Stressed Decisions [Hiroe/Hana]

Wait, what...?

Another? Why did she need to talk to another? Hana was being pulled along in her state of confusion. Was it right to just keep going from man to man, seeing which one would be interested enough for a date? What if they both called? That's not fair to anyone! Hana couldn't reject them! Ahh! This was a recipe for trouble.

"Wait, but... more than one?" Hana said, trying to keep her voice down so only Hiroe could hear her concerns. Before Hana got any answer, she was suddenly swung into another man. Embarrassed, Hana stepped back and bowed her head apologetically. "No, I bumped into you. I am sorry, I didn't meant to. I was just, um..."

What excuse could she make? She tried coming up with something, but nothing was making sense. She brought her hands to her face, covering the redness of her cheeks. To another, she may look like she was crying, and even worse, those watching may think that he was the one making her cry. "My apologies."

His blinking eyes persisted as he gazed at the woman, unsettled by the way she covered her eyes. Oh, great. Did she cry? Had he made her cry? Why was he even here? Oh, right. Food. But now here he was, gazing around and observing the watchful eyes of others. How would Mirai or Yuuto handle this, he wondered. Fashioning his expression into some frankenstein version of a smile, he dismissively waved his hands as he tried to assuage her worries.

"Don't worry about it. I wasn't paying attention much myself. I'm a real dunce off the old block," he quipped, some odd attempt at humor. He didn't think he was a dunce, but women felt more comfortable in situations like these when others made them laugh, right? This was a pickle to be in, for sure. That ramen shop visit would have to take a minute.... how bothersome.

A few deep breaths as the man talked and Hana was able to calm herself. She looked up at him by opening two fingers and peeking between them. His smile left something to be desired, unlike Koga, who made her feel welcome. Hana let her hands fall in front of her, once again clasping them together. She tilted her head to the side, watching this calm man as he tried helping her feel better.

"You do not smile often, do you?" Hana said, asking a rather blunt question. While his smile did not look horrible, it wasn't genuine. She could tell by the life in his eyes. He was no robot, but he was also not a smiler, so his attempt was sort of endearing. His attempt at humor felt more self-depreciating though, so he wouldn't get a laugh from Hana. With a genuine smile, she bowed politely.

"I am Hana Aoyama. It's nice to meet you." Once he introduced himself, Hana decided to be a bit more honest. "Until today, I have not interacted with very many men, and my friend back there..." Hana gestured to Hiroe, "... has been insistent that I change that. Her excitement is why I ran into you. She saw a handsome man and decided that I needed to interact with him... You, of course, being the handsome man in this situation. So, again, I apologize for all this. She can be a little boy crazy." She whispered the last bit so Hiroe couldn't hear her. Hana gave a quick glance back toward Hiroe just to make her friend curious about her whispered words.

"I... get that a lot, yeah. It looked like you were crying, and I don't like making anyone cry."

The white-haired male nodded respectfully, observing the elegant woman with curious eyes. He listened to her explain her reasoning being here, nodding his head along with every word. Well, that was a relief. Crisis one averted. Crisis two was solely centered on him now. It was difficult to notice, but a small shade of red flashed across his almost weary features. Handsome? Him? Surely, these women jested. He never really thought about dating, let alone throwing himself at girls. These women were brave souls, braver than he. How was he supposed to react? Uh, think. Think. Thinking.

"I'm Hideo Yasuda. It's nice to bump into---meet you, too."

On the subject of Hiroe, he didn't really judge either of them for approaching him. He was certainly hungry, yes, but they weren't impending on his day to any discernible degree, and were arguably a little more entertaining than enjoying a bowl of ramen alone. Cutting an end to his poor excuse for a smile, he waved his hands a bit, turning his eyes to the ramen shop.

"I think it's brave. Not crazy. Takes a lot of guts to approach people out of the blue and ask them out on dates, but uh... with a woman who looks like you, I'd imagine that isn't really that difficult."

Paying no mind to the compliment he just casually uttered, he turned his eyes to the ramen shop, pointing his finger in the general direction. He wasn't attempting to ask her out on a date, but his brother and Mirai told him it was quite productive to meet and befriend new people. She seemed friendly. He was hungry. Two birds with one stone, as the common quote goes.

"Erm... Would you like a bowl of Ramen?"

Hana felt a little guilty about making him think she was crying. She would have to figure out another way to hide her blushing that didn't involve putting her face behind her hands. That gesture could cause problems. Though she would say nothing about it, that red tint in his cheeks contrasted his face and hair enough that she could see it. Seeing someone else become blushy over compliments was refreshing.

Hideo Yasuda. She would remember that, and Koga. She would remember both of these names. They were quite important.

"It does, yes," Hana said in relation to having guts. "I wish it was I that possessed them. This mask of courage was created by Hiroe, not myself."

Hana did what she could to gloss over the compliment he gave. If she focused on it, she would end up blushing and wanting to hide again, and she did not want to be rude. She was able to hold out until his next question...

Did he just ask me out?

"W-Well, I-I..."

Hana's face gave in to the shyness and embarrassment. Her blush increased by three hundred percent. Hana brought her hands behind her back and lowered her gaze to the floor. She looked like a regular school girl talking to the boy she had a major crush on. She sent a panicked glance over to Hiroe, begging for help.

"Ah, did I say something wrong? Not hungry?"

Hideo didn't really know if he had said anything wrong. He wasn't familiar with this realm. Was he supposed to compliment her on her looks? Tell her she was pretty in return? Did he say anything that offended her? Ah... this was truly unfamiliar territory. What could he now? What was he supposed to say now? Why was this so complicated? Ugh...

"S-Sorry, if you don't want to, that's okay. Uhm... for what it's worth, I think you look beautiful, Miss Aoyama..."

Was he supposed to call her miss? No. That'd make her feel old. Suddenly, he was wondering if he shouldn't have just went on with his day, as though he was burying himself within an inescapable bed of embarrassing himself.

"Um..."

Hiroe said nothing. Her so-called friend was just whistling and looking away. How could she?! Hana was doing her best not to full-on panic, and this is what was done to help? Hiroe was going to get a few ounces of yellow dye in her shampoo for this!

Think, think, think, think.

Hana's face went even redder. Her cheeks, nose, forehead, all of it. No more compliments; she couldn't take it!

"I-I-I...w-would l-love to get something t-to eat w-with y-you." Hana said. She took a deep breath and turned away from him. "Hana, calm down. You can do this." With another deep breath, she turned back to Hideo with a calmer demeanor. "One day, that would be lovely," Hana said, more back to normal, "Unfortunately, I have eaten recently, so doubling up would not be good for my health. So, here..."

Hana felt strange doing the same thing here that she did with Koga. She pulled out a piece of paper from her purse and handed it to him with her name and number. "If you are truly interested, contact me, and maybe we can set a date. O-Or a day, you know, where we could get to know each other. I guess that is a date..."

"Mm..."

Hideo blinked softly, tilting his head. Well, that was a relief. His attempt at friendship hadn't gone in vain. No, more precisely, it seemed like she was receptive to the idea of enjoying a bite to eat with him. It just wouldn't be today. It seemed he'd be eating alone today, but that was fine. Just another common routine for the Nine-to-Five Ninja of the Stealth Division. Running a hand through his hair, he politely bowed to the woman as he offered a light cross of his lips - a smile.

"A date... right. Aherm... I'll certainly make my best attempts at keeping in touch, Miss Aoyama. Have a nice day, and try not to get into too much trouble with your friend,"He quipped softly, turning to head towards the ramen shop alone. He still was rather hungry. That didn't change his destination in the slightest.

From behind, Hiroe raced up behind the woman, hugging her as she grinned. Yeah, she didn't really offer any advice. She knew her friend could pull it out and emerge victorious! A wingwoman had to let their leader cook, ya know? All apart of the plan.

Hana wasn't certain how serious Hideo was about keeping in touch, but his smile made her think he might. Hideo had a light air about him; he came of casual and collected. She appreciated that tranquility. He was quite the opposite to the other man she handed her number out to today, who was energetic and open. What interesting men... both of them. She waved as he left and then turned to face Hiroe. On the turn, Hiroe was suddenly behind her and raced into a hug. With just as much excitement as Hiroe, Hana returned the embrace with a joyous smile.

"I was able to converse with two different men over five minutes," Hana said with a hint of pride. "I am uncertain how good it was that I handed my contact information over, but maybe they will call. That would be nice." Hana's voice sort of drifted off and a softness showed in her eyes. The idea of going on a real date was appealing, and she seemed really hopeful. "Do you think one of them will call?"

Hiroe stroked her chin softly at the question. She was observing her from afar in both situations, and as far as she could tell, neither of them seemed like the type who wouldn't at least keep some semblance of contact. That big guy approaching her as he did, she had no particular doubt he'd be contacting her soon. The other one was interesting, though. She couldn't quite tell with him, but he looked like he had been attempting to pull her into eating a bowl of ramen with him? Maybe he would also keep in contact, too. Looked like a punctual guy from her point of view. Clapping her hands together softly, she nodded, leaning in to nudge an arm against her shoulder.

"Of course they will. Did you see how the first one approached you first? And he's tall too! A bit rough around the edges that one is, but he looks kinda' cute. The other one looks like he could use a date. He doesn't look like the interactive type, so maybe a date could do wonders for both of you. All in all, this just proves I was right. Men want to date Hana, Hana just doesn't want to date men," she humored, playfully pinching her shoulder.