February 26, 2050 - 22:03
Da Nang, Vietnam - Around My Khe Beach
After the whole bar fight ordeal was over, the squad left the club on their own term. After a quick berating from the Captain, he decided to let the incident go after getting the full story. He still gave the squad a warning and told them to 'Behave and don't get into any more trouble,' since it would be bad for both the PMC and themselves; although, it's quite unnecessary, since Vietnam's relationship with PMCs – specifically the B.A.D company – and the general population's sentiment towards PMCs were on the more positive side.
Thanks to the positive relationship and public sentiment, Harrison could afford to be more lax toward the trainees and let them go for the night.
The whole squad decided on what to do next, since the night was still young. Harrison decided that he was done for the night, considering his age and the amount of alcohol already in his system. He, along with Katya, who was all too happy to get an excuse to dodge the socializing event, grabbed a taxi back to the training facility. The rest of the guys decided that they'd head off for more fun somewhere else in the city. However, My and Chisato decided to split off, though it was mostly My who decided to drag Chisato off to somewhere else again.
Walking down the seaside street and enjoying the sea breeze, My held onto Chisato's hand. Chisato has long given up resisting My's impulsive nature and has decided to enjoy the moment with the happy-go-lucky girl.
As a crucial industrial and economic hub and a premier tourist destination, the city remained lively well into the night. The street was still filled with motorcycles and cars roaming about, buildings covered by bright neon lights, illuminating the scenery, sidewalks filled with street vendors, selling street foods and beverages to tourists who populated the beaches with plastic chairs and tables.
"Wow… it's pretty…" Chisato muttered to herself. The scenery was so different from where she grew up, yet, due to some unexplainable reasons, it still felt familiar enough to Chisato.
"I wonder how they're doing… It's been a while since I called them," she mumbled while thinking about her parents back in Kyoto.
Her little moment of introspection was cut short, however, as My pulled her forward again. More specifically, Chisato seemed to have slowed down during her introspection and My was walking her pace, either that, or because My was long-legged. It is quite a sight to see an Asian girl as tall as a Nordic man walking beside another average-height Asian girl.
*****
After about twenty minutes of walking along the beach, My and Chisato finally reached their intended location.
It was a small coffee shop, situated near the edge of the street they'd been traversing. It was small compared to the other stores on the same street, and less lavishly decorated, and less populated by customers. The store radiated a homely and welcoming vibe, rather than the usual business feeling that most stores have.
My opened the door, ringing the small bell attached to the door frame. She held the door for Chisato and waited for her partner to enter, receiving a warm smile and a light nod. As soon as both of them entered, they were welcomed with a strong, earthy aroma of the coffee, as well as a tinge of food aroma mixed in. The shop was also relatively quiet compared to the outside, with only the occasional coffee sipped and conversation exchanged from the few customers in the shop.
"This is quite a lovely coffee shop," Chisato remarked, "how did you find this place?"
"Oh yeah, it is. I've been here before with Harry." My replied.
"Harry… Do you mean the captain?"
"The very same."
My let out a snicker as she witnessed the gears turning inside Chisato's head. She guided the perplexed her over to the counter to order something for both of them. The barista at the register looked up from her phone, recognized who the late-night customer was, and offered a smile.
"Hi, My, it's been a while since I last saw you."
"Hey Minh, yeah, been a while."
"How are you? And Harry?"
"I've been fine, Harry is, too, a little bit busy if anything else."
"That's good to hear. And who's this cute friend you have here tonight?" Minh asked as he glanced over to Chisato. Chisato might not have known any Vietnamese, but that glance clued her in that she was being mentioned.
"Oh, this is Chisato, she's my girl friend at work."
"Ooooh, girl friend or girlfriend?" He winked at My.
"Heh, we'll see about that."
"Atta girl," Minh nodded, then looked over to Chisato, "Hi Chisato, My name's Minh." His accent was choppy and slightly broken, typical of Vietnam's English education.
"Hi Minh, nice to meet you." Chisato offered a polite bow. Minh returned the gesture with a polite nod of his own.
"So, what can I get you ladies tonight?" He continued in English, going out of his way to include Chisato in the conversation.
Chisato peeked at My; however, all she got back was a "You first" gesture from My. She took a look at the menu on the TV screens that hung above the counter.
My patiently waited for the girl to figure out what to get. It didn't take long before Chisato chose something for herself, a dish of flan and a jasmine and lychee tea. My then ordered a dish of strawberry cheesecake and a mango juice. Minh nodded, noted all their orders into the register, and retreated to the kitchen.
The girls then find a table beside the window with a great view of the street and the sea outside. They situated themselves while waiting for their orders.
"So, My… about earlier, did you really mean it when you said that you went here with the Captain?" Chisato asked, wanting to get a clear answer to the previous unresolved question.
"Yes, I did mean it."
"... You're eighteen, right?"
"Yes?" My raised a single brow, wondering where the questions were leading to.
"... and the Captain… isn't he like… in his forties?"
"Thirty-nine, but yes, close enough."
"I remember you acted very close to the Captain… aren't you afraid that your relationship with him might cause a problem?" Chisato whispered.
My didn't answer immediately. She didn't know how to. Her relationship with Harrison was that of an adoptive daughter and a surrogate father. My didn't see how that could be a problem. However, she rearranged the puzzle pieces inside her mind and eventually figured out what Chisato really meant with her question.
My erupted into laughter, causing Chisato to be even more confused. Taking her time to recover from the laughter, My replied to Chisato, aiming to correct her view of their relationship.
"Whatever relationship you're thinking, it's not that one, Chisato!" My clarified.
Chisato, having part of her question answered but not all, tilted her head like a fox trying to understand something it couldn't.
"He's my step-father. He adopted me when I became an orphan."
"Oh…" That was all Chisato could let out, her face turning red from embarrassment.
My continued her chuckle and enjoyed the sight of an embarrassed Chisato before calming her down.
"I'm so sorry about that misunderstanding."
"Don't worry about that. We're not hiding our relationship, but it's not like we advertise it either; we know there'll be some misunderstanding eventually."
Chisato finally let out a sigh of relief, and just in time, too, as Minh approached the girls with a tray filled with their drinks and desserts.
"Here's your orders, ladies, enjoy your date~." Minh offered a smile and winks to the girls.
While My responded with a thanks, Chisato was caught off guard again. She just realized that she didn't know what the relationship between them was.
Going through her memories of last week, it has been quite a lot. They met each other on the first day of the boot camp, spent the day testing, and then suddenly spent an intimate time together in the dormitory shower. After that day, Chisato noticed that My spent a lot more time around her, whether it was training or free time, always talking and getting to know her, or giving her advice for the training. Although nothing as significant as the bathroom sexy time happened again. Chisato didn't know whether the bathroom incident was just a one-time thing, a one-night stand between two horny girls, or if they were friends with benefits, or something more. She just didn't know.
My took a sip of her drink before she noticed the spaced out Chisato. She took the girl's cold drink and placed it on her cheeks, eliciting a cute yelp from the Japanese girl.
"What's wrong? What got you thinking hard?"
Chisato took the drinks.
"Well… I've been thinking about this."
"Mhmmph?"
"What's our relationship?"
My was sipping on her own drink when Chisato asked the question, causing her to pause her drink. Her eyes locked onto Chisato's while she thought of an answer to that question.
It didn't take long before she came up with something. Her face softened, a pondering look to a soft smile.
"Well, technically speaking… nothing yet."
"Eh?" Chisato gawked.
"Well, not as in our relationship doesn't mean anything or that I don't want it."
"..."
"Well, I said technically, since I didn't ask you out yet."
Chisato was dumbfounded by the simple but truthful answer. My showed a playful smile on her face, maybe a little bit more smug than a smile, showing that usual playful side of herself.
"Ah… uhm… but… we did… do the thing…" Chisato stuttered.
"Well, we did have sex, if that's what you mean."
"Yes…"
"Well, people can have sex casually with or without commitment. I guess I should have accounted for the fact that Japan is still quite conservative, even in the big 2050s."
"Ah…" Chisato let out a dejected, disappointed sound. She didn't know what kind of answer she was hoping for, or why she even felt dejected to begin with. She didn't even know or understand her own emotions. Was it love, was it physical attraction, was she attracted to that seemingly bubbly behavior? Chisato didn't have an answer.
She tried to quickly organize her thoughts and feelings. She liked men; that much was obvious, since she did have quite a few crushes on some celebrities from shows that she'd watch before.
'Ryan Bosling, Andrew Farfield, Henry Davell, Michael B. Gordon, oh, can't forget about Keanu Reese… some new generations of actors too, Jun Ogawa… Yeah, can confirm to myself that I still like guys,' she gathered her thoughts, combing through her past experiences, including her memories of watching porn or hentai, which she did feel slightly guilty of, since she had to hide from her parents to do her deeds.
'Did I ever have any other interest in anyone else that wasn't male?' She jogged her memory. 'There are a few female actresses who look really beautiful… does that count? Oh, that one tomboy athlete girl in high school that I adored… that one cosplayer on Xitter that I thought was a girl but was actually a boy… that one rare futanari exchange student from Egypt, she was also hot too… Ah God, there are so many…'
While Chisato was in deep thought, My simply enjoyed the moment. Something about Chisato's face while she's deep in thought brought a little spark back into My's eyes.
My laid her hands on top of Chisato's hands, bringing her back to the present. Chisato's gaze locked onto My's, a pair of gleaming, pretty emeralds, complex windows of emotions that allowed Chisato to glimpse into, to see the shape of My's soul. As she admired the girl before her, My began the conversation again.
"I know that our… relationship started in quite an unconventional but spectacular way, but over the last week, the more I spent time around you, the more I… think… I like you."
My paused for just a moment to gauge Chisato's reaction. Chisato still sported that slightly puzzled look, but her eyebrows did rise just a tiny bit. My took it as a sign to continue.
"It's not love. Not just yet. But… I would like to have the chance to develop that feeling and relationship that we currently have into something that could be called love."
Chisato was still, motionless, and breathless.
"So… would you like to go on a date… with me?"
My said her thing. There was no going back now. She patiently waited for Chisato's answer, and a tinge of nervousness began welling inside of her.
It didn't take long to get an answer back.
"Yes, I think… I would love to."