The guys teased him about his dragon girlfriend right up until the day before she actually became his girlfriend, and then they went strangely quiet. They all helped him finish everything in time to go on his date, and sent him off with a pat on the back.
This unusual behavior from his friends made him even more nervous than he had been before. He knew that ZipZing wasn't like any of the other girls and women that he'd interacted with since Underneath started, and he hadn't had any girlfriends before that. She wasn't his fan.
He knew that she liked him, and he'd been able to tell that she liked him long before she'd actually begun to admit that, but she didn't idolize him. Also, she'd made a point of being older than he was, and despite her amusingly naive behavior, it was really possible that she was enough older that it would be awkward. He didn't think so, but it was possible.
He arrived at the address she'd given him and made his way into the building and up to her door. There was no response to his knock. After a moment he pulled out his phone and opened the "Living Jade Empire" app. She was still online. He laughed and messaged her. A few minutes later there was an audible thump from within the apartment, and after another minute, the door opened.
It took him a moment to process the view. She was sitting beside the door instead of standing in front of it, and there was only a small space in front of the door with a wheelchair in it. The floor beyond that was all raised to thigh high, and there were no steps up onto it, but even if there had been, the ceiling would have been too low for him to stand. He only really noted all of that peripherally though, because her face drew most of his attention.
She looked so startled by him, and then she glanced at her chair and her expression shifted. Her expressions were so familiar, even though her cute human face wasn't, that he just knew what she was thinking. He stepped forward and closed the door politely and awkwardly crawled onto the floor beside her. He almost called her ZipZing, but stopped himself in time and said, "Danika…"
She looked at his face nervously and said, "Um hi? And you look exactly the same."
Her tone was accusing and he grinned at her. "So do you," he informed her. It wasn't a lie either, her expressions were so familiar that it shocked him with how very familiar she seemed. She also didn't really look much older than he was.
He knew his mother would have reprimanded him for the way he nervously explored her little studio apartment, but it was really kind of incredible. He thought his adoptive father would have shared his amazement. The whole place, everything, was set up so that she could scoot around on the smooth raised floor that felt strangely warm to the touch and access everything easily.
He'd never seen an entire living space arranged for someone who couldn't use their legs. In every video drama, every story he could think of, the impaired person used tools like her wheelchair, or an exoskeleton, to access an environment designed for people who could walk.
He was embarrassed by how embarrassed she was when he asked the first stupid question that popped into his head. He had so many questions, and he really wanted to know, but it was not something he should have asked. She didn't get mad though, she really was exactly the same in person, her blushes were even nearly as visible and frequent as when her fairy dragon wings sparkled pink in the game.
She explained the extent of her injury matter-of-factly. She even told him how it had happened. He didn't know what to say, so he kissed her. She didn't really seem to respond at first, and he worried that he'd rushed things too much until she awkwardly tried to kiss him back.
He tried not to laugh, it obviously wasn't just her in game behavior that was sometimes naive. She might be older in years, but she obviously lacked his own experiences, and she'd still been willing to return his kiss. He whispered affectionately, "We can take our time."
She blushed again, so he asked about other things. He took her out to the fancy place he'd planned, but he felt like his attempts to show off a little only amused her. When she reacted so calmly she really did seem older, but he took comfort in the fact that she really seemed to like him, even when everything didn't quite go as smoothly as he hoped.
He wondered about her family. She didn't mention them the entire night, but he felt like he'd asked enough intrusive questions for one day. She also didn't react at all to the news that despite his fame, he didn't currently have much money. Nor did she ask any details about the specifics of his future prospects.
They were most comfortable when talking about things in the game they shared all of their previous experiences in, and the hours slipped away. He didn't want to leave after he took her home. He kind of wanted to take her home with him instead, but he couldn't ask that. And seeing her home again made him worry that if he did ask that later, he'd be making her choose to give up her comfortable space for a little more time together.
He tried to explain his worry, but he didn't want to admit that he was already thinking of a future where he'd want her to stay with him, so he didn't convey it well. When he was about to leave, she scooted to the edge of her floor and reached for him though.
He half hoped that she meant what he asked her teasingly, "Are you going to invite me to stay over?"
But of course, she quickly denied it. What she said instead almost stopped his heart, "Shinichi. I really like you. I won't stop liking you just because real life is complicated?"
He almost replied, "I love you." But he didn't want to scare her or make her think he meant it lightly, so he just said, "Me too."
He gazed at her face and tried to imprint it in his mind before he left. He really wanted to take a picture so that he could stare at her cute human face when this all seemed like a dream in the morning, but it sounded way too awkward to ask for that. After a moment he kissed her once more and forced himself to leave.
They were dating now, she'd said so. He'd be able to see her again soon.