The sun rose bright and warm over the Gojo Dolls property, painting the wooden pillars of the workshop a deep, golden hue.
Wakana Gojo, however, was in no mood for slow contemplation.
The clock was ticking.
He quickly ate breakfast, prepared his bag with his notebook, measurement charts, and several large, empty tote bags, and set off.
He arrived at the bustling Ikebukuro Station, quickly locating the West Exit where Marin was already waiting for him, looking as bright as the morning itself in a simple white hoodie and light blue jeans.
She was already bouncing on the back of her feet, clearly impatient to start.
"Gojo-kun! Morning!" she called out, waving enthusiastically.
"Good morning, Kitagawa-san," he replied, giving her a nod. "Ready to face the wilds of the city?"
"I was born ready! Let's go! I thought we just needed to find the right materials, but you seem to have a big plan."
"I do," Wakana confirmed, immediately taking the lead as they moved away from the main crush of the station and headed toward the store. "We're going to Yuzawaya. The fabric needs to embody Mirajane's character. You can't just rely on standard textiles."
Marin's expression was a mix of surprise and delight. "Wait, you know Yuzawaya? I figured you'd order everything online! It's one of the biggest craft stores in Tokyo, and it's awesome!"
Wakana chuckled. "I know it well. While most of my large fabric orders for my collections come through specialized wholesale distributors, I often go to Yuzawaya for prototypes, unique trims, and hardware. They have a fantastic, wide-ranging selection that's excellent for finding a specific texture or color reference that isn't available from my usual suppliers. You can touch and feel everything, which is crucial for a designer."
Marin's eyes were sparkling again. "Seriously, you're so knowledgeable, Gojo-kun."
As they walked, Wakana pulled out his notebook.
It was open to two pages: one showing the detailed measurement chart from the day before, and the other displaying his recently completed sketch of the Mirajane Strauss design.
The sketch was a masterpiece of fast, functional art.
It wasn't just a picture of the finished dress; it was a technical breakdown. Arrows pointed to the high collar, specifying the need for heavyweight interfacing to maintain its rigid stand.
Detailed cross-sections showed the body structure, indicating internal boning channels and multiple layers of lining to create the smooth, fitted look.
The skirt part had notes about the precise angle of the slit and the need for the skirt fabric to hold a specific, dramatic drape when she walked.
Marin leaned in, completely captivated. "Wow, you draw so well! And it's so detailed!" she breathed, tracing the pencil lines with her finger. "Look at the way you drew the stitching here on the sleeves! It looks so real!"
"Thank you, Kitagawa-san," Wakana replied, feeling happy for her praise. "This is necessary for the pattern drafting. When you're making a garment from a fitted, non-stretch fabric, you can't just guess. Every line on the body has to be accounted for. The pattern is essentially a blueprint. Without this level of detail, the final garment would wrinkle, sag, or tear at the seams."
He then pointed to a few small, handwritten notes at the bottom of the sketch. "Now, we can focus on the materials. For the main dress, which is red and pink, we have two key requirements."
Wakana's voice shifted into his professional, tutorial tone, full of information.
"First, structure. Mirajane's dress, especially the bodice, needs to look strong and powerful, like plate armor, but made of fabric. We need something comfortable and breathable."
He continued. "Second, movement. It shouldn't be too constraining. The fabric must be fluid and have a beautiful sheen."
Marin listened intently, her head nodding with every specialized word. She was in awe.
"Your old dress, Kitagawa-san, was made of a cheap polyester satin. While it was shiny, it was far too light. It had no internal structure and it would wrinkle instantly," he explained, folding the sketch away. "For Mirajane's red color, since we're on a student budget, we should look for a good casa satin or a medium-weight polyester satin. Casa satin has a decent thickness and a smooth finish, which will still give the dress a nice sheen without the high cost. We need to compare them."
"Casa satin... polyester satin..." Marin repeated the names like they were magic spells. "I had no idea there were so many types of fabric!"
"Oh, there are hundreds," Wakana smiled. "The pink trim, which is just as important, needs a different fabric entirely to stand out. I'm thinking of a soft pink velour or a tightly woven pink twill for the collar and cuff accents. Twill is durable and will help the collar hold its sharp shape when we stiffen it."
"Luckily, these materials aren't too expensive," he noted.
They arrived at the massive Yuzawaya store, stepping inside a dizzying, colorful world of thread, trim, craft kits, and specialized tools.
It was a sensory overload of texture and color, and Marin's excitement was visible.
"Whoa, it's even bigger than I remember! It's like a magical textile fortress!" Marin exclaimed, spinning around to take it all in.
Wakana immediately led her past the novelty sections and down to the specialty fabric aisles.
"We start with the red," he announced, running his hand along a rack of silk blends. "Feel this, Kitagawa-san. This is a cheap poly-satin." He handed her a piece. "Now, feel this." He guided her hand to a roll of red casa satin.
Marin gasped. "It's completely different! The second one feels so heavy and cool, and it's so smooth. It's almost too pretty to cut."
"Exactly. That weight means it will fall straight when you move, giving the illusion of powerful flow, rather than bunching up awkwardly," Wakana said, his eyes focused on the color. "This deep crimson is perfect. It's not too neon, which would look cheap in photos, but it's vibrant enough to read as Mirajane's strong signature color."
As they were immersed in discussing the merits of three different shades of red, an elderly man in a clean, professional vest and nametag suddenly approached them from the end of the aisle.
"Excuse me, young man. Are you looking for something particular? I saw you examining the weight and drape of the satins; you seem to know your way around," the store clerk asked kindly.
Wakana and Marin both turned around.
Wakana's face immediately brightened with recognition.
"Usami-san! Hello," Wakana greeted him with a respectful bow, putting aside the fabric swatches.
The store clerk, Hajime Usami, peered closer at Wakana, his eyes crinkling in the corners as he recognized the young man.
"Gojo-kun! It really is you! Are you already looking to make your latest design? I heard your recent design was a huge success. The way you used that antique kiku embroidery on the collars was ingenious!"
Wakana accepted the praise with a genuine smile. "Thank you, Usami-san. I'm just here to look for fabrics for another matter today."
Usami smiled widely, clearly pleased to see the successful young designer.
He then turned his gaze to Marin, who was beside Wakana.
"And who is this? Your... girlfriend? You're certainly growing up fast, Gojo-kun!" Usami-san teased with a warm chuckle.
"G-girlfriend?!" Marin yelped, her cheeks instantly heating up, and her eyes darted around nervously.
Wakana, more composed but feeling a slight, familiar tickle of nervousness in his chest, quickly shook his head.
"No, Usami-san," he clarified and introduced Marin. "This is my friend and classmate, Marin Kitagawa. The reason I'm here today is to help look for materials for something I'm making for her."
He then turned to Marin and introduced the older gentleman. "Kitagawa-san, this here is Hajime Usami. He helped me pick out materials when I was new and unfamiliar with designing clothing and working with unusual textiles. He's a real expert."
Marin, finally recovering from the girlfriend question, executed a small, polite bow. "That's amazing! Nice to meet you, Usami-san!"
Usami gave her a kind smile and nodded. "Likewise, Kitagawa-san. You two make a lovely pair of friends." He then turned his attention back to Wakana, noticing the organized pile of materials.
"Well, since you're already familiar with the materials and have the help of a charming assistant," Usami-san winked at them both, "my assistance here won't be needed. It looks like you have a handle on the project. I'll go around and help other customers. See you later, Gojo-kun. You know where to find me."
Wakana nodded. "See you later, Usami-san. Thank you."
Following this, Hajime Usami gave them a final, gentle smile and left, heading toward the less specialized aisles of the store.
From beside him, Kitagawa quietly commented. "He seems nice. Really kind."
"That's right," Wakana said, his gaze lingering on the old clerk's retreating back. "But he's also a warning."
Marin tilted her head, confusion returning to her face. "A warning? Why?"
Wakana paused, his eyes softening with genuine pity. "Just like me, his dream was to become a fashion designer. To create clothes."
Marin asked softly, "Then, what is he doing here? Why didn't he pursue it?"
"His father was not supportive of his dream. He told him that it was silly, and that he should take a 'real' job," Wakana explained, as if he had been there. "Usami-san was never bold enough to defy his father. He loved clothes, but his biggest regret was that he didn't even try to prove him wrong. He chose security over his passion."
A quiet sadness hung over Marin. "I see... that's really sad."
Wakana suddenly turned toward her, his intense blue eyes gazing straight into her own. "That's why I admire you, Kitagawa-san."
"Huh?" Marin was surprised.
"The Mirajane dress you made," he said. "It was technically flawed. The sewing was rough, the darts were wrong, and the fabric was entirely unsuitable for the character. It was, in a word, a mess."
Wakana smiled slowly, the expression changing to serious admiration. "But that's not what matters."
"Despite not having the skills to tailor your own clothing, you still tried your absolute best to make one. You used what you had."
"You had nothing to work with, so you tried learning it yourself."
"And realizing you couldn't do it alone, you came to me for help. You weren't afraid to admit defeat, but you did so with confidence and clear intent."
Wakana's smile widened into a genuine, heartfelt expression of respect. "You're not afraid to try, give it your all, and despite failing, you aren't afraid to ask others for help. That is resilience."
"You're bold, resilient, and straightforward."
"You're amazing, Marin Kitagawa."
With that, he turned his attention back to the side where the specialty materials were displayed and started inspecting a roll of pink velour for the trim, leaving the speechless Marin frozen in place.
"Eh?"
After hearing his powerful words of validation, Marin was completely frozen.
Her soft gaze lingered on Wakana's back, now bent slightly over a fabric roll, his focus entirely on the material.
'In such a short span of time, he already understood that much about me...?'
Her heart, which had just recovered from the "girlfriend" inquiry, began to pound aggressively against her ribs.
'Gojo-kun...'