Dead Ringer for Love

[skip-stop]

"You just need to get used to it!" Astrid confidently said to the words that such a treat was too sweet for the short-haired blonde.

It was just a joke of course. She was well aware that not everyone would like such an amount of sugar in food. Repeating after Belinda, the Norwegian woman pressed her lips to the tube and tasted her milkshake. It wasn't as sweet as the extra ingredients she asked for, but it still tasted great.

"Yes, yes, I know," she said quickly to the words that she should not rush into the afterlife. "It's just that if there's only mead, then I'll obviously start missing such things, huh!"

It was hard to tell if Astrid was really serious about it. But there was no doubt that she was enjoying Belinda's company. Astrid hasn't had a date in a very long time, especially one where she could be so relaxed. She didn't want this day to end. And, fortunately for her, Belinda still had questions, so their conversation continued.

"Oh, I like Japan!" Astrid said almost without thinking. "Of course, it's not like Norway at all, but I wouldn't say that I miss home." After taking a sip of her milkshake, Astrid thought a little. "I probably don't miss my home, only my parents and, perhaps, local food." She nodded as if confirming the truth of her words. "But I really like here, so I think if my career goes uphill, then I'll probably stay." Astrid looked at Belinda. "What about you? Are you planning to stay or is Japan just a transit base on the way to something else?"

[Devastated]

Belinda would let out a little laugh at Astrid's words, she knew herself that eating something that sweet wasn't anything she could get used to! She was someone who preferred salty things. There was always these kind of differences in taste, some leaned more towards sweet, others to sour...some to savory, but Belinda was someone who enjoyed that salty taste. Chips, fries, those sort of things were more to her taste than a bowl of ice cream! (unless it was salted caramel ice cream)

She was however having a great time right now, she was finding this little date of theirs to be most agreeable. She hoped Astrid felt the same way. Continuing their conversation, Belinda would get the question from Astrid regarding Japan and Belinda's plans for it.

" Hmmm, we'll I've been here for a few years already. Moved her right after high-school." Belinda mused for a bit, then after thinking about Astrid's question for a few more seconds she'd turn her head to her date with a bright smile. " I think I'm pretty much at home here. Maybe I'll go away on holidays or the like, but for the time being I'd like to stay here as long as I can."

[skip-stop]

Astrid had reasons to be sure that Belinda has been living in Japan much longer than she has, but the blonde did not even realize that her new acquaintance moved here right after high school. It seems that Belinda could be a real guide for her if they have a desire to meet again after this day.

"So in this our desires are similar," Astrid said after Belinda's words that she would like to stay in Japan. "Although, of course, it will take a lot of effort."

Life in Japan was by no means cheap. After all her MMA matches, the Norwegian woman had a good savings account, but if she bought herself a nice apartment here, then there would be no trace of her accumulation. Therefore, for the time being, she decided to stay on renting a small apartment. Yes, there was extremely little space, but the Spartans never needed amenities.

Therefore, she was sincere when she said that she would be able to stay in Japan only if her career went uphill. Wins, popularity, rating - all this greatly affects the funds coming to her account every month. Astrid was not going to live in a rented apartment for the rest of her days, and the idea of someday allowing herself to buy her own large apartment was an additional motivation for her.

"Do you date often?" Astrid asked, glancing slightly at Belinda. "Well, apart from when a crazy motorcyclist tries to run you over."

[Devastated]

Belinda smiled at Astrid as it sounded as if they both had plans to stick around in this country for a while at least. The foreseeable future if you will. The short haired blonde would nod her head at the Norwegian, " Well, if you need any help acclimating or getting used to Japan...just let me know! There are a lot of finicky things about this place. Paperwork that needs to be done and all that." Belinda tired to figure out if there was anything that Astrid would need to know right away.

"Oh right! Have you gotten a hanko yet? That will make your life a lot easier." Belinda said as felt that could be something that would make life a lot easier for Astrid here in Japan. Getting your personal stamp was a good step to getting everything underway in Japan and deal with all the paperwork and bureaucracy.

Belinda would raise her right eyebrow as she heard the new question from Astrid, a question about dating. " Hmmm....I've gone on a date or two since I came here, but nothing long term...you know?" Belinda joked a bit, it was true what she said though. In the years she had been in Japan she could only count two dates. " Not including crazy motorcyclist. Though judging by how this date is going, maybe that's the best way to find a date, almost getting run over that is." Belinda said with a slight smirk on her face.

[skip-stop]

"How nice of you," Astrid said without joking. "I'm fine with paperwork thanks to my manager, Victoria, she's a real juridical monster." Having said this, Astrid felt a small pang of conscience, because in fact, instead of a date with Belinda, she was supposed to meet with Victoria. "But I'm happy to take advantage of your offer, I'm sure you know many more restaurants with delicious food to show me."

The blonde is really lucky that Victoria has committed herself to all this paperwork. When Astrid found out how many different nuances there are in this country, a chill ran down her spine. The last thing she wanted to do was fight the bureaucracy. She was sure that there were much more pleasant ways to spend time.

"A hanko???" The Norwegian woman raised her eyebrow, and then thought hard, trying to remember what it was. "Aaaaaaaahhhh, a personal seal... my manager told me that it was better to deal with this as soon as possible, but, to be honest, I haven't gotten around to it yet..."

In fact, she just wasn't ready for life to start going so fast. First of all, Astrid was focused on her career and she was looking forward to every next match. The rest somehow dissolved by itself in the background. Even important things like a hanko.

"How lucky I am, huh!" Astrid said while a slight blush appeared on her cheeks.

Yes, the circumstances by which they met were very unusual. But she was genuinely glad that Belinda hadn't told her to fuck off after she almost run her over.

The blonde sucked in the last drops of milkshake through the straw, and then stopped to throw the cup in the trash. And then, when she turned her head to the side, her eyes involuntarily widened. Due to the fact that she was deep in conversation with Belinda, she didn't even notice that they had arrived at their destination.

"Oh, looks like we're here!" She said, catching herself thinking that she had never seen anything like it. "By Odin, what a magical place!"

[Devastated]

Belinda was fine with helping anyone out if they needed it, especially if she knew them. The fact that she so far liked Astrid only gave a bit more reason to want to help her out with the problems that could arise for living her in Japan. The amount of paperwork, and odds and ends that came with being a resident here which could be quite confusing or off-putting to people.

It seemed as if Astrid had all the help that she needed though, Belinda would nod her head in response to this, but it seemed as if Astrid still wanted her help when it came to finding things like restaurants and such. Belinda felt that it could be taken as a veiled attempt at asking for another date and smiled a bit, letting out a slight giggle.

"Ah, I wouldn't mind showing you some other good places."

Belinda would of course be a bit concerned that Astrid hadn't gotten a hanko for herself yet, but she would only really let out a sigh. " Well, you should get on it. It will make things a lot easier and simple for you. Would allow you to escape having to sign as much stuff and have to bring out your personal information all the time." Belinda exclaimed, life certainly was a lot easier with your own stamp here in Japan. She could still remember how difficult it had been to sign up to a new phone plan when she first moved here.

The Californian was still trying to finish her milkshake, as Astrid moved away to throw away her cup, which was when they arrived at their destination. It was a beautiful scene to behold. She would look over at Astrid, " That's really nice. Though any sightseeing will be better with good company." Belinda spoke out as she turned her gaze towards Astrid, she flashed a cheeky grin at the taller woman.

[skip-stop]

In fact, Astrid didn't even know how she should feel about it. In fact, there was nothing unusual about Belinda's words and actions. But Astrid's life turned out in such a way that most of the time she could only rely on herself. Perhaps that's why she didn't take her manager's words seriously enough. She thought that a seal was far from the most important thing that deserved her attention.

But the Swedish woman's words made it clear to her that she definitely should pay attention to this issue. Belinda tried to hide her emotions when she heard Astrid's answer, but the blonde was still able to notice that her new acquaintance's face had changed. This was a clear hint that she perceived Astrid as a rather frivolous person. So Astrid was determined to correct this oversight in the near future. But definitely not today. Not now that they were in such a beautiful place.

Astrid was literally mesmerized by the beauty of this place. And it was definitely proof of how little she had seen since she moved to Japan. It was so close... right in Tokyo. And if even here you can see something so amazing, what awaits her there, outside the city? As soon as she thought about that, Belinda reminded of herself, not forgetting to grin audaciously at such a big reaction from the Norwegian woman.

“Hoooooooo?" She drawled, taking a step towards Belinda and slightly looming over her due to the difference in their height. “Be careful what you say, Belinda, you never know when a person will stick to you like gum to the sole.”

Looking at that cheeky smile from such a close distance, Astrid had two diametrically opposed desires. To meet this woman in the ring. And kiss her. Whether it was visible in her lavender eyes or not, she just stared at the other blonde for a few seconds, as if wondering which of these two things would happen first.

“Will you do me the honor?" The blonde asked a little quieter than before.

With these words, she slightly bent her left arm at the elbow, offering Belinda to link their arms so that they could walk around this incredibly beautiful place.

[Devastated]

Belinda would tilt her head as Astrid approached her and loomed over her a bit, hearing the words of Astrid, well...Belinda couldn't help but tease her a bit. She would look up at Astrid and flash a light grin as she decided to say. " Careful now, It seemed to me like you just called me good company~" Belinda teased as she would give Astrid a wink of an eye.

As she and Astrid stared at each other for a couple of seconds, Belinda would be surprised to hear the more quiet tone which Astrid used next. She would blink a couple of times as she would shift her gaze down to the elbow that Astrid presented to her.

Releasing a slight chuckle, Belinda would shake her head. " Aha~ why of course." Belinda would link her arm with Astrid and with that she'd proceed to walk forward, walking around this pretty sightseeing area.

[skip-stop]

"I really did!" Astrid shrugged, then winked back at Belinda.

Everyone is capable of lying, but Astrid was not only one of those who always speaks directly, but she also had no reason to hide anything from the Swedish woman. She had absolutely not expected that the events of this evening would develop in this way, but she definitely liked Belinda's company. So why hiding it?

She was glad that the other blonde accepted her offer and chained their arms. Astrid took an imperceptible deep breath to suppress the blush on her cheeks, and then they began a walk along the cherry blossom alley. They had nowhere to hurry, so the Norwegian woman allowed herself to walk slowly, enjoying the view and smell of this magical place.

"I can't even remember the last time I spent time like this," she decided to confess. "You know, even before LAW everything in my life was going so fast that there was practically no time for such moments."

[Devastated]

Belinda couldn't help but find the earnest way that Astrid reacted to her comment to be rather cute, that along with the wink. It seemed to her so far that Astrid was a fairly straight forward person and she found that to be quite nice. The evening had been a pleasant one so far, even counting the almost getting run over by the taller blonde.

Therefore, Belinda saw no reason as to not link arms with Astrid as they walked along the cherry blossom alley. She let out a soft snicker as she enjoyed the scenery and also the slightly stiffened mannerisms of Astrid now that their arms were actually linked.

" You should take some time to relax. I know the life of a professional athlete seems like it has to go at 100 miles an hour....but if you don't take the time to cool off and relax every now and then, all you'll do is end up burning yourself out." Belinda let out, spouting her own words of wisdom. " At least that's the way I see it. So from now on, make sure to take a moment to relax and center yourself. Or else you might end up running over someone next time~" Belinda teased with that last comment.