Welcome to Gaia! ::

He'd gone through his closet three or four times that morning in an attempt to figure out what to wear for the occasion. It was a date - he was absolutely thrilled at getting Aurora for the day - but it was a date that involved trying on Cosmos knew how many pieces of clothing in the process. He knew better than to bother with a button-up shirt for the extra effort it would take to continuously button and unbutton the blasted thing, but none of his normal shirts seemed appropriate for the date scene.

Scrounging through his dresser drawer, he came across a few plain looking ones, a brightly colored Banzai! one hiding beneath the collection. He scrunched his face at the sight and shoved it even further away - there was no way he was wearing that anytime within the next lifetime, thanks.

Settling on a pale blue, he slid it on and left the hem of the shirt to dangle instead of tucked, resting atop the belt loops of the dark jeans he'd paired with the shirt. Was it too casual? Would she be disappoint---

The knock on the door let him know that he'd run out of time to decide matters and he shrugged his shoulders indifferently - there were suddenly much more important things to concern himself with.

Flinging the door open, he at least gave her enough time (see: three seconds) to process his presence before bending forward and dragging her up against him, tilting his head down to press lips against lips in an overly happy greeting while long fingers toyed with the back of her blouse.

"Morning, beautiful," His voice was cheerful, face unable to suppress the width of the smile playing across it, "I can't tell you how happy I am to see you."

He pressed her tightly to him, hands rising to play with the intricate way she'd fashioned her hair - it was beautiful, just as she was.

"I'm afraid I'd no longer be a proper gentleman, if I were to show you just how happy being around you made me."

The word managed to slip out before he could catch himself, Akio suddenly looking sheepish as he realized what he'd just said. Arms released her to her own will as he stepped back, allowing her room to enter his apartment. He busied himself by walking over to the stand by the door, collecting his keys and his wallet, stuffing both into pockets as he cleared his throat, attempting to figure out a quick way to redeem his inappropriate thoughts. "I shall just have to kiss you until you pry me away, instead. Or make a fool out of myself to the point where you no longer wish to be seen in public with me - either, or. Both, perhaps?"

A single tanned hand reached out for her in offering. "Would you care for a drink before we take off or shall we get this show on the road?"

Watching her flustered reaction nearly made it worth it, really. Grinning from ear to ear as he stood there, patiently watching her cheeks light up as she fumbled with her words... there was nothing more precious in the world than Aurora Willows, as far as Akio was concerned.

"Kissing in public - I think I can manage that." He nodded his head, sealing the agreement, although he already knew he'd be breaking said agreement with a stolen kiss or two, when the moment took him. Nothing more and nothing less was acceptable for him. Even then, as he ushered her out the door and locked it behind them, he was leaning down to press a kiss against her temple as they made their way out the building, side by side.

"A movie? Sounds like fun." Just as she assumed he would be, the young man had no qualms with extending their date into the evening hours. He didn't even bother asking what movie it was that they'd be seeing - as long as it was with her, he'd watch anything. He'd watch paint dry, even.

"Where should we start first, d'you think?"

"If there's enough time to swing back by the apartment, we could grab a blanket, make a few sandwiches," he offered, squeezing her hand gently as he guided them in the direction of the mall, "Or snacks, whichever. Whatever my beautiful girl wants is fine by me."

He made a face as she made a mention of ties. He knew he needed to look professional, being a teacher now - but ties? Really? Wasn't wearing a dress shirt enough when it came to herding seven year olds into playing basic musical instruments??

"I guess." New shirts and new slacks made sense - would he need a hair cut too? "As long as you keep me distracted, I'll turn into whatever old fuddydud you think will make the most practical looking teacher."

She slipped in front of him and began to backwalk, Akio's eyes now falling across the prettiest distraction ever, in his opinion. A kiss sent his heart fluttering - she'd liked his idea! - and she seemed very pleased with the thought of their evening date together. How long had it been since they'd spent more than an hour or two together? He couldn't remember - he could merely appreciate the opportunity as it presented itself.

Aurora was suddenly pouting at his face - aw, crap. She'd paused in her backwalk to stand there, forcing him to stand there as hands moved up to cup her elbows, raising them up until they were pressed against his chest, just as he liked.

"Ties aren't the end of the world. I'm just... not used to the idea of having no one to talk to but a bunch of children. Or spending so many hours away from the girl I like."

Like? Did he like her or could it even be ---

"I'll wear anything you tell me to wear, beautiful, as long as you distract me with your smile and maybe a kiss or two." He pressed a kiss against her forehead and smiled. "Even if it's horrible and bright yellow. I'd wear bright yellow for you."

Upon hearing her sudden suggestion, delighted surprise lit up his tanned face, from corner to corner. He bent down to kiss the tip of her nose before murmuring, "What did I ever do to deserve someone as wonderful as you?"

Realizing that they probably shouldn't be expressing their dreadfully mushy adoration for one another in the middle of the sidewalk, Akio pushed forward gently, moving one arm to stay wrapped around her side as they walked. He wasn't willing to simply give up on keeping himself tethered to her - if he had his way, he'd be by her side for as long as she allowed him.

"You'll have to let me return the favor by making dinner, you know," he commented nonchalantly as sneakers stepped over a large crack in the pavement, "I'll bring it over to your house... even make enough for your Pops to enjoy, if he'd be willing to try it."

As much as he'd rather not be subjected to Mr. Willows' presence, he was determined to do what it took to make his girl happy. Even if it meant eating dinner with a man who could probably choke him to death with one hand.

Spying the mall in the distance, long legs strolled their way forward, mindful to keep it as a reasonable pace for his much shorter girlfriend to keep up with.

"So what colors do you think we should look for first, hm?"

"I could be down with blue," Thoughts flickered over to his alter ego and the pale color that reflected back at him whenever he glanced into his sea. Blue was more of Seal's color, but Akio couldn't help but embrace that particular side of him - the man was clearly far more dashing than plain 'ol Akio Yoshida, after all. "But green... maybe if it's a particularly turquoise color, I could get behind it."

He grinned, allowing his path to veer to the side, his taller body gently nudging against hers as he forced her into the first forest of clothing racks. Shirts and slacks surrounded them as well as graphic tees off to the corner.

Thoughts of getting to know Mr. Willows better was... well, it wasn't exactly high on his to-do list. The man was terrifying, even moreso with Aurora only confirming the displeasure the father had towards him. Eep.

"Greys are okay - I prefer brighter things, personally." Hands dug through the first rack, eyeing the price on the pair of khaki slacks before shoving them forward. "Do you think black or grey is better, though?"