The little downtown square was lively early in the afternoon. Friends and couples met, families walked together. The shops were busy and the cafés were everything but empty. The weather was just fine and a beautiful sun shone over Tokyo. I walked at a relaxed pace, with my hands tucked in the pockets of my jeans. I was in a happy mood, and for a good reason: I was on my way to meet with my girlfriend Marie Rose for a date. As I walked towards the fountain where I was supposed to meet her, I recalled the improbable chain of events that had led my here.
It was my friendship with Zack, the famous DJ, that first brought me, an ordinary young man, in contact with the world of the famed Dead or Alive Tournament. As I accompanied him to Japan, I ended up being a spectator during a martial arts combat between my friend Zack and a beautiful blonde woman by the name of Helena Douglas. Among the public, sitting right next to me was none other than Helena's maid and bodyguard, the sweet and adorable Marie Rose. We talked a bit, and I was surprised to learn that this cute girl was a martial artist and a contestant in the tournament herself. Even though we were cheering for opposite sides, we ended up liking each other enough for a relationship to blossom. We chatted, we dated, and eventually our relationship became official. As young lovers, we had taken things slowly. We had held hands and even kissed, but nothing more. Both of us were still virgins. Yet, it was an unspoken agreement that both of us wanted to take things further. Today might just be the day, and that thought alone put my mind on cloud nine.
I progressed towards the fountain at the center of the square and I saw her, sitting on a bench. Marie Rose was looking at her phone, blind to the world around her. She was wearing her favorite black and white goth loli dress, the one she had sewn herself. The detached sleeves, fingerless gloves, the short frilly skirts and the black leather boots with red compensated heels combined with an array of black leather belts in order to give her the appearance of a fashionable, cute little doll. I approached her and greeted her.
"Hello there."
Marie raised her eyes from her phone and looked at me with her blue eyes. Her initial joy was quickly replaced by an exagerated pouting as she got up from the bench and placed her hands on her hips.
"You're late, ${name}," she reprimanded me, pretending to be much more vexed than she actually was.
I smiled.
"Well, you know, I have a good reason for that. I was getting you a present!"
"A present? Really?" Marie replied, with sudden sparks in her eyes.
"Of course... I hope you like it."
I got the item out of my pocket and displayed it before her eyes with a dramatic "Ta-daaah!": it was a lollipop, a fancy one from a tiny shop known for their hand-crafted sweets.
"Uwaaaah!" Marie Rose exclaimed in pure bliss. "It's my favorite! I love you, ${name}!" she said before she snatched the piece of candy from my hands, unwrapped it and give it a lick that seemed to fill her with pure bliss. Yet, a few seconds later, Marie was looking at me with a suspicious frown.
"Hmmm..." she muttered.
"Is there a problem?"
"You didn't gift me a lollipop because you see me as a kid, did you, ${name}?" she asked.
"Of course not. I think of you as a little angel." I replied with a chuckle.
"Do little angels love lollipops?" she tested me further with a playful smile.
"Well, you do, so the answer is yes." I answered honestly.
Marie Rose giggled.
"That's what I thought. You're such a naughty boy, ${name}!"
She suddenly got on the tips of her toes and kissed me on the cheek.
"It's going to be a fun afternoon," she said.
"Yeah. Do you know where you want to go first?"
"Sure!" Marie replied. "There's