Doraemon felt that things were back to normal or rather close to it. He had pulled out certain gadgets to comply with Nobita's requests like he used to, bragged about the gadget's functions and demonstrating them like he used to.
But it was not the same.
For one, Nobita's requests were no longer childish, selfish or ridiculous. Another difference was that he made his request because he had exhausted any other viable option of his own.
Still, he made his request the usual way: on his knees with a whiny voice and his arms flailing around to emphasise his point.
Doraemon managed to book the restaurant that Nobita wanted and even planned a route that Nobita should take to make the experience more romantic. He guffawed at Nobita's plans to make a romantic conversation and wisely suggested to keep it simple for a first date. Nobita agreed.
By Saturday evening, Nobita was confident that nothing could go wrong.
DDDDDDD
"Ohayo, Shizuka-san," greeted Dekisugi.
"Hide-san!" greeted Shizuka, her cheeks colouring slightly.
She had been spending that evening trying to figure out what to wear for her date with Nobita tomorrow when her doorbell rang. She had answered the door and to her surprise, she found the man on whom she had been crushing on for years standing in her doorway.
Dekisugi chuckled a little. "Good to see you again, Shizuka-san."
"You too," replied Shizuka, her voice a little higher than normal. "Please, why don't you come in?"
"It's all right, I won't be long," answered Dekisugi. "Actually, I was wondering if you were free tomorrow."
Shizuka felt disappointment in her heart and was about to answer that she had a date with Nobita but a dark voice in her head stopped her.
"Why?" was all she asked.
Dekisugi shuffled his foot a little, looking embarrassed. "Actually, I have reservations at this great restaurant and I really want to take you there. After that, maybe we could just hang out…"
He trailed off, looking at his feet.
In her head, Shizuka weighed her options. She had waited for what felt like an eternity for Dekisugi to ask her out and now that it has happened, it had to clash with her date with Nobita.
There were a few options she could take.
Suggest another time to go out with Dekisugi.
Cancel her date with Nobita.
Turn Dekisugi down.
She was juggling her options when Dekisugi looked up and gave her that million-dollar smile that always weakened her knees.
"So, what do you say?" he asked.
Hearing his voice and seeing his smile drove out all coherent thought out of Shizuka's head and before she knew it, she was saying 'yes'.
After Dekisugi had left, looking very happy, Shizuka went back to her room and laid on her bed. She was surprised at herself for agreeing to Dekisugi's invitation when she already had plans with Nobita. But then, this was the chance she had been waiting for…
The dark voice earlier began to talk in her head again.
Are you seriously going to give up your chance with Dekisugi for Nobita?
Dekisugi is charming, clever, polite and respectful. Nobita is nothing compared to him.
Screw Nobita, he's just a pervert who always peeks on you when you're bathing.
As the thoughts continued to run through her head, Nobita faded from her thoughts and all that was left was Dekisugi. She got up from her bed and happily prepared for her date with Dekisugi.
DDDDDD
-SUNDAY-
"So are you sure you'll be all right?" asked Doraemon.
He and Nobita were waiting for Shizuka at the train station. Doraemon had wanted to wait with Nobita, but the girl had not shown up yet and it was almost time for Doraemon to go to work at the old folks' home.
"I'll be fine, Doraemon," answered Nobita. He was dressed in a light green sweater over a simple red shirt and a pair of slightly faded blue jeans. His long hair was combed, parted down the middle, giving him an intelligent but slightly rugged look.
"You should get going, you're going to be late," added Nobita, looking around anxiously for Shizuka.
Doraemon nodded. He was about to leave , but then he stopped and embraced Nobita.
"Doraemon!" cried Nobita, surprised and a little embarrassed by the cat robot's unexpected actions.
"I'm sorry, but I'm just so proud of you Nobita-kun," said Doraemon, letting go of him and taking a step back, smiling up at him. "Today my boy becomes a man!"
Nobita laughed. "Shoo! You're going to be late."
Doraemon chuckled and took out the Take-copter and flew off, waving at Nobita.
Nobita waved back and returned to looking out for Shizuka. She was a little late…
DDDDDD
Gian prepared himself for his game, meditating a little to calm his mind and sharpen his focus.
Until one of his teammates snapped him out of it by clapping him on his back.
"You ready to kill the quarterback, Takeshi-san?" he said.
Gian grinned enthusiastically. "Not just the quarterback, but anyone with the spine to stand in my way."
His teammate laughed. "Then they'll no longer have a spine."
Gian laughed and stood up. He looked at himself in the locker-room mirror. He had changed so much over the past eight years. He was no longer flabby or round, but he was now extremely muscular. Where there was once a big tummy, six packs stuck out proudly. His slightest movement suggested raw, physical power.
"Admiring yourself? I thought that was my job," said an all-to-familiar voice.
Gian grinned and turned around. Sure enough, there was Suneo, as fox-faced as ever. His features were the same as ever, though slightly elongated. Plus, a hint of a moustache was apparent just beneath his nose.
Gian picked up his old friend in a crushing embrace and put him down.
"Glad you could make it!" cried Gian. "Are the others here?"
Suneo chuckled. "I'm the only one here so far. I heard Doraemon couldn't make it, but did you know that Nobita and Shizuka-chan are coming together?"
"Really?" said Gian, looking surprised. "Nobita finally got the guts to ask her out then! Good for him!"
Suneo nodded. "I better get going, thanks for the tickets by the way."
Gian waved off the thanks. "Just promise to cheer from the sideline every time a crush someone."
Suneo laughed. "I've been doing that for years."
And he ran off.
Gian flexed his muscles. The thought of his friends coming to see and support him sent a fiery surge throughout his body. He grinned.
He hoped his opponents had some good paramedics.
DDDDDDD
It was night by the time Doraemon had tucked in the last of the old men in the home. He left and looked up at the night sky.
He should be heading home, but he was itching to see how Nobita's date was going.
He put on the Take-copter and flew of to the Tokyo Dome.
Upon arriving, he was greeted by a thunderous roar from the crowd. He looked down to see Gian, roaring with fury as he crushed the opponents' quarterback.
Doraemon chuckled. "Glad to see he found some use for his strength."
He flew over to where he knew Nobita and Shizuka would be seated. Instead, he only saw a worried-looking Suneo and two empty seats beside him.
He landed beside Suneo. The audience, so captivated by the sight of Gian crushing his opponents, did not even notice a blue cat robot landing from the skies.
"Doraemon!" cried Suneo, looking surprised to see him.
"Suneo-san, where are Nobita and Shizuka?" asked Doraemon, raising his voice to be heard over the noisy crowd.
"I was hoping you could tell me!" answered Suneo. "They never showed up!"
Doraemon's eyes widened and he quickly flew off.
He took out the Time TV to locate Nobita and to his surprise; he found that Nobita was still at the station, alone.
He flew over there quickly.
He approached Nobita, who did not even look up as Doraemon neared.
"Nobita-kun…" said Doraemon.
"I called her, she said that she'll be a little late," answered Nobita tonelessly. "She does like to take her time in the bath…"
"A little?" repeated Doraemon incredulously. "This is more than 'a little', Nobita-kun! She very late! She may not even show up!"
"Don't say that!" shouted Nobita. "She'll definitely show up!"
However as he said that, Doraemon saw at once that Nobita didn't believe his own words. Behind those round glasses, Nobita's eyes were shut tightly and tears were falling from them.
Doraemon was now furious. Where the hell was Shizuka?
He took out the Time TV to locate Shizuka and to his fury, he found that Shizuka was walking somewhere with Dekisugi, having ice-cream!
He took out the Dokodemo Door and ran through it once, appearing in front of the very surprised Shizuka and Dekisugi.
"How could you! How could you!" shouted Doraemon angrily. "How could you betray him like that, Dekisugi!"
Dekisugi looked confused. "Betray who?"
"Don't play innocent with me!" shouted the cat robot. "You knew he had a date with Shizuka and you still went out with her! I thought you were a decent person! But I am shocked that you could be such a scumbag!"
"Hold on," said Dekisugi, looking very confused. "Who had a date with Shizuka-san?"
Doraemon paused in his rage, looking into the confused man's eyes. He saw nothing but genuine confusion there. Doraemon felt confusion mixing with his rage before realisation struck him.
He turned to Shizuka, his eyes wide with shock and fury.
"You…you…I can't believe he went through all that trouble for someone…someone…like you!" spat Doraemon with fury.
"Doraemon, what's going on?" asked Dekisugi, looking worried.
"Shizuka had a date with Nobita-kun!" raged Doraemon, completely beside himself. "She had a date with him tonight! Nobita spent hours looking for the best restaurant to take her to…looking for routes for a nice walk…and…and…"
As Doraemon continued to rant in his fury, Dekisugi's expression turned from confusion and concern to horrified before turning to Shizuka.
"Is this true?" he asked.
Shizuka looked away, staring at the pavement as though she had just discovered that all the secrets of the universe were etched into the stone.
"Shizuka?" prompted Dekisugi.
"It's true," answered Shizuka, her voice quiet.
Dekisugi breathed in quickly and took a step back from Shizuka as though she had suddenly just threatened him with a gun.
"Why?" he asked grimly.
"Because…I like you…" said Shizuka quietly.
Dekisugi cut her off.
"You made me hurt my friend!" he shouted and Shizuka cringed. "I…I'm shocked that you could do such a thing…I…"
He abruptly turned and walked away from her, through the Dokodemo Door. He quickly went to Nobita.
Doraemon had stopped in his ranting and was now giving Shizuka a cold glare.
Shizuka looked back at him and tried to say something but failed.
Doraemon just shook his head and went through the door. It vanished from her sight.
Shizuka collapsed to her knees and began to cry. What on earth had she done?
DDDDDDD
Dekisugi was bowing on the floor before Nobita, begging the other man's forgiveness. Nobita just stared at him blankly before standing up.
He touched Dekisugi on the head and muttered softly. "It's not your fault…it's mine."
He walked off into the darkness towards his home.
Dekisugi tried to follow him but was stopped by Doraemon.
"It's better if you leave him alone for now," said the cat robot quietly.
"I'm truly sorry, Doraemon," said Dekisugi. "I had no idea…"
"Don't blame yourself, Dekisugi-san," said Doraemon sadly. "It's not your fault."
"But…"
"Enough. It's best if you head home now."
Dekisugi tried to say something else but Doraemon quelled him with a look. He sigh and moved to walk away but stopped.
"Look after Nobita-san, Doraemon-san," he said worriedly.
Doraemon just nodded quietly.
What else have I bee doing?
DDDDDDDD
All the models from the year 2112 have been proven to have a certain flaw. This flaw makes them make erroneous judgments, poor decision making, unnecessary behaviour and poor overall performance.
The report ended there.
A man in a business suit read it quietly. His oily black hair was slicked back and his dark eyes simply stared at the report. His hands were locked together. An amethyst ring shone from one of his fingers.
"How many models were made in that year?" asked the man, his voice resembling that of an angry bull.
A scrawny old man in a white lab coat rose from the opposite seat to answer. He was completely bald and his clever little eyes were obscured by a pair of black goggles. His voice was high and reedy.
"Approximately 800, 000," he answered.
The man in the business suit snorted. "What are these erroneous judgments and all these other defects?"
"I believe it makes them behave more or less like humans…"
"They are not."
"That much is obvious, sir," said the scientist. "But it does interfere with their work functions…"
"So what do you suggest?"
"Total recall for reprogramming…"
"How much would that cost?"
"It is not yet certain…"
"Approximately?"
"14 million in US dollars…"
"No reprogramming then."
"Sir?"
"Recall and have them all disposed off."
"But…"
"Now!"
The scientist pursed his lips but walked out of the office to obey.
The man in the business suit looked at the profile of one of the products and snorted. He threw it down on the table before leaving the room.
On the profile of the product were the following details.
Date of manufacturing: 3rd September, 2112
Location: Matsushiba Robot Factory
Status: Operational
Product Class: C
Product ID: DRA 120903
It went out about the current owner, sales price and so on. At the bottom of the page:
Other aliases: Doraemon
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