Neko wondered how she let Mi-chan talk her into this. What was she thinking agreeing to go out with Tenshi?! What was Jasper thinking supporting the idea?!
She prepared herself for what she would find when she opened the door, then opened it.
Immediately, upon seeing Tenshi, she closed it again.
She leaned against the door shaking. �What is it?� Mi-chan asked.
Neko closed her eyes, trying to block out the image she had just seen. �She�s in a suit. Why is she in a suit?�
�Because you�re going somewhere nice,� Mi-chan said matter-of-factly.
�No. I mean, why isn�t she in a dress?� Neko had been ready for that. It was going to be so much easier to keep her distance when the fact that Tenshi was a girl was staring Neko in the face every second of the date. Now she was going to associate her with the debonair Night Angel.
�Neko-chan,� Mi-chan said, sensing a part of what Neko was worried about, �you promised to give her an honest chance.�
Neko looked away. �Okay,� she reluctantly agreed.
She opened the door to find a panicking Tenshi still standing there. Kami, she looked gorgeous though. *Stop it. It doesn�t matter what she looks like if she�s a jerk!*
�Konba wa, Tenshi-kun,� she said civilly.
�Konba wa,� Tenshi echoed, seemingly in awe. �You came out.�
�Yeah, well�.� She walked past her, starting towards the car. �Shall we get started?�
�Matte.� Tenshi followed her and cut her off before she got to the vehicle. �I- I wanted to give you these.� She held out a bouquet of blushing pink and white roses. Neko had seen them when she opened the door; she had just chosen to ignore them. Flowers suggested that Tenshi was more considerate than Neko was willing to believe. But Tenshi was here holding them up to her. There was no denying that Tenshi meant them for her, and she found she couldn�t help being a bit touched.
�Arigatou,� she said, taking them. �They�re beautiful.�
Tenshi handed them to her, keeping her eyes on Neko�s face. �Hai, beautiful.�
She had the same starry-eyed look she had had at the reflecting pool. She shifted her weight towards Neko, and Neko recoiled from her. �Don�t kiss me!� she ordered her.
Tenshi continued staring at her. �No, not until I have your permission again,� she replied softly. She leaned over and opened the passenger door for Neko. Neko watched her chivalrous action feeling a bit foolish for jumping to that conclusion. But it was Tenshi�s own fault for kissing her the first time.
*I won�t forgive you for that, Tenoh Tenshi. No matter how chivalrous you are.*
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Mi-chan had rejected Tenshi�s initial idea to take Neko back to the Yacht Club. It had been a year, but Mi-chan still didn�t trust the ma�tre d' not to recognize Neko� well, her� well, Neko as her. And neither of them wanted to have to explain to Neko if the ma�tre d' threw her and Tenshi out.
That was fine. Tenshi, or rather Tenshi�s parents, had enough connections to get seats at any restaurant she wanted, even with her tardiness in making reservations. This is how Tenshi managed to get a table for two in the sky room at Kuusai. She knew Neko probably wouldn�t know that it was the hardest restaurant in Crystal Tokyo to get seats to, but she hoped the ambiance would at least impress her. Certainly, she could see the lengths Tenshi would go for her. That this was a first-class restaurant. That Tenshi was going to spend a fortune on dinner alone.
If Neko was impressed, she wasn�t going to let Tenshi know. She simply trailed after Tenshi who was led by the ma�tre d'.
But when Tenshi sat down and looked in her eyes, she could see it. Neko was absolutely enchanted with their table.
The sky room was in the tower of Kuusai. The walls of the round space were nothing but windows overlooking the jeweled city, and the navy blue ceiling glittered with lights like they were stars. The contrast between the orange sky out the windows and the ceiling was striking, but Tenshi suspected that Neko found it nothing, if not beautiful.
Tenshi smiled. She was still Neko, after all.
Still smiling, she glanced at the menu. She wondered if Neko knew what foods she liked, whether she�d be able to order. Even when one didn�t recognize a single entr�e on a menu, the descriptions usually provided enough information for the diner to make an educated guess about what they would like. However, Neko had little to base her entr�e decision on.
Sure enough, as Neko finally took the time out to glance at her menu, she began to look a little uneasy.
�Ano,� she said quietly, beginning to blush, �I was thinking maybe you could order for me.�
�Of course,� Tenshi answered as if there was nothing more natural. There was no reason to make a big deal about it, it would only embarrass her. But Tenshi probably did know what Neko would enjoy better than Neko would.
Neko�s eyes shone graciously. She even smiled directly at Tenshi. For a moment. Then she pointedly put down her menu and turned her gaze back to the window.
�Ne,� she said soon after Tenshi had ordered for them, still not bothering to look back at Tenshi, �I don�t suppose you want to tell me where we�re going tonight.�
�After dinner? Are you sure you want to spend that much time with me?� Tenshi asked with a twinkle in her eye, attempting to lighten the mood.
She failed. Neko threw a sharp look in her direction. �Know this � I�m not here under my own volition. But I was told that dinner was just a part of this deal. If you want to cut it short, that�s fine with me!�
Tenshi sighed. �My parent�s have tickets to the Eigogeki Theater. They�re putting on a couple of plays this evening, and we�re going to the second one. Do you know Shakespeare?�
Neko shook her head. She had before, Tenshi knew. They had quoted Romeo and Juliet in English before. And Neko had mentioned before that she had read a few of his works in school, though translated into Japanese. She seemed to like the stories.
�The company is putting on the play, Twelfth Night. It�s a comedy. Is that okay?� There was an earlier showing of Romeo and Juliet, but Tenshi had decided that dinner during the sunset would be more thrilling for Neko. Besides, she thought, it would be a true tragedy if Neko saw Romeo and Juliet and started to identify with the main characters. Tenshi didn�t want the star-crossed lovers to become martyrs for the Jasper and Neko cause.
Neko had other concerns. �It�s in English?� she asked nervously.
Tenshi nodded. �Don�t worry, you�ll still understand it. You�d be surprised how much English you know, Koneko. Plus, I�m here to help you if you have any questions.�
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