Usually movie queues tended to be short or practically non existent, but when Me and Hana arrived that was not the case at all, the movie we were going to see was apparently going to be "ahead of its time" the whole story was about some sci fi romance, about a planet exploration gone wrong, sure that whole theme was somewhat original but I still didn't have high hopes for it, Hana was the one who chose it so I wasn't going to argue with that.
Hana was impatiently tapping her foot at such a quick pace that I thought she was trying to tap dance. Hana was very full of energy and hated staying still, especially while standing up.
"This is taking forever."
"The line would have probably been worse if we went on a weekend instead of today."
"Still."
The people in front of us were sure to take their time, ordering their bags of popcorn and drinks and other things. I even saw one couple get 3 blankets from a worker behind the counter. When we were finally in front of the line, someone working the register greeted us.
"Hi, what can I get for you?"
Hana, who was behind me, lightly pushed her way to be beside me, and pulled out her wallet before I could even utter a word.
"Ill have 2 large soft drinks, 2 bags of tofu flavor popcorn and that candy bar right there."
"The nut chocolate?"
"Yes please."
Hana quickly pulled out 2000 yen and handed it to the worker after which they walked away to get our order. She moved her gaze to my eyes and smiled mischievously.
"I'm not about to let you pay for me, you have no money to spare anyways."
"I have a weekly allowance, and I saved enough to get anything I needed."
"That's a weird way of saying thank you."
I sighed deeply, It was too late for me to pay now, it was unconventional for the girl to pay for the first date but it was not like it wasn't welcome.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Soon enough the worker came back with all our stuff, and of course I decided I was the one who was going to hold all of it, it was the least I could do to pay her back.
"Well, let's find our seats, yeah?
"Agreed, Masaichi."
*****
Surprisingly we had little issue getting to our seats, as our row was sparsely occupied compared to the rest of the theater, people were lined up row after row, lots of people had come to see this film and that was reflected by the huge line we had to sit through for a good 30 minutes. Hana by the looks of it was hyped for the movie, she anticipatingly took a sip of her soda whilst taking out her phone, for some reason. Keep in mind, she wasn't trying to record the film, the previews were still on but it still left me confused as ever. Then suddenly, my phone buzzed in my pocket, I took it out and saw that Hana had texted me despite being right next to me.
Yamada Hana : [You look so unexcited, was my choice really that boring?]
I looked away from my screen and back at Hana, she was fidgeting with what looked to be a piece of popcorn in her hand, before she threw it up in the air and tried to catch in her mouth, but she failed, she then turned over to me and shrugged before trying again, before I could see if the second attempt was successful or not I looked back down at my screen and typed back at her.
Sato Masaichi : [I'm right next to you, can you not talk to me?]
Hana looked back down at her phone and saw that I had replied, she immediately stopped what she was doing and responded
Yamada Hana : [I'm being respectful of the theater and other people, duh.]
Sato Masaichi : [Oh I see, so you do that for other people minus me?]
Yamada Hana : [Be wise with your words my child, I paid 200 yen for your favorite chocolate bar that is in my hands.]
Sato Masaichi : [Speaking of which, how did you know that was my favorite brand?]
Hana looked over at me, and raised her eyebrow at me and shrugged.
Yamada Hana : [I didn't know it was, I just heard it was a good quality chocolate from someone online, which might have been you but I'm not sure.]
Sato Masaichi : [Oh, I see.]
Hana then suddenly grabbed my hand tightly and pulled it towards her and forced it open
"What are y-"
"Shhhhh."
Hana put a single finger up to her lips which somewhat hid the visible smile she had on her face, no one had looked in our direction but I still felt embarrassed about what I had to put up with. And then she put the chocolate bar in my hand and closed it and released my hand from her iron grip. She then quickly sent me another text.
Yamada Hana : [Sorry, I thought that would be more romantic.]
Sato Masaichi : [Forcing someone's hands open isn't exactly what I would call 'romantic']
Sato Masaichi : [But thank you, I really appreciate the thought, and the chocolate too.]
Yamada Hana : [Yep.]
Sato Masaichi : [How long have we been texting for?]
Yamada Hana : [What do you mean, like in general?]
Sato Masaichi : [No, right now.]
Yamada Hana : [10-ish minutes, why?]
Sato Masaichi : [Previews should be almost over, shouldn't they?]
And as if on command, I suddenly saw a blue screen that said 'No recording or photography of the film is allowed, and will lead to a large fine.' or something along those lines, I'm not one to exactly pay attention to legal jargon. After that was said and over with the movie started playing.
*****
It was about 30 minutes after the start of the film where things got interesting.
The main character suddenly appeared on screen followed by a female one straying close behind him, they were dashing in the woods, avoiding what looked to be alien life forms galore. They looked breathless and terrified but in reality they were just actors, who were really good at their job apparently.
"Just a little farther!"
The main character said this in a desperate tone, one that would be used if their life was at stake, which fit perfectly because it was.
I looked down at my phone and realized that Hana had just texted me, again.
Yamada Hana : [The girl looks hot, I dig that look.]
Sato Masaichi : [Are you secretly a Lesbian or something?]
Yamada Hana : [No, I'm only into guys.]
Yamada Hana : [Like you, for example.]
I looked at Hana and saw her with her back facing away from me, I couldn't see her face no matter how hard I tried.
Sato Masaichi : [You can't just flirt with me and then do everything in your power to have me not see your face.]
Yamada Hana : [Yes I can.]
Sato Masaichi : [Fine be that way, I'll just continue watching the movie while you have a meet and greet with those cheap leather cushions.]
I turned off my phone and looked over at Hana, she was still facing away from me. Whatever, I needed to watch the movie before I got lost with what was happening. Or I would have if Hana didn't decide to sit back up right, and lean her shoulder on mine, that tends to make it pretty hard to focus on what's going on, but instead of her usually facing away from me she was dead staring into my eyes, blushing furiously.
She then motioned with her mouth the following words.
"There, happy idiot?"
And just for the record, yes it did make me happy, because I was blushing furiously too.