Curtain. Open.
Normal light-blue dress.
"Good."
Curtain. Slam.
Open again.
Same dress but with a ribbon.
"Also good."
Curtain. Slam harder.
Open.
Sweater + skirt.
"Cute."
Curtain. Now personally offended.
Open.
Frilly blouse.
"Really cute."
A flat stare that could freeze lava.
"You're useless."
Curtain. Nuclear slam.
She was gone for five full minutes this time.
Then the curtain slowly slid open.
Eve stepped out in a full bear onesie.
Pure white, ultra-plush fur that looked really soft.
Round floppy ears on the hood.
Tiny embroidered black eyes and a button nose.
Chubby paw mittens that made her hands look like marshmallows.
Matching paw slippers.
A little round tail that wagged when she shifted her weight.
The hood was up, framing her completely deadpan face—like a baby bear that had mastered existential dread.
The entire store went silent.
I forgot how to breathe.
My brain crashed and rebooted straight into maximum honesty.
"Eve."
She tilted her head, bear ears flopping.
"…What?"
"That is the single cutest thing in the known universe."
Eve blinked.
"The fluff-to-face ratio is criminal," I continued, voice shaking with reverence. "Those ears? Perfectly rounded, perfectly placed—engineering masterpiece. The tail? Tiny, wiggly, lethal. The paw mittens? I want to hug them until I pass out. The little black nose button? Itblooks so cute, like the ones you squeeze to make a squeaking sound. If you walk outside in this, world will be jealous in under five minutes. Grown men will weep. This onesie just broke reality's cuteness scale. I am not okay. I need to lie down. I need to write poetry. I need—"
Eve's ears and cheeks (the real ones under the hood) turned bright red.
Her blank expression cracked—just a tiny bit.
She tried to speak.
Only a squeak came out.
Then she grabbed the curtain with both paw mittens and yanked it shut so violently the entire rod bent.
From inside the fitting room came the most flustered, muffled voice I'd ever heard.
"…Take it back."
"No chance. That bear is perfection."
"…You're the worst."
"Bear Eve is the final boss of cute."
A paw slipper flew out and bounced off my helmet with a soft *ponk*.
Another slipper followed.
Then a tiny, embarrassed growl.
"…I'm not buying it if you keep talking."
"Please buy it. I need Bear Eve to exist in this world."
"SHUT UP!"
The curtain cracked open just enough for one furious (but still red-cheeked) bear face to glare at me.
"…You're not allowed to tell anyone. Ever."
"Too late. I'm commissioning statues."
The bear onesie disappeared behind the curtain again.
A second later a normal Eve stepped out, arms full of regular clothes, face perfectly blank again.
She shoved the entire stack at the cashier.
Including the folded bear onesie on top.
She refused to look at me the entire time we paid.
But the little bear tail poked out of the bag the whole walk home.
And every timeahe walked, it wagged, I swear I heard the faintest, happiest huff from Eve.
**Chapter 2**
**Episode 16: Eve's Fashion Show – Epilogue**
(≈730 words – shopping complete, now the rest of the day)
We left **Lunéclat** with eight bags total.
Seven normal.
One suspiciously fluffy and occasionally tail-wagging.
Eve walked half a step ahead the entire time, face blank, refusing eye contact.
The bear hood was stuffed deep inside the bag, but the little round tail kept poking out like it had a mind of its own.
I didn't say a word about it.
Survival instinct.
We hit the streets again for Eve's "rehearsal."
Street performer juggling fire elementals?
Eve stared until the poor guy apologized to the air and fled crying.
Haunted manor attraction?
Eve walked through every jump scare without blinking.
New course record.
Prize: a limited-edition ghost plushie.
She accepted it with the same expression she'd use to receive a tax form.
Magic shooting gallery?
We wiped the shelves clean in thirty seconds.
Owner begged us to leave and never return.
We left with an armful of stuffed toys and a lifetime ban.
By noon I was dead on my feet inside the armor.
We collapsed onto a park bench.
I leaned back, helmet creaking.
"I'm deceased."
Eve sat beside me, bags around her feet.
After a long silence:
"…Sorry. Probably boring for you."
"Nah. First time doing this stuff with someone. Wasn't bad."
She glanced up, surprised.
"More importantly," I said, "did you have fun?"
Eve thought about it, then gave the tiniest nod.
Cheeks pink.
"…A lot."
Good enough.
The giant magic clock chimed noon.
"Lunch?" I asked. "I'm starving."
"I know a place."
She stood—then hissed.
"――――Ouch."
A wooden splinter from the bench had sliced the pad of her right index finger.
Tiny bead of blood.
I raised my hand.
""Heal"—"
"It's fine."
Before I could finish, Eve calmly brought the finger to her mouth and licked the blood away.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
…
The world went mute.
My brain blue-screened for the second time today.
Eve noticed my stare, tilted her head.
"What?"
"N-Nothing! Food! Let's go!"
She shrugged and started walking.
I scrambled after her, trying to erase the image now etched into my soul.
We ate at a quiet rooftop café she picked.
She ordered salad and tea.
I ordered the largest meat platter on the menu and inhaled it in three minutes.
Eve watched me with faint amusement.
After lunch she dragged me to one last spot: a small accessory stall run by an old dwarf.
She tried on a simple silver hair clip shaped like a tiny star.
Turned to me.
"…This one?"
I was still recovering from the finger incident.
Honest answer slipped out.
"Looks perfect. Like it was made for you."
Eve's ears went pink again.
She bought it without a word.
Sun was setting by the time we headed back.
At the crossroads where we'd part ways, Eve stopped.
She held out the golden pair ticket to the Ancient Artifact Exhibition.
I reached for it.
She pulled it back an inch.
"…Today was fun."
Then she placed the ticket in my gauntlet, fingers brushing cold metal.
"Thanks for coming."
And before I could answer, she turned and walked off, bags swinging, bear tail peeking one last time from the top like it was waving goodbye.
I stood there in full armor, clutching the ticket like it was made of diamond.
"If it's not too much to ask, could we spend more time?"
Her voice was faint and we only agreed to shopping but I did not mind.
"Sure!"