Ruka gulped. “Are you...not wearing any makeup?” she asked carefully.
Shijunana leaned away from her. “I am not. Is that an issue...?”
“A-A-A-Awaaaaaaah!” Ruka’s lips trembled as she started freaking out, and soon her whole body was shaking. “Unbelievable. Impossible! A high school girl going out without any makeup?!”
Shijunana looked offended. “I-I do maintain my eyebrows properly.”
“Y-Y-Your eyebrows?! That’s the bare minimum! It’s, like, basic etiquette or whatever! Except an etiquette teacher wouldn’t even bother bringing it up! Sheesh. Now I feel like an idiot for going all out with my makeup because I was so excited for today!” Ruka covered her face with her hands (without messing up her makeup, of course).
“So you were excited...” Shijunana murmured.
Ruka peeked at Shijunana between her fingers and saw a complicated look on her face.
Ugh, she’s super cute even now?! So annoying! So many feelings, and it’s all her fault!
“Change of plans!” Ruka grabbed Shijunana by the shoulders and turned her so they were face-to-face. “Shijunana-san, it’s makeup time! We’re going makeup shopping!”
“Weren’t we going to purchase clothes...?”
“Forget that. Just come with me once we get off the train, you damn natural beauty!”
“Was that meant as an insult...?”
Shijunana looked confused, but something about Ruka’s intensity seemed to make her stop asking questions and just nod instead.
After they got off the train, Ruka pulled Shijunana through the ticket gate. They headed into a huge department store connected to the station and walked past a bunch of different cosmetic counters before reaching the shop for a big brand called Corolle on the third floor.
Ruka asked about booking a makeup lesson. Thanks to a last-minute cancellation, an employee said she could fit them in soon. Shijunana kept fidgeting while they waited, and she looked like she couldn’t calm down with makeup products all around her. That made Ruka smile, but she couldn’t afford to right now. It was time to get serious about cosmetics.
There was a long table in the center of the shop with makeup stations used during lessons on top. Everywhere else was packed full of products. Lipsticks, glitters, tinted face powders, primers, foundations, blushes, eyeshadow palettes, eyebrow pencils, eyeliners, mascaras, perfumes, scented candles, essential oils, shampoos, hair oils, body soaps...
This brand’s been around for forever, so they have a ton of products. The whole place is classy too. Yup, feels like Corolle for sure.
“Do you use these products, Moriki...?” Shijunana seemed like she had to force herself to speak up because she couldn’t deal with this atmosphere anymore.
“Nah, I go with affordable brands like Willmake and Thenand. But sometimes I’ll use something pricier like Julia.”
“Affordable...? Julia...? Then why did you select this shop?”
“It’s your first time, so it’s best to have a pro give you a makeup lesson!”
“That’s a surprisingly sensible reason...”
“Hey!” Ruka tried to glare, but Shijunana turned away.
“Oh, and I had a feeling high-class stuff would be a good fit for you,” Ruka added. “Going all out with makeup like me’s one way to go, but you gotta learn the normal way first, y’know?”
“Are you really Ruka Moriki?” Shijunana asked. “You’re making far too much sense.”
“And you’re being crazy rude!” Ruka elbowed Shijunana in her arm.
A woman in her twenties wearing a black Corolle uniform came over and bowed. “Thank you so much for coming to our store today. My name is Orii, and I will be the cosmetics employee in charge of Shijunana-sama today.” As Orii straightened back up, the smell of perfume wafted through the air.
That’s gotta be a Corolle product. The scent is so nice...
“I-I am in your care,” Shijunana replied with a stiff bow.
Ruka noticed how nervous Shijunana was and rubbed her shoulders to try and loosen her up. “I’m with her, so is it okay if I come along?” she asked.
“Customers not receiving a lesson would need to stand. Is that acceptable?”
“No prob! I’m used to standing lots at my job,” Ruka replied.
Orii smiled at her. Ruka could tell it was only a polite customer service smile, but she still thought it was pretty charming.
“Shijunana-sama, this way, please.”
“R-Right.”
Orii led Shijunana to a seat in front of a big mirror. After making sure Ruka was there too, she asked, “Shijunana-sama, what products do you generally use?”
“G-Generally...? Well, um...” Shijunana muttered, and she looked around awkwardly.
She looks so helpless. Hard to imagine she’s a warrior who took down vampires and a bear... I better give her a hand, quick.
Before Ruka could, though, Orii continued. “I’ve tried silver myself, but it didn’t work well because of my base color. And your eyes look quite beautiful, Shijunana-sama. Which color contacts do you use?”
“C-Color...contacts...?”
She doesn’t just need a hand—she needs my whole arm!
“Orii-san, Orii-san,” said Ruka.
“Yes?”
“She’s not wearing color contacts.”
“Huh...?!” Orii’s kinda-natural-kinda-not smile started to look a little weird.
Color contacts were pretty common in makeup routines. Ruka often popped in a bluish-purple pair, and she knew some girls wouldn’t even go out if they didn’t have them in. That probably made Orii assume Shijunana was wearing silver contacts, but...
Sorry, that eye color’s totally natural!
“Sh-She doesn’t have contacts in?! Are you for real?!” Orii stared at Shijunana in the mirror. She seemed to be shocked enough to forget her job and her polite customer service voice.
Ruka thought that made her feel a lot more casual and friendly. “Wild, right?”
“Yes...! It is...!”
“And she’s not wearing makeup.”
“N-No makeup?! A-A-Awaaah!”
Orii’s flustered reaction was the same as Ruka’s had been back on the train, and Ruka gave her a big nod to show that she understood.
“My feelings can get hurt too, you know...” Shijunana said quietly.
Oh no. I can’t see her face because she’s looking down, but she seems so sad...
“Um, sorry, I went too far...”
“My deepest apologies for being so terribly rude...”
Shijunana still didn’t look up even after Ruka and Orii said they were sorry.
She’s really bummed. Time to get serious here.