Chapter 3
The rest of the week passed by in the blink of an eye. Before Berwald could object, Saturday morning happened and he was on the subway, alone in a sea of people, heading outbound towards Kenmore Square with a million worries buzzing in him like flies. What if he stands me up? What if he gets bored of me? What if we sit in awkward silence, any attempts at making conversation killed by my penchant for unintentional glaring?
The only thing his worries seemed to accomplish was to distract him from his journey, though, and before Berwald knew it, he was standing in front of the coffee shop, Tino waving at him from the window.
"Hey!" Tino greeted, slightly breathless, "glad you made it. Where are Mathias and Lukas?"
"They thought it was a good idea t' pull out and 'make it a date,'" Berwald scoffed before remembering his manners and adding, "sorry t' make ya wait so long."
"Not long. I just got here myself," laughed Tino, "Some friends, huh? Does that mean we're on a date now?" so we've skipped a step in the plan, but no biggie, he added mentally.
"Guess so," replied Berwald, the faintest hint of a smile stretching his lips. Silently, he thanked Lukas and Mathias for this glorious opportunity, missing the next thing that Tino said to him.
"..."
"What d'ya say?" he was surprised by how rough and harsh his voice sounded.
Taken slightly aback, Tino asked in a quieter tone, "Sorry. What do you like in your coffee? I'll go order it."
"Jus' cream, no sugar," Berwald answered, slightly embarrassed. Tino smiled, touched his hand, and went to the counter to order their coffee.
Berwald took the opportunity to watch him from afar. Tino certainly wasn't the most slim, nor was he the most built. He stood a couple inches shorter than most of the men around him, and nearly half a foot shorter than Berwald. But as he watched Tino ponder over coffee with a delighted look in his eye, he couldn't help but feel a surge of affection towards the other man. Bright and adorable, with just a pinch of naughty that kept him intrigued. He also couldn't help but envy Tino's self-confidence a little; someone with the balls to hit on Berwald the moment they laid eyes on him was to be admired. He smiled at the memory, dopey and sweet.
He still wore his dumb little grin as Tino returned with their coffee. "You're looking quite pleased with yourself," he quipped, noting Berwald's smile, "got anything good going on?"
Nothing much, Berwald thought smugly, just on a date with a cute guy. He simply let out a short "hm," and sipped at his coffee. It took Tino a couple moments to realize that Berwald had just laughed, then let out his own chuckle in response.
Scary, but cute.
XxX
Around the same time, Mathias pulled his SUV into the street side parking lot in front of the very same coffee shop, a sleepy Lukas and Emil nodding off on each others' shoulders in the backseat. Emil's birdwatching binoculars were cradled in the teenager's lap.
Mathias honked the horn. "Hey, guys. Wake up. We're about to do some serious recon here."
Rubbing his eyes sleepily, Emil picked up his binoculars. "It's 11AM on a Saturday morning. Normal people aren't even conscious at this time," he grumbled.
"I dunno if you've noticed, but Mathias is far from a normal person," yawned Lukas, pulling his hood over his eyes and drawing the strings taut in an effort to shut out the light that burned from the sky and into the backs of his eyelids.
Once again, Mathias foiled the brothers' attempt to sleep in past noon. "Wake up!" he shouted, snatching Emil's binoculars and pointing them towards the coffee shop, "there they are!"
Out of curiosity, Lukas's and Emil's heads snapped back to watch where Mathias pointed. True enough, Berwald sat by the window with his new boy-toy, but they were too far away for either of the brothers to see anything else.
Fortunately, Mathias was ready to give them a play-by-play of what was happening. "Okay. They're gazing into each others' eyes… Tiny whatshisface is leaning in… Holy shit, what a flirt."
Lukas swiped the binoculars from Mathias and held them up to his own eyes. "Berwald's laughing," he observed. He lowered the binoculars and repeated, confusion in his features, "Berwald's laughing?"
"Wait, I wanna see!" whined Mathias.
"Shit, really?" Emil took the binoculars and saw for himself. "No kidding!"
"Guys, give me the binoculars!"
"This kid is a miracle," said Lukas, "we need to keep him around."
"Please, Luke?" Mathias reached for the binoculars one last time, but by the time he got them over his eyes, Berwald and Tino had already left the coffee shop.
XxX
It was less of a formal date and more of a hand-in-hand promenade up and down the streets of Kenmore Square. Berwald mostly kept silent, preferring to enjoy Tino blathering on about pretty much everything he cared about. He chimed in a couple of times himself, too; after all, it was just as important to get Tino to know him as it was for him to get to know Tino. Thankfully, Tino seemed interested in what little he had to say, clinging onto every word with bright eyes and a cheerful smile.
Slowly but surely, Berwald could feel himself being charmed out of the shell he'd been hiding in. Just like that night at the bar, Tino had drawn him in like a moth to a light. He laughed at Tino's jokes and smiled at the energy the younger man seemed to exude. He even tried cracking a couple jokes of his own, which Tino laughed at despite how blatantly unfunny Berwald thought they were. He thought that Tino was just being polite until he casually joked about baked beans and the New York Yankees, causing the Finn to double over in crazy laughter.
It was then that Berwald knew he had to have this man.
XxX
Out of the corner of his eye, Tino spotted a wild patch of blond hair whisking into the sex shop up the street. It's familiarity overwhelmed him; he was so sure he had seen that hair before.
It only took a split second to realize who that hair belonged to.
I thought he was busy with something else? he wondered to himself, why is he following us around?
"Your friends have been following us this entire time," Tino whispered. His breath was hot against Berwald's ear and Berwald shivered despite the definite un-sexiness of his words.
"Th' bastards," grumbled Berwald, "Standin' us up only t' stalk us after."
Tino shook his head and smiled. "I'm getting the feeling that they're just concerned about you. They're good friends, if not really fucking weird in their methods."
"Still don't like 'em stalkin' us. What t' do?"
"Dunno. Call them out on it? Sounds like a recipe for some trouble," Tino said pensively.
Suddenly, an idea struck Berwald, nearly bowling him over. "Got it. We fuck with 'em."
Tino raised an eyebrow, clearly interested. "Oh? What do you mean by that?"
"Wild goose chase." Berwald's expression remained calm, but the excited shakiness in his voice gave his feelings away.
Tino slid an arm around Berwald's waist and leaned into him. "I like the way you think, sir!"
Together, they strode up the street towards Fenway Park, laughing all the way before taking a sharp left onto a residential street lined with apartments. Zig-zagging onto another street brought them back onto the main road, where they ducked inside a McDonald's and watched as Mathias, Lukas, and Emil passed by without another glance before ordering up a quick lunch of chicken nuggets and sitting in the very back of the restaurant. They ate and talked quietly, and after making sure the coast was clear, they resumed their walk down Kenmore Square.
Tino found himself relaxing around Berwald despite the intimidating demeanor the taller man put off. There was so much more to him than a large and angry drag queen; Berwald was funny, intelligent, and painfully adorable. All he wanted to do was get to know the man better, and despite his shy front, Berwald seemed receptive to his advances.
"Up ahead," Berwald whispered, motioning with a nod at the trio of figures standing confused in front of the shady sex shop a few doors down from the comic book store.
Tino chuckled. "Let them see us. Let's see what they'll do." He strode faster, adding a certain swagger with each step, as if to broadcast his movements to their spies. Berwald rolled his eyes in amusement.
"Y' look silly," he snorted.
"You're just jealous of my swag," countered Tino mischieviously. Berwald simply shook his head and gently punched the younger man in the shoulder, which earned him a punch back. They laced their fingers and continued walking.
XxX
Meanwhile, Mathias hadn't been thinking when he grabbed Lukas's wrist and hid behind the front door of Pussycat Playhouse, but by the time they'd made it out again, they had a new vibrator and Berwald and Tino were nowhere to be found.
"The hell…? I swear I just saw them pass by here…"
"Mathias. Babe." hissed Lukas, "this isn't working. Let's just go home."
"No way!" Mathias crossed his arms, his grin growing even wider, "As Berwald's brother from another mother, it is my duty to go all George Orwell on his love life. Call me Big Brother."
This earned him a smack from both Emil and Lukas.
"I have homework," groaned Emil.
"It's Saturday. Who the hell does homework on a Saturday?" answered Mathias.
Without offering the barest hint of a response, Lukas and Emil turned heel and headed towards the lot their car was parked in. Mathias trotted after them like a lost puppy. "Guys?" he whimpered.
"You can chase them on your own," Lukas said coldly, "Emil and I will wait in the car."
Knowing when he'd been beaten, Mathias shrugged and followed the brothers to the SUV. Maybe leaving Berwald in Tino's hands wasn't such a bad thing, for they looked like they were having fun.
XxX
As all good things were wont to do, Berwald and Tino's date had to come to an end. Morning turned into early afternoon, and walking around left the two men tired. Berwald walked Tino to his apartment building, altogether feeling excellent. It was almost like he and Tino had known each other since the beginning of time. Perhaps they'd been lovers in another part of history, thought Berwald, romanticism seeping through his brain.
They reached Tino's apartment too soon, and Tino turned to face Berwald, face dappled in shadow from the bunches of ivy surrounding the door.
"I'm not the kind of guy who kisses on the first date, but I could make an exception, if you don't mind," he said shyly. His cheeks were pinker than roses and Berwald wanted nothing more than to smooch them.
Instead, he mumbled, "I dun' mind," feeling his own face grow hot. Tino chuckled quietly and leaned up to peck Berwald's reddened cheek. Berwald couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed; what kind of goodbye kiss was that? Madame Susanne definitely wouldn't stand for leaving it at that! Go for it, Berwald. But ask him first.
"Can I kiss yer lips?" he asked.
"Ah! Yes, wow, I wouldn't mind that…" stuttered Tino. His face took on the color of boiled beets–bright red to the tips of his ears.
Their first kiss was chaste, nothing more than enjoying the feel of another's lips against their own. Berwald tentatively reached up to stroke Tino's fine hair, and Tino relaxed into the touch.
When they parted, Tino sighed. "We have to do this again sometime," he said, "I'm not just going to let it end there."
"I'll take y' to a Sox game next time," promised Berwald, "see y' soon."
"So long, handsome," Tino waved, "get home safely!"
Berwald made it to the T-stop before his composure broke into fits of laughter.
The first date was a success!
Addendum:
"You guys did that on purpose?" snapped Mathias, brandishing a mascara brush as if it were a deadly weapon. "OMFG, Berwald, you obviously can't date this fucker. He's a bad influence on ya."
Berwald simply snorted and reapplied his lipstick. He had Madame Susanne, his alter ego, to thank for today's success, and she deserved some fancy Mojitos.
AN: I s2g this was a very hard chapter to write because Sweden and Finland work so well together that they're just automatically in a relationship. Like, bam, I know everything about this person and I am irrevocably in love with them.
Anyway, I wanted this story to be a short, sweet one. I've got 3 more chapters planned out. We'll see how things work. ;)
Thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, faved, and followed!
Big kisses XOXO
