries like this before,” I said, trying to placate her. 

I hated to admit it, but I felt a growing desire to complete her work for nothing else but for completion’s sake.

“Aside from a couple of friends, I haven’t told anyone about this. The Love Experience Journals are something I started writing when I first entered junior high. Of course, in order to make use of them, I had to enter a few romances with a willing partner,” Fumiko said, matter-of-factly pointing to a couple other notebooks in her backpack for emphasis.

“Okay. A bit odd, but I get it. Although, I feel you might have misunderstood the kind of guy I am.”

She tilted her head in confusion at my statement.

“Where did I misinterpret your character, Mister Yamamoto,” Kotonoha asked.”

“I’m no children’s hero, ma’am,” I said, tapping at the illustration for emphasis. “At best, I’m an anti-hero, but that would mean doing good for people other than me.”

“I simply write what I see. I jot down the narrative around them that the subject themselves isn’t always aware of. But if you rather I change it, then—” Fumiko said, slyly lowering her head with pen in hand.

“No, no, it’s fine,” I retorted, moving her writing hand away from my journal.

She smiled when my hand overlapped with hers for a brief moment. If I didn’t know better, she predicted that I would do that.

“In the past, I’ve used these journals to help answer my questions about love, but now, as a selfish request, I want to use the experience in this particular journal for myself. So before I leave you alone, are you sure you don't want to go on a date with me Kenta? It's really important to me that you willingly agree to it.”

She outstretched her hand to me and attempted to flash a vulnerable smile with a red shade of blush behind it. It was at odds with her previous heroic smile. It only took a few seconds of deeper observation to see that the corners of her lips were awkwardly quivering. The infamous Terminator of Romance was trying her best not to seem nervous, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about her lack of certainty.

“Alright. Fine. You’ve piqued my interest, Kotonoha, but before the date itself, I feel we should just spend time with each other and get to know one another.”

This inspired a different reaction from Kotonoha. Her self-conscious smile gave way to a more inquisitive gaze from her, her quivering lips parting to gasp, her mouth left agape. This curiosity in turn shifted to a subtler, easier smile. Somehow this smile felt more natural than the doughy, widespread one she showed me moments earlier.

She shot up from her seat to hold one of my hands snugly in her palms. It’s unnerving how easily she can disarm me.

“That’s actually the best thing you could’ve said. There’s so much about you I want to learn, Kenta,” she said, a new glimmer in her eyes.

“Oh. You’re okay with this?”

“I’ve learned that I can be rather impatient. Ever since, I’ve made sure to spend some time with my newest One-Date before going on a date with them. So now that you seem to agree, you’re obligated to come visit me tomorrow after school,” she said flatly with a smile, gripping the sleeve of my blazer.

“Well, there’s no rush. I’m not going anywhere any time soon,” I said, grinning.

“Oh, that’s a relief,” she said, exhaling with a hand to her chest.

“Wait, why?”

“I guess I mean to say that one single date goes by in a blink of an eye. Contrary to what people say, I do sometimes miss my former dates. I sometimes think of what things would be like if I still talked to some of them.”

“You know we can still talk to each other when this is over, right,” I said, patting the back of her shoulder.

“Yeah. I know.”

“Don’t know why I was worried about you.”

“I’m going to hold you to your promise, because you're the new heroic subject of my journal collection,” Fumiko said, pointing her index finger towards me.

She was so straightforward, it was almost embarrassing. But I couldn’t say that anybody else would do this for me. I couldn’t help but smile along with her.