An Ode to Saint Cecilia

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This is the HMD post for Kazuki Hihara @ victory_road

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Before entering the café, Kazuki stopped at one of the windows to look at his reflection. He fixed his hair and fiddled with how his clothes were laying. Was he underdressed? Overdressed? He wanted to look casual, but presentable, and that was a tightrope he wasn’t used to walking. He couldn’t tell from the inside-out. Would he look let he was trying too hard? Not hard enough? Today, what really mattered was someone else’s opinion, and he didn’t have any idea of their preferences.

He lingered for a bit too long, and eventually just had to give up and go in, even if he wasn’t entirely satisfied with himself. But as soon as he came to the counter, he found a new hurdle he had to jump over—what should he order? For one, it was springtime, and was one of those days where a hot drink could be too hot, but a cold drink could be too cold. Did he want coffee? If he got the sweet sort of drink he actually liked, would they think he was too feminine? But if he got something bitter, would they be able to see the displeasure on his face while drinking it, and think he was trying too hard? And the pastries looked so good, he really wanted the one with the strawberries…

By the time he was next in line, he was in such a state of awkward, anxious silence that the barista had to interrupt his quickly derailing train of thought with a quiet, “Sir?” Kazuki snapped to attention, stuttered out the beginning of about 5 different orders that he changed his mind on as soon as they came out of his mouth, in the wrong language, and eventually gave into fate and meekly asked for whatever the house recommended today.

He couldn’t help but sigh as he sat down at an empty table. It had really been too long since the last time he had been on a date. Entering the café with the intention to meet someone felt like stepping foot on an alien planet. It didn't help that English was still difficult for him, and he wasn't totally situated in a different country yet. He came to the designated meeting place extra early because he suspected he’d need a solid 10 minutes alone to calm his nerves. And he was completely correct.

Kazuki thanked the waitress when she brought him his previously recommended latte, and he was relieved to find that it wasn’t so bitter he couldn’t handle drinking it. He could have gone for a cookie or something too, but this would have to do. He took a deep breath, let it out onto his drink, and let the resulting steam rise up around his face as he reached into his pocket to pull out his phone. It was almost the time that had been agreed upon.

He didn’t know anything about his date aside from the fact that their mutual friend was certain they’d be a good match. His expectations weren’t sky high or anything, but he was hopeful. Even if things didn’t pan out, at least he’d get the chance to dip his toes into the waters of intimate relationships, so to speak, before he jumped back in again. Things could only get better from there.