[x] Loudly declare that I warmed up her kotatsu and got her some food.

“I-I, ah… I’m your housewarming guest! Since it’s so cold, I got your kotatsu warmed up for you!” As I spoke, I lifted the table skirt next to me. “C’mon, sit down and get all warmed up!”

But even as her demeanor straightened, that scowl only deepened. My heart sank, but I wouldn’t give in, here! Love was a battlefield, after all! “A-and I got you some food, too! Some tasty crackers and sweets!”

Ah, there! Finally. Her near-glare softened, just a bit. “Oh, it’s just you.” She shuffled forward and knelt in front of the kotatsu, across from me. And yet, despite shivering slightly, she didn’t scoot into it - let alone to my side. Instead, she focused on my lunchbox, then warily lifted the lid. A moment of silence lingered. My knuckles must have turned white. I could hear-no, feel-every breath. This… this was the moment of truth. What would she think of my-

She lifted my ribbon off and set it on the table, just so she could pull a cracker out-though she eyed the dango more. She took one loud, crunching bite. Then she finally scooted into the kotatsu. Still across from me, still keeping her distance. But it was still progress. I think. I’d break that cold shell her heart hid behind, to expose the romantic, gooey… I shook my flushing face. Oh dear, where was that thought going… She took another bite, her eyes now flitting to the ribbon.

And then they locked onto me, dead center. “What’re you up to?”

I flinched backward. That… that wasn’t a question she was supposed to ask. I-I didn’t have anything prepared for that one! My jaw quivered a bit as my mind raced. “I-it’s a special holiday, you know! Very special. So! I thought I’d share it with you!”

But her eyes just narrowed further. “Can’t be. This is some conspiracy, isn’t it? Your shrine’s always up to shady stuff, after all. Why’d you sneak into my shrine? What is-”

“It’s not a ploy!” That burst from my lips, high and loud, before I knew what it was. “I… I-I-I… I just…”

“You want something from me.”

“I-I just want to, ah, to… to to to… make you… feel…” My mind, finishing its race, chose to spin in circles instead. “I-it’s just a gift. You don’t need to think any deeper than that…”

She took another bite, then another. Her gaze turned to the cracker, until she’d finished it off. Then, as she grabbed another, she… yawned?

“You made up a holiday, invited yourself i-”

“I-I didn’t make it up! It’s just… it’s an outsider holiday, so you wouldn’t know about it.”

Now she rolled her eyes. Why? “Of course.” She groaned, then paused. And for once, the look she gave me showed some proper interest in me. “Say, let’s say you’re telling the truth. What sort of holiday is it?”

My spirit soared. I planted my hands on the kotatsu, leaned forward, and…

My mouth opened, but nothing came out.

This, this was the perfect chance. But to, to… no! I grit my teeth. This was precisely the opening I needed!

“It, it’s called ‘Valentine’s Day.’ It’s a day where people exchange chocolates to show how… much they care about people. A-and they write letters, with little hearts-”

Now, that interest flattened. “Then, where’s the chocolates?”

I flinched, but couldn’t afford to hesitate now. “I couldn’t get them in time. The timing was… too sensitive.” I could never admit the reason I ran out of time to bring them! “B-but! It-it’s not… not just any kind of care. It’s… just-well, mostly-for a special kind of care. Very… special. Very, um, personal.”

Reimu slumped forward. “So there were strings attached, after all.”

Now, my hands flew up and fluttered in front of me. “Not strings! Just a… a message! And-and maybe a request, or-no, an invitation.” My face grew warm, despite the cold air around us. “It-it’s a holiday about… love.”

Oh dear. Now my face burned. I could barely even look her way, anymore.

“Love?” Another painfully tense moment passed. Fleeting glances only revealed a deeper, scrutinizing stare. There was… something there. Not the affection or even fluster I’d hoped for. But not hostility either. More of… confusion? “Then what’s it got to do with me?”

My whole body froze, my back lurching rigid and straight. What… what does it? How could she even ask that after all of this? That stubborn denseness was cute and all, but now was hardly the time for it! I took a few steadying breaths.

“Oh, you know. Two p-p-people… exchange… gifts. Then, later on, the guy returns the gift, something white, threefold…”

Her brows just above danced over her eyes. And not in a risque waggle, either. More… shifting between that confusion, and curiosity. “But there’s no guy here. And why white? What does that have to do with chocolate?”

Still? Urgh. I-I’d need to spell it out, wouldn’t I? I…. I didn’t know how much longer she’d let me stay here, and if I went home before confessing… no. That, of all things, I couldn’t allow!

“Um, Reimu, I…”

I knew I could do it. I knew I could. But how could I broach it?

[ ] It’s all about boyfriends and girlfriends. And I want a girlfriend!

[ ] There are only two people here, and it’s about exchanging tokens of love. Romantic love!

[ ] There’s so many other girls demanding your attention, but I want you to look at me - and only me!

[ ] You like food, right? Well, you could wake up to my cooking every day, made with love!

[ ] Write-in.

[x] It’s all about boyfriends and girlfriends. And I want a girlfriend!

I slapped my hands down against the kotatsu. “It-it’s a holiday all about boyrfiends and girlfriends! Romance, love, intimacy!”

Reimu jerked away, taken aback by the sudden motion.

But I didn’t dare stop yet. “A-a-a-and… and I want a girlfriend!” I could barely hear my own heavy breathing now, as the violent drumbeat of my heart nearly drowned it out. “A, a, a… a very particular girlfriend! I-I’ve been thinking about it for a long, long time. And it had to be today! I, I-I…”

But there, my steam faded. My face burned. Reimu stared at me, eyes narrowed to slits. Then, they burst wide open and a flush blossomed across her face, surely dark enough to rival my own. A single shaking finger rose from her side to point against her own chest. All at once, my own breathing turned from heavy to near-nonexistent. But I managed a tight, small nod.

“So, you came all the way here to…” Reimu herself took a moment to breathe. A second later, a low groan rumbled from her throat. “To declare your,” she gulped, “love,” then sighed, “for… me.”

I held deathly still, save for another tiny nod.

She groaned again, louder this time. “Look, I’m… flattered, I guess.” Slowly, her own breathing stilled, her face cleared up. “But I’m not looking for-I don’t need a… partner. So you can, uh, go home now.”

Those simple words felt like a punch to my gut. “W-why not? I could be there for company on lonely n-”

“I already have more company than I want.”

I sputtered, but held my gaze. No, I wouldn’t give up here! “Then-then… a-a second pair of hands when you need to…”

“No offense, but your ‘hands’ aren’t exactly what I’d be looking for if I needed reliable help.”

“Then-ah! Breakfast! Food! I-I could prepare it for you!”

Now, Reimu rolled her eyes. This… this didn’t look good. I clenched a fist. There, there had to be something!

“Warmth! Someone to cuddle up with when it gets cold! Like today!”

Reimu leveled her eyes straight onto mine. She-she was scowling at me, now. “I have enough youkai prying into my life, Kochiya. I don’t need an-”

“I’m not a youkai!” My voice was trembling now. I leaned forward. “I-I’m a human-well, a goddess! Not one like the two I serve, but a goddess all the same! I could be yours, even!”

Now, it was Reimu’s turn to sputter. “You-you… I-I’m not going to worship you!”

“That’s not what I meant! I just, I…”

Reimu’s scowl only darkened. I was running out of time, and I was running out, fast. Everything was going so wrong, so fast. I needed… I needed something. What did she want from me? I had so much to offer, so why wasn’t any of it working?

But at last, a miracle came. Reimu’s scowl faded into a tired sigh. She slumped into the kotatsu, chin resting against the surface. “Look. I appreciate your gifts, but if you want more of my time, you’ll need to get in line. The last thing I need is more…”

For a moment, her words blurred into a distant buzz. That… that was it! There were so many other girls crowding around her. So much competition I hadn’t even considered. I needed something to make me stand out, and I needed it now!

“...butting into my li-mph!”

I moved before my mind could stop me. Two hands cupped her cheeks and pulled her up, while my feet kicked out and my torso bent forward. My lips pressed to hers and, for a split-second, I basked in the sensation. In the…

She shoved me backward, then wiped a sleeve across her lips. I fell onto my butt, then blinked. Her face burned even darker than before. I didn’t breathe. Did… did she like it? Did she want…

“Go home.”

A wheeze escaped my lips. Reimu stood up. She thrust a finger toward the door. I… I scooted out from the backward. Another wheeze burst out before my tongue would move. “Did-did I do it bad? If I did, we could try again!”

But now she just stared at me, baffled.

“Just-just give me another chance! I promise I’ll-”

She marched up to me. I pushed myself to my shaking feet, so I could-

She grabbed my shoulder and pushed me, slow but firm, backward. Reluctantly, I took slow, backward steps to avoid further upsetting her. “Please, just one more chance!”

She threw the shrine door open, then gave one final shove, pushing me across the threshold. Her face, still scarlet, faced me dead in the eyes. “Go home, Kochiya. And don’t come back!”

She yanked the door shut. For a good few seconds, I just stood there. Staring at the closed door. Slow, shallow breaths puffed white into the frigid air. Goosebumps smothered my skin. My teeth started to chatter.

Reimu had… rejected me. Completely. And, and I… I only made her angrier, didn’t I?

My fingers shook, then my shoulders.

I-I… I did need to leave. I screwed up. Kanako would be so mad when she found out why I ditched the shrine, and I didn’t even have anything to show for it. I-if I told her why, she’d probably just, just… I needed to be somewhere warm. Somewhere away from my shrine, from our followers, from people who knew me.

I need to go away… to somewhere.

[ ] Mountain hot springs. Warm and close to home, but secluded and hopefully quiet.

[ ] Nuclear reactor. It’s very warm and no one goes down there if they don’t have to.

[ ] Great Spirit Mausoleum. It’s a bit warmer than outside, and only sometimes inhabited by those Taoists.

[ ] Write-in.