Note: Please read the Author's Note at the end of this chapter for an explanation and some news
"This is where he wanted to meet me?" I grumbled, looking up at the claw machine arcade that was staring me in the face. I was never really a fan of them, they were addicting and made me broke, something I heavily wanted to avoid. The artificial game sounds and occasional "You win!" weren't helping my dread either.
After I proposed my idea to Tanaka that I wanted to get comfortable with him before hanging out with Nishinoya outside of volleyball and school, he suggested taking me out on a "friend date" as he called it. He could've just called it hanging out.
"Hey! Y/N-chan! You made it!" I heard the gruff voice of the tough boy call out to me, low and behold, as I turned around, I saw a smiling Tanaka in a cute little beanie that made me chuckle. Kinda looks like an egg... "Hey, Tanaka-senpai!" I greeted back with a smile. "Nice beanie." I complimented, pointing to the accessory adorning the top of his head. Tanaka struck a pose, flaunting his hat, "Why, thank you!" He grinned.
We walked into the arcade, nostalgia filling my head as I remembered all the times baby Kei would gawk at the dinosaurs trapped behind the glass of the claw games. We got some tokens and started our journey through the building.
"So, where do you want to start?" Tanaka asked.
"Not sure," I said, shrugging.
"They have this claw machine with plusies that look like food."
I whipped my head to look at him. "Oh, my god this is heaven isn't it?"
He quickly led me around the arcade, our arms slowly filling up with plushies and other things like candy or the occasional plastic animal. "Come on Tanaka-senpai! It's not that hard!" You complained, watching the stuffed onigiri slip out of the claws grasp for the 5th time. "Ahh! I'm trying!" He complained, inserting 2 more tokens into the machine. Everything went quiet as Tanaka concentrated on the smiling ball of rice, teasing him from inside the machine.
The claw went down, slow, agonizingly slow, as it gripped the top of the plushie. We both gasped as it lifted it towards the dispenser, dropping it into the hole. Tanaka and I cheered, ecstatic that the onigiri didn't win this round and has been successfully captured. "HAHA! Take that you rice ball!" Tanaka sneered in victory, squishing the soft plush in his hands before turning to me.
He held the plush out to me, giving me a smile. "Here." He said, offering the stuffed food. "Are you sure Tanaka-senpai? You're the one that won it." I cautioned, not wanting to take more than I should. "Yes, I'm sure, plus, it's just not my style." He chuckled, "And it's kun."
"What?" You questioned.
"We're friends Y/N-chan, so use kun."
"Alright... Tanaka-kun."
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Alright, short chapter. But unlike my early writing, I don't want to stuff chapters full of details, I was debating whether to add the next scene or not, but I didn't want the bonding in this chapter to be lost at the beginning so I made this chapter a short one. If you don't know I'm working on publishing another book so I might take a short hiatus when I publish it to give my hands and brain a break. I'll post on my conversations board if/when that happens. Sorry for the short chapter! Don't hate me o(╥﹏╥)o