Promise
 | This chapter is exclusively available to members of Bittersweet Club International. |
| Promise | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Published | April 15, 2013 |
| Page count | 6 |
| Major characters | Mike, Sandy |
| Chapter navigation | |
| ← Picture Perfect | Family Comix → |
| Read in the BCI Members’ Library | |
Promise is a Bittersweet Club International-exclusive comic that drops in on Mike and Sandy back in their elementary school days, on Mike’s birthday no less. Their time together is running short, and before it ends, there is a promise to be made.
Partial synopsis
It’s Mike’s birthday, and Sandy reaches him before he can react. She barrels in with a hug and a shouted “HAPPY BIRTHDAY~!”, sending flowers flying from her bouquet.[1] Mike is still dazed and blushing as Sandy presses her cheek to his and asks about his morning. He tells her that his mom woke him with breakfast in bed. Sandy has also brought a boxed lunch with a salmon sandwich inside. Mike’s eyes turn heart-shaped as soon as he sees it.[2]
The two sit across from each other at a table while Mike eats his sandwich. Sandy watches with her chin resting on her hands, but her soft smile falters when she glances aside. Mike asks what’s wrong, and she quickly replies with a nervous “Oh oh nothing!”[3] She didn’t turn up just to feed him, after all. There’s a promise she wants from Mike before the day is over, and working up to asking is going to be the hard part...
Character dynamics
- Mike and Sandy: Sandy arrives with flowers and a tight hug, then gives Mike a boxed lunch she brought for him. Mike blushes when she presses her cheek to his and stares heart-eyed at the salmon sandwich.[1][2] In third grade, Sandy shared her salmon lunches with Mike as the two became friends.[4] At the table, Sandy watches Mike eat with her chin resting on her hands. Her smile falters when she glances aside. Mike asks what’s wrong, but she insists that nothing is wrong.[3]
Trivia & observations
- The whole story takes place on Mike’s birthday.[1] Veronica’s commentary on the first page of Mike’s Birthday dates his birthday to August 10.[5]
- Sandy gives Mike a salmon sandwich, prompting his drooling, heart-eyed reaction.[2] This reprises a scene in Unfulfilled Fantasy, where Sandy invites Mike to share her salmon lunch as their friendship begins.[4]
- Sandy calls Mike “Maishul” in her very first line here.[1] She uses the same signature nickname in the main comic’s account of their first meeting in third grade.[6]
Related chapters
- Unfulfilled Fantasy: Promise is set during the third-grade period recounted in this chapter’s flashbacks. Those scenes show Sandy sharing her salmon lunches with Mike as their friendship begins.
- Elementary School Sweethearts: Another BCI story follows Mike and Sandy near the end of their elementary-school years together.
- To the Top: Years later, Sandy looks back on the childhood she shared with Mike and says that she misses those days.