[Hana&Lulu] Blind Date

The park in the center of the Burrowgatory was bustling today. No doubt thanks to the event that was taking place in the middle of it. Several pop up tables were laid out along with coupling chairs in rows upon rows. Matentines was definitely in the air today. Delulu was surprisingly early, not on purpose but she got the times mixed up. Fortunately for her in the direction that proved to leave her to arrive borderline on time. She finished checking in, and they pointed her out to where she was to meet her mystery match of the day. This wasn’t her first rodeo - not by a long shot. But she was determined to make connections. 

Delulu took her seat, almost immediately pulling out her phone to cut through the nerves of the wait thinking to herself, This is why I’m never early.

Hana was never really one to put herself in the matchmaking box, but she was feeling a little more adventurous this year; perhaps a consequence of being older than before. She had never really been able to make any relationships stick either, with many of her little flings and whatnot being more of a surprise than anything else.

So this time, she was going to be in control. Sort of. Never mind the irony of letting the Church decide who she would be partnered up with. She dutifully followed the date and time printed, but she was not always the best with time, and so ended up a few minutes late. It didn’t help that the park was swarming with buns. She had to keep looking at the little number for which table she was supposed to sit in. Thirty one, thirty two…

Ah, here! And there was already somebun waiting for her, oh no, “Sorry I’m late! Didn’t realize the crowds were this crazy this time of year.” she tried to wear something a little more fashionable than her usual hoodie and shorts. Her blouse was made of cotton and she wore a skirt this time, but she couldn’t do away with the star accessories that tied her hair. “I’m Hana, and you are?”

She jumped with a bit of a start, she was really doom scrolling there for a second and lost her connection with the outside world. Delulu’s face brightened up when she saw the other bun arrive, “It’s totally fine~ I would have had you waiting for me if I didn’t mess up the time.” Delulu said with casual honesty. “Delulu~” She gestured to the chair opposite to her, inviting her to have a seat. 

Well, Hana appreciated her honesty? And she couldn’t help but raise her eyebrows at the name. Did Lord Murmur have a BunTok moment while naming her? Or maybe she gave the name to herself, which makes more sense. “Nice to meet you.” she took the seat and saw that there was a menu printed on the paper placemat. “Have you ordered anything yet?” she could totally go for a dessert since it was already early afternoon.

“Nope~” She responded simply, turning her attention also to the menu. She hadn’t even thought about food, but the menu seemed to consist of lunch based items. Nothing too fancy, nor anything that seemed like it’d be excessively filling. Just a charming pop up style menu, set up for the occasion. Delulu appreciated its simplicity, as she found that she would get too worked up to actually eat anything. “Anything catching your eye?” She asked, turning her attention to Hana, observing her quietly as she tried to feel out her vibe.

“Hmm…” it was unfortunate that the dessert choices were rather limited. Ice cream was available, and one couldn’t really go wrong with ice cream, but it also felt really simple for the occasion. The other options were slices of cake of different types. The rest were, well, fries, salads, the usual fanfare. “Guess I’ll get this one.” she placed her finger on the chocolate cake slice, though she did flinch a little at the price. “The Church needs to make some carats somehow...” she muttered, even if she was pretty sure that donations were a thing.

Delulu snorted at her statement pertaining to the church. “I don’t think it’s the congregation that’s making the cakes back there. But if so - you know those desserts are absolutely sinful~” She added with a wink. She returned her attention to the menu, a small hmm of consideration escaping her. “You know what, I think you’re onto something, Hana.” She’d say, wagging a manicured finger at her, “I think I’ll also snag up some cake! Why not~” She said, pointing to the white cake with strawberries adorned on top. She looked around for someone who was tending to the event, waving them over so they could put in their orders.

“Ah! Sorry,” well, she hoped that she didn’t offend with the statement, but it didn’t look like Delulu seemed to mind. “Well if they have their cooks, I guess they could?” and the starry bun was trying to figure out what her date meant by the statement. Sinful as in…overly sweet? Mixed with ingredients that were not usually found in cakes? One thing was for sure, this girl’s got better swag than her, and she should really try to keep up.

When the waiter came by, she said her order and made sure to ask for some water as well, if they served it (turned out it was served in bottles). From there, she had to figure out how to continue the conversation, lest she be trapped in restless awkwardness. “So, err, is this your first date?” wow, real smooth, Hana, obviously date-virgin buns were as rare as…whatever the rarest thing was in Burrowgatory. “I mean, first blind date. This year. Yeah.”

She briefly turned her attention to the waiter, placing in her drink order as well which was an iced coffee - “Extra sweet and extra cream, please and thank you~” She told them with a smile. After they concluded their orders and the waiter was dismissed she looked back to Hana, who took the honors of continuing the conversation. 

There was a humoured look on her face at her phrase of questioning, her fingers intertwining as she rested her chin on them and leaned on the small table. “Mmm.. Unfortunately not~. There’s something I’ve been on the lookout for and - well I’m not stopping until I get it.” She said simply with a smile, “What about you, Hana? Is this your first blind date this year?”  

Hana wasn’t surprised. She’d be more surprised if Delulu said it was her first date, though what he said afterward did pique her interest, and she was also feeling rather embarrassed that her date had turned the question back to her, with considerably less awkwardness. “Something or somebun? You do feel like a go-getter kinda gal, if you don’t mind me saying.” the starry bun didn’t even know who she’d be looking for. Just someone that she vibed with, she supposed.

She played with her ear idly, taking a little bit before answering, “Yeahhh, I’m more of a…stay at home kinda gal. I don’t usually participate in these kinds of events, but I thought, y’know, try something different this year? Make new friends or something?” it wasn’t like she was very new to Burrowgatory, but she was definitely one of the younger buns, not having the same wisdom that her coworkers share when it came to relationships and whatnot.

Delulu let out a laugh in response to her statement, “Go-getter~ I like thaaat.” She cooed, telling herself she was going to start using that whenever people found the need to call her anything less savory. “And - both? I’m looking for my love~” She told Hana, a dreamy tone in her voice at the mere thought.

She nodded with understanding as Hana shared her experiences and what she was hoping to  find - get out of it. “Mmmm, gotcha. Sometimes it can be tricky meeting folks in the Burrow. Platonic or otherwise.” She said thoughtfully, thinking about her own time and struggle. 

The waiter returned with their drinks, Hana’s water and Delulu’s coffee. She beamed a quick thanks to them, before swirling her drink around and taking a sip. Her tail swooned, she was pleased. “Do you think you’ll do more dates? Blind or otherwise?” She asked, her curiosity peaked. 

Hana wondered what it would be like to specifically look for love. Love was…fun? Like falling in love? Crushing on buns? She has happy crushes, like there were so many good looking buns out there that it was impossible not to have any. Pure eye-candy, ya know? “I get that. I need to pay buns just to have a good cuddle sesh.” it had been a while since she commissioned someone for that, now that she thought about it. Maybe she could look up the website again, but she felt like with the Matentines season, there was more likely it was going to devolve into something else.

With the water bottle in hand she unscrewed the cap and drank a couple of sips. At least Delulu looked like she was enjoying her coffee. “Maybe? The blind wasn’t too bad, and there’s still some days to the event. Maybe I’ll be able to offer myself for another.” she said with a small laugh, “How ‘bout you?”

”Paid cuddle buddies?” Delulu repeated, she knew that there were a variety of services provided in the Burrow to tickle a range of needs, but the lust bun was mildly humoured at the thought or somebun paying to not have sex. “Why Hana~ if you're looking for a little snuggle buddy I can help you with that. Free of charge.” She said with a playful wink and another sip of her drink. 

Lulu swirled the cup again with her wrist thoughtfully, thinking about her returning question. “Probably. I wouldn't be surprised if I'm doing this until the end of the season. I guess I'm stubborn in that way.” She shrugged.

Hana felt like she shouldn’t have blushed at that comment, but she did anyway. Like, she wanted to keep the sex with cuddling separated from the cuddling without sex, if that made sense? “I mean…I’d be down if you’re down? Always nice not to have to pull out carats.” she said with an awkward laugh, “Do you…wanna exchange numbers then so we can keep in touch?” was that being too forward? Was she joking? It didn’t sound like she was joking, but the starry bun had sometimes missed the punchline before.

A slight laugh escaped from Lulu in response to Hana’s reaction to her offer. She pulled out her phone, pushing some things around before extending it to Hana for her to input her information. She indeed was not joking. Even though she was looking for something specific, didn't mean she couldn't enjoy the perks that came with the buns she met along the way. And who doesn't enjoy a good cuddle? 

Hana was admittedly surprised (but pleasantly so) that Lulu accepted, so she had a new contact in her list that was actually not someone related to work. Eventually, the slice of cake appeared, and she was able to enjoy that along with other conversations she managed to start or add on. The cake was alright, nothing fancy, but the highlight was the bun she was spending time with. Delulu did seem like a nice bun. Maybe it could really be the start of a beautiful friendship.