A/N: it's heeerrre, sorry for the delay. I wanted to make sure this moment was perfect (or as best as I could). Only the epilogue to go :( I'mma miss these babies (they're adults, but you get what I mean. I do have some extra scenes I might get to later though for Tapas' Inksgiving.

Ollie's POV

With the girl's constant staring and urging me to contact Haruto, I finally picked up the phone and pressed his number away from their prying. They could still see me from inside the sandwich shop, probably wondering why I nervously paced the sidewalk until I worked the courage actually to call him.

I couldn't believe I was doing this. With each ring, I wondered if hanging up was the better option.

Haruto was still at work; obviously, he wouldn't have time to respond.

But after the fourth ring, he picked up. It took everything in me not to press the end button as soon as it connected. "Hey," was his breathy response.

"Hey."

"Everything alright?"

"Yeah, yeah." I gulped, glancing at the girls at the table and sending me a thumbs up like the guy from How to Train your Dragon. "I was just thinking about this morning."

"Oh?" I could hear movement on the phone as if he was setting something down.

I cleared my throat. "I—I know it was literally a couple of hours ago at most, but I did give it some thought. I just thought I should say it now before I try to convince myself it's silly and I should think otherwise." I glared at the girls as they practically pressed their faces to the glass. "That, and Mahealani and Courtney won't leave me out of their sight if I don't say anything soon."

His contagious laugh spread through the line. "They sure are relentless."

"You don't even know the half of it," I said, if only to hear his laugh again.

In a quieter tone, he replied, "so about this morning?"

"Right," I drawled. "Well, it sure was unexpected."

I refrained from pressing my palm to my forehead.

"And I gave it some thought about what this means and what comes next, I suppose," I rambled on.

"Okay," his voice was faint, delicate in how he anticipated what I would say.

"And well...since we both like each other, I don't see anything wrong with it." My voice mimicked his, faint and tentative, like I approached anything related to relationships and friendships.

"Oh?"

"Not the whole feelings things," I corrected, wincing as an older gentleman glanced in my direction as he walked with a younger child. Lowering my tone, I added, "the whole dating thing. I want to do that. Since...since we like each other."

There was a pregnant pause on the line, and I bit my bottom lip. Then, with amusement in his voice, he said, "you sure are adorable, Ollie. Of course, I'd love to go on dates with you."

I hummed, though it took every ounce not to bury my face in my hands from embarrassment...and joy? And, as cliche as it sounded, my legs felt weak at his words, daring to drag me to the ground at the weight of his words if I hadn't been in public.

"We don't have to call it anything if that scares you," he added. "But I'd like to continue to do the things we've been doing. Going out to eat, my lunch breaks with you, etc. If you'll allow it."

I turned away from the window to hide my face from the girls, the blush growing by the second. "Why would I not?"

He shrugged. "Well, this would mean it's more than just two friends going on a friend date, right?"

"I suppose." My face flushed.

"And that means they'd be official dates? A romantic date," he said. "A date date."

"I suppose it does," I managed to say.

"You're really okay with that? Dating?" I could hear his smile over the line.

I nodded, even though he couldn't see me. "Yes."

"We don't have to call each other boyfriends if you don't want."

Boyfriends.

"Okay."

"Okay."

I bit my lip to prevent myself from echoing the same thing again. He didn't say anything, so I asked, "are you off tomorrow?"

"Yes," he said, though I knew the answer. I knew his schedule like the back of my hand at this point.

"Could we hang out tomorrow? Like a..." I paused. "Like a date."

"Of course. Did you have anything in mind?"

I shook my head but remembered we were on a call. "Not anything in particular."

He hummed. "I feel like I always pick the place. You sure you don't have an idea?"

"I like when you pick the place."

"Well, there are a few spots in mind. If you're up for a surprise?"

"Sure," I said. Haruto's surprises always ended up being a fun experience.

—

We met at the cafe as we always do, but he didn't have a white mocha cold brew waiting for me this time. Instead, it was just him and his contagious smile waiting for me at the table.

"Ready to go?" he said as if we hadn't just confessed our feelings at this very table yesterday. With a sheepish nod, I watched as he got up and stood beside me. He didn't say anything else, his hand brushing mine as he waved to the girls at the counter.

As we exited the cafe, I turned to him. "Where'd you decide to take us?"

He grinned. "I think you'll like this place."

I narrowed my eyes amusedly at him, which sparked him to laugh.

"It's within walking distance," he added. "We've been around the area before."

I feigned suspicion but walked alongside him. As we walked, Haruto talked about the cafe or Janice's upcoming news about her engagement with her long-time boyfriend. He said it was about time, and he couldn't wait to be the best man at their wedding. Though I didn't voice it, I wondered if I'd be lucky enough to attend as Haruto's guest or, dare I say, boyfriend. Or if I'd be able to take Haruto as a date to any of my friends or family's weddings. It was about time my mom and her long-time boyfriend, Beau, properly had a wedding of their own. I shook the thought of the idea of weddings as we crossed the busy intersection near the mall.

"Chinatown?" He turned to nod as I stared at the familiar red beams that marked the interest.

"I think you'll love this place," he said. I didn't correct him; going anywhere with Haruto was fun. Heck, he could make going to a haunted house fun and exciting, even though I'm terrified of those things.

Chinatown was crowded like it always was, but with Haruto practically glued to my side and the kind regulars that came here for groceries and meals never made it hectic or unbearable to be. It was a nice kind of crowded, even as we approached a busy line next to a fancy display and sign. This hadn't been here when we came here before.

Luckily the line went by quickly, most shoppers finding a table inside or taking a small bento to go. The lady standing outside with the menus and a clipboard greeted Haruto before leading us inside.

As we stepped inside, a giant fish banner was posted above where men in white chef outfits were working. "A sushi place?"

He took one of the menus. "This place just opened up a week ago; it has a little bit of everything. A fusion of SoCal and Japanese cuisine. Their sushi menu is promising, and you mentioned you haven't had sushi before."

"I haven't."

"They even have an all-you-can-eat shrimp tempura option, too," he said as the host guided us to a table for two. "No more crying over fallen tempura."

"Oh my god." We laughed. "I'm never going to live that down, am I?"

He beamed. "It's okay if you cry over it, but hopefully, it's because it's the best shrimp tempura in town."

"Ha, very funny."

He held up his hands in surrender. "Don't knock it till you try it."

—

Haruto was right, as he almost always is; that was the best shrimp tempura I had ever had, probably even the best shrimp. The sushi was alright, but it was a texture I needed to get used to. Haruto didn't seem to mind helping me with the chopsticks, occasionally feeding them to me when the nigiri and maki were starting to fall apart. We ordered a plate of seared Ahi tacos, probably my new favorite thing. After being with Haruto, that is.

Hours had passed by the time we were finished with our meals, but it didn't feel nearly that long. As we walked out of the restaurant, parts of the ground were damp, and the looming clouds caught our attention.

"It didn't look this dark outside when we got here," I noted. "I didn't bring an umbrella."

"Me neither," he lamented, holding his hands out to the sky as a few heavy drops started to fall. "This happened the last time."

"We could find a nearby shop to stay in," I suggested as the sound of rain against the metal and fabric eaves rang above the usual sound of patrons around us. "Or we could make a run for it like last time."

A mischievous glint in his eyes sparked at the sound of running through the rain.

"Shall we?" He extended his hand in the same way he did when we first came here. Though he wasn't wearing a blue tie as he did then, his navy blue shirt reminded me of how we got caught in the rain and ran to the coffee shop.

I placed my hand in his, feeling the gesture feel something more than it did then. His smile was distraction enough from the rain as we leaned into each other. Neither of us had anything to protect ourselves from the rain but having our shoulders pressed against each other felt as we could hide from the rain.

"The cafe?" I asked as he led us past some smarter shoppers who brought umbrellas or held their bags to shield themselves from the rain.

"We can make our drinks there; Janice should be closing up soon."

"Sure." We passed a group of regulars near the taiyaki place we visited last time just as the rain became heavier. A few older women in line let out surprised shouts but remained in line, shifting to try and hide under the eaves.

After passing a few more tents and other shops, we made it onto the main sidewalk laughing breathlessly as the rain picked up even harder, relentlessly pounding against our backs and shoulders, soaking our clothes in a matter of seconds. But unlike the frantic bypassers, Haruto and I didn't care, the rain an amusing and nostalgic reminder of the last time we had been here.

He squeezed my hand before leading us back to the path we came, occasionally hiding under eaves when we could. Other times he'd try and leap from one protected area to the next until one slippery stone almost wiped him out. He laughed it off before guiding us back to the cafe, the promise of coffee and our table all too enticing.

As we traced those familiar steps to the coffee shop, we slowed, almost not wanting this moment to end, even if we were both heading inside for coffee and spent an indefinite amount of time chatting like we always do at the table. I had never been one to find these kinds of standing in the rain scenes in movies romantic or ideal, but this was changing my mind. I'd stand in the rain with Haruto by my side like this for hours if I could.

"Not bad for our first date?" He tilted his head to the side, and like a damn movie, the faint glow of the coffee shop's lights made his eyes shine. "First official date, that is."

"Not bad," I said. "Really great, actually."

He smiled and squeezed my hand. "Perfect?"

I hummed, letting all the memories of our not-so-official dates play out in my head, including the times spent here at this very cafe. From our trip to the mall and the fallen shrimp tempura to the first time, we visited Chinatown to the boba place with the cute boba-themed confessions and the ones Haruto came up with.

"I think you forgot one thing, though."

He blinked, confusion riddling his face that had me regret saying those words aloud. But there was one more thing that would've made this an even more unforgettable first date; even if past, Ollie would've disagreed and said it was too early for this.

But it was never too early, especially considering everything Haruto and I had done together already.

"A ride home?" His words were soft. "My car's around back."

I shook my head, enjoying seeing him slightly flustered for a second. "Not that."

I couldn't tell if I had instinctively moved closer to him or vice versa, but despite how cold I should've felt in our soaked clothes, all I could feel was the warmth between us.

Haruto remained still as I lifted the heels of my feet to match his height. He wasn't that much taller than me, but I did it anyway, prolonging the moment for as long as possible before pressing my lips against his cheek.

"Was that okay?" I whispered in the same fashion as he had after our boba date.

His eyes settled on mine before creasing at the ends into a smile. "More than okay."

"Good," I found myself saying, my eyes trailing his lips.

As time seemed to slow, his right hand reached up to my face, his thumb tentatively hovering above my chin. "Would this be okay?"

I saw his eyes trailing to my lips, the smile growing as the question hung in the air. Resisting the urge to bite my lip, I nodded slightly, fearing my words would fail me.

Haruto leaned down and kissed me. Not on the cheek or my hands or even my forehead.

Haruto kissed me. On the lips this time. For real.

My mind spiraled but in a good way. I wasn't sure if I was even breathing as his lips pressed against mine gently but firmly, as kind and patient as Haruto had always been with me.

He pulled away slowly, his breath warm against my lip and chin.

"How was that?" he said against my lips, his eyes searching mine. "Okay?"

I let out an amused breath. "More than okay. Perfect, actually."

"Good," he echoed before leaning down for another chaste kiss against my lips. I leaned into it this time, aware that I could feel the rain from his hair falling down my cheek or that we were in public for anyone to see. The rain from earlier started up again, slow but large drops, but we couldn't be bothered by something like the rain or the cafe's customers who could probably witness this from inside. All that mattered at that moment was right in front of me, and I had meant it.

This was perfect, Haruto was perfect, and I couldn't imagine anything better.