Day 2 of @givenevents Winter Holiday Event 2020
Pairing: TakeYoi
Prompt: All this time that I spent chasing
I chased after an unrequited love for so long that it felt weird to put myself out there again. Now I’m left to wonder just how long I was missing out on incredible things as I forced myself to be unhappy… Yayoi tucked her hair behind her ear after the wind tousled it playfully. She turned and saw that Koji was laughing at something he noticed on display in one of the booths they passed. He squeezed her hand to get her attention and motioned towards it.
Carnivals weren’t exactly Yayoi’s style, she much preferred a fancy dinner, but she had to admit that she was glad they’d come to this one. It was enough to see the way that her boyfriend smiled as they tried different snacks. He also smiled as he failed at the games, and when he explained that he couldn’t go on most of the rides because he’d get sick but they could still have all sorts of fun. He was always smiling.
Even when they met he would do silly things just to see if it’d make her smile too. She wanted to be put-off, truly she did, but he was just… a genuinely nice guy. It was hard to ignore the selfless things he did. Unlike other men she’d been interested in, he seemed to want to shower her in attention. She couldn’t really turn something like that down. Once she gave it a chance, she finally saw just what she’d been missing out on.
“Look at how cute that penguin over there is, Yayoi!” Koji exclaimed. He turned towards her with a grin. “I’ll win that one for you for sure.”
She let go of his hand and shook her head. He hadn’t been able to win at a single game yet, but that didn’t stop him from being determined. She couldn’t decide if it was endearing or silly. Either way it was surprisingly cute.
It really was different having someone else call or text first. Koji always sought her out. She could think about him for a brief moment then look at her phone to find he’d sent her a picture of a flower he saw while out for a walk and thought was pretty. Being with someone like him made her wonder what exactly she’d been chasing after for so long. Whatever it was, it had been a relief to finally let it go. She could just be herself with Koji and that was probably the best part about dating him. It was exhausting trying to be that perfect girl everyone seemed to think she was.
“Well, it’s no penguin but… I did win something…” Koji smiled a crooked smile as he returned. He offered her the plushie he’d managed to win this time.
Yayoi took the very not cute gorilla and studied it. Why was it missing an eye? What was with the horrible shade of brown? Was that a flower in its hand? And was it wearing zebra print shorts? She blinked at the ugly little doll as her brain processed everything. Her nose crinkled as she tried her hardest not to react how she knew she was about to. It was to no avail.
She put a hand over her mouth and burst into a fit of laughter. There were tears in her eyes when she finally managed to say, “This is the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Koji rubbed the back of his head slowly. “Yeah, I know… I can give it back and try again if you want.”
“No, it’s mine!” Yayoi hugged the gorilla to her chest and turned her torso away from him so he couldn’t grab it if he tried. She wiped the tears from her eyes then squeezed the plushie and added, “He may not be conventionally cute, but you worked hard and won him for me. That means he’s special.”
“I’m glad you think so,” Koji replied with a cheery grin.
That good attitude of his was infectious. She couldn’t help but smile too. She kept the gorilla hugged to her chest with one arm and placed the other on Koji’s left cheek. Then she leaned up onto the balls of her feet and kissed his right one. If they were in an anime his glasses would’ve fogged up with how quickly his face turned pink. She put her hand over her mouth once more and chuckled softly. She might not have been chasing this exactly, but she was sure glad she’d found it instead.
