Chapter 524 At The Arcade
It was just a normal trip to the mall but Aira and Emma were excited to no end, letting out a soft squeal the moment they entered. Usually, they would go to the mall to get some groceries or simply when they wanted to get a cup of coffee.
This was the first time they'd be able to explore the mall, and they had the entire day to do so. Just thinking about it made Aira and Emma excited. With puppy-like eyes, they looked around, admiring the different shops that lined up the mall.
As for Ayumu and Tatsuki, they felt like they were bringing their daughters to a walk or something along those lines. Then again, that's what they aimed to do today on their day off. Besides, they felt like they needed some sort of distraction at the moment.
After all, Satoshi was currently with them and not doing anything would just make them miss him more as they were reminded of him. Aiming to enjoy their day off to the fullest, Ayumu and Tatsuki thought up a plan on how they'd be able to fully explore the mall with efficiency.
"So, what do you want to check first? We can grab some groceries later before we head home." Tatsuki asked. It had been so long since he had thought of enjoying the day off, and now he wasn't used to having fun as he once was in the past.
Even though there were plenty of enjoyment facilities in the mall, he didn't know what to do first.
"Then, let's hit the arcade first!" Emma suggested, pumping a fist in the air as she grabbed Aira by the hand. This was the start of their free day, and Emma promised herself that she would let Aira enjoy it to the fullest.
It hadn't been long since the Midoriyamas took in Aira just as they did to her. And even then, Emma already believed that Aira was her little sister despite their stark differences. Emma had purple hair, and she was somewhat reserved, and as for Aira, she's a redhead who could get a little rambunctious when she gets overly excited.
Most of the time, Aira and Emma would spend their leisurely time with Satoshi. Sometimes, the three of them would even train together, but not in the superhero's lair since Aira wasn't allowed to go there just yet. Going to the mall reminded them of their days with Satoshi, but that didn't dampen their spirits at all.
Right now, they decided to have as much fun as they could. That way, they'd have more things to do when Satoshi returns home from his training.
"Arcade, it's been so long since' I've been to one," Tatsuki muttered to himself as he nodded his head. Once upon a time, he asked Ayumu for a date and since he wanted to leave a good impression while portraying himself as modern as he could, he opted to bring him to the arcade.
Well, in the end, he made an embarrassment of himself since he couldn't play any of the games there. Instead of Tatsuki showing him around the arcade, it became the other way around— with Ayumu touring him and showing him the ropes of every video game therein.
Quite frankly though, Ayumu saw Tatsuki's cute side during that time, and by the end of the date, she liked Tatsuki a little better after. She knew he tried his utmost in giving her a swell time. He succeeded in the end, albeit showing an embarrassment of himself.
Emma's suggestion to the arcade also reminded Ayumu of that time when they were still in the dating stage. Ayumu let out a chuckle, and Tatsuki immediately realized what she was thinking about. Once again, Tatsuki's face reddened as he turned away from his wife.
"Stop thinking about it." Tatsuki pursed his lips as he awkwardly spoke to her.
"Why not? You were cute. In fact, I still have the—" Ayumu twirled her index finger around before reaching into her pockets to get her wallet. Inside that wallet was a photo they took by the arcade photo booth at the end of that date. And up until now, Ayumu still had it in her wallet.
"You still have it?!" Tatsuki commented even though he too has that same picture in his wallet. "Don't show it." He bashfully said.
"Why not?" Ayumu teased, grabbing the laminated photo and showing it to both Aira and Emma. "Look! Isn't it cute?" She giggled.
Curious, Aira and Emma looked at the picture, seeing an awkward picture of Ayumu smiling as she pulled on Tatsuki's arm. Tatsuki tried to get away, and his expression clearly expressed that sentiment of surprise.
"Wah~! Ayumu-san's so cute!" Emma exclaimed.
"Riight~?" Ayumu chuckled, briefly stealing a glance at Tatsuki as his face reddened. His reaction was top-tier, and Ayumu couldn't help but tease him even more.
"I-i-in any case! Let's go to the arcade!" This time, it was Tatsuki who pumped a fist in the air as he led the way to the arcades.
Seeing Tatsuki head straight to the arcade without hesitation caused the three girls to wonder. Tatsuki dind't even waver when he led the way, almost as if he knew exactly where the arcade was.
"Dear, you know where the arcade is? I'm surprised you remember it after all this time." Ayumu said.
Tatsuki didn't say another word. He couldn't even bring himself to tell her that back then, he would frequent the arcade to the point where he mastered most of the games. But even after doing that, they didn't have another date at the arcade so there was no way for him to show off his skills.
When they had a son, he figured that he could finally play games with him once he grows up, but Satoshi was more focused on physical training than playing games for enjoyment. Of course, there were times when they would play games at home from time to time, but they never went to the arcade.
After all, Satoshi preferred training more than spending his time at the mall.
Once they got to the arcade, Tatsuki realized that it didn't change much at all. Most of the retro games were still there, and even the placement of the games didn't change much at all. There were still basketball arcade machines lined up in one corner.
Even the photo booth existed since Ayumu and Tatsuki were in their teens. It was still tucked in the same corner where it had been all these years.
"Ah! It's the photo booth!" Emma pointed at the photo booth which matched the photo booth in the photo that Ayumu showed them. She was surprised that it was still there, considering that it had been years since the photo was captured.
At the far end of the arcade were the rhythm games that Tatsuki mastered back when he was still a teenager. Right now, he was confident that he could still pull them off even when he hadn't played them for years.
"Right, now let me show you how it's done." Tatsuki clenched his fists walking
They had no idea what Tatsuki was going to play, so the three of them followed right behind Tatsuki so they could watch him first before trying out his game.
With confidence, Tatsuki walked straight to an arcade game called 'Dance Dance Rev'. It was all the craze back in the day, and there were even tournaments centered around it. Tatsuki played the game before, and he practiced it to no end just so he could redeem himself in front of Ayumu. Their first date by the arcade was a failure to him, after all.
Even though that redemption was long overdue, Tatsuki wasn't going to miss his chance right now. He cracked his neck and jumped up a couple of times before walking at the guy who was playing the arcade game.
Dance Dance Rev is a rhythm-based arcade game that involves four arrows that needed to be pressed by the feet. The harder the difficulty, the faster the arrow's appearance would be. And since they were to be pressed by the feet, one needed to have full coordination in order to perfect a level.
"Eh?!" The man exclaimed the moment he turned around. He immediately stepped out of the arcade the moment he saw Tatsuki walk up to him. Even though he stopped playing mid-game, it was all worth it since this was a rare chance to see Tatsuki play an arcade game.
A crowd immediately formed around Tatsuki as he positioned himself on the platform. Somehow, he was slightly overcome with nerves since there were a lot of people watching. However, this was his chance to show off in front of his wife.
Without hesitation, Tatsuki immediately chose the hardest song in the arcade. It was titled 'Freedom Dive'. Just to give him a little bit of a challenge, he also decided not to use any of his superpowers, just his pure physical skills were enough to conquer the hardest level. "Here we go," Tatsuki hyped himself up as the music started playing.
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