Dec 22, 2024

Today was the day that Naomi and I would hang out! I thankfully woke up early and prepared for our day together. I got my Christmas gift for her ready and I was able to book a ride for her first. I was a bit nervous, and Naomi was definitely nervous to see me, I'm sure. Eventually, the car I booked arrives near my house and I see Naomi inside. I sit near her and she tells me she's about to cry. The reason behind it is sweet, that she's nervous but also happy to meet an Internet-first friend for the first time. We also exchange gifts while in the car and I take a peek into the gift bag she got me. I didn't bring out the items, though, but Naomi really liked the gift I had gotten her. She said it was perfect and it was the exact model that she was searching for, so that was nice. I don't think I've had seen someone show this much appreciation for a gift I got them in front of me, so this was a first. I notice that Naomi leans on my shoulder a little while on the ride there, which was kind of a surprise. Naomi and I keep talking in the car and she gives me cute Cinnamoroll fake tatoos, which honestly made me laugh. I don't think I have seen fake tatoos ever since I was a kid and the novelty of it made me laugh. We eventually arrive at Circuit Makati and we walk around for a bit while we try to find the rage room place. I took some semi-artistic, candid photos of Naomi while we were walking on the way there. After finding the place, we got in and I was surprised that no one but the barista/cashier was there. Regardless, they explain the package that I ordered and we get more bottles for our rage room session. In total, we got a total of 18 bottles and we stepped inside the rage room after putting on our jumpsuits. Naomi was the one throwing bottles first and I mostly recorded her having fun and getting angry. It was funny to see her try and smash some bottles. We were also given a crowbar to hit the tires inside with. It was a shock to me that a real, live crowbar weighed that much. It didn't seem like much in video games, but apparently it was heavy for me at the time. Naomi also smashed some bottles with the crowbar, which was honestly impressive. We also took some photos together, inspect the writings on the wall, and play some songs via the Bluetooth speaker. It was fun and I barely felt the 45 minutes pass by. We saw some interesting things on the wall and pointed it out to each other, and at the end we got a pen to write our names on the wall also. Once our 45 minutes were up, we went outside to remove the jumpsuits. We drank the coffee that was included in our package and it was nice. While we were drinking coffee, I opened Naomi's gifts and it was super cute. First, I opened and read a heartfelt letter and the other letter was a DIY pop-up bouquet card, which was adorned with pictures of Cinnamoroll. I find it really cute, but also really funny that my friends have consistently gifted me flowers. Additionally, she gave me a book, which was Jane Austen's "Sense and Sensibility" and I honestly wanted to laugh on the spot. Someone's favorite book was "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen and now I have another book, that someone also read, which was "Sense and Sensibility." Regardless, it was a cute gift and I appreciate the effort since it was the cutest gift I had received this year. We talked a bit more about a few things about life, then we left to go and eat lunch since it was around 12 noon by now. We get Naomi's screen replaced but we then notice that the screen had already cracked, which was kinda sad to see. But it's fine and we eat at Marugame Udon. Naomi didn't know what to get, which was funny, and I only ordered a regular bowl instead of a large one. I wasn't into noodles and the curry I wanted wasn't available. We get our food and talk about a few things, mostly what's their family's plan for Christmas and New Year's, and what their friends have planned. I'm surprised that I couldn't finish my meal despite ordering just a regular bowl. After that, we walked around, passed by a store that had some Cinnamoroll stuff, and we found Timezone on the 4th floor, upstairs. Naomi and I went bowling afterward. She told me that she's never really tried it before, but she was actually a natural at it. I was honestly impressed because her shots kept going into the middle of the lane. She really was close to beating my score, we had a gap of 2 or 4 pins and I was only leading by a small margin, despite being the more "experienced" player. Overall, I still won with a score of 77 to Naomi's 71, a surprisingly close match. We played some other games after that, like air hockey and I constantly beat Naomi there, but she also did really well serving the puck back to me. We then went into the karaoke booth to sing some songs. I was kind of sad that she didn't know the songs I liked, but it was fine and I just sang OPM pop songs that everyone knew. Naomi also sang as well, she tried her best with her rendition of "Satisfied" from her Hamilton days. I ended with Rico Blanco's "Antukin" which she liked and sang along to. After that, we tried some ticket games and took photos at a photo booth together. I only printed out one copy, though, and I gave it to Naomi. We claimed some of the tickets and they were for strawberry keychains that Naomi would give to her sisters. After that, I gave Naomi my Timezone Gold card as a sort of remembrance. We then walked around some more and we went back to that store so I can buy some Cinnamoroll keychains, and I also bought one for her that matched with mine. We walked around into this store and saw a Cinnamoroll notebook which she bought for her sister. Once that was done, we went downstairs and I ordered Starbucks for us. She tells me that it was her first time being in a Starbucks store, which honestly surprises me, and she doesn't know what to order. Naomi orders the same drink I get which was a strawberry acai with lemonade. We find a seat nearby and just chill there, Naomi also relaxed her head on my shoulder again, which also surprised me. It was still too early for us to call it a day so we just pass by some time on our phones. Eventually, I book a ride home for us and I set it to stop by Naomi's house first so that her mom wouldn't be mad at her. We booked a ride quickly and I send Naomi all of the pics I took throughout the day. While on the way to Naomi's house, she leans on my shoulder the whole time. It was cute, but at the same time surprising because I don't know what it implies. I just try to not giving much thought and keep my shoulder up so she could lean on it. After some time, we arrive near her house and she shows me the places nearby, including the high school she used to attend. Eventually, we arrive at her stop and she gives me a hug before leaving and thanking me for the day. It was just me remaining in the car and I take the time to look outside and process today's events. On the way home, I notice that the road started to look familiar and it was the same road I took a few months ago. I knew this road. This was the same road I passed through on August 31st and it was so, so eerie. In both instances, it was just me, alone in the backseat, thinking about what happened today and looking back on it. It is kinda sad that I'm not with someone anymore, though. I then chat with Naomi during the car ride home and she tells me that she "misses my scent" which was pretty cute but also really flattering as a compliment. The car ride home honestly took a long time, we even got stuck in traffic! It was so frustrating, the driver went outside to walk for a bit due to frustration. At the end, I paid him a tip and eventually got a lot of rest by the time I got home.