Hello everyone, my name's Bridger Blaithe, and I'm currently having the biggest dilemma of my 24-year-long life. In my hand, I have a tiny but very valuable piece of plastic - In front of me stood a large man, barring entry to the sight behind him. Beside me stood my dear partner - her eyes focused on the dancing lights and crowd of energetic fans currently being denied to us. I looked at the small figurine of a shy girl within my clasp and let out a hearty sigh.

"You've gotta be kidding me," I said, exasperated as I faced my partner, whose gaze was still lost in the crowd of lights.

No, I will not.

But, to begin here would be rude of me, so let's get you acquainted with the current state of affairs. After Hunter had left us to go to the panel he had been planning to visit, Myla and I traversed the rest of the venue's many areas. We had observed all the different places, like the scrambling artists in the Artists' Alley or the many rooms housing the numerous panels.

Not even mentioning the dozen or so cosplays of people wearing a red outfit with white eye-holes, seriously, get a new character.

I pondered as we both saw the many unique characters on display. That was when my partner saw it, a poster plastered on one of the many white walls of the building. She had an interest in it, strangely enough, so I inquired on it,

"Hmm? I didn't think you'd recognize anything from around here." I said, scanning the poster that had three anime characters on it, all in skin-tight bodysuits with a mecha behind them.

How old-school. It fits with her character, really.

I thought as she gave me her reply.

"I used to watch it quite some time ago when I had moved houses." She replied, still observing the poster.

"So you were a closet-otaku. Welp, there's probably some merch back at the dealer's room if you want to buy anything related to it. C'mon," I stated, turning my back to her when I realized she was firmly standing there by the wall. The place was fairly crowded, but even then, she stood out just looking at the graphic before her, unmoving and lost in thought, as if she'd entered a world of her own.

"Hey, I thought you were the one who was always a stickler for tardiness. What is it?" I asked as I returned to her side and observed the poster once more. The bottom of it read a time and place. It seemed that this wasn't there to simply advertise the 30-year-old mecha, but to inform those of a concert a small indie band was doing. It seemed this was one of the many songs they'd be playing at their show at this year's convention. h

"So, you wanna go to the concert?" I asked, tilting my head as I faced her. She finally let her gaze leave the poster and let out a sigh.

"Of course not. I was only reminiscing." She replied as she turned around and began walking back to where we had come from,

"Y'know, the concert's about to start, and we still have some time before we meet up with Hunter. Wouldn't hurt to pay a visit seeing as we don't have much else to do." I said, trying to provoke her but at the same time knowing that seeing her interested in something was a nice change of pace.

"And spend time inside a cramped and dimly lit room with you of all people? Please, I'd rather not." She said bluntly, her back turned to me.

"Alright, I guess I'll go on my own. See you in 30 minutes, I guess." I declared as I began making my way out of the hallway towards the concert area. That was when I heard footsteps steadily following from behind me, only to see my dear partner tailing me.

"Look, come on, if you're that interested, there's no need to hide it from me," I said in an exasperated tone. She let out a short Hmph in response as I assured her.

"Besides, I bought this in front of you, so think of it as a mutual understanding of our tastes in Japanese culture," I stated, raising the bag which contained the figurine I had purchased in the dealer's room. She gave me a disgusted look before opening her mouth to reply.

"Don't compare your degeneracy to my minute interest in the concert. It's embarrassing."

"Yeah, yeah. Next, you'll reveal yourself to be a fujoshi." I said sarcastically as we continued on our way to the concert hall. I opened up the map on my phone to see the path towards it when it struck me. It was strange enough seeing her interested in something such as this. And while my main goal was to find something to make fun of her for, something she knew far too well, it seemed that wasn't enough to deter her from wanting to go.

Maybe I treated you too harshly. Perhaps you really do just want to enjoy this convention.

I thought, facing her expression, which seemed to be lost in thought.

Even then, if we're talking about treating people harshly here, you outshine me and every person I've met.

I thought as we turned the right and were met with two black doors which from within sounded a steady murmur.

"I think we found it," I said, facing Myla as I pocketed my phone.

"If we didn't do so even with your phone leading you, I'd be more impressed than disappointed at that point." She stated before marching ahead and opening the door when she ran into a man blocking entry from within. He wore the same outfit as the man Hunter had met at the staff entrance, meaning he, too, was part of the convention's many staff. He was tall and quite well-built, making me presume that he was sort of a bouncer or security guard for the concert.

"Tickets, you'll need them." He said in a deep voice as he pointed behind him.

"I-is that so?" I said, slightly anxious at the man's aura of seriousness.

Welp, our fault for not reading the poster all the way through. No, wait. Myla was staring at it for like 5 minutes. How did she not notice it?

I considered as I faced her with an annoyed look, however, it seemed she wouldn't be noticing it any time soon. Her gaze was transfixed on the crowd behind the staff, the glowsticks in the many fans' hands bobbing up and down, the band on stage energetically playing away as the crowd roared for them. They weren't playing the song we had come for yet but recalling the schedule on the poster. I knew we didn't have much time left.

"Hey, look, we don't have the tickets to go and-" I tried to alert her, but her attention was still lost in the room.

"If you don't have the tickets, there's no way I can get you in. That's just how it is." The man stated, making gestures towards us and the hall behind him when it had revealed itself to me. On this man's left bicep was a tattoo, but not just any piece of skin ink; it was one of a name. Coincidentally, it was the very same name of the character I bought as a figurine. That's when I came to recall the other staff we had seen - the one that gave Hunter a fast pass through the lines as compensation for a game. This man was interested enough in this character to have a permanent mark placed upon his body. And if that was the case, he was more than likely interested in any form of media or merchandise regarding said character. Not only that, but he was also denying entry to a place in which my partner had taken up a strange interest. Put two and two together, and you understand where I'm currently at.

God, I hate starting stories in a roundabout fashion, but here we are now, I guess.

I thought as I held the figurine in my hands once more. The smooth plastic that made up the figure glistened as it reflected the light from the sun making its way through the large windows of the building. The shy expression on the character's face was alluring and equally adorable. Her pose could be considered fanservice, but with what the anime was about, it was nothing new. I observed all of this, all of the figurine's small creases and imperfections, each of them, ingraining all of them into my mind as I steeled myself to create one of the hardest decisions of my life.

I can't do it. I'm not strong enough.

I thought facing my partner, who had previously taken up my own selfish request back during our trip with Ilya, but someone with who I am also always at odds. Her eyes were still focused on the hall, as I could faintly hear them announce that they'd be singing the song we had planned to visit next. Myla let out a short sigh before turning around and beginning to walk away.

"Come on. There's no need to be unreasonable here." She said monotonically as the distance between her and the hall grew.

Now you're talking about being unreasonable? I thought millennials were supposed to be more self-aware than that or were they high schoolers? I can never remember.

I considered before she turned to face me, not with an annoyed expression but that of a more emotionless one. It was strange, but that struck a chord with me. She really did have a reason for wanting to visit this - and since our goal here was to enjoy it as if we were experiencing the hobby for ourselves, I realized that for now, at the very least, because it was my job, I had to help her do that, just as she did for me a few days ago. I grasped the figurine in my hand and turned to the staff blocking our entry.

"Look, I know it's a weird request, but if I give this to you, will you let us in, even just for this song," I said, an anxious tone present in my voice as I looked away from him. He made a Hmm sound before his eyes widened.

"Is that? I didn't even know they sold those here? How much was it?" A sudden enthusiasm filled his voice as he inspected the figure.

Aha, I guess you were too busy with work to do research. You have a long way to go, brother.

I thought jokingly before swallowing those thoughts to continue bargaining.

"That doesn't matter right now. Can you accept our terms?" I asked, pulling the figurine away from his face. He put a finger to his chin, pondering on it before letting out a chuckle.

"Well, you have a good eye for merch, so just this once, sure." He said with a gentle smile as he cleared the way for us. I handed him my short-lived treasure, almost shedding a tear as I bid farewell.

I'll miss you. I really will.

I thought as I turned to Myla with a considerate expression.

"Welp, let's go," I said before walking in and hearing her footsteps behind me. We came into the large gathering already cheering, as the song was only beginning to start. The place had no lighting, meaning the stage spotlights and many glowsticks amongst the crowd illuminated the large hall. The drums began to kick in as the string quickly followed when the vocalist started the intro to the song. The place shook with both music and cheers as I too almost got lost in it. I faced my partner, whose face was slightly illumed by red, blue, and yellow, the glowsticks giving her expression a vibrant yet dim luminescence. Her eyes were completely focused on the stage before her; she stood on her tiptoes to better view the performance. That was when I saw something unfamiliar yet interesting a small smile made its way onto her face as she observed from afar. I didn't know if it was nostalgia or if she truly was like Hunter, but for that moment, for the time being, it was nice seeing her enjoy herself.

It was still at my expense, though.

That was when I felt a weak tug on my sleeve as I faced my partner, who had her phone up, text written on its bright screen.

"Nevermind, I prefer the original."

Was all it wrote and all it needed to say.