A/N: For an Anon who just made my day. I hope I can return the favor.
This had to be a mistake.
Even though it wasn't her idea in the first place, still, she had to take some of the blame in this. She agreed to it. She allowed Cherry to sign her up for that stupid blind dating site. She gave Cherry the 'OK' to pick the guy, make restaurant reservations, and set the whole thing up.
But now, standing before her was four guys, and one of them was her brother -and he was the only one dressed up.
Well, if you considered a dress shirt and his leather jacket all dressed up.
"Well," Cherry is the first to break through the awkward quiet. "Small world isn't it?" She smiles big and hopeful to the group of teenagers.
"Guys, what's going on?" Max asks with a questioning look on his face and there may even be a hint of sheer terror in his eyes.
"It looks like we accidentally set you up with Phoebe." Gideon states the painfully obvious, and it doesn't make either of them feel better. "Congrats, dude." He claps Max on the shoulder, before giving him a thumbs up.
"No, not 'congrats' do you not understand the severity of this situation?!" Phoebe whispers harshly and for once Max agrees.
"Yeah, I know I said I was in a dating slump, but I didn't mean hook me up with..." He can't even finish the sentence, and he shamefully sighs in exasperation.
"The questions we asked you matched you up with her, blame technology, bro." Oyster just shrugs, completely missing both Phoebe and Max's previous implications.
Gideon follows up right after with his two sense as well. "And it's not our fault she fit the description for your perfect woman."
With an indescribable look on his face, Max's eyes shift over to Phoebe, and it causes a spread of heat to rise to her cheeks.
"Well… can't you ask for a receipt?" Phoebe desperately pleads, wishing for this night to be over as soon as she walked into everyone.
"We already paid for everything and there's like a 'No Go Backs' policy." Oyster he says earnestly, and maybe Phoebe does believe that they did try everything they could do before it came to this.
"Besides," Cherry chimes in. "You two don't even have to think of it as a date, just two people eating together... in a candlelight setting... dressed all fancy... with violins playing-"
"We get it." Phoebe comments through a tight smile, ignoring the confused glances and simply pulling her chair out, sitting with her arms crossed.
All eyes focused on Max, trying to figure out how he was going to play his cards. He's just standing there, calculating, until he sighs and roughly jerks his chair out and plops into it. Their friends may take it as a sign of victory, but Max and Phoebe are seriously considering making new friends.
"Have fun you two!" Cherry waves over her shoulder before they walk towards the exit.
They watch them head out. Oyster has to push Gideon out while he mopes something about "wanting to be Max", and they're gone beyond the elegant rotating doors.
"...And then there were two," Phoebe blinks at her 'date', then looks down at herself and blushes furiously. What was wrong with her?
They ordered their food without so much as glance at each other. Phoebe refolded the napkin in her lap for the hundredth time, while Max drummed his utensils against the table looking around the fancy scenery. Waiting. Not talking. Time ticking.
Until, Max breaks through the silence. "Phoebe, what are we doing?"
Their food arrives and it distracts Phoebe for a few more seconds before having to answer a question she doesn't have the answer to.
"We're eating. Together." Stating the obvious, she cuts her chicken into little pieces before taking a bite.
Several more minutes pass as they eat, and between their silverware clanking against their plates and the overall chit chat amongst the other couples they don't say a single word. Phoebe may like it that way but...
Max has had enough of it.
"Why are you being so lame?" He stuffs a mouthful of steak into his mouth and continues. "Live a little and have fun... like this." His eyes wander around the room and Max uses his telekinesis to make their waiter spill wine down the front of a ladies' top.
"Max, are you crazy!" But he simply bursts out laughing, holding his hands up in defense.
"No, just brilliant." He's still cheesing like an idiot, before he stands up making his way over to Phoebe. "C'mon, let's get out of here."
"Where are we going?" Phoebe pauses mid bite and cocks an eyebrow at his sudden urgency.
"To have fun." He grabs her hand, before they duck under the receptionist desk and make a break for it. "If you're going to be spending the night with me, you might as well do it in style."
She doesn't protest and through the adrenaline rush of passing by security two guards and several employees, Phoebe thinks she likes the way it makes her blood pump extra hard. Max is leading them through a maze, and not wanting her to get left behind, he promptly laces their fingers and pulls her closer.
"Shh, this way." He's in her ear like a catchy pop song, and she bites her lips to cover her smile.
They overhear one of the waiters mentioning something about an "empty table" and a couple "not paying" and they make a mad dash for the exit. They're laughing, unable to contain themselves as they walk the night lit streets of Hiddenville. Still holding hands, walking side by side and even while they sober up and neither of them make an effort to pull away from each other.
Phoebe shivers and hisses against the cold breeze, rubbing her arms to provide some type of warmth. Max takes a small glance at her, before unlocking their hands and placing his leather jacket on to her shoulders. She gives him an appreciative smile but he doesn't look her way, and she links their hands again, walking wherever in a comforting silence.
"You know, we really didn't have to sneak out like that. I could have paid for us."
"Hey, what part of 'live a little' are you not getting?" He asks, eyebrows furrowed. "Jeez, Pheebs, it looks like I'm gonna have to break the good out of you."
"Oh?" Phoebe inquired, stalking closer, almost but just barely teasing him. "And however do you plan on doing that?"
Max casts a glance over her shoulder and along the trash littered streets of town, he sees the entrance to a club and the sounds of gurgled trance music creeping outside the packed doorway.
"That's how." He points behind her, and Phoebe spots the grimy looking club with ease.
"Max, are you insane?! We're nowhere close to twenty-one." She was back to feeling how she first felt the beginning she found out her friends set her up with her brother.
"Eh, seventeen, twenty-one –close enough." He reaches for her forearm in a haste, but Phoebe doesn't budge. They could get into serious trouble for this and he knows that. "This is part of the problem, this is exactly why I said you need to loosen up."
She's not convinced. Her chin juts out - classic Phoebe defiance - simultaneously with her hands flying to her hips. This is the Phoebe he knows, stubborn as hell.
"Look, Phoebe, we don't have to drink or anything…"
Her finger cuts him off. "Rules. No drinking, no fighting, and we stick together no matter what." She feels like a fool for meeting Max halfway, usually that ends in disaster but she doesn't want to ruin this night by acting like her usual uptight and high-strung self. "Deal?"
Nor does she want to admit that being bad is kind of fun.
Nope. She'll never admit to that.
"Deal."