So similarly to my last few posts, I wanted opinions on the depiction of social anxiety in this scene and how it affects your perception of Ayu's character. This is also one of the first scenes you're getting where Ayu and Juuzou interact (there's plenty before this I swear) so I wanted to know how you think they play off each other. Social anxiety is a tricky character trait to tackle because without caution, it can quickly spiral into annoyance. I don't want Ayu - the freaking PROTAGONIST - to come across as annoying. So, thoughts?
Also content warning for explicit language (Juuzou has a sailor's mouth and gee I wonder where he gets that from).
A stationary store a few blocks down caught Ayu’s eye.
“C-Can we, um… Uh…”
“Just spit it out, Hiiragi.”
“C-Can we check out that place over there? I-If it’s alright with you. If not, I understand…”
“Yeah, sure.” Juuzou then frowned and looked at Ayu with a peculiar glint in his eyes. “Why’re you suddenly back to stuttering? You were doing pretty okay just a minute ago.”
“O-Oh. Well, I just— I didn’t want to impose. Or bother you. That’s all.” Ayu hung her head.
“That’s not… Uh… Whatever. Let’s go.”
Ayu cringed. I knew it. I’ve just been bothering him with all my questions… This is what I get for trying to basically interrogate him and force my way in! I’ll just peek at whatever the stationary store has and then go home. I don’t want to make Hanazoe even more annoyed than I already have.
The stationary store was small and quaint, crammed between a clothing boutique and a yakitori restaurant. The walls were lined with shelves to cram in everything from pencils and pens to colorful stacks of paper and office supplies. Ayu meandered around the perimeter, sticking to the walls while glancing around. She wasn’t looking for anything in particular and frankly, she just wanted to go home.
“Hm? Oh…” Inside of a large box were miscellaneous pencil bags designed after various animals. Ayu picked one up and gushed, “This is so cute!”
“Really?” Juuzou asked.
The pencil bag was designed after a frog and colored bright lily pad green. The pouch’s zipper opened up to reveal a bright red interior; the frog’s mouth. Four floppy fabric legs stuck out from the corners and right above the zipper were two big, googly eyes.
“Hm? Well… Yeah. I-I like things like this.” Ayu said the last part in a mutter. Juuzou raised a brow.
“What’s up?”
“Uh… Huh? O-Oh, it’s nothing… It’s just… Forget it.”
“Alright, alright, I get it,” Juuzou sighed. “You can’t talk for shit. God, I can’t believe I hit the nail right on the head and didn’t even realize it.”
“I-I’m sorry,” Ayu murmured.
“What the hell are you apologizing for!?” Juuzou cried. “Jeezus, you’re so— Argh, how’d you even get this damn far in life without learning how to talk!?” Ayu flinched at the harshness of Juuzou’s voice.
“Oh, that… Well, I…” Ayu sucked in a deep breath. “It’s… Kind of a long story…”
“Well, shoot. I’ve got all fucking day.”
“I was… I was born here in Yokohama,” Ayu began, “but partway through middle school, I moved to Tokyo. I lost all of my friends in Yokohama as a result.” Actually, you were the only one, Juuzou. “Transferring to school in Tokyo during the middle of the semester was so, so scary. I managed to make some friends there, but… I moved back to Yokohama earlier this summer, so we never got as close as I wanted to be. And even then, I only made those friends because they approached me first. And now that I’m back in Yokohama, I have to start all over again. Maybe it’s because I never had a tight-knit group of friends before, but… I get really, really nervous thinking about starting a conversation. Or just… talking in general. It gets worse with strangers and adults.”
“You did mention that part back at the cafe,” Juuzou recalled. “So? What’s the deal with the pencil bag?”
“A-Are you sure you still wanna hear?”
“Oh, my god, you—” Juuzou exhaled through his nostrils and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Okay, whatever. I get it. You’re bad at talking and bad at talking about yourself. I could’ve fucking guessed.” Ayu flinched.
“I-I guess so… I’m not used to having so much attention on me… Even just one person is kind of a lot. And I really don’t want to bore other people or make them think I’m weird…”
“Christ almighty…” Juuzou shook his head. “Whatever. You’ll learn, I guess. So? Hit me. What’s up with the pencil pouch? I promise I won’t judge.”
“Oh, well… I like frogs!” Ayu blurted out. “And snails! And slugs! I think they’re cute! I-I wanna have a pet snail one day but my mom always says no…”
“That’s it? Huh… I thought it’d be something more… profound.” Juuzou shrugged.
“W-What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I guess— Well, I thought most people’s perception of ‘cute’ involved frilly things and kittens and puppies and stuff. When we first met, I sort of assumed you were the same.” Juuzou paused. “It’s not bad to be different, though.”
“So— You’re— Not… annoyed?” Ayu squeaked.
“…No? Why would I be?” Juuzou questioned.
“Well— I just thought— That maybe— Since I’ve been rambling and sort of… Wasting time— You’d—”
“Stop sputtering,” Juuzou snapped. “That’s what’ll get me annoyed. Look, going forward, I’ll just tell you if you get on my nerves. So you don’t have to assume jack shit. Alright?”
“R-Really?”
“Yeah. If anything, that should help with your whole ‘can’t talk for shit’ problem. We’re in the hunt for the cosplayers together and it’s not gonna be made any easier if you keep up with this nonsense. Just say what you want to and I’ll clap back. Or not. Got it?”
“Y-Yes! Thank you so much, Hanazoe!”
“Yeah, yeah, whatever. So? You gonna buy that thing or what?”
Ayu looked down at the frog pencil pouch in her hands. If she joined the calligraphy club, she could use it to store her brushes and inkstones and stuff. But that was only if she gathered the courage… Even so, Ayu couldn’t help but consider the possibility. It was something she wanted to do. Maybe with this pencil pouch… A bit of Juuzou’s encouragement… And some improvement to her social skills… That hope was less of a far-off dream and much closer to reality.
“I think I will.” Ayu glanced at the check-out counter. The cashier there greeted her with a smile and a nod. She gulped. Juuzou rolled his eyes.
“C’mon. I’ll help you through it.”
“T-Thank you…”
“Hello! Will this be all for you?” asked the cashier. Ayu nodded. “Your total will come to seven hundred yen.” Ayu wordlessly passed over the bills. “Thank you! Have a wonderful day!”