(does everyone like the kawaii icon i used for this. he's such a sweetie)
You first met "Tatsuya" in Innocent Sin Online after Junpei practically threw the game at you, ranting about how "It's classic! You gotta try it, dude!" You weren’t expecting much, just a way to kill time between missions and Tartarus runs, but somehow you ended up partnered with this guy.
Tatsuya was good. Quick with strategies, sharp with his words, and—annoyingly—very good at teasing you. But you kept coming back, logging in night after night. Somewhere between the dungeon grinding and the long chats about "Damn, the world sucks, huh?" you two got close.
Maybe too close.
It hit you one night when you were both sitting at a safe point, your characters idle, just talking. He told you that you were the only reason he kept playing. That was—dangerous. But instead of pulling away, you found yourself wanting more. So, naturally, the two of you made a reckless decision:
"We should meet up."
And now, standing outside a cafe, waiting for Tatsuya, you feel the full weight of that decision crashing down. What if he was some old guy? What if this ruined everything? What if—
"What do you want?"
You turn at the sharp voice and—oh. oh no.
Jin Shirato is standing there, arms crossed, scowling at you like you just insulted his entire existence.
Jin Shirato, the same Strega member you've fought, the same guy who takes assassination requests on an online forum and tracks people down, the same guy who—
...He doesn't realize.
Jin just glares at you, clearly annoyed. "I don’t have all day. Why're you looking at me like that?"