Requiem of the Broken

Chapter 47: The First Step

Ochako paced around her bedroom in nervous agitation. She avoided looking at herself in her mirror, all the while Tsu sat on her bed watching her.

"I just... I just don't know what to do!" Ochako exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air.

"I've never been on a date, I haven't even considered the possibility since I was a freshman! I was half-convinced this date wouldn't even happen to begin with! Hell, knowing my luck some crisis will happen before we even sit down!" She said, running a hand through her hair.

Tsuyu couldn't help but laugh.

"It's not that funny! I could throw myself at Nomu with fewer nerves, but this...! What should I do?!" She said, turning to face Tsu, desperate for someone to tell her what to do.

"Well for starters you need to stop wearing a line into your flooring, then you can take a few deep breaths," Tsu said, still smiling but managing to get her laughter under control.

Ochako paused mid-stride and glanced down at the floor before smiling sheepishly. She took a few moments to take a few deep breaths, willing her tense body to relax. It helped a little bit, but not by much.

"Better?" asked Tsu.

"Mmm... a little," Ochako mumbled.

"Better than nothing. Now sit down so we can figure out what you're going to wear." Said Tsu, as she herself got up and went to Ochako's closet.

Tsu spent a few minutes combing through everything before setting a small assortment of assorted clothes on Ochako's bed.

"You don't have a lot of clothes," she said, looking at the small pile.

Ochako shrugged, "I grew up in a pretty frugal home, I don't buy a lot of anything, and what I do buy is more practical than anything."

She looked at the small pile before continuing, "You're right though, I really don't have a lot. I should probably go buy some more at some point." she acknowledged.

"Well, first off, what's your general idea for what you want to wear?" Tsu asked.

"Uhhh... well, we won't be doing anything fancy, but I refuse to wear anything with short or no sleeves," Ochako said. Suddenly becoming all too conscious of the burn scars stretching across the right side of her body up to her right shoulder. It was for this reason that Ochako no longer owned or bought any dresses of any kind.

Tsu nodded, took another look at the clothes then grabbed three pieces.

"Try this combination," she said, handing off the clothes to Ochako before walking out of the bedroom.

Ochako examined the pieces, then slowly changed into the set. She looked at herself in the mirror, she looked fine to her eyes, the tan blazer, with a gold-colored blouse, and blue jeans that had enough room to make moving in them easy. If she got into a fight, they shouldn't prove a major hindrance.

She walked out into the other room to have Tsu take a look. Tsu looked her over with a critical eye but eventually shook her head. "Not as good as I was expecting, but I have another set in mind already," Tsu said, getting up and walking back into the bedroom and picking out three more pieces.

Ochako changed out of her current attire, then put the new set on. Walking back into the living room, Tsu looked her over before smiling and nodding.

"Much better, ribbit," she said happily.

Ochako looked down at herself, she was wearing a viridian blazer (a present from Momo, that she never had the opportunity to wear), with a pink blouse and khaki pants that were a bit more open than the previous pair.