Otome Player

Finally.

You get to do this, for real.

Your heart races in your chest, beating so hard you can feel it about to burst, as cliche as that is. The butterflies in your stomach fly so fast they almost cause an internal tornado.

Chill and fresh air overtakes your lungs with a deep breath as the silence of the world overtakes your ears. Only the waves of the ocean, and love, haha, are heard. You look around the romantic pool scene, and while all of your friends look handsome and well put together tonight, your eyes widen when you reach him.

With his hair swept to the side and his tailored suit clinging to his skin, he looks ideal, romantic, like you're the only two people there and nothing matters, like you can have him all to yourself in a few moments and go to a fancy porch. You've spent the past three days waiting for the producers to allow you more moments with him, for the cameras to stop so that you could relax your shoulders and take comfort in his presence like you always do, and you spent months awaiting his company between missions, hoping his name is spoken every time you get a new case to work on, just to spend more time with him by your side. The anomaly does not matter, the danger of the situation does not matter, this stupid show doesn't even matter; you just want him to know.

Of course, letting him know your feelings in this setting is also ideal, because if he cringes at you and backs away once the cameras turn off, you could always tell him that you were playing it up for the camera, you were only doing it for narrative purposes and that you just see him as a friend. But earlier when he promised you to be with you if you pick him, however scripted some parts of it had to have been, made your heart thump and your face grow warm with a hope that his behaviour these last three days is real, that he also feels the same as you do.

You take a deep breath... the crew drop their heads again.

Oh.

The anomaly appears once more, putting everyone on edge, you might be making this up, but you can swear he looks at you with a protective glare.

"choose." the ghastly woman tells you as she looms above your head, "choose!"

And so you do.

Your eyes shut for courage, your fists clench as well, and you say, loud and clear as per the script and as per your heart:

"My soulmate is..."

A screech echoes through the air - the anomaly.

And as the chaos begins and the mission is forced to a close, you have failed for good... Or have you?

·˚ ༘₊· ͟͟͞͞꒰➳You chose: