The Goddess Needs A Break!

"That movie was amazing! We have to go see some more movies soon, please Takei?"

Takei and Akari were walking out of the screening room while talking about the movie that had just finished. Akari had stars in her eyes after being overwhelmed by her first theater experience. Takei was just happy to see her so excited about something.

"Sure sure, just let me know when you want to go."

Akari was elated when she heard his agreement. "Really? Thanks so much!"

Takei thought of the next phase of his plan. He wanted to take her somewhere nice to eat. Luckily, Takei researched some family restaurants nearby beforehand.

Takei turned towards Akari and began to enact the second phase of his plan. "Are you hungry? There's a nice family restaurant nearby."

"I'm a little bit hungry, so that sounds perfect."

"Alright, it's pretty close. The diner is just down the street. Here, let's go."

Takei grabbed Akari's hand and began to walk out of the theater. Once again, he failed to notice the extremely embarrassed girl behind him. He was too busy focusing on making the date fun which resulted in his perceptiveness being dulled.

Akari still had zero resistance towards Takei's unintentional attacks. She was blushing madly when Takei grabbed her hand. Moreover, the cold night helped her realize the warmth that enveloped her hand.

"It's so warm and comforting..."

Something about Takei's hand reassured her that everything was right in the world. It put her at an indescribable peace. She believed that the hand she held felt very reliable and masculine.

"...I don't want to let go."

As silent as the passing breeze, Akari stated her resolution and made sure not to let go of the warmth embracing her heart.

***

Takei and Akari managed to make it to the restaurant on time without much hassle. They promptly sat down and started scanning the menu. The waiter proved to be a very refined person who was capable of waiting while they decided what food to get.

After a couple minutes, both parties finally decided on what to eat. Takei decided to go first since he felt like it was more appropriate for the man to order first. "Can I get a plate of ravioli, please?"

"Understood sir, what will the madam be having tonight?'

"Can I get a plate of spaghetti with parmesan cheese grated on top, please?"

"Very well, the food will be out soon."

Surprised by the waiter's elegance, Takei let out a weak response. "Ah, thanks."

The waiter went back to the kitchen leaving Takei in a scenario where he was face to face with Akari. This was a rare occurrence to him since she would usually be at his side rather than in front of him. Possibly due to this fact, Takei's heart was beating faster than normal.

Akari quickly took notice of this fact, however. "Are you okay? Your face looks flushed."

Takei didn't know what to say so he made up an excuse for himself. "Ah, yeah. I must be out of shape from walking a lot today."

"Fufufu, I would not mind if you decided to work out and gain more muscle."

Akari gave him such a caring smile which ended up resulting in Takei blushing even more.

Luckily, the food arrived as Takei was thinking of something to continue the conversation with. "I'll think about it. Anyways, the food's here so let's eat."

The two unanimously gave their thanks for the food before they ate. "Thank you for the food."

Both parties were too entranced by the delicious looking food. There was a lingering silence while they ate, but it wasn't uncomfortable at all. On the contrary, it was a peaceful silence that could only be created by two people who trusted each other.

***

The goddess and the loner finished their meals at roughly the same time. Usually, Takei would be done before anyone else when he was eating since he's a fast eater by nature. This time however, he was eating with the elegant goddess so he toned back on his eating speed to match hers. Takei thought he should be considerate to the goddess's refined way of eating.

Takei flagged the waiter down and asked for the bill.

"It's fine, Takei. I can pay for myself. You've already paid for me at the movies so I can't impose on you anymore."

Hearing the declaration from the goddess, Takei didn't want to back down. "My pride as a man will be hurt if you pay, so please I insist."

"Uh huh..."

Akari felt that Takei was being very passionate about this so she didn't know what to do. In the end, she had to yield in front of his pure determination.

"Fine, but I'll find a way to pay you back somehow."

"Sure."

Takei wasn't too worried about Akari paying him back. He would try to find excuses to not take her money when it came to it.

The two walked out of the restaurant and looked at the crowded street in front of them. It was barely 6 in the evening, but there was still a large amount of people still walking about.

Takei looked towards the park in the near distance. "Hey Akari, do you want to go there for a bit?"

After hearing the suggestion, Akari readily agreed. "The park? Sure, that sounds nice."

"Let's go then, hold on to my hand. There's a lot of people here and I don't want you to get lost in the crowd."

Without knowing it, Takei was slowly melting Akari into a puddle of water. He had no idea how effective his attacks were. Once again, the beautiful girl's face was the color of a tomato. She didn't feel displeased at all, in fact she quite enjoyed the warm sensation.

The actual reason for her uneasiness was the amount of embarrassment she had to go through. Holding hands with another guy was destroying her nervous system. It was safe to say the scenario was the same for Takei. He was trying his best not to show any embarrassment on his face. It was futile since his facial expression gave him away easily. Luckily for him though, Akari didn't notice him burning up since she was also fighting the same internal problem.

They walked to the entrance of the park and entered to see a sight that surprised both of them. There were couples everywhere in the park. This was a huge miscalculation on Takei's part.

I did the research and it said this park was a good place to have fun. I never realized it meant THAT type of fun. Oh shit, this is going to be awkward.

Takei tried to salvage the situation by changing the location. "Uh... we can go to another park..."

Contrary to his thoughts, Akari seemed fine with this location. "This place is fine, I'm not too troubled..."

"Ah, alright. Let's sit down at this bench."

They both went to sit down at a nearby bench and looked up towards the night sky together.

"Hey, I've been meaning to ask..." Takei started a sentence and then trailed off suddenly.

Akari seemed to know that Takei wanted to say something important. "What's on your mind?"

After regaining his cool, Takei began to speak his mind. "...Why did you choose me? Aren't there more qualified people than me? I'm just a nobody compared to you. I bet there's someone much more fitting to be your partner than me."

For the last week, this internal strife had been tearing Takei apart. He didn't know why she chose him out of all people when he was so useless. The self-deprecating behavior that had been lurking around inside of him had been put on blast recently. Takei didn't know how much longer it would be until he fell apart so he had to ask the question to save himself.

A selfish question? Possibly, but his mind would not settle until it was answered.

Akari was slightly startled by his question, but she regained her composure and answered. "Why do you ask? It's simple, you showed no interest in me."

Takei was at a loss for words. "Huh?"

Since Takei seemed confused, Akari went more in depth. "Let me explain, I'm very sensitive to what other people are thinking and feeling. Usually guys only approach me for perverted reasons, so I tend to ignore them. However, you were different. You helped me just because you wanted to, right?"

Nothing came out of Takei's mouth. "..."

"I was wary at first, but you gave me a helping hand without expecting anything in return. Also, I could only sense kindness and compassion in your feelings. There were no traces of greed or lust whatsoever. That's why I knew you were the one."

Takei was left speechless, his feelings of self deprecation were slowly disappearing. He felt grateful for finding a great friend, but he would be embarrassed if she continued. Unfortunately, life would not go his way.

"Takei, you are not useless. You are honest, kind, earnest, compassionate, and so much more. You're mature, but also have your childish tendencies. You act like you don't care, but in reality you're the person who cares the most. That's why I want to be by your side. I refuse to let a good person go to waste. I'll be here whenever you need a reminder that you're a good person. I'll always be with you, so we'll share the same burden. I'm just a call anyway, you know?"

Takei started blushing furiously after hearing the almost confession-like declaration. He weakly managed to eek out a reply. "Thanks... I feel much better now."

"No problem, I'm here for you. Wait a minute... Ohoho, are you blushing?" Akari managed to catch a glimpse of Takei's beet red face while he was thanking her.

Takei flatly denied her accusation. "Nope."

The goddess was unforgiving and cruel however. "Haha, you are blushing!"

After seeing how she wouldn't let up, Takei gave in. "Yeah yeah, fine I am. Thanks for your reassurance though. It made me feel a lot better. I'd love it if we could keep getting along."

Hearing this bold reply, Akari could do nothing but show a big smile. "Please keep taking care of me, Takei."

"Yeah, same here. Thanks for everything."

Even though spring hadn't yet arrived, two flowers were already in full bloom.

---

Akari's Affection Meter: 22 -> 30%

A whopping 8% increase in just a matter of three chapters. Takei is now in the realm of important people that Akari refuses to let go. She finds him a very interesting person, so she will keep watch over him. Obviously, they are best friends now.

Romantic feelings may not be too far off.