HOME | DD

Description
You lay there nestled in soft blankets with your head resting beside your computer. Music softly spilled from its speakers, lulling you to sleep. Bing. The sudden notification caught your attention, causing you to prop yourself up on your elbows.

“It’s probably Yuna,” you mumbled. Your best friend had a bad habit of sending you messages and endearing cat videos just when you were trying to fall asleep. Clicking over to your internet browser, you saw that it was not just any notification lighting up your screen. A friend request? Who could it be…?

Your thought trailed off when you clicked on the icon. Your (color) eyes widened at the name on the screen. “TATARA?!” you exclaimed in surprise. Lowering your voice to a more normal level, you spoke again. “Tatara from my class in grade school? No way.” You clicked onto his profile and saw a picture of a handsome young man with sandy blonde hair. “Oh my gosh… That IS Tatara.” Hurriedly you accepted his request and it wasn’t one minute later that you received a message.

‘Hello, _______. It’s been a long time. ^__^ ‘ the message read.

‘It really has! I wasn’t expecting to see a friend request from you.’ You sent. Thinking twice about leaving it at that, you continued, ‘Don’t get me wrong, I’m very glad you did!’

‘Oh good. I wouldn’t want you to think I’m weird or anything.’

‘Haha, no. You’re not weird. Well, at least not in a creepy way!’ It was amazing how easy it was to talk to him after all this time.

‘And what’s that supposed to mean? Haha’

‘Weird isn’t always a bad thing is what I mean. Anyways, how have you been? It’s been…. Five years or so since we last saw each other?’

‘I’ve been well. And how about yourself? I hope things worked out for you when you moved.’

“Ah, right! I have actually moved back to the area. In fact, I’m working in a bookstore near our old school currently. And I have been doing pretty well myself.’

‘I am glad to hear it. What’s the name of the bookstore? It isn’t the one next to the ice cream shop, is it?’

‘That’s the one’

‘No kidding? I walk by that store all the time! I guess I will have to stop in one day while you’re working.’

‘That would be great. I usually work weekday mornings.’

‘Great. I will stop by as soon as I get the chance!’

‘Alright! I’ll see you soon then. Good night, Tatara.’

‘Good night’

You smiled to yourself and signed out of your account. You closed your computer and set it aside before turning off the lamp at your bedside and settling into bed. See you soon, Tatara.

“_______~?” Yuna’s overly-sweet voice concerned you greatly.

“…….Yeah?” you replied, the hesitation evident.

“I have a project for you!” she said happily and came bounding out from behind the bookstore’s front counter. Her chestnut hair was pulled back into a messy, yet cute bun held into place by jeweled pins. Her chocolate-colored eyes glinted mischievously as she gazed at you.

“What is it…?”

“I want to re-organize the layout of the store.”

“Again?!” Every couple of months, your eccentric friend would try and make her store more appealing by rearranging all of the books. You suspected her real motivation was boredom in the current setup.

“But I really do think it will help!” She leaned forward with a smile. “So will you help me?”

“You mean, ‘so will you figure out a refreshing new layout and move everything while I read this new book?’” Yuna laughed and nodded. With a sigh you agreed.

“Yay! Thank yo—“

“Wait,” you interrupted, “I have a condition.”

Her smile turned into a distrustful scowl. “Which would be…?”

“One, you make me lunch this week. Two, I get to take off early if my friend shows up.”

“Friend? Who? Is it a boy?! Who is he?!”

“Woah, calm down.” You tucked a strand of (color) hair behind your ear. If I tell her it’s a boy, she will freak out and want to know all the details. She will also not believe there’s nothing between us even though we haven’t spoken in years. But if I tell her it’s a girl, she’ll never let me leave early if he really does show up… Hmm…

“_________!!! Tell me!”

“Ok, ok!” You took a deep breath. “Yes, it is a boy. No, we aren’t dating. His name is Tatara Totsuka and we haven’t seen each other since I moved away in middle school. He’s just a former classmate ok? That’s all!”

“Then why are you meeting him?! How did you guys start talking?! Or have you kept in contact?!”

You sighed, dreading where this conversation might go. “We started talking on (preferred social media site) last week. We just want to catch up in person instead.” Yuna opened her mouth, but you spoke again before she could speak. “That really is all that’s going on. SO,” you emphasized, “if you want me to re-organize your store again, those are my conditions.”

Yuna pouted. “Fine. Will you give me details?” You raised your eyebrow at her. “PLEASE!”

“Maybe. Now do you have any ideas for this store or not?”

A few days later you were placing the last of the mystery books on their new shelf in the back of the store. From your place in the back, you heard the jingle of the bell and Yuna’s chipper voice say, “Welcome to Ever After Books!”

You could faintly hear a man’s voice reply, and you heard Yuna say something in return. You didn’t think much of it as you reached up to place the last book on the top shelf.

“Let me help you,” said the man as he took the book from your hands and slid it into place.

“Ah, um thanks.” You turned around and saw Tatara grinning at you. “Tatara!” You smiled back at him.

“Good morning, _____________. Are you free to take a break any time soon?”

“Yeah! Yuna already agreed to let me take off early if you came in. Let me just grab my stuff from the back.” You disappeared into the staff room and grabbed your bag and coat. “Alright, let’s go! Yuna, I’m leaving now!”

“Did you finish the mysteries?” She popped out from behind the counter and bounded up to you.

“Yep. Your store is done.”

“Thank you!”

“_______, are these packets of sheet music?” You hadn’t noticed Tatara step away from you and to the stand you had set up for music.

“Huh? Oh yeah!” Ignoring Yuna, much to her dismay, you went back to Tatara and grabbed a packet. “This shelf is made up of pieces I’ve composed.”

“You didn’t mention you were a composer!”

“Well I am,” you said with a sheepish smile.

“Then I’ll buy this one.” Tatara held up a compilation of guitar tabs.

“I’ll take care of that! And I’ll even give you the friends and family discount~” Yuna chimed in, pleased to be able to make a sale and butt into your business at the same time.

“Well thank you very much,” Tatara said with a smile and went to pay for his music. You watched him pull out his wallet and hand Yuna the money. When he had received his change and bag, he turned back to you. “Are you ready to go?”

“Ah, yeah! I’m ready. I will see you tomorrow, Yuna,” you called as you and Tatara left the store. Yuna waved excitedly at you until you had disappeared from sight.

:) (Smile) — Description
You lay there nestled in soft blankets with your head resting beside your computer. Music softly spilled from its speakers, lulling you to sleep. Bing. The sudden notification caught your attention, causing you to prop yourself up on your elbows.

“It’s probably Yuna,” you mumbled. Your best friend had a bad habit of sending you messages and endearing cat videos just when you were trying to fall asleep. Clicking over to your internet browser, you saw that it was not just any notification lighting up your screen. A friend request? Who could it be…?

Your thought trailed off when you clicked on the icon. Your (color) eyes widened at the name on the screen. “TATARA?!” you exclaimed in surprise. Lowering your voice to a more normal level, you spoke again. “Tatara from my class in grade school? No way.” You clicked onto his profile and saw a picture of a handsome young man with sandy blonde hair. “Oh my gosh… That IS Tatara.” Hurriedly you accepted his request and it wasn’t one minute later that you received a message.

‘Hello, _______. It’s been a long time. ^__^ ‘ the message read.

‘It really has! I wasn’t expecting to see a friend request from you.’ You sent. Thinking twice about leaving it at that, you continued, ‘Don’t get me wrong, I’m very glad you did!’

‘Oh good. I wouldn’t want you to think I’m weird or anything.’

‘Haha, no. You’re not weird. Well, at least not in a creepy way!’ It was amazing how easy it was to talk to him after all this time.

‘And what’s that supposed to mean? Haha’

‘Weird isn’t always a bad thing is what I mean. Anyways, how have you been? It’s been…. Five years or so since we last saw each other?’

‘I’ve been well. And how about yourself? I hope things worked out for you when you moved.’

“Ah, right! I have actually moved back to the area. In fact, I’m working in a bookstore near our old school currently. And I have been doing pretty well myself.’

‘I am glad to hear it. What’s the name of the bookstore? It isn’t the one next to the ice cream shop, is it?’

‘That’s the one’

‘No kidding? I walk by that store all the time! I guess I will have to stop in one day while you’re working.’

‘That would be great. I usually work weekday mornings.’

‘Great. I will stop by as soon as I get the chance!’

‘Alright! I’ll see you soon then. Good night, Tatara.’

‘Good night’

You smiled to yourself and signed out of your account. You closed your computer and set it aside before turning off the lamp at your bedside and settling into bed. See you soon, Tatara.

“_______~?” Yuna’s overly-sweet voice concerned you greatly.

“…….Yeah?” you replied, the hesitation evident.

“I have a project for you!” she said happily and came bounding out from behind the bookstore’s front counter. Her chestnut hair was pulled back into a messy, yet cute bun held into place by jeweled pins. Her chocolate-colored eyes glinted mischievously as she gazed at you.

“What is it…?”

“I want to re-organize the layout of the store.”

“Again?!” Every couple of months, your eccentric friend would try and make her store more appealing by rearranging all of the books. You suspected her real motivation was boredom in the current setup.

“But I really do think it will help!” She leaned forward with a smile. “So will you help me?”

“You mean, ‘so will you figure out a refreshing new layout and move everything while I read this new book?’” Yuna laughed and nodded. With a sigh you agreed.

“Yay! Thank yo—“

“Wait,” you interrupted, “I have a condition.”

Her smile turned into a distrustful scowl. “Which would be…?”

“One, you make me lunch this week. Two, I get to take off early if my friend shows up.”

“Friend? Who? Is it a boy?! Who is he?!”

“Woah, calm down.” You tucked a strand of (color) hair behind your ear. If I tell her it’s a boy, she will freak out and want to know all the details. She will also not believe there’s nothing between us even though we haven’t spoken in years. But if I tell her it’s a girl, she’ll never let me leave early if he really does show up… Hmm…

“_________!!! Tell me!”

“Ok, ok!” You took a deep breath. “Yes, it is a boy. No, we aren’t dating. His name is Tatara Totsuka and we haven’t seen each other since I moved away in middle school. He’s just a former classmate ok? That’s all!”

“Then why are you meeting him?! How did you guys start talking?! Or have you kept in contact?!”

You sighed, dreading where this conversation might go. “We started talking on (preferred social media site) last week. We just want to catch up in person instead.” Yuna opened her mouth, but you spoke again before she could speak. “That really is all that’s going on. SO,” you emphasized, “if you want me to re-organize your store again, those are my conditions.”

Yuna pouted. “Fine. Will you give me details?” You raised your eyebrow at her. “PLEASE!”

“Maybe. Now do you have any ideas for this store or not?”

A few days later you were placing the last of the mystery books on their new shelf in the back of the store. From your place in the back, you heard the jingle of the bell and Yuna’s chipper voice say, “Welcome to Ever After Books!”

You could faintly hear a man’s voice reply, and you heard Yuna say something in return. You didn’t think much of it as you reached up to place the last book on the top shelf.

“Let me help you,” said the man as he took the book from your hands and slid it into place.

“Ah, um thanks.” You turned around and saw Tatara grinning at you. “Tatara!” You smiled back at him.

“Good morning, _____________. Are you free to take a break any time soon?”

“Yeah! Yuna already agreed to let me take off early if you came in. Let me just grab my stuff from the back.” You disappeared into the staff room and grabbed your bag and coat. “Alright, let’s go! Yuna, I’m leaving now!”

“Did you finish the mysteries?” She popped out from behind the counter and bounded up to you.

“Yep. Your store is done.”

“Thank you!”

“_______, are these packets of sheet music?” You hadn’t noticed Tatara step away from you and to the stand you had set up for music.

“Huh? Oh yeah!” Ignoring Yuna, much to her dismay, you went back to Tatara and grabbed a packet. “This shelf is made up of pieces I’ve composed.”

“You didn’t mention you were a composer!”

“Well I am,” you said with a sheepish smile.

“Then I’ll buy this one.” Tatara held up a compilation of guitar tabs.

“I’ll take care of that! And I’ll even give you the friends and family discount~” Yuna chimed in, pleased to be able to make a sale and butt into your business at the same time.

“Well thank you very much,” Tatara said with a smile and went to pay for his music. You watched him pull out his wallet and hand Yuna the money. When he had received his change and bag, he turned back to you. “Are you ready to go?”

“Ah, yeah! I’m ready. I will see you tomorrow, Yuna,” you called as you and Tatara left the store. Yuna waved excitedly at you until you had disappeared from sight.